Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial

Although it is open most days and bank holidays, we visit the Cambridge American Cemetery today as part of the Open Cambridge events in order to have a guided tour.  

Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial is a World War II American military war grave cemetery, lying just outside of north-west Cambridge near Madingley; the cemetery, dedicated in 1956, contains 3,811 American war dead and is administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission.  It is situated on land on the north slope of Madingley Hill given by the University of Cambridge to the American military forces for use as a temporary cemetery during World War II.  After the war, the Cambridge site was chosen as America's permanent World War II cemetery and war memorial in the UK; the cemetery contains 3,809 headstones, with the remains of 3,811 servicemen, and the memorial comprises a museum room and a small chapel.

We had an excellent tour guide who provided lots of interesting background information, which greatly enhanced the visit to this site (see picture captions for details); a visit when in Cambridge is highly recommended.Read more