The Doughboy Foundation supports dedication ceremony for at Pentagon Pershing-Foch Sculpture

Doughboy Foundation Bugler Michael Delaune and Doughboy Foundation Executive Director Jari Villanueva are pictured with the Pentagon display case holding the Pershing-Foch sculpture.

The Doughboy Foundation was honored to attend a dedication ceremony for the Pershing-Foch Statue at the Pentagon. The statue, created by French sculptor Luc de Moustier, depicts the final handshake between American Expeditionary Forces Supreme Commander General John Pershing and French Marshal Ferdinand Foch. This farewell took place on September 1, 1919, aboard the USS Leviathan in Brest, France.

The statue was gifted by the French Armed Forces to their American counterparts in February 2025, marking 250 years of military alliance between France and the United States.

The ceremony was hosted by Major General Stephanie Ahern and featured remarks by Lieutenant General Anthony Hale, US Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, and Major General Patrice Morand, Defense Attaché to the Embassy of France in the United States.

In attendance were descendants of General Pershing, who helped cut the ribbon at the dedication.

The ceremony began with the bugle call ‘Attention’ and ended with a tribute to the French and American Armies, with the calls ‘Aux Morts’ and ‘Taps’ sounded by Doughboy Foundation Bugler Michael Delaune. Delaune used the bugle given to General Pershing in 1918 at his headquarters in Chaumont, France.

A reception followed the ceremony.

Photo of the final handshake between American Expeditionary Forces Supreme Commander General John Pershing and French Marshal Ferdinand Foch on September 1, 1919, aboard the USS Leviathan in Brest, France.

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