THE cold November sunshine glinted off the dozens of medals which proudly adorned the chests of servicemen and women marching through the streets of Barrow.

Communities like Barrow across the country fell silent at the eleventh hour to pay tribute to the men and women who gave their lives in service of their nation.

Two young buglers sounded out The Last Post following two minutes of silence which was impeccably observed by the hundreds of people crowded around the Barrow Cenotaph.

One by one families, veterans, serving members of the armed forces, politicians and the emergency services walked the steps of the monument to lay a wreath of remembrance.

Paul Casey, 50, of Barrow, served in the Royal Armoured Corps for 14 years and explained why he came to the cenotaph.

"I remember what my granddad did. Friends who have passed on exercise or active service. Taking that peaceful time to remember who they were and how they were," he said.

His friend David Stringfellow, 37, who served in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers for six years commented on the number of young people in attendance.

He said: "I was really pleased to see the young turn out. We were talking about how it is pleasing to see young families come to remember.

"It is not just about sacrifice but people who have ongoing suffering. It is really important to come here and be with the veterans that are still around."

Communities across south Cumbria were united in remembrance across the weekend. As well as Barrow communities in Ulverston, Millom, Dalton and many others stopped over the weekend to pay their respects.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What a sight. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RemembranceDay?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RemembranceDay</a> <a href="https://t.co/Uy97Pq29am">pic.twitter.com/Uy97Pq29am</a></p>— Jonathan Rees (@jreesNWEM) <a href="https://twitter.com/jreesNWEM/status/929663881974288385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 12, 2017</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

On the way to the cenotaph the Remembrance Day parade was escorted by the Royal British Legion Riders.

One of its members, Jayne Quinn, 59, of Windermere, said it was "essential" that communities rallied to pay their respects.

She said: "I'm the mum of a serving Royal Marine. It is essential that we do this every year. It is an act of remembrance not a commemoration of war."

Fellow biker Karl Millyard, 59, also of Windermere, served in the Coldstream Guards and Royal Military Police between 1974 and 1987. He said: "It is remembering friends that I've lost and the servicemen that gave their lives or that still suffer to this day."

Mrs Quill added that the RBL was always there to support servicemen and their families, young or old.

She said: "It helps to get the message across that it is not just about older soldiers. It's also about young soldiers.

"We are here for all. Families as well."