Gardes de la Marine is a
junior officer
Junior officer, company officer or company grade officer refers to the lowest operational commissioned officer category of ranks in a military or paramilitary organization, ranking above non-commissioned officers and below senior officers.
D ...
rank, usually used in
American navies, as well as a former rank used in France.
France
In France, under the
Ancien Régime
''Ancien'' may refer to
* the French word for " ancient, old"
** Société des anciens textes français
* the French for "former, senior"
** Virelai ancien
** Ancien Régime
** Ancien Régime in France
{{disambig ...
, the (Guards of the Navy), or were young gentlemen undergoing training to be naval officers. The training program was established by
Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...
in 1670 and lasted until Admiral
Charles Eugène Gabriel de La Croix abolished it in 1786.
The Gardes-Marine received a
brevet commission from the King and were organized into
companies
A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether natural, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specifi ...
, established at the harbors of
Brest,
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department.
The Commune of Toulon h ...
, and
Rochefort. All naval officers were drawn from these companies, which were the equivalent of the current naval school.
The king paid schoolmasters to instruct the Gardes-Marine in everything they needed to know to be good officers - there were masters in mathematics, drawing, writing, fortification,
naval architecture
Naval architecture, or naval engineering, is an engineering discipline incorporating elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software and safety engineering as applied to the engineering design process, shipbuilding, maintenance, and op ...
and construction, dance,
hydrography
Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primary ...
,
fencing
Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...
, etc.
The Gardes-Marine sailed on the king's ships, on which they served as soldiers, and trained in all roles on board. At sea they honed the skills they had learned ashore. Their training, in cooperation with the captain of the vessel, included four hours intended for their different exercises. The first hour was in piloting and hydrography, the second for musketry and military manoeuvres, the third for cannon exercise, the fourth one for training in steering a ship, if time allowed, supervised by the captain or second in command, done by each of the gardes in turn.
Gallery
File:Generic-Navy-1.svg,
(Argentine Navy
The Argentine Navy (ARA; ). This forms the basis for the navy's ship prefix "ARA". is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the Argentine Army, Army and the Argentine ...
)
(Brazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy () is the navy, naval service branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces, responsible for conducting naval warfare, naval operations.
The navy was involved in War of Independence of Brazil#Naval action, Brazil's war of independence ...
)
( Cape Verdean Coast Guard)
(Chilean Navy
The Chilean Navy () is the naval warfare service branch of the Chilean Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of National Defense (Chile), Ministry of National Defense. Its headquarters are at Edificio Armada de Chile, Valparaiso.
History
Ori ...
)
(Mexican Navy
The Mexican Navy () is one of the components of the Mexican Armed Forces. The Secretariat of the Navy is in charge of administration of the navy. The commander of the navy is the Secretary of the Navy, who is both a cabinet minister and a career ...
)
( Paraguayan Navy)
( National Navy of Uruguay)
References
*
Navy of the Ancien Régime
Naval academies
{{KingdomofFrance-stub