KOREAN War veterans met at Lancing Methodist Church on Sunday for the final time to remember friends who died in the 1950 to 1953 conflict.

The Sussex Branch of the Korean War Veterans Association has met regularly for more than half a century. But with the passing of so many of their members, they have decided to meet for the last time.

Veteran Brian Morley said: “Thousands of men were sent off to Korea and many died. However, not many know much about the war.

“The association was set up for veterans to meet and it was very popular for a number of years.

“However, with members getting older and many passing away we felt it was time to finish.”

Due to its proximity to the Second World War, the Korean campaign has been dubbed the forgotten war.

But 1,109 British Forces were killed in the conflict and 3,000 were wounded.

The war started when North Korea invaded the United States-backed South Korea in 1950.

Many countries, under the flag of the United Nations, stepped in and three years of bitter fighting followed.

A cease fire was signed in July 1953 with the position and boundaries much as they are to this day.