Since August, the moat of the Tower of London has been filled with a blood-red blanket made from ceramic poppies. Today, a total of 888,246 poppies are laid out before the Tower, each representing a soldier, sailor, airman or marine from Britain or its then-Empire killed in the First World War.

The Great War, as it was called, broke out 100 years ago this August and came to an end four years later, on this day in 1918, having caused more than 8 million total deaths.

The poppy's symbolism originates in a famous poem by John McCrae, whose opening lines describe seemingly endless war graves in Belgium:

"In Flanders fields the poppies blow ... between the crosses, row on row."

Around this time of year, it's traditional for Brits to wear paper poppies. These simple flowers serve double duty — they help us remember the dead, from the First World War and all subsequent conflicts. They also help raise money for living veterans who need our support.

Gallery: London poppy display marks World War I centenary

Tower of London poppy display draws huge crowds

So poppies help us look forward as well as back. That is also what we hope to achieve over the next four years with our program of events marking the First World War's centenary. Alongside traditional remembrance ceremonies marking important moments in the war, like the Battle of the Somme and the Gallipoli campaign, we will offer an educational and cultural program that includes a major renovation of London's world-class Imperial War Museum.

Last week, Princess Anne, the Queen's daughter, visited Washington, D.C., as part of the U.K.'s commemorations. Among other engagements, she unveiled a plaque at Arlington National Cemetery dedicated to American recipients of Britain's highest military honor, the Victoria Cross. These exceptional Americans received the Victoria Cross (rather than its U.S. equivalent, the Medal of Honor) because they fought with the armed forces of Canada, then part of the British Empire.

Today, Canada is a key member of the Commonwealth, an association of 53 nations that aims, among other things, to promote human rights and good governance. Hundreds of Commonwealth war cemeteries across the world mark the shared sacrifice of men and women from all over the Commonwealth.

More and more, British and American military personnel work together not just in training and on operations but in recuperation. Two months ago, at London's Olympic Park, Princess Anne's nephew, Prince Harry, hosted the inaugural Invictus Games, bringing together wounded British, American and allied servicemen and women in a hugely successful sporting competition modeled on America's own Warrior Games.

President Wilson was, understandably, reluctant to bring the United States into a conflict he described, with some reason, as "the most terrible and disastrous of all wars." But in explaining his decision to do so, he hit upon what I believe are some of the lasting themes of the special relationship.

He said that he wanted not to impose his terms on other nations but to fight for the things which we have always carried nearest our hearts: democracy; the right of those who submit to authority to have a voice in their own governments; rights and liberties for small nations; a universal dominion of right by such a concert of free peoples as shall bring peace and safety to all nations and make the world itself free at last.

Those same values animate British-American cooperation to this day. They move us to stand up against Russia's violation of Ukraine's sovereignty, and to oppose the brutality of Syrian President Basharal-Assad and the Islamic State militants. They bring us together to help other nations build democratic institutions. And they will soon lead us to strengthen our modern-day "concert of free peoples" with a landmark transatlantic economic partnership.

The shadow of the Great War is a long one. It is right and proper that we look back and remember the dead. At the same time, let's also remember the importance of working together in accordance with our shared values and interests, and apply that lesson as we look to the future.

Peter Westmacott is Great Britain's ambassador to the U.S.

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