Imperial Guard (Napoleon III)

The Imperial Guard was formed by a decree of the emperor on 1 May 1854,[1] and was made up of 17 regiments of cavalry, artillery and infantry, squadrons of train (supply and administration) and mounted gendarmes, and a division taken from the corps of military engineers.

The decree of 1 May 1854 establishing the Imperial Guard required line regiments to nominate experienced soldiers of good character for the new units.

This was mainly due to poor judgement on behalf of its commanders, who at Mars-la-Tour committed guard units piecemeal rather than as a single entity in the tradition of the First Empire.

[4] The Imperial Guard retained a number of the more spectacular items of its predecessor Corps under Napoleon I, such as the bearskin headdress of the Grenadiers or the heavily braided dolman of the Horse Artillery.

[5] During the Franco-Prussian War the bulk of the Imperial Guard was amongst the army led by Marshal François Achille Bazaine, which was obliged to capitulate at Metz on 27 October 1870.

Grenadier of the Imperial Guard of Napoleon III
A Guard Carabinier ( Carabinier de la Garde ), part of the heavy brigade of the Guard Cavalry Division.
Uniform of the Mounted Guides of the Guard ( guides a' cheval de la Garde ) c1860, displayed in the Musée de l'Armée Paris
Guard Zouaves ( Zouaves de la Garde ) during the Second Italian War of Independence in 1859.
An officer of the Lancers of the Imperial Guard ( Lanciers de la Garde impériale ) in parade uniform.