Tour Washington DC: Military and War Memorials and Monuments

When we think about the monuments and memorials in Washington DC, the first thought we have is the memorials dedicated to past presidents of the United States of America. The Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial have been symbols and landmarks of the federal city for decades. Recently, the FDR Memorial and the Eisenhower Memorial have been added to this list of presidential monuments. Of course, aside from these, the government buildings and museums that abound the city are always big draws for tourists. However, Washington DC is not just about presidential monuments, federal buildings, and museums.

Over the centuries, numerous brave men and women served the nation and sacrificed their lives in Défense of the country’s freedom and democracy. It is just fitting that they too are honoured with memorials and monuments at the political center of the United States of America. Around Washington DC, numerous sites were committed and consecrated to celebrate the sacrifice and valor of the United States armed forces and other uniformed personnel. By going to these military and war monuments and memorials in Washington DC, we can have a deeper appreciation for the freedom and democracy we are continually taking pleasure in as much as this day.

Here are a few of the monuments and memorials in Washington DC dedicated to the brave males and females in uniform who served the nation. Visiting them is a need whenever you go on a Washington DC household reunion, educational tour, faith-based tour, or for whatever function you go to the federal city.

Korean War Veterans Memorial

Committed in 1995, the Korean War Veterans Memorial was incorporated to honour those who combated and served the three-year Korean War. The monolith consists of various structures in honour of the servicemen who compromised throughout the most devastating conflicts after World War II. A mural wall made from black granite with sandblasted images of archival pictures of soldiers and their devices moving through the land, air, and the sea is among its main features. The mural wall is encompassed intersect the circular Pool of Remembrance, situated at the apex of the triangle-shaped memorial. An impactful message, FREEDOM IS NOT FREE, in 10-inch silver letters is composed at the end of the wall converging the swimming pool. It functions as a tip of the sacrifice that the soldiers spent for the freedom that we enjoy today. Nineteen seven-foot stainless steel statues, moving in their ponchos which appear to be blown by the cold wind of Korea, is another popular function of the memorial. They represent all of the branches of the United States armed forces who entered into a fight at the Korean Peninsula. When shown at the mural wall, the range of statues appears to double to 38. The number represents the 38th parallel that divided Korea into 2 sides. At the north end of the field of statues, the names of the 22 countries that combated under the UN Command throughout the Korean War are memorialized at the United Nations Curb.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Among the most popular sites of the National Parks System, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial stands as a powerful indication of the country’s acknowledgment of the service and sacrifice of the men and females who serve throughout the Vietnam War. The memorial consists of three parts, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, The Three Soldiers, and the Vietnam Women’s Memorial The best-known part of the site is the Wall made of black granite, where more than 58,000 names of casualties of the war were noted in sequential order. Maybe, the most effective and moving function of the wall is that the visitor’s reflection is seen at the same time as the engraved name, connecting the past and present. Throughout the wall is the bronze statue of The Three Servicemen, identifiable as a European American, a Black American, and a Hispanic American. Solemnly looking towards the wall, the Three Servicemen appear to commemorate their fallen buddies. A little south of the wall is a fitting tribute to the ladies, most of them are nurses, who served in the Vietnam War. It powerfully works as a remembrance of the important role that women played during the conflict.

The World War II Memorial

The World War II Memorial, located at the eastern end of the Lincoln Memorial Reflective Pool, operates as a reminder of the valor, sacrifice, unity, and success of the Americans who served throughout the Second World War. From the eastern side, there is a rectangle-shaped ritualistic entryway ending in an elliptical pool with water fountains and waterjets. On both sides of the entryway are balustrades bearing bachelor’s degree relief sculptures portraying iconic scenes of the war experience. The northern side represents the war in Europe, while the south side is for the Pacific. On either side of the pool is a triumphal arch symbolizing the success on the two fronts – the Atlantic and the Pacific. In addition to the arches, 56 pillars form a semi-circle around the fountain representing the 48 states, District of Columbia, and 7 federal locations that combated side-by-side throughout the war. On the western side of the plaza, a Freedom Wall was raised to honor the more than 400,000 males and females who longed for the price of liberty. They are represented by 4,048 stars in the wall, one star for every single 100 Americans who compromised their lives.

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African American Civil War Memorial

The first memorial exclusively dedicated to the members of the United States Colored Troops, the monolith honors the valor and sacrifice of the African-American soldiers who served in the Civil War. The 9-foot bronze statue, called The Spirit of Freedom, honors the more than 200,000 men of color, who suffered spite from the opposing side and bigotry from within their own. Likewise in the plaza are walls where all the names of the Black servicemen, together with that of their white officers and Hispanic associates, are engraved. Right throughout the plaza is the African American Civil War Museum, where families, trainees, and visitors can, much more, keep in mind the bravery and contributions of the USCT.

Marine Corps War Memorial

Honoring the lives and sacrifice of all the members of the Marines who served in defense of the nation’s flexibility since 1775, the Marines Corps War Memorial was inspired by the renowned flag-raising image done at the island of Iwo Jima in Japan by the end of the Second World War, thus it is also known as the Iwo Jima Memorial. The larger than life sculpture, located in Arlington County, Virginia, shows the 6 Marines raising a United States flag atop Mount Suribachi throughout the battle on the island. The bronze figures of the soldiers are 32 feet high while the flagpole is 60 feet high. Two of the sustaining Marines in the historic flag-raising minute designed for their statues’ faces. Every fight where the Marines battled, their dates and places, are inscribed in gold letters forming the upper rim of the refined black granite base.

Arlington National Cemetery

Merely a stone’s toss throughout the Potomac River from Washington DC, Arlington National Cemetery is located. The site is the biggest United States military cemetery where more than 400,000 soldiers and immediate family are buried considered that the Civil War. The cemetery functions as a memorial to the countless lives who provided their lives in the name of flexibility. Veterans and their households from the battlefronts of the Middle East, the Korean and Vietnam Wars, the two World Wars, and the American Civil War have been interred on these spiritual grounds. Some notable sites and burials at the Arlington National Cemetery are the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the gravesite of President John F. Kennedy, the USS Maine Mast Memorial, the Space Shuttle Challenger Memorial, and the Cross of Sacrifice. Visitors can similarly witness the detailed and solemn event of the Changing of the Guard – where a guard effortlessly takes control of the guard duty for the previous guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

The United States is not just developed by the founding fathers. It is continually being safeguarded by the males and females who serve the militaries. They are the ones who protect the flexibility and democracy that we delight in. Honoring them by learning more about their bravery through visiting the monuments and memorials whenever we visit Washington DC is simply a small job compared to the excellent sacrifice they have provided for this nation.