The Queen led the nation in honouring members of the armed forces killed in conflict as Remembrance Sunday services took place around the country today.
The monarch laid the first wreath at the Cenotaph in London's Whitehall to commemorate those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the decades since the First World War, bowing her head after paying her respects.
Senior royals, including Second World War veteran the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge joined politicians, military leaders, veterans and serving personnel in laying wreaths of poppies at the monument.
Prime Minister David Cameron described this year's Remembrance Sunday as "particularly poignant" as 2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings and the end of Britain's 13-year conflict in Afghanistan.
Millions across the UK fell silent in tribute to those lost in war, joining the crowds gathered in central London who stood in a moment of quiet contemplation as Big Ben struck 11am.
Amid heightened fears of a terror attack, there was a large police presence at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, with a helicopter hovering above the site before the ceremony.
At the heart of the service was a two-minute silence, marked at the beginning and end by the firing of a round by the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, using a 13-pounder First World War gun.
At the end of the silence, buglers of the Royal Marines sounded the last post.
In cool and overcast conditions, the royals and dignitaries then laid their wreaths at the Cenotaph.
Kate Middleton, The Duchess of Cambridge and Duchess of Cornwall watched from the Foreign Office balcony.
The Queen wore a long black coat and hat and carried a black handbag during the service, while the Duke of Edinburgh, who joined the Royal Navy in 1939, wore the uniform of an Admiral of the Fleet for the ceremony.
Remembrance Sunday 2014
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Open Image ModalThe London eye is lit up red reflected in the river Thames in the early morning on Remembrance Sunday. (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalWar veterans parade, one holding a poppy wreath, at the Cenotaph during the Remembrance Sunday ceremony. (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Open Image Modal Veterans assemble for the annual Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph. (credit:Chris Jackson via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalVeterans of the Guards Parachute Company Pathfinders stand by the Guards Memorial in Horse Guards ahead of the Remembrance Sunday ceremony at The Cenotaph. (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalPrince William, Duke of Cambridge lays a wreath at the annual Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph. (credit:Chris Jackson via Getty Images)
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Open Image Modal Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attends the annual Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph. (credit:Chris Jackson via Getty Images)
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Open Image Modal(L-R) Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and Britain's Sophie, Countess of Wessex, watch proceedings from a balcony. (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalChancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, Labour leader Ed Miliband, Tony Blair, Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, John Major and Prime Minister David Cameron. (credit:Chris Jackson via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalQueen Elizabeth II bows her head as she leads the Remembrance Sunday ceremony. (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalA young boy is helped after collapsing at the annual Remembrance Sunday Service. (credit:Chris Jackson via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalThe Queen leading the annual Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph memorial. (credit:Harland Quarrington DDC/Head Office Chief Photographer/MoD/Crown Copyright)
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Open Image ModalMembers of Scotland's armed forces and veterans gather to commemorate and pay respect to the sacrifice of service men and women who fought in the two World Wars and subsequent conflicts on November 09, 2014 in Fort William. (credit:Jeff J Mitchell via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalPolice armoured vehicles block access to Parliament Square during Remembrance Sunday. (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalA veteran salutes during the ceremony in Fort William. (credit:Jeff J Mitchell via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalPolice make a security check on a vehicle entering Horse Guards ahead of Remembrance Sunday at the Cenotaph. (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalVeteran Gurkhas walk through Horse Guards to attend Remembrance Sunday. (credit:Peter Macdiarmid via Getty Images)
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Open Image ModalUK forces holding a Remembrance Service at Kandahar Air Base in Afghanistan. (credit:Corporal Andrew Morris (RAF)/MoD/Crown copyright)
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Open Image Modal (credit:Corporal Andrew Morris (RAF)/MoD/Crown copyright)
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Open Image ModalVisitors walk along poppy wreaths laid at the base of the Cenotaph during the Remembrance Day to commemorate and pay respect to those who have died in the name of peace since the end of the First World War, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Open Image ModalIsraeli military honor guards attend a Remembrance Day ceremony to honour war veterans who fought in the British Armed Forces during the World Wars and to commemorate 100 years since start of World War I, at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in the central Israeli town of Ramla. (credit:Oded Balilty/AP)
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Open Image ModalIsraeli military honour guards attend the ceremony. (credit:Oded Balilty/AP)