TORONTO — The Queen paid tribute to Canada's war dead Tuesday as a high-tech vigil paying tribute to some 68,000 veterans of the First World War flickered onto a wall in London's celebrated Trafalgar Square.

The Duke of Edinburgh was also among those who gathered to watch the international debut of "Vigile 1914-1918 Vigil," a Canadian-made dusk-to-dawn tribute that features a nightly display of the names of the fallen veterans.

The ceremony began with darkness falling on London amid the piercing notes of "The Last Post," played by a lone bugler.

"Long may we all remember the multitude of Canadians, and indeed all of those who laid down their lives to defend the lives of others," the Queen, a maple leaf brooch on her coat, told the crowd gathered at Canada House.

After her speech, the Queen took time to meet with a gathering of Canadian veterans and active-duty soldiers who have completed tours of duty in Afghanistan.

The tribute, which is to continue nightly until Remembrance Day next week, was scheduled to make its way westward Tuesday with similar events taking place in Halifax, Fredericton, Ottawa, Toronto, Regina and Edmonton.

In Toronto, the projection was to take place against the wall of the east tower of City Hall.

The high-tech visual commemoration was conceived by actor R. H. Thomson and lighting designer Martin Conboy, who -- together with Canada's National History Society -- raised money to finance the cross-Canada project.

Following the Queen's speech, Jim Wright -- Canada's high commissioner to the U.K. -- said the tribute made for a touching moment.

"It was extremely moving watching the names scroll down very slowly...there was absolute silence," Wright said.

"It was a passing of a generation from veterans to the youth of today."

Wright explained that "Vigile 1914-1918 Vigil" begins in London and then makes its way west in order to commemorate the very same journey that was made by fallen Canadians when their bodies were repatriated.

He said the symbolism was not lost on the crowd in the centre of London.

When the bugler was finished, Wright said, a gathering of schoolchildren who were on hand read several poems, including "In Flanders Fields," by Canadian soldier, physician and poet John McCrae.