Navy Wedding Arch of Swords - Nick & Melanie Sword Arch

Nicholas and I got married on June 11, 2011 in our hometown of St. Louis. We were fortunate enough to have many of our friends travel to Missouri for our wedding and take part in the traditional Arch of Swords. (All of them, including my husband, are graduates of the United States Naval Academy).
This is a military tradition, used to welcome to the bride into the Navy.
I was stopped at each step and told "The right of passage is a kiss."
At the end, my husband and his best friend had it planned for him to give him a quick, lame peck on the cheek, to which his best friend yelled "Give her one!" and he dipped me back for a real kiss.
After that, his best friend, Julius, swatted me on the butt with his sword and said "Welcome to the Navy, Mrs. Oberkrom"

[@denniswhite166]

A timeless, honorable Naval tradition. May God bless your marriage.

[@kaiserrex9506]

Damn, those uniforms look nice af

[@Ceaaa22]

Gotta love tradition.

[@dustf1nger416]

tradition is never old

[@assumptalyngdohmarshillong6740]

Nice happy married life is for both of you. From northeast India meghalaya khasi tribe.

[@fuzzypony]

AWWW! Love tradition!

[@drishtibhattacharya4496]

This is so sweet

[@RSTAR2009]

I love this and I miss the Navy

[@hopedealer2757]

Soooo beautiful!! Made me cry!

[@bukolafakunle2618]

Lovely one,May God bless your marriage

[@marylagua5079]

Very nice.

[@GIGI_NYC]

Love ❤️

[@brittneysanders4027]

Aww so adorable

[@majorshahedking840]

Love from Bangladesh.

[@briannotafan3368]

a friend in the army never shut up bpout about his getting his dress blue hope you read this duffy

[@reymundorivera4000]

Nice

[@nathannguyen2041]

So how do these types of weddings happen? Do you just ask a group of your officer friends for help?

[@acdcgooner]

Usually the officer’s close friends in his batch, regiment mates or colleagues

[@Smoovy93]

Yup pretty much

[@blockmambo1355]

In my country is duty, but when u ask for a special members to do that u can but not always happen, normaly junior or student do that.

[@michaelhayden725]

Interesting to see a female officer in the honour guard!

[@kchocokams832]

😍😍😍😍💖

[@bdL91]

F-in officers lol

[@thilakathilaka9027]

و. Godak.. Lasaanai... Godblas. You

[@edwoodspencer5813]

Earn never given that's why I took it

[@EDProductionsYT]

Whats with the marine officer

[@MihirK007]

Probably because they’re technically still part of Navy so probably had a close friend or relative in marines!

[@roberthudson1959]

@@MihirK007 The USMC is a separate service within the Department of the Navy, but many USMC officers are educated at the United States Naval Academy. Given that the groom is an ensign (0-1), the sword detail probably came from his friends at the Academy.

[@user-md2ib2cm3y]

Commlander and cheif approves

[@katelynstanton8939]

Very sweet but I don’t get why they alway smack the new bride’s butt. Like wtf isn’t the whole point of getting married that you’re no longer “public property”?

[@roberthudson1959]

The sword tap is to welcome the civilian spouse into the service since they married their way in rather than going through basic training.

[@admiralsnackbarkekwalice6167]

It's pretty much what the guy above me said, right of passage in naval terms since you are vary much marring in to the service. If a civilian guy gets hitched to a female sailor, he gets the ass tap all the same.

[@hadizamamud3209]

​@@roberthudson1959 understood but why not just tap her back instead?🤷

[@Kingx90]

How you gona let him smack your wife’s behind like that? Some traditions gotta go, that’s one of them.

[@seventhseventhnineteen2215]

Well, neckbeard, first off it's humor. Second, it's welcoming her into the Navy as a branch of the armed services who will assist her in whatever she may need, both with her husband and (may it never happen) if he should fall. She's marrying into the Navy itself, meaning she will be taken care of by that branch, as well by her husband.

[@hadizamamud3209]

​@@seventhseventhnineteen2215 what if he just says 'welcome to the navy ma'am' and leaves it at that? Does it ruin anything?🤷