Author Topic: The World's Smallest Army (Read 7116 times)

islander · « **on:** March 14, 2013, 05:37:10 PM »

The Pontifical Swiss Guard is the army of the State of Vatican. Currently, it has a total of 135 soldiers.

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islander · « **Reply #1 on:** March 14, 2013, 05:52:44 PM »

some details of the Pontifical Swiss Guard:

Active: 22 January 1506 â€“ present (507 years)

Country: Vatican City

Branch: Army

Type: Foot Guards

Role: Close Protection

Garrison/HQ: Vatican City

Patron/s: Martin of Tours, Saint Sebastian, Nicholas of FlÃ¼e

Motto: "Acriter et Fideliter" (Fiercely and Faithfully)

Colors: Red, Yellow & Blue

Engagements: Sack of Rome (1527)

wikipedia/

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islander · « **Reply #2 on:** March 14, 2013, 05:55:03 PM »

The Pontifical Swiss Guard is not only the world's smallest army, it is also the oldest.

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islander · « **Reply #3 on:** March 14, 2013, 06:03:47 PM »

The uniforms of the Pontifical Swiss Guard

The regular duty uniform is more functional, consisting of a simpler solid blue version of the more colorful tri-color grand gala uniform, worn with a simple brown belt, a flat white collar and a black beret. (wikipedia)

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islander · « **Reply #4 on:** March 14, 2013, 06:27:03 PM »

the gala uniform:

Headwear is typically a black beret for daily duties, such as guard duty or drill

A black or silver morion helmet with red, white, yellow and black, and purple ostrich feather is worn for ceremonial duties, such as high ceremonial occasions as their annual swearing in ceremony or reception of foreign heads of state

The officers wear crimson uniforms

wikipedia/

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Confused Seuss · « **Reply #5 on:** March 14, 2013, 06:53:48 PM »

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islander · « **Reply #6 on:** March 14, 2013, 07:08:28 PM »

Comb morion silver headwear is for high occasions...

...such as the announcement of a new Pope

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islander · « **Reply #7 on:** March 14, 2013, 07:14:03 PM »

During cold or inclement weather, a dark blue cape is worn over the regular uniform.

wikipedia/

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islander · « **Reply #8 on:** March 14, 2013, 11:39:24 PM »

The tailors of the uniforms work inside the Pontifical Swiss Guard barracks and tailor-make the uniform for each guardsman individually. The uniform weighs 8 pounds (3.6 kg), and may be the heaviest uniform in use by any standing army today. The Renaissance style makes them one of the most complicated to construct. A single uniform requires 154 pieces and takes nearly 32 hours and 3 fittings to complete. (wikipedia)

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islander · « **Reply #9 on:** March 15, 2013, 12:35:40 AM »

Equipment of the Pontifical Swiss Guard:

Traditional arms

Sword

Command baton

Partisan

Flamberge

Cuirass with spaulders

Cuirass - a defense for the front and back of the torso. The front part is often referred to as the breastplate, although a cuirass can also include a plackard. Derived from the French word for â€œleather,â€ as early cuirasses were made from leather.

Spaulders - armor that covers the point of the shoulder and the upper arm. Spaulders are often replaced by pauldrons in later armors. Derived from the French word for â€œshoulder.â€

Modern arms

Dreyse M1907 (Retired from service)
SIG P220 (P75)
Glock 19
Heckler & Koch MP5A3
Heckler & Koch MP7A1
SIG SG 550
SIG SG 552

wikipedia/ and other image sources

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islander · « **Reply #10 on:** March 15, 2013, 11:08:21 AM »

Recruitment

Recruits to the guards must be Catholic, single males with Swiss citizenship who have completed basic training with the Swiss military and can obtain certificates of good conduct.

Recruits must have a professional degree or high school diploma and must be between 19 and 30 years of age and at least 174 cm (5 ft, 8.5 in) tall.

In 2009, the Pontifical Swiss Guard commandant, Daniel Anrig, suggested that the Guard might someday be open to recruiting women, but he added that the admission of female recruits remained far in the future.

Members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard at the Bronze Door in Vatican City

note: i noticed that they speak good english. (jawohl, i tried to make them talk, and they did. ) german is their mother tongue but i expect that they must speak italian too.

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islander · « **Reply #11 on:** March 15, 2013, 11:19:46 AM »

Qualified candidates must apply to serve. If accepted, new guards are sworn on May 6 every year in the San Damaso Courtyard (Italian: Cortile di San Damaso) in the Vatican (May 6 is the anniversary of the Sack of Rome). The chaplain of the guard reads aloud the oath in the language of the guard (mostly German, but there are Italian, French and English versions of the oath):

(English version) "I swear I will faithfully, loyally and honourably serve the Supreme Pontiff [name of actual Pope] and his legitimate successors, and also dedicate myself to them with all my strength, sacrificing if necessary also my life to defend them. I assume this same commitment with regard to the Sacred College of Cardinals whenever the See is vacant. Furthermore I promise to the Commanding Captain and my other superiors, respect, fidelity and obedience. This I swear! May God and our Holy Patrons assist me!"

When his name is called, each new guard approaches the Pontifical Swiss Guard's flag, grasping the banner in his left hand. He raises his right hand with his thumb, index, and middle finger extended along three axes, a gesture that symbolizes the Holy Trinity, and speaks:

(English version) "I, [name of the new guard], swear diligently and faithfully to abide by all that has just been read out to me, so grant me God and so help me his Saints."

wikipedia/

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islander · « **Reply #12 on:** March 15, 2013, 11:26:56 AM »

swearing in ceremony

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islander · « **Reply #13 on:** March 15, 2013, 11:28:25 AM »

The term of service is between 2 and 25 years.

Conditions of service

Regular guardsmen (hellebardiers) receive a tax-free salary of 1300 euros per month plus extra pay for hours worked overtime. In addition, accommodation and boarding are provided. (wikipedia)

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islander · « **Reply #14 on:** March 15, 2013, 12:07:30 PM »

The Swiss Guardâ€™s unique status as both a fully functional security force and a ceremonial, historic military unit is reflected in its entrance requirements.

In addition to more standard items such as completion of basic Swiss military training and service and an age of under 30 years, the entry requirements currently posted on the Guardâ€™s website also include items such as Catholic faith, Swiss nationality, â€œirreproachable reputation,â€ and celibacy until the age of 25, then only to be abandoned by those having achieved the rank of Corporal. (http://romaistanbul2010.blogspot.com/)

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islander · « **Reply #15 on:** March 15, 2013, 12:09:01 PM »

Perhaps due to these rigorous requirements, sources indicate that the Guard has faced a degree of difficulty in filling their ranks in recent years, and recruitment efforts have been stepped up across Switzerland to ensure the ongoing survival of this elite military force.

One guard in the late 1990s, asked whether or not he enjoyed his post, simply replied "Not really. We have a midnight curfew, and if you want to go to discotheques or pick up girls, it's not great,â€ a statement which clearly points to shifting social and cultural values as factors in the increasing difficulty of recruitment. (http://romaistanbul2010.blogspot.com/)

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islander · « **Reply #16 on:** March 15, 2013, 01:00:37 PM »

why is their uniform "that way"? (an american online commenter's words: "in america, it's called a clown.")

The official dress uniform is of blue, red, orange and yellow with a distinctly Renaissance appearance. Commandant Jules Repond (1910â€“1921) created the current uniforms in 1914.

While both Michelangelo and a painting of the Pontifical Swiss Guard bearing Pope Julius II on a litter (by Raphael) are often cited as inspiration for the Pontifical Swiss Guard uniform, the actual uniforms worn by those soldiers are of the style which appears by today's standards as a large skirt, a common style in uniforms during the Renaissance.

A very clear expression of the modern Pontifical Swiss Guard uniform can be seen in a 1577 fresco by Jacopo Coppi of the Empress Eudoxia conversing with Pope Sixtus III. It is clearly the precursor of today's recognizable three-colored uniform... (wikipedia)

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islander · « **Reply #17 on:** March 15, 2013, 01:05:46 PM »

precursors of the swiss guard uniform, as painted:

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Lollapalooza · « **Reply #18 on:** March 15, 2013, 01:37:53 PM »

swearing in ceremony

Greetings Alien... I come in PEACE

..... Thanks Madam CJ for this thread... It's interesting

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islander · « **Reply #19 on:** March 15, 2013, 03:48:30 PM »

hehehe, the monologue that made my day. thanks too, loll. parison ra gyod mong pikoy sa kahanggaw.

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islander · « **Reply #20 on:** March 15, 2013, 04:35:17 PM »

pa-clown-clown ra na silag sinena, but they're really badasses. in real dire situations, one's best defense against them is speed in flight of foot. wa na lang sa maka-tetanus nang ilang weapon nga partisan.

Today, the Swiss Guard is in every respect a world class security force, akin less to an army than to the United States Secret Service â€“ they operate behind the scenes as well as filling their more public roles, accompanying the pope and patrolling his palace in plain clothes. Supplementing their traditional halberds and swords is the weaponry of the modern Swiss Army, â€œsuch as the H&K submachine gun and the SIG Sauer 9 mm pistol;â€ Guards â€œalso train at close-quarters fightingâ€¦ tactical movementâ€¦ security and counter-terrorism techniques.â€ While their modern guns and specialized training are not visible to the eye of the tourist, they are readily available to the Guards at all times should they have the need to employ them. (http://romaistanbul2010.blogspot.com/)

pepper-spraying swiss guard. uh-huh, those freakin' photoshops...

this time it's real

a touching scene

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islander · « **Reply #21 on:** March 15, 2013, 05:18:28 PM »

vatican tourists photo ops

next to impossible man gyod intawon nga makapa-picture ang tourist with the pope gawas kun cardinal ka or visiting head of state, aw, there's always the swiss guard.

It has also increasingly come to serve a public relations role of sorts: today, the brightly uniformed guards represent a historic tourist attraction in and of themselves, and are the most visible representatives of the Vatican on a day to day level. (http://romaistanbul2010.blogspot.com/)

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islander · « **Reply #22 on:** March 15, 2013, 05:22:29 PM »

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islander · « **Reply #23 on:** March 15, 2013, 05:23:34 PM »

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hubag bohol · « **Reply #24 on:** March 17, 2013, 01:33:09 PM »

Pope Francis walks past a Swiss guard as he arrives for a meeting with the media at the Pope VI hall, at the Vatican, Saturday, March 16, 2013. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

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