The District on Saturday will add a new site of remembrance to the National Mall when the Desert Shield and Desert Storm Memorial is dedicated at the southwest corner of Constitution Avenue and 23rd Street NW, near the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
What the memorial honors
The memorial recognizes the Americans who served during the Gulf War era, including those deployed in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. Officials say it commemorates the nearly 700,000 U.S. service members who took part in military operations against Iraq in 1990 and 1991.
Organizers designed the site to provide a contemplative place for veterans and the public amid the Mall's many high-profile monuments. The memorial's contours and materials draw on desert imagery and are intended to evoke the landscapes where the campaign took place.
“contemplative space”
Design and features
The memorial incorporates sculptural and water elements, landscape features and interpretive panels. Key elements include the Storm Wall, a long sculpted panel depicting scenes from the campaign, and a central fountain called the Unity Shield.
- The Storm Wall stretches about 250 feet and features sculpted scenes from buildup through liberation.
- The Unity Shield is a bronze fountain about 28 feet in diameter engraved with the names of the 41 coalition nations. Water flows across the shield in warmer months.
- Two additional sculptures — an American bald eagle and a Kuwaiti falcon — symbolize the partnership between the United States and Kuwait.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Location | Southwest corner of Constitution Ave and 23rd St NW, near the Lincoln Memorial |
| Storm Wall | About 250 feet; sculpted by Emily Bedard to depict campaign scenes |
| Unity Shield | 28-foot-diameter bronze fountain engraved with 41 coalition nations |
| Cost | Approximately $40 million, funded through private donations, including major support from Kuwait |
History and funding
The project has a long history. Congress authorized construction in 2014, and the memorial’s realization followed more than a decade of planning, fundraising and design work. Builders and supporters raised roughly $40 million in private funds, with major contributions coming from Kuwaiti donors as well as American veterans' groups and private philanthropists.
Emily Bedard is credited as the sculptor of the Storm Wall, which forms a central narrative element of the memorial. The Unity Shield fountain and the two representational sculptures anchor the site and are intended to emphasize both coalition partnership and national service.
What it means for Washington
The dedication, set for 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, will bring attention to a conflict that until now had not had a prominent, dedicated site on the Mall comparable to World War II, Vietnam or Korean War memorials. For veterans of the Gulf War era and their families, the new memorial offers a place for public recognition and private reflection in the shadow of some of the nation's most visited monuments.
As with other sites on the Mall, the new memorial will be both a local amenity and a destination for national and international visitors. Its placement near the Lincoln and Vietnam memorials situates Gulf War remembrance squarely within the District’s established landscape of military memory.
The addition is likely to affect foot traffic patterns for nearby memorials and the surrounding parkland, particularly on weekends and on days when the National Mall draws large tour groups. It will also offer Washington-area schools, veterans organizations and civic groups another location for ceremonies and educational programming.
As the site opens, officials and veterans will watch to see how the memorial integrates into the Mall’s flow of visitors and how it is used by those it was intended to honor: the roughly 700,000 service members connected to the Gulf War era and the broader public who come to remember and to learn.
