English: Remembrance belongs to us all. It does so because we are all beneficiaries of what past generations secured on our behalf: freedom. The freedom we enjoy now would not have been possible without the sacrifice of those who let go of their freedom. At a time when our society remains more fragmented and anxious than any of us could have thought and would want, remembrance is something we can share as members of society. British troops fought alongside soldiers from across the Commonwealth, including 1.5 million Indian soldiers, 40,000 of them Muslims from present Pakistan, and most people are still unaware that Muslims fought for Britain in world war one. This shared history should play a huge role in the integration of cultures that at present struggle to be reconciled. The Remember Together initiative brings people together to learn about the multi-ethnic, multifaith armies of world war one, and to understand what remembering our history can mean for identity and for belonging in our society today. When we commemorate battles past, for courage, sacrifice and loss, we think of all those who answered the call to defend freedom from tyranny, people who, despite their differences, had one thing in common - their shared humanity. Human existence and survival are not just conditional on the individual and the community but the developing relationship between the individual and society, which provides the real source of enlightenment for both and helps humanity to thrive. As an individual you can't attain perfection unless you are part of the community, where so much is to be gained. As a retired surgeon, I am reminded at this time of year of the contribution of our doctors and nurses in a time of war. The first world war was the first truly industrial conflict in human history, a conflict that, over four years, would leave over 750,000 British troops dead, with a further 1.6 million injured, the majority with orthopaedic injuries. Against this backdrop, the skills of the orthopaedic surgeon were brought to the fore. Millions died and millions more were left disabled. Faced with such carnage, the medical profession did, indeed, respond magnificently. Two Welshmen were responsible for one of the most important advances, the Thomas splint, which is still used in war zones today. It was invented in the late nineteenth century by pioneering surgeon Hugh Owen Thomas of Liverpool, often described as the father of British orthopaedics, born in Anglesey to a family of bone setters. But it was his surgeon nephew Robert Jones, later Sir Robert, who as a major general inspector of orthopaedics in the military, was mainly responsible for rolling out its use on the battlefield in the first world war and became a father figure of British orthopaedic surgery. He had established a hospital in Oswestry before the war with Agnes Hunt. In the fullness of time, the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital would become recognised as a centre of orthopaedic excellence. In 1914, 80 per cent of soldiers with broken thigh bones died. The use of the Thomas splint meant that, by 1916, 80 per cent of soldiers suffering that injury survived. With hundreds of thousands of injured soldiers returning home, the first world war also led to a new emphasis on rehabilitation and continuing care. There were huge advances in prosthetic limb technology to meet the needs of hundreds of thousands of amputees. The system of healthcare was overwhelmed but new capacity was built. The first world war is remembered for so much - for liberty and freedom, for life without the risk of aggression. For me as a surgeon, it is also about what others did to treat and support those who fought and were injured. So, today I wanted to acknowledge this and say with pride that we will all remember you. Thank you.
Welsh: Mae cofio yn perthyn i ni i gyd. Mae hynny oherwydd ein bod ni i gyd yn elwa ar yr hyn a sicrhaodd cenedlaethau'r gorffennol ar ein rhan ni: rhyddid. Ni fyddai'r rhyddid yr ydym ni'n ei fwynhau nawr wedi bod yn bosibl heb aberth y rhai a wnaeth ollwng gafael ar eu rhyddid. Ar adeg pan fo ein cymdeithas yn parhau i fod yn fwy tameidiog a phryderus nag y gallai unrhyw un ohonom ni fod wedi ei feddwl nac y byddem ni'n ei ddymuno, mae cofio yn rhywbeth y gallwn ni ei rannu fel aelodau o gymdeithas. Gwnaeth milwyr Prydain ymladd ochr yn ochr â milwyr o bob rhan o'r Gymanwlad, gan gynnwys 1.5 miliwn o filwyr o India, 40,000 ohonyn nhw'n Fwslimiaid o Bacistan bresennol, ac mae'r rhan fwyaf o bobl yn dal i fod yn anymwybodol bod Mwslimiaid wedi ymladd dros Brydain yn y Rhyfel Byd Cyntaf. Dylai'r hanes cyffredin hwn chwarae rhan enfawr yn y broses o integreiddio diwylliannau sydd ar hyn o bryd yn ei chael hi'n anodd eu cysoni. Mae'r fenter Cofio Gyda'n Gilydd yn dod â phobl at ei gilydd i ddysgu am fyddinoedd aml-ethnig, aml-ffydd y Rhyfel Byd Cyntaf, ac i ddeall beth all cofio ein hanes ei olygu i hunaniaeth ac am berthyn yn ein cymdeithas heddiw. Pan fyddwn ni'n coffáu brwydrau yn y gorffennol, am y dewrder, yr aberth a'r golled, rydym ni'n meddwl am bawb a atebodd yr alwad i amddiffyn rhyddid rhag gormes, pobl a oedd, er gwaethaf eu gwahaniaethau, ag un peth yn gyffredin - eu dynoliaeth gyffredin. Nid yw bodolaeth a goroesiad dynol yn amodol ar yr unigolyn a'r gymuned yn unig, ond hefyd y berthynas sy'n datblygu rhwng yr unigolyn a'r gymdeithas, sy'n darparu gwir ffynhonnell oleuedigaeth i'r ddau ac sy'n helpu'r ddynoliaeth i ffynnu. Fel unigolyn, ni allwch chi gyflawni perffeithrwydd oni bai eich bod chi'n rhan o'r gymuned, lle mae cymaint i'w ennill. Fel llawfeddyg sydd wedi ymddeol, caf fy atgoffa ar yr adeg hon o'r flwyddyn am gyfraniad ein meddygon a'n nyrsys mewn cyfnod o ryfel. Y rhyfel byd cyntaf y rhyfel gwirioneddol ddiwydiannol cyntaf mewn hanes dynol, rhyfel a fyddai, dros bedair blynedd, yn arwain at farwolaeth dros 750,000 o filwyr Prydain, ac anafu 1.6 miliwn arall, a'r mwyafrif ag anafiadau orthopedig. Yn y cyd-destun hwn, daeth sgiliau'r llawfeddyg orthopedig i'r amlwg. Bu farw miliynau a chafodd miliynau eraill eu gadael yn anabl. Yn wyneb lladdfa o'r fath, fe wnaeth y proffesiwn meddygol, yn wir, ymateb yn wych. Dau Gymro oedd yn gyfrifol am un o'r datblygiadau pwysicaf, sef sblint Thomas, sy'n dal i gael ei ddefnyddio mewn ardaloedd rhyfel heddiw. Cafodd ei ddyfeisio ar ddiwedd y bedwaredd ganrif ar bymtheg gan y llawfeddyg arloesol Hugh Owen Thomas o Lerpwl, a gaiff ei ddisgrifio yn aml fel tad orthopedeg Prydain, a anwyd ar Ynys Môn i deulu o osodwyr esgyrn. Ond ei lawfeddyg o nai Robert Jones, yn ddiweddarach Syr Robert, ac yntau'n uwch-frigadydd arolygydd orthopedeg yn y lluoedd arfog, oedd yn bennaf yn gyfrifol am gyflwyno ei ddefnydd ar faes y gad yn y rhyfel byd cyntaf ac a ddaeth yn dad llawdriniaeth orthopedig Prydain. Roedd wedi sefydlu ysbyty yng Nghroesoswallt cyn y rhyfel gydag Agnes Hunt. Maes o law, byddai Ysbyty Orthopedig Robert Jones ac Agnes Hunt yn cael ei gydnabod fel canolfan ragoriaeth orthopedig. Ym 1914, bu farw 80 y cant o filwyr gydag esgyrn y glun wedi eu torri. Roedd defnyddio sblint Thomas yn golygu erbyn 1916, bod 80 y cant o filwyr a ddioddefodd yr anaf hwnnw wedi goroesi. Gyda channoedd o filoedd o filwyr wedi eu hanafu yn dychwelyd adref, arweiniodd y rhyfel byd cyntaf hefyd at bwyslais newydd ar adsefydlu a gofal parhaus. Roedd datblygiadau enfawr mewn technoleg coesau a breichiau prosthetig i ddiwallu anghenion cannoedd o filoedd o drychedigion. Roedd y system gofal iechyd wedi ei llethu ond cafodd gallu newydd ei sefydlu. Mae'r rhyfel byd cyntaf yn cael ei gofio am gymaint - am ryddid, am fywyd heb berygl o ymosodiad. I mi fel llawfeddyg, mae hi hefyd yn ymwneud â'r hyn a wnaeth eraill i drin a chefnogi'r rhai a oedd wedi ymladd ac a gafodd eu hanafu. Felly, heddiw roeddwn i eisiau cydnabod hyn a dweud gyda balchder y byddwn ni i gyd yn eich cofio chi. Diolch.