Battle for Brest 75th Anniversary Commemoration at the WWII Memorial

On Wednesday, August 7th at 11:30 a.m., the Friends of the National World War II Memorial will hold a brief ceremony and wreath presentation to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle for Brest.

The Battle for Brest, from August 7 to September 19, 1944, was part of the Allied plan for the invasion of mainland Europe in order to ensure the timely delivery of the enormous amount of war materiel required to supply the invading Allied forces.

Early in the war, after the Fall of France in 1940, the United States and the United Kingdom began planning an eventual "Invasion of Western Europe" to be put into effect when and if the United States joined the war. A major issue was how to supply the invasion army with the tens of thousands of tons of materiel it would need after it landed. The capture of ports on the European Atlantic coast was deemed crucial, because the lack of supplies would easily strand an invading army. The main port the Allied forces hoped to seize and put into their service was Brest, in northwestern France.

During the August 7th ceremony at the World War II Memorial, Vietnam veteran Memorial founder Jan Scruggs will serve as the emcee; the Military District of Washington will provide military support; and WWII veterans and Allied representatives will present wreaths at the Atlantic Arch of the Memorial in honor and remembrance of the nearly 10,000 Allies killed and wounded during the Battle for Brest.

If you are a World War II veteran, or know of one, who would like to participate in the
Battle for Brest 75th Anniversary Commemoration at the Memorial,
please email hrotondi@wwiimemorialfriends.org!

We hope you'll join us on August 7th at the WWII Memorial!

The Friends of the National World War II Memorial's WWII 75th Anniversary Commemoration is generously sponsored by AT&T.

Generous support has also been provided by the Albert and Ethel Herzstein Charitable Foundation and Worthington Industries.