Americans Will Always Fight For Liberty

This 1943 Office of War Information poster by artist Bernard Perlin, designated OWI Poster No. 26, became one of World War II's most recognized American propaganda images through its powerful juxtaposition of Revolutionary War Continental Army soldiers at Valley Forge with contemporary troops in modern helmets. The composition shows 1943 soldiers marching forward through snow while reviewing colonial militiamen enduring the brutal winter of 1777-1778, when George Washington's army nearly disintegrated from cold, hunger, and disease at their Pennsylvania encampment. The dates "1778-1943" frame American military history as continuous tradition of fighting for liberty, transforming World War II from another European power struggle into extension of the nation's founding principles.