Trivia Questions Regarding the Tomb of the Unknowns

1.     How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknown and why?

     21 steps : It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute, which is the highest honour given any military dignitary

2.     How long does he hesitate after his about face to begin his return walk?

     21 seconds

3.     Why are his gloves wet?

     His gloves are moistened to prevent his losing grip on the rifle

4.     Does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time and if not, why?

     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 30 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 can not exceed 30".  Other requirements of the Guard:  They must commit 2 years of their life to guard the tomb, live in barracks under the tomb, and can not drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.  They can not swear in public for the rest of their lives and can not disgrace the uniform(fighting) or the tomb in anyway 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.

     The first six months of duty a guard can not talk to anyone, nor watch tv.  All off duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetry.  A guard must memorize who they are and where they are interred.  Among the notables are: President Taft, Joe E. Lewis (the boxer) and medal of Honour winner Audie Murphy(the most decorated soldier of WWII) of Hollywood fame.

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

I will give the anwers to these questions in a few days.  Have fun answering them.

God bless our fighting men and women.

Hope you had fun searching for the answers.