Twenty-One Gun Refute Trivia Quiz

Answer: It is the sum of the digits in the year 1776.

According to legend, the number of shots fired in a 21-gun salute was determined by adding up the digits in 1776, the year the United States Declaration of Independence was signed. This would be really cool if only it were true. Unfortunately, the 21-gun salute actually predates America's independence by many years, so it couldn't have been inspired by the year 1776.

Gun salutes probably date back as far as the 14th century, and began as an act of submission rather than the mark of respect that it symbolizes today. In those days, naval tradition required a ship to fire all of its guns to prove peaceful intentions, since the reloading of guns was a time consuming process. Eventually, British vessels adopted the practice of firing seven guns when pulling into a foreign port because that corresponded to the standard number of guns on board a ship. The forts on shore would answer the volleys gun-for-gun, but the practice evolved that for every shot fired by a ship, the guns on land would fire three, since it was easier for them to replenish their supplies of gunpowder. Three times seven equals 21, and that was how the practice of the 21-gun salute came about. Today, the 21-gun salute usually serves a ceremonial function, and is reserved for heads of state or to honor a national flag.

Answer: It reduces sexual drive.

Fresh recruits are sometimes told to look out for tell-tale signs that their food or drink has been spiked. Does the morning coffee taste a little off? Do your eggs have a slight greenish tint to them? That's probably the saltpeter. Apparently, the higher-ups need every bit of help they can get to keep the grunts focused on their training, so the saltpeter is used to keep the recruits' libidos in check. Such stories have been around for ages, and are not just confined to the U.S. Army. The British Royal Navy apparently used saltpeter to preserve meat in days of old for this very reason, and cigarettes issued to soldiers during the two World Wars were allegedly soaked in the stuff.

Detractors are quick to point out two things that make this story unlikely. First, there is no evidence that saltpeter is effective in taming sexual urges. Second, consumption of saltpeter in large enough quantities can actually cause some serious side effects, so you should only be feeding it to recruits if you want an army of people complaining of headaches, dizziness, high blood pressure, anemia, gastroenteritis, or kidney failure. One would have thought that it would be easier to simply cut off the supply of hot water to the men, so that they would be forced to take cold showers every day.

Answer: a newly-filled latrine pit

This story gives new meaning to the term "toilet-humor", and is apparently true, if Patton's memoirs are anything to go by. In 1917, Patton was stationed in France to oversee the establishment of the American Tank School and Center in Langres. One day, he received a visit from the mayor of the area, who was beside himself with grief after learning of the death of one of his men. Patton was unaware of any such casualty, but accompanied the mayor to pay his respects and soon discovered the truth. As he recounted in "War As I Knew It": "...[The mayor] insisted that we visit the 'grave', so we went together and found a newly closed latrine pit with the earth properly banked and a stick at one end to which was affixed a crosswise sign saying, 'Abandoned Rear'. This the French had taken for a cross. I never told them the truth."

When Patton next visited the area in 1944, he discovered that the locals were still honoring the fallen 'soldier' by maintaining the burial plot. For their sake, I hope they never feel the need to exhume the 'body'!

Answer: Mattel

When the M16 rifle was first issued, there were many reports that spent cartridges were not extracting properly, remaining stuck in the chamber as a fresh cartridge tried to enter it. This jamming problem was eventually corrected, but it was blamed for numerous casualties and injuries, fueling concerns about the reliability of the weapon.

The design of the new rifle also employed plastics and polymers in the butts, hand-guards and pistol grips rather than wood, resulting in a much lighter weapon than the standard issue rifles that came before it.

However, the plastic parts and reliability issues made the M16 seem toy-like in both form and function, so the joke amongst the soldiers was that the rifle was made by Mattel, the toy company responsible for Barbie dolls, and later Hot Wheels and the Fisher Price line of products. Along the way, people who weren't in on the joke actually thought that Mattel really was responsible for producing the early batches of the M16, which gave rise to the urban legend we all know today.

Answer: in or around the base's flag pole

A good urban legend exists (and persists) in various forms over the years, exhibiting variations and refinements that give it a life of its own. So it is with these fictional accounts of a secret stash of essential items that a soldier should use to prevent the capture of the base's flag at any cost. Apparently, this objective is so important that the powers that be, in their infinite wisdom, have chosen to place these essential items in the most impractical and inaccessible place thinkable. According to legend, the hiding place is either: (i) inside the metal ball (known as a finial) that sits atop of military flagpoles; or (ii) buried somewhere at or near the base of the flagpole itself. How a soldier is expected to retrieve these items in the midst of an attack on the base is another thing entirely, as these urban legends are curiously silent on this topic.

The items in question run the gamut, but can be conveniently grouped into certain key categories or themes. The secret cache must contain an item to be used to cut down and/or destroy the flag, like a razor blade, a match or a lighter. Also included is an item that has some kind of symbolic significance, like a penny (to symbolize that America will never be poor) or a bullet (to signify America's military might). Last but not least, the cache also considerately provides the soldier with a weapon of some kind (a pistol or a knife), to be used to fight off the enemy, or take his own life. I'll bet they don't cover all this in the briefing when you first decide to enlist!

Answer: It was a Medal of Honor.

The Medal of Honor is the highest honor that a member of the United States Armed Forces can be given. It is awarded for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States". And then there are times when it only adds to the wait in an airport security queue.

In January 2002, Joe Foss was detained for about 45 minutes by airport security in Phoenix, Arizona for possessing, amongst other things, a suspicious metal object in the shape of a star. Foss, a veteran of two wars and the former governor of South Dakota, was scheduled to speak to a class at the United States Military Academy at West Point, and thought that the cadets would be interested in seeing the Medal of Honor he received from President Roosevelt for his service in the USMC during WWII. An estimated eight or nine airport personnel kept the 86 year old waiting in a holding area while they passed the object between themselves, even after Foss told them what it was. Eventually, Foss was allowed to board his flight with his medal. "I wasn't upset for me," said Foss at the time. "I was upset for the Medal of Honor, that they just didn't know what it even was. It represents all of the guys who lost their lives - the guys who never came back." The incident sparked a national debate about airport security measures in post 9/11 America.

Answer: to aid the escape of imprisoned POWs

As incredible as it sounds, this story is actually true. There was a time during the Second World War when specially constructed "Monopoly" sets were more than just a game used to pass the time; they actually allowed imprisoned Allied POWs to "get out of jail" in reality.

It all started when the British Secret Service was looking for a company with the expertise to print maps on silk for use in the war. (Silk was better suited than paper for military operations as it was more durable and completely silent.) Waddingtons was well-versed in printing on silk, and they also happened to be the British licensee for "Monopoly". In those days, captured prisoners of war were routinely allowed 'care packages' distributed by relief organizations that included clothing and items to pass the time in POW camps, like games and entertainment. At the request of MI6, Waddingtons began constructing special "Monopoly" sets for inclusion in these care packages that were modified to aid the POWs' escape. Concealed inside these special game boards were silk maps, small files and compasses, and genuine currency hidden amongst the game money to aid in the prisoners' liberation. It is estimated that over 35,000 British and Allied soldiers managed to find safe passage from behind enemy lines, but it is not known how many of these were aided in their efforts by these special "Monopoly" sets. It would be nice to think that some of them were.

Answer: a lighthouse

This embarrassing story was allegedly taken from a leaked transcript of a radio conversation that had each side insisting that the other party should divert its course in order to avoid a collision, with the impatient military vessel finally issuing a dramatic ultimatum. In most versions of the story, the final response from the beleaguered other party is, "This is a lighthouse. Your call," indicating that the foolish ship had somehow navigated a collision course for dry land.

As tempting as it would be to believe that this really happened, there is simply no evidence that a stubborn military vessel ever played a game of maritime chicken with a lighthouse. The editors of the Snopes website actually traced the story to a joke from a 1939 book called "10,000 Jokes, Toasts and Stories". The same joke has also turned up in various other places, notably "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" (1989) by Steven Covey, and a 1992 humor compendium by Isaac Asimov. The joke is often circulated as the real deal, and the U.S. Navy has evidently received so many queries about the alleged incident that they have even dedicated a page on their website denying any truth to what they term as "The Lighthouse Joke".

Answer: an olive branch and a bunch of arrows

According to this story, the eagle on the Presidential Seal is usually depicted facing the olive branch clutched in its right talon. However, when the country is at war, the Seal is altered so that the eagle's head is turned to face its left, towards the 13 arrows it clutches in its left talon. This story obtained a new lease on life after it was depicted in a Season One episode of "The West Wing", and in the Dan Brown novel "Deception Point", which went as far as suggesting that it was the practice of White House housekeeping staff to switch the carpet in The Oval Office in "the dead of night" to avoid detection.

Sadly, this is another one of those stories that simply isn't true. The Presidential Seal has actually undergone more than one design change in the past in which the eagle's head changed positions, and these changes just happened to coincide approximately with the start of WWI and the end of WWII. However, the timing was purely coincidental. It simply isn't the case that the Presidential Seal undergoes an alteration depending on whether the nation is at war. It would also be a rather curious practice, to say the least. For one thing, I imagine that the government has more important things to worry about once Congress has issued a declaration of war than the need to switch pieces of carpet surreptitiously in the middle of the night.

Answer: Yes

The day was December 20, 1943. Charlie Brown had just flown his first mission as an aircraft commander, completing a successful bombing raid in Bremen, Germany. The bomber had taken on heavy fire from German fighters and anti-aircraft weapons, and was in a bad state. Brown was desperately trying to get his crew back to their home base in England when he suddenly noticed a German Bf 109 fighter on his right wing.

Stigler, the pilot of the German fighter, later described the bomber as "the most badly damaged aircraft I ever saw, still flying". The fuselage was riddled with holes and the plane's tail and rear section were badly damaged. One crew member was dead, while four others were injured, and the plane was flying on only one engine. Stigler couldn't bring himself to take down the bomber. "I could not have shot at them," he later said. "It would have been the same as shooting at a man in a parachute." Stigler signaled to Brown to land his plane and surrender, but Brown kept pushing on. Stigler flew beside the B17 for as long as he could, before saluting Brown and flying off. Brown managed to make a safe landing back in England, saving the lives of his remaining crew and earning the Air Force Cross for his efforts. Years later, in an attempt to discover the identity of the merciful Luftwaffe aviator, a retired Col. Brown published his story in a newsletter for German fighter pilots. Stigler, who had relocated to British Columbia after the war, saw the newsletter and contacted Brown. The two met up and became close friends, nearly 50 years after meeting for the first time in the skies over Germany.