The Saddleworth hilltop Remembrance which draws large crowds | Manchester News

Towns, cities and villages are preparing to hold Remembrance services later but about 1,000 people will opt for one on top of a hill in the Pennines.

Since the Saddleworth memorial was completed near Manchester in 1923, crowds have trekked from surrounding villages every year to commemorate the sacrifices of local soldiers who died in both World Wars.

“The theory is that each side is facing its representative village and its plaque has got names of those who passed from that village,” said event organiser Alison Clowes.

“People go up that hill every year, no matter what the weather, just to remember family members and other people they might have known.”

A local brass band heave their instruments up on the 30-minute hike to perform at the service and a mountain rescue team attend to provide assistance if needed.

Families will carry up babies, and all generations will join the event on Alderman’s Hill.

“Unless they physically can’t get up the hill, people still get up there,” said Ms Clowes, who represents the Saddleworth branch of the Royal British Legion.

“It’s a really nice place at the top of the hill whether there’s 1,000 people sat up there with you – and you’ve got a bustle and chatter of everybody catching up before the service – or whether there is just a handful up there.”

She said uphill conditions meant the wind could be “absolutely howling”.

“But it is peaceful and it’s nice to just take a moment to look out and over Oldham and Manchester, and even further beyond because you can see for miles if you get a nice clear day.

“Or you could just be looking into a very bleak, foggy abyss.”

Legend has it that Alderman Hill and its neighbouring Alphin Pike are named after two giants battling it out for the love of a local lass – either a shepherdess or a water nymph depending on which tale you prefer.

With its hollow grooves, the rock formation near the memorial has been compared to kitchen utensils, leading to the location being named Pots and Pans.

However the construction of the Grade II listed memorial was subject to debate after World War One, with some ex-soldiers preferring the legacy of a hospital in the remote area instead.

But officials agreed on a monument and architect and soldier Gilbert Burdett Howcroft, from the local village of Greenfield, was commissioned to design it.

“It does need a little bit of restoration, which we have been trying to work with Oldham Council to get done,” Ms Clowes said.

Speaking about those who built the memorial, she said: “They had a fantastic idea all them years ago.

“I think Saddleworth seems to think they’re slightly different and want to do things their own way and it’s worked – it’s worked for over 100 years.”