Knaresborough Castle: Knitted remembrance poppies adorn landmark

The poppies at Knaresborough Castle have been made by volunteers, including local school children

A remembrance display consisting of about 30,000 poppies has been draped around a castle in North Yorkshire.

The stone walls and battlements at Knaresborough Castle, near Harrogate, have been covered in thousands of the individual hand-made flowers.

Volunteers, including local school children, have created the poppies.

Alan Pitchfork, from the Royal British Legion (RBL), said: "We have to remember it is an act of remembrance as well as a spectacular show."

Mr Pitchfork, chair of the town's RBL, said he was "really pleased with the community effort" and everything had been building up to this year's poppy display at the castle to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the organisation.

"It has even surprised us how good the display looks", he said.

The Knaresborough Castle poppies are all individually hand-made to many different designs

There are 155 names on Knaresborough's war memorial remembering those men from the town who were killed during World War One alone, Mr Pitchfork added.

"Losing that amount of men from a fairly small market town must have been traumatic."

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Di Watson, one of the knitters, said some of the poppies were crocheted, some were knitted, but "all are different patterns - and together it's wonderful".

Primary school children have also contributed about 2,000 flowers made from recycled poppies and wreathes.

They will be placed on the bowling green at Knaresborough Castle.

Mr Pitchfork said the Royal British Legion having lasted 100 years was "an achievement in itself"

The main parts of the landmark castle which are visible today date from the early 14th Century.

It is where the murderers of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, took refuge after the infamous killing in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170.