Why do Britons wear poppies in November?

On Sunday, King Charles III celebrated his first Remembrance Day for World War I victims, donning the uniform of the Marshal of the Royal Air Force. This attire included a grey coat adorned with a red poppy flower. He laid a wreath featuring 41 open-style fabric poppies.

Every year, the British people commemorate Remembrance Day with poppies, known for being a symbol of the occasion. The red poppy flower became associated with Remembrance Day due to the famous war poem “In Flanders Fields”, written in 1915 by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian doctor who served in a field hospital during World War I. The poem vividly depicts how poppies grew amid the graves of soldiers in Flanders, a region in Belgium heavily affected by the war.

Deeply moved by McCrae's poem, Moina Michael, an American professor and humanitarian, decided to wear a red poppy as a symbol of remembrance. In 1918, in response to the poignant verses of the poem, she wrote a response poem titled “We Shall Keep the Faith”. This marked the beginning of her campaign to adopt red poppies as a symbol for those who died in service to their country. In her poem, she said:

“And now the Torch and Poppy Red

We wear in honor of our dead.

Fear not that ye have died for naught.

We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought.

In Flanders Fields.”

Thanks to Michael’s efforts, the red poppy symbol was officially adopted by the American Legion and the National American Legion Auxiliary. Her successful endeavors ensured that the red poppy became a widely accepted symbol in the United States and other countries.

Due to dedicated work, poppies began to be sold in Britain in 1921 to raise funds for the Earl Haig Fund, supporting ex-servicemen and the families of those who perished in the conflict. The first batch was supplied by Anna Guérin, who manufactured these flowers in France to benefit war orphans. The popularity of selling poppies led to the establishment of a British Legion factory in 1922, staffed by disabled ex-servicemen, to produce its own poppies—a tradition that continues today.

Various charities sell poppies in different colors, each carrying its own significance, and all dedicated to commemorating the losses of war. For example, white poppies symbolize peace without violence, while purple poppies are worn to honor animals killed in conflict.

The sale of poppies persists globally, serving both as a means of fundraising and as a poignant symbol to remember those who sacrificed their lives in the First World War and subsequent conflicts.