The county's servicemen who died on the WWI battlefields of Belgium and France have been remembered at a ceremony in Ypres, Belgium, Essex MEP Alex Mayer paid her respects by laying a poppy wreath at the Menin Gate Memorial.

According to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, over 23,000 soldiers from East of England regiments died in the First World War.

Traditionally, the Menin Gate was the location from where troops used to depart for the front.

For this reason it was chosen as the site of the most impressive memorial to the Great War.

Located in the Belgian region of Flanders, where millions of soldiers lost their lives, the memorial is a grandiose reminder of the horrors of the First World War.

Alex Mayer MEP said: “It is an honour to be able to come to Ypres and pay my respects as a Member of the European Parliament.

"Europe was scarred by bloody conflicts for too long.

“Part of remembering, is to make sure nations don't fall out again.

"Today I am thinking of all those who died, as we resolve to always work for peace.”