Photo: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images
By: EFE
Friday, October 25
The “Unknown Soldier” celebrates a century in the US and celebrates leaving behind 73 years of loneliness
This Tuesday people were dressed for Sunday at the Arlington Military Cemetery (Virginia, USA) to approach for the first time in 73 years to the grave centennial of a soldier they have never met , but who has played a pivotal role in building American identity.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Arlington Cemetery turns one hundred and to celebrate it, the public can approach it this Tuesday and tomorrow, Wednesday , for the first time since 1948, when access to visitors was denied due to people’s lack of respect and decorum.
A group of people waited patiently in queue this Tuesday to approach the white marble tomb, where an unidentified US uniformed man who died in World War I is buried dial : men and women of all ages, and even children, waited their turn in silence, as if they were in a church.
Among them stood out a man dressed in a dark blue suit and red tie, who after laying flowers straightened his back and head, squared himself and made the military salute at the grave .
The main sarcophagus is in the open air and Before him there are three slabs under which three other unknown soldiers are buried, one from World War II, one from the Korean War and another from Vietnam, although the latter was identified in 1998 and transferred to another location.
Like a rock star, the mausoleum drew crowds on Tuesday to pay tribute to all the military, identified or not, killed in wars in which the US has intervened.
Arlington Cemetery Public Relations Specialist Amber Vincent explained that that tomb is special because it is in the “heart” of the cemetery.
“People can go and pay respect to all the soldiers who have served the country and I think it is like a foothold for the people, to the best they don’t know any soldier, but they want to show respect ”, he said.
The cemetery alb erects the remains of some 400, 000 military personnel and some of their relatives, of which about 5, 000 belong to unidentified soldiers.
The place dates from the times of the American Civil War (1861 – 1865), but it did not start to be considered as u n “sacred or special site” in the public eye until the burial of an unknown soldier of World War I.
University of Connecticut historian Micki McElya, author of the book “The Politics of Mourning: Death and Honor in Arlington National Cemetery” detailed that that grave “forged a bond between all Americans and the cemetery “.
a major symbol of patriotism and national honor, while recognizing the great sacrifices that some have made for this country, “added the expert.
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