Washington DC and the surrounding area is full of memorials. This one is known as the Iwo Jima Memorial, and is dedicated to all Marines who have fallen. It is located right next to Arlington Cemetery.
It is based upon a battle on the island of Iwo Jima during the second world war, where 5 marines and a Navy corpsman raised an American flag which subsequently spurred them on to victory. A newpaper photographer captured the moment in a famous photo and this memorial was based upon that photo.
Several of these men died during the battle.
This memorial is large, about 4 times life size. I purposely did not photograph this with people in it to retain the moment.
"Semper Fidelis" is Latin for "Always faithful." It is the motto of the US Marine Corps.
