Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (November 11, 1921) was originated three years after the end of World War I. The records disclose how six soldiers were sent back to France for a special assignment.
Outside the chapel at Chalons-sur-Marne, an officer met them with the instructions, "Men, it is my task to choose one of you to perform a great and sacred duty." Handing a rose to Sgt. Edward Younger, the officer continued, "In this church are four caskets.
In them lie the bodies of four nameless American soldiers. Go into the chapel and place a rose on one of the caskets."
After the casket was chosen, it was brought back to America and placed in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetery, Virginia, to represent all of those brave men who died so our country could remain free. The inscription reads:
<Here rests in honored glory an American soldier known but to God.> 1921TU001
On Aug. 3, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill to place an Unknown Soldier of World War II and the Korean Conflict in the Tomb on Memorial Day, 1958.
On Memorial Day, May 28, 1984, President Ronald Reagan presided over the internment ceremony for the Vietnam Unknown.
On May 14, 1998, after an order was issued by Secretary of Defense William Cohen, the Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam Conflict was disinterred for more advanced DNA testing. The testing revealed the remains to be those of United States Air Force Captain Michael J. Blassie.
First Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie (April 4, 1948-May 11, 1972) was an officer in the United States Air Force.
After graduating from St. Louis University High School, Blassie entered the United States Air Force Academy. He graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in 1970. He then served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. Blassie died when his A-37B Dragonfly was shot down near An Loc in what was then South Vietnam.
At the request of the Blassie family, his remains were reinterred at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri on July, 12, 1998.
The crypt of the Vietnam Unknown remains empty today. The crypt remains in place to symbolize the sacrifice of all who served in that conflict. It was rededicated, September 17th, 1999, National POW-MIA Recognition Day and bears a plaque reading-"Honoring and Keeping Faith with America's Missing Servicemen."
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
1921TU001. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, November 11, 1932, inscription on back panel. Thomas Vorwerk, The Unknown Soldier (Springfield, MO: Pentecostal Evangel, June 28, 1992), p. 12.