Why We Guard The Tomb

john-michael.net ^ | February 2009 | John Michael / COL Neale Cosby US Army (Ret.)

[COBOL2Java]

"Why We Guard The Tomb…"

I’ve been reading a book on The Old Guard’s history and reached an essay written by COL Neale Cosby US Army (Ret.) and it filled me with emotions. I thought it important enough to transcribe it and share it with the world, since it provides an insight that we all can appreciate…

Why We Guard The Tomb

Sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier - Arlington National Cemetery

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“Forty plus years ago, I was the platoon leader of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery. One day I was standing on the plaza inspecting a guard change when a little old lady asked me the usual set of questions.

” ‘Are there guards here at night?’ Answer: yes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. And it has been so since 1936. Every second of every minute, of every, of every day – rain, shine, snow, sleet, a guard is here day and night.

“Then she asked how are the guards selected? I cited high character requirements for duty at the Tomb. In short, I told her that they must be good soldiers and good citizens.

“Following the guard change, she came back with more questions. She was persistent. I can still see her face today. She asked: ‘Do the guards like the duty here?’ I said, ‘Yes. They feel it is an honor to continuously render, in their own small soldierly way, this nation’s highest honors to the Unknown Soldier.’

“She said ‘What do you mean?’ I explained that the highest honor that this country renders to anyone is a 21-gun salute. The President gets a 21-gun salute. And then I told her that this is what this lone sentinel is doing, continuously. Then I pointed to the sentinel on the mat. In a whisper, I counted 21 seconds as he paused at each facing movement — one thousand one, one thousand two and so on. I counted the steps as he crossed the mat from one side of the Tomb to the other, always keeping an eye on the Tomb and keeping his body between the Tomb and the weapon he carries. Thus rendering the highest honors with his 21-count, continuously.

“At the end, she began to cry and she said, ‘You may wonder why I’m asking these questions, but you see, I have a personal interest here. This is the only place I have to pay my respects to my son who did not return from the war.’

With that she departed leaving me touched for life and forever answering the question of WHY WE GUARD THE TOMB”

COL Cosby was awarded Tomb Guard Badge #6 (July 1958 – July 1960)

[DoodleDawg]

I understand that the Tomb Guard Badge is the second least awarded decoration in the Army after the Army Astronaut Badge.

[IronJack]

I’ve visited the Tomb and watched the Old Guard there. It is truly a somber sight.

[StonyBurk]

Yet the enemy foreign or domestic wants to keep GOD out of any public discourse=There known but only to God...”

[COBOL2Java]

Yet the enemy foreign or domestic wants to keep GOD out of any public discourse=There known but only to God...”

The Tomb has been sullied a few times in its history, sadly...

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

As a rule of thumb, there are few memorials that deserve active duty military guards, and this is one.

During the Afghanistan/Gulf Wars, the USMC was so pressed for combat personnel in its frequent rotation cycle that they began to recall personnel deployed on minor jobs around the world. It was discovered that the crypt of John Paul Jones at the USNA at Annapolis had an entire platoon of USMC as guards.

It was decided that in future its honor guard be of cadets, as Marines were too valuable to be used as guards.

But if active duty personnel are not used for such purposes, the question of who should be is obvious: veterans.

A great example is the The USS Arizona Memorial, at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii. Visited by about 2 million people a year, its on shore facility and offshore memorial require a lot of personnel, both active duty and veterans. Though its guards are exclusively active duty.

[Lmo56]

WHICH book were you reading ???

[COBOL2Java]

I’m not sure I understand your question.