Flagpole at the Somme American Cemetery Chapter XI
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Flagpole at the Somme American Cemetery Chapter XI AMER! CAN MILITAR Y CEMETERIES IN EUROPE HERE are eight permanent Ameri- Cemetery. The other American ceme- can military cemeteries in Europe. teries are located on the battlefields of TThese have been developed by the France and Belgium and have been in- United States Government into places of cluded in the tours described in this book. distinguished be auty and no American The cemeteries were originally estab- Map Showing Location of American Military Cemeteries in Europe Cemetery indicated by symbol} lsoMMEI Thus: GHENT and na me of a near-by town. BONY \ IFLANDE:RS FIE:LDI 50 75 Miles i YPRES 0 WAEREGHEM \ BRUSSELS \ \ . N LILLE MONS ( \ \ /: î lsOMMEI / AMIENS [!]OBONY ( QUENTIN / LUXEMBURG 1.AON \ i .. .. \ SOISSONS MEUSE-A RGONNE: ROMAGNE FERE. -EN-TARDENOIS REIMS VERDUN BELLEAU ST. METZ AISNE-MARNE~HÂTEAU·THIERRY MIHIEL PARIS CHALONS ESNES BAR·LE·DUC SURESNES NANCY who travels in Europe should fail to visit lished by the War Department. They are as many of them as his time will permit. now (1937) under the jurisdiction of the The cemeteries are conveniently located American Battle Monuments Commission, with respect to the routes which travelers which has erected in each one an appro- normally follow. From the center of priate memorial chapel and has added Paris it is only 5 miles to the cemetery at the additional architectural and land- Suresnes, and from London it is less than scape features necessary to make all of an hour by train to the Brookwood them outstanding in beauty and dignity. (457) 458 AMERICAN MILITARY CEMETERIES IN EUROPE General View of the Headstones at the Meuse-Argonne Cemetery The development of each cemetery is at this national shrine, where, as the forma! in character and this formality is representative of bis comrades, he receives emphasized by the regular rows of white daily the bornage of a grateful people. marble headstones which mark the graves The "unknown dead" whose bodies of the soldiers buried there. The head- were not found consist mainly of soldiers stones are of two designs, a cross for those who were buried hurriedly during battle of the Christian faith and a six-pointerl without suitable markers on their graves star for those of the Jewish faith. or with markers which were obliterated Every soldier now buried in an Ameri· by shellfire, men who were blown to can military cemetery who lost bis life pieces by high-explosive shells, and during the World War and whose body prisoners who died without their identity bas been identified bas bis name, rank, being recorded. Through the misfor- organization, state and date of death tunes of war these men have thus been carved on the headstone over bis grave. denied the honored burial which bas These men are called the "known dead" been given to their comrades in death. to distinguish them from the "unknown Others who have no identified graves dead" whose bodies have not been found are the soldiers and sailors whose resting or, if found, have not been identified. place is the sea. This group includes With one exception, al! "unknown men who died at sea and were buried dead" whose bodies have been found are there, as well as those who lost their lives now buried in the cemeteries in Europe, at sea due to the action of the enemy. each resting in a separate grave marked The Commission early decided that with a headstone bearing the following each of these "unknown dead" should inscription: "HERE RESTS IN HONORED have bis name, rank, organization, state GLORY AN AMERICAN SOLDIER KNOWN and date of death inscribed in one of the BUT TO Gon". The single exception is chapels in the American cemeteries in that of the "Unknown Soldier" who was Europe. As a result, in the chape! of buried in a superb tomb bearing the same each battlefield cemetery are inscribed inscription at the Arlington National the names of the "unknown" soldiers Cemetery near Washington, D. C. This who lost their lives in that region. In soldier, selected from the unidentified dead addition, on panels of the chape! in the of the A. E. F., was returned to America Meuse-Argonne Cemetery are recorded and buried with full military honors the names of the "unknown dead" of the AMERICAN MILITARY CEMETERIES IN EUROPE 459 Services of Supply and of the American al! members of the American forces whose Expedition to N orthern Russia. The bodies remain in Europe exceptas follows: "Unknown Soldier" who is buried at the 42 men whose bodies were left in their Arlington National Cemetery is therefore original graves outside the cemeteries at among the soldiers whose names appear the request of relatives; 18 who are buried on the walls of one of the chapels in the beneath the Lafayette Escadrille monu- American military cemeteries in Europe. ment at Garches, near Paris, where 21 of The names of the "unknown" soldiers their former comrades of the Escadrille and sailors whose bodies were lost or are also buried; those whose bodies were buried in European waters are recorded in released to relatives for private inter- the chapels at Suresnes and Brookwood. ment, and those whose remains have not Of the 81,067 American soldiers, sailors been found. and marines who gave their lives in A brief description of each of the Europe and European waters during the American cemeteries is given on the fol- war, the number who still remain "un- lowing pages. The photographs accom- known" is 4,431. This number includes panying them will give a good idea of the 1,643 who are buried in unidentified appearance of the different cemeteries graves in the permanent American ceme- and the small maps will be found useful teries in Europe, 1,537 whose grave is the by the tourist in locating a cemetery after sea, 1,250 whose remains have never been he arrives in its general neighborhood. found, and the "Unknown Soldier" who An information bureau is maintained is buried at the Arlington National at the European Office of the American Cemetery. Battle Monuments Commission, located At the time of the Armistice there were in the American Government Office approximately 2,400 places in Europe in Building, 2 Avenue Gabriel, Place de la which American dead were temporarily Concorde, Paris, where locations of par- buried. After hostilities ceased, provi- ticular graves and information concern- sion was made for the permanent burial ing the cemeteries may be obtained. of these bodies in accordance with the An American superintendent is on duty expressed wishes of the nearest relatives at each cemetery to give information and concerned, and the eight permanent other assistance to visitors. Reception American cemeteries in Europe were es- rooms are available at the cemeteries for tablished. These cemeteries, with their the comfort and convenien ce of tourists. 30,902 burials, now contain the graves of All distances in this chapter are air line. Airplane View of the St. Mihiel Cemetery Meuse-Argonne Arnerican Cernecery Near Romagne-sous-Montfaucon MEUSE-ARGONNE CEMETERY NEAR ROMAGNE-SOUS-MONTFAUCON HIS is the largest and most im- T pressive American cemetery in Europe. It contains 14,240 graves. Most of those buried here gave their lives during the Meuse- TO Argonne offensive, the greatest CUNEL battle in all American history. The cemetery is located just in rear of the Hindenburg Line in a small valley between Romagne and Cunel. Its size and the harmony of its architectural de- MEUSE-ARGONNE velopment make it rank high AMERICAN among the beautiful cemeteries of CEMETERY the world. The immense field of O 500 1000 Yds. white marble crosses arranged in long regular rows on the slop- ing hillside, with the chape! silhouetted of the men who are buried in the cemetery. on the crest above, is a sight which, once The cemetery is about 18 miles north- it is seen, will not quickly be forgotten. west of Verdun, which is a tourist center A more complete description of this and easily reached by train. Good hotel cemetery is given on pages 247- 248. accommodations are available in the city A hostess house, which has facilities to and automobiles can be hired there. Both provide rooms and meals for a limited the cemetery and the Meuse-Argonne number of visitors during the summer American memorial on Montfaucon are months, is now maintained at the ceme- included in most of the regular tours of tery for the convenience of the relatives the battlefields which start from Verdun. Romagne Entrance, Meuse-Argonne Cemetery ( 461 ) OISE-AISNE CEMETERY NEAR FÈRE- EN-TARDENOIS N a battlefield where many of Amer- The pink and gray sandstone chapel and O ica's bravest sons met their death, walls give color at all times but perfection near Fère-en-Tardenois, is located the is reached in .the spring when the roses Oise-Aisne Cemetery, the second largest and fiowering shrubs are in full bloom. American cemetery in Europe. It con- The cemetery is about 14 miles from tains 6,012 graves. The majority of the Château-Thierry and Soissons and slightly battle dead who sleep there are from more from Reims. Good train service is divisions which fought in the vicinity available to each of those places, where and to the north as far as the Oise River. hotel accommodations can be obtained In 1922 a considerable number of bodies and automobiles hired. The main railroad were moved to this cemetery from the line between Paris and Reims passes close general area to the southwest of Paris. to the village of Fère-en-Tardenois.