Why do the British salute differently to the Americans?

TL;DR

The British and American military salutes have different origins, with the British salute believed to have evolved from medieval Knights and the American salute influenced by the Royal Navy. Other countries, like France and Poland, also have unique salutes.

Transcript

this episode is sponsored by Wix go to wix.com forward slash go forward slash simple history to create a website now why do the British salute differently to the Americans the origin of the salute is unknown but one idea is that the salute goes back to Roman times as a way to show you were unarmed another theory is that it originates from medieval ... Read More

Key Insights

• 🖖 Military salutes have origins that are unconfirmed but date back to ancient times.
• 🤠 The British Army changed their salute from taking off hats to simply touching them for convenience.
• 🫳 The Royal Navy salutes with the palm downwards to hide dirty palms from working on ships.
• 🖖 The US military's salute with the palm downwards was influenced by the Royal Navy.
• 😥 The Polish military's two-finger salute is believed to originate from pointing to their coat of arms.
• 🖖 Different branches of the British military have variations in their salutes.
• 🖖 The French military performs their salute with the palm outwards.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the origin of military salutes?

The exact origin is unknown, but one theory is that it started in Roman times to show being unarmed. Another theory suggests it originated from medieval Knights before combat.

Q: Why does the Royal Navy salute with the palm downwards?

It is believed that sailors had dirty palms from working on ships, and displaying them to superiors was considered disrespectful. The change to palm downwards occurred when Queen Victoria visited a warship and was saluted by a sailor with a dirty palm.

Q: How did the Royal Navy's salute influence the US military?

The US Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard all salute with the palm downwards, influenced by the Royal Navy's salute.

Q: What is the origin of the Polish military's two-finger salute?

The two-finger salute in the Polish military is believed to have originated from pointing to the white eagle on their coat of arms. It is unclear how it started, but one legend suggests a wounded soldier with three fingers blown off saluted before his death in World War II.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The origin of military salutes is unknown, but one theory suggests it goes back to Roman times as a way to show being unarmed.

• In the British Army, the salute transformed from taking off hats to simply touching them. The Royal Navy salutes with the palm downwards due to sailors' dirty palms.

• The US military salutes with the palm downwards influenced by the Royal Navy, while the Polish military uses a two-finger salute pointing to their coat of arms.