IN a quiet corner of Bishopstoke they remembered those villagers who never came back from the battlefields.

Armistice Day was marked with a two-minute silence as local people gathered at the Millennium 2000 memorial stone in the grounds of the Memorial Hall in Riverside.

A hush fell over the picturesque village as the clock struck for the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month.

The memorial stone is engraved with the words - "In grateful memory of those Bishopstoke villagers who valiantly gave their lives in two World Wars."

But there were also prayers for those who had paid the ultimate sacrifice in more recent conflicts.

The service, on a crisp, cold sunlit morning, was conducted by the Rector of St Mary's, the Rev Derek Cottrill.

Parish council chairman Councillor Anne Winstanley was the first to lay a poppy wreath, followed by representatives of the Royal British Legion and wide cross-section of the community.

With a reminder that the world could be pushed to the brink of another world war, there were prayers for a peaceful outcome in the Iraq crisis.

At Fleming Park two salutes were fired to mark Armstice Day as Eastleigh's mayor Councillor Gillian Connell, former mayors, councillors and civic staff took part in the two-minute silence with members of the Eastleigh and Chandler's Ford Royal British Legion .