The Netherlands Carillon adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery

Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...

  was a gift from the people of the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 to the people of the United States of America in 1954. The gift was made to thank the United States for its aid during and after World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. First installed at a nearby site in 1954, the 49-bell carillon

Carillon

A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...

 was moved to the present tower (designed by Joost Boks) in 1960. A 50th bell was added following Dutch- and American-sponsored renovations in 1995, and dedicated on May 5, the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands.

The total weight of the bells is 28 metric tons, the largest being 5,800 kg. The bells are constructed of a bronze

Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...

 alloy of approximately four-fifths copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...

 and one-fifth tin

Tin

Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...

. Each bell carries an emblem signifying a group within Dutch society. The smallest bells represent the youth of the Netherlands. The verses cast on the bells were composed by the Dutch poet, Ben van Eysselsteijn.

The bell tower is an open steel structure reinforced by steel plates. It is 40 meters tall, with the glass-enclosed playing console and observatory about 25 meters from the ground. It stands on a quartzite plaza 93 feet square and is enclosed by a low lava stone wall. Two bronze lions, designed by Dutch sculptor Paul Koning, guard the plaza steps. A rectangular staircase leads to an observatory platform from which a small circular staircase winds up to the playing cabin.

Thousands of tulip

Tulip

The tulip is a perennial, bulbous plant with showy flowers in the genus Tulipa, which comprises 109 species and belongs to the family Liliaceae. The genus's native range extends from as far west as Southern Europe, North Africa, Anatolia, and Iran to the Northwest of China. The tulip's centre of...

s are planted on the surrounding grounds. Nearby is the United States Marine Corps War Memorial. The carillon is administered as part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway

George Washington Memorial Parkway

The George Washington Memorial Parkway, known to local motorists simply as the "G.W. Parkway", is a parkway maintained by the U.S. National Park Service. It is located mostly in Northern Virginia, although a short section northwest of the Arlington Memorial Bridge passes over Columbia Island,...

 complex.

The Netherlands Carillon plays Westminster Chimes on the hour and plays American patriotic music twice daily. Special songs are played on May 5 (Dutch Liberation Day

Liberation Day (The Netherlands)

In the Netherlands, Liberation Day is celebrated each year on May 5th, to mark the end of the occupation by Nazi Germany during World War II....

), July 4 (U.S. Independence Day), September 2 (V-J Day), and Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving (United States)

Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...

. Concerts and recitals are performed on the carillon throughout the summer.