Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
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40 free Tomb of the Unknown Soldier trivia questions with answers — history quiz, new questions added Oct 2026.
A soldier in dark wool paces a rubber mat on a hilltop above Washington, turns, waits, and paces back. The routine at Arlington's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has not stopped, day or night, in any weather, since 1937, and almost every movement in it means something. This quiz covers the Tomb Guards and their ritual: the counted steps, the changing of the guard, the uniform, the shoes, and the rare badge that sentinels earn. It also covers the Unknowns themselves, how each was chosen and brought home, the presidents who led the burials, and the marble monument above them. A few questions look abroad to the sister tombs in London, Paris, Rome and Athens. It is written for people planning a trip to Arlington, veterans and military families, history teachers, and anyone who has watched the guard change and wondered why it is done that way. Every answer comes with a short explanation.
30 of 40 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01How many steps does a Tomb Guard march down the black mat before turning to face the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
21
21 mirrors the 21-gun salute, the military's highest tribute. The guard then faces the Tomb for the same count in seconds before marching back.
Q 02What were sightseers doing on the flat, unguarded Tomb of the Unknown Soldier that prompted its first guard in 1925?
Having picnics
Having picnics on the low marble slab, with its view of Washington, was common enough that a civilian guard was posted in 1925. Soldiers took over the next year.
Q 03Why does a Tomb Guard pacing the mat at Arlington wear no rank insignia, unlike the relief commander?
Not to outrank the Unknowns
Not to outrank the Unknowns, whose ranks nobody knows, the guard on the mat wears a uniform without insignia. Relief commanders show their rank only while changing the guard.
Q 04Which war's Unknown was removed from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in 1998 after DNA testing revealed his name?
Vietnam War
Vietnam War remains buried in 1984 proved to be Air Force pilot Michael Blassie, shot down in 1972. His family reburied him in Missouri, and the crypt was left empty.
Q 05Sergeant Edward Younger chose America's World War I Unknown Soldier by placing what on one of four identical caskets?
White roses
White roses, handed to him by an officer in a French city hall, marked the casket. Younger said he circled the four three times before something made him stop.
Q 06The inscription on the west face of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier says the American inside is known only to whom?
God
God is the last word of the inscription, carved when the marble sarcophagus was finished in 1932. For its first decade the grave was a plain low slab.
Q 07Why are a Tomb Guard's white gloves dampened before duty at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
To grip the rifle better
To grip the rifle better, guards moisten their gloves before each walk. They also spend hours preparing each uniform before a day at the Tomb.
Q 08Which nickname belongs to the 3rd Infantry Regiment, keepers of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier since 1948?
The Old Guard
The Old Guard got its name from General Winfield Scott at an 1847 victory parade in Mexico City. Formed in 1784, it is the Army's oldest active-duty infantry unit.
Q 09The cemetery holding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier stands on land seized from which Confederate general's family?
Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee's family lost the Arlington estate in a wartime tax sale over a $92 bill. His son won it back in the Supreme Court, then sold it to the government for $150,000.
Q 10Britain's Unknown Warrior, buried on 11 November 1920, lies among kings and queens in which London church?
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey buried him in soil brought from the main battlefields. His grave is covered by black Belgian marble lettered in brass from melted ammunition.
Q 11Which American decoration was laid on the World War I Unknown's casket and later given to every Unknown who followed?
Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor awards went abroad too: General Pershing presented one to Britain's Unknown Warrior in October 1921, weeks before America buried its own Unknown.
Q 12How often is the guard changed at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during summer opening hours, April through September?
Every half hour
Every half hour in summer, hourly from October through March, and every two hours overnight once the cemetery closes. The watch has not paused since 1937.
Q 13France's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where a flame is rekindled every evening, lies beneath which Paris monument?
Arc de Triomphe
Q 21What do the steel plates fitted inside a Tomb Guard's shoes produce during movements at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
A sharp heel click
A sharp heel click comes from a steel shank on the inner heel of each shoe. Guards judge a change by whether every click lands as one, and some changes run on clicks alone.
Q 22On which shoulder does a Tomb Guard carry the weapon while pacing the mat at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
The one nearest visitors
The one nearest visitors: after each turn the guard shifts the weapon to the outside shoulder, a sign that the sentinel stands between the Tomb and any possible threat.
Q 23Tomb Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier work in three reliefs, each grouping sentinels by which shared trait?
Arc de Triomphe was a late choice: lawmakers first voted to bury him in the Panthéon. The flame at the tomb has been relit at 6:30 every evening since 1923.
Q 14Which president led the burial of the World War I Unknown Soldier at Arlington on 11 November 1921?
Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding spoke at the ceremony while Americans nationwide observed two minutes of silence. Foreign dignitaries added their own nations' highest awards.
Q 15Why do Tomb Guards often wear sunglasses while on duty at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
To cut the glare
To cut the glare: sunlight bounces off the pale marble of the Tomb and the plaza around it. The rubber mat underfoot wears out and is replaced about twice a year.
Q 16How do soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Regiment come to serve as Tomb Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier?
By volunteering
By volunteering: candidates then face an interview and a two-week trial, memorizing pages of cemetery history to recite word for word before they earn a walk.
Q 17The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier overlooks Washington, D.C., from a hilltop across the Potomac River in which state?
Virginia
Virginia holds Arlington National Cemetery, where more than 400,000 people are buried. The Tomb stands on a hill there, in front of a marble amphitheater finished in 1920.
Q 18Where in Washington did the World War I Unknown Soldier lie in state before burial at Arlington in November 1921?
The Capitol Rotunda
The Capitol Rotunda drew about 90,000 people on a single day of public viewing. Later Unknowns lay in state there too before their own burials.
Q 19Long before the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Arlington sealed 2,111 unidentified dead of which war in one vault?
The Civil War
The Civil War left nearly half its dead unidentified, by some estimates. These remains, Union and Confederate alike, were gathered from battlefields within 35 miles of Washington.
Q 20Which capital's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier lies in the Alexander Garden, below the walls of a famous fortress?
Moscow
Moscow reburied soldiers killed defending the city in 1941 beside the Kremlin wall in 1966. The torch for its eternal flame was carried from Leningrad.
Height
Height sorts the reliefs so the soldiers in each guard change look alike. Each relief has a commander and about six sentinels, working a full day on, then a day off.
Q 24The Tomb Guard Identification Badge is the only U.S. Army badge that can be what after its wearer leaves the military?
Revoked
Revoked is the word: the regiment's commander can take the badge back, even from a veteran in civilian life, for any act that discredits the Tomb.
Q 25What does the upside-down laurel wreath on the silver Tomb Guard Identification Badge signify?
Mourning
Mourning is the message of the inverted wreath, which frames the Tomb's east face on the badge. Sentinels wear it on the right breast pocket.
Q 26In 1996, a military police sergeant became the first member of which group to earn the Tomb Guard Identification Badge?
Women
Women could apply once a military police company joined the all-male infantry regiment. Sergeant Heather Johnsen came forward in June 1995 and earned the badge the next year.
Q 27The white Yule marble of Arlington's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was quarried high in the mountains of which state?
Colorado
Colorado quarrymen cut a 124-ton block inside a mountain, then sawed it down to 56 tons. It rode by rail to Vermont for finishing before reaching Arlington.
Q 28The east face of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier shows three Greek figures: Peace, Victory and which third?
Valor
Valor, the male figure, holds a broken sword and faces Victory, who clasps the hand of Peace, a woman holding a dove. The three face east toward Washington.
Q 29Which cruiser, George Dewey's flagship at Manila Bay, carried the World War I Unknown Soldier home from France?
USS Olympia
USS Olympia sailed from Le Havre and reached the Washington Navy Yard on November 9, 1921. She survives as a museum ship in Philadelphia, the oldest steel American warship afloat.
Q 30Which British decoration did Admiral Beatty give America's Unknown Soldier in 1921 on behalf of King George V?
The Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross, Britain's top gallantry award, answered an American award to Britain's Unknown Warrior weeks earlier. It is the only one never announced in the London Gazette.