A ''Garde du Corps'' (French for

lifeguard A lifeguard is a rescuer who supervises the safety and rescue of swimmers, surfers, and other water sports participants such as in a swimming pool, water park, beach, spa, river and lake. Lifeguards are trained in swimming and Cardiopulmonary ...

) is a

military unit Military organization ( AE) or military organisation ( BE) is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. Formal military organization tends to use hiera ...

formed of guards. A ''

Garde du Corps A ''Garde du Corps'' (French for lifeguard (military), lifeguard) is a military unit formed of Royal Guard, guards. A ''Garde du corps du roi, Garde du Corps'' was first established in France in 1445. From the 17th century onwards, the term was us ...

'' was first established in France in 1445. From the 17th century onwards, the term was used in several German states and also, for example, in the

Kingdom of Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies () was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1861 under the control of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, a cadet branch of the Bourbons. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and land area ...

for several regiments of heavy

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

, whose

proprietary colonel ''Inhaber'', or Proprietor, was a term used in the Habsburg military to denote special honors extended to a noble or aristocrat. The Habsburg army was organized on principles developed for the feudal armies in which regiments were raised by a weal ...

was usually the sovereign. *In the

Electorate of Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the fifth-largest German state b ...

, the Trabant Guards were given the title ''

'' in 1692, but were disbanded again around 1715. In 1740, King Frederick II established a

cuirassier A cuirassier ( ; ; ) was a cavalryman equipped with a cuirass, sword, and pistols. Cuirassiers first appeared in mid-to-late 16th century Europe as a result of armoured cavalry, such as man-at-arms, men-at-arms and demi-lancers discarding their ...

regiment as his '' Gardes du Corps'', which existed until the Prussian Army was disbanded in 1918. (Only in Prussia was the unit known as the ''Regiment der Gardes du Corps'', as opposed to simply a ''Garde du Corps'' in other German states.) *The

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

''Garde du Corps'' was formed in 1620, initially going under various names. From 1707 it was permanently titled the ''

'' and was stationed in Dresden and the surrounding area. At the time of

Augustus the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the ...

it was a "double regiment" (''Doppelregiment'') with 883 men. Under his successors it was reduced in size but remained an elite unit. The officers of the ''Garde du Corps'' ranked ceremonially a level above those in other regiments and were also paid more. It met its demise in 1812 in the

Russian campaign The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign (), the Second Polish War, and in Russia as the Patriotic War of 1812 (), was initiated by Napoleon with the aim of compelling the Russian Empire to comply with the continent ...

and was never re-established. *The

Electorate of Hesse The Electorate of Hesse (), also known as Hesse-Kassel or Kurhessen, was the title used for the former Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel after an 1803 reform where the Holy Roman Emperor elevated its ruler to the rank of Elector, thus giving him ...

, the

Landgraviate of Hesse The Landgraviate of Hesse () was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire. It existed as a single entity from 1264 to 1567, when it was divided among the sons of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. History In the early Middle Ages, the territory of He ...

and the

Margraviate of Baden The Margraviate of Baden () was a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire. Spread along the right banks of the Upper Rhine in south-western Germany, it was named a margraviate in 1112 and existed until 1535, when it was split into the tw ...

were also given a regiment of ''Garde du Corps.'' *The

Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a client state of First French Empire, France in present-day Germany that existed from 1807 to 1813. While formally independent, it was ruled by Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte. It was named after Westphalia, ...

and

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg ( ) was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Electorate of Württemberg, which existed from 1803 to 1806. Geogr ...

each had a ''Garde du Corps'' squadron from 1808 to 1814 and from 1809 to 1815, respectively. These wore similar uniforms to the French

cuirassiers A cuirassier ( ; ; ) was a cavalryman equipped with a cuirass, sword, and pistols. Cuirassiers first appeared in mid-to-late 16th century Europe as a result of armoured cavalry, such as men-at-arms and demi-lancers discarding their lances an ...

, but were equipped with half-

cuirass A cuirass ( ; ; ) is a piece of armour that covers the torso, formed of one or more pieces of metal or other rigid material. The term probably originates from the original material, leather, from the Old French word and the Latin word . The us ...

es and ''raupenhelm'' helmets. *In the

Bavarian Army The Bavarian Army () was the army of the Electorate of Bavaria, Electorate (1682–1806) and then Kingdom of Bavaria, Kingdom (1806–1918) of Bavaria. It existed from 1682 as the standing army of Bavaria until the merger of the military sovereig ...

there was a ''Garde du Corps'' regiment from 1814, which was merged in 1826 for reasons of cost with the 1st Cuirassiers. *The

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover () was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Hanover, and j ...

also had a ''Garde du Corps'' regiment from 1816 until the disbandment of its army in 1866. It was housed in a

barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...

on ''Königsworther Platz'' in

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

that had been converted for the purpose in 1736 from a former

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

stables. After its annexation by Prussia in 1866, the King's Regiment of Uhlans took over the

garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...

. File:Garde du Corps2.jpg, Officer of the Electoral Hessian ''Garde du Corps'' of

s File:Anton von Werner - Garde-du-Corps-Kürassier.jpg, Underofficer of the Prussian ''Gardes du Corps'' of cuirassiers File:Gardes du Corps (Hannover).jpg, Officer and trumpeter of the ''Garde du Corps'' of the Kingdom of Hanover in 1835

See also