The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard (The Body Guard)

The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard

The King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard

A Brief But Important Clarification: It’s a common yet some what vexing misconception that The Bodyguard (from St James’s Palace) and the Yeoman Warders (from the Tower of London) are one and the same—they are quite distinct. This website is dedicated solely to The Yeomen of the King's Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard (The Bodyguard).

Yeomen (in-ordinary)

Yeomen of The Bodyguard are appointed by St James’s Palace, serve part-time, receive a taxable stipend of around £100 annually, apart from the salaried Messenger Sergeant Major. Meanwhile, the Yeoman Warders are employed full-time and salaried through Historic Royal Palaces. Both corps are indeed composed of veterans from the British Armed Forces, each with at least 22 years of service in the Army, Royal Marines, Royal Air Force, or Royal Navy. But the similarities end there. The Bodyguard, residing across the British Isles, is called to duty for ceremonial occasions: the State Opening of Parliament, the Garter Service, Royal Maundy, garden parties, investitures, coronations, royal weddings, state funerals, and diplomatic receptions, all managed from St James’s Palace. In addition to these occasional ceremonial duties, most Yeomen of the Guard are retired or hold civilian careers.

For information about the Yeoman Warders, please visit the Tower Warders website or Facebook page.

Officers. See The Officers

The Yeomen of the Guard Story

The Yeomen of the Guard—a subject so steeped in English history that even the dustiest tome could hardly contain its grandeur and colourful characters! The story of England’s royal bodyguards is not merely a tale of swords and pageantry; it’s a tribute to the peculiar British genius for blending loyalty, spectacle, and that indefinable quality we might call duty, seasoned with a dash of ostentation. Let us, then, journey back to those early days, when rulers of all shapes, sizes, and degrees of sanity gathered loyal blades around them in a bid to keep both enemies and potential usurpers at arm’s length (or a spear’s length, at least).

From time immemorial, monarchs have craved protection, whether from rival claimants, wayward barons, or the occasional foreign invader with grand designs on their throne. The sovereign’s retinue has, at times, been as much a feature of English life as Sunday roast (obviously beef) or the sound of Big Ben (which, alas, they could not yet enjoy). One cannot help but marvel at the variety of these early bodyguards—a veritable tapestry of characters, some noble, some ignoble, and some, no doubt, with dubious dental hygiene.

Let us take our first step back to the Anglo-Saxon period, a rather rowdy time. Here, the only available security force was the militia, known as the fyrd, comprised of free men whose military obligations were more a matter of personal honour than land-bound feudal duty. This arrangement worked well enough until Canute the Great, evidently unimpressed by the haphazard martial spirit of his English subjects, introduced the huscarls, the nation’s first professional fighting men. Here we see the seeds of a professional army—a notion that must have caused no small degree of consternation among Anglo-Saxon traditionalists who viewed paid soldiers as a distinctly foreign extravagance.

Fast-forward to William the Conqueror, a man with both a profound sense of strategic planning and a knack for avoiding pitchfork-wielding mobs. After his victorious romp at Hastings, William wisely decided that one should never put all one’s eggs (or armed retainers) in one basket. Hence, he retained both the feudal army and the fyrd for occasions of national defence, a strategy that proved rather useful when defending against both Scots and unruly Normans.

The idea of a permanent guard, however, was slow to catch on. The English have long held a certain suspicion of “standing armies,” fearing that a monarch could, Heaven forbid, turn their swords against the very people they were sworn to protect. It was not until Edward III’s time that archers began to gain some permanence in royal employ. Known for their lethal prowess with the longbow, these archers proved their worth on countless battlefields, even as far afield as the storied fields of Poitiers, where they scattered French knights like so many leaves in the autumn wind.

By Richard II’s day, personal guards had taken on a rather different hue—sometimes quite literally. These early guards were recruited from the King’s most loyal subjects in Cheshire, a lawless region known for producing men who were unyieldingly loyal, if a tad undisciplined. Froissart, that most indefatigable chronicler, remarked that Richard kept some 10,000 of these chaps—a slight exaggeration, but nevertheless indicative of the impression they made.

Yet it wasn’t until 1485 that the guard became something recognizable as a permanent force. King Henry VII, with his eye on both security and grandeur, created the Yeomen of the Guard, whose presence lent both safety and spectacle to the royal household. Resplendent in their tunics, each embroidered with the Tudor rose, these guards not only protected the monarch but also lent an air of decorum to royal events—a welcome contrast, one imagines, to the rough-and-ready archers of earlier reigns.

Thus, the Yeomen of the Guard were formed to protect the newly crowned King Henry VII. In the centuries since, their steadfast commitment to the monarchy remains as immovable as ever. While they no longer bear the harquebus or a quiver of arrows from days of yore, nor guard the sovereign’s person in the literal sense, their pride and loyalty are unwavering. They are, after all, The King’s Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard—and they wear that title with the utmost reverence.

Today, the Yeomen of the Guard endure as both a symbol of loyalty and a nod to an England that once was: an England of pageantry, of duty, and of pride. They march with unwavering solemnity, a touch of historic grandeur threading through their every movement, embodying the timeless duty of a royal guard that serves not just to defend the sovereign, but to honour the nation itself.

Within this website is a detailed history of The Bodyguard and a wealth of published works by authorities such as Dr Anita Hewerdine, who's own family is associated with the Bodyguard by Drill Master George Joseph Hewerdine appointed in 1902.

For those intrigued by ceremonial details, fine descriptions of their uniforms and weaponry await within. We even lay to rest a few myths along the way. You may navigate by section for easy reference, or, should you be in possession of a leisurely afternoon and a flagon of ale, indulge in a deeper perusal. Either way, we hope you enjoy, and do share your thoughts with us through our Contact page.

Their uniforms are Tudor-inspired and scarlet red, with a unique shoulder belt—a carbine belt—originally designed to support the harquebus, a weapon of considerable heft. Though the harquebus has long since disappeared from use, the crossbelt remains, proudly worn.

Amongst their ranks, the Bodyguard boasts no less than seven holders of the Victoria Cross and hundreds of other gallantry awards, a remarkable testament to their distinguished history.

Pre-Creation

The Battle of Crécy, from a 15th-century illuminated manuscript of Jean Froissart's Chronicles

The earliest official royal bodyguard was the Sergeants-at-Arms, mounted guards established by Richard I in 1191, originally filled by the sons of knights. By the 15th century, however, their role had diversified and shifted, moving away from exclusive protection of the sovereign.

A distinct royal guard appears in English history in Edward I’s reign (1272–1307), described as “Crossbow men of the Household.” Their tenure was brief, however, soon eclipsed by the longbow, which was gaining prominence as the national weapon. In the records of Edward II’s reign, the term “Yeoman Archer” appears around 1485, describing “archers on foote for garde of the Kinge’s body who shall go before the Kinge as he traveleth through the countrye.”

Edward II expanded this guard of archers, establishing a degree of permanence, which every monarch since has maintained to some extent. Certainly, Henry V had his “Archers of the Household” accompany him to the battlefield, particularly in the heroic campaign of Agincourt in 1415. These archers continued until the austerity measures of Henry VI’s court in 1454, when the political turmoil of the Wars of the Roses curtailed all but the most hereditary appointments.

There had been a long dynastic power struggle even before the forty years of battles (Wars of the Roses) between the Wars of the Roses lineage from Edward III. Lionel, Duke of Clarence (York) and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. descendants of King Edward III. The feuding bloodlines, or Houses, the House of Lancaster (its badge being a red rose) and the House of York (its badge being a white rose) fought for the possession of the Crown of England and the power, wealth and influence that went with it. The Wars of the Roses began at St Albans in Pikeman and Longbowman wearing the a green tabard and green tights.

By 1455 and saw the weak Lancastrian King Henry VI (he often suffered from bouts of madness) deposed by the House of York and the new King, Edward IV, enthroned in 1461. In 1483, and seventeen battles later, a fourth King, Richard III (Lancastrian) became Sovereign of England but by now, and thousands dead in battle, the rival Houses wished for peace. The decision was that the throne should be offered to Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, on condition that he marry Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Edward IV, thus uniting the Houses of York and Lancaster and ending this costly war both in money and lives. Henry Tudor accepted the invitation and eventually embarked from Harfleur, France, for England in July 1485 with his “private guard of faithful followers,” and a small military force of about 2000 men. Being himself of Welsh extraction, most of his adherents being Welshmen, and his private guard being Welsh born, it was but natural that Henry Tudor selected Wales as his base. He stepped ashore at the village of Dale in Milford Haven on the 1 August 1485; he was soon joined by the Welsh, who flocked to his Standard. With an increasing force Henry pressed forward to attack King Richard III.

Creation of The Yeomen of The Guard

On the Eve of St Bartholomew's Day, 22 August 1485, they met at the Battle of Bosworth Field. Richard III was killed and it is said that the Royal crown, that he had worn over his helmet on the battle field, was found in a hawthorn bush by Henry’s “private guard”. The crown was placed on the head of Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, who was then and there Richard IIIhailed as King Henry VII of England. This historical episode was commemorated in the Henry VII Chapel, Westminster Abbey, by his son Henry VIII after his death in 1509. There, in its stained glass windows can be seen at the present day, the design of the Crown on theTop left hand corner of the Standard displays the Badge of Henry VII which is depicted by a hawthorn bush, the English Crown and the initials HR on either side of the bush. hawthorn bush under the Tudor rose, with the initials HR on the sides. From Bosworth, King Henry proceeded to Leicester and thence to London, where, on the 1st September, he attended a thanksgiving service at St Paul’s Cathedral, and deposited there the three Standards under which he had fought and those he had captured on the field of battle. Hall, the historian, described them minutely, “The first had an Image of St George; the second, ‘a Fiery Dragon beaton on white and green sarsenet,’ the Ensign of Cadwaladr, the last King of the Britons; the third was of ‘Yellow Tartine’ on which was painted a ‘Donne Kowe’ which being interpreted means dun cow.” Henry VII was surrounded by his “private guard” of fifty men, now known as the Yeomen Guard or the Yeoman Archers.

It may well be asked why Henry did not retain the name “Archers” of the Guard, seeing that it was these archers who had become the terror of the men-at-arms and won the glorious victories of Crecy and Poitiers, and defeated the hitherto invincible mailed cavalry. Historians of the time say that there is no doubt King Henry VII conferred the title of Yeomen of the Guard as a proclamation to the people that he had selected his body-guard not from the nobility, but from that class just below them who had proved themselves as the national strength of the country at home and abroad. In the pardons granted by the King on his Badge of the House of HanoverAccession, this class is described as “Yeomen or Gentlemen just below the rank of Esquire.” Such was the status of the Yeomen of the fifteenth century.

Since its creation as a permanent Corps, the Bodyguard has an absolutely unbroken history of 539 years; for even during the brief period of The Commonwealth between 1649-1659 it continued to serve with King Charles II during his enforced absence in France, and at the Restoration accompanied him on his return to England, took its historic place in his triumphal entry into London, and stood around him at his immediate Coronation. It is certain, therefore, that Henry VII created The Body Guard between The Battle of Bosworth on 22 August and the 18 September 1485 when a warrant was issued to a William Browne:

“To William Browne, Yeoman of the King’s Guard, for good service that our humble and faithful servant hath heretofore done unto us us well beyond the seas as at our late Victoreuse journeye”

The King took the occasion of the great ceremony of his Coronation on the 31 October to let it be known that the Yeomen of the Guard who attended him were not for his personal protection, but for the upholding of the dignity and grandeur of the English Crown in perpetuity, his successors, the Kings and Queens of England, for all time. The full title of the Guard in the old Latin MSS Warrants of the Tudor period is:

Valecti Garde (Corporis) Domini Regis" “Yeomen of the Guard (of our Body) of our Lord the King”

The designation “Yeoman” is of interest, as it was introduced for the first time into the Bodyguard upon the institution of this permanent body. As far as the etymology of the word is concerned, the most probable origin is believed to be a derivation from “gau”, meaning “district” and the word “man” signifying “man of the district”.

The term “yeoman” had for some time been applied to subordinate members of the sovereign’s household, but previous body guards had been designated “The Cross-Bowmen of the Household”, “Archers of The Guard”, “Archers of the Crown”, “Archers of the Household”, “The Body Archers”, or “The King’s Bowmen”. The 14th and 15th centuries, the golden period of English agriculture, saw the rise and prominence of the yeoman class and its recognition by the State. They lived well and in the winter did not have to contend with the hunger and cold endured by those who served them. Thus they were well suited to make fine soldiers, for as a wise statesman propounded "To make good infantry it requireth men bred not in a servile and indigent fashion, but in some free and plentiful manner". The rewards granted took the form of appointments, such as bailiffs of certain towns, keepers of parks or castles, carrying emoluments, fees, commodities and profits.

The title of “The King’s (previously The Queen’s) Bodyguard of the Yeomen of The Guard” has persisted to the present day, though during the Victorian era it had been altered to “The Royal Guard”. Before leaving the subject of correct designations, it is intriguing to discover the origin of misapprehensions, which have arisen in relation to the Yeomen of The Guard. A common acceptation of the work “yeoman” as coming from the “yeu”, the wood from which bows were then made, is as incorrect as the assumption that the yew trees of this country provided the source of our bows. In fact the best bows were imported from abroad, being made from yew trees grown slowly on high ground in a dry climate.

Similarly, the nickname of “Beefeaters” as applied to the Yeomen has been misquoted in its origin. The authentic source of the misnomer is to be found in the narration by Count Cosmo, the Grand Duke of Tuscany, on his travels in England in the 17th century. The Count was frequently at court in 1669, and in referring to the Yeomen of The Guard, he stated: - They are called ‘Beefeaters’, that is Eaters-of-Beef, of which a considerable portion is allowed them daily by the Court. The nickname was evidently in use at about that time, as it is on record that a respected member of parliament ironically applied it to the Yeomen of The Guard in a speech made in the House of Commons on the 9th November 1685. See The Beefeaters

The Yeoman State Dress worn is, in its most striking characteristics, the same as it was in Tudor time some 530 years ago. Because so few changes have taken place in the accoutrements of The Guard, it is not difficult to envisage its appearance through a great part of English history. Although in 1809 the ancient records of The Guard were destroyed during a disastrous fire at St James’ Palace, enough information has been compiled from other sources to provide a vivid description. It consists of:

Voluminous royal scarlet tunic trimmed with imperial purple velvet, embroidered with real gold thread. Sometimes the sleeves have been fuller, the skirts longer, otherwise it is identical with the first coat.

Scarlet (sometimes white) stockings. In recent years we have been able to wear tights.

Scarlet knee breeches with a small red, white and blue rosette on the outside of each knee.

White ruff hand-made of starched cotton.

Black shoes with large red, white and blue rosettes.

Round low-crowned dark-purple or black velvet hat with red, white and blue ribbons.

The weight of the tunic, breaches, hat and ruff combined is 16lbs (7.2kg); the sword weights 1lb (.45kg) and the partisan weights 7lbs (3.15kg). The total marching weights of The Body Guard kit weighs 24lbs (10.8kg). See Uniforms & Weapons

Recruitment and Diversity

Since its inception The Bodyguard has been headed by a Captain of the Guard; an important and highly prized position that grew in power as successive Captains were appointed a member of the Privy Council and Vice-Chamberlain, thus, becoming the executive-officer of the Lord Chamberlain. Other officers of The Bodyguard in descending order are Lieutenant, Clerk of the Cheque and Adjutant, Ensign or Standard Bearer, and the Exon. Non-commissioned officers are Messenger Sergeant Major, Divisional Sergeant Major, Yeoman Bed Goer, Yeoman Bed Hanger and Yeomen. Confusingly, several of the serving Yeomen are also commissioned officers. Some commissioned from the ranks during regular service, others after completing regular armed forces service by joining the Royal Marines, Army, Royal Navy or Royal Air Force reserve units throughout the country.

Common to all Yeomen is at least 22 years service in the regular armed forces and to have attained the rank of sergeant though the majority have gone on to serve as warrant officers or commissioned officers. However, as ex-rankers, they are not eligible to service as an officer in the Bodyguard.

Recruitment to the Yeomen of The Guard until 1823 was by purchase and the majority of The Guard were civilian. From 1830 candidates must have served in the Army or Marines.

Even in 1855 The Bodyguard practiced diversity when they appointed the first, or at least the first documented, amputee and again in 1864. See their stories below. This is evidence that disability is not a necessarily a restriction to joining The Bodyguard. So long as a Yeomen can march, manoevour stairs, stand for two hours, was at least a Sergeant on disharge and received the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal it's worth applying. Can't put on your uniform with one arm? We practice the buddy-buddy system, not an issue.

Sergeant John Breese DCM, 11th Hussars, enlisting in March 1841. Breese finds himself in the thick of the Crimean War, a conflict that tested the mettle of even the bravest souls. The date is 5 November 1854, and amidst the chaos and carnage of the Battle of Inkermann, Breese suffers a grievous wound, losing his right arm. Yet his indomitable spirit shines through, and for his extraordinary bravery, he is recommended for the Distinguished Conduct Medal on 10 January 1855, accompanied by a modest gratuity of £10. Imagine the scene on 18 May 1855: Horse Guards Parade, the air thick with anticipation, as Queen Victoria herself presents Breese with his Crimea Medal. A moment of sheer triumph, immortalized in history. That same year, recognizing his exceptional service, Breese is appointed to the Queen's Body Guard.

Fast forward to 25 October 1875, Breese attends the First Balaklava Banquet. Although not a survivor of the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade, his presence is a testament to his enduring legacy. By 1885, Breese has ascended to the rank of Sergeant Major of the 4th Division of the Guard, a position of great honour and responsibility.

On 11 October 1889, John Breese died. His medals, which include the DCM, the Queen's Crimea Medal with clasps for Alma, Inkermann, and Sebastopol, and the Turkish Crimea Medal, are sold at Glendining's on 18 June 1929. These tokens of valour and bravery continue to tell the story of a man whose courage and dedication were unwavering.

Sergeant Major Peter McKenzie Hamilton DCM, MiD, Royal Artillery, enlisted 14 March 1850. Whilst fighting at the Battle of Rangiriri during the New Zealand wars Hamilton was wounded in the wrist and forearm. This major engagement in the invasion of Waikato took place on 20–21 November 1863. The wound lead to the amputation of his right forearm and discharge from the army in August 1864. Hamilton was Mentioned in Dispatches and received a war medal for Distinguished Conduct in the Field but was not entitled to a Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. On 16 September 1864 he was appointed to the Queen’s Body Guard and died 8 March 1898. He was entitled to the Queen's Jubilee Medal of 1887 and the clasp of 1897.