Capas National Shrine

See also: Camp O'Donnell

Capas National Shrine
Philippines
For Filipino and American soldiers who were interned at Camp O'Donnell at the end of the Bataan Death March
Established7 December 1991[1][2]
Unveiled9 April 2003[3]
Location15°20′56″N 120°32′43″E / 15.34891°N 120.545246°E / 15.34891; 120.545246
Capas, Tarlac, Philippines
Total burials30,000+ (around 25,000 Filipinos and 6,000 Americans)[4]
"This memorial is dedicated to the brave men and women who defied the might of the invaders at Bataan, Corregidor and other parts of the Philippines during World War II. Thousands died in battle, during the Death March, and while in captivity. Thousands more endured inhuman conditions at the prison camp in Capas, Tarlac. They suffered in the night so that their countrymen would wake to the dawn of freedom."
Statistics source: Philippine Veterans Affairs Office

The Capas National Shrine (Filipino: Pambansang Dambana ng Capas) in Barangay Aranguren,[5] Capas, Tarlac, Philippines was built by the Philippine government as a memorial to Allied soldiers who were interned at Camp O'Donnell at the end of the Bataan Death March during the Second World War.[6]

The site, which was the former concentration camp for the Allied prisoners,[2] is a focus for commemorations on Araw ng Kagitingan (Valour Day), an annual observance held on 9 April—the anniversary of the surrender of US and Philippine forces to Imperial Japan in 1942. There is also a memorial inside the site to the Czechs who died fighting alongside the Filipino and US soldiers.[7]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference GovPH-Proc842 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "Military Shrines Service". Philippine Veterans Affairs Office. 5 November 2004. Archived from the original on 5 November 2004. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference PhilStar-PilgrimageSite was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "World War II POWs to be honored in Capas, Tarlac". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. 8 April 2015. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  5. ^ "Barangay Aranguren". Official Website of Municipality of Capas, Province of Tarlac. Archived from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  6. ^ "Capas National Shrine – Official Website of Municipality of Capas, Province of Tarlac". capastarlac.gov.ph. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference CapasTarlacGovPH was invoked but never defined (see the help page).