military traditions

[piperdbh]

... the officer in charge would present it to the widow (mother, father, etc.) with the words, "On behalf of a greatful nation."

Speaking of presenting the flag, one of my uncles died two summers ago. He had been in the US Navy, both active and reserve. His ex-wife and their five children were all at the graveside service, which put the officer in charge (who was a close friend of my uncle) in a bit of pickle regarding who should receive the flag. After it was folded, he walked over to the family and asked, "Who will receive J. W.'s flag?" My cousin, who happens to be the oldest son and a Marine, rose and recieved the flag, saluting his late father one last time.
It was a moving way to handle an awkward situation, and was carried out as if it had been rehearsed.

Usually, after the military honors have been performed, I'm cued to strike in and 'pipe "Amazing Grace" or some other suitable tune.

[Pleater]

This is the last bit of the poem/song 'Follow me home' - and I have no idea why it is writen in red...
Anne the Pleater :ootd:


'E was all that I 'ad in the way of a friend,
An' I've 'ad to find one new;
But I'd give my pay an' stripe for to get the beggar back,
Which it's just too late to do.

So it's knock out your pipes an' follow me!
An' it's finish off your swipes an' follow me!
Oh, 'ark to the fifes a-crawlin'!
Follow me -- follow me 'ome!

Take 'im away! 'E's gone where the best men go.
Take 'im away! An' the gun-wheels turnin' slow.
Take 'im away! There's more from the place 'e come.
Take 'im away, with the limber an' the drum.

For it's "Three rounds blank" an' follow me,
An' it's "Thirteen rank" an' follow me;
Oh, passin' the love o' women,
Follow me -- follow me 'ome!

Rudyard Kipling

[Old Hippie]

when a Marine, sailor, or soldier is laid to rest with military honors, the detail will fire three rounds (in unison) in salute.

When we interred my dad's ashes last summer, the salute was fired by a lone rifleman. In contrast to other military ceremonies I've attended, the rifleman stood on concrete rather than grass -- which may have simply been a peculiarity of that part of the cemetary.

In any event, I will always remember the sudden shock of the muzzle blast, the sound of the breech action, and the way the ping of the spent brass on the concrete seemed to hang in the air for an eternity.

"Taps" gets me much more than "Last Post." Probably because I've seen many American military ceremonies but no Canadian so far.

[Splash_4]

The three round salute given at U.S. military funerals still gets me to this day. Interesting fact that the three-round salute is given using rifles while the 21-gun salute is given with canons (shipboard or land based, but is based on British tradition).

Either way, the sound of the rifle shots after the playing of Taps almost always bring tears to my eyes.

[Ozark Ridge Rider]

The flag is normally presented to the next of kin, and each service has its own protocol and different words to be used in the presentation. They can be found here: (probably among other sites)

http://militarysalute.proboards.com/...lay&thread=288

Having done quite a few of these, I've made it a practice to ask the funeral director who is to receive it (if I'm not familiar with the family). That usually works.

Dan

[Drillagent]

Also, I wish to note that when a Marine, sailor, or soldier is laid to rest with military honors, the detail will fire three rounds (in unison) in salute. That is not a 21-gun salute as some think.

The three rounds fired in unison is supposed to be fired by SEVEN members of the detail, thus a 21 gun salute. If there are only six riflemen and they only fire three rounds, then someone is missing. I'm not sure which regulation covers this, but I will be sure to look it up.

After reading FM 3-21.5 Chapter 14, formerly known as FM 22-5 Drill and Ceremony, I stand corrected. The firing party will consist of no less than five members and no more than eight and will fire only three rounds. I had always thought that there were seven members representing the 21 gun salute. My mistake, I apologize.

[dfmacliam]

And three shell casings are presented to the family, with the flag...

[###KILTEDKIWI###]

Quite a somber thread, so...to change it up a wee bit...

Crossing the line ceremony (crossing Equator) (most Navies)

Not a good time to be a "Tadpole" (someone who hasnt crossed the line) when the "Bears" (Others who have crossed the line,who remember how badly they were treated, are dead set certain looking to pay that forward) come hunting for you, so that you can pay your homage to "Neptune"...

(I won't even go into the details...)

Also heres a tip, keep the crossing the line cerificate with you in your kit, because if you can't produce it on demand, well, its just not good to have it done twice...

[###KILTEDKIWI###]

Also, on the gun salutes:

the custom originates in naval tradition, where a warship would harmlessly fire out to sea, until all ammo was spent, to show that it was disarmed, signifying a lack of hostile intent...

or something to that affect

[thescot]

As to the rifles at the cemetery: we did a funeral one time in a rural settings, and as we drank cokes at a local store awaiting the hearse, a fellow asked us if we were going to give a 21-gun salute. The captain said, "No, we have 6 riflemen firing three rounds."

The man looked a little confused and said, "that's 21 ain't it?"

As to crossing the equator: in the US Navy, one is tried by King Neptune's Court where King Neptune and the shellbacks "try" the "pollywogs," for being pollywogs. Even officers and floating Marines must answer the subpoena to the court.

One final tradition: in the US Marine Corps, every Marine on earth celebrates the Birthday Ball, on or about Novembe 10 to commerorate the birth of our beloved Corps at Tun Tavern in 1775. On that day--and that day only--officers and enlisted are pretty well equal, drinking, eating, and partying together.

If you haven't been to a Birthday Ball, you ain't been around.