Warwick’s Lord Leycester set to mark Remembrance Day with display featuring over 600 handmade poppies

The display will be launched on Tuesday November 5, where visitors can see the artwork by purchasing a standard admission ticket to the historic attraction.

The Lord Leycester, in High Street, will mark Remembrance Day this year with a display of more than 600 ceramic poppies in the half-timbered medieval courtyard of the recently-restored Grade I Listed building.

The team at the Lord Leycester sought the help of local artist, Lottie Wilson, to craft the clay poppies for the display, with the help of children from Westgate Primary School and Warwick Cub Scouts.

A series of free drop-in workshops will also be held at the site for members of the public to contribute to the display by making their own handmade poppy on November 1 and 2.

The location of this poppy display is fitting given the Lord Leycester’s rich military history.

It has been a home to ex-servicemen and women since it was founded in 1571 by Robert Dudley, Earl of Leycester, to care for deserving soldiers known as ‘Brethren’, who fought in the wars of the Tudor age during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

The community of Master and Brethren at the Lord Leycester has endured for over 450 years and continues to this day.

The Master and Brethren of the Lord Leycester have all served in the Army, Navy or Air Force, with more than 450 servicemen and women calling the medieval half-timbered buildings home since the charity was founded.

Warwick residents will be accustomed to seeing the Brethren wearing their Elizabethan robes while welcoming visitors at the main gates to this historic attraction on the town’s West Gate.

Artist Lottie Wilson said: “I’m really excited to be working with the Lord Leycester on this community project and art installation.

"It’s a privilege to share creative skills with my local community and to make time and space for conversations about Remembrance Day.

"Each poppy made will be wholly unique – just like the people making them! I hope that the poppies serve as a sincere tribute and that the public enjoy the installation.”

The historic site has recently undergone a £5 million transformation funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players and in partnership with other national and local community donors.

For more information and to buy tickets, go to: https://www.lordleycester.com/