Royal Guards (Poland)

Royal Guards (also referred to as the Royal Foot Guards, Polish: Gwardia Piesza Koronna) were an elite military formation and regiment of the Kingdom of Poland and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth directly responsible for the protection of the monarch and his family.

The earliest mentioned document or decree referring to the Royal Guards of Poland dates back to the reign of King John II Casimir. In 1650, the newly established regiment under the command of foreign mercenaries and military commanders was entirely incorporated into the regular, main forces of the Crown over which the monarch or ruler was personally responsible and accountable for. The guards served at the royal courts of Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki (reigned as Michael I), John III Sobieski, Augustus II the Strong, Augustus III and the last king of Poland Stanisław II Augustus. The first commander-in-chief of the modern regiment was Field Marshal Jakub Henryk Fleming, who held this post between 1717 and 1732.

Guard was in service directly to the King and was paid out of the Treasury of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Following a reform and the re-organization carried out in 1710, other small units directly serving for the monarch were either incorporated into the Royal Foot Guard regiment or broken down into reserves. This act was a punishment for siding with King Stanisław I Leszczyński during a war with Augustus II the Strong.

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