Andreev Alexey

Have you ever wondered why military personnel put their hand to the visor of their cap when saluting? And why is this gesture not only spelled out in the regulations of our army, but also typical as a sign of greeting for the armies of the whole world? The military sometimes does not realize that, saluting each other, they exactly repeat the movements of medieval knights, who raised the visors of their helmets and always recorded the moment when their faces were completely open to each other...

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City scientific and practical marathon

“A step into science. Junior"

Section “History. Social science"

Research work

Completed

student of grade 3 "B"

MBOU "Secondary School No. 226" Zarechny

Andreev Alexey.

Scientific supervisor:

primary teacher

classes of MBOU "Secondary School No. 226"

Malkova Elena Alexandrovna

Zarechny

2012

1. LEADING.

2. CHAPTER 1. Why do the military salute?

3. CHAPTER 2.

4. CHAPTER 3. Military greeting in Russia.

5. CONCLUSION.

6. LITERATURE.

INTRODUCTION

Have you ever wondered why military personnel put their hand to the visor of their cap when saluting? And why is this gesture not only spelled out in the regulations of our army, but also typical as a sign of greeting for the armies of the whole world? The military sometimes does not realize that, saluting each other, they exactly repeat the movements of medieval knights, who raised the visors of their helmets and always recorded the moment when their faces were completely open to each other...

I'm in a cadet class and I'm interested in everything related to the military. I often see how soldiers, when meeting each other, apply right hand to the temple. I decided to research what this gesture means and where this tradition came from.

Purpose of the work:

Find out why do the military, when saluting, put their hand to headdress, and from what time does this tradition begin?

Research objectives:

Conduct a survey;

Hypothesis:

Historical hypothesis (Middle Ages): Heavy cavalrymen (knights, knights) wore helmets in the Middle Ages. Many helmets had visors or masks to protect the face. When riding oncoming, as a gesture showing peaceful intentions, the knight raised his visor or mask. He exposed his face so that the person he met could recognize him. This was done with the right hand, which also showed that the warrior was not ready to start a fight and did not have aggressive intentions. The gesture seemed to say: “there is no weapon in my right hand.”

Research methods:questionnaire (APPENDIX 1), literature study, comparison and analysis of the collected material.

Object of study:military traditions.

CHAPTER 1.

Why do the military salute?

At the end of the 18th century, junior officers greeted senior officers, and soldiers saluted officers by removing their headdress. Civilians still bow to each other this way as a sign of respect. This tradition probably dates back to the days when a knight was required to raise his visor or remove his helmet in front of his lord.

Raising your hand in greeting instead of taking off your hat had practical implications. As the soldiers lit the fuses of their muskets, their hands became dirty with soot. A with dirty hands removing the headdress meant rendering it unusable. Therefore to end of the XVIII centuries, honor began to be given by simply raising one’s hand.

Officers or soldiers who carried a sword or saber, no matter whether mounted or on foot, saluted by raising the weapon, bringing the handle closer to the lips, then moving the weapon to the right and down. This form of greeting dates back to the Middle Ages and is associated with religion, when a knight would kiss the hilt of his sword, symbolizing christian cross. Then it became a tradition when taking an oath.

CHAPTER 2.

Where did the custom of saluting come from?

The tradition of the modern military salute originates on the island of Great Britain. In many armies around the world, junior ranks greeted senior ranks by removing their hats, as was the case in the British Army, but by the 18th and 19th centuries, soldiers’ hats had become so bulky that this greeting was reduced to a simple touch of the visor. The greeting we know took shape in 1745 in the Coldstream Regiment, an elite guard unit of the Queen of England’s personal guard. In the regimental regulations of the guards it was written: “Personnel are ordered not to raise their hats when they pass by an officer or address him, but only to press their hands to their hat and bow.”

In 1762, the charter of the Scots Guards clarified: “Since nothing disfigures a headdress and contaminates the lacings like removing a hat, in the future, personnel are only ordered to raise their palm to their hat with a short gesture when passing by an officer.” Such an innovation caused some resistance, but, as we see, it still took root. At the same time great value given that during a military greeting they do not bow their heads or lower their eyes, this means that military personnel of different ranks are free people serving one state.

By the middle of the 19th century, the military greeting in Great Britain had undergone new changes: brought to the headdress (more precisely, to right eyebrow) hand with palm facing outward. This tradition continues to this day. In the USA, the hand is brought forward slightly, as if closing the eyes from the sun, and the palm looks at the ground. The American gesture was influenced by the traditions of the British Navy: back in the days of sailing ships, sailors used pitch and tar to seal cracks in the wooden parts of the ship so that they would not leak sea ​​water. At the same time, the hands were protected with white gloves, but showing a dirty palm was undignified, so in the navy the greeting hand turned 90 degrees down. The military salutes the same way in France.

In Tsarist Russia, the military saluted with two fingers (this tradition still remains in Poland), and in Soviet and modern Russian army honor is given with the entire palm facing downwards, and middle finger looks at his temple.

CHAPTER 3.

Military greeting in Russia.

1. Using a questionnaire, I interviewed 23 classmates.

When asked if you know why the military, when saluting, put their hand to their headdress, all the guys answered in the negative.

To the question: “What do you think,? a negative answer was also given.

After analyzing the questionnaires (APPENDICES 1, 2), I saw that my classmates do not know why the military, when saluting, put their hand to their right temple and have no ideaSince when has this tradition been going on?

2. In urban and school library I found the literature I needed for my research.

3. Having become familiar with collected material(APPENDIX 3), I found out that in modern army speech you can periodically hear the expression salute , however, taking into account changes in the structure of society and themilitary greeting

knightsvisorarmies

CONCLUSION

conclusion, hypothesis:

The military salute is a ritual that supposedly originates from the medievalknights. To show their nobility in the face of the enemy, the knights threw backvisor

LITERATURE

Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary.

General military regulations of the RF Armed Forces (chapter 3), 2011.

APPENDIX 1

QUESTIONNAIRE

Dear friend! I ask you to take part in the survey and answer the following questions:

2. What do you think?Since when has this tradition been going on??

APPENDIX 2

Survey results

23 people took part in the survey.

1. Do you know why soldiers, when saluting, put their hand to their headdress?

“No” - 23 students, 100%.

2. What do you think?Since when has this tradition been going on??

“I don’t know” - 23 students, 100%.

APPENDIX 3

Magazine "Around the World" 01/19/2009.

Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary.

Encyclopedia "1001 questions".

- “Children’s encyclopedia for the lazy,” 1995.

General military regulations of the RF Armed Forces (chapter 2, 3), 2011.

Military etiquette. Textbook\ Under general. ed. B.V. Vorobyova-M., 2005.

Platonov B.N. Military etiquette - M., 1983.

Theses

“Why do the military salute?”

Research work

Justification of the relevance of the topic:

I'm in a cadet class and I'm interested in everything related to the military. I often see how soldiers, when meeting each other, put their right hand to their temple. This gesture interested me.

I asked my classmates and parents:

- Why do soldiers put their hand to their headdress when saluting?

When does this tradition begin?

It turned out that my friends did not know the answers to the questions posed. I decided to help them.

Purpose of the work:

Find out why do the military, when “saluting”, put their hand to their headdress,and since when has this tradition been going on?

To achieve this goal, I set for myself tasks:

Conduct a survey;

Go to the library and find the necessary literature;

Contact parents for help collecting information online;

It is good to think and comprehend the collected material.

In the course of reviewing the information received, it was put forward hypothesis:

The military salute is a ritual that supposedly originates from the medievalknights. At that time they wore helmets on their heads. Many helmets had visors or masks to protect the face. When riding oncoming, as a gesture showing peaceful intentions, the knight raised his visor or mask. He exposed his face so that the person he met could recognize him. This was done with the right hand, which also showed that the warrior was not ready to start a fight and did not have aggressive intentions. The gesture seemed to say: “there is no weapon in my right hand.”

The result the work began with the selection of materials on this topic, slide presentation and the “Military Salutation” brochure, which can be used in extracurricular activities in the “History of the Russian Army” class.

After reviewing the collected material, I found out that in modern army speech you can hear the expression salute , however, with the change in the structure of society and themilitary greetingfrom a ceremony to a modern tribute to tradition, this expression is a rarely used phrase.

What is “salute”? This means showing respect to a person of higher rank. It was established that this was done in different ways V different times. Greetings in one form or another have always existed among all peoples. The forms of greeting were different: bowing, kneeling, falling face down on the ground, various hand gestures. The military greeting that is customary in the army - placing the right hand on the visor of the cap - appeared quite recently.

I found out that military salute- a ritual borrowed, presumably, from medievalknights. To show their nobility in the face of the enemy, the knights threw backvisorhelmet Characteristic movement hands and formed the basis of the modern military greeting. IN Armed Forces In Russia, the military salute is performed with the fingers of the right hand closed and the hand straightened; unlike a number of othersarmiespeace, with bare head a military greeting is performed without raising a hand, by taking a formation position.

This is what it says inChartere internal service of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (RF Armed Forces).

Article 43. Chapter 2. RELATIONS BETWEEN MILITARY SERVICEMEN

The military salute is the embodiment of the comradely cohesion of military personnel, evidence mutual respect and a manifestation of common culture. All military personnel are obliged to greet each other when meeting (overtaking), strictly observing the rules established by the drill regulations of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Subordinates and juniors military rank They greet first, and in case of equal status, the first to greet is the one who considers himself more polite and well-mannered.

When meeting, the junior in rank is obliged to greet the senior first; in case they relate to different categories military personnel (soldier - officer, junior officer - senior officer), a senior officer may perceive failure to perform a military salute upon meeting as an insult.

As a result of the work done, I came to conclusion, that putting the fingers of the right hand to the temple in the military means “salute” or greeting. This confirms the previously stated hypothesis:

The military salute is a ritual that supposedly originates from the medievalknights. To show their nobility in the face of the enemy, the knights threw backvisorhelmet The characteristic movement of the hand formed the basis of the modern military greeting.

Giving military honor. History of the origin of the ritual

Famous military theorist General M.I. Dragomirov stated: “Giving military honors is not a toy or amusement for someone’s curiosity, but an external expression of the fact that people belong to a great partnership, the purpose of which is to lay down one’s soul for one’s friend.”

The ritual has a long history. There is a literary version of the origin of this ritual:

Since in 1588, the pirate Drake, meeting the English Queen Elizabeth (known for her lack of beauty) on board a ship, pretended to be blinded by her beauty, and therefore was forced to shade his eyes with his palm, since then the military greeting has become a tradition.

There are other versions as well. When meeting, the warriors raised their hand not holding a weapon as a sign of greeting.

Later, when meeting, knights raised the visor of their helmet as a sign of acquaintance and greeting. Thus, moving the open right hand towards the headdress when greeting later became a ritual of giving military honor.

The rules of honor between military ranks were improved under each emperor and were established by the middle of the 18th century.

All officers and all lower ranks, without exception, when meeting, had to greet each other by putting their right hand to the visor.

They saluted generals, members of the imperial family, officers of their regiment, banners, and standards. Military funeral processions The servicemen saluted, standing at the front. The same honor was given to monuments.

During the imperial period, the military greeting was called saluting, as it included not only raising the hand to the headdress, but also various bows, curtsies and other elements, depending on the rank of those encountered or entering the room. Depending on the place of execution (in an open area or indoors), the implementation of the greeting also differed.

Giving military honor by a soldier (Cossack):

If a soldier meets with a commander who is supposed to salute, then he must place his right hand four steps before the commander. right side the bottom edge of a hat or cap so that the fingers are together, the palm is slightly facing outward, and the elbow is at shoulder height; at the same time look at the boss and follow him with your eyes. When the boss passes him a step, then lower his hand;

When meeting with the boss, who is supposed to be saluted by standing in front, he, not reaching four steps to the boss, takes the last step and another full step with his foot, while taking it out, he should turn his shoulders and body in front and then, at the same time as placing his foot, raise right hand to the headdress, turning the head towards the boss's side. When saluting, you should stand according to the rules of the “stance”. When the boss passes him by a step, he turns in the direction he was going and begins to move with his left foot, lowering his right hand with the first step.

The lower ranks saluted, standing at the front:

To the Sovereign Emperor, Sovereign Empress and all Persons of the Imperial Family, all generals, admirals, the head of the garrison, their regimental, squadron and hundred commanders, their staff officers, as well as banners and standards.

Without standing in front, but placing only a hand on the headdress, they salute:

To all staff chief officers, military doctors, class officials of their regiment, reserve and retired generals, staff and chief officers (when they are in military uniform); ensigns, estandard cadets and sub-warrants; palace grenadiers; to all sergeants, sergeants and those lower ranks to whom they are subordinate. And privates, in addition, to all non-commissioned officers of their regiment, non-combatant senior rank, as well as to all privates who have the Insignia of the Military Order.

If lower rank leads the horse on the reins, then to salute he goes to the other side of the horse that is closer to the leader and takes both reins in the hand closest to the horse; and in the other hand he takes the ends of the reins and turns his head to the boss.

In the Guards Regiment, all officers had to say “YOU” to each other, regardless of the difference in rank and years. All officers of the Guards Cavalry traditionally greeted each other and, in addition, shook hands when meeting, regardless of whether they knew each other or not.

From that time on, honor should also be given to officers of foreign armies.

The army has its own laws, which can be either generally known or hidden from the uninitiated. The need to salute arises when greeting military personnel. This is one of the so-called “military rituals”, which is part of the etiquette of military personnel. Currently, the military salute is present in the armies of most countries of the world. However, the order in which it is performed may vary.

When this phrase is used, it implies recognition of the merits of the military man and showing respect for him. This is a unique form of greeting used by soldiers.

At all times, the youngest military man in rank and age gave honor first, thereby recognizing the high achievements of another soldier. Today honor can be given to:

1. To one person.
2. A group of people.
3. An item that has special meaning. We can talk about a monument to fallen heroes, a banner, etc.

Both the military salute itself and the procedure for performing it can vary significantly in different armed forces. The reason for this is the differences in the development of military affairs, the socio-political system, education, science and cultural traditions, etc. However, no matter what such a gesture is, it always indicates respect and recognition of the merits of the person they meet.

There are two options for a military greeting:

1. The soldier performs it independently, finding himself next to a high-ranking military man.
2. Honor is given on command. At the same time, everyone is often greeted personnel certain formation. It could be like military unit either a unit or a ship.

Previously, the military salute was called a salute or salutation. Also in the literature you can find such a term as “trump”.

Rules

According to the requirements of modern etiquette, a girl walking with a military man should be on his left side

Since there is a concept of military etiquette, there are certain rules that must be followed when observing it. Similar rules apply to all military personnel, regardless of rank. They are determined by the provisions of the charters and the principles of the military oath.

There are also concepts of general etiquette. For example, in the old days, a man, being a protector and support for his woman, had to walk to her left. This was explained by the fact that he carried the weapon on his side, and if necessary, he should not have touched her if he pulled it out.

However, due to the need to salute, this rule etiquette is a thing of the past. Today, uniformed soldiers walk to the right of the woman. In this case, the military man will not touch her with his elbow during the greeting. In addition, if a soldier is walking with a companion on his arm, he also needs to be to her right so that his right hand remains free for greeting.

Differences when performing a greeting

Many people who are not familiar with the nuances of army etiquette are interested in which hand they salute with? In all countries, honor is given with the right hand. This tradition does not depend on the culture of each specific country and is international. Violation of this rule is possible only due to inexperience or oversight.

The difference in a military salute may only concern the presence or absence of a headdress. Some believe that such a gesture arose as a simplification of the procedure for removing the headdress. On at the moment There are several hypotheses for the origin of the army salute:

1. The ritual originated in Great Britain. Here, military personnel with junior ranks greeted their elders by removing their hats. It has been this way since time immemorial. However, during the period from the 18th to the 19th centuries, soldiers' hats became quite cumbersome in order to constantly remove them. Therefore, the greeting procedure was reduced to a simple touch of the visor.
2. Another hypothesis says that the tradition of saluting originated in the United States. The first records regarding this military ritual date back to the second half of the 19th century. The emergence of army traditions occurred as a result of the end of the Civil War between the North and South. The army that won this war consisted of volunteers who did not have any combat skills. They wore ordinary clothes and often did not have hats. Therefore, honor was given by placing a hand on the head.
3. Romantic hypothesis. It is believed that the army salute originally arose as a gesture of a knight covering his eyes when he saw his lady. No connection to the headdress in in this case not observed.

Thus, today it is impossible to say with confidence which version of the military greeting is initially correct. However, in most countries, the hand is placed on the cap, and greeting without a headdress is considered a violation of the regulations.

Military salute in different countries

In all armies of the world, military honor is given with the right hand

Regardless of the features of the military greeting adopted by the army of a particular country, there are certain general rules. When planning to salute, a soldier has no right to lower his eyes or bow his head.

When greeting another military man, you should look him in the eye, which indicates mutual respect, regardless of rank and rank. As mentioned above, you should salute exclusively with your right hand.

The differences may be in the hand gesture and the rotation of the palm. Let's look at the most popular types of military greetings:

1. In Great Britain, the hand is brought to the right eyebrow, with the palm facing outward.
2. In France, the greeting is done with the palm facing down.
3. In the US Army, soldiers also turn their palm down when saluting. In this case, the hand should be slightly extended forward, as if shielding the soldier’s eyes from the sun.
4. The Italian Army has slightly modified rules. Here, when greeting, the palm should be slightly raised above the level of the visor.
5. The greeting in the Polish army should be done only with the index and middle fingers, which are placed against the visor. The soldiers saluted in the same way Tsarist Russia up to 1856.

Since 1856, in Russia the honor is given as follows: the entire palm is used, which turns downwards. The soldier's hand is positioned so that his middle finger lightly touches the visor of his cap, being directed towards the soldier's temple.

It is because of this method of military greeting that such synonyms of military greeting as “trump”, “trump” and “take under the peak” appeared.

In Russia, a military salute is carried out with the right hand, which is enshrined in the corresponding paragraph of the Charter of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

Military etiquette has its own norms and rules, and they are quite diverse. They have been formed over the centuries under the influence of historical factors, so they may differ depending on the country where a person in the military profession serves. The fundamental influencing factors in this regard should be considered the provisions of the military regulations adopted in a particular state, which, in turn, are based on military rituals, traditions of a given people, and their moral and ethical values.

A person who has decided to carry out military service must be prepared for the fact that it consists not only of displaying courage and heroism while performing dangerous tasks in extreme situations. Military service also implies daily strict adherence to the strict requirements of the regulations, one of the provisions of which is the military salute. There are no and cannot be trifles in the military regulations; each of the requirements prescribed there is important to fulfill in accordance with certain rules. Therefore, it is so important to understand the question of which hand the military in Russia salutes and how exactly this should be done so as not to discredit the Russian army in the eyes of the population through ignorance elementary rules military etiquette.

Military salute: versions of the origin of the tradition of saluting with the right hand

Giving military honor is a tradition that has its roots in the deep past. For this reason, there are several versions of what exactly its appearance was connected with. Let's start with one of the most common. According to this theory, the ritual arose during the time of the knights, more specifically, in the 13th century. It is well known that these warriors wore heavy armor, in particular, they almost always had a bulky metal helmet on their heads. If a meeting with an enemy took place under such circumstances that the knight could not or did not want to engage in battle, then he raised the visor of his helmet, while making a characteristic gesture with his right hand, for the simple reason that it was convenient to do so. In this way, he exposed his face so that a potential enemy could be convinced of the absence of aggression on his part. In one of the readings of this version, the knight raised the visor of his helmet so that the person he met on his way would recognize him by his face, and the fact that the gesture was made with his right hand without a weapon in it meant that he was not ready for battle and had no warlike intentions. With the right hand, namely with the palm open to the opponent, those peoples whose armed forces did not have heavy cavalry - the North American Indians and the Mongols - demonstrated their peace-loving sentiments.

The knightly armor was replaced by another military uniform - more comfortable and lighter - and the gesture of friendliness adopted by the knights was entrenched, and to this day it has the meaning of showing mutual respect between people related to military affairs. Its semantic load has not changed fundamentally: it is still a demonstration of a polite, non-aggressive attitude towards a colleague.

It must be admitted that the theory of the origin of the tradition of saluting associated with knights has one small inconsistency. In those days, each of them had clothes equipped with tribal symbols. By it you could easily find out who was in front of you, and the knight did not need to raise the visor of his helmet for this.

There is a romantic hypothesis, also dating back to knightly times. In agreement with her, raising his hand to his eyes, a knight taking part in a tournament for the heart beautiful lady, symbolically covered them from the brilliance of her incomparable beauty.

The next two theories of the origin of ritual are more prosaic and related to at different stages development of military affairs. The fact is that during the Renaissance, military headdresses were very magnificent, one might even say, bulky. This was justified by the circumstances that the commander of the troops could only recognize the location of a group of his subordinates on the battlefield by such voluminous decoration. In those days, it was generally customary for military personnel to salute with a bow of the head. To prevent the shako or plume from flying off, it was removed or held by hand. As military uniforms were simplified, the greeting ceremony became simpler - all that remained was the movement of the hand to the headdress.

Many military historians adhere to the hypothesis that the first to salute by touching the visor of the headdress were members of the British armed forces, starting around the 17th century. Over time, this gesture replaced the removal of the hat as a demonstration of respect for juniors to elders, since this headdress became so bulky that it was simply inconvenient and even burdensome.

How people salute in different countries - modern times

Military science has developed since then, and in different historical contexts. Therefore, while the essence of the military greeting remains unchanged, the armed forces of different states give the honor in different ways.

In the American military, according to the rules, salute must be given only when both hands are not occupied with anything. This is a strict requirement of military etiquette in the United States - so much so that if the greeting cannot be carried out in this way, then it is abandoned altogether. It is traditional for American troops to salute with the right hand, with the fingers tightly closed, the palm turned down, and the hand itself extended slightly forward, as if covering the eyes.

An almost similar gesture is currently used by the Israeli military; the only slight difference is that the phalanx of the middle finger should almost touch the edge of the right eyebrow. However, the fundamental difference here is not in the form, but in the conditions of providing a military greeting. In the Israeli forces, this is more a right than a duty of a soldier.

As for the Russian armed forces, the following rules regarding this military ritual are relevant at the moment. Firstly, all Russian citizens, without exception, who are in military service or have already been discharged from it, are required to salute, provided that they are wearing a military uniform.

The gesture with which the Russian military salutes is in itself no different from the military greeting adopted in a number of modern states. The difference lies again in the conditions under which this gesture is acceptable. It's about that Russian military personnel do not put their hand to their bare heads in greeting. According to the regulations, the military salutation in this case will consist of taking a military position, namely: arms along the body, body straightened as much as possible.

If the military moves in formation, then only the guide puts his right hand to the headdress, everyone else turns their head towards their senior ranks as they pass by them.

The order in which the military greeting is given in the ranks of the Russian army is obvious: the junior in rank or subordinate gives the honor first. The rules of the charter are mandatory, and the military is responsible for non-compliance with them.

Even those of us who are far from military service and never had any direct connection with it, the ritual of military greeting is well known. The question of which hand is used to salute and why worries many, and there are many hypotheses about the origin of this ethical ritual.

One of the most common dates back to the medieval tradition of a knight raising his visor with an unarmed hand as a sign of demonstrating good intentions, while simultaneously opening his face so that an approaching rider could recognize the greeter. However, this hypothesis does not take into account the fact that medieval knight wore a crest of certain colors, as well as a coat of arms, composed taking into account a number of nuances of the heraldic language, which greatly simplified the task of identifying his personality.

In parallel with this, there are also romantic hypotheses - like the one that raising an open palm to the head was basically a symbolic gesture of covering the eyes from the dazzling beauty of the lady of the heart. There are also versions that the symbolic touching of the head with the hand began to be used instead of “taking off the hat” as a sign of greeting - in the late Middle Ages and early modern times, when headdresses became more and more magnificent and bulky. Moreover, this concerned not only civilian clothing, but also military uniforms - here not only fashion trends, but also practical considerations played a role. On the battlefield, a rich variety of hats of various colors and shapes, each related to a specific combat unit, greatly simplified the task of commanding troops and assessing the current situation.

Also, the replacement of removing hats with simply putting your hand to them may be associated not only with the fact that they have become more bulky and heavy, but also with the spread firearms. The first samples of firearms were wick, and during shooting and reloading, the shooter’s hands were covered with soot, which led to almost irreversible damage to the headgear when trying to remove it.

In a number of countries, the ritual of military greeting relates directly to the military uniform, but not to the person wearing it: the uniform is considered one of the most important state symbols along with the flag, coat of arms and anthem. That is, a military salute is, first of all, not only and not so much a greeting ritual, but an expression of respect for a certain series of symbols and a kind of marker of people’s belonging to a certain military corporation.

The direction of the palm brought to the head, outward or downward, may vary depending on the country and region, as well as a certain military tradition that is the main one for the region. So, for example, a military greeting, characteristic of the Russian Imperial Army(the index and middle fingers of the right hand attached to the head), has been preserved to this day in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland. The military salutation gesture, characteristic of modern US Armed Forces (the right hand is placed on the head, palm down), hypothetically, may be based on the English tradition Navy. Ground units of the British army, when performing a military salute, according to a tradition that has remained unchanged since the mid-nineteenth century, turn the right hand applied to the head with the palm facing outwards, as for sailors - the palm is facing down. This kind of The tradition, most likely, is based on the everyday characteristics of service in the sailing fleet, when the substances that most often fell into the hands of ordinary personnel were resin and tar, used as sealing materials. In order not to demonstrate to senior ranks the hand, which was by no means distinguished by its purity, it was decided to make a military salute with the palm facing down.

The famous expression "to empty head do not put a hand" in our country is usually mentioned in the same context with the American tradition of a military salute, in which the presence of a headdress when raising a hand to the head is not mandatory. This kind of circumstance may be due to the events of the War of the North and South ( Civil war in the USA, 1861–1865). History, as we know, is written by the winners, therefore, it is they who form certain traditions. Unlike the Southerners, the victorious Union army was composed primarily of volunteers, many of whom initially wore civilian clothing. From which it can be concluded that the rank and file of the army of the northerners sometimes may not have had a headdress at all - hence the tradition of a military greeting, regardless of its presence.

Not everywhere is it the duty of a serviceman to give a military greeting to a senior rank. For example, in modern units of the Israel Defense Forces, saluting at the sight of a commanding officer is mandatory only during the course of a young soldier. In other cases, saluting is not an obligation, but a right. In parallel, prisoners in military prisons (analogous to a guardhouse) are completely deprived of this right.

During the military conflicts of the twentieth century, external military subordination and statutory conventions recede not even into the background, but significantly further. As the most famous examples popular culture, reflecting this fact, one can recall the films “Saving Private Ryan” and “Forrest Gump”. In both there are episodes when soldiers receive a beating from more experienced fighters for giving a military salute to the commanders of your units: you should not help enemy snipers in choosing a priority target.