Accompanied by the Duke of York, the 98-year-old great-grandmother joined 2,000 ex-service men and women outside Westminster Abbey, London.

It is an event which the Queen Mother has only missed once since the end of World War II.

The Queen Mother, who had a second hip replacement operation 10 months ago, held her usual walking stick, but carried it above the ground for much of the time.

Dressed in a black hat and a black coat decorated with two poppies, the Queen Mother shared war service memories with many people in the crowd.

The Queen Mother added her own personal cross to the Field of Remberance

She then placed a small cross next to a lawn planted with thousands of other crosses bearing Royal British Legion poppies in memory of those who died in this century's wars.

A traditional two-minute silence was observed after the Last Post was sounded by two trumpeters on the roof of St Margaret's Church, next to the Abbey.