Manila American Cemetery and Memorial

Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
American Battle Monuments Commission
Manila American Cemetery headstones with memorial building behind.
Used for those deceased 1941 - 1945
Established	1948
Location	14°32′28″N 121°03′00″E / 14.541°N 121.050°E / 14.541; 121.050Coordinates: 14°32′28″N 121°03′00″E / 14.541°N 121.050°E / 14.541; 121.050 near Taguig City, Philippines
Designed by	Gardener A. Dailey
Total burials	17,206
Unknown burials	3,744
Burials by nation
United States: 16,636 Philippines: 570
Burials by war
World War II: 17,206
Statistics source: American Battle Monuments Commission

The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City in Metro Manila, Philippines.

The cemetery, 152 acres (0.62 km²) or 615,000 square metres in area, is located on a prominent plateau, visible at a distance from the east, south and west. With a total of 17,206 graves, it is the largest cemetery in the Pacific for U.S. personnel killed during World War II, and also holds war dead from the Philippines and other allied nations. Many of the personnel whose remains are interred or represented were killed in New Guinea, or during the Battle of the Philippines (1941-42) or the Allied recapture of the islands. The headstones are made of marble which are aligned in eleven plots forming a generally circular pattern, set among masses of a wide variety of tropical trees and shrubbery.

The chapel, a tall stone structure enriched with sculpture and mosaic, stands near the center of the cemetery. In front of it on a wide terrace are two large hemicycles with rooms at each end. Twenty-five large mosaic maps in these four rooms recall the achievements of the United States Armed Forces in the Pacific, China, India and Burma. On rectangular Trani limestone piers within the hemicycles are inscribed the names of 36,282 of the Missing who gave their lives in the service of America and who rest in unknown graves. Carved in the floors are the seals of the American states and its territories.

The Memorial is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission. It is the largest site administered by the Commission in the number of graves and of those Missing who names are recorded on the walls of the memorial.

The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except December 25 and January 1.

General Layout

The entrance to the cemetery is at the far (north) side of the large grassed circle just beyond the military sentinel's post which is at the junction of the McKinley and Nichols Field Roads. Immediately beyond the gate is the plaza with its circular fountain; at the right is the Visitors' Building. Stretching from the plaza to the memorial is the central mall, which is lined with mahogany trees (Swietenia Macrophylla). Circular roads leading eastward and westward through the graves area join the straight roads along the edges of the mall. To the east of, and lower than, the graves area are the service area, deep wells and reservoirs. A purification system provides potable water within the cemetery.

The Memorial

The memorial is faced with Travertine limestone quarried near Tivoli, a few miles east of Rome, Italy. It consists of the tower containing the small devotional chapel, and the two extensive hemicycles to its front which embrace the Memorial court. The principal entrance to the memorial area is by the monumental staircase at the south end of the mall. At the top of these steps the Great Seal of the Commonwealth of the Philippines has been carved into the paving; this is the seal which was authorized for use during World War II and until the Republic had been established. To the right and left stretch the hemicycles; on the end facade of each is the dedicatory inscription:

IN PROUD REMEMBRANCE OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF HER SONS AND IN HUMBLE TRIBUTE TO THEIR SACRIFICES THIS MEMORIAL HAS BEEN ERECTED BY THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 1941-1945

Each hemicycle contains 24 pairs of fin walls upon the four faces on which are inscribed the names and particulars of 36,285 of our Missing:

• United States Army and Army Air Forces - 16,915
• United States Navy - 17,587
• United States Marine Corps - 1,727
• United States Coast Guard - 58

During World War II the United States Air Force was part of the United States Army as the United States Army Air Forces.

These gave their lives in the service of their Country in the regions from Australia northward to Japan, eastward to the Palau Islands and westward to China, Burma and India but their remains have not been identified, or they were lost or buried at sea. Their names include men from every State in the Union, also from the District of Columbia, Panama, Guam, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. At each end of each hemicycle is a map room. The memorial area offers many magnificent prospects over Manila toward Mount Arayat to the north, and over the Laguna de Bay toward Mount Makiling to the southeast and Tagaytay Ridge to the south. Without confirmed information to the contrary, a War Department Administrative Review Board established the official date of death of those commemorated on the Tablets of the Missing as one year and a day from the date on which the individuals was placed in Missing in action status.

References

• http://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/ml_pict.pdf

External links

• Manila American Cemetery and Memorial Official Website from the American Battle Monuments Commission