Agency overview | |
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Formed | 1923 |
Type | Independent Agency of the United States Government |
Headquarters | 2300 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 500 Arlington, Virginia 22201 38°53′25″N77°05′12″W / 38.89028°N 77.08667°W |
Motto | "Time will not dim the glory of their deeds." |
Employees | 472 (2023) [1] |
Annual budget | $73.1 million (2023) [1] |
Agency executive |
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Website | www |
The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is an independent agency of the United States government that administers, operates, and maintains permanent U.S. military cemeteries, memorials and monuments primarily outside the United States. [2]
There were 26 cemeteries and 31 memorials, monuments and markers under the care of the ABMC. There are more than 140,000 U.S. servicemen and servicewomen interred at the cemeteries, and more than 94,000 missing in action, or lost or buried at sea are memorialized on cemetery Walls of the Missing and on three memorials in the United States. The ABMC also maintains an online database of names associated with each site. [3]
The ABMC was established by the United States Congress in 1923. Its purpose is to: [2]
The United States Department of War established eight European burial grounds for World War I. The ABMC's first program was landscaping and erecting non-sectarian chapels at each of the eight sites, constructing 11 separate monuments and two tablets at other sites in Europe, and constructing the Allied Expeditionary Forces World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C. [3] For those buried who could not be identified during World War I, a percentage were commemorated by Star of David markers, rather than a cross; this practice was not continued for those who could not be identified during World War II. [4]
In 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order transferring control of the eight cemeteries to the ABMC, and made the commission responsible for the design, construction, maintenance and operation of all future permanent American military burial grounds outside the United States.
The ABMC has been the caretaker of cemeteries, monuments and memorials for World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Mexican–American War. In 2013, Clark Veterans Cemetery in the Philippines became the 25th site under the control of the commission. Clark Veterans Cemetery dates back to the Philippine–American War at the turn of the 20th century. [5] The Lafayette Escadrille Memorial Cemetery outside Paris, France was added to the commission's responsibilities in 2017. [6]
The agency has its headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, and its Overseas Operations Office in Paris, France.
The authorizing legislation for the American Battle Monuments Commission (36 U.S.C., Chapter 21) specifies that the President may appoint up to 11 members to the commission (who serve indefinite terms and who serve without pay) [1] and an officer of the Army to serve as the secretary. [7]
10 commissioners were appointed by President Joe Biden on September 28, 2021: Darrell L. Dorgan; John L. Estrada; Florent Groberg; Amy Looney Heffernan; Matthew E. Jones; Raymond D. Kemp, Sr.; Bud D. Pettigrew; Michael E. Smith; Gail Berry West; and Daniel P. Woodward. [10] Mark P. Hertling was originally appointed as secretary on the same day, [12] but was later appointed as commissioner, and was elected as chairman on December 13, 2021. [10] Following Hertling's departure from ABMC, President Biden appointed Michael X. Garrett as commissioner in July 2023. Garrett was elected as chairman on August 1, 2023.
The American Battle Monuments Commission employs a full-time staff of 472 people in 2023. [1] All ABMC sites are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week, with the exception of Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Cemeteries are not closed for national holidays. When the sites are open to the public, a commission staff member is available to escort visitors and relatives to grave and memorial sites or to answer questions.
Monument | Location | Country | Dedication | Battle | Web |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Spanish–American War | |||||
Santiago Surrender Tree | Santiago de Cuba | Cuba | Site of the negotiation of the Spanish Gen. José Toral's surrender of Santiago de Cuba on July 13, 1898 | Siege of Santiago | Details |
World War I | |||||
Audenarde American Monument | Oudenaarde | Belgium | 37th and 91st Divisions | October–November 1918 | Details |
Belleau Wood American Monument | Belleau | France | 5th and 6th Marine Regiments | Battle of Belleau Wood | Details |
Bellicourt American Monument | St. Quentin | France | 27th and 30th Divisions | Battle of St. Quentin Canal | Details |
Cantigny American Monument | Montdidier | France | 28th Regiment of the First Army | Battle of Cantigny | Details |
Château-Thierry American Monument | Château-Thierry | France | U.S. and French soldiers | Aisne-Marne Offensive and Oise-Aisne Offensive | Details |
Chaumont AEF Headquarters Marker | Chaumont | France | American Expeditionary Forces led by General Pershing | Headquarters of the AEF, September 1, 1917, to July 11, 1919 | Details |
Kemmel American Monument | Ypres | Belgium | 27th and 30th Divisions of the II Corps | Ypres-Lys Offensive August 18 to September 4, 1918 | Details |
Meuse-Argonne American Memorial | Verdun | France | First Army and Second Army | Meuse-Argonne Offensive September 26, 1918, to November 11, 1918 | Details |
Montsec American Monument | Saint-Mihiel | France | First Army Second Army | September 12–16, 1918 November 9–11 | Details |
Naval Monument at Brest | Brest | France | the naval forces of the United States and France during World War I | Headquarters of the United States and French navies | Details |
Naval Monument at Gibraltar | Straits of Gibraltar | Gibraltar | U.S. Navy and British Royal Navy for major victories | August 1917–November 11, 1918 | Details |
Sommepy American Monument | Sainte-Menehould | France | 70,000 troops who drove the German army back north of the Aisne River: 42nd Division 369th, 371st, and 372nd Infantry Regiments 2nd and 36th Divisions 36th Division | July 15–18, 1918 September 26-October 8 September 29-October 28 October 11–October 27 | Details |
Souilly American Headquarters Marker | Souilly | France | Marking the headquarters of the First Army during the last few months of the war | Meuse-Argonne Offensive | Details |
Tours American Monument | Tours | France | 24,000 civilians of the Services of Supply and 645,000 soldiers of the American Expeditionary Forces | *Constructed almost 1,000 miles of railway tracks;
| Details |
World War II | |||||
Battle of the Bulge Monument | Bastogne | Belgium | U.S. soldiers wounded or killed in the Battle of the Bulge | Battle of the Bulge | Details |
Cabanatuan American Memorial | Cabanatuan | Philippines | U.S. and Filipino victims of the Bataan Death March and Cabanatuan internment camps | Details | |
East Coast Memorial for the Missing | New York City | United States | 4,611 U.S. sailors and service members lost in the Atlantic Ocean during the war | Battle of the Atlantic | Details |
Guadalcanal American Memorial | Guadalcanal | Solomon Islands | U.S. soldiers and allies who died in the Battle of Guadalcanal | Guadalcanal Campaign | Details |
Honolulu Memorial | Honolulu, Hawaii | United States | Dedicated to the 18,096 U.S. World War II soldiers missing from the Pacific (excluding those from the southwest Pacific), 8,200 missing from the Korean War, and 2,504 from the Vietnam War | Details | |
Pointe du Hoc Ranger Monument | Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer | France | Second Ranger Battalion members who on June 6, 1944, scaled the 100 ft (30 m) cliff of Pointe du Hoc and seized German artillery that could have fired on the U.S. troops landing at Omaha and Utah beaches. | D-Day | Details |
Papua American Marker | Papua | Papua New Guinea | U.S. soldiers who fought in Southwest Pacific theatre | South West Pacific theatre of World War II | Details |
Saipan American Memorial | Saipan | Northern Mariana Islands | U.S. marines and soldiers (24,000) and Chamorro who died during the liberation of the Mariana Islands during World War II | Mariana and Palau Islands campaign | Details |
Utah Beach American Monument | Ste-Marie-du-Mont | France | VII Corps members who liberated the Cotentin Peninsula | Battle of Cherbourg | Details |
West Coast Memorial to the Missing | San Francisco | United States | 417 U.S. sailors and service members lost in the Pacific Ocean theater | Pacific Ocean theater of World War II | Details |
Western Naval Task Force Marker | Casablanca | Morocco | U.S. Western Task Force soldiers who made the first transoceanic amphibious operation | Operation Torch | Details |
Korean War | |||||
United Nations Memorial Cemetery | Busan | South Korea | U.S. service members who fought in the Korean War | Korean War | Details |
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars. The commission is also responsible for commemorating Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action during the Second World War. The commission was founded by Sir Fabian Ware and constituted through Royal Charter in 1917 as the Imperial War Graves Commission. The change to the present name took place in 1960.
The World War II Memorial is a national memorial in the United States dedicated to Americans who served in the armed forces and as civilians during World War II. It is located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific is a national cemetery located at Punchbowl Crater in Honolulu, Hawaii. It serves as a memorial to honor those men and women who served in the United States Armed Forces, and those who have been killed in doing so. It is administered by the National Cemetery Administration of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Millions of visitors visit the cemetery each year, and it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Hawaii.
The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial is a World War II cemetery and memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, that honors American troops who died in Europe during World War II. It is located on the site of the former temporary battlefield cemetery of Saint Laurent, covers 172.5 acres and contains 9,388 burials.
Flanders Field American Cemetery and Memorial is a World War I cemetery in the city of Waregem, Belgium. Originally a temporary battlefield burial ground, Flanders Field American Cemetery later became the only permanent American World War I cemetery in Belgium. The Flanders Field American Cemetery commemorates 411 service members of the United States Armed Forces of which 368 are interred. The Walls of the Missing inside the chapel venerates 43 missing service members.
Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial is a World War II American military war grave cemetery, lying between the villages of Coton and Madingley, 7 km (4.3 mi) north-west of Cambridge, England. The cemetery, dedicated in 1956, contains 3,811 American war dead and covers 30.5 acres (12.3 ha). It is one of 26 overseas military cemeteries administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC).
Ardennes American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located in the village of Neuville-en-Condroz, near the southeast edge of Neupré, some 20 km (12 mi) south-west of Liège in Belgium. The cemetery, dedicated in 1960, contains 5,329 American war dead and covers 90.5 acres (36.6 ha). It is one of three American war cemeteries in Belgium, the other two being at Flanders Field and Henri-Chapelle and is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC).
Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located in Hamm, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. The cemetery, containing 5,074 American war dead, covers 50.5 acres (20.4 ha) and was dedicated in 1960. It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War military war grave cemetery, located in the village of Margraten, 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Maastricht, in the most southern part of the Netherlands. The cemetery, the only American one in the Netherlands and dedicated in 1960, contains a constantly varying number above 8,000 American war dead and covers 65.5 acres (26.5 ha). It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC).
Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery in eastern Belgium. It is 3 km (2 mi) northwest of Henri-Chapelle, about 30 km (20 mi) east of Liège. Dedicated in 1960, the cemetery contains 7,992 American war dead and covers 57 acres (23 ha).
The Aisne-Marne American Cemetery and Memorial is a 42-acre (17 ha) World War I cemetery in Belleau, Northern France. It is located at the foot of the hill where the Battle of Belleau Wood was fought, with many American fatalities. The cemetery also contains burials from the Battle of Château-Thierry, later that summer.
Lorraine American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located just outside Saint-Avold, Moselle, France. The cemetery, containing 10,481 American soldiers KIA, covers 113.5 acres (45.9 ha), was dedicated in 1960. It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Rhone American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War American military war grave cemetery, located within the city of Draguignan, 42 km (26 mi) north of Saint-Tropez, in Southern France. The cemetery, named for the Rhone river where most of those interred fought and died, was dedicated in 1956, and contains 858 American war dead and covers 12.5 acres (5.1 ha). It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
The Florence American Cemetery and Memorial is about 7.5 miles south of Florence, Italy, about two miles (3 km) south of the Florence-Impruneta exit of the Rome-Milan autoroute. It covers about 70 acres (28 ha), chiefly on the west side of the Greve river, framed by wooded hills.
Sicily–Rome American Cemetery and Memorial is a World War II American military war grave cemetery, located in Nettuno, near Anzio, Italy. The cemetery, containing 7,858 American war dead, covers 77 acres (31 ha) and was dedicated in 1956. It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
The Somme American Cemetery and Memorial in Picardie, France, is an American Battle Monuments Commission cemetery, situated ½ mile southwest of the commune of Bony, Aisne in northern France. It is located on a gentle slope typical of the open, rolling Picardy countryside.
North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial is a Second World War military war grave cemetery, located in the town of Carthage in Tunisia. The cemetery, the only American one in North Africa and dedicated in 1960, contains 2,841 American war dead and covers 27 acres (11 ha). It is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
The Château-Thierry American Monument is a World War I memorial, dedicated in 1937, located near Château-Thierry, Aisne, France. Architecturally it is a notable example of Stripped Classicism.
Brookwood American Cemetery and Memorial is the only American Military Cemetery of World War I in the British Isles. Located approximately 28 miles (45 km) southwest of London, Brookwood American Cemetery contains the graves of 468 American war dead, including the graves of 41 unknown servicemen, from World War I.
Clark Veterans Cemetery is located in Clark Freeport Zone, Angeles City, Philippines. The cemetery is the burial place for thousands of mainly American veterans and Filipino Scouts who served in the United States Army, and who died in conflicts other than World War II or on military bases in the Philippines.