On Memorial Day, 1921, four unknowns were exhumed from an American cemetery in France. The following year, a burial ceremony was planned in the United States for an American unknown who died in Europe during the First World War.
It was in Great Britain, however, where the idea of honoring these forgotten warriors first took root in 1920. The idea of the tomb itself was initially inspired by the multitudes of unknown dead that had amassed by the end of World War I (WWI). Eisenhower signed a bill into law whose purpose was to select and pay tribute to the fallen unknown soldiers of the Korean War and World War II (WWII) by interring them with honors in a specially designated area in Arlington National Cemetery. What is it about this place that so intrigues the many who visit it every year? What’s the story behind it and what does it take to become one of the select few to stand watch over it? The First, But Not The Last Located on a hill on high ground at almost the perfect geographic center of the cemetery, the tomb exemplifies valor and honor by remembering those who died committing brave and selfless acts with no one to bear witness to them. Presidents buried there, there is nowhere within the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery that is more frequented by visitors than The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldierĭespite the many distinguished and revered war heroes and two former U.S. Further along the landmark’s timeline, President Herbert Hoover oversaw the first Memorial Day ceremony on May 30, 1929. In 1882, the Supreme Court ruled in his favor and the federal government paid Lee $150,000 for the property, which is equivalent to $3.2 million in 2016. After the war, George Washington Custis Lee sued the federal government for return of the land, which he argued had been seized illegally. The following month, the War Department designated the space as a national cemetery. In May 1864, Private William Christman was the first military casualty to be buried in the newly created graveyard. To meet this demand, 200 acres of the plantation was set aside as a cemetery. Part of the property was used as a Freedman’s Village where former slaves received assistance after their liberation.Īs the number of casualties climbed during the Civil War, the federal government needed additional cemetery space to inter the dead. Federal troops incorporated the land into their defensive fortifications around Washington. With the secession of Virginia from the Union, the family evacuated the property. In 1857, the property was bequeathed to his daughter Mary Anna Randolph Custis who had married Robert E. He built the Arlington House as a memorial to the nation’s first president. History of an Honored CemeteryĪrlington National Cemetery occupies land once owned by George Washington Parke Custis, the adopted grandson of Martha and George Washington. The cemetery, Arlington Memorial Bridge, the Hemicycle and Arlington House make up the Arlington National Cemetery Historic District that was added to the National Historic Register in 2014. Still an active burial ground, it conducts over 25 funerals each weekday. This national landmark is the country’s largest and most important military cemetery.
The hallowed ground serves as the final resting place for numerous presidents, Supreme Court justices, astronauts and other public servants, including more than 400,000 military personnel, veterans and their immediate families. Overlooking the nation’s capital from its serene 624-acre hilltop perch, Arlington National Cemetery is located on the resplendent west bank of the Potomac River. Learn about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
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