4 August 2014
Last updated at 06:15
Ships from the British fleet on Lough Swilly in County Donegal
A series of events will be held in Northern Ireland on Monday to mark the centenary of Britain’s declaration of war against Germany.
It was one of the costliest conflicts in history with fighting continuing until 11 November 1918.
First Minister Peter Robinson and NI Secretary Theresa Villiers will attend a service at St Anne’s Cathedral to commemorate the start of WW1.
A candlelit vigil will also be held at Belfast City Hall.
In Helens Bay, County Down, cannon will be fired at Greypoint Fort.
During the service at St Anne’s, five candles will be lit, each representing a year of the war.
Soldiers across Northern Ireland will be attending services and vigils to mark the centenary.
At the headquarters of 38 (Irish) Brigade in Lisburn, members of the armed forces and their families will attend a service during which the lights will go out one by one until only a candle will remain to light the stained glass window. It, too, will be extinguished for a two-minutes’ silence.
Similar services are being held at Palace Barracks in Holywood and at Aldergrove where soldiers and aircrew will be joined by air force cadets currently on their summer camp.
Personnel will also be marking the centenary at Army reserve centres around Northern Ireland.
Historians have estimated that more than 200,000 Irish-born soldiers served in the British Army and Navy from 1914 to 1918.
The names of 49,400 Irish casualties of WW1 are listed on the Republic of Ireland’s National War Memorial at Islandbridge, Dublin.
An airship lands at Bentra Mooring Station near Whitehead in County Antrim
Many soldiers from Northern Ireland fought for the The 36th (Ulster) Division.
The division was one of the few divisions to make significant gains on the first day on the Battle of the Somme in July 1916.
However, it came at a heavy price, with the division suffering 5,500 men killed, wounded or missing in two days of fighting,.
The Ulster Tower, a memorial to the the men of the 36th Division, is situated in the Thiepval in Northern France.