i should mention before we get into that, there are a significant number of unknowns buried at arlington from the civil war, more than 2000 remain in a large memorial, we could get into that a little later but you get to the spanish-american war fought farther from location than the civil war, mexican american and revolutionary war of 1812 and you have a policy and acted, repatriation bringing back the remains of deceased service members who died fighting barry closer to home. that conflict did not last quite as long had significantly fewer casualties than the first world war which placed decision-making how to deal with repatriation and the importance of a tomb of the unknown soldier. before we get to that, i will mention in 1913, congress approved and authorized spending for the government to create a new memorial amphitheater at arlington national cemetery. the cemetery had been civil war and they recognize the need for a larger more somber space to accommodate the visitors who were there to pay tribute to their deceased loved ones so they appropriated funds and authorized spending to

he offered the legislation to create the tomb of the unknown soldier and place it at arlington national cemetery just across the river from our capitol city as a monument for the nation to mourn those lost, whether they came home or not. so, as i mentioned, there were a great number of unknown soldiers who had perished by the end of the first world war. and the selection process was actually really rather fascinating. i should mention that they gathered from several different major battlefields, different unknown soldiers who had fallen in battle, and they brought them to a small town in the champagne region of france where one of the highest decorated enlisted soldiers, enlisted veterans of the war made the final selection of the anonymous flag-draped coffin to be the unknown soldier to rest at arlington in eternal memory and glory as a symbol, as a tangible representation of all of those other unknowns and all of those others who were intered across an ocean from their families and loved ones. this image you see here is a soldier being brought ashore. and he's brought to shore from th

the number i mentioned earlier, just at arlington, there are over 2000 unknowns from the civil war by the time you get to the first world war, there were again, i think that the number that hamilton fish mentioned was more than 1700 unknowns deceased from american service members fighting in the first world war. so in terms whether they were identified or unknown, that was really you know, pretty much whether they determined it when they fell in battle, who they work. and that is where the technology of our time has really for the evolution of technology, has really improved the way we can pay tribute more specifically read and we can identify people the dna technology which at this point had meant that most while we hope it is none but it's enabled us to identify to get that last measurable devotion in terms of the actual selection, i can tell you that before the world war i unknowns, like a symptom of the gathered these unknowns military personnel from different military cemetery set up quickly in france. they brought them to and apologized any french-speaking listeners here, and th

the designer for the city of washington laid in state when at arlington national cemetery. on his way, they paused so that he could receive state honors to the capitol building. they felt it was that important as they were paying tribute to a figure who had, for a brief time, fallen into obscurity and was buried in a pauper's grave. and then relevant to world war i, the admiral of the navy george doey was laid in state in 1917 before we get to the world war i unknown in 1921. congress also played a role in supporting the memory and the preservation of and the tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, the last full measure of devotion to our country. in 1862, the omnibus act, which included a provision here. you can see from the national archives, an image of it and a transcription, and it provided the president with the authority to acquire land and create national cemeteries for those who gave that last full measure of devotion, those who died in service of the country. and ever since, the congress has been involved in preserving the memory and supporting thos