Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson has called on people in Northern Ireland to join with the rest of the Nation in the forthcoming commemorations of the centenary of the start of the First World War.

Mr Nicholson said:

“This weekend marks one hundred years since the outbreak of the First World War. On 1st August 1914 Germany declared war on Russia, on the 3rd it declared war on France and on August 4th Britain declared war on Germany.

“The First World War saw warfare on a scale hitherto unimagined in human history, unleashing unprecedented death, destruction and misery. At its end tens of millions of lives had been lost, much of Europe was devastated, three Empires had fallen and many new nation states emerged in central and eastern Europe in particular and bringing about major social change.   

“Men rallied to the British cause from throughout the British Isles and from every corner of the Empire. We in Northern Ireland have long had cause to remember the sacrifice and the suffering of those Ulstermen - the vast majority of them members of Carson’s Army - who joined the 36th Ulster Division and were sent to France to face the slaughter of the Somme on 1st July 1916.

“We should also pause to remember the courage and service of the 10th and 16th Irish Divisions, who also donned British uniforms and served on the Western Front and other theatres of War.

“I warmly welcome Thursday’s service at Glasnevin in Dublin where, in the presence of the Duke of Kent and the Northern Ireland Secretary of State Theresa Villiers, the Republic’s President, Michael D Higgins dedicated a cross of sacrifice and paid tribute to the estimated 200,000 Irish born soldiers who gallantly served in the British forces between 1914-1918, of whom almost a quarter lost their lives.

“This is part of a shared history between all of us on the island of Ireland and our neighbours in Great Britain, harking back to a time when we all lived under the one Flag and our forefathers fought and suffered together under it.

“One hundred years on from the outbreak of the Great War I believe it is appropriate that we pause to remember all those who served, at home or abroad.”