Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington Virginia, is an American military
cemetery established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington
House, formerly the estate of the family of Robert E. Lees wife Mary Anna
Curtis Lee, a descendant of Martha Washington.
More than 300,000 persons are buried here on 624 acres. Veterans from every
one of the nation's wars are interred in the cemetery, from the American
Revolution through the military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Pre-Civil
War dead were reinterred after 1900.
Tomb of the Unknowns
The Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery is also known as the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It stands on top of a hill overlooking
Washington, D.C.
The tomb was completed and opened to the public Apr 9, 1932, and was initially
named the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier." Other unknown servicemen were later
buried there, and it became known as the "Tomb of the Unknowns", though it
has never been officially named. The soldiers buried there are:
Unknown Soldier of World War I
Unknown Soldier of World War II
Unknown Soldier of the Korean War
Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam War
The Tomb of the Unknowns is perpetually guarded by the U.S. Army. The 3rd
U.S. Infantry Regiment ("The Old Guard") began guarding the Tomb Apr 6, 1948.
John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame
President John F. Kennedy is buried with his wife and two of their children. He was placed here
Mar 14, 1967. His grave is marked with an eternal flame. His brother,
Senator Robert F. Kennedy, is also buried nearby. The latter grave is
marked by a simple wooden cross.
After the assassination of the President, the widowed First Lady, Jacqueline
Kennedy, requested an eternal flame for his grave site. She was inspired by
the eternal flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe
in Paris, which she and her husband had seen during a visit to France in 1961
In 1967, the permanent grave site was completed, with the eternal flame
surrounded by Cape Cod field stones and selections from President
Kennedy's Inaugural Address etched on marble panels that face the nation's
capital.
Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial
During the American Civil War, the grounds of the mansion were selected as
the site of Arlington National Cemetery, in part to ensure that General Lee
would never again be able to return to his home. Yet the United States has
since designated the mansion as a national memorial to its former opponent,
a mark of widespread respect for Lee in both the North and South.
For more information, visit the links below
Arlington Home Page
Wikipedia
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