CREATIVE residents are being encouraged to help decorate more than 120 flags to commemorate the surrender of the German U-boats a century ago.

The Surrender and Sanctuary Project, based in Harwich, wants to display more than 100 flags to represent each U-boat which surrendered off the coast in 1918.

The flags will be carried through Harwich in a parade and installed on a large willow U-boat on the beach.

With the parade being on November 18 the project is looking for people to get hands-on and design their own flag for the event.

Each flag can be decorated in any way and will include the name of one of the surrendered U-boats which lined Harwich port in 1918 in an alley way of ships and vessels.

David Cain, Surrender and Sanctuary Project manager, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for the community to take part and explore this fascinating history that not many people know about.

"We really want to enable people to play a part in this commemoration of an internationally significant event that happened right here off the Essex coast."

Tabitha Runacres, communications officer, said the idea for the flags came from seeing original photos of German U-boats being decorated with flags or triangle pennants as signals or a sign of victories had.

She said: "The main evidence is from World War Two but we have accounts of them being used in the first world was as well."

The project is aiming to create 120 flags as it knows there were at least 120 that surrendered in the months after November 1918.

To register your interest in designing a flag please email the project team on info@nhscic.org.

All flags provided to participants, and flags will be returned as a reminder of the event.

Visit the website for more details www.harwichhavenhistory.co.uk.