On this Memorial Day, the U.S. Role blog would like to salute the men and women of the U.S. armed forces who have made the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country. Because this blog is specifically devoted to the U.S. role in the world, I would like to honor those who are buried far from home. Please join me in remembering the 2,289 American military personnel buried at the American Cemetery at Aisne-Marne, France; the 5,329 buried at the American Cemetery at Ardennes, Belgium; the 4,410 buried at the American Cemetery at Brittany, France; the 468 buried at the Brookwood Cemetery in the UK; the 3,812 buried in Cambridge, England; the 5,525 buried in Epinal, France; the 368 buried in Flanders Field, Belgium; the 4,402 buried in Florence, Italy; the 7,992 buried at Henri-Chapelle, Belgium; the 10,489 buried at Lorraine, France; the 5076 buried in Luxembourg; the 14,246 buried in the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery and Memorial in France; the 8,301 buried in the Netherlands; the 9,387 buried in Normandy, France; the 6,012 buried in Oise-Aisne, France; the 861 buried in Rhone, France; the 7,861 buried in Sicily, Italy; the 1,844 buried in Somme, France; the 4,153 buried in St. Mihiel, France; and the 1,541 buried in Suresnes, France.
What has been the U.S. role in the world? Their graves provide a solemn answer to that question.
The American Battle Monuments Commission was established by Congress in 1923 to administer the overseas military cemeteries that serve as resting places for the almost 125,000 American war dead. For more information on the Commission and other (non-European) cemeteries and monuments they administer, please visit their website.
Photo: PBS/Hallowed Grounds
