The United States Navy Ceremonial Guard is the official ceremonial unit of the United States Navy. It is responsible for the performance of public duties in the U.S. Navy. The guard is composed of 200+ enlisted navy personnel. It is based at the Naval District Washington, Washington Navy Yard, Washington D.C. [1] It is currently led by Commander Alexander McMahon.
Established in 1931, the guard represents the Navy in the Presidential, Joint Armed Services, Navy and public ceremonies in the nation's capital and around the world. Each member is trained to be motionless for extended periods of time so that they are prepared to hold their bearing through the entirety of the longest of military ceremonies. They are trained in the areas of rifle drill manual and marching as well as the daily labor of maintaining the rigorous physical and uniform standards demanded of Ceremonial Guardsmen.
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The United States Navy Ceremonial Guard provides along with ceremonial honour guards from the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Coast Guard during State visits to the United States at the White House and the Pentagon, as well as the inaugural parade every four years, and Independence Day observances in Washington, D.C. Its personnel serve as Casket bearers, Color guards, and Firing parties at the funerals of Naval Servicemen at the Arlington National Cemetery. They also have the Navy ceremonial Guard Drill team that performs all over and outside the U.S. [3] [4]
The Navy Ceremonial Duty Ribbon is presented to members of the Ceremonial Guard who receives his full honors qualification and completes a standard tour of duty (2 years) with the United States Navy Ceremonial Guard. [5] It was established on 12 December 2003 by the order of the Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England. On 17 January 2012, the name of the Navy Ceremonial Duty Ribbon was changed [6] from the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard Ribbon in order to encompass those personnel who have successfully completed a standard tour of duty on board the USS Constitution. Multiple awards of the Navy Ceremonial Duty Ribbon are denoted by bronze service stars, while only one award of the ribbon is authorized for each tour of duty.
For the Ceremonial Guard, the enlisted Full Dress uniforms are more elaborate with the wearing of a white pistol belt, ascot and dress aiguillette (the latter two are white for winter and navy blue for summer), and white canvas leggings. This uniform is due to be replaced in 2021. [7]
In military organizations, a colour guard is a detachment of soldiers assigned to the protection of regimental colours and the national flag. This duty is highly prestigious, and the military colour is generally carried by a young officer (ensign), while experienced non-commissioned officers are assigned to the protection of the national flag. These non-commissioned officers, accompanied in several countries by warrant officers, can be ceremonially armed with either sabres or rifles to protect the colour. Colour guards are generally dismounted, but there are also mounted colour guard formations as well.
A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors.
A military funeral is a memorial or burial rite given by a country's military for a soldier, sailor, marine or airman who died in battle, a veteran, or other prominent military figures or heads of state. A military funeral may feature guards of honor, the firing of volley shots as a salute, drumming and other military elements, with a flag draping over the coffin.
The Good Conduct Medal is one of the oldest military awards of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Navy's variant of the Good Conduct Medal was established in 1869, the Marine Corps version in 1896, the Coast Guard version in 1923, the Army version in 1941, and the Air Force version in 1963; the Air Force Good Conduct Medal was temporarily discontinued from February 2006 to February 2009, followed by its subsequent reinstatement.
A service stripe is an embroidered diagonal stripe worn on the sleeve(s) of some military and paramilitary uniforms. In the case of the United States military, service stripes are authorized for wear by enlisted personnel on the lower part of the sleeve of a uniform to denote length of service. Service stripes vary in size and in color.
The U.S. military issues instructor badges to specially training military personnel who are charged with teaching military recruits the skills they need to perform as members of the U.S. Armed Forces or teach continuing education courses for non-commissioned officers and officers in the military. With the exception of the U.S. Army and U.S. Coast Guard, these badges are considered temporary military decorations and must be surrendered upon completion of one's duty as a military instructor. Because of this, the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps award Drill Instructor Ribbons as a permanent decoration to recognize service members who have qualified and performed as military instructors.
The Navy Ceremonial Duty Ribbon, is an award of the United States Navy which was established on December 12, 2003 by order of Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England for a successful tour of duty with the United States Navy Ceremonial Guard or USS Constitution ending on or after May 1, 2001. A Sailor's service prior to this date does not qualify the member for the ribbon.
The 3rd United States Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army. It currently has three active battalions, and is readily identified by its nickname, The Old Guard, as well as Escort to the President. The regimental motto is Noli Me Tangere. The regiment is a major unit of the Military District of Washington (MDW). The 3rd Infantry is the oldest regiment still active in the Regular Army, having been first organized as the First American Regiment in 1784. It has been the official ceremonial unit of the U.S. Army since 1948.
Insignias and badges of the United States Navy are military badges issued by the United States Department of the Navy to naval service members who achieve certain qualifications and accomplishments while serving on both active and reserve duty in the United States Navy. Most naval aviation insignia are also permitted for wear on uniforms of the United States Marine Corps.
A peaked cap, peaked hat, service cap, barracks cover, or combination cap is a form of headgear worn by the armed forces of many nations, as well as many uniformed civilian organisations such as law enforcement agencies and fire departments. It derives its name from its short visor, or peak, which was historically made of polished leather but increasingly is made of a cheaper synthetic substitute.
Full dress uniform, also known as a ceremonial dress uniform or parade dress uniform, is the most formal type of uniforms used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for official parades, ceremonies, and receptions, including private ones such as marriages and funerals. Full dress uniforms typically include full-size orders and medals insignia. Styles tend to originate from 19th century uniforms, although the 20th century saw the adoption of mess dress-styled full-dress uniforms. Designs may depend on regiment or service branch. In Western dress codes, full dress uniform is a permitted supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian white tie for evening wear or morning dress for day wear – sometimes collectively called full dress – although military uniforms are the same for day and evening wear. As such, full dress uniform is the most formal uniform, followed by the mess dress uniform.
The Summerall Guards are a military drill platoon at The Citadel, a military college in Charleston, South Carolina. The Summerall Guards were formed in 1932 and are named after General Charles P. Summerall, former chief of staff of the United States Army and president of The Citadel from 1931 to 1953.
The uniforms of the United States Navy include dress uniforms, daily service uniforms, working uniforms, and uniforms for special situations, which have varied throughout the history of the navy. For simplicity in this article, officers refers to both commissioned officers and warrant officers.
The United States Air Force Honor Guard is the official ceremonial unit of the United States Air Force and is assigned to Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington D.C.
A guard of honour, honor guard or ceremonial guard, is a group of people, typically drawn from the military, appointed to perform ceremonial duties – for example, to receive or guard a head of state or other dignitaries, the fallen in war, or to attend at state ceremonials, especially funerals. In military weddings, especially those of commissioned officers, a guard, composed usually of service members of the same branch, form the sabre arch. In principle, any military unit could act as a guard of honour. In some countries, certain units are specially assigned to undertake guard of honour postings or other public duties. Republican guards, royal guards and foot guards frequently have ceremonial duties assigned to them.
The United States Marine Corps (USMC) prescribes several types of military uniform to distinguish its service members from other armed services, depending on the situation.
The uniforms of the United States Air Force are the standardized military uniforms worn by members of the United States Air Force to distinguish themselves from the other services.
The Tennessee State Guard (TNSG) is the state defense force of the state of Tennessee. The TNSG is organized as a military reserve force whose members drill once per month unless called to active duty. The TNSG is a branch of the Tennessee Military Department, alongside the Tennessee Army National Guard, the Tennessee Air National Guard, and the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency. The State Guard acts as a force multiplier for the state's National Guard. As a state defense force, the Tennessee State Guard cannot be federalized, and is not deployed outside the borders of Tennessee, as it is a purely state-level unit. It answers solely to the Governor of Tennessee, unlike the dual federal and state controlled National Guard. The creation of a state military force is recognized under Tennessee Code Annotated 58-1-401.
The United States Coast Guard Ceremonial Honor Guard is a unit of the United States Coast Guard responsible for the performance of public duties. Stationed at the Command, Control, Communication, Computer, Cyber and Intelligence Service Center (C5ISC) in Alexandria, Virginia, the unit was activated in 1962.
The Uniforms of the United States Coast Guard include dress uniforms, daily service uniforms, working uniforms, and uniforms for special situations, which have varied throughout the history of the USCG.
