1st Life Guards

“ The Brigade had now been for more than four years in North America, and the time had been passed pleasantly and profitably by all ranks. Seldom have the Guards had an opportunity of observing for themselves the life of a thriving British colony, and the development of our national energy across the ocean. ”

“ These Civil Guards are picked men, robust, strapping, seasoned fellows, and are distributed over the country like the French gendarmery, to whose duties theirs are similar. They form a corps d'élite, and are the very mainstay of order. In fact, without them life and property during times of political commotion would very often be at the mercy of any horde of ragamuffins with weapons in their hands and the courage to use them. ”

“ In 1716, when George I. visited Hanover, the Prince of Wales, who was then left guardian of the kingdom, reviewed the brigade of life and 19horse-grenadier-guards, in Hyde Park, November 21st, when he declared them to be one of the finest bodies of men in person, appearance, and exercise that the world had ever produced. A life-guardsman, as he is seen at the Horse Guards at the present time, is indeed an imposing sight. We must not, however, be led astray by the size of men, nor by their gay regimentals. ”

“ The Silver Kettle-Drums used in the Regiment were presented by King William IV, in 1831.
2nd LIFE GUARDS
This Corps formed by Charles II was styled in 1660 "The Duke of Albemarle's Troop of Guards," in 1670 "The Queen's Troop of Life Guards," and not till 1788 the 2nd Life Guards. Life Guards were at one time known as "Cheeses," from the old gentlemen of the corps declining to serve in it as remodelled in 1788, saying "that it was no longer composed of gentlemen but of cheesemongers." ”

“ During National Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Week, we express our deep gratitude to these brave men and women and to the employers who support them and enable them to serve.
Members of the National Guard and Reserve put on the uniform of the United States when our country needs them most. In the war on terror, thousands of these civilians from all walks of life have been called away from their jobs and families and mobilized for duty around the world. ”

“ Cruel country, cruel fate, that compel Lieutenant Algernon Percy Plantagenet, of the Royal Life Guards, the handsomest man in his regiment, and heir to £9,000 a year, to be mounting guard at eight o’clock in the morning! He is mounting guard at present by smoking a cigar (one of Milo’s best) on the Mall. By and by he will go into his barrack-room and draw caricatures in charcoal on the whitewashed wall. He will smoke a good deal, yawn a good deal, and whistle a good deal during the day, and will give a few words of command. ”

“ A couple of them are on duty at the exit of every railway station of importance, and on lonely country roads, marching on each side, you will come across a pair, carrying their rifles at the slope, prepared for action. The purpose of this system of patrol is to lessen the risk of both men being surprised at once.
The Civil Guards exercise a wide influence over the people, and to them is largely due the present peaceful state of the country. The total strength of the force is twenty-five thousand men, of whom five thousand are mounted. ”

“ The captain of the guard had humanely done all he could, and it was partly by his request that I was there. A chaplain could minister where others would not be allowed. The rain fell silently on him; the hours of his life were numbered, even the minutes. He was to meet death, not in the shock and excitement of battle, not as a martyr for his country, not in disease, but in full health, and as a criminal. I have seen many a man die, and have tried to perform the sacred duties of my station. ”

“ This company is run on military principles, and besides doing daily drill takes a share of garrison duty. The proficiency in drill which these men have attained in the short time since their enrollment reflects the highest credit on the industry and ability of the men and the energy of the officers.
The "Home Guards" consists of the citizens and settlers whom circumstances have forced into the barracks. They are exempt from drill, but do a full share of guard and other duty, and are always on hand when any real work is to be done. ”

“ They saw fit to keep disciplined organizations in their armories, while the undisciplined citizens were parading the streets with their bits of wood. Time and again have the National Guards of our different states been placed in just such a predicament, and when politics are thrust into the background, and civil offices are occupied by fair-minded men whose sole aim is the welfare of the state, and not till then, will the National Guard occupy the place designed for it in the government of our country. ”

“ It is not a creation of this war, for then surely it would have withered for lack of fertile soil, by reason of the number of original Guardsmen who have died. On the contrary, it is seen as strong and as virile as ever, even in men who abandoned their civilian pursuits to take service with the Guards. The young men of good birth who have received commissions in the Guards after the outbreak of war, and the recruits who come out with drafts—novices all, not only to the war, but also to the Guards—are saturated with this manly respect for soldierly virtues. ”

“ The chief of the patrol came forward and answered—‘Vengeance!’ I remember wondering at the moment why he spoke so loud in giving the pass-word, when suddenly I saw three men rush forward, seize our captain, and throw him down. At the same time two or three hundred men, dressed as National Guards, threw themselves into the camp, rushed upon the sleeping artillery-men with their bayonets, and then fired several volleys into the tents where our poor comrades were asleep. What I had taken at first for National Guards were only those devils of sergents-de-ville dressed up! ”

“ Often, in these painfully decadent, and painfully nascent times, with their distresses, inarticulate gaspings, and 'impossibilities;' meeting a tall lifeguardsman in his snow-white trousers, or seeing those two statuesque lifeguardsmen, in their frowning bearskins, pipe-clayed buckskins, on their coal-black, sleek, fiery quadrupeds, riding sentry at the Horse-Guards—it strikes one with a kind of mournful interest, how, in such universal down-rushing and wrecked impotence of almost all old institutions, this oldest 134fighting institution is still so young! ”

“ The parks of artillery are to be formed where they can be protected; they are never to be without guards, and troops should be sufficiently near to afford them support.
“If an attroupement or riotous assembly of the inhabitants against the military takes place, the troops are to be under arms, and the attroupement is to be fired upon. Any act of violence against the soldiery is to be immediately noticed, and the offenders are to be secured. The service must be respected. The General Officers are to take care that the discipline and good conduct of the troops merit the respect demanded. ”

“ Though it was a bitterly cold day, thousands of people thronged the streets, and filled the windows and house-tops to cheer the men as they passed. Demobilised officers and men in plain clothes followed their battalions, and all the wounded who were able to march joined the procession, while lorries were provided for those who had lost a leg or who were too badly wounded to march. Even the blind joined in, and marched with men to guide them. The Household Cavalry came first, and were followed by the Battalions of the Guards Division, headed by Lieut.-General the Earl of Cavan and his Staff. ”

“ These volunteers are being organized under the laws of the State, and the 10th of November is fixed for the time of consolidating them into companies and regiments. Many of them are armed by the United States as home guards, and many by General Anderson and myself, because of the necessity of being armed to guard their camps against internal enemies. Should we be overwhelmed, they would scatter, and their arms and clothing will go to the enemy, furnishing the very material they so much need. ”

“ That step toward citizen self-defense was the beginning of our National Guard, the oldest military organization in the United States.
Over those three centuries, names have changed-Militia, State Troops, State Volunteers, and, finally, the National Guard-but the spirit of the citizensoldier has been constant. It is exemplified by those who stand prepared to leave their civilian occupations, don the uniform of their Country, and serve their States and their Nation when the need arises.
In time of war, the Guard is always ready to serve. ”

“ By First Divisional Order, Oct. 16th, ten men and a Non-commissioned officer from each battalion, good shots, volunteers preferred, were selected to act as sharpshooters, under a Captain and a Lieutenant of the Brigade of Guards, and a Lieutenant of the Highlanders. “The sharpshooters will have to approach within 400 or 500 yards of the enemy’s works, there to establish themselves in extended order (by single men) under cover of anything which may present itself to afford protection. ”

“ The men of my company and battalion are full of admiration for the manner in which the Guards fought. We watched the fighting in the village and farms whilst consolidating new line. The moral effect on our troops of the stubborn resistance offered by these troops in denying ground to the enemy, the orderly withdrawal to our line, and the refusal of this sergeant to leave the line when offered the choice of comfortable quarters, was excellent. ”

“ The guard can then return to its starting-point, and the prisoners are locked up until the convoy is ready for the road again.
"The guards are responsible for their prisoners, both from escape and injury. If a man dies on the road his body is carried to the next station for burial, so that the station-master and others may certify to the death; and if a man is killed while attempting to escape, the same disposition must be made of his body. ”

“ I know the sentiments the Guards cherish towards me. I repose perfect confidence in their courage and fidelity. I constantly see, with renewed pleasure, companions in arms who have escaped so many dangers, and are covered with so many honourable wounds. I experience a sentiment of satisfaction when I look at the Guards, and think that there has not, for the last fifteen years, in any of the four quarters of the world, been a battle in which some of them have not taken part. ”

“ Commanded by Bailey (Gort was with the 1st Guards Brigade) , they were magnificently manœuvred by their company and platoon commanders, moving in great depth on a very wide extension. They captured 197 prisoners, 15 machine-guns and several trench mortars, and killed a lot. Their casualties were 2 officers and 50 O.R. I say again, the finest attack in open warfare that has ever been made. During the night 23-24 they even did a relief, and we were up against the junction of two fresh divisions in great [79] strength, with the result that no great advance was made and many losses. ”

“ On the march they take the form of advance guards, rear guards, and flank guards. At a halt they consist of outposts.
3. Interior guards are used in camp or garrison to preserve order, protect property, and to enforce police regulations. In time of war such sentinels of an interior guard as may be necessary are placed close in or about a camp, and normally there is an exterior guard further out consisting of outposts. In time of peace the interior guard is the only guard in a camp or garrison. ”

“ It was said there were twenty thousand of the National Guards present in uniform, wearing, however, only their side-arms. This number may have been exaggerated, but there certainly were a great many. The whole procession, including the troops, has been estimated at a hundred thousand men. The route was by the Boulevards to the Jardin des Plantes, where the body was to be delivered to the family of the deceased, in order to be transported to the South of France for interment. ”

“ No wounded man was left to fall into the enemy's hands, although the medical officers of the Coldstream and Irish Guards and the sick-sergeant of the Grenadiers remained behind, after their Battalions had retired, and the enemy was within a few hundred yards of their aid-posts. ”

“ For in spite of everything we were not conquered; the cuirassiers still held their position on the plateau, and from all sides over the thunder of cannon, over all the tumult, the cry was heard, "The Guard is coming!" Yes, the Guard was coming at last! We could see them in the distance on the highway, with their high bear-skin caps, advancing in good order.
Those who have never witnessed the arrival of the Guard on the battle-field, can never know the confidence which is inspired by a body of tried soldiers; the kind of respect paid to courage and force. ”

“ In the first place, to allow men on arrival in France at once to go to an entrenching battalion, where the discipline was more lax, and the habits and customs different from those which obtained in the regiments of Guards was a measure hardly calculated to improve them as fighting men. And in the second place, it was contrary to the regulations for men of the Guards to be commanded by any but their own officers. ”

“ Five or six armed men rushed to his rescue. The two Lifeguardsmen whipped out their short swords and prepared to use them. The King and the Queen made useless efforts to stop both parties: the contest was beginning fierce, terrible and deadly.
But two men plunged into the struggle, distinguishable by [87] a tricolored scarf and military uniform; one was Sausse the County Attorney and the other National Guard Commandant Hannonet.
They brought twenty muskets, which gleamed in the torchlight. ”