At the back of the liberation monument.

The Gouesnou American Memorial honors the 229 U.S. soldiers who died in and around Gouesnou during the battles preceding the Siege of Brest in August to September 1944. Located on the very ground where many of them fell, the monument was inaugurated on November 16, 2025, following years of dedicated research, including extensive Franco-American archival work that verified each soldiers identity through military records and genealogical sources. Designed by sculptor Jean-Philippe Drévillon, it features a life-size, contemplative American soldier carved from Kersanton stone, set before tall granite pillars engraved with the names of all 229 fallen men and a symbolic doorway representing freedom and the transition from darkness to light. The project was recognized with the French Ministry of the Armed Forces Mission Libération label.

Source of information: gouesnou.bzh; breizh-amerika.com, Frederic Pochauvin

Source of photos: Frederic Pochauvin/ Lena Pochauvin

On the central pillar text:

And all their comrades-in-arms

who remain unidentified to this day

Et tous leurs compagnons darmes

non identifiés à ce jour