#Coldstream Guards

[newyorkthegoldenage]

The band of the Coldstream Guards, in full dress, march through the streets of Manhattan on April 28, 1939. They were there to play for a month in the British pavilion of the World's Fair.

The Coldstream Guards are infantry soldiers who specialize in light role operations, such as reconnaissance and machine gun operation. But their most famous duty is guarding Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace. They are the ones who take part in the Changing of the Guard.

Photo: Associated Press

[bantarleton]

The Coldstream Guards, 1821, by Denis Dighton, in the Royal Collection.

[vox-anglosphere]

Formed in 1660, the Coldstream Guards are Britain's oldest regiment

[spiritundaunted]

Two and a half year old Prince Charles stands with his grandfather King George VI on the dais for the march past of Coldstream Guards at the golf course at Windsor Castle after the King had just presented new colors to the regiment, May 1951. (British Pathe)

Aw! 🥹

[blackswaneuroparedux]

The battle of Waterloo depended on the closing of those gates.

Duke of Wellington.

There were many key moments at the Battle of Waterloo. Many were only recognised after the battle had been won as a close run thing. But in the heat of the battle there was one moment that was not lost on either Wellington or Napoleon and that was the chateau and outbuildings of Hougoumont which were situated 500 yards from Wellington’s line, and if held by the Allies would disrupt any French advance. Likewise, their loss to the French would have created an immense threat to Wellington’s right flank.

Hougoumont was defended by 2600 allied crack troops including Coldstream, Grenadier and Scots Guards plus Nassauers and Brunswickers. The north gate of Hougoumont had been deliberately left open to allow friendly troops to pass through, but had to be closed rapidly when the French started to attack at about 11.30 am. This attack was the first action of the Battle of Waterloo. The gates were however not closed properly and French soldiers started to push through. Desperate hand-to-hand fighting ensued but somehow the defenders managed to close the gates. The 30 Frenchmen who had entered were swiftly dealt with, all being mercilessly killed except for a young and unarmed drummer-boy.

This brave action meant that the French were never able to take Hougoumont at any time during the remainder of the day, although 12,700 of Napoleon’s troops were tied up in the attempt.

Some years later a Reverend John Norcross left a sum of money in his will to be given “to the bravest man at Waterloo”. Wellington, who was asked to nominate the winner, said that the success of the battle turned upon the closing of the gates at Hougoumont, and the recipient was a Corporal James Graham of the Coldstream Guards. This soldier had shown immense bravery and probably saved the life of the commanding officer at Hougoumont, Lieutenant-Colonel James MacDonell.

Photo: Guards Memorial Hougoumont, Waterloo, Belgium.

[ukdamo]

The Guards Came Through

Arthur Conan Doyle

Men of the Twenty-first

    Up by the Chalk Pit Wood,

Weak with our wounds and our thirst,

    Wanting our sleep and our food,

After a day and a night.

    God, shall we ever forget?

Beaten and broke in the fight,

    But sticking it, sticking it yet,

Trying to hold the line,

    Fainting and spent and done;

Always the thud and the whine,

    Always the yell of the Hun.

Northumberland, Lancaster, York,

    Durham and Somerset,

Fighting alone, worn to the bone,

    But sticking it, sticking it yet.

Never a message of hope,

    Never a word of cheer!

Fronting Hill 70’s shell-swept slope,

    With the dull, dead plain in our rear;

Always the shriek of the shell,

    Always the roar of the burst,

Always the tortures of Hell,

    As waiting and wincing we cursed

Our luck, the guns, and the Boche.

    When our Corporal shouted “Stand to!”

And I heard some one cry, “Clear the front for the Guards!”—

    And the Guards came through.

Our throats they were parched and hot,

    But Lord, if you’d heard the cheer,

Irish and Welsh and Scot,

    Coldstream and Grenadier—

Two Brigades, if you please,

    Dressing as straight as a hem.

We, we were down on our knees,

    Praying for us and for them,

Praying with tear-wet cheek,

      Praying with outstretched hand.

Lord! I could speak for a week,

    But how could you understand?

How could your cheeks be wet?

    Such feelin’s don’t come to you;

But how can me or my mates forget

    When the Guards came through?

“Five yards left extend!”

    It passed from rank to rank,

And line after line, with never a bend,

    And a touch of the London swank.

A trifle of swank and dash,

    Cool as a home parade,

Twinkle, glitter and flash,

    Flinching never a shade,

With the shrapnel right in their face,

    Doing their Hyde Park stunt,

Swinging along at an easy pace,

    Arms at the trail, eyes front.

Man! it was great to see!

    Man! it was fine to do!

It’s a cot, and hospital ward for me,

But I’ll tell them in Blighty wherever I be,

    How the Guards came through.

[vox-anglosphere]

A tribute to Britain's oldest regiment in continuous royal service.

▪️▪️▫️ No. 1/3 || A chance to honour the work of the #ColdstreamGuards, the @BritishArmy, and all the men and women that serve our country. Thank you. ❤️🇬🇧 || Incredible shot from @SamuelMChurchill taken today. 👌🏼 || #thisislondon #queenat90 #happybirthdayyourmajesty #britisharmy #buckinghampalace http://ift.tt/231oisx

[thepastisalreadywritten]

Japanese Emperor Naruhito attends a banquet alongside Duke of Edinburgh

27 June 2024

Japanese Emperor Naruhito attends a banquet at the Guildhall in London, where he will be welcomed by the Guard of Honour, sign the Distinguished Visitors Book and make a speech after dinner in the Great Hall.

[bawdiestrhymester]

Silly.

[kdo-three]

The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards Pipes and Drums - Auld Lang Syne (2008) w/ The Band of The Coldstream Guards Robert Burns / Traditional from: "Auld Lang Syne" (LP|CD)

Pipe Major: SSGT Derek Potter Director of Music: Lieutenant Colonel Graham O. Smith (MBE)

Scottish | Pipes and Drums | Celtic

JukeHostUK (left click = play) (320kbps)

Recorded: @ The Angel Studios in London, England UK

[wherekizzialives]

2024 in books: April

This month I’ve had the attention span of a highly distractible goldfish which means I’ve picked up many, many books but only four four new-to-me (three of which I listened to as I emptied cupboards and packed boxes) and one re-read (the next in the Discworld series that I’m working my way through in publishing order). Given how many books I’ve started I’m hoping they will translate into far…

[inky-duchess]

Fantasy Guide to Royal Guards

Royals have multiple layers of servants but there is no set of servants most important that their protection. Royalty are never without some kind of protection and palaces are usually guarded to the teeth. So how do we write royal security. This is for @jamie-ties-writing

Recruitment

Royal guards aren't just any person plucked from the street and put into a uniform. They are usually recruited from within the royal army, from within particular regiments across the army (a mixture of calvary, naval, artillery, infantry). The Royal Guard is usually made of of multiple regiments, not just a single one. These regiments would share and rotate duties. The British Royal family are currently guarded by the Coldstream Regiment, Welsh Guards, Grenadier Guards among others. Royal guards will be selected for their skill, sometimes their birth (they may be chosen if they rank higher socially) and of course, loyalty to the Crown. Royal guards were intended to be a show of force, strength, Majesty so they were usually impressive specimens meant to instill some power to their monarch.

Duties

A royal guard's first order of business is the protection of the family. They may have sentry duty around the palace, guarding doors or patrolling palace grounds or corridors. A Royal Guard may be assigned to one member only but most likely they will rotate through the family as needed. Of course, a royal can request a guard to always be assigned to them if they want. They may escort their charge of the day to their engagements. If assigned a certain royal to protect, they would tail them throughout the day. A royal guard may even perform ceremonial duties such as the changing of the guard or riding in coronations or state funerals. A royal guard is expected to remain vigilant but never speak of what they see, they are meant to keep an ear out for threats but never repeat whatever is said, they are expected at all times to uphold a professional countenance and respect protocol. They will be expected to give their lives if needed, and be loyal to the last.

Rank

Royal guards are a military division and rank is a part of their lives. Their supreme commander would he the monarch first but there would be an appointed commander. Depending on how you want to write Royal Guards, each regiment would have it's own captain and leaders. Of course, not all regiments may adhere to the same ranks but this would be a basic outline for you to follow.

Colonel: Colonels actually have no duties, they are more an honourary figurehead. Many members of the royal family would have a regiment to be colonel of. This usually requires nothing more than a ceremonial role, the wearing of the uniform while inspecting the troops for example.

Captain: The Commander of the regiment. They would undertake managerial duties, issuing commands from the monarch, assigning duties, approving the induction of new guards into the Household Division. The Captain would decide who would guard which member of the royal family.

Lieutenant: The Second in command. They will assume command if the Captain is not available. They would take on a large portion of duties and aid the Captain.

Sergeant: The sergeant would be next in command.

Guardsman: The lowest rank. They will have the least experience but usually the most duties. They would be the ones patrolling and standing sentry.

Uniform

Of course, no royal guard is complete without their uniform. Royal guards would have to stand out, especially in ceremonial duties. This uniform would be distinctive, not only because it is a great honour for anybody to be named to the guard but also as mentioned above, to add a layer of might to those they protect.

Notable Royal Guard Units

Dahomey Mino (the inspiration of Black Panther's Dora Milaje)

The Praetorian Guard

The Imperial Guard of Napoleon

The Imperial German Bodyguard

Varangian Guard

Swiss Guards

The Kheshig

The Janissary

The Imperial Guards of Tsarist Russia

The Cossack Guard

Guardia Real

Coldstream Guards

Irish Guards

Welsh Guards

Grenadier Guards

Medjay of Ancient Egypt

Al-Ḥars al-Malakī as-Suʿūdī

Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince

Thahan Raksa Phra Ong

[vintage-london-images]

With Trooping The Colour being tomorrow 15th June 2024, I thought this snippet may be interesting of the slow march past from 1933.

The Colour being Trooped is the King's Colour of No 7 Company 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards in front of his Majesty King George V.

Please check out other posts with hashtag #video on @vintage-london-images

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Every generation tailors history to its taste.

- Ada Louise Huxtable

Crimean Coldstream Guards Officers Uniform - Lt The Honourable William Amherst.

[ukdamo]

The band of the Coldstream Guards: Trooping of the Colour, 2007.

[captain-price-unofficially]

A British Churchill tank of 4th Battalion The Coldstream Guards, 19 October 1944.