Confederate Memorial (Arlington National Cemetery)
| Confederate Memorial | |
|---|---|
| United States | |
The Confederate Memorial in 2011
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| For soldiers and sailors of the Confederate States of America who died in the American Civil War | |
| Unveiled | June 4, 1914 |
| Location |
38°52′34″N 77°04′38″W / 38.876117°N 77.077277°WCoordinates: 38°52′34″N 77°04′38″W / 38.876117°N 77.077277°W near Arlington County, Virginia, U.S. |
The Confederate Memorial is a memorial in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, in the United States, that commemorates members of the armed forces of the Confederate States of America who died during the American Civil War. Authorized in March 1906, former Confederate States Army sergeant and sculptor Moses Jacob Ezekiel was commissioned by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in November 1910 to design the memorial. It was unveiled by President Woodrow Wilson on June 4, 1914 (the 106th anniversary of the birth of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy).
The memorial grounds have changed slightly due to burials and alterations since 1914. Some major changes to the memorial were proposed over the years, but none has been implemented. Since the memorial's unveiling, the President of the United States has almost always sent a funeral wreath to be laid at the memorial every Memorial Day. Some presidents have declined to do so, and the tradition is controversial.
Arlington National Cemetery was established in June 1864 as a cemetery for Union (United States of America) Civil War dead. The first military burial at Arlington (a white soldier, William Henry Christman) was made on May 13, 1864, close to what is now the northeast gate in Section 27. However, formal authorization for burials was not given by Major General Montgomery C. Meigs (Quartermaster General of the United States Army) until June 15, 1864.
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