21-gun salute

The 21-gun salute is a military honour performed when 21 rounds are fired from a cannon, rifle, or other form of firearm.

A 21-gun salute is fired by the members of the U.S. Army.

Terminology

A 21-gun salute is called a Royal Salute in the British Commonwealth (in the British Empire it had been reserved, mainly among colonial princely states, for the most prestigeous category of native rulers of so-called salute states), unless rendered to the president or flag of a republic; even then it is colloquially called "royal". For example, it would be said of the President of the United States, if saluted in Canada, that he received a "royal salute." However, the salutes fired at the Tower of London to mark the anniversaries of the birth, accession, coronation of the Sovereign, and other royal occasions are in fact 62 guns, and 41 guns are fired at Hyde Park or Green Park on Royal occasions. When President George W. Bush made his visit to the United Kingdom in 2003, 41 guns were fired.

In the United States, the 21-gun salute is used as a Presidential Salute as well as a Salute to the Nation when fired at noon on Memorial Day -- a 50-gun salute (one gun for each state of the Union) is fired at noon on the 4th of July.

The 21-gun salute is not to be confused with the 3-volley salute using rifles for most military servicemembers or shotguns for police officers at their funerals.

Origins

The tradition of saluting can be traced to the Middle Ages practice of placing oneself in an unarmed position and, therefore, in the power of those being honoured. This may be noted in the dropping of the point of the sword, presenting arms, firing cannon and small arms, lowering sails, manning the yards, removing the headdress or laying on oars.

The cannon salute might have originated in the 17th century with the maritime practice of demanding that a defeated enemy expend its ammunition and render itself helpless until reloaded — a time-consuming operation in that era. Also, the gun salute was established as a naval tradition by the late sixteenth century. A man o' war which visited a foreign port would discharge all its guns to show that its guns were empty. Since the ship would not have enough time to reload before it was within range of the shore batteries, it was clearly demonstrating its friendly intentions by going in with empty guns.

Salute by gunfire is an ancient ceremony. The British for years compelled weaker nations to render the first salute; but in time, international practice compelled "gun for gun" on the principle of equality of nations. In the earliest days, seven guns was the recognized British national salute due to seven being the standard number of weapons on a vessel. In that day, gunpowder made from sodium nitrate was easier to keep on dry land than at sea. Thus those early regulations stated that although a ship would fire only seven guns, the forts ashore would fire three shots to each one shot afloat, hence the number 21.

With the increase in quality of naval gunpowder, by the use of potassium nitrate, honours rendered at sea were increased to the shore salute. 21 guns became the highest national honour, although for a period of time, monarchies received more guns than republics. Eventually republics gained equality in Britain's eyes.

When British India was the jewel in the crown of the British Empire, the king-emperor would receive an Imperial salute of 101 guns, but for the more important of the hundreds of colonial vassals rulers of princely states involved in indirect rule, there was a formal hierarchical system of odd numbers of guns as a salute, expressing the Monarch(y)'s prestige, the highest of these so-called salute states (also in some other parts of the empire) enjoying 21 guns (till 1947 only their Highnesses the Nizam of Hyderabad and Berar and the Maharajas of Mysore, of Jammu and Kashmir, of Baroda and of Gwalior). For years, a few non-colonized Monarchs were granted 21 guns (Nepal, Oman, Mosquito Coast and Zanzibar) or even 31 guns (Afghanistan and Siam).

There was much confusion because of the varying customs of maritime states, but finally the British government proposed to the United States a regulation that provided for "salutes to be returned gun for gun." The British at that time officially considered the international salute to sovereign states to be 21 guns, and the United States adopted the 21 guns and "gun for gun" return on August 18, 1875.

United States

In the United States a different trend was followed. Beginning in the colonial period, the United States fired one shot for each state in the Union as its national salute. This practice was partly a result of usage, because John Paul Jones saluted France with 13 guns at Quiberon Bay in 1778 when the Stars and Stripes received its first salute. The practice was not officially authorized until 1810, when the United States Department of War declared the "national salute" to be equal to the number of states, which was 17 at the time. This was continued until 1841 when the "national salute" was reduced from 26 to 21.

In 1842, the United States declared the 21-gun salute as its "Presidential Salute." In 1890, the "national salute" was formally reestablished as the 21-gun salute, and the traditional Independence Day salute of one gun for each of the states was declared as the "Salute to the Nation" or "Salute to the Union." The salute is staged only at noon on July 4, Independence Day at U.S. military installations, although it has been given on a few other occasions, such as the death of a president. The U.S. Navy full-dresses ships and fires 21 guns at noon on July 4, Independence Day and February 22, Presidents' Day. On Memorial Day, all ships and Naval stations fire a salute of 21-minute guns and display the ensign at half-mast from 8 a.m. until completion of the salute.

Today, a 21-gun salute is rendered on the arrival and departure of the President of the United States; it is fired in concordance with four ruffles and flourishes, which is immediately followed by Hail to the Chief -- the actual gun salute begins with the first ruffle and flourish, and concludes after Hail to the Chief has ended. A 21-gun salute is also rendered to former U.S. Presidents, as well as to Presidents-elect. In the U.S., 21-gun salutes are also fired upon the arrival and departure of a foreign heads of state, or heads of a reigning royal family. In such a ceremony, the national anthem of the visiting dignitary's country is played, following the salute.

Each round in a 21-gun salute is fired one at a time. The number of cannon used in a battery depends upon the intervals between each round fired. For example, a 3-gun battery has 2 of its guns firing, each at 5 second intervals between rounds, with 1 gun at the ready in case of a misfire; such a battery would be used at an arrival ceremony for the President at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery. A 4-gun battery has its first 3 guns firing rounds at 3 second intervals, with the 4th gun (again) at the ready in case of misfire.

Constitution renders a 21-gun salute to Fort Independence during her Independence Day turnaround cruise.

The U.S. Army SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for Gun salutes provides a 2-man gun crew (one loader, one gunner) for each cannon, as well as a 5-man 'staff' of soldiers to give the fire commands. The staff includes an Officer in Charge, a watchman (who marks the intervals and signals each gun to fire), an assistant watchman (as a backup), a counter (who keeps track of the number of rounds fired and signals the last round to the Officer in Charge), and a Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge (who marches the battery into place as well as signals the backup cannon to fire in case another gun misfires).

Naval vessels now have saluting guns installed which are used solely for such purpose. The traditional timing chant, "If I wasn't a sailor, I wouldn't be here. Fire #1," etc., has been replaced by stopwatch.

Deaths of presidents

A U.S. Presidential death also involves 21-gun salutes and other military traditions. On the day after the death of the president, a former president or president-elect — unless this day falls on a Sunday or holiday, in which case the honour will be rendered the following day — the commanders of Army installations with the necessary personnel and material traditionally order that one gun be fired every half hour, beginning at reveille and ending at retreat.

On the day of burial, a 21-minute gun salute traditionally is fired starting at noon at all military installations with the necessary personnel and material. Guns will be fired at one-minute intervals. Also on the day of burial, those installations will fire a 50-gun salute — one round for each state — at five-second intervals immediately following lowering of the flag.

Great Britain

Royal gun salutes mark special royal occasion throughout the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. The number of rounds fired in a Royal Salute depends on the place and occasion. The basic Royal Salute is 21 rounds. In Hyde Park an extra 20 rounds are added because it is a Royal Park. At the Tower of London 62 rounds are fired on Royal anniversaries (the basic 21, plus a further 20 because the Tower is a Royal Palace and Fortress, plus another 21 'for the City of London') and 41 on other occasions. The Tower of London probably holds the record for the most rounds fired in a single salute - 124 were fired on 10 June when The Queen's official birthday (62 rounds) coincides with The Duke of Edinburgh's birthday (also 62 rounds).

Gun salutes occur on the following annual Royal celebrations:

• Accession Day (6 February)
• The Sovereign's (real, individual) birthday (21 April)
• Coronation Day (the anniversary of The Queen's Coronation, 2 June)
• The birthday of the Duke of Edinburgh (10 June)
• The Queen's official birthday which is the Saturday after 11 June

Gun salutes also occur when Parliament is prorogued by the Sovereign, on Royal births and when a visiting Head of State meets the Sovereign in London, Windsor or Edinburgh.

Military saluting stations are London, Edinburgh Castle in Scotland, Cardiff (Wales) and Hillsborough Castle in County Down, Northern Ireland.

In London, salutes are fired in Hyde Park and The Tower of London; on State Visits, at the State Opening of Parliament and for The Queen's Birthday Parade, Green Park is used instead of Hyde Park. In Hyde Park, the salute is fired by The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery. The first round is fired at noon (11am on The Queen's official birthday). At the Tower of London, the salute is fired by the Honourable Artillery Company at 1pm. Salutes also are fired occasionally at Woolwich by the Royal Artillery.

Salutes in Northern Ireland are usually fired at Hillsborough Castle by 206 (Ulster) Battery, although recenty they have also been fired at HMS Caroline in Belfast Harbour.

See also

• state funeral

References

• Navy Regulations, 1990, Ch 12, Flags, Pennants, Honors, Ceremonies and Customs
• AR 600-25 Salutes, Honors, and Visits of Courtesy
• Origins of the 21-gun salute
• The 21-Gun International Salute
• RoyalArk- India - salute states
• Urban Legend re: Sum of Digits of 1776