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The Monuments Men

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These individuals realized that artwork and cultural heritage sites in European nations were subject to damage during Hitler’s numerous invasions. The outreach from prominent intellectuals gained the attention of President Franklin D. Roosevelt who authorized the cooperation of academic institutions with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Roosevelt also authorized the creation of the Roberts Commission (officially known as the “American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas”) in August 1943. In response to the creation of the Roberts Commission, the U.S. military created their own organization called the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archive Service (MFA&A), thus becoming the birthplace of the Monuments Men.
The Monuments Men were included as a section of the Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) administrated by Dwight D. Eisenhower. As the Supreme Allied Commander, Eisenhower increased support for the mission of the Monuments Men after the destruction of Monte Cassino in February 1944, an Italian cultural site. In August 1944, following the Allied landings in France the Monuments Men arrived in Europe. They followed U.S. Army units into liberated areas …show more content…
Their four main duties were (1) repairing damaged monuments in Allied possession, (2) protecting monuments from damage or misuse at the hands of Allied soldiers, (3) protecting monuments in territories occupied by enemy forces from unnecessary damage and (4) recording theft by enemy forces and collecting available evidence to facilitate recovery. They earned their name from their primary role as protectors of monuments and other European cultural landmarks. This task was enormous, as they were charged with protecting 3,415 monuments within a 560,000 square mile area in

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