Brookwood American Cemetery 

and Memorial

AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

WWW.ABMC.GOV
PLANNING A VISIT

HOURS

The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except December 25 

and January 1. It is open on British holidays. There is no charge for admission.

LOCATION

GPS coordinates: N51 18.072 W0 38.430

TRAVEL VIA CAR:

Brookwood American Cemetery and Memorial is located directly south of the town 

of Brookwood, Surrey, England, six miles west of Woking. 

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION/PARKING

There is rail service between London (Waterloo Station) and Brookwood railroad station. Travel by rail takes less than 45 minutes. The cemetery is about 300 yards west 

of the Brookwood railroad station. 

Cover: ABMC photo/Warrick Page
AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

Brookwood American Cemetery 

and Memorial

Burial sections, with the American flag in the background. (ABMC photo/Warrick Page)

THE WORLD MUST BE MADE SAFE FOR DEMOCRACY. ITS PEACE MUST BE 

PLANTED UPON THE TESTED FOUNDATIONS OF POLITICAL LIBERTY. WE 

HAVE NO SELFISH ENDS TO SERVE. WE DESIRE NO CONQUEST, NO DOMINION. WE SEEK NO INDEMNITIES FOR OURSELVES, NO MATERIAL COMPENSATION FOR THE SACRIFICES WE SHALL FREELY MAKE. WE ARE BUT ONE OF 

THE CHAMPIONS OF THE RIGHTS OF MANKIND. WE SHALL BE SATISFIED 

WHEN THOSE RIGHTS HAVE BEEN MADE AS SECURE AS THE FAITH AND THE 

FREEDOM OF NATIONS CAN MAKE THEM.

 —PRESIDENT WOODROW WILSON, 1917
4 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

THE U.S. ENTRY INTO WORLD WAR I

When Europe erupted in war over the summer of 1914, Americans reacted with 

caution. The conflict had broken out in another hemisphere, and initially it appeared 

that the United States need not become directly involved. Americans generally 

sympathized with England and France, members of the Triple Entente with Russia, 

and saw Germany and its ally Austria-Hungary as the aggressors, particularly after 

the German invasion of Belgium. However, most Americans considered the war to 

be Europe’s problem – not theirs. Indeed, substantial minorities of Americans were 

anti-British, anti-Russian or pro-German.

As the war progressed, American popular opinion increasingly favored the Allies. 

By fall of 1914, the prospect of a long, drawn-out conflict led the British Navy to 

blockade the North Sea and deny trade from entering German ports. Unable to 

secure the use of the sea for themselves, Germany responded by using submarines to 

attack Allied and neutral merchant ships, in an attempt to cut off the United 

Kingdom from supplies and military aid. On May 7, 1915 a German U-boat torpedo 

sank the RMS Lusitania, which was carrying both civilian passengers and munitions, 

off the coast of Ireland. The Lusitania disaster took the lives of 1,198 of her passengers and crew, including 128 Americans, provoking outrage in the United States. 

Submarine sinkings were particularly disturbing, as they came without notice and 

submarines had neither means nor incentive to rescue passengers or crew. A week 

after the Lusitania sinking, President Woodrow Wilson declared that the United 

States was “too proud to fight” and would not enter the war. Germany dramatically 

restricted submarine operations to avoid further provoking the Americans.

A drawing made for the New York Herald depicts Lusitania as it is hit by a torpedo. 

(Library of Congress)
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 5

By January 1917, the Western Front had been a stalemate for over two years. 

Attrition, through the English naval blockade of the North Sea and the prolonged 

bloodshed of trench warfare, was gradually wearing down Germany’s military 

strength. German military leaders believed that the best way to break the impasse 

was to resume unrestricted submarine warfare on merchant shipping to the United 

Kingdom. This could devastate the British, who were dependent on imported food– 

much of it from the United States. Germany recognized that unrestricted submarine 

warfare would probably draw the United States into the conflict, but believed that 

enough ships could be sunk to force the United Kingdom to sue for peace before 

the Americans could effectively intervene. Germany formally resumed unrestricted 

submarine warfare on February 1.

This change in German military policy coincided with a significant diplomatic 

misstep. In January, British Intelligence intercepted and decoded a telegram 

dispatched by German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann to the German 

Ambassador in Mexico City. In the message, Zimmermann instructed the ambassador that if the United States entered the war, he was to approach the Mexican 

Government with a proposal for a military alliance. If the Mexicans accepted, the 

Germans proposed to help them regain territory lost to the United States in the 

19th century, lands which became the states of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.

President Wilson’s address to Congress, requesting a declaration of war on Germany. 

(Library of Congress)
6 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

The British passed the contents of the Zimmermann Telegram to the United States 

Government. In late February, President Wilson released the message to the public, 

which again inflamed American popular opinion. This, coupled with the sinking of 

three American merchant ships by German submarines on March 15, led President 

Wilson to act. On April 2, 1917, he came to Congress with a request to declare war 

on Germany. This had the support of a majority of the country. Four days later the 

United States entered World War I on the side of the Allies. 

The United States was unprepared for war. At the time, the major combatants were 

fielding armies comprised of millions of soldiers; the U.S. Army numbered less than 

130,000. While the U.S. Navy could deploy a modern fleet relatively quickly, it was 

ill-equipped for anti-submarine warfare. To raise a national army Congress passed 

the Selective Service Act in May 1917, which instituted a system for conscripting 

men into military service. 

Soldiers scaling a wall during training at Camp Wadsworth, SC, in 1918. (National Archives)
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 7

During the summer of 1917 a small force of soldiers was sent to Europe. Training 

camps throughout the United States were rapidly filling out with volunteers and 

draftees. By the fall, divisions of newly trained soldiers began leaving the camps, 

headed for ships to transport them across the Atlantic. As winter turned into spring, 

ever increasing numbers of newly trained soldiers were heading “Over There.” By 

July 1918, more than 10,000 troops were arriving in Europe every day. 

U-BOAT CAMPAIGN

The German resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 led to a sharp 

rise in merchant shipping losses. The Americans and British responded to these attacks 

by adopting the convoy system–grouping merchant ships together with naval escorts. 

Convoy tactics greatly reduced the number of vessels sunk by U-Boats, and defeated 

the German strategy of depriving the British Isles of imported food and supplies. 

The U.S. particularly enforced the convoy system for troopships bringing soldiers 

across the Atlantic. In Europe, the U.S. Coast Guard played a large escort role, protecting vessels going between Britain and the continent. The waters around the British Isles nevertheless remained dangerous for ships carrying American servicemen. 

★ On February 5, 1918, the troopship SS Tuscania was close to the end of her 

two-week voyage from Hoboken, NJ, when disaster struck off the coast of Scotland. Near the island of Islay, the ship – with more than 2,000 onboard – was 

torpedoed by a U-boat, and sank in less than four hours. While most of the 

passengers were saved, over 200 American soldiers lost their lives.

Temporary cemetery in Islay, Scotland, with the interments of those who died in the sinking 

of the SS Tuscania. (National Archives) 
8 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

★ On May 29, 1918, the USS President Lincoln left Brest, France, bound for 

the United States along with three other troopships. Two days later, she was 

torpedoed by the German submarine U-90. The President Lincoln sank soon 

afterwards. Most of the passengers and crew were saved, but 26 went down 

with the ship.

★ On September 26, 1918, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Tampa was part of a convoy from Gibraltar to the United Kingdom. Under orders to break off from the 

convoy, the Tampa proceeded independently towards Milford Haven, Wales, 

when it encountered a German submarine in the Bristol Channel. The U-boat 

fired a torpedo, sinking the Tampa off the Welsh Coast. The vessel sank with all 

hands, including 115 officers and men, and 16 passengers. 

Troopships also faced dangers from accidents. On October 6, 1918, while leading 

a convoy, the HMS Otranto–a Royal Navy vessel serving as a troopship for American soldiers–was accidentally rammed by another vessel in rough seas near Islay. 

Severely damaged, the Otranto drifted for a short time before it smashed into the 

rocky coastline and sank. Many of those on board were saved, but over 460 perished 

in the disaster, including more than 350 Americans.

Survivors of the USS President Lincoln in lifeboats off the coast of Brest, France, 1918.

(National Archives)
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 9

AMERICANS IN THE BRITISH ISLES 

Over the course of World War I, more than two million Americans were sent to 

Europe; of this number, approximately half initially landed in the British Isles. In 

most cases, American troops only stayed for a few days on their way to the battlefields in France and Belgium. Troops often arrived in Liverpool, and then headed 

south via train to Winchester or Southampton. Here they again embarked to cross 

the English Channel. 

A small number of Americans were located in the British Isles for extended 

periods during the war. Some Americans were trained in military aviation or 

armored warfare at British bases. American logistical personnel stationed in 

Britain helped support troops on the Western Front. American doctors and nurses 

were located at both AEF and Red Cross hospitals in Great Britain. They cared for 

American soldiers, sailors, and civilians who were wounded in combat, or suffered 

from disease. 

In early 1918, an influenza outbreak swept through military bases in the United 

States. The virus was an exceptionally deadly strain that struck young, previously 

healthy adults particularly hard. Once their bodies were weakened, many were 

vulnerable to secondary infections such as pneumonia, often leading to death. By the 

late spring, there were influenza outbreaks in 14 of the largest Army training camps 

in the United States. 

American Red Cross hospital in Liverpool, England, 1918. (National Archives) 
10 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

After temporarily subsiding, a second more deadly wave of influenza appeared in 

late summer. By mid-September, it had developed into a pandemic. Many servicemen 

caught the influenza virus in the United States and boarded troopships bound for 

Europe, unaware of their infected condition. Crowded quarters on the ships provided 

an environment that readily enabled the flu to spread. Some soldiers did not survive 

the two-week voyage. Others fell sick during the crossing, and were taken directly to 

hospitals in Britain when their vessels entered port. 

Hospitals in England also treated American soldiers that were wounded while fighting in Belgium or under British operational command. Most U.S. troops served under 

American command, but American soldiers and divisions also reinforced Allied corps 

and divisions. The U.S. 27th and 30th Divisions, for example, fought with distinction 

under British operational command throughout their time in combat. Many of those 

wounded in combat were evacuated across the English Channel to hospitals in southern England, which served as the logistical rear area for the British Army.

HISTORY OF BROOKWOOD AMERICAN CEMETERY

During World War I, more than 2,000 Americans died in the British Isles. The 

predominant cause of death was pneumonia, a secondary infection from influenza. 

Others lost their lives at sea, through enemy action or maritime disasters. Some were 

killed in training accidents on British military posts, or were wounded in Belgium 

and evacuated to England before succumbing to their injuries. 

These men and women were initially interred in temporary cemeteries throughout Britain and Ireland. The largest burial grounds were associated with hospitals 

at the points of entry and exit – in Liverpool and Winchester. Smaller cemeteries 

were established on Islay for those killed in the sinkings of the Tuscania and Otranto

whose remains were recovered. Near London, a temporary plot in Brookwood 

Cemetery was allocated for Americans who died in and around the English capital. 

At the time of the Armistice, Americans were buried in 99 separate burial grounds 

throughout the United Kingdom. 

After the war, it was the policy of the War Department to send remains from the 

British Isles back to the United States unless family members requested otherwise. 

Next of kin could elect to have their loved ones remain in Britain for burial in an 

American military cemetery that would be maintained in perpetuity, or to leave the 

deceased in their original interment location. 

By 1921, the War Department determined that a plot in Brookwood would be a 

suitable location for an permanent American cemetery. In early 1922, more than 

400 burials–most of America’s World War I dead remaining in the British Isles–were 

moved there. Later that year, the War Department finalized an agreement to use 

space in Brookwood, in perpetuity, as an American military cemetery.

Congress created the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) in 

1923. Over the next several years, while the War Department continued to administer the cemetery, ABMC installed permanent headstones and constructed the 

chapel, along with other site improvements. In 1934, ABMC assumed responsibility for operating all permanent military cemeteries in Europe, including Brookwood American Cemetery.
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 11

American burial at Brookwood Cemetery, 1919. (National Archives) 

During World War II, Brookwood American Cemetery was the only permanent 

American cemetery in Europe that was continuously operated with institutional 

oversight. The remaining cemeteries, located in France and Belgium, were evacuated 

by American ABMC personnel in 1940, prior to the German invasion and subsequent occupation of Western Europe. 

After the United States entered World War II, Brookwood American Cemetery 

was used for the burial of members of the American armed forces who died in 

England. Between April 1942 and August 1944, over 3,600 remains were laid to rest 

in plots surrounding the original World War I burial sections. In September 1944, 

burials of American servicemen began at a temporary cemetery outside Cambridge, 

and continued there for the remainder of the war. From January through May 1948, 

the World War II remains at Brookwood American Cemetery were exhumed and 

transported to Cambridge for re-interment or sent home to the United States at the 

request of the next-of-kin. 

Brookwood American Cemetery is located within the larger Brookwood Military 

Cemetery, which is maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission 

(CWGC). It includes World War I and II military burials from the United Kingdom 

and its former colonies and territories, and from nations that fought alongside the 

British, including Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and France. Eighteen Americans who died while in British service in World War II are buried in plots 20-25 
12 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

of the CWGC cemetery. These young men joined the British military prior to the 

United States’ entry into the war. They were members of the Eagle Squadrons, units 

of the Royal Air Force comprised of American volunteers, and were killed in the 

Battle of Britain (1939-1940). 

CEMETERY LANDSCAPE

The 4.5-acre Brookwood American Cemetery and Memorial, and the CWGC 

cemetery, lie within the civilian Brookwood Cemetery. Built by the London 

Illustrated map of the cemetery with burial sections labeled. 

P
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 13

Necropolis Company, the civilian cemetery was the largest in the world when it 

opened in 1854. 

Brookwood American Cemetery contains the graves of 468 American military 

dead, including 41 unknown burials. Another 563 names are inscribed upon the 

walls of the missing, located inside the chapel. 

The entrance to the American cemetery is flanked with two large stone urns, 

decorated with bald eagles with their wings outstretched. The eagles are resting on 

a shield, clutching arrows and olive branches in their talons, evocative of the Great 
14 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

Headstones at Brookwood American Cemetery. (ABMC photo/Warrick Page)

Seal of the United States. In the cemetery, white marble headstones are arranged 

in four plots (A-D), grouped around the flagpole. The cast bronze flagpole base is 

characterized by a natural motif, including butterflies, oak leaves, and foliage. It 

is identical to the flagpole base at Flanders Field American Cemetery, in Belgium. 

The perfectly straight rows of headstones on the green lawn are framed by masses 

of shrubs and evergreen trees. As in all ABMC cemeteries, the burials are arranged 

without regard to rank, race, or creed. 

The cemetery grounds are reminiscent of an English garden. Plantings in the cemetery include rhododendrons, oak and scots pine, and azaleas.

CHAPEL/WALLS OF THE MISSING

The chapel is located at the north end of the cemetery. It was dedicated by ABMC 

on August 15, 1937. The architect, Egerton Swartwout, was considered a master in 

the Beaux-Arts architectural style. Swartwout also designed the Montsec American 

Monument, which is maintained by ABMC and located near the St. Mihiel American Cemetery in France. 

The small Beaux-Arts chapel is constructed of Portland Stone – a type of limestone. At the center of the façade, heavy, double bronze doors are set underneath an 

eagle, with a shield at its feet. The four Doric columns on the façade portico support 

a frieze with the inscription PERPETUAL LIGHT UPON THEM SHINES. Above 

the portico, a row of carved garlands is located directly below a row of Greek keys. A 

carved stone eagle rests on each corner of the roof. 

The interior walls are inscribed with the names of 563 American soldiers, sailors, 

and coastguardsmen who died at sea during World War I, and whose remains were 
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 15

not recovered. The inscriptions are listed according to branch of service. The Walls 

of the Missing include many of those who lost their lives in the waters around the 

British Isles and France in World War I, including those on board the President Lincoln, Tampa, Tuscania, and Otranto.

The interior of the chapel is illuminated by small stained glass windows. Across 

from the entryway, the chapel altar is framed by two columns. A cross is located 

above the altar, along with a Star of David and two tablets symbolizing the Ten Commandments. The altar is flanked by flags of the United States, Belgium, Italy, France, 

and the United Kingdom. On either side of the flags are two brown marble columns. 

The Great Seal of the United States is set in wall above the chapel, and in the center 

of the floor.

NOTABLE MEMORIALS

★ Gunner’s Mate First Class Osmond Ingram, Walls of the Missing. Medal of 

Honor recipient. While off the coast of Ireland on October 15, 1917, Ingram 

saw a German submarine fire a torpedo at his ship, the USS Cassin. In an 

attempt to contain the potential explosion, Ingram tried to jettison the ship’s 

depth charges before it was hit by a torpedo. He was too late, and when the 

torpedo struck Ingram was blown overboard and lost. Ingram was the only 

casualty of the attack; his actions saved the ship and the lives of many onboard. 

On February 23, 1919, the Navy launched the USS Osmond Ingram (DD 225), 

the first Naval vessel named for an enlisted man.

★ Chief Special Mechanic Gustaf Sundquist, Walls of the Missing. Medal of Honor 

recipient for his actions during the Spanish-American War. On May 11, 1898, 

The chapel. (ABMC photo/Warrick Page)
16 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

off the coast of Cuba, Sundquist displayed extraordinary bravery and coolness 

under fire while onboard the USS Nashville. During World War I, Sundquist was 

stationed in France when he drowned while swimming in the Bay of Biscay. 

Chapel interior and the Walls of the Missing. (ABMC photo/Warrick Page)
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 17

VISITOR BUILDING 

The single-story visitor building is located on the western edge of the cemetery, next 

to a small parking lot. It is open to the public. The cemetery superintendent’s office 

and a guest register are located inside.

Visitor building. (ABMC photo/Warrick Page)
18 AMERICAN BATTLE MONUMENTS COMMISSION

The American Battle 

Monuments Commission

The American Battle Monuments Commission – guardian of America’s overseas 

commemorative cemeteries and memorials – honors the service, achievements 

and sacrifice of the United States armed forces. Since 1923, ABMC has executed 

this mission by (1) the erection and maintenance of suitable memorial shrines, in 

the U.S. when authorized by Congress and where U.S. forces have served overseas since April 6, 1917; (2) designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining permanent American military burial grounds in foreign countries; and (3) 

supervising the design and construction on foreign soil of U.S. military memorials, 

monuments, and markers by other U.S. citizens and organizations, both public and 

private, and encouraging their maintenance. 

In the performance of its mission, ABMC administers, operates, and maintains 25 

permanent American military cemeteries; 26 federal memorials, monuments, and 

markers, and eight nonfederal memorials. Three memorials are located in the U.S.; 

the remaining memorials and all of ABMC’s cemeteries are located in 15 foreign 

countries, the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the British 

dependency of Gibraltar. ABMC’s World War I, World War II, and Mexico City cemeteries are closed to future burials, except for the remains of U.S. war dead discovered in World War I and II battle areas. 

In addition to grave sites, the World War I and II cemeteries and three memorials 

on U.S. soil commemorate, on Walls of the Missing, U.S. service members who went 

missing in action or were lost or buried at sea during World War I and II, and in the 

Korean and Vietnam Wars.
OVERSEAS CEMETERIES AND MEMORIALS 19

AMERICAN MILITARY CEMETERIES AROUND THE WORLD

BELGIUM

Ardennes American Cemetery

Neupré †† 12 mi SW of Liège

Flanders Field American Cemetery

Waregem † 55 mi W of Brussels

Henri-Chapelle 

American Cemetery

Henri-Chapelle †† 18 mi E of Liège

NETHERLANDS

Netherlands American Cemetery

Margraten †† 6 mi E of Maastricht

LUXEMBOURG

Luxembourg American Cemetery

Luxembourg City †† In city

ITALY

Florence American Cemetery

Florence †† 7 mi S of Florence

Sicily-Rome American Cemetery

Nettuno †† 38 mi S of Rome

TUNISIA

North Africa American Cemetery

Tunis †† 10 mi NE of Tunis

MEXICO

Mexico City National Cemetery

Mexican-American War | In city

PANAMA

Corozal American Cemetery

Panama Canal creation | 3 mi N 

of Panama City

PHILIPPINES

Clark Veterans Cemetery

Angeles City | 52 mi NW of Manila

Manila American Cemetery

Manila †† 6 mi SE of Manila

FRANCE

Aisne-Marne American Cemetery

Belleau † 40 mi SW of Reims

Brittany American Cemetery

St. James †† 15 mi SE 

of Mont St. Michel

Epinal American Cemetery

Dinozé †† 45 mi SE of Nancy

Lorraine American Cemetery

St. Avold †† 28 mi E of Metz

Meuse-Argonne American 

Cemetery

Romagne-sous-Montfaucon

† 26 mi NW of Verdun

Normandy American Cemetery

Colleville-sur-Mer

†† 11 mi NW of Bayeux

Oise-Aisne American Cemetery

Fère-en-Tardenois

† 27 mi SW of Reims

Rhône American Cemetery

Draguignan †† 28 mi W of Cannes

Somme American Cemetery

Bony † 120 mi NE of Paris

St. Mihiel American Cemetery

Thiaucourt † 23 mi SW of Metz

Suresnes American Cemetery

Suresnes † †† 4 mi W of Paris

ENGLAND

Brookwood American Cemetery

Brookwood † 28 mi SW of London

Cambridge American Cemetery

Cambridge †† 3 mi W of Cambridge

† WWI Cemetery

†† WWII Cemetery
2300 Clarendon Boulevard Suite 500

Arlington, VA 22201

(703) 696-6900

WWW.ABMC.GOV