the vacuum of local tribes. the kinds of tribes that make people happy. meaningful work, local worshiping communities. all of those things are being undermined at the moment we are at in technical article -- technological history. and we have restore the signal from france. live coverage now on c-span. ♪ [indiscernible]

>> good afternoon afternoon, i invite you to pray with me. almighty lord and merciful god, as we gather today, we humbly ask you to bless the ceremony. we remember the warriors who were on the battlefield for the first world war. who died a century ago for the future of our liberty today. -- remained their paternal shepherd. and grant them rest in your kingdom. counting your grace, their final sacrifice in defense of liberty. make us worthy of their offering. and renew in us and unshakable determination to live out the ideal world for which they gave the last measure of devotion. we are thankful and hope -- with thing full and hope filled

hearts, inspire us. to a new determination, to ever defend justice, peace and freedom. these petitions i offer to you, as king of kings, amen. >> please be seated. please welcome the secretary of the american battle monuments commission. >> good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. welcome to the american battle monuments commission world war i centennial ceremony. it is an honor for me to be with you today. on the 100th anniversary signing of the armistice that ended

world war i. to extend a particularly warm welcome to our present, president donald j. trump. and to our many distinguished guests, we welcome the distance of two of our soldiers -- we welcome the descendents of two of our shoulders -- our soldiers. redman, family member of private redman. we are honored by your presence. the commission is to commemorate the honor, service and sacrifice of the united states armed forces. -- buried at 26 theican cemeteries around world. and by educating americans and europeans alike about the deeds and the compliments of american

-- deeds and accomplishments of american armed enforcements. during the centennial. , we have reaffirmed our mission -- a war that began the alliance with europe that has continued for the past century. commemoration, today, we are governed here at the american cemetery. this was the first of our overseas american cemeteries. americans gave their lives in the great war to make the world safe for democracy. we stand in this cemetery today and honor the memory of 2000 of these men and women who are buried here were listed on the walls. along with 24 unknown american soldiers of world war ii. in france and all along the

western front, american troops were decisive in the allied victory. helping to stop the final enemy offense and turn the tide of battle. and finally, to in the war. it was in the -- and finally, to ended the war. the soldiers were superb. they came to us young and enthusiastic. a vigorousward by ideal belief. they marched to battle. the brave men and women who served in world war i would then become the parents of the greatest generation. the generation that would return andrance 25 years later lead the world to liberty and to peace. by meeting here today to remember our nations shared sacrifices, we keep faith with those who live between the cross.

as weome you again remember their endeavors. their struggles and sacrifices. effortse rededicate our to make sure -- now, ladies and gentlemen, and itrican soldiers everywhere, is my great honor to introduce our president and commander in chief, president donald j. trump. [applause] pres. trump: thank you very much, everybody. major, general, i want to thank you and everyone at the american battle monuments commission for doing an absolutely fantastic job. onctly 100 years ago today,

november 11, 1918, world war i came to an end. thank god. it was a brutal war. millions of americans and allied troops fought with extraordinary skill and valor through one of the bloodiest conflicts in human history. we are gathered together at this hallow restingplace to pay tribute to the brave americans who gave their last breath in that mighty struggle. melania and i are deeply honored to be the guests of president macron and bridget at the centennial commemoration of armistice day. it was very beautiful. well done. to all the french military leaders in attendance with us, thank you for joining us as we honor the american and french service members who shed their horrible,ther in a

horrible war. a war known as the great war. we are also joined by many distinguished american military leaders. thank you to the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, general joseph, thank you, joe. army chief of staff, thank you mark. supreme allied commander in europe, general curtis. general, thank you. , general commander todd walters. think you, general. thank you as what to the members of congress who have joined us. ralph abraham, anthony brown, henry, richard hudson. , john rutherford

and steve stivers, thank you for being with us. thank you very much. i know you wanted to be here very badly. we appreciate it. states, -- in the united states, armistice day is enshrined as veterans day. we have veterans with us, including six veterans of world war ii. james blaine, where is james? james, thank you. thank you, james. frank.ivina, thank you thank you very much. you look so comfortable up there under shelter. as we are getting drenched. you are very smart people. , -- pete, thank you very much. gregory, thank you, gregory. stephen mill the cough --

stephen, thank you stephen. and thank you, j. you look like you are in good shape, all of you. [applause] i hope i look like that sunday. americans are forever in debt. we appreciate you being here. we are also joined by another special guest. a 13-year-old boy from the united states named matthew has to. matthew is in the eighth grade and saved all of his money for two years to make this trip to france. he wanted to be here in person to honor the american heroes of world war i. you make usnk you, very proud. where is matthew? matthew? matthew? thank you very much. you are way ahead of your time, matthew. thank you. 1918,s day in the year

church bells rang, families embraced and celebrations filled the streets like never before. in town and throughout europe. and the united states. victory had come at a terrible cost. among the allied forces, more than one million french souls and one hundred 16,000 american service members have been killed. millions more were wounded. homeless would come bearing the lasting scars of trench warfare and the grizzly horrors of chemical weapons. during the final battle, over 26,000 americans lost their lives. more than 95,000 were wounded. it was the single deadliest history. united states think of that. 26,000 americans lost their lives in a battle. ,ere on the revered grounds

american cemetery, live more than -- who made the oakland -- who made the ultimate sacrifice. among them are legendary marines who fought in the battle of belfort. forced, -- inrs that treacherous forest, allied forces fought and they fought through hell. they turned the tide of the war, that is what they did. they turned the tide of the war. our marines earned the nickname devil dogs. which arose from the german description of their fighting spirit. john kelly knows that name very well. presented aon

gift to our nation. we fought well together. could not fight better than we fought together. sergeant eugene where from pennsylvania was one of the , he ran into a barrage of enemy fire like no one has ever seen before. friends carried him back to safety. much later, he was mortally wounded, he passed away one day after christmas. his mother would come right here to mourn by the grave of her precious son. she loved him so much. she was one of the thousands of american moms and dads. each of these marbles -- david

marks the life of an american warrior. great warriors they are. they gave everything for a family, country, god, and freedom. through rain, hail, snow, mud, poisonous gas and more. they pushed onward to victory. a great, great victory. a costly victory but a great victory. never knowing if they would ever again see their families or ever again hold their loved ones. here are the words of a young soldier named paul maynard from a letter he wrote only a few days before the end of the war. you andher, i think of all at home. i know if i am spared, that i shall appreciate home more than ever, ever before.

mewill seem like heaven to to be once more where there is eace. and only pie on november 11, 1918, paul died. in the final hours of battle, just before the end. sadly, he did not make it. he was among the young men who never returned home. sacrifice,h their they ascended to peace in heaven. rest in peace, paul. the american and french patriots of world war i embodied the timeless virtues of our republics. honor and courage, strength and valor. love and loyalty, grace and glory. it is our duty to preserve the civilization they defended.

and to protect the peace they so nobly gave their lives to secure one century ago. it is now my great honor to present major general william matz with an american flag as the symbol of our nation's gratitude to the american battle monuments. the commission has done such an incredible job. we very much appreciated. today, we renew our obligation to memorialize our fallen heroes on the soil where they rest for all of eternity. thank you very much. general, this is a great honor. thank you very much. [applause]

>> thank you all, god bless you. it has been a wonderful two days we spent in france. this is certainly the highlight of the trip. thank you very much. i appreciate it. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the benediction and remained standing for the retiring of the colors. >> and now receive this benediction. mighty god, creator of the nation, as we leave this hallowed ground, remind us that it is only by the gracious provisions of your holy spirit that we live and move and have our being.

indeed, as we have exercised our duty to remember, renewing us your everlasting hope. that from the fire of war, we may walk a fresh in the light of your piece. and the timeless assurance of your holy word, i offer the benediction. may the lord bless you and keep you. may the lord shine upon you. and be gracious unto you. maybe lord put his countenance upon you and grout you peace -- grant you peace now and forever more.

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[indiscernible] >> colorguard, retire the colors.

>> is requested that guests remain standing while the official parties and espouses depart to the cemetery. -- while the official parties and spouses depart to the cemetery.

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>> so president trump in france, you saw his remarks as he heads back to his limousine, headed to the airport where the president do that here in washington, later on this evening. let's take you live to arlington cemetery, across the potomac river from washington, d.c.. in 20 minutes or so, we expect ceremonies to begin with robert at the tomb of the unknowns. you can see the crowd gathered in a live picture from

arlington. >> ladies and gentlemen, the united states marine band. please stand when you hear your --

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today, the endo of world war i. a live picture from arlington national cemetery. coming up in a short while, we will have a ceremony at the tomb of the unknowns with robert wilkie. france,today, in paris, world leaders gathered to mark the armistice. here are some of those leaders arriving.