Foot guards is a term used to describe some senior infantry regiments.
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The Foot Guards are the Regular Infantry regiments of the Household Division of the British Army. There have been six regiments of foot guards, five of which still exist. The Royal Guards Reserve Regiment was a reserve[1] formation of the Household Brigade in existence from 1900-1901. The Machine Gun Guards, which was formed during the First World War, was disbanded in 1920:
While these 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 which 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 of 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').
The five regiments of Foot Guards, lined up as they parade
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 previous to that year). 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. However, as of 2010, the independent incremental companies of the Grenadier and Coldstream Guards (all on permanent public duties) have been moved from Chelsea Barracks to the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich. While F Company, Scots Guards, are now permanently based at Wellington Barracks alongside the resident infantry battalion.
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 received a new battalion following the restructuring of the army in 2004, when the London Regiment became the first ever Territorial Army Guards unit.
The Royal Guards Reserve Regiment was in existence during the Second Boer War from 1900 to 1901.
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.
Before the Second World War, Guards recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 10 inches tall, they initially enlisted for seven years with the colours and a further five years with the reserve or four years and eight years. They trained at the Guards' Depot in Caterham, Surrey.[2]
In the Foot Guards, all Corporals are automatically appointed to the rank of Lance-Sergeant on their promotion, so Lance-Sergeants perform the same duties as Corporals in other regiments and are not Acting Sergeants (except by name).
The appointment to a separate rank originated in the British Army and Royal Marines, as it could be removed by the soldier's commanding officer, unlike a full Sergeant, who could only be demoted by court martial. Lance-Sergeants first appeared in the 19th century, but [3]the practice was abolished in 1946, except in the Foot Guards and the Honourable Artillery Company. Both Sergeants and Lance-Sergeants wear three rank chevrons, but in full dress, Foot Guards Lance-Sergeants are distinguished from full Sergeants by their white chevrons (full Sergeants wearing gold).
| Preceded by Royal Corps of Signals |
Order of Precedence | Succeeded by Line Infantry and Rifles |
Two foot guards regiments exist in the Canadian Army, the Governor General's Foot Guards and the Canadian Grenadier Guards. Her Majesty's Regiment of Canadian Guards was a regiment of the regular army, with four battalions, but was reduced to nil strength in 1968. It Colours are in the safekeeping of the Governor General of Canada at Rideau Hall should it be desired to standup the Regiment again. 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.
| Regiment | Plume | Plume colour | Button spacing | Collar badge | Shoulder badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| British Army | |||||
| Grenadier Guards | Left | White | Singly | Grenade | Royal Cypher |
| Coldstream Guards | Right | Scarlet | Pairs | Garter Star | Rose |
| Scots Guards | None | N/A | Threes | Thistle | Thistle Star |
| Irish Guards | Right | Blue | Fours | Shamrock | St Patrick Star |
| Welsh Guards | Left | White-Green-White | Fives | Leek | Leek |
| Canadian Army | |||||
| Governor General's Foot Guards | Left | Scarlet | Pairs | GGFG Guards Star | Maple Leaf |
| Canadian Grenadier Guards | Left | White | Singly | Grenade | Grenade |
| Canadian Guards (reduced to nil strength) | Left | Red & White | Singly | Crowned Maple Branch | Crowned Maple Branch |
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.
The State Defense Force of Connecticut has two companies of the Governor's Foot Guard, a part-time unit that provides ceremonial functions.
The Guard Jaeger Regiment (Finnish: Kaartin Jääkärirykmentti, Swedish: Gardesjägarregementet) is a Finnish Army unit located in Santahamina, an island district of Helsinki. The regiment trains Guard jaegers for fighting in an urban environment
There were five regiments of Foot Guards in the Royal Prussian Army until 1919.
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.
The 21st Squadron of Mounted Ceremonial (21 Skuadron Istiadat Berkuda) is the equivalent of the above foot guards of commonwealth. This squadron is under Malaysian Army's Kor Armor DiRaja(Royal Armoured Corps). Another foot guards unit of the Malaysian Army is the Royal Malay Regiment, the most senior unit of the Army, with its 1st Battalion charged with foot guards duties.
The President's Guard is responsible for the security of the President of Sri Lanka.
Many other nations have regiments of guards in their armies, as the term 'guards' is an honorific to distinguish the best soldiers. Most monarchies have at least one regiment of guards, part of whose duties is to guard the Royal Family:
The same goes for most republics; for instance:
Other countries that have Guards Units