Heroes among us (original) (raw)
Heroes among us
© Steve Tulley/Alamy
Freedom is not free, and nobody understands that better than veterans. Today, America honors its military men and women for their service. The holiday originally celebrated a temporary halt in fighting between Allied nations and Germany during World War I—the official end of the war came the following year in 1919. Armistice Day, as it was later named, commemorated this respite, and it became a federal holiday in 1938. A few years later, America fought in World War II, and later, the Korean War. As a result, Congress amended the holiday in 1954, exchanging the word 'Armistice' with 'Veterans' to include veterans of all the country's wars.