Hans Majestet Kongens Garde

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Hans Majestet Kongens Garde
Cap Badge of HMKG
Active	1856–present
Country	Norway
Branch	Army
Type	Foot Guards
Role	Urban Warfare Public Duties
Size	One battalion
Part of	Hærens styrker
Garrison/HQ	Huseby leir, Oslo
Nickname	Garden
Motto	Alt for Kongen (All for the King)
Mascot	King Penguin (Nils Olav)
Anniversaries	10. April, 8. November
Engagements	Midtskogen, Lundehøgda
Commanders
Current commander	Lieutenant colonel Ingrid Gjerde
Ceremonial chief	HM The King

Hans Majestet Kongens Garde (HMKG) (lit., His Majesty The King's Guard) is a battalion of the Norwegian Army. The battalion has two main roles; it serves as the Norwegian King's lifeguards, guarding the royal residences (the Royal Palace and Skaugum) and Akershus Fortress in Oslo, and is also the main infantry unit responsible for the defence of Oslo. The HMKG is in theory under the direct command of the King of Norway. This is rarely the real case, however, as the King of Norway has a symbolic role rather than a political role. The HMKG is located in Huseby leir in Oslo, except for one company. Huseby leir is located on the old Oslo farm Nordre Huseby gård (Northern Huseby farm), which was acquired by the Norwegian government in the late 1800s.

1 History of the Guard
2 Military organization
- 2.1 Nils Olav
3 Alliances
4 External links

[edit] History of the Guard

The Guard was formed as a guards company on November 8. 1856 when King Oscar I decided to have a company of Norwegian guards to underline his status as king of both Norway and Sweden. The first guard members were 38 men from the Agerhusiske ridende Jægercorpses gevorbne Escadron. In the beginning the main function of the guard was to go as messengers between Stockholm and Christiania. The company moved from Stockholm to Kristiania in 1888, where, in addition to its guards duties, it served as a trials unit. On Norway's independence in 1905, the company became the new guards unit for the King of Norway, Haakon VII and was increased to battalion size. The regiment served with distinction during the Second World War, where it prevented the Wehrmacht from capturing the Royal Family and the Cabinet at the battle of Midtskogen Gård between the 9. - 10. April. This gave the Guards its first battle honour. Later in the campaign, the Guards fought with distinction at Lundehøgda, near Lillehammer, winning their second battle honour.

[edit] Military organization

The HMKG band in Oslo.

The HMKG is organized as a light infantry battalion of six companies:

Kp1 - the rifle company, who fought invading Wehrmacht forces in the battle for Midtskogen Gård in April 1940
Kp2 - the escort company
Kp3 - the renowned band & drill company, participating in military tattoos all over the world
Kp4 - the MOUT (Military Operations on Urban Terrain) company
Kp5 - the support company
Kp6 - the school company, training new recruits, located at Terningmoen, Norway

From 2006 each company (except Kp3 and Kp5) will be the same, it will consist of two rifle, one escort and one recon platoon.

Each of the rifle companies takes turns in carrying out guard duty at the royal residences in between other duties. The majority of Guardsmen are National Servicemen who are posted to the regiment after their basic training. On arriving at the battalion from basic training, they spend their first five weeks in ceaseless drill practice, hand-to-hand fighting, physical training, close range firing and case solving exercises before they are allowed to perform their first duties outside the royal palace or around the Royal Family's country residence.

The changing of the guard ceremony in front of The Palace takes place at 1330–1400 hours every day and is a popular event with tourists and the people of Oslo alike. The dark blue dress uniforms have remained virtually unchanged throughout the regiment's existence. One noteworthy detail of the uniform is the plumed bowler hat, which was copied from the hat of the Italian Bersaglieri alpine troops—a regiment that so impressed the Swedish princess Louise (the great grandmother of HM King Harald V) that she insisted the Norwegian guards be similarly hatted in 1860. The regiment's cap badge is a rosette in the national colours of Norway, with the royal cypher of the current Norwegian monarch on top. In addition to performing guard duty, the Guards is also on parade whenever important state events take place in the capital. These include the annual opening of parliament by HM the King, visits by foreign heads of state, or anniversaries of major events in the history of the nation.

[edit] Nils Olav

The regiment's unofficial "mascot" is a King Penguin named Nils Olav, which is part of the population at Edinburgh Zoo. The first penguin was adopted during the regiment's first participation in the Edinburgh Military Tattoo in 1961 and went on to achieve the rank of Regimental Sergeant-Major in 1993. The penguin died that year, and was replaced by a second penguin, also named Nils Olav. The current penguin was awarded the Norwegian Army's Long Service and Good Conduct medal in 2005 on the regiment's latest visit to the Tattoo.