'Foot guards' is a term used to describe elite
infantry regiments.
British and Commonwealth Units
British Army
The 'Foot Guards' is a group of
regiments in the
Household Division of the
British Army. There have been six regiments of foot guards, all of which still exist apart from the Machine Gun Guards, which was formed during the
First World War and disbanded in 1920:
★
Grenadier Guards
★
Coldstream Guards
★
Scots Guards
★
Irish Guards
★
Welsh Guards
★
Guards Machine Gun Regiment ("Machine Gun Guards")
While regiments may have other distinguishing features, a simple method of identification is by observing the spacing of buttons on the tunic. The ascending number of buttons also indicates the order in which the regiments were formed, although the '1st Regiment of Foot Guards', an ancestor of the Grenadier Guards, is younger than the regiment that now takes the name of the
Coldstream Guards; the oldest continuously serving regiment in the regular
British Army (there are older regiments in the
Territorial Army). There are various other methods of distinguishing between the regiments - the colour of the plume, and what side it is worn on the
bearskin, the collar badge and the shoulder badge. When all five regiments parade together, they are in the order Grenadier Guards on the right flank, then Scots Guards, Welsh Guards, Irish Guards and Coldstream Guards on the left flank. This is because, although the Coldstream are ranked second in seniority, their motto is 'Nulli Secundus' ('Second to None').
Grenadier Guards
Coldstream Guards
Scots Guards
Irish Guards
Welsh Guards
'The five regiments of Foot Guards, lined up as they parade'
Units of the Foot Guards
★ '
Grenadier Guards'
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★ 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards
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★ Nijmegen Company, Grenadier Guards
★ '
Coldstream Guards'
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★ 1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards
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★ No 7 Company, Coldstream Guards
★ '
Scots Guards'
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★ 1st Battalion, Scots Guards
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★ F Company, Scots Guards
★ '
Irish Guards'
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★ 1st Battalion, Irish Guards
★ '
Welsh Guards'
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★ 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards
★ 'G Squadron,
22nd SAS Regiment': This is not strictly a Guards unit; it is a unit of the
Special Air Service that was originally formed in 1975 for service in
Northern Ireland. It was mostly raised from the recently disbanded
Guards Independent Parachute Company and volunteers from the
Parachute Regiment and
Royal Green Jackets.
The first three regiments each have a separate
incremental company which keep custody of the
colours and traditions of the currently dormant 2nd Battalions. These companies perform ceremonial and security duties in
London.
The Foot Guards have a role as the primary garrison for the capital, for the military security of the
Sovereign, and for ceremonial duties in
London and occasionally elsewhere. Two battalions are appointed for
public duties, with a third from a line infantry regiment since 1996 (and occasionally previously). These provide the
Queen's Guard, the
Tower of London Guard, and sometimes also the
Windsor Castle Guard. The Guards Battalions on Public Duties are located in barracks conveniently close to
Buckingham Palace for them to be able to reach the Palace very quickly in an emergency. In central London, a battalion is based at
Wellington Barracks, Westminster, about 300 yards from Buckingham Palace, and independent companies of the Grenadier, Coldstream, and Scots Guards (all on permanent public duties) are at
Chelsea Barracks, three-quarters of a mile away.
The Guards Battalion stationed at Windsor generally provides the
Windsor Castle Guard. The Windsor battalion is at
Victoria Barracks, a quarter of a mile south of the Castle.
The Guards Division will receive a new battalion following the
restructuring of the army in
2004, when the
London Regiment becomes the first ever
Territorial Army Guards unit.
The
Guards Machine Gun Regiment, was raised for service during the
First World War. Initially, each brigade of the Guards Division had a machine gun company attached. In
1917, these companies were regimented to form a battalion. Further battalions were formed by conversion of the
Household Cavalry regiments, and
King George V ordered that the regiment be classified as the 'Sixth Regiment of Foot Guards', or Machine Gun Guards. However it was disbanded in 1920.
Order of Precedence
Canadian Army
There are two foot guards regiments in the
Canadian Army, the
Governor General's Foot Guards and the
Canadian Grenadier Guards. The
Canadian Guards was a regiment of the regular army, but was disbanded in 1968. Although the
Governor General's Foot Guards has its buttons in pairs, compared to the single buttons of the
Canadian Grenadier Guards, it is the more senior regiment; it is affiliated to the Coldstream Guards, and so wears a similar uniform.
Australia
The
Federation Guard is a tri-service Australian ceremonial unit that performs similar functions to the five British and two Canadian regiments of foot guards.
India
The
Brigade of the Guards is the
Indian Army's foot guards regiment, formed through the regimentation of battalions from four of India's senior line infantry regiments.
Malaysia
21st Squadron of Mounted Ceremonial (21 Skuadron Istiadat Berkuda) is the equivalent of the above foot guards of commonwealth. This squadron came under
Malaysian Army's
Kor Armor DiRaja(Royal Armoured Corps).
Other nations
Many other nations have regiments of guards in their armies, as the term 'guards' is an honorific to mark out the best soldiers. Most monarchies have at least one regiment of guards, part of whose duties is to guard the
Royal Family:
★ the
Royal Life Guards '(Den Kongelige Livgarde)' and
His Majesty The King's Guard '(Hans Majestet Kongens Garde)' are regiments of the
Royal Danish Army and
Norwegian Army that perform the same role as the five British regiments perform in
London.
★ the
Guard Regiment Grenadiers '(Garderegiment Grenadiers en Jagers)' and
Guard Regiment Fusiliers '(Garderegiment Fusiliers Prinses Irene)' are the two guards regiments of the
Royal Netherlands Army.
★ the
Royal Guards '(Högvakten)' is a Swedish tri-service unit similar to the Australian Federation Guard, which has responsibilities identical to those of the Danish and Norwegian regiments.
The sames goes for most republics; for instance:
★ the
Wachbataillon, the elite ceremonial unit of the German
Bundeswehr.
★ the
Presidential Guard is the elite guard unit for the
President of Greece and provide an honor guard at the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
★ the
French Republican Guard guards the
Élysée Palace and other places symbolic of the sovereignty of the Republic.
★ the
Old Guard guards the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at
Arlington national cemetery in the United States
See also
★
Guard Mounting
★
Queen's Guard
External links
British and Commonwealth
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Grenadier Guards
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Coldstream Guards
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Scots Guards
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Irish Guards
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Welsh Guards
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Governor General's Foot Guards
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The Canadian Grenadier Guards
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Federation Guard
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Brigade of the Guards
Other Nations
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Den Kongelige Livgarde
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Högvakten
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Hans Majestet Kongens Garde
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Garderegiment Grenadiers en Jagers
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Garderegiment Fuseliers Prinses Irene
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