British servicemen who, between them, have served in every major conflict since the Second World War have spoken about why Remembrance Sunday is so important to them.

Territorial Army Lance Corporal Mark Tarling, who has served in Afghanistan, Kosovo and Iraq with the Royal Green Jackets, said: "It's important to remember that if it wasn't for the people who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars, a lot of us wouldn't be here. We have them to thank for the safety of our country."

The commemoration ceremony began after the First World War, as Armistice Day, to mark the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when the guns on the Western Front in France fell silent after more than four years of warfare.

It became Remembrance Sunday after the Second World War, and now all those who have fallen in conflicts since are remembered during the two minutes' silence.

L Cpl Tarling, who lives in Bicester, and whose unit returned from Iraq without a single serious casualty, said that tomorrow he would be thinking of those who had been killed during the three-year conflict.

He said: "It's disheartening when I see on the news families who have lost sons and daughters and I think that it could have been me, and it could be my family grieving."

Sergeant Phil Houseman, who lives in Abingdon, was also in Iraq with the Royal Green Jackets.

He said: "For the guys out there, we had a job to do. It's only when you get back and you're sat on your own that you start thinking about what could have happened.

"When we were out there we were involved with a few of the services for the guys that got killed, ahead of them being flown back to Brize Norton.

"When you see that it really hits home. For me on Sunday, that's the image that will be going through my head. They were only young, 20 or 21. They had just started out on life."

Captain Martin Reed, from Chinnor, will be particularly remembering the servicemen who were killed during the 1982 Falklands conflict.

He was a Royal Navy Reservist and the chief officer of a cruise ship which was taken over by the Government to ferry troops to and from the South Atlantic during the two-and-a-half months of war.

Capt Reed, 63, said: "The actions of the people in 1982 not only granted freedom to the Falkland islanders but also directly led to a change in government in Argentina from a military junta to a democrat- ically-elected government. Two hundred and fifty-five people died, it is worth remembering."

Sgt Dave Roche, who lives in Jericho and also served in Iraq, said: "In the future there's going to be no-one left from the two world wars and I think the new generation should remember what their forefathers did."