The Meaning Behind the Red Poppy Pin in the British Royal Family

Every November, members of the British royal family are united in their choice of a meaningful accessory — a red poppy pin.

Kate Middleton, Prince William, Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, King Charles, Queen Camilla and other members of the royal family historically wear the pins each November, with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex even sporting the pin after their step back as working members of the royal family in 2020. When royal family members step out for Remembrance Sunday this upcoming Sunday, Nov. 10 — including, reportedly, the Princess of Wales — they will all likely be wearing the pin attached to their respective outfits.

Since 1921, the poppy has been used to commemorate military members who have died in wars. The red flower is mostly associated with the U.K. and Commonwealth countries for Remembrance Day on Nov. 11, and the poppy symbol is believed to have come from the poem “In Flanders Fields” by John McCrae, a poem about World War I. The opening stanza reads:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place, and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

In the U.K., the poppy pins are sold by the Royal British Legion to help raise money for veterans. Though less common, the U.S. also employs the poppy — the Veterans of Foreign Wars conducted the first nationwide distribution of remembrance poppies before Memorial Day in 1922, and the American Legion Auxiliary distributes paper poppies in exchange for donations around both Memorial Day in May and Veterans Day in November.

November historically sees members of the royal family taking part in several events honoring military personnel, culminating in Remembrance Sunday — otherwise known as the National Service of Remembrance — on Nov. 10 this year. The family will gather for a service at The Cenotaph war memorial in London’s Whitehall, where they will take part in a solemn ceremony with a two-minute silence, laying of poppy wreaths and a ceremonial march past thousands of veterans.

Remembrance Sunday takes place on the second Sunday of November every year and is a national commemoration to remember the members of the Armed Forces across the U.K. and Commonwealth who lost their lives in conflict or war.

As she continues her gradual return to royal work since announcing on Sept. 9 that she had completed chemotherapy, Princess Kate, 42, is expected to be at Remembrance Sunday this weekend. In 2022, Kate shared a special moment with a boy named Akeem during a visit to Colham Manor Children’s Centre that Nov. 9. Kate undertook the engagement on behalf of the Maternal Mental Health Alliance, which she serves as patron.

“My name is Catherine,” she told Akeem, kneeling to speak face-to-face with the boy, then 3, after he asked her what her name was. “Okay,” Akeem replied simply, prompting laughter from the crowd assembled.

After Akeem showed an interest in Kate’s poppy pin, she offered to give it to him. “Do you know what this is for?” she asked as she took the pin off her coat. “It’s for remembering all the soldiers who died in the war. There you go — that’s for you.”

Even after relocating from the U.K. to the U.S. in 2020, Meghan, 43, and Harry, 40, have continued to wear the symbolic accessory. In 2021, Meghan wore a poppy pin while speaking at The New York Times DealBook Summit that November. That same month, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex both sported poppy pins during a glam appearance at the Salute to Freedom gala.

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Last year, Meghan and Harry both sported poppy pins during a surprise outing in San Diego in support of Navy SEALs, and Meghan wore the pin again while grabbing lunch with friend Kelly McKee Zajfen at Pane e Vino in Santa Barbara.

This year, as the Princess of Wales’ attendance is up in the air, so too is Queen Camilla’s as she recovers from a chest infection. The palace said that the Queen hoped to be able to attend the royal family’s Remembrance events this weekend after missing a Remembrance event on Nov. 7 at Westminster Abbey.