Last Post

7 things you need to know about the Last Post in Ypres

• The Last Post continues daily, punctually at 8 p.m., regardless of weather conditions.
  
  
• The Last Post takes place under the Menin Gate, a 4-minute walk from Ypres' Grand Place.
  
  
• You cannot reserve a place. Get to the Menin Gate in good time so that you have a good view of the ceremony.
  Attending the Last Post is free.
  
  
• The buglers of the Last Post Association are in charge of sounding the Last Post. These buglers are volunteers from the Ypres Fire Department.
  
  
• Out of respect for the departed, there is never applause after the Last Post. The silence under the Menin Gate gives each visitor an overwhelming emotion.
  
  
• There is an opportunity to lay a wreath . Wreaths are for sale in the shop of the Ypres Tourist Office. A small wreath costs about 23 euros, a large wreath about 26 euros.
  Another option is through Royal British Legion - Ypres Branch.
  You can go to the CWGC Information Center to order an ecological wreath.
  You can also go to the local flower shop to order a wreath.
  If you want to lay your wreath, go to the Menin Gate around 7:30 p.m. and speak to someone from the Last Post Association. They will guide you further.
  
  
• There are standing room only for visitors. For persons in wheelchairs, stewards can reserve a place. Get to the ceremony in good time and speak to one of the volunteers.
  
  

Last Post April 2, 2020

Conduct of the ceremony.

A standard ceremony does not last long, about 5 to 10 minutes. However, parts can be added to the ceremony. Honorary guests may speak the Exhortation or the Kohima Epitaph. Wreaths are laid and sometimes (military) bands and/or choirs play a piece of music during the ceremony.
The ceremony is made up of the following parts:

• Attention
• Last Post
• Exhortation.
  They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
  Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
  At the going down of the sun and in the morning
  We will remember them.
• 1 minute of silence
• Wreath laying
• Kohima Epitaph
  This item is not a standard part of the ceremony. It can be added at a larger ceremony in the presence of several prominent people.
  
  When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
  For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today
• Reveille

Ever since 1928, the "Last Post" has been blown every evening at 8 p.m. sharp under the mighty vaults of the Menin Gate. This memorial, in the form of a Roman triumphal arch, bears the names of 54,896 missing soldiers of the then British Empire. Here the names are listed from the beginning of the war until Aug. 15, 1917. The missing from Aug. 16, 1917 to the end of the war, are listed on panels at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Passchendaele. There are an additional 34,957.

The Last Post is sounded every day at 8 p.m. and in all weather conditions by the buglers of the Last Post Association.

Last Post Association

The Last Post Association is in charge of the daily Last Post ceremony. This organization keeps the memory of the sacrifice of many men and women in World War I alive.
Volunteers lead the ceremony in the right direction. They show visitors the standing areas and assist those with difficulty walking.

If you want to lay a wreath, you also speak to someone from the stewards to make practical arrangements. Wreaths are for sale in the shop of Tourism Ypres.

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