page_title: American War Memorial, Gibraltar
section_title: Recent history
hierarchical_section_title: American War Memorial, Gibraltar / Recent history
caption_attribution_description: English: The original file corrected as best I could for perspective, and given equal borders.
context_page_description: The American War Memorial is a World War I memorial in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It was built for the American Battle Monuments Commission in 1933, and incorporated into the main city wall, the Line Wall Curtain. It commemorated the successful alliance of the United States and the United Kingdom in their naval exploits in the vicinity of Gibraltar during the Great War. The monument was inaugurated in 1937. Sixty-one years later, in November 1998, the monument was the site of another unveiling ceremony, that of a bronze plaque which commemorated the World War II Allied invasion of North Africa, Operation Torch. That unveiling ceremony was one of a number of events that weekend whose guests included dignitaries from the United Kingdom and the United States.
context_section_description: On 29 October 1960, the Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau issued a stamp (link below) in tribute to the American War Memorial at Gibraltar.
  
  On 7 November 1998, the Gibraltar-American Council and the Government of Gibraltar commemorated the anniversary of Operation Torch, the World War II Allied invasion of North Africa, with a bronze plaque (pictured at left) at the American War Memorial. General Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (1890 – 1969), who was headquartered in Gibraltar, had led the invasion in November 1942. The plaque was unveiled by the then Chief Minister of Gibraltar Peter Caruana on the steps of the memorial. Other events that weekend included tree-planting ceremonies at two sites, The Mount and The Convent. The Eisenhower Centre was inaugurated, with temporary housing in the Garrison Library. Caruana hosted a lunch at The Mount and a dinner at St. Michael's Cave. Gold commemorative coins were distributed to some of the guests. In addition, the Governor hosted a dinner at The Convent. Overseas guests included Anne Eisenhower Flottl, the granddaughter of President Eisenhower; Winston S. Churchill (1940 – 2010), the grandson of Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965); and Mrs. Franklin Roosevelt, the daughter-in-law of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 – 1945). Senior officers of the United States Army and Navy also attended the events. The USS Mitscher (DDG-57) was at Gibraltar for the anniversary. Members of the Royal British Legion and veterans of the Gibraltar Defence Force who served during Operation Torch were also invited to the ceremony at the American War Memorial. The inscription on the plaque at the monument reads: 
  OPERATION TORCH – In memory of the British and American soldiers, sailors, and airmen who risked their lives in the liberation of North Africa in World War II. From their headquarters in Fortress Gibraltar, Lieutenant General Dwight David Eisenhower, United States Army, and Admiral Sir Andrew Browne Cunningham, Royal Navy, directed Operation TORCH, the first major combined combat operation during World War II involving American and British forces. On 8 November 1942, elements of the Allied expeditionary force landed simultaneously along the coastline of Morocco and Algeria. The lessons learned and the relationships forged between British and American forces and their leaders during this campaign would ultimately lead to the liberation of Europe. The Gibraltar-American Council November 1998
caption: Plaque commemorating Operation Torch on American War Memorial in Gibraltar
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