4__ The American Cemetery ‘In proud memory of their valor’
Off the Madingley Road, just as you think you have left Cambridge behind, is the American Cemetery. Constructed from soft Portland stone, the memorial is bright rather than dazzling, and simple rather than stark. But the dignified and stirring language of the tributes to the fallen inevitably brings a lump to the throat. The site evokes the indomitability of the human spirit even while acknowledging the enormous sacrifice of servicemen and women during World War II. The Wall of the Missing, the longest in any war cemetery, lists the names of more than 5,000 members of the army, navy, air force and coastguard lost in action, with statues representing each of the four services. Among the names are those of Glenn Miller and Joseph P. Kennedy Jr, as well as that of Leon Vance, highlighted in gold, a documented hero and the recipient of the US Medal of Honor. Their stories, and those of many less well known, are told in the excellent Visitor Center to the west of the site. The chapel to the east of the site has breathtaking mosaics by Francis Scott Bradford, showing angels escorting aircraft heavenward and images of resurrection. One entire wall is a map showing the campaigns in Europe and the Atlantic, with ships and planes sculpted in silver and gold. More than 11,000 US servicemen and women were interred in the cemetery during the war. Many were killed during training exercises, including the infamous Exercise Tiger on the Devon coast, a rehearsal for the D-Day landings in which nearly 800 US soldiers were killed by friendly fire or ambushed by German ships. After the war, the US government repatriated bodies at their families’ request. Now there are nearly 4,000 graves, which continue to be visited by relatives and descendants. They are laid out in a radial pattern from the focal point of the flagpole, where the Stars and Stripes flies permanently. 16
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