War grave diplomacy: American Expeditionary Force burials in Britain and the transatlantic politics of mourning, c. 1918–24

By drawing on press coverage, archival material, and early post-war accounts, this article examines ‘war grave diplomacy’ in Britain connected to the First World War-era American Expeditionary Force. It begins by establishing the details of US burial policy before identifying where exactly in Britain American service-personnel were laid to rest. The article then turns attention to the two maritime disasters responsible for a significant number of American war dead in Britain (the sinkings near Islay in 1918 of the Tuscania and the Otranto), it uncovers the impact on British-based AEF personnel of the influenza pandemic, and it identifies one of the key occasions during which American war graves drew significant local attention: Memorial Day. The article concludes by recounting the GRS-led process of exhumation, removal, and reburial which by 1924 had ensured that most American war dead had disappeared from Britain. This history challenges long-established ideas about where exactly First World War-era diplomacy took place, and it highlights the important role played in Anglo-American relations by diplomatic actors in the parishes and provinces. Equally important, this history suggests that we would do well to pay greater attention to the on-going role of war grave diplomacy in twenty-first century transatlantic relations.