Arlington National Cemetery

Typically twenty five to thirty burial ceremonies are conducted each day at Arlington National Cemetery. The property is the final resting place for more than 400,000 active duty service members, veterans and their families. It is a place of honor where the men and women who gave their lives in service will be eternally celebrated and where all who visit gain a sense of their sacrifice.

On a serene three acre expanse just below the Arlington House,

lies the final resting place for John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy.

The site overlooks the National Mall and the city President Kennedy loved.

Arlington House, also known as the Custis-Lee House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial, was built as the seat of a prominent Virginia family as the realization of a dream by George Washington Parke Custis, grandson of Martha Dandridge Custis, George Washington's wife to provide a shrine worthy of General Washington. On his grandmother's death in 1802, Custis inherited the estate and enslaved workers, including 1,100 acres on the Potomac. George Custis married a devout Episcopalian, Mary Lee Fitzhugh, who educated their slaves in Christian beliefs and provide them with a basic education in anticipation of their eventual liberation from slavery. In 1831, the only surviving child of George and Mary, Mary Anna Randolph Custis, married Lt. Robert E. Lee, a childhood playmate and distant cousin. They had seven children and divided their time between duty posts and Arlington House. Lee left for Richmond in April 1861, and accepted command of Virginias's forces. Mrs. Lee left in May as Union troops prepared to occupy the estate in defense of the capital.

The parlor has been restored to original condition.

As she left, Mrs. Lee entrusted her personal maid with the keys to Arlington House, and by so doing, made Mrs. Grey the keeper of the young nations Washington treasures.

Just a bit away from Arlington House is the memorial to the Unknown of the Civil War. 2,111 unknown soldiers from the Battle of Bull Run and the route to Rapahannock are interred here.

Thousands of beautiful Magnolia Tree are planted throughout Arlington.

And everywhere are white markers.

Including this large memorial to one of the most famous of the World War II generals.

We finished our day at Arlington National Cemetery with a somber visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The changing of the guard ceremony, performed on the half hour during the hot days of summer, is again precisely choreographed. The Third Army Division is responsible for this honor, as well as all of the other ceremonial functions at the National Cemetery.

In the photo above, it may look like the two officers are standing a bit awkwardly, but in truth they are caught as they prepare to click their heels together; a movement done so precisely that one hears only one snap from both men. The clicking of heels is done at each position change just after rotating on the heel.