- Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial
Infobox Military Cemetery
name=Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial
body=American Battle Monuments Commission
caption=View of the memorial, with headstones visible behind.
use_dates=1941-1945
established=8 February 1945
designer=Reinhard, Hofmeister & Walquist
Richard K. Webel (landscaping)
coordinates=coord|50|32|50.75|N|5|27|55.55|E
nearest_town=Neupré ,Belgium
total=5,329
unknowns=792
by_country=
by_war=
source= [http://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/ar.php ABMC Ardennes website] The Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial is home to the graves of 5,329 members of theUnited States military who died inWorld War II . It is one of fourteen cemeteries for American World War II dead on foreign soil, and is administered by theAmerican Battle Monuments Commission . The ninety and a half acre cemetery and memorial is located inNeuville-en-Condroz , near the southeast edge ofNeupré ,Belgium . It is one of three American war cemeteries in Belgium, the other two being at Flanders Field and Henri-Chapelle.Layout and memorial
The Ardennes American Cemetery is generally rectangular in shape. Its grave plots are arranged in the form of a
Greek cross separated by two broad intersecting paths. At the east end of the traverse path is a bronze figure symbolizing American youth, designed by sculptorC. Paul Jennewein . The cemetery is surrounded on all sides by stands of trees.An approach drive leads to the memorial, a rectangular structure bearing on its south facade a massive American
eagle with three figures symbolizingJustice ,Liberty , andTruth and thirteen stars representing the United States. This facade was designed by C. Paul Jennewein. The facade on the far (north) end, which overlooks the burial area, bears the insignia inmosaic of the major United States units which operated in northwest Europe in World War II. Along the outside of the memorial, inscribed ongranite slabs, are the names of 462 American missing (15 Navy and 447 Army and Army Air Forces) who gave their lives in the service of their country, but whose remains were never recovered or identified. Within the memorial are achapel , three large wall maps composed of inlaidmarble , marble panels depicting combat and supply activities and other ornamental features.History
The site of the cemetery was liberated from Nazi control by the
U.S. 1st Infantry Division on 8 September 1944. A temporary cemetery was established on the site on 8 February 1945. After the war, theArdennes site was designated a permanent cemetery, becoming one of fourteen permanent cemeteries for American World War II dead on foreign soil. All temporary cemeteries were disestablished by the U.S. Army, and the bodies of those whosenext of kin requested permanent interment overseas were moved to one of the fourteen permanent cemeteries.The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) oversaw the design and construction of the site. Architects Reinhard, Hofmeister & Walquist of
New York City were hired to design the cemetery and memorial, while the landscaping was designed byRichard K. Webel of Roslyn,New York . Construction of the cemetery and memorial was completed in 1962.The Ardennes American Cemetery served as the location of the Central Identification Point for the Graves Registration Service (now known as Mortuary Affairs) of the Army Quartermaster Corps during much of the life of the Service. The Graves Registration Service interred the dead at the Ardennes cemetery in the distinctive grave pattern proposed by the architect and approved by the ABMC. When the interment program was completed the cemetery was turned over to the ABMC for maintenance and administration.
Interments
Many of the 5,329 people interred at the Ardennes American Cemetery died during Nazi Germany's final major offensive in the west, the
Battle of the Bulge . They include some service troops who were fighting asinfantry . Others died in the advance to theRhine and acrossGermany , and in the strategic bombardment ofEurope . Three-fifths of those buried in the cemetery were airmen.The dead came from almost every state in the Union as well as from
Washington, D.C. ,Canada ,Denmark ,England ,France ,Germany ,Ireland , thePhilippines , and theBritish West Indies . Seven hundred seventy-seven of the headstones mark the graves of 792 unidentified bodies. Among the headstones are eleven instances in which two brothers are buried side by side. There are also three cases in which two identified airmen are buried in single graves. Buried in the cemetery is Technical SergeantCharles F. Carey, Jr. , who earned theMedal of Honor for action inFrance . His grave is marked by a special headstone with gold lettering. Also buried at Ardennes isBert Stiles , a fighter pilot who wrote a posthumously-published memoir of his aerial combat experiences.The cemetery is closed to future interments, with exceptions made for recently recovered remains of American WWII dead. In 1992, the remains of American war dead were discovered in a forest east of Elsenborn, Belgium. Through DNA testing, one set of remains was identified as Sgt. John T. Puckett of Wichita,
Kansas , who had been listed as Missing in Action during theBattle of the Bulge . Puckett's family requested he be interred in the Ardennes cemetery; his burial there took place on18 June 2005 . [cite web|url=http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/2005/nr20050617-3707.html|title=News Release No. 617-05, WWII Missing in Action Soldiers Identified|publisher=U.S. Department of Defense|date=2005-06-17 |accessdate=2006-08-29]Notes
References
* cite web
publisher = American Battle Monuments Commission
title = Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial
url = http://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/ar.php
accessdate = 2006-08-02External links
* [http://www.outline.be/quicktime/memorial Ardennes American Memorial in fullscreen format] Panography by Alain Hamblenne (QuickTime VR panorama)
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