The Derry-born Catholic Primate of All-Ireland will today lay a wreath at the Merin Gate in Ypres in Belgium in memory of soldiers who died during World War One.
Archbishop Eamon Martin, along with Church of Ireland Archbishop Richard Clarke, is leading a special centenary pilgrimage to significant Battle of Somme sites.
The pilgrimage also involves visits to the Ulster Tower at Thiepval in France and the Irish Peace Tower at Messines.
Archbishop Martin has revealed the journey would be a personal one for him as he is hoping to find the grave of his grand-uncle who died in Ypres in 1917 – one of two uncles who fought in the Great War.
He said he hoped the pilgrimage would instil in the young adults “A sense of the futility of war and therefore the importance of friendship, peace and understanding”.
More than 3,500 soldiers from Ireland died in the Battle of the Somme with many more wounded. It took place between July 1st 1916 and November 18th 1916.
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