The Red Guard is the direct descendant of a French colonial Spahi detachment sent to Senegal in 1845.

French Spahis were required to range over vast areas of the Sahara desert and in 1845 a squadron was sent to Saint-Louis du Sénégal in response to tribal conflicts on the banks of the Senegal river.

The Senegalese Spahis saw extensive active service in French West Africa and in Morocco over a period of 80 years.

These cavalry squadrons were disbanded in 1928 as a cost-saving measure but provided the basis for a newly raised mounted gendarmerie.

The Red Guard places great emphasis on its heritage from the French empire, and considers itself "guardian of the traditions of the squadrons which distinguished themselves on countless battlefields in black Africa and Morocco, in the service of France" ("la gardienne des traditions des escadrons qui s’illustrèrent sur d’innombrables champs de batailles, tant en Afrique Noire qu’au Maroc au nom de la France")[3] The Red Guard is part of the Security Legion of the Mobile Gendarmerie.