The Imperial Guard (French: Garde Impériale) was originally a small group of elite soldiers of the French Army under the direct command of Napoleon I, but grew considerably over time. It acted as his bodyguard and tactical reserve, and he was careful of its use in battle. The Guard was divided into the staff, infantry, cavalry, and artillery regiments, as well as battalions of sappers and marines. The guard itself as a whole distinguished between the experienced veterans and less experienced members by being separated into three sections: the Old Guard, Middle Guard and Young Guard.
History
The Guard had its origin in the Consular Guard (Garde des consuls), created on 28 November 1799 by the union of the Guard of the Directory (Garde du Directoire exécutif) and the Grenadiers of the Legislature (Grenadiers près de la Représentation nationale). These formations had for principal purpose the security of the executive and legislative branches of the French Republic and gathered a small number of soldiers, about a thousand. One may question their utility, as they did not oppose Napoleon's Coup of 18 Brumaire of 1799. The Consular Guard changed its name to the Imperial Guard on 18 May 1804. Its headquarters were located at the Pentemont Abbey in Paris.
Napoleon took great care of his Guard, particularly the Old Guard. The Grenadiers of the Old Guard were known to complain in the presence of the Emperor, giving them the nickname Grognards, the Grumblers. The Guard received better pay, rations, quarters, and equipment, and all guardsmen ranked one grade higher than all non-Imperial Guard soldiers. Other French soldiers even referred to Napoleon's Imperial Guard as "the Immortals".
The Guard played a major part in the climax of the Battle of Waterloo. It was thrown into the battle at the last minute to salvage a victory for Napoleon. Completely outnumbered, it faced terrible fire from the British lines, and began to retreat. For the first (and only) time in its history the Middle Guard retreated without orders. At the sight of this, Napoleon's army lost all hope of victory. The Middle Guard broke completely but the Old Guard (and some of the Young Guard) battalions held their formation and secured the retreat of the remainder of the French Army before being almost annihilated by British and Prussian artillery fire and cavalry charges.
The phrase "La Garde meurt mais ne se rend pas! ("The Guard dies but does not surrender!") is generally attributed to General Pierre Cambronne. It has been suggested that this was in fact said by another general of the Guard, Claude-Étienne Michel, during their last stand at the Battle of Waterloo. The retort to a request to surrender may have been "La Garde meurt, elle ne se rend pas! ("The Guard dies, it does not surrender!"). Letters published in The Times in June 1932 record that it may have been said by General Michel.
The Old Guard regiments were assigned to the Guard's 3rd Division, while the remainder of the Guard's foot regiments were assigned to the 1st and 2nd Divisions.
Numbers
In 1804 the Guard numbered 8,000 men. By the time of Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812, it had swelled to just under 100,000 men. The Guard had its own artillery, infantry and cavalry components just like a normal army corps. The Old Guard was the elite within the wider Imperial Guard.
General Staff of the Imperial Guard
Created soon after the creation of the Guard itself, the General Staff by 1806 included the four Colonel-Generals of the four divisions of the Guard, all Marshal of the Empire in field rank. It also included an Inspector of Reviews, a Commissioner of War, 24 aides-de-camp, and other specialist officers, NCOs, and privates.
Foot regiments
The Old Guard regiments served in the 3rd Division of the Guard, while the rest of the foot regiments of the Guard served in the 1st and 2nd Divisions.
Old Guard
1st Regiment of Foot Grenadiers
The 1st Regiment of Foot Grenadiers () was founded from the Consular Guard Grenadiers (), which had been formed from the Guards of the Directory. The battalion was made up of the Imperial French Army's most experienced and tallest men. One of two Imperial Guard battalions carried the Imperial Eagle into battle. After Napoleon's failure in the Invasion of Russia, only a few troops from the initial force remained, and the army had to be rebuilt using Peninsular War veterans. Napoleon Himself, called them "The Immortals Of France."