Hundreds of people gathered for a memorial service to commemorate the sacrifices made by the Accrington Pals regiment.
The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment organised the annual service at St John’s Church with family and relatives gathering from across the county to pay their respects.
More than 700 men from the Accrington area signed up and formed the Pals group to fight in the First World War.
But in 1916, on the fateful first day of the Battle of the Somme, they suffered severe losses when 235 men were killed and a further 350 were wounded.
A parade was held before the service last Sunday with servicemen carrying flags to the church.
The hour-long service, attended by around 250 people, was led by Rev John Binks and featured guest preacher Rev Sandy Kirkwood who is a padre to the Lancaster cadet forces.
Rev Binks said: “It was a good day all round. It was our annual remembrance service and we had a good turnout from the local cadet forces and other uniformed organisations like the scouts. The cadets always parade beforehand and we had a number of Royal British Legion and veteran organisations there too.
“It’s important we keep the memory of the Pals alive.”
Hyndburn Mayor John Broadley was joined by around ten other mayors from across the county.
Coun Broadley said: “It was absolutely brilliant to see so many people turn out for it. The weather was particularly good and held out for us. The was a lot of the civic societies there and the church was filled to capacity.”
Councillor Tony Dobson, who attended the service, praised the Duke of Lancaster’s regiment for organising the service.
He said: “I thought it was very well organised and a very enjoyable day. It showed Hyndburn at its best.”
