Tomb of the Unknown Revolutionary Soldier, Philadelphia, PA

The Tomb of the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier in Washington Square, Philadelphia, is one of the most moving memorials to the human cost of the American Revolution. It stands not only as a monument to a single unidentified soldier, but as a symbolic grave for the thousands who died in Philadelphia from wounds, disease, and imprisonment during the war. Washington Square served as a potter’s field beginning in 1706 and became a major burial ground during the Revolution. By 1777, John Adams wrote that over 2,000 soldiers had already been buried there, many victims of smallpox and camp diseases. The last bodies to be buried in Southeast Square were the victims of Philadelphia's yellow fever epidemic of 1794.

As part of the 1954 redesign of Washington Square, it was decided to fund a memorial to the Unknown Revolutionary War Soldier, featuring a statue of George Washington. Beneath the statue is a marble sarcophagus that holds the remains of an unknown Revolutionary War soldier exhumed from the Square. The lid of the sarcophagus is inscribed with the words, "Beneath this stone rests the soldier of Washington's army, who died to give you liberty." A propane-fueled eternal flame was dedicated in 1976 for the bicentennial. Two rows of flagpoles flank the Bluestone Walk leading up to the monument itself. Each pole flies a battle flag. A flag from each of the original 13 states, as well as the first American flag.

Learn about Revolutionary War Combat Strategy. Watch the Revolutionary War Animated Map. For a summary, read An Overview of the American Revolution.