The Tomb Guards

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BOBBY MOTUS
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Sunday, March 11, 2018
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SOLDIERING, just like athletics, involve lots of sacrifice, plus many more. The risk of injury and death is more real and pronounced. But some opt to be part of a very select group who endure more training just be a cut above the rest.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was established in 1921 through an act of the United States Congress to dedicate a place where the unnamed brave men and women who died in battle from World War I up to the Korean War are interred and commemorated. Since the 1930s, the Tomb is guarded 24/7 by a select group of soldiers that passed through a complex selection process.

The US military requires an applicant to be standing between 5-feet-10 and 6-feet-2 and with a waistline no wider than 30 inches. They are handpicked, with the majority of them failing during two-week training. The qualified applicant then goes to an intense training cycle, covering six to 12 months, focusing on outside performance, uniform preparation and knowledge on the history of the Tomb and the Arlington National Cemetery.

Uniform standards of the Tomb Guards are different from the regular army and are of the highest and strictest in nature.

The tests are progressive, with the trainee expected to improve every time tests are given. If they fail, they are sent back to their mother units. Upon passing, they are given the Tomb Guard Identification Badge and will be officially referred to as a Tomb Guard, or Sentinel. The average tour of duty is one year and they either live in a barracks in Fort Myer adjacent to the cemetery or off-base. For their 24-hour shifts, they have living quarters under the steps of the Memorial Amphitheater.

Only four females were given the Tomb Guard Identification Badge since 1996. They must meet the same requirements needed as their male counterparts. The only difference is their minimum height requirement, 5-feet-8.

The Sentinels work per Relief team – Tomb Squads First, Second and Third Reliefs – on rotations and are organized according to their heights so that during changing of the guards, they would be similar in size. Each relief team has a rotation during the 24-hour work day, which is dependent on the number of soldiers proficient enough to guard the tomb.

The standard is an eight-man team composed of a commander and an assistant commander, four qualified Sentinels, and two Sentinels-in-training. Usually, a Sentinel goes on guard duty for one tour and gets a two-hour break before doing another tour. Guards are changed every 30 minutes during summer and every hour in winter. When the cemetery is closed to the public, guards are changed every two hours.

Twenty-one steps are made by the Sentinel as he walks across the Tomb, which is alluded to the 21-gun military salute, the highest honor given to any military of dignitary. He carries his rifle on his shoulder away from the tomb. He stops at the 21st step, faces the Tomb for 21 seconds, turns, then changes his weapon to his outside shoulder, counts 21 seconds, then walks off for another 21 steps across the Tomb. He faces the Tomb for 21 seconds at each end of the walk, repeating the sequence until he is relieved during the Changing of the Guard.

The Sentinels have moistened gloves to have a better grip on their rifle, which is a fully functional M14. I sincerely feel that they carry a loaded rifle, considering recent events.

The shoes are standard-issue military dress shoes polished to a mirror-like shine. To allow smooth movements, the soles have a steel tip on the toe and a U-shaped steel plate on the heel. A piece of steel is attached on the inside of the face of the heel on each shoe. Called a “clicker,” it allows the guard to click his heels at certain movements.

In reverence to the Unknowns, sometimes no voice commands are given, thus the guards move on “silent mode,” and their heel clicks – in relation to specific counts – determines the command, especially during the guard change.

Weather conditions never bother the Sentinels. Every minute of the day since 1937, there’s always a guard on duty. There are contingencies to be followed in cases of extreme weather conditions where the safety and lives of the Sentinels will be at risk.

Guarding the Unknowns. Neither rain, nor snow, nor gloom of night can dampen the dedication of a Sentinel. Perhaps their biggest challenge is the overeager tourists who force themselves to the off-limits area just to get a selfie with the Sentinel on duty./PN
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