The Mardasson Memorial is located near Bastogne

Bastogne

Bastogne Luxembourgish: Baaschtnech) is a Walloon municipality of Belgium located in the province of Luxembourg in the Ardennes. The municipality of Bastogne includes the old communes of Longvilly, Noville, Villers-la-Bonne-Eau, and Wardin...

, a municipality in the Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 province

Provinces of Belgium

Belgium is divided into three regions, two of them are subdivided into five provinces each.The division into provinces is fixed by Article 5 of the Belgian Constitution...

 of Luxembourg. It honours the memory of the 76,890 American soldiers who were wounded or killed during the Battle of the Bulge

Battle of the Bulge

The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...

.

While first steps towards the memorial were undertaken on July 4, 1946, by presenting some earth from the site to U.S. President Harry Truman, the monument was dedicated on July 16, 1950. Architect Georges Dedoyard designed the complex as a 12-meter (36-foot) high pentagram

Pentagram

A pentagram is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes...

 with a side length of 31 meters (93 feet), centered by a circular atrium

Atrium (architecture)

In modern architecture, an atrium is a large open space, often several stories high and having a glazed roof and/or large windows, often situated within a larger multistory building and often located immediately beyond the main entrance doors...

 with a diameter of 20 metres (60 feet). While the inner walls are covered with ten paintings from the battle, the outer crown is engraved with the names of the contemporary 48 U.S. State

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

s, and the insignia of most participating battalions

Battle of the Bulge order of battle

This is the order of battle of German and Allied forces during the Battle of the Bulge.Caveat: This Battle lasted more than a month, with assignments in considerable flux. Any hierarchy of unit within Corps within Army within Army Group is inherently a snapshot of a single moment in that flux. The...

 are shown on the walls. Below the structure, a crypt

Crypt

In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....

 with three altars – one each for Protestant, Catholic and Jewish services – was caved, and decorated with mosaics by French artist Fernand Léger

Fernand Léger

Joseph Fernand Henri Léger was a French painter, sculptor, and filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of Cubism which he gradually modified into a more figurative, populist style...

. The Latin inscription on the memorial stone:

LIBERATORIBVS

AMERICANIS

POPVLVS BELGICVS

MEMOR

IV.VII.MCMXLVI.

translates to "The Belgian people remember their American liberators – 4th July 1946."

Next to the memorial is the Bastogne Historical Centre, which houses World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

memorabilia and shows a film of footage shot during the battle.

External links

• U.S. Army Europe: The Mardasson Memorial at Bastogne
• Bastogne Historical Center: The Mardasson. Chronological account and American Memorial
• 360° surround view of the memorial