google Montebuono and you’ll find a smaller cemetery for American soldiers killed by Nazis, maintend by locals and relatives of the deceased didn’t even know about it
My father in law Larry Kelly landed on Utah Beach that day. His reflections on that were beyond anything I could imagine. He visited this cemetery 40 years after his landing on Normandy. The emotions that ran thru his heart and soul were overwhelming. Rest in peace Dad.
My brother died in France in WW2, he had just turned 19. He was buried there, but my father chose to have his remains returned to the states as the US government offered to return those if the families chose so in 1948. So nice to see the care by the French of this cemetery.
I'm not sure why people would think that is American soil. It certainly isn't. It is however, hallowed ground. Thank you France, for taking such good care of their final resting place.
My understanding is that a little soil from the United States was sprinkled over every grave in order to symbolically have each American that is buried there be in some American soil….myth or fact…I do not know……
well not hard to see, some misspoke or lost in translation or the MYTH could have been made to ease people's mind that the cemetery is "us soil" and France couldn't remove it to make a new parking lot, well they did find Richard III the King of England under a parking lot in Leicester, now this is a little like RAF Lakenheath it a British base, but US has a lease agreement, but the difference here is this lease agreement was paid by blood and its in the best interest of all three parties involved the France, The US and the world to keep it open for 1000 years
I am not sure where this alleged "myth" originated. I'm an American, born in 1960. My late grandfather served in the SW Pacific theater. In all of my years, I've NEVER heard anyone (American or otherwise) claim this cemetary to be "American soil". That's a preposterous idea and would be slap in the face of a people who suffered greatly themselves during the years of occupation. I've always been well aware of the continuing kindness, compassion, dedication and generosity of both the French government and her people with regard to caring for the thousands of American/Allied fallen. Their ongoing respect and care speaks very well of the French as a people.
I had the honor of visiting this site on June 6 2006. It is a sobering and heartrending experience to see the rows upon rows of lost potential and youth. Freedom comes at a high price and is precious as a result.
The obvious respect and love shown by the French to these fallen American soldiers is evident. The beautiful grounds and the perfect maintenance is a credit to all concerned and a worthy resting place to all these brave men. Greetings from Australia.
I lost a great uncle on Omaha beach that day. Hopefully, he is laying at peace under a white cross. Thank you France, for taking care of the men who died that day.
I was detailed to march in the 30th Anniversary of the Liberation of Avranche. (1/32 Armor, 3AD) We sent a platoon to march in the parade. While there, we visited the beach and cemetery. One of my most treasured memories of my 14 years, 7 months and 9 days in the Army was being there, in Avranche, and having a Frenchman who lived through the war, bring his grandchild over to met "real American soldiers." The people in Normandy (at least in 1974) hadn't forgot....
I was at the 40th because my unit, the 4/29 Field Artillery, out of Baumholder Germany, was one of the first artillery units on the Beach. It's was such an honor to meet the soldiers who made the assault that day, American and all the allies. One of my greatest memories.
I went here back in the 1980's, just out of college. I was struck by how many gravestones revealed that the person buried below died at only 19 or 20 years old. Just boys.
I visited in 20, just before lockdowns. As a veteran of the us army, it was a very special place. The cost of freedom is immense. Now that I have retired to France and love living here, I appreciate the sacrifices even more. May war never cross these lands again.
I would like to address a problem. The French have great respect for our war dead in their care. We have not responded in kind. Without France we would not be a nation. They came to our aid during the revolution. If you go to Yorktown you will find the grave site of 50 Frenchman who gave their lives for our country. Looking at how they are remembered is deplorable. We should have a monument equal to or better then what France has provided for our dead. It is a shame.
Unfortunately, Charles De Gaulle undertook a long campaign of anti-American rhetoric and policies through the post-war period that rubbed many Americans the wrong way. Given the huge sacrifices in blood and treasure that Americans gave during two World Wars to liberate France, Americans understand ably felt betrayed.
I would think, sadly, that it ultimately depends on the amount of money that each respective government pays the host country to maintain these graves. I'm sure that Scott Desjardins, the gentleman in charge of the cemetery is not a volunteer, nor would I expect him to be. The American Battle Monuments Commission mentioned gets allocations from Congress and it is up to that body of individuals how much and which site gets the money. I'm sure there might also be charitable donations earmarked specifically for certain places.
A monument for 90 that is the equivalent to a monument for 9,387? Here’s another question, what sort of monument do they have for AMERICANS at Yorktown? Answer - none.
Throughout northern France and places in Belgium there are cemeteries from both World Wars. The British and Commonwealth graves are administered or maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. But it is always understood that these cemeteries are still parts of countries where they are located in. The “love” that the French and Belgian people displayed towards these graves brings tears to the eyes. A big thank you to France and the US organisation that maintains the Utah / Omaha burial grounds. RIP all buried here.
My father was in the 29th Infantry of the US Army, do to an illness he missed D-Day. There brave men, and other countries are hero's to both sides of the Atlantic. To be honest, I don't really care who's land it is, I just love how it is maintained, and visited and respected by those who visit no matter the nationality.
I was there in autumn 2023, a very worthy memorial and well worth the visit. As a Swede, I have no connection to the soldiers who fell or even to WWII but I wanted to visit and honour those who gave their lives in the fight against totalitarianism. Maybe there will one day be something like it in the Ukraine...?
Merci, France, for using this land for the remains and memories of those Americans who gave the u)timate sacrifice. I visited Normandy 10 years ago in May, and left this cemetery with tears in my eyes. My parents were teenagers in Belgium during WWII, and I am forever grateful to our American Military for what they did at this time. Because of you, my sister and I are alive. In Memory of Eugene Schmid, Louis Schmid, Carl Scmid, and Floyd Schmid, my uncles by marriage.
All choked up. My Dad was a WWII combat veteran with a purple heart. North Africa, Salerno, and Anzio and into Rome the day before D-Day, 6th of June. His war was about over just when the Normandy invasion and French Liberation was beginning. Its hard to believe there will be no more of them among us soon. I’m sorry but I see that as a very bad thing. In fact, it scares me.
I visited in 2016, the cemetery was maintained to near perfection on an ordinary day. It was more affecting in person than any movie can convey. My thanks to the kind and gracious people of France.
I visited my uncle's grave from WWI. The cemeteries, in that area, tend to be smaller (a little over 200 graves, on top of a hill) as they buried the soldiers near when they fell. It was beautifully maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
The 80th anniversary of D-Day, the last time Soldiers from WW2 may be able to attend, and this is what you come up with?? Well the people of France and the United States don't care about that "myth". Americans didn't come to take away any French soil, especially cemeteries, we came to liberate France and help them win back their country. Thank you to the French People for honoring our American Soldiers.
The Normandy American Cemetery is one of 14 permanent American World War II military cemeteries on foreign soil. The government of France granted use of this land, in perpetuity, as a permanent burial ground without charge or taxation. In 1966 when France got the atomic bomb, she withdrew from NATO. She ordered ALL foreign troops to leave France. General Eisenhower, head of USEUR, the Commander of NATO was told to leave France. He asked DeGuelle if that meant the ones who were buried here too. DeGuelle was difficult to deal with. But as a Vterean I have only the highest regard for the men and women who maintain this sacred ground.
@@willfrix1455 Yes, it was Rusk who dealt with De Gaulle on this matter, however, he was acting under the direction of Johnson. This was in 1967. Eisenhower was the NATO Supreme Commander from 1950 - 1952.
A couple years ago, when I visited Omaha Beach, the American Cemetary and the surrounding countryside and towns, one of the things that struck me is the number of private homes that fly American, UK, and Canada flags next to their own French flag.s. They do still remember and they are still grateful. Also, we need to remember that we very well wouldn’t be a country without the assistance that we received from the French during our Revolutionary War. We shame ourselves when some of our idiots belittle the French.
Strange notion. We British have never thought of British and Commonwealth cemeteries as our soil, but we are grateful and humbled by the maintenence and attention paid by the French locals.
A very interesting video that leaves a bunch of questions for me. My cousin ,29th Division 116th Infantry Company K, was in the first wave of soldiers landing on Omaha beach on D-Day. He later was KIA in the battle for the town of Saint-Lo. That makes me wonder why he lies at rest in a cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio and not in France. The family was not financially well off to have his remains sent home so if someone has even a generic explanation I'd like to hear it. Sadly, as one of his last family members alive his sacrifice will cease to be remembered once were gone. I think it may have been appropriate to have him interned in this cemetery where people will always come to pay their respects to those that gave the ultimate sacrifice. Gods' peace Bobby.
Every family had the choice to have their loved one buried in France or have his remains sent home. Either way, the government paid for it. Now, could a soldier's remains be disinterred and then sent back to France? -- I don't know.
Tomorrow will be the 40 anniversary of me being there. I was there for the 40th anniversary of the d-day invasion. It's a very humbling place. Looking over the beaches of Normandy, I couldn't fathom how anyone survived that day. I was 20 on that day and couldn't appreciate the moment, but 40 years later I do. Watching president Reagan give his iconic speech, it's one of my most cherished moments.
Thank you doe the video. What wasn't mentioned was that the American Battle Monuments Commission has been constructing interpretation centers at each of the cemeteries they are responsible for in an effort to attract visitors. The interpretation centers are essentially small museums often featuring stories of individuals who are buried in the cemeteries.
If someday they do decide to invite the grandsons of the veterans i would definitely go. Honored to represent my grandfather, Tank Commander of the Third Armored Division and D-Day combatant at Omaha Beach. "I saw much here in ten minutes of Hell" the only thing he ever wrote about that battle
We have a beautiful very large American Military Cemetary in Luxembourg where General Patton is buried .Generals Eisenhower ,Bradley had their Headquarters in Luxembourg
I visited this cemetery/memorial10 years ago. I am not an American but I was moved by the beauty and poignancy of this [lace at Coleville sur Mer, Normandy
My Great Grandpa was a Merchant Marine, My Grandpa was a Seabee, both in the Pacific. One uncle a Seabee in Korea at Inchon, two in the Army- one in Germany & one in Vietnam, and one, a Marine in Vietnam. Only the Marine is still with us. I went on to serve 10 years as a Greenside Navy Corpsman and my little brother retired as a Mustang officer in the Army. My bucket list is to visit every single National Cemetery including the 28 located around the world to pay my respects.
It would be nice if you did a survey of the different cemeteries of the Normandy campaign. I am thinking of this largely because I am British and the Commonwealth cemeteries are virtually ignored in the wider 'DISCOURSE'. They are smaller and more intimate than this one, more numerous and more full of stories on the tombstones. They are maintained assiduously by local workers, with flowers and goodwill.
I totally agree with you. British and Commonwealth troops were typically buried close to where they fell instead of being collected into one big cemetery. The other difference i have noticed is that British and Commonwealth Cemeteries tend to be open 24/7. I was very disappointed to find, when I visited the US Cemetery that it closed at 5:00pm and I could not get in.
I visited the cemetery and Omaha Beach in September of 2019, the 75th year. It was perhaps the most moving experience of my life. This year, I was able to travel to the Arizona Memorial and the Missouri Battleship in Pearl Harbor. Again moving, but not as much as Normandy. I'm working on that bucket list.
As an American, thank you for caring about our dead. It means a lot when your citizens go out of their way to meet our service. I wish that our own culture would treat veterans with such dignity and respect.
Out of the 135,000 us troops that were in operation overlord (D Day) 29,000 American troops were killed many of the fallen Heroes were buryed in France .thank you for your ultimate sacrifice and for saving the world RIP
Interesting fact. You can tell who is an American when the clarion plays the Star Spangled Banner. Americans stop and face the flag during the anthem. Non-Americans typically don't recognize the anthem and continue walking around. Most of the non-Americans eventually figure it out and stop moving about for the duration of the song.
Thank you so much. My Father was in the C.C Camp and the Army during W.W.11, but he wasn't overseas . He often talked about his service and wondered about a few comrades. He is now gone. But our son's & grandchildren know he was a vet. My step father was in the Marines during W.W.11 as well as the Korean war. He was overseas during the Korean war.
Visiting any of the American Military Cemeteries managed by ABMC is a moving, memorable experience. Every American citizen should strive to visit at least one of these places in their lives. We owe it to those who rest here.
I didn't lose any family in the war (luckily they escaped France), but the Germans occupied my wife's village. I, did, however, lose my great great grandfather in WW1 so rest in peace.
Went there in 2018...no words to describe it....the trees are shaved to specifically represent young men and women's lives being ended at such young ages. A clarification: It really is the Allied cemetary there. I believe there are French, Polish, Canadien and English butied there as well.
In October 2024, I will be visiting Normandy (Juno Beach and Omaha Beach) as well as Vimy Ridge so that I may pay my personal respects to those who rest there. We owe them everything.
@kyle381000 It's a special place! Some of the Nazi bunkers at Omaha Beach were constructed by prisoners, so they used special cement mixtures that wouldn't hold up as well under assault. I learned that from my tour guide.
When de Gaulle told Eisenhower that he wanted the American military out of France, Ike is supposed to have asked him when the US should start taking the bodies out of this cemetery…
Over the last 50 or so years I've visited many of the War Grave Cemetery's of ALL nationalities in France. I've never ever heard any 'myth' about them being anything other than on French Soil. One thing puzzles me here... Why are these graves surrounded in taped areas? Look at the video again and see that visitors seem to be confined to the paved pathways. I've never seen this in any other War Grave Cemetary, anywhere in the World, where visitors are always free to walk amongst the graves. Many of the Cemetery's also have sections for graves of other nationalities, including German, and, All graves are treated with the same love, care, and respect. Every Grave contains the remains of someone's beloved relative. In death all are equal. Even in Thailand and Burma (Myanmar) War Grave Cemetery's are beautifully maintained. Please don't suggest it's to keep the grave sites here pristine, all the other War Cemetery's are equally beatifully maintaned, without any need to confine visitors just to the pathways. Why?
Thank you for this reporting. I appreciate the effort and dedication of all those involved in maintaining and protecting this cemetery. My grandfather survived the Second World War and for that I am glad. Many did not and deserve to be remembered.
Is there an alphabetical listing of all the men (any women?) buried here? Thanks to all the people who help maintain this final resting place for so many men.
May be French soil but is controlled by the US government. in Oct 2013 we were there during an American Government "shutdown" it was closed and we were not allowed in...........a bunker at Pointe du Hoc and the Omaha beach museum were also closed as was the American Cemetery in Luxenberg where Gen Geo Patton is buried............ we were very disappointed as we had planned to visit the grave of a soldier in Normandy who lived in our small town. A letter of complaint to US congressman William Keating (D, Ma, also from same town) resulted in a political slanted form letter blaming the Republicans for the shutdown
The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is an independent agency of the United States government that administers, operates, and maintains permanent U.S. military cemeteries, memorials and monuments primarily outside the United States. Annual budget $73.1 million (2023). France has nothing to do with any of this. France can barely contribute the NATO mandated 2% for its own defense - much less memorial sites across the country.
We went to visit the cemetery in 2015 I believe. The US Goverment had shut down that week and we were not allowed to enter! We were not warned about it until our bus arrived. Talk about 30 pissed off people.! One group was ready to scale the wall before the guide talked them down. We managed to visit the British, Canadian and German cemeteries. If I had a relative buried in the American cemetery I would have considered telling the US Government to go do things to themselves and gone over the fence
foreign military are commonly buried in the country they die in. During WW-2 t British pilots and crew would train in places like Arcadia Florida at two nearby airfield that the army air corps owned at that time. British training was intense and a number of the airmen lost their lives and are buried together in the local cemetery in what is called the British plot. It is well maintained by the British Government with a Union Jack flying in the middle to this day. I believe it contains 32 airmen. It is said that on some quiet nights the normal regular flag is mysteriously replaced by a large one, except when you look again it returns to normal size. It is also said that on these nights and sometimes during the day you can here the sounds of the of a pub as piano music, the clinking of mugs and singing can be heard. It is very a solemn place and people will visit and leave British coins and small items on the top of the headstones!
At that time they didn't have the means and ability to send them back. The only thing I wish is that the families of those buried in Europe be given discounted flights and hotels to be able to afford to visit their loved ones. May I ask how old you are?
During the war the dead were buried in temporary graves. After the war the families were given a choice of whether to have the body shipped back home or buried permanently over there.
I am guessing you don't have proof of this. I am guessing you just believe what a very liberal magazine, The Atlantic, told you believe. I am guessing you also believe that Biden was raised in a black neighborhood, and a Jewish neighborhood, and a Puerto Rican neighborhood, in a Jewish synagogue, and a black church, and his dead uncle told Biden that he didn't want the Purple Heart that Biden's dead father told Biden to give to his uncle, and that inflation was 9% when Biden took office, and that Biden's uncle was eaten by Cannibals, and that Biden was a truck driver, and everything else that has came out of that lying, racist, money laundering, pedophiles mouth. So, I don't really care what you say if you are dumb enough to believe all of that. Oh, and I do have proof that Biden was too busy looking at his watch to pay his respects to the 13 service members that Biden caused the death of. So, again, I don't care what you have to say because I know the kind of demented mental reject you support.
Eternally grateful to France for their continued commitment to protecting and maintaining the American cemetery.
google Montebuono and you’ll find a smaller cemetery for American soldiers killed by Nazis, maintend by locals and relatives of the deceased didn’t even know about it
its the least they could do for what those young men did to save them.
@@stevenrunyon170 We owe the French equal thanks for helping us win our independence from Great Britain.
You're eternally grateful? ARE YOU JOKING?
@@Matt-fl8uyFrance sent us guns and money in our Revolution.
Over half a million Americans were killed in WW1and 2.
You call that equal?
As a retired U.S Army Soldier thank you France for honoring them
My father in law Larry Kelly landed on Utah Beach that day. His reflections on that were beyond anything I could imagine. He visited this cemetery 40 years after his landing on Normandy. The emotions that ran thru his heart and soul were overwhelming. Rest in peace Dad.
The greatest generation. They sacrificed so much. May Larry Kelly rest in peace.
My brother died in France in WW2, he had just turned 19. He was buried there, but my father chose to have his remains returned to the states as the US government offered to return those if the families chose so in 1948. So nice to see the care by the French of this cemetery.
I'm not sure why people would think that is American soil. It certainly isn't. It is however, hallowed ground. Thank you France, for taking such good care of their final resting place.
My understanding is that a little soil from the United States was sprinkled over every grave in order to symbolically have each American that is buried there be in some American soil….myth or fact…I do not know……
Probably the same reason that people think that US embassies in foreign countries are on US soil. Ignorance.
the soil is laden with our dead. to nit pic over something like this is embarrassingly petty and frankly french.
well not hard to see, some misspoke or lost in translation or the MYTH could have been made to ease people's
mind that the cemetery is "us soil" and France couldn't remove it to make a new parking lot, well they did find
Richard III the King of England under a parking lot in Leicester, now this is a little like RAF Lakenheath it a British base, but US has a lease agreement, but the difference here is this lease agreement was paid by blood and its
in the best interest of all three parties involved the France, The US and the world to keep it open for 1000 years
I am not sure where this alleged "myth" originated. I'm an American, born in 1960. My late grandfather served in the SW Pacific theater. In all of my years, I've NEVER heard anyone (American or otherwise) claim this cemetary to be "American soil". That's a preposterous idea and would be slap in the face of a people who suffered greatly themselves during the years of occupation.
I've always been well aware of the continuing kindness, compassion, dedication and generosity of both the French government and her people with regard to caring for the thousands of American/Allied fallen. Their ongoing respect and care speaks very well of the French as a people.
I had the honor of visiting this site on June 6 2006. It is a sobering and heartrending experience to see the rows upon rows of lost potential and youth. Freedom comes at a high price and is precious as a result.
The obvious respect and love shown by the French to these fallen American soldiers is evident. The beautiful grounds and the perfect maintenance is a credit to all concerned and a worthy resting place to all these brave men. Greetings from Australia.
Don't forget the Canadian Defense forces 🇨🇦!!!
My father is buried in the American cemetery in St James France --Killed Brest Sept 12 ,1944 ...A very beautiful place ..
🫡💜🇺🇸🪖
Can i ask what your fathers name was@@DouglasRichardson-er4ky
I lost a great uncle on Omaha beach that day. Hopefully, he is laying at peace under a white cross. Thank you France, for taking care of the men who died that day.
I was detailed to march in the 30th Anniversary of the Liberation of Avranche. (1/32 Armor, 3AD) We sent a platoon to march in the parade. While there, we visited the beach and cemetery.
One of my most treasured memories of my 14 years, 7 months and 9 days in the Army was being there, in Avranche, and having a Frenchman who lived through the war, bring his grandchild over to met "real American soldiers." The people in Normandy (at least in 1974) hadn't forgot....
I was at the 40th because my unit, the 4/29 Field Artillery, out of Baumholder Germany, was one of the first artillery units on the Beach. It's was such an honor to meet the soldiers who made the assault that day, American and all the allies. One of my greatest memories.
Glad for the fallen that the French people remember them
I went here back in the 1980's, just out of college. I was struck by how many gravestones revealed that the person buried below died at only 19 or 20 years old. Just boys.
More men than today's pampered 30-somethings.
I visited in 20, just before lockdowns. As a veteran of the us army, it was a very special place. The cost of freedom is immense. Now that I have retired to France and love living here, I appreciate the sacrifices even more. May war never cross these lands again.
Thank you.
God bless these fallen soldiers.
God bless America.
And God bless France.
I would like to address a problem. The French have great respect for our war dead in their care. We have not responded in kind. Without France we would not be a nation. They came to our aid during the revolution. If you go to Yorktown you will find the grave site of 50 Frenchman who gave their lives for our country. Looking at how they are remembered is deplorable. We should have a monument equal to or better then what France has provided for our dead. It is a shame.
I agree with you, but unfortunately the way people's minds are geared is to what have you done 4 me lately. It's sad. More so in our country.
Unfortunately, Charles De Gaulle undertook a long campaign of anti-American rhetoric and policies through the post-war period that rubbed many Americans the wrong way. Given the huge sacrifices in blood and treasure that Americans gave during two World Wars to liberate France, Americans understand ably felt betrayed.
I would think, sadly, that it ultimately depends on the amount of money that each respective government pays the host country to maintain these graves. I'm sure that Scott Desjardins, the gentleman in charge of the cemetery is not a volunteer, nor would I expect him to be. The American Battle Monuments Commission mentioned gets allocations from Congress and it is up to that body of individuals how much and which site gets the money. I'm sure there might also be charitable donations earmarked specifically for certain places.
A monument for 90 that is the equivalent to a monument for 9,387? Here’s another question, what sort of monument do they have for AMERICANS at Yorktown? Answer - none.
Doesn't matter .US history will be non-existent in about 8-10 years.
Many thanks to the French people for the beautiful caretaking of our sons, brothers, and fathers.
Throughout northern France and places in Belgium there are cemeteries from both World Wars. The British and Commonwealth graves are administered or maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. But it is always understood that these cemeteries are still parts of countries where they are located in. The “love” that the French and Belgian people displayed towards these graves brings tears to the eyes. A big thank you to France and the US organisation that maintains the Utah / Omaha burial grounds. RIP all buried here.
Thank you France for continuing to honor these soldiers...
I visited 2 weeks ago. All the war cemeteries in Normandy are immaculate. The French people have so much respect for their sacrifice.
My father was in the 29th Infantry of the US Army, do to an illness he missed D-Day. There brave men, and other countries are hero's to both sides of the Atlantic. To be honest, I don't really care who's land it is, I just love how it is maintained, and visited and respected by those who visit no matter the nationality.
I was there in autumn 2023, a very worthy memorial and well worth the visit. As a Swede, I have no connection to the soldiers who fell or even to WWII but I wanted to visit and honour those who gave their lives in the fight against totalitarianism. Maybe there will one day be something like it in the Ukraine...?
Merci, France, for using this land for the remains and memories of those Americans who gave the u)timate sacrifice. I visited Normandy 10 years ago in May, and left this cemetery with tears in my eyes. My parents were teenagers in Belgium during WWII, and I am forever grateful to our American Military for what they did at this time. Because of you, my sister and I are alive.
In Memory of Eugene Schmid, Louis Schmid, Carl Scmid, and Floyd Schmid, my uncles by marriage.
All choked up. My Dad was a WWII combat veteran with a purple heart. North Africa, Salerno, and Anzio and into Rome the day before D-Day, 6th of June. His war was about over just when the Normandy invasion and French Liberation was beginning. Its hard to believe there will be no more of them among us soon. I’m sorry but I see that as a very bad thing. In fact, it scares me.
The greatest generation, may they never be forgotten, or their sacrifice.
I visited in 2016, the cemetery was maintained to near perfection on an ordinary day. It was more affecting in person than any movie can convey.
My thanks to the kind and gracious people of France.
I visited my uncle's grave from WWI. The cemeteries, in that area, tend to be smaller (a little over 200 graves, on top of a hill) as they buried the soldiers near when they fell. It was beautifully maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Thank you France
No, thank you to The United States of America!
The 80th anniversary of D-Day, the last time Soldiers from WW2 may be able to attend, and this is what you come up with?? Well the people of France and the United States don't care about that "myth". Americans didn't come to take away any French soil, especially cemeteries, we came to liberate France and help them win back their country. Thank you to the French People for honoring our American Soldiers.
Thank you France, we love you. From Berry in the U.S.
The Normandy American Cemetery is one of 14 permanent American World War II military cemeteries on foreign soil. The government of France granted use of this land, in perpetuity, as a permanent burial ground without charge or taxation. In 1966 when France got the atomic bomb, she withdrew from NATO. She ordered ALL foreign troops to leave France. General Eisenhower, head of USEUR, the Commander of NATO was told to leave France. He asked DeGuelle if that meant the ones who were buried here too. DeGuelle was difficult to deal with. But as a Vterean I have only the highest regard for the men and women who maintain this sacred ground.
de Gaulle is not a very popular figure in Canadian history, either.
Dean Rusk said that, not Eisenhower. He was Sec. State under JFK.
@@willfrix1455 Yes, it was Rusk who dealt with De Gaulle on this matter, however, he was acting under the direction of Johnson. This was in 1967. Eisenhower was the NATO Supreme Commander from 1950 - 1952.
Bless those young men and women, may they rest in peace.
Woman? Not one.
@@christianjambou8208Of course some women too... Why not 🥴..
Many women gave their lives fighting for the Allied cause in WW2, but the Americans at Normandy were only men.
I visited last year my dad landed on D day he was one of the lucky ones he came home
A couple years ago, when I visited Omaha Beach, the American Cemetary and the surrounding countryside and towns, one of the things that struck me is the number of private homes that fly American, UK, and Canada flags next to their own French flag.s. They do still remember and they are still grateful. Also, we need to remember that we very well wouldn’t be a country without the assistance that we received from the French during our Revolutionary War. We shame ourselves when some of our idiots belittle the French.
I don't think many thought of it as US property. Same goes with foreign embassies.
I was there in the 1980s. I remember walking to the end of the cemetery and suddenly coming to the channel. The sight was breath taking.
Strange notion. We British have never thought of British and Commonwealth cemeteries as our soil, but we are grateful and humbled by the maintenence and attention paid by the French locals.
A very interesting video that leaves a bunch of questions for me. My cousin ,29th Division 116th Infantry Company K, was in the first wave of soldiers landing on Omaha beach on D-Day. He later was KIA in the battle for the town of Saint-Lo. That makes me wonder why he lies at rest in a cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio and not in France. The family was not financially well off to have his remains sent home so if someone has even a generic explanation I'd like to hear it. Sadly, as one of his last family members alive his sacrifice will cease to be remembered once were gone. I think it may have been appropriate to have him interned in this cemetery where people will always come to pay their respects to those that gave the ultimate sacrifice. Gods' peace Bobby.
Every family had the choice to have their loved one buried in France or have his remains sent home. Either way, the government paid for it. Now, could a soldier's remains be disinterred and then sent back to France? -- I don't know.
Tomorrow will be the 40 anniversary of me being there. I was there for the 40th anniversary of the d-day invasion. It's a very humbling place. Looking over the beaches of Normandy, I couldn't fathom how anyone survived that day. I was 20 on that day and couldn't appreciate the moment, but 40 years later I do. Watching president Reagan give his iconic speech, it's one of my most cherished moments.
Thank you doe the video. What wasn't mentioned was that the American Battle Monuments Commission has been constructing interpretation centers at each of the cemeteries they are responsible for in an effort to attract visitors. The interpretation centers are essentially small museums often featuring stories of individuals who are buried in the cemeteries.
Thank you For the Diligence to respect our Dead. They are not suckers or losers. They are the glorious!
Same with Pointe du Hoc. Actually there are many graves of soldiers who died elsewhere including Quentin Roosevelt who was shot down in WW1
If someday they do decide to invite the grandsons of the veterans i would definitely go. Honored to represent my grandfather, Tank Commander of the Third Armored Division and D-Day combatant at Omaha Beach. "I saw much here in ten minutes of Hell" the only thing he ever wrote about that battle
We have a beautiful very large American Military Cemetary in Luxembourg where General Patton is buried .Generals Eisenhower ,Bradley had their Headquarters in Luxembourg
I visited this cemetery/memorial10 years ago. I am not an American but I was moved by the beauty and poignancy of this [lace at Coleville sur Mer, Normandy
My Great Grandpa was a Merchant Marine, My Grandpa was a Seabee, both in the Pacific. One uncle a Seabee in Korea at Inchon, two in the Army- one in Germany & one in Vietnam, and one, a Marine in Vietnam. Only the Marine is still with us. I went on to serve 10 years as a Greenside Navy Corpsman and my little brother retired as a Mustang officer in the Army.
My bucket list is to visit every single National Cemetery including the 28 located around the world to pay my respects.
It would be nice if you did a survey of the different cemeteries of the Normandy campaign. I am thinking of this largely because I am British and the Commonwealth cemeteries are virtually ignored in the wider 'DISCOURSE'. They are smaller and more intimate than this one, more numerous and more full of stories on the tombstones. They are maintained assiduously by local workers, with flowers and goodwill.
Yes, and there is even a German cemetery.
There are even mixed British/German war cemeteries. I visited one in 2004. The warring parties were in seperate sections though.
I totally agree with you. British and Commonwealth troops were typically buried close to where they fell instead of being collected into one big cemetery. The other difference i have noticed is that British and Commonwealth Cemeteries tend to be open 24/7. I was very disappointed to find, when I visited the US Cemetery that it closed at 5:00pm and I could not get in.
We were there last year and it was a very humbling experience. Thank you all.
Vive la France!
I visited the cemetery and Omaha Beach in September of 2019, the 75th year. It was perhaps the most moving experience of my life. This year, I was able to travel to the Arizona Memorial and the Missouri Battleship in Pearl Harbor. Again moving, but not as much as Normandy. I'm working on that bucket list.
As an American, thank you for caring about our dead. It means a lot when your citizens go out of their way to meet our service. I wish that our own culture would treat veterans with such dignity and respect.
Im an American Iraq vet, we should be remembering the brave Ukrainians who have fallen defending not just Ukraine, but all of Europe!
@@genes.3285 No, he hasn't!!!
This is not about Ukraine.
why ???? isn't sniff providing enough aid. this is about veterans who fought to liberate europe .
@@bobbie4904 Liberate Europe? What happened to Poland? Was the Soviet Union fighting for the same reasons as the U.S. and the U.K.?
Out of the 135,000 us troops that were in operation overlord (D Day) 29,000 American troops were killed many of the fallen Heroes were buryed in France .thank you for your ultimate sacrifice and for saving the world RIP
To be fair to the rest of the millions of Allied soldiers who fought in WW2, the US soldiers "helped" save the world.
These men did not die for nothing 🇺🇸
Interesting fact. You can tell who is an American when the clarion plays the Star Spangled Banner. Americans stop and face the flag during the anthem. Non-Americans typically don't recognize the anthem and continue walking around. Most of the non-Americans eventually figure it out and stop moving about for the duration of the song.
Thank you so much. My Father was in the C.C
Camp and the Army during W.W.11, but he wasn't overseas . He often talked about his service and wondered about a few comrades. He is now gone. But our son's & grandchildren know he was a vet. My step father was in the Marines during W.W.11 as well as the Korean war. He was overseas during the Korean war.
From one unremarkable American. Thank you for keeping our fallen cared for. Vive la France.
Monsieur Desjardins: we met at the U.S. cemetery in Luxembourg. Avec nos regards, the Holohans
All gave some
Some gave all
I have been there. It is kept in beautiful condition. Thank you 🇫🇷
Visiting any of the American Military Cemeteries managed by ABMC is a moving, memorable experience. Every American citizen should strive to visit at least one of these places in their lives. We owe it to those who rest here.
Beautiful piece of earth, the French certainly have an eye for beauty! Thank you France.
I didn't lose any family in the war (luckily they escaped France), but the Germans occupied my wife's village. I, did, however, lose my great great grandfather in WW1 so rest in peace.
Brave men resting on hallowed ground...as it should be...
The bird song is something that surprised me, every cemetery has a cacophony of bird song
I cannot imagine a world without all the military cemeteries that provide the final resting place for all those who perished in wars.
God Bless Each and Every one of these Brave Soldiers
Thank you 🇺🇸🙏
Merci
Went there in 2018...no words to describe it....the trees are shaved to specifically represent young men and women's lives being ended at such young ages. A clarification: It really is the Allied cemetary there. I believe there are French, Polish, Canadien and English butied there as well.
If you’ve never visited, what are you waiting for?
In October 2024, I will be visiting Normandy (Juno Beach and Omaha Beach) as well as Vimy Ridge so that I may pay my personal respects to those who rest there.
We owe them everything.
@kyle381000 It's a special place! Some of the Nazi bunkers at Omaha Beach were constructed by prisoners, so they used special cement mixtures that wouldn't hold up as well under assault. I learned that from my tour guide.
When de Gaulle told Eisenhower that he wanted the American military out of France, Ike is supposed to have asked him when the US should start taking the bodies out of this cemetery…
Over the last 50 or so years I've visited many of the War Grave Cemetery's of ALL nationalities in France. I've never ever heard any 'myth' about them being anything other than on French Soil.
One thing puzzles me here... Why are these graves surrounded in taped areas? Look at the video again and see that visitors seem to be confined to the paved pathways. I've never seen this in any other War Grave Cemetary, anywhere in the World, where visitors are always free to walk amongst the graves. Many of the Cemetery's also have sections for graves of other nationalities, including German, and, All graves are treated with the same love, care, and respect.
Every Grave contains the remains of someone's beloved relative. In death all are equal.
Even in Thailand and Burma (Myanmar) War Grave Cemetery's are beautifully maintained.
Please don't suggest it's to keep the grave sites here pristine, all the other War Cemetery's are equally beatifully maintaned, without any need to confine visitors just to the pathways. Why?
Thank you for this reporting. I appreciate the effort and dedication of all those involved in maintaining and protecting this cemetery. My grandfather survived the Second World War and for that I am glad. Many did not and deserve to be remembered.
Thank you France.
Is there an alphabetical listing of all the men (any women?) buried here? Thanks to all the people who help maintain this final resting place for so many men.
Two stories must NEVER go without retelling……..Normandy and Auschwitz.
May be French soil but is controlled by the US government. in Oct 2013 we were there during an American Government "shutdown" it was closed and we were not allowed in...........a bunker at Pointe du Hoc and the Omaha beach museum were also closed as was the American Cemetery in Luxenberg where Gen Geo Patton is buried............ we were very disappointed as we had planned to visit the grave of a soldier in Normandy who lived in our small town. A letter of complaint to US congressman William Keating (D, Ma, also from same town) resulted in a political slanted form letter blaming the Republicans for the shutdown
I've been there twice over the years, but never imagined it wasn't French soil.
Nothing mythical about honoring those that died so others could be free
Free from communism?
I have visited there. It was a part of an excellent Normandy Battlefield tour.
It’s a thank you for coming over and saving them
Very beautiful and moving.
Thank you
The USA should ve given the land as legally USA and maintain it.
The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) is an independent agency of the United States government that administers, operates, and maintains permanent U.S. military cemeteries, memorials and monuments primarily outside the United States. Annual budget $73.1 million (2023). France has nothing to do with any of this. France can barely contribute the NATO mandated 2% for its own defense - much less memorial sites across the country.
and the "myth" is.............????. Seems to be well protected US Cemetery although the US doesn't have a deed to the place.
If you paid attention to the narrator you would know.
We went to visit the cemetery in 2015 I believe. The US Goverment had shut down that week and we were not allowed to enter! We were not warned about it until our bus arrived. Talk about 30 pissed off people.! One group was ready to scale the wall before the guide talked them down. We managed to visit the British, Canadian and German cemeteries. If I had a relative buried in the American cemetery I would have considered telling the US Government to go do things to themselves and gone over the fence
Myth? No one thought it wasn't French land
Vive la France.
A beautiful and humbling place, as is the German cemetery not too far away at La Cambe
I agree! I have visited there and it was is memorable - in a dark and very somber way.
Anyone know why some get buried in France and other brought back to the US for burial?
I believe it was due to the families' wishes.
So where is the myth in this reality??
Why weren't they returned back to the United States?
I was there.
Interestingly canadas vimy memorial lands from ww1 were given to canada by france in 1922.
foreign military are commonly buried in the country they die in. During WW-2 t British pilots and crew would train in places like Arcadia Florida at two nearby airfield that the army air corps owned at that time. British training was intense and a number of the airmen lost their lives and are buried together in the local cemetery in what is called the British plot. It is well maintained by the British Government with a Union Jack flying in the middle to this day. I believe it contains 32 airmen. It is said that on some quiet nights the normal regular flag is mysteriously replaced by a large one, except when you look again it returns to normal size. It is also said that on these nights and sometimes during the day you can here the sounds of the of a pub as piano music, the clinking of mugs and singing can be heard. It is very a solemn place and people will visit and leave British coins and small items on the top of the headstones!
If I had died there i would want them to send my body home. why be buried on foreign soil?
At that time they didn't have the means and ability to send them back. The only thing I wish is that the families of those buried in Europe be given discounted flights and hotels to be able to afford to visit their loved ones. May I ask how old you are?
During the war the dead were buried in temporary graves. After the war the families were given a choice of whether to have the body shipped back home or buried permanently over there.
Are living WW2 veterans able to be interred there if they wish?
Zut Alors ! Why does site open with TikTok ad to join ? Que Infame !!!😮
Let us never forget, that Trump called US soldiers buried in France "suckers."
I am guessing you don't have proof of this. I am guessing you just believe what a very liberal magazine, The Atlantic, told you believe.
I am guessing you also believe that Biden was raised in a black neighborhood, and a Jewish neighborhood, and a Puerto Rican neighborhood, in a Jewish synagogue, and a black church, and his dead uncle told Biden that he didn't want the Purple Heart that Biden's dead father told Biden to give to his uncle, and that inflation was 9% when Biden took office, and that Biden's uncle was eaten by Cannibals, and that Biden was a truck driver, and everything else that has came out of that lying, racist, money laundering, pedophiles mouth.
So, I don't really care what you say if you are dumb enough to believe all of that.
Oh, and I do have proof that Biden was too busy looking at his watch to pay his respects to the 13 service members that Biden caused the death of.
So, again, I don't care what you have to say because I know the kind of demented mental reject you support.
Liar. Get help.
@@catherinelw9365 I agree. Trump should get help for disrespecting our veterans.
@@catherinelw9365 Get a brain ! what are you afraid of, besides the truth ?
What freedoms did they, along with the USSR, fight for?
Did anyone think it is USA property?
No.