The Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier

[Rosie]

ARLINGTON CEMETERY

 

Jeopardy 

Question: 

On 

Jeopardy the

ot

her night, the final question was 

"How many steps does the guard take during his 

walk across the tomb of the Unknowns?" 

All three co

nt

esta

nt

s missed it! 

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

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 twe

nt

y-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 preve

nt

his losing his 

grip on the rifle.

 

4. 

Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all 

the time 

and

 

, 

if 

n

ot

, why n

ot

?

 

 

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, 

twe

nt

y-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 cann

ot

exceed 30. 

They 

must commit 2 years of life to guard the tomb, 

live in a barracks under the tomb, and cann

ot

 

drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of 

their lives. They cann

ot

swear in public for the 

rest of their lives and cann

ot

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 prese

nt

ly worn. The guard must

OB

ey 

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 li

nt

on the uniform. Guards 

dress for duty 

in fro

nt

of a full-length 

mirror. 

The first six mo

nt

hs of duty a 

guard cann

ot

talk to anyone nor 

watch TV. 

All off duty time is spe

nt

studying the 175 

n

ot

able people laid 

to rest in 

Arlington National Cemetery .

A guard must memorize who they are and where 

they are i

nt

erred. Among the n

ot

ables are: 

Preside

nt

Taft,

Joe Lewis {the boxer}

Medal of Honor winner Audie L. Murphy, the most 

decorated soldier of WWII and of Hollywood fame.

 

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

. 

ETERNAL REST GRA

NT

THEM O LORD AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM

.

 

In 

2003 as Hurricane Isabelle was 

approaching Washington , 

DC , our 

US Senate/House took 2 days

off with a

nt

icipation 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 assignme

nt

. 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 n

ot

just an assignme

nt

,

it was the highest honor that can be 

afforded 

to a service person. The tomb has been patrolled 

co

nt

inuously, 

24/7, since 1930. 

God 

Bless and keep them. 

I'd be 

very proud if this email 

reached as many as possible. We can be very 

proud of our men

and 

women

in the service no matter where they serve.

 

God Bless America

 

 

[Guest]

An incredible call to honor and duty. Beyond what is prescribed and certainly from the heart.
Thank you for posting this.

[HappyChristian]

My mom's late pastor's son (one of them...he had 5) was a guard there. He served his time there and is now elsewhere.  It is truly an honor.

[Rosie]

I thinkits awesome

[Genevanpreacher]

Wow!

 

You might check this out first - http://www.snopes.com/military/unknown.asp

[Standing Firm In Christ]

My dad was laid to rest at ANC in January 1961, my mother was laid to rest there beside dad this past August.

 

[Salyan]

Wow!

You might check this out first - http://www.snopes.com/military/unknown.asp

I thought those requirements seemed rather extreme...

[Guest]

I thought those requirements seemed rather extreme...

Snopes says it's mixed. And Snopes isn't always the most reliable source to rebut topics.

Here's the official site that gives the information we're looking for