A Guarded Tomb

Each year, about four million people come to Arlington National Cemetery. Among the most popular stops are the Eternal Flame at President John F. Kennedy’s gravesite, the gravesites of other famous Americans, the mast of the USS Maine, and the Tomb of the Unknowns near the Memorial Amphitheater.

On November 11, 1921, an unidentified soldier from World War I was interred in a grave, above which was placed a white marble sarcophagus. The idea was for that single body to become a symbol of the unidentified and missing soldiers who did not return from the war. Inscribed on the tomb are the words, “HERE RESTS IN HONORED GLORY AN AMERICAN SOLDIER KNOWN BUT TO GOD.”

Over the years, unidentified bodies from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War also were interred in crypts in the plaza near the World War I soldier. In 1998, however, the Vietnam soldier’s remains were removed for DNA testing. When the soldier’s identity was determined, the space for the Vietnam soldier was left empty.

The Tomb of the Unknowns is guarded by a special platoon. It is considered a high honor to be a member of this guard, which watches over the tomb 24/7. Soldiers must pass a difficult testing process as well as be able to master the precise rituals that are part of the guards’ duties at the tomb. Many visitors to Arlington National Cemetery plan a trip there that allows them to watch the 10-minute event known as “the changing of the guard.”