Cambridge Remembrance Sunday: 8 November, Hills Road, 11am

Remembrance Sunday 2026 falls on 8 November. In Cambridge it is marked in two places at once: a parade and wreath-laying at the war memorial on Hills Road, and the county, city and University service at Great St Mary’s Church. Both stop for the two-minute silence at 11am.

The quick answer

• Remembrance Sunday: Sunday 8 November 2026. Gather shortly before 11am for the parade to the Hills Road war memorial.
• Church service: Great St Mary’s, with radio coverage from 10.30am in past years.
• Armistice Day: Wednesday 11 November, two-minute silence at 11am outside the Guildhall on Market Square.

Cambridge City Council has not yet published its 2026 arrangements. Everything below the dates comes from its announcements for 2025 and 2024, which followed the same pattern both years.

What happens at the war memorial

The civic service is held at the Cambridge War Memorial on Hills Road, at the junction with Station Road. In 2025 the Mayor met veterans and military personnel “shortly before 11am” ahead of a parade to the memorial. In 2024 the council gave the route: the procession went from Station Road to the war memorial on Hills Road.

At the memorial there is a commemorative service and wreaths are laid. Representatives of the Armed Forces, the police and the Royal British Legion take part, alongside the Mayor, the Deputy Lieutenant for Cambridgeshire, the city’s MP and council leaders.

The council’s report on the 2024 service describes what to expect: hundreds of people gathered at the memorial, a councillor led the procession on bagpipes, a bugler from Waterbeach Brass played the Last Post before the silence, and the silence was followed by hymns, music and speeches before the wreath was laid.

It is a public event and nobody needs a ticket to stand at the memorial. Hills Road is one of the main routes to the station, so arrive early if you want to see the parade arrive.

The service at Great St Mary’s

At the same time, the Deputy Mayor joins a procession to what the council calls “the county, city and University of Cambridge’s annual service of remembrance” at Great St Mary’s, the University Church on King’s Parade. The church service also pauses for the national silence at 11am.

If you cannot get there, the service has been broadcast live from 10.30am in each of the last two years, on Cambridge 105 Radio in 2024 and Cambridge Radio in 2025.

Armistice Day: Wednesday 11 November

Armistice Day is marked separately on 11 November itself, which this year is a Wednesday. The council observes a two-minute silence outside the Guildhall on Market Square at 11am. In 2025 that included a short piece on the bagpipes played from the Guildhall balcony; in 2024 it was a speech followed by the silence.

Dates at a glance

What is still to be confirmed

• The exact gathering time and parade route for 2026.
• Who will lead each service. The 2026/27 Mayor will lead at Hills Road and the Deputy Mayor at Great St Mary’s, if the pattern holds.
• Whether the Great St Mary’s service is broadcast again, and on which station.
• Any road closures on Hills Road and Station Road. The council has not published a traffic order for the parade in either of the last two years.

The council announced the arrangements on 6 November last year and on 8 November the year before, so expect this year’s in the first week of November. This page will be updated then.

Getting into town that morning: see our parking in Cambridge and Cambridge roadworks and travel pages. The same week, the city’s Fireworks Night is on Thursday 5 November.

Sources

• Cambridge City Council, Civic events to mark Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day in Cambridge, 6 November 2025
• Cambridge City Council, Civic events to mark Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day in Cambridge, 8 November 2024
• Cambridge City Council, Civic events marked Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day in Cambridge, 11 November 2024