Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

[Mr. H.]

There are some incredible videos on youtube.

 

[MaggieMae]

YouTube - Changing of the Guard - Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

YouTube - Unplugged: Guarding The Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier

YouTube - Changing of the Guard:Man Crosses rail gets yelled at!

Very cool.

Thanks! I'll forward those on to my brother.

 

[MaggieMae]

Mostly true, but some BS in this one...

Guards must commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.

They cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way.

The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk to anyone nor watch TV.

All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery.

None of those are true...there's no set commitment to the Old Guard, though 2 years is a normal tour. Single junior enlisted live in barracks on Ft Myer, married soldiers and senior enlisted can live wherever they want. There are no off-duty restrictions on alcohol and no rules about swearing and there's no vow of silence or TV restriction etc. The Tomb Guard ID Badge can be taken away at any time, even from former soldiers for dishonorable conduct, but that doesn't mean drinking alcohol or swearing. Less than a dozen badges have been revoked.

I wondered about those restrictions myself. I'm wondering if my brother has so much information that he really hasn't gotten all the facts straight yet (he at least didn't question, and should have, the link he forwarded to me, because it is true that my nephew and his wife are not living beneath ground!). I hope I didn't delete the link. I'll try to find it. Stay tuned.

 

[kwc57]

Maggie,

Congrats to your nephew. I've been to DC four times now. Two of those times were escorting 36 Boy Scouts to the National Jamboree. Both times we visited Arlington and watched the changing of the guard. It is impressive. My wife has never been to DC and we plan on going next year. This is one of the things on her list to see. Maybe we will get to see your nephew.

 

[Si modo]

Mostly true, but some BS in this one...

Guards must commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.

They cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way.

The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk to anyone nor watch TV.

All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery.

None of those are true...there's no set commitment to the Old Guard, though 2 years is a normal tour. Single junior enlisted live in barracks on Ft Myer, married soldiers and senior enlisted can live wherever they want. There are no off-duty restrictions on alcohol and no rules about swearing and there's no vow of silence or TV restriction etc. The Tomb Guard ID Badge can be taken away at any time, even from former soldiers for dishonorable conduct, but that doesn't mean drinking alcohol or swearing. Less than a dozen badges have been revoked.

I wondered about those restrictions myself. I'm wondering if my brother has so much information that he really hasn't gotten all the facts straight yet (he at least didn't question, and should have, the link he forwarded to me, because it is true that my nephew and his wife are not living beneath ground!). I hope I didn't delete the link. I'll try to find it. Stay tuned.

I know one of the current Old Guards. He was at a party with a bunch of us back in July and I can say that is not the case, at least, for him.

 

[MaggieMae]

Here's the link to the original OP.
Military Question No One Could Answer on Jeopardy

I guess I won't tell my brother. He needs to learn for himself to fact-check like us pros!

 

[MaggieMae]

Thanks for all your comments. I'm still proud as punch. This was a kid who had no clue where he was going in life, and has completely turned himself around.

 

[del]

Maggie,

Congrats to your nephew. I've been to DC four times now. Two of those times were escorting 36 Boy Scouts to the National Jamboree. Both times we visited Arlington and watched the changing of the guard. It is impressive. My wife has never been to DC and we plan on going next year. This is one of the things on her list to see. Maybe we will get to see your nephew.

my son was on the volunteer staff for nat jam in '05. technically, i think he was the first scout at the jamboree as he worked as part of the registration crew.

anyway, the old guard drill team performed for the staff before natjam opened in colonial garb. i watched it via the web at the time and it gave me goosebumps.

 

[SFC Ollie]

Thanks for all your comments. I'm still proud as punch. This was a kid who had no clue where he was going in life, and has completely turned himself around.

You have every right to be proud. If he makes it through the training he will be one of our best. Even getting selected for the training makes him one of the best.

I cannot put in words my respect for him and all these soldiers. Best I can do is:

 

[The Infidel]

Thanks for all your comments. I'm still proud as punch. This was a kid who had no clue where he was going in life, and has completely turned himself around.

Thanks for sharing with us.... and tell him we are all VERY proud of him!

 

[rightwinger]

[Forwarded to me by his wife, my nephew has been chosen for training to become one of the elite Honor Guard patrolling the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Goosebumps!]

A JEOPARDY QUESTION NO ONE COULD ANSWER

ARLINGTON CEMETERY

On Jeopardy the other night, the final question was "How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns" ---- All three contestants missed it! --

This is really an awesome sight to watch if you've never had the chance. Very fascinating.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

1. How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns and why?
21 steps: It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute which is
the highest honor given any military or foreign dignitary.

2. How long does he hesitate after his about face to begin his return walk and why?
21 seconds for the same reason as answer number 1.

3. Why are his gloves wet?
His gloves are moistened to prevent his losing his grip on the rifle.

4. Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time
and, if not, why not?
He carries the rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb. After his march across the path, he executes an about face and moves the rifle to the outside shoulder.

5. How often are the guards changed?
Guards are changed every thirty minutes,
twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year.

6. What are the physical traits of the guard limited to?
For a person to apply for guard duty at the tomb, he must be
between 5' 10' and 6' 2' tall and his waist size cannot exceed 30.

Guards must commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.

They cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way.

After two years, the guard is given a wreath pin that is worn on their lapel signifying they served as guard of the tomb. There are only 400 presently worn. The guard must obey these rules for the rest of their lives or give up the wreath pin.

The shoes are specially made with very thick soles to keep the heat and cold from their feet. There are metal heel plates that extend to the top of the shoe in order to make the loud click as they come to a halt.

There are no wrinkles, folds or lint on the uniform.

Guards dress for duty in front of a full-length mirror.

Every guard spends five hours a day getting his uniforms ready for guard duty.

The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk to anyone nor watch TV.

All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. A guard must memorize who they are and where they are interred. Among the notables are:

President Taft,
Joe Lewis {the boxer}
Medal of Honor winner Audie L. Murphy, the most
decorated soldier of WWII and of Hollywood fame.

In 2003 as Hurricane Isabelle was approaching Washington, DC, our US Senate/House took 2 days off with anticipation of the storm. On the ABC evening news, it was reported that because of the dangers from the hurricane, the military members assigned the duty of guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier were given permission to suspend the assignment. They respectfully declined the offer, "No way, Sir!" Soaked to the skin, marching in the pelting rain of a tropical storm, they said that guarding the Tomb was not just an assignment, it was the highest honor that can be afforded to a serviceperson. The tomb has been patrolled continuously, 24/7, since 1930.

God Bless and keep them.

This has been posted before and much of it is not true..

They cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way.

After two years, the guard is given a wreath pin that is worn on their lapel signifying they served as guard of the tomb. There are only 400 presently worn. The guard must obey these rules for the rest of their lives or give up the wreath pin.

Every guard spends five hours a day getting his uniforms ready for guard duty.

The first six months of duty a guard cannot talk to anyone nor watch TV.

All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. A guard must memorize who they are and where they are interred. Among the notables are:


This stuff is nonsense