The Monument to the Victory and Alliance comemorates the American-French victory over the British at the 1781 Siege of Yorktown. The monument was authorized by the Continental Congress on October 29, 1781; but no money was appropriated for almost 100 years. As part of the nation's centennial, plans were made to celebrate the victory and construct the monument authorized in 1781. The centennial celebration at Yorktown was the first national celebration in the south following the Civil War. The celebration was seen as part of the healing process between North and South. Union and Confederate Civil War veterans placed momentoes of the war in a time capsule which was placed under the cornerstone of the monument on October 18, 1881. The monument was completed in 1884. While the monument contains many of the symbols requested by the Continental Congress, the post-Civil War generation also put their imprint on the design; specifically with the words on the monument "One Country, One Constitution, One Destiny."