Walking in the footsteps of US soldiers in Luxembourg

Luxembourg High School students learned about the sacrifices made by US soldiers for the Grand Duchy in WWII during a special day out with the US Embassy to Luxembourg.

On Wednesday, 65 high school students from 12 different Luxembourg lycées were allowed to skip school and head for the battlefields for the special field trip.

The group first paid a visit to the National Military History Museum in Diekirch before travelling in WWII Military vehicles to a place called “Hueldaer”, located around three kilometres outside of Diekirch.

After dining on a lunch of US military ready-to-eat field rations, the students followed the battlefield memorial trail. They ended their trip at the American Military Cemetery and Memorial in Hamm where 5,076 people are memorialised.

“The field trip for the students is designed to give them a better understanding of the historic sites here,” a US Embassy statement said.

“The United States and Luxembourg have a longstanding friendship that dates back to our common history in WWII when American soldiers fought to liberate Luxembourg from the Nazi occupation in 1944 and 1945.”

The trip came two days before the US commemorates Memorial Day Holiday on May 25 to remember the men and women who died while serving in the United Stated Armed Forces.

A ceremony to mark the occasion will be held at the American Military Cemetery and Memorial in Hamm on Saturday, May 23. It will be held in the presence of Crown Prince Guillaume and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel. It begins at 2pm with a fly-over by two US Air Force F-16 fighter jets.

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