The Sovereign's Bodyguard Trivia Quiz

Answer: Henry VIII

The Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms was founded by Henry VIII following his accession in 1509. Originally named as the "Troop of Gentlemen", the corps was intended by the King to serve as his nearest personal guard, formed by cadets (younger sons) from noble families and the highest levels of the gentry, as opposed to the bodyguard founded by his father, which was made up of yeomen.

The Troop of Gentlemen saw action at the Battle of the Spurs during the King's expedition to France in 1513, as well as accompanying him to the Field of Cloth of Gold in 1520, both of which were subsequently adopted by the corps as battle honours.

As a body of men from the aristocracy, the Troop of Gentlemen was able to be used as a cadre of officers for service overseas when required.

Answer: Battleaxe

When originally formed as the Troop of Gentlemen, the corps was a mounted formation armed with lances and spears. However, from 1526 onwards they were converted into infantry, with their lances swapped for long battleaxes, which are retained as part of the uniform and equipment of the corps to this day.

The battleaxes currently carried by members of the corps are over 300 years old and, when not being used, are kept at the corps' headquarters at St James's Palace in London, where they are maintained by the Axekeeper, who is also responsible for the day to day administration of the corps' mess.

Answer: Edgehill

Although the corps has always primarily been a ceremonial body, it has seen active service, with both the Battle of the Spurs and the Siege of Boulogne carried on its standard as battle honours. The corps saw service during the English Civil War, protecting both King Charles I and his sons. During the Battle of Edgehill in 1642, the twelve year old Prince of Wales was observing on the fringes of the battle when it became apparent that the Parliamentary forces were advancing through the lines of the King's army, at which point the King ordered that his son be moved to safety.

However, cavalry of the Earl of Essex were able to get close enough to the Prince that one of his escorts, Gentleman Matthews, was forced to deal with the advancing troopers using his poleaxe.

Answer: Henry VII

Following the victory of Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth, and his subsequent proclamation as King Henry VII, the new king decided that, owing to his precarious position, he required a force of bodyguards personally loyal to him to ensure his own safety.

As a result, he formed a new body, the Yeomen of the Guard of (the body of) our Lord the King, from the personal guards who had defended him, and indeed saved his life, during the melee at Bosworth. Following their formation, the first official act of the king's new bodyguard was to escort the King at his coronation. On 1 October 1485, 50 members of the Yeomen of the Guard, led by the Earl of Oxford, formally escorted Henry VII to his coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey.

Answer: Harquebus

As originally formed, the corps was a unit primarily of pikemen and archers, which is shown by the modern corps being equipped with the partizan, which is a long pike like weapon with a spearhead. However, during the reign of Henry VIII, the corps was equipped with the harquebus, which was an early type of matchlock musket originally developed during the late 15th century.

This type of weapon was incredibly heavy, and so required support in its use, which saw members of the corps issued with crossbelts to aid in the use of the Harquebus.

The crossbelt remains part of the corps' uniform, and is what distinguishes members of the Yeomen of the Guard from the Yeomen Warders of the Tower of London, who are a separate body.

Answer: Royal Navy

In order to join the ranks of the Yeomen of the Guard, members must fulfil certain criteria. The major ones are service in the armed forces of at least 22 years; reaching at least the rank of Sergeant or equivalent; and award of the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.

This was instituted in 1830, when it was laid down that members of the corps had to have served in either the British Army or the Royal Marines. The first candidate from the Royal Air Force was accepted in 1934. However, former members of the Royal Navy were excluded, primarily because recruits into the Senior Service do not swear an oath to the Crown.

This prohibition was lifted, with the first former member of the Royal Navy joining the corps in 2018.

Answer: George IV

The Royal Company was founded in 1676 during a period when military musters were held in Scotland twice a year. The company was formed, ostensibly as a recreational organisation, but with an underlying purpose as a military corps. The company received a royal charter from Queen Anne in 1704.

However, the company's direct service to the Crown only began in 1822, when they served as the personal guards to King George IV during his historic visit to Edinburgh, the first by a reigning monarch since 1650. Following the visit, the King appointed the Royal Company to serve as the sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland.

Answer: Gold Stick for Scotland

The position of Gold Stick is a senior one in the Royal Household, with the holder serving as a personal attendant to the Sovereign, entrusted with their safety. Today, the role of Gold Stick is largely ceremonial, with two Gold Sticks being appointed in England, these being the Colonels of the two regiments of the Household Cavalry.

There is also a Gold Stick for Scotland, who undertakes the same role for the Sovereign during his or her time north of the border. This person is also the Captain-General of the Royal Company, the senior officer in the company's ranks.

The Captain-General's equivalents in the other two corps, both referred to as the Captain, are government whips in the House of Lords.

Answer: Black Watch

During the course of its history, the Royal Company has worn a number of different uniforms, with its present one of dark green and black dating from the reign of Queen Victoria. From its inception to this point, the Royal Company's uniform was generally a tartan of some form, with a red tartan sett used between 1713 and 1746, when tartan was banned due to its association with the Jacobites. This prohibition was ended in 1783, and in 1789, the Royal Company adopted the tartan used by the 42nd Highlanders, the senior highland infantry regiment, which later came to be known as the Black Watch, a pattern consisting of black, dark blue and green.

Originally wearing just a tartan coat, George IV ordered that the Royal Company's entire uniform be tartan after appointing them as the bodyguard, which remained the case until the present uniform was adopted in 1863.

Answer: Dragoon Guards

The uniform of the Gentlemen at Arms is that of a Dragon Guards officer from the 1840s, and consists of a skirted red coatee (a waist length tunic with tails) with blue cuffs, dark blue cavalry trousers, a dragoon helmet with white swan feather plumes, and a cavalry sword.

The Yeomen of the Guard continue to wear a Tudor style uniform of scarlet doublet, knee length breeches and hose, plus a scarlet cross-belt, with a black, flat brimmed Tudor hat, and an infantry pattern sword. The Royal Company of Archers wears a uniform consisting of a dark green tunic laced with black mohair, dark green tight cut trousers, and a stiffened green Balmoral bonnet with an eagle feather as a plume, plus leather bow case and short, Roman-style sword.