Imagine being at your regular guard shift when your relief commander comes in and accidentally stabs you in the foot. Most of us would have trouble walking and would just go to the hospital. We certainly wouldn’t finish our shift.
But we aren’t The Old Guard.
Also Read: What happens if you try to touch the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A video taken by a visitor to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery captured a bayonet mishap, which is probably the last thing anyone wants to hear after the word “bayonet.”
The Old Guard—soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry—guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in any weather, and even in the middle of a hurricane.
Every half hour, the guard, called a Tomb Guard Sentinel, is changed. The changing of the guard starts with a ceremony that includes a white-glove inspection of the outgoing guard’s rifle. One YouTube user, H Helman, caught the Tomb Guard commander accidentally losing his grip on the rifle and putting the bayonet through the guard’s foot.
Changing of the Guard Mishap
At this point, it’s important to acknowledge that it’s a good thing we aren’t the Old Guard, because the vast majority of us (veterans included) would be the worst Old Guard. As the bayonet stabs through his foot with the weight of an M1 Garand behind it, the look on the guard’s face really never changes. There’s clearly a shock to the system as the bayonet slides home, but all you ever see from the guard is a very slight wince.
The Old Guard is trained and drilled meticulously to maintain their professionalism, military bearing, and discipline. Accidents and outbursts from the Sentinels are extremely rare. As a matter of fact, if you weren’t watching this incident closely, you may even miss what happened.
Instead of running away, being carted off, or even being relieved, the sentinel who was stabbed in the foot carried on with his shift. He marched back and forth along his route, blood oozing from his foot as he walked.
Neither he, the commander, nor the other sentinels ever missed a beat. They sharply finished their 30-minute watch. This kind of discipline is why 90% of soldiers who try to guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier wash out of training.
