American Cemetery and Memorial

The Manila American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City in Metro Manila, Philippines.

The cemetery, 152 acres (0.62 km²) or 615,000 square metres in area, is located on a prominent plateau, visible at a distance from the east, south and west. With a total of 17,206 graves, it is the largest cemetery in the Pacific for U.S. personnel killed during World War II, and also holds war dead from the Philippines and other allied nations. Many of the personnel whose remains are interred or represented were killed in New Guinea, or during the Battle of the Philippines (1941-42) or the Allied recapture of the islands. The headstones are made of marble which are aligned in eleven plots forming a generally circular pattern, set among masses of a wide variety of tropical trees and shrubbery.

The chapel, a tall stone structure enriched with sculpture and mosaic, stands near the center of the cemetery. In front of it on a wide terrace are two large hemicycles with rooms at each end. Twenty-five large mosaic maps in these four rooms recall the achievements of the United States Armed Forces in the Pacific, China, India and Burma. On rectangular Trani limestone piers within the hemicycles are inscribed the names of 36,282 of the Missing who gave their lives in the service of America and who rest in unknown graves. Carved in the floors are the seals of the American states and its territories.

The Memorial is maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission. The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except December 25 and January 1.

Mabuhay Guide Candie Cobiao and myself will be conducting a tour of Manila  tomorrow which includes a visit to the American Memorial Cemetery. For inquiries on the services of the Mabuhay Guides, visit our website MabuhayGuides.blogspot.com or call 8962067.