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by ThiemeMeulenhoff

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Eight things to remember about Memorial Day

Memorial Day is observed in the United States on the last Monday of May. It commemorates all men and women who have died in military service for the United States. Many people visit cemeteries and memorials on Memorial Day, and it is traditionally seen as the start of the summer season. Here are some facts to give the holiday some perspective.

1 Memorial Day began as a response to the Civil War

Memorial Day was a response to the unprecedented carnage of the Civil War, in which a total of some 620,000 soldiers died between both sides. The loss of life and its effect on communities throughout the country led to several spontaneous commemorations of the dead.

2 Major General John A. Logan made the day offi cial

General Logan issued General Order No. 11, which set aside May 30, 1868 ‘for the purpose of strewing with fl owers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defence of their country during the late rebellion’.

While we have made every effort to trace the copyright holders of articles and illustrations contained in this issue, we would be grateful for any information that might assist us in identifying sources we have as yet been unable to fi nd.

Editor

Johan Graus

Editorial assistant

Aafke Moons

Compiled by

Marleen Cannegieter Erik Cats Christien van Gool Johan Graus Caspar van Haalen Aafke Moons Ine Sanders Frederike Westera

3 Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day

The holiday was long known as Decoration Day for the practice of decorating graves with fl owers, wreaths, and fl ags.

Teaching enquiries

Johan Graus, jgraus@xs4all.nl

4 Memorial Day is more of a franchise than a national holiday

Calling Memorial Day a ‘national holiday’ is a bit of a misnomer. While there have been ten federal holidays created by Congress – including Memorial Day – they apply only to federal employees and the District of Columbia. For the rest of the US, the holiday was enacted state by state.

5 Memorial Day has its own set of customs

General Order No. 11 stated that ‘in this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed’, but over time, several customs and symbols became associated with the holiday. Most notably, it is customary on Memorial Day to fl y the fl ag at half-staff until noon, and then raise it to the top of the staff until sunset. The World War I poem ‘In Flanders Fields’, by John McCrea, inspired the Memorial Day custom of wearing red artifi cial poppies.

6 Each Memorial Day is the unoffi cial start of the summer season

There’s no question that Memorial Day is a solemn event. Still, people don’t feel too guilty about doing something frivolous (like hosting a barbecue) over the weekend.

7 Memorial Day is not Veterans Day

Some people get Memorial Day and Veterans Day (11 November) confused. Veterans

Day is a day to honour all of the men and women who have served in the US armed forces, Memorial Day to honour those who lost their lives.

8 On Memorial Day there are a lot of parades

Across the United States, the central event on Memorial Day is attending one of the thousands of parades held in large and small cities. Most of these feature marching bands and an overall military theme with the Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, and

Veteran service members participating along with military vehicles from various wars.

Photos on cover

Castleski, Mopic, Erik Lam, Angyalosi Beata / Shutterstock

Editorial agency

Marjan den Hertog, Deventer

Graphic design

Maura van Wermeskerken, Apeldoorn

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