Following the end of the Battle of the Bulge and the liberation of the Ardennes by the Allies, a cemetery was established just outside the town of Bastogne. Located between the villages of Foy and Recogne, some 2,700 American soldiers and 3,000 German soldiers were buried in the military cemetery.

However, after the end of the Second World War, the bodies of the American deceased were gradually repatriated to their families in the United States or were transferred and reburied in one of the neighbouring permanent American cemeteries of Henri-Chapelle (Belgium), Neuville-en-Condroz (Belgium) or Hamm (Luxembourg).

A memorial was later constructed to mark the site of this historic U.S. military resting place and pay homage to all those American soldiers who were originally interned here. The monument features doves as a symbol of peace, two marble American military gravestones (a cross and a Star of David) and a granite plaque.

There are also two circles representing the globe. The first (on the left side of the monument) is stuck, frozen, to symbolise the division caused by the conflict. The second (on the right side of the monument) is moving, turning on itself and represents a world that has regained its ‘normality.’

The German War Cemetery near Recogne remained in situ and is located only a short walk away from this memorial.