€¦ · gmuican (Zamzttrg and filamnria LOCATION Epinal cemetery lies in the valley of the...

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Transcript of €¦ · gmuican (Zamzttrg and filamnria LOCATION Epinal cemetery lies in the valley of the...

gmuican

(Zamzttrgand

filamnria

LOCATION

Epinal cemetery l ies in the val ley of theMosel le R iver on its left (west ) side ,4 mil es (6 km . ) south of Epinal ,Vosges . The main h ighway (N—57 )from Na n c y (46 miles— 75 km . ) toBelfort (55 miles— 88 km . ) passes theentrance . The cemetery which is 23 1miles (372 km . ) east of Paris, is mostconven iently reached by automobilefrom the capital over N—4 to Void

,

thence sou th on N—64 to Neufchateau,

thence east on N—66 to Epinal,then

sou th via N—57 to the cemetery .

There is rai l service to Epinal fromParis (Gare de l

Est ) via Nancy where,

in some cases,i t i s necessary to change

trains' the journey takes about fivehours . Hotel accommodations areavai lable in Nancy

,Epinal

,Vi ttel

(30 miles ) , Plombieres (22 miles ) 'tax icab service is avai lable in al l ofthese ci ties .

V isi to rs ’ Bu ildin g .

THE S ITE

The cemetery,48 acres in extent

,l ies

on a plateau 100 feet above the Mosell e R iver in the foothi l ls of the VosgesMountains .The si te was l iberated by troops of

the U . S . 45 th D ivi sioh on 2 1 September 1944 . A ba ttlefield cemetery

A e rial V iew 0 / Cem e te ry .

was established here on 6 October during the fighting to force the passageof the Vosges Mountains . Theof our milita ry Dead now buried hererepresent 42 percent of the burialswhich were originally made in thisregion . Most of these m en gave theirl ives during the advances across cent ral Fran ce and up the Rhone valley

,

the fighting in the Vosges,in the Rhine

valley , and across Ge rm any beyondthe Rhine .

Use of the site granted in perpetuityby the French Governmen t includesa r ight-o f—way 550 yards long

,l eading

from h ighway N—5 7 to the cemetery .

4

ARCHITECTS

Archi tects for the cemetery and memorial were Delano and Aldrich of NewYork City . The Landscape Arch i tectwas Homer L . Fry of Austin

,Tex .

GENERAL LAYOUT

The approach road starts at the eu

trance feature on highway N—5 7 andclimbs to the cemetery entrance at thew est end of the reservation . Withinthe gate and j ust to the south of theroad is the util i ties area and the storage reservoirs . The water supply

Lo c a t io n of Cem e te ry Features .

comes from wells near the edge ofthe Mosel le R iver just north of thecemetery .

The Visi tors’ Building is si tuated 300yards beyond the gate to the right ofthe road . North of the Vi si tors’ Building are the Memorial and the GravesArea . The parking area lies beyondthe Vi si tors’ Building .

THE COURT OF HONOR

The Memorial is si tuated in the centerof the Court of Honor

,on whose walls

are inscribed the names of 424 of ourMissing :

United S tates Army and ArmyA i r .Forces 1

United S tates Navy

These gave their l ives in the service oftheir Country but their remains havenot been identified . Their names i h

c lu d e men from every S tate in theUnion (and the D istr ic t of Columbia )except Delaware

,Nevada

,North Da

kota,Rhode I sla nd

,Vermont

,and,

Wyoming .

The fol lowing inscrip tions, somewith French translations

,appear above

these names :

HERE ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OFAMERICAN S WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES INTHE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY ANDWHO SLEEP IN UN KNOWN GRAVES .

IN GRATEF UL REMEM BRANCE OF THOSEWHO DIED IN WORLD WAR I I 75? f t

1 9 4 1— 1 9 4 5 .

THIS I S THEIR M EMORIAL— THE WHOLEEARTH THEIR SEPULCHRE .

It w i ll be re c alled that d u rin g Wo rldWa r II the Ai r Fo r c es still fo rm ed par t o fthe Un i ted S ta tes A rm y .

T he Mem o r ial from Graves A rea .

litheMamm al

E'TERIOR

The Memorial,rectangular in form

,

consists of the chapel to the right(east ) , the covered portico , and themuseum room to the left (west ) . I ti s 8 1 feet long

,35 feet wide

,and 36

feet high . On the sou th face of theMemorial a re two large bas-rel iefpanel s designed by Malvina Hoffman

,

sculptress, of New York .

The panel on the left representsThe Crusade in Europe . The eagleabove the marching soldiers sym bolizesthe A i r Force . Infantr y

,tanks

,arti l

lery , anti -aircraft weapons, parachutes ,grenade throwers

,battle signal oper

a to r s, searchlights— al l have their place

in the composition which s hows theUnited States forces with their face tothe enemy . The distant hil ls suggestthe Vosges Mountains' in the lowerext reme right the Mosel le River i sindicated .

The panel on the right representsthe Survival of the Spiri t . The centralgroup in the foreground shows thebowed and kneeling figure of a sorrow in g woman— humanity mourn

6

ing— comforting the fatal ly woundedsoldier . The spiri ts of those who havegiven their l ives are guided upwa rd byan angel on the rays of l ight that leadto the sky— and to the words above theentrance . A t the left

,in the clouds

,

the Angel of L ight carries a torch toguide the brave youn g souls on theirway . The rows of hea d ston es /

sym bol

i ze the earthly burial ' above these ,the design shows the breakin g apart ofmortal bonds

,and the triumphant vi c

tory of the spiri t . In the upper righttwo angels with thei r long trumpetsherald the approach of the victors .On the face of the attic is an eagle,

also the wor k of Miss Hoffman,with

the inscription from Exodus xxx,4 :

I BARE YOU ON EAGLES W ING S ANDBROUGHT YOU UNTO MYSELF .

The frieze of the Mem orial bearsthis inscription

C IT IZ EN S OF EVERY CALLING BRED INTHE PRINC IPLES OF THE AMERICANDEMOCRACY if? f r DEFENDERS OF CHAL

LENGED'

FREEDOM S f r sir FROM NOR

MANDY AND PROVENCE— T O ARDENNESLORRAINE AND ALSACE— BEYOND T H E

RH INE i f a CH AMPION S o r THE

RIGHTS OF MAN .

On the north face of the Memorialis the dedicator y inscription in bothEngl ish and French

,of which this i s

the English version :

1 9 4 1— 1 9 4 5 i f i f IN PROUD REMEMBRANCE OF THE ACH IEVEMENTS OF HERSON S AND IN HUM BLE TRIBUTE TOTHEIR SACR IF ICE S THIS MEMORIAL HASBEEN ERECTED BY THE UN ITED STATESOF AMERICA .

On the north face of the attic theeagle is repeated .

The Memoria l and the walls of theCou rt of Honor are bui l t of Roc her et ,a ver y hard l imestone from the JuraMountain region of ea stern France .

The floor of the portico is patter nedwith Ro c her et and Roc Argent', a n

other French l imestone from the Juraregion .

Within the po rtico and over theentrance to the chape l is a roundel de

pi c t i n g the Lamb of God and the

Tablets of Moses'over the entranceto the museum is another roundelcontainin g the Seal of the UnitedStates . Both roundels were designedby Miss Hoffman .

THE CHAPEL

In ter i o r

The al tar is flanked on each side bya group of three flags . The group onthe left of the al tar (as you face i t )consists of the U . S . flag

,the Infantry

flag and the Arti l l ery flag . The othergroup is made up of the U . S . fla g, theAi r Force flag

,and the Navy flag .

Above i t,on the wall

,is the Angel of

Peace by Miss Hoffm an and the i nscription from S t . Luke 1

,79 :

GIVE LIGHT TO THEM THAT S IT I NDARKNES S AND GUIDE OUR FEET I NTOTHE WAY OF PEACE .

A l l of the actual carving of the scu lpture at this memorial was executed byJean Juge of Paris .The teakwood pew at the south end

of the chapel has this inscript ion fromS t . John 10

, 28 :

I GIVE UNTO THEM ETERNAL LIFE ANDTHEY S HALL NEVER PERI S H .

TAKE UNTO THYSELF O LORD THESOULS OF THE VALOROU S THAT THEYMAY DWELL IN THY GLORY .

Evergreen plants and flowers add tothe beauty of this l i ttle chapel .The main area of the floor is paved

wi th Comblanch ien,another French

hard l imestone from the Jura region .

The cei l ing is of teakwood .

The al tar and steps within thechapel are Of Rouge Antique marblefrom southern France . The interiorwalls above the Rouge Antique pl inthsare Of Savonniere French l imestonequarried near Verdun .

On the rear wal l a r e two roundelsone with a Cross and another with theTablets Of Moses . Between them isengraved this prayer :

THE MUSEUM ROOM

The major feature Of the museumroom is the large mosaic map depicting the Ameri can a n d A l l ied mi l itary Operations from the landings o nthe southern coast of France on August15

,1944

,to the junction on Septem

ber 1 1 at Sombernon,near D ij on , with

the A l l ied forces coming from Normandy' i t further shows their subse

quent advances after they turnedeastward

,crossed the Rhine and swept

across Germany,final ly j oining hands

wi th the spearhead Of the U . S . Fi fthArmy south of the Brenner Pass . Themosaic

,54 feet long and 14 feet high ,

Of glass mosaic , was designed and fabr i c a ted by Eugene Savage Of Branford ,Connecticut

,from data furni shed by

the American Battle MonumentsCommission

.The map is laid out in

T he Crusade i n E u rope (Malvin a Hoflm a n ,S c u lpt ress ) .

perspective as seen from the south 'the l ines Of longitude and latitude aretil ted to accommodate the map to theproportions of the room' thus northis toward the upper right instead Of

vertical ly upward .

Symbolically the figures on thissemi-circular wal l depict the Spiri t OfColumbia leading the Arm y , Navy ,and Ai r Forces forward to the landings on the south coast Of France .

The final victor y is symbolized by theAngel Of Victory with lau rel branchabove the cent ral altar group composed o f the trumpets , the Americana n d Fren ch flags emergin g from theclouds Of war

,a n d the outstretched

han ds Of women who Off er flowe rs astheir tribute to the v ictors .In the border Of the m a p are the

insignia of these m i l i tary units which

par t icipated in the operations in thisregi on :

8

6 th An n y Group,1 2 th Army Group .

Third Army,Seventh Army .

VI Corps , 'V Corps, ''I Corps .3d

,4th

,28th

,35 th

,36th

,42d

,44th

,

45 th,63d

,65 th

,70th

,7 l st

,75 1h,

79 th,80th

,86th

,87 th

,9oth

,94th

,

99th,100th

,103d Infantry D ivisions

61h,l0th

,l l th

,1 2 1h

,1 3th

,14 th

,201h

Armo red D iv i sions .l0 1 5t A irborne D ivi sion .

The principal Al l ied ground , naval ,and air forces which w ere engagedare recorded in panels at the ends ofthe mosaic . On the straight walladj acen t to the south end Of the m a pi s a description in English

,beneath

the torch Of L iberty,

Of theseOperations :

ON 1 5 AUGUST 1 9 4 4 T H E ALLIEDFORCES LAUNCHED THEIR CAM PAIGNTO AS S I ST THE NORMANDY OPERATIONAND TO LIBERATE SOUTHERN FRANCE .

T he Resu rre c t ion (Malvin a Hofim a n ,S c u lpt ress ) .

O V E R W H E L M I N G A IR E F F O R TFORMED T H E PRELUDE . PRECEDED BY

ALLIED AS SAULT GROUP S AND AIR

BORNE TROOP S,T H E VI CORP S OF T H E

U . s . SEVENTH ARMY STORMED ASHOREUNDER COVER OF INTEN SE BOM BARDMENT BY T H E WESTERN NAVAL TAS KFORCE . T H E U . S . 3D

,3 6T H AND 4 5 T H

INFANTRY DIVI S ION S PROM PTLY BROKETHROUGH T H E STEEL AN D CONCRETEBEACH FORTIF ICATION S

,SUBDUED T H E

DEFENDERS,AND S URGED INLAND .

SWI FTLY PURS U ING T H E DISIN T E

GRATING ENEMY UN ITS UP T H E RHONEVALLEY T H E U . s . SEVENTH ARMYFREED LYON WH ILE T H E FRENCHFIRST ARMY REOCCUP IED MARSEILLEAND TOULON . IN LES S THAN ON E

MONTH T H E ALLIE S PU SHED 4 0 0 M ILESTO j o i N HANDS AT SOM BERNON W ITHTH E FORCES ADVANC ING FROM N OR

MANDY . BY 2 1 SEPTEMBER,NEAR

EP I NAL, T H E TROOP S FROM T H E MEDITERRANEAN , N OW ORGAN IZ ED A S T H E

4 2 44 1 9 0 — 5 7

6 T H ARMY GROUP, HAD FORGED W ITHTHE U . S . THIRD ARMY OF THE I 2TH

ARMY GROUP A SOLID FRONT WHICHI SOLATED ALL GERMAN UN ITS REMAINING IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE .

DURING OCTOBER AND NOVEM BERTHE ADVANCE CONT INUED AGAIN STPERS I STENT AND DE SPERATE OPPOS ITION REACHING THE RH INE AT STRASBOURG AND MULHOU SE' BETWEENTHESE CITIES THE ENEMY CLUNG TOAN AREA ABOUT COLMAR . ON 1 6 DECEMBER,

I N THE ARDENNES , FARTHERTO THE NORTH

,THE ENEMY LOOSED

H IS LAST GREAT COUNTEROFFEN S IVEOF THE WAR . THE U . S . THIRD ARMYMOVED IN STANTLY TO MEET THETHREAT

.LEAVING THE 6 T H ARMY

GROU P TO DEFEND THE ENTIRE FRONTFROM S AARBRUCKEN SOUTHWARD . ONNEW YEAR ’ S EVE THE GERMAN S AT

TACKED FROM BITCHE TOWARD SA

VERNE,THEN FOLLOWED W ITH ONE

THRU ST ACROS S THE RHINE NORTH OF

Mu seum Wall M a p ,

STRASBOURG AND ANOTHER FROM THECOLMAR POCKET . AFTER A FURIOU SSTRUGGLE IN BITTERLY COLD WEATHERTHE ATTACKERS WERE REPULSED .

RES UM ING ITS IN IT IATIVE THE 6 T H

ARMY GROUP OVERRAN THE COLMARPOCKET EARLY IN FEBRUARY AFTERTHREE WEEKS OF S U STAINED COM BATIN WHICH THE GERMAN N INETEENTHARMY WAS ANN IH ILATED AS A FIGHTING FORCE .

U . S . NAVAL FORCES TOGETHER W ITHTHE ALLIED NAVIES IN THE MEDIT ER

RAN EAN PLAYED A VITAL ROLE BY SAFEGUARDING A CONT IN UOUS FLOW OFTROOP S AND S U PPL IE S AGAIN ST PERS ISTENT S UBMARINE AND AIR ATTACK S .

ALLIED AIR FORCES GAVE THE GROUND

10

ARM IE S INDIS PEN SABLE AS S I STANCEPRIOR TO AND THROUGHOUT THE OP

ERAT ION S . THE U . S . F IRST TACTICALAIR FORCE PERFORMED MAGN IF ICENTLYDURING CON S ISTENTLY BAD W I NTERWEATHER . WHEN THE ALLIED ARM IE SLAUNCHED THEIR F INAL ATTACK THEEFFECT OF THE STRATEGIC AIR BOMBARDME NT OF GERMANY WAS TO BEREFLECTED IN THE RAPID DE STRUCTIONOF HER F IGHTING FORCES .

THE F INAL OFFEN S IVE BEGAN INMARCH . PACED BY THE U . S . N INTHAIR FORCE AND THE F IRST TACTICALAIR FORCE

,WHOSE ATTACKS D I S

RUPT ED COMMUN ICATION S AND DESTROYED GERMAN TROOPS AND SUPPLIES

,THE U . S . TH IRD AND SEVENTH

Mu se um Wall M a p (Euge n e Sa va ge , A rt ist ) .

ARM IES CROS SED THE RHINE ANDSWEPT ACRO S S GERMANY . WHILE THEFRENCH F IRST ARMY CUT OFF THEENEMY’ S AVENUES OF E SCAPE INTOSW ITZ ERLAND

,THE U . S . SEVENTH

ARMY CAPTURED NURNBERG,SWUNG

SOUTHWARD TO MUN ICH AND SEIZ EDTHE BRENNER PAS S . ITS JUNCTION ON4 MAY WITH THE U . S . F IFTH ARMY ATVIPITENO IN ITALY MARKED THE COMFLETE DEFEAT OF THE NAZ I FORCES INTHIS MOUNTAIN REGION .

THE UN ITY OF PURPOSE WHICH INS PIRED ALL WHO SHARED IN THESECAM PAIGN S WAS A DECISIVE FACTORIN THE IR SUCCES S . THEIR COURAGEAND THEIR DEVOTION TO DUTY WEREUNSURPAS SABLE .

THE GRAVES AREA

The headstones are set in twolarge plots . Their regular al ignmentin straight l ines upon the smooth greenlawn harmonizes with the beautifuland dignified eff ect Of the rectangular

1 1

On the correspond ing opposite endof the room is the French version ofthi s inscription . Beneath these i nsc r i pt ion s are the two sets of key maps :The War Against Germany

,and The

War Against Japan .

The plinth below the map is ofVerte des A lpes

,an I tal ian green

Veined marble . The floor is pavedwith Comblanchien l imestone .

l ines Of the Memorial and the Courtof Honor .These Dead

,who gave their l ives

in our Country ’ s service,came from

every State in the Union,the D i strict

of Columbia,Alaska

,and Hawaii . In

each Of two graves are the remains Oftwo known Dead which could not beseparately identified . S ixty-nine Of

the headstones mark the graves of“ Unknowns' 'one of these graves contains the remains Of two comrades-inarms . Here

,also

,i n 14 instances

,two

brothers rest side by s ide .

Separating the two grave plots is thewide mal l

,flanked by rows Of syc a

more (Plata nus oriental is ) trees . Atthe far end Of the mall is the flagpole

,

75 feet h igh,with i ts bronze and

Ro c her et l imestone base . The pav ingaround i t is of cream-colored Ampillyl imestone from the Cote d ’

O r region,

with a th irteen-pointed star Of blackNoir d ’

Iz este from the Pyrenees .

The whole Of the graves area i ssurrounded by a wall Of local granitewith coping Of Euvil le l imestone fromnear Verdun . Magn ificent Views Of

the Moselle vall ey and the beautifulwooded slopes beyond are aff ordedfrom the paths r unn ing close to this

wa ll. In the northeas t and sou theastcorners are small fountains

.

The visitor wi l l already have notedthe magnificent natural woodland ofoak, sp ruce, and beech on the h i l lsideimmediately to the south of the cemeter y . W ithin the cemetery itself a fewgroups of Engl ish beech (Fagu s sylva t i c a ) have been planted in thegraves plots . A long the paths aresycamores (Plane trees— Platanusoriental is ) ' oriental cherry (Cera susserrulata ) , red bud (Cercis c a n a d ensi s ) , and Engl ish hawthorn (Grataegus oxyc a n tha ) have been plantedinto the edges of the adj acent woodsto add color and densi ty . F lank ingthe Memorial on the north side aretwo Cedars Of Lebanon

,as well a s a

mass Of shrubbery . In the arrivalcourt are holly ( I lex aqu ifolium )hed ges'in the Court of Honor are box(Buxus sempervirens ) hedges . Otherplantings in informal masses containbarberry Berberis thunbergi i ) flowering quince (Cydonia j aponica ) ,rhododendrons, azaleas

,forsyth ia

,

scotch broom (Cytisus sc o r pa r iu s ) ,cotoneaster

,and dwarf yew .

Co n st r u c t lon Of the cemetery andMemorial w a s completed in 1956 .

Gra ves Area f rom the Mem ori a l.

1 2

Yo u th Tr ium phin g Over E vi l— B r it ta n y Mem o ria l .(Lee La w rie, S c u lpto r . )

AMERICAN MILITARY

(Itmttm ts Mamet a s

OF WORLD WAR II

T H E AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS for construction,maintenance

,or op

COMM IS S ION is responsible to the peo e r a t io n of cemeteries in the continen talple of the United States for the con United S tates or its Terri tories andstruction and permanent ma in tenance possessions .

Of military cemeteries and memorials After World War I the Americanbuilt by the United States Government Battle Monum ents Commission erectedon foreign soil . I t is not responsible a mem orial chapel in each Of the eight

1 3

T o the M iss in g— Wo rld Wa r II Logg ia— Su resn es ,

military cemeteries already establishedby the War Department

,as wel l a s

eleven monuments and two bronzetablets on the battlefields and elsewhere, to record the ach ievements ofou r Armed Forces . 1

By the end of World War I I severalhundred tempo rary cemeteries hadbeen established by the AmericanGraves Registration Serv ice of theUnited States A rmy . During the years1947 to 1954 that Service

,complying

w ith the expressed w ishes of the nextOf-'i n

,and by authori ty Of law

,repa

t r i a ted the remain s Of somerep resen t in g 6 1 per cen t Of the r ec ove red bodies . The rem aining 39 perc en t w ere given final interm en t in thec em eter 1es on foreign soil'and in the

14

(Lew is Ise lin , S c ulpto r . )

cemeteries at Honolu lu,S itka and

Puerto R ico (wh ich remain underArmy control )Fourteen SItes in foreign countries

were selected as permanent cemeteriesin 1947 by the Secretary Of the Army ,with the assistance of the AmericanBattle Monuments Commission . Theirlocations reflect the progress Of the

1 These w e re : Cem e te r i es : Bro o'wood ,En glan d ' Su resn es , Oise-Ai sn e (Fere -enTarde n o i s ) , A i sn e-Ma rn e (B e l l e a u ) ,So m m e (Bo n y ) , S t . Mihiel (Th i au c o u rt ) ,Meu se -A rgo n n e (R O In a g n e ) , Fran c e 'Waregem ,

Be lgi um . Mo n um e n ts : Bres t ,Can t ign y , Be lli c o u r t , Ch a te au-Thi e rry ,Som m e-Py , Mo n tfau c o n

,Mo n tse c , To u rs ,

Fra n c e ' K em m el, A uden arde , Belgi um '

Gibraltar . Table ts : Chaum o n t , So u illy ,Fran c e .

mili tary operations'they were selectedwith a view to their accessibi li ty , as

pec t , prospect , drainage , and otherpractical considerations . In every caseuse Of the site in perpetu i ty was grantedby the host government to the UnitedStates

,free of cost

,rent and taxes .

cemetery sites reverted to the landowners upo n completion of reburial Operat i ons .The fourteen perm anent World War

I I cemeteries with numbers of gravesincluding Unknowns

,and the numbers

Of Missing recorded at the MemorialsThe remainder of the temporary

' are :

Dea d

Cambridge,England . including

Normandy (near S t . Lauren t sur includingMer

,Calvados) , France .

Bri ttany (near S t . James , Manche) , includingFrance .

Ep ina l , France includingLorraine (at S t . Avold , Mosel le) , including .

France .

RhOn e (at Dragu ignan,Var) , 861 including

France .

Netherlands (near Margra ten) , HOl including 1 05 1,7 2 2

land .

Henri-Chapelle,Belgium including

Ardennes (near Neuvil le-en -Con includ ingdroz) , Belgium .

Luxembourg (at Hamm ,near Lux including

embourg) , Luxembourg .

Florence,I taly including 2 1 2 1

,409

S ici l y-Rome (Nettuno , near Rome ) , includ ing 488 3 , 095

I taly .

North Africa (near Carthage) , including 240 3, 7 25

Tunisia .

Phil ipp ines (near Manila) includ ing . 3 , 744 36,269

In addition, 24 Unknowns of World

War I I were interred in the WorldWar I cemete r y at Suresnes

,near

The fol lowing World War I I cemeter i es are maintained by the Department Of the Army

Paris . 2

Li st ofDea d Un'n own Mi ss i ng

Honolulu,T . H .

3 including 1 8, 1 06

69

7 2 includ ingPuerto R icoS i tka

,A laska

In 1947 the American Battle Monu to design one of the cemeteries, c on

ments Commission selected fourteen c e ivi n g the graves plots and a monuoutstanding American architects

,each ment as complementary elements of an

2See p age 18 c o n c e rn in g Wo rld Wa r II m em o ri al.

3See p a ge 2 1 c o n c e rn in g m em o r i a l.

15

0 CA EN

FALA ISE' AVRANCHES

OULOGNE

DIEPPE

ROUEN RA N C

oARGENTAN VERSAu IES

0 1 0 2 0 30

MILES40 so so 7 0 so 90 1 00

mFONTA INE

c m0 1 0 2 0 3 0 40 5 0 6 0 7 0 80 9 0 1 00

integral mem orial to the services andsacrifices of the American ArmedServices who fought in the respectiveregions . Upon approval Of the generalschemes by the Commission

,and by

agreem ent w i th the Secretary Of t he

A rmy , the architects’ plans Of the

graves plots we re followed by theAmerican Graves Registra t ion Service

1 6

KILOMETERS

in making the permanent burials Ofthose remains which

,by decision Of the

next-Of-kin,were to remain overseas .

This timely cooperat ion Of the twoagencies contributed appreciably tothe coherence of the development Ofthe c emetery designs .Beginn in g in the latter hal f Of 1949 ,

the pe rmanent interm ents having been

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virtually completed,the cemeteries to maintain the levels and al ignments

were progressively transferred to the Of the headstones'fabrication and i nAmerican Battle Monuments Commis sta lla ti on Of the headstones'c o n st r u csion by Executive O r d er

,.fo r c o n st r u c tion of water-supply a n d distribution

tIOn and maintenance . Thereupon systems'util i ties bui ldings'roads andthe remain ing portions of the arch i paths'plantings'and the erection oftec ts

’ designs were carried out,step by the memorials .

step— grading'installation of a system T O provide against dry seasons andof reinforced-concrete beams on piles the occasional real drought , each ceme

1 7

ter y is equipped with storage reservoi rsand a h igh-pr essure sprinkling system .

For the design Of the various mem o r i a ls no spec ific requirement wasimposed upon the architects beyondthe budgeted cost

,except that each

should embody these features

A small devotional chapel .Inscription Of the names and

particu lars of the M issing in theregion .

A graph ic record,in permanent

form,Of the services of our troops .

These requ irements have been inter

pr eted in a wide, and interest ing, var iety of forms .An important motive for the con

struction of the memori als was theimpl ied undertak ing by ou r Government to record by monuments theachievements of our Armed Services

,

since,by Department orders

,the erec

tion of monuments by the troops

(which un fortunately have been foundto be Often poorly-designed

,poorly

constructed and lacking provision formaintenance ) was expressly forb idden .

The “ permanent graph ic' record takesthe form Of maps

,usually quite large

murals, amplified by descrip tive textsin Engl ish as wel l as the language ofthe country in which the cemetery issi tuated . The historical data ( in theform of map layou ts and texts ) wereprepared by the American Battle Monu m en ts Comm iss ion' the maps wererendered in tasteful presentation byexperienced artists . In no two casesis the method —o r even the materialsthe same'the map may be Of layeredmarbles, or in fresco, perhaps in bronzerel ief, or in ceramics . Another featureOf interest at each memorial is the twosets Of

K ey-Maps' : “

The WarAgainst Ge r m any' and “

The WarAgainst Japan' . Each set consis ts ofthree maps, each covering about onethird Of the period of our participationin the war . By these K ey

-Maps eachmajor battle may be related to al lothers in time and spa ce .

With each architec t an Americanlandscape architect

,an Am e r ican

18

sculptor and an American mural ist orpainter ordinarily collaborated . Theirtalents have made a major contribut ionto the beau ty and dignity of the Memo r i a ls al l Of which are dedica ted tothe memory of the achievements Of

those who served and of the sacrificesOf those who d ied . The constructionOf the cemeteries and memorials

,as

well as Of most Of the works Of art,was

eff ected by local contractors and artistsunder the supervis ion Of the Commission .

Each grave is marked by a headstoneOf white m arble

,of the same designs

as those used in the overseas cemeteriesof World War I— a Star Of David forthose of Jewish faith

,a Latin Cross for

al l others . These headstones werequa rried and fabricated in the I tal ianTyrol

,northwest Of Venice

,except

abou t one-half of those at the Phil ippines cemetery which came from theregion Of Carrara in western I taly .

Each headstone bears the deceased ’ sname

,rank

,service number

,organiza

t ion,date of death

,and S tate or Terri

tory from wh ich he entered the m il itaryserv ice . Heads tones of the Unknowns,i . e .

,those remains which cou ld not be

identified,bear the inscription : HERE

RESTS IN HONORED GLORY A COMRADEIN ARM S KNOWN BUT T O GOD .

The l ists Of M issing (wh ich includethe unidentified and those lost andburied at sea ) give name, rank, organiz a t ion and S tate'the conditions underwhich death occurred were usuallysuch as to deny the possib il i ty Of r e

cording the exact date .

In addition to the fourteen WorldWar I I cemeteries and Memorials, theAmerican Battle Monuments Comm ission program includes the following :

SURESNES

As previously stated,24 World War I I

Unknowns were interred in this WorldWar I cemetery . Here

,where senior

representatives of the French andUnited S tates Governments on ceremonial occasions pay homage to ourDead

,the World War I chapel was ,

by addition Of two loggias, converted

Mem o r y Wo rld Wa r 1 1 Mem o r i a l Cha m be r— Su resn es . (Lew i s Iselin S c ulpto r

20

0

into a shrine to commemorate ourDead of both wars .The wall Of the World War I I loggia

bears this inscription :

TO T H E ETERNAL MEMORY OF

AMERICAN S W HO GAVE THEIR LIVE S INT H E SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY DUR

ING WORLD W AR II. OF TH IS HOSTREST IN E IGHTEEN OVERSEAS

M ILITARY CEMETERIE S . T H E REMAIN SOF WERE RETURNED TO THE IRHOMELAND . OF THOSE RE STING IN

TH E OVERSEAS M ILITARY CEM ETERIESHAVE NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED .

THEIRS ARE AMONG T H E NAMESOF THOSE M IS S ING IN ACTION OR LOSTOR BURIED AT SEA WH ICH ARE RE

CORDED U PON T H E WALLS OF T H E

CEMETERY MEMORIALS . INTOT HY HANDS O LORD .

With in the World War I I memorialchamber is engraved :

TH IS MEMORIAL H A S BEEN ERECTED BYTH E UN ITED STATE S OF AMERICA IN

PROUD AND GRATEFUL MEMORY OF H ERSOLDIERS

,SAILORS

,MARINES AND AIR

MEN W HO LAID DOWN THE IR LIVES INALL 'UARTERS OF T H E EARTH THATOTHER PEOPLE S M IGHT BE FREED FROMOPPRES S ION LET US HEREH IGHLY RE SOLVE THAT THESE HON

ORED DEAD SHALL NOT HAVE DIED INVAIN .

EAST COAST MEMORIAL

To commemorate those Americans who

,i n or above the waters Off

the east coasts of North and SouthAmeri ca

,gave their l ives in the service

of the ir Country their names andparticu lars are to be inscr ibed on amemorial to be erected at New York .

WEST COAST MEMORIAL

Similarly,the names and particu lars

of those 4 1 2 Americans who gave theirl ives in the service Of their Country Offthe west coas ts Of the Americas wil l berecorded at a memorial to be erecteda t San Francisco .

HONOLULU MEMORIAL

Al though the mili tary cemetery atHonolulu is mai ntained by the Department of the Army

,the American Battle

Monuments Commission,by agree

ment with the Secre tary of the Army,

will erect a memorial there in,similar

in Obj ects to those buil t in the otheroverseas cemeteries . Buried at thecemetery are Dead Of WorldWar I I and who died in theK orean Operations'the Memorial wil lrecord Missing Of World WarI I and Missing in K orea . Thememorial will also embody the customary chapel and maps .

FLOWERS

In the general inte rest , the decorationOf graves w i th natural cu t flow e rs onlyis permitted . The Commission 1 5

happy to assist inte rested per so n s '

to

arrange with local flo r is t s in fo re i gn

2 1

MAINTENANCE

Perm anent maintenance Of the cemeter i es i s a responsib il i ty Of the American Battle Monuments Commission .

The Superintendent and Assi s tantSuperintendent in each case are American war veterans .A t each cemete ry there is a V ISIto r s

Bu i ld ing,with comfortably furnished

reception room . Here visi tors may beinformed a s to the location Of graves

(or inscription Of the Missing ) at anyoverseas cemetery .

The cemeteries are open every dayof the year . Photography is permi ttedat the cemeteries and monumentswithou t special au thorization , exceptwhen photography is to be used forcommercial purposes— i n such caseperm ission mus t be Obtained from theComm ission’ s local Oflfic e .

Unlike the national cemeteries u nder the jurisdict ion Of the 'uartermaster General

,Department o f the

Army,there can be no further burial s

i n the American mil i tary cemeteriesoverseas except Of those remains wh ichmay

,in the fu ture

,be found on the

battlefields .

countries for placing such decorations .Requests shou ld be mailed so as toarrive at the appropriate CommissionOffice at least 5 days before the date o fdecoration and should be accompaniedby check or international money orderin dollars or local currency . Depo sitsmay be made for a single decoration ona particular day— birthday

,Memorial

Day,Christmas Day

,for example— o r

for several decorations on particu lardates within the year or over a periodof years . Checks should be made payable to The American Battle Monuments Commission

,F lower Fund'

,

money orders to “

The American BattleMonuments Commiss ion' . Requestsshould be addressed to the Comm ission ’ s Paris Ofli c e

,except in the case

o f Florence,S ici ly-Rome (Nettuno )

and No rth Af r ica (Ca r thage ) Cemeter ies where the Rome Off ice i s r espo nsible

,and Manila where the Manila

Office is responsible .

Orders for flowers for all cemeteri esmay also be placed through any local

PHOTOGRAPHS

Upon the request Of the bona fid enext Of kin

,the Commission will fur

nish one photograph of the appropriate headstone or inscription engravedon the Wall Of the M issing .

Su resn es Mem o r ial Wi th Wo rld Wa r I a n d II Loggias .

22

florist who is a member of the F loristsTelegraph Delivery Association .

' Inaddition to the name of the deceased

,

the rank,service number

,name of the

cemetery,country in wh ich located

,

and the location by plot,row

,and

grave shou ld be provided i f known .

Further information regarding cemeter ies and memorials may be Obtainedat the Comm ission’ s Offices in Washi n gto n ,

Paris,Rome

,or Man il a . Vis i

tors pass ing through these c ities a r e

invi ted to call . The Comm ission’srepresen ta tives there may be Of someassistance in veri fying travel routes andschedules

,and also in furnish ing in

formation concern ing over n igh t acc om m o d a t ion s .

T H E AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMIS S ION

Un i ted Sta tes Of i c e Med i ter r a n ea n Ofic e

Washington 25 , D . C . American Embassy,

Telephone : L iberty 5—6700 Via Veneto,Rome

Extension 63679 Telephone : 4 14,Extension 156

Telegrams : Monumen ts, Wash ington Telegrams : Monuments,Rome

Eu ropea n Of i c e Phi lippi n e Ofii c e

20 rue 'uentin Ba u c ha r t American M il i tary Cemetery,

Paris, France Manila,P . I .

Telephone : Balzac 0700 Telephone : 5—02— 1 2Telegrams : Monuments, Paris Telegrams : AMBAMCOM

,Manila

,

P . I .

THE AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMM ISSION

Established by Congress March 1923

Mem ber ship (Dec em ber 1 956 )

George C . Marshal l,Cha i r m a n Mrs . Theodore Roosevelt

Thomas C . K inkaid, Vi c e Cha i r m a n Mrs . Wendel l L . Wil lkie

Lesl ie L . Biflle Carl SpaatzA lexander A . Vandegri ft Benj amin 0 . DavisCharles E . Potter Forest A . HarnessJohn Phi l l ips Thomas North

,Sec r eta ry

Mem ber s

John J . Pershing Mrs . Henry Fenimore BakerRobert G . Woodside Burnet R . MaybankDavid A . Reed Joseph C . Baldwin

J . P . B . Clayton H il l Edward C . K a lbfus

Thomas W . M i l ler Harold A . K eatsMrs . Frederic W . Bentley Joseph J . FossD . John Markey ' . H . Price

,Sec r eta ry

Finis J . Garrett

Co n su lt i n g A r c hi tec ts

Paul P . Cret (World War I program )Harbeson

,Hough

,L ivingston Larson (World War I I program )

Co n su lti n g La n d s c a pe A r c hi tec t

Markley S tevenson (World War I I program )

Co n su lti n g Sc u lpto r

Lee Lawrie (World War I I program )

U. S. GOV ERNMENT PRINT ING OFFIC E : 1 95 7 O - 4 Z44 l 9