History Main / CadreOfForeignBodyguards

* ''Film/ConanTheDestroyer'': Zula becomes the captain of the guard of Queen Jehna at the end.

* In ''Literature/{{Victoria}}'', the tyrannical rulers of [[PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny Cascadia]] depend on foreign mercenaries, mostly Swedes and Czechs, to protect their persons and enforce their rule.

Part of the StandardRoyalCourt. Whether their charge is [[MyMasterRightOrWrong good or evil]], they'll stick to their [[IGaveMyWord oath of service]]. They are probably from a ProudWarriorRace and might be TheRemnant. Could overlap with BodyguardBabes if the babes are foreign. Usually does ''not'' accompany a BodyguardCrush. A subtrope to PraetorianGuard.

* As a ProudWarriorRace, the Noghri in ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' often appear in this role. Notably, the titular Grand Admiral in ''Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy'' invokes their species' debt to the Empire to secure their services as his bodyguards and assassins. In the same trilogy, Leia picks up a pair of Noghri bodyguards as well, due to her status as "Lady Vader." She keeps these bodyguards for years afterwards.

* ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'': Rand al'Thor--TheChosenOne of almost every prophecy on the planet--gains the Maidens of the Spear, an entire society of the Aiel {{Proud Warrior Race|Guy}}, as his honor guard after journeying to the Aiel Waste. All Aiel are infamous in the Western countries for being incredibly deadly warriors, but the Maidens are particularly invested in Rand for being [[spoiler:the son of a Maiden]] who publicly declared that they "carry [his] honor".

* ''Franchise/StarTrek'' occasionally showed Nausicaans serving in this capacity.
** Given his fearsome appearance, ProudWarriorRace reputation, and position as chief of security on a mostly-human crew, Worf in ''[[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration TNG]]'' tends to give off this image, especially when accompanying the away team.

In fiction, this is usually reserved for villains. The EvilOverlord, EvilChancellor, EvilPrince, and PresidentEvil all need foreigners to protect them because it's hard to trust your citizenry when you spend most of your day exploiting and oppressing them. Don't be surprised if they are commanded by TheDragon.

** The Phoenix Kings of the High Elves have traditionally been guarded by a contingent of Chracian White Lion Huntsmen, ever since an incident when the third Phoenix King � Caledor the Conqueror � had his life saved from Dark Elf Assassins while out hunting in Chrace himself. In that the Phoenix King is the sovereign ruler of Chrace along with the other nine kingdoms of Ulthuan, the White Lions are not mercenaries but loyal subjects, but since none of the twelve Phoenix Kings so far have ever been Chracians themselves, they're still foreign bodyguards in that sense.

** In the backstory, the [[SnakePeople Tsaesci]] of [[{{Wutai}} Akavir]] invaded Tamriel in the late 1st Era during the reign of Reman Cyrodiil. Reman was able to defeat them, using the [[MakeMeWannaShout Thu'um]] against them at the decisive Battle of Pale Pass. The Tsaesci, who detest all [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]], recognized Reman as "Dragonborn," who they believe to be the ultimate dragon slayers. They surrendered and swore fealty to Reman, who incorporated the surviving Tsaesci into his armies and took their Dragonguard on as his [[PraetorianGuard personal bodyguard]] in the fashion of this trope. They would go on to influence [[AncientOrderOfProtectors the Blades]], who would act as spies and bodyguards for all later emperors of Tamriel (at least until the 4th Era when they were forcibly disbanded as part of the [[WonTheWarLostThePeace White-Gold Concordant]]). By that point, there hadn't been any Tsaesci Blades in centuries, but later generations of the Blades still had strong influence from the Tsaesci. Blades armor, weapons, and architecture is all strongly influenced by the Tsaesci, who had a [[FantasyCounterpartCulture very Japanese aesthetic]] compared to the Tamriel's [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy largely European one]].

* In ''Fanfic/AThingOfVikings'', the Varangian Guard of the Byzantine Empire is a central focus for Snotlout's personal character plotline--and Snotlout ends up introducing Dragon-Riding to the Empire, who cheerfully adopt it as their new great weapon.
** They're not exactly "foreign", since the Norwegians and Berk are both Norse (and Ruffnut's originally from Berk), but after [[spoiler:Father Henriksson and the thanes' treachery]] is revealed, Magnus sends for Berkian bodyguards for [[Ruffnut and their children]].

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** In the backstory, the [[SnakePeople Tsaesci]] of [[{{Wutai}} Akavir]] invaded Tamriel in the late 1st Era during the reign of Reman Cyrodiil. Reman was able to defeat them, using the [[MakeMeWannaShout Thu'um]] against them at the decisive Battle of Pale Pass. The Tsaesci, who detest all [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]], recognized Reman as "Dragonborn," who they believe to be the ultimate dragon slayers. They surrendered and swore fealty to Reman, who incorporated the surviving Tsaesci into his armies and took their Dragonguard on as his [[PraetorianGuard personal bodyguard]] in the fashion of this trope. They would go on to influence [[AncientOrderOfProtectors the Blades]], who would act as spies and bodyguards for all later emperors of Tamriel (at least until the 4th Era when they were forcibly disbanded as part of the [[WonTheWarLostThePeace White-Gold Concordant]]).
*** Subverted as there hadn't been any Tsaesci Blades in centuries, but later generations of the Blades still had strong influence from the Tsaesci. Blades armor, weapons, and architecture is all strongly influenced by the Tsaesci, who had a [[FantasyCounterpartCulture very Japanese aesthetic]] compared to the Tamriel's [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy largely European one]].

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!!Examples

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* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_German_Bodyguard The Imperial German Bodyguard]], a cadre of Germans (from outside the borders of the UsefulNotes/TheRomanEmpire) whose job it was to guard the Julio-Claudian emperors. The most important thing they defended them from was the PraetorianGuard[[note]]who would later get a reputation for [[BodyguardBetrayal executing emperors]] who they judged incompetent[[/note]]. Yes, the early emperors of Rome had a group of bodyguards, [[WhoWatchesTheWatchmen whose job it was to protect them from their own bodyguards]].
** Particularly during the rather piecemeal conquest of Britain, which at times became one-tribe-at-a-time, the Romans would "gift" a cohort of legionaries to a tribal ruler who agreed to submit to Rome to serve as their bodyguards. Of course, guarding the new puppet ruler was a secondary priority. Their ''actual'' role was to keep an eye on the new subjects of the Empire and crush any resistance before it truly had a chance to begin.
* The UsefulNotes/ByzantineEmpire followed the Roman tradition, hiring personal guards during its long history from such diverse foreign ethnicities as Armenians, Kievan Rus, Scandinavians, Anglo-Saxons, Normans, Sicilians, and Turks. The most famous of these cadres was [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_army#Foreign_and_mercenary_soldiers The Varangian Guard]], which was first recruited from the Rus and later became a favoured career option for Scandinavians. After the Norman conquest of England, many Anglo-Saxons who were unwilling to submit to Norman rule migrated to Byzantium and joined the Varangian Guard. Unlike the Praetorian Guard, they were notoriously loyal, but [[LoyalToThePosition more to the position of Emperor than the individual]] (i.e. they'd try to stop any overt assassins, and never tried to assassinate an Emperor themselves, but if you succeeded in unseating an Emperor they'd serve your or your designated Emperor as well as they had his predecessor).
* The Western TropeCodifier today is likely the Swiss Guards that protect UsefulNotes/ThePope in UsefulNotes/VaticanCity, UsefulNotes/{{Rome}}. The silly pants may make them seem a little like {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}}s, but they were a terror on the battlefield in the late 1400s to early 1500s, and they retain their tradition faithfully. And while they ''look'' silly, anyone trying to do harm to His Holiness will come to realize, to their detriment, that they are ''highly'' trained military professionals--they have all completed basic training with the [[UsefulNotes/SwissWithArmyKnives Swiss Army]], are chosen according to exacting standards of physical fitness, and are given further training once they arrive in the Guards. And although they are most often seen with their ceremonial weapons (swords and halberds) for guard duty and for the tourists, this is in reality their version of the 18th-century uniforms worn by the BritishRoyalGuards; when actually guarding the Pope, they carry the standard-issue weapons of the Swiss Army: the SIG Sauer P220 handgun, the SIG SG 550 assault rifle, and the [=MP5=] submachine gun … and they wear more practical, monochrome uniforms while at it.
* The Keshik of the Mongol Empire were a diverse lot. Founded by UsefulNotes/GenghisKhan, Keshik were sworn to individual Khans, but not to the position itself. Because of this, each new Khan had to hire a new generation of Keshik. Genghis Khan's consisted of Han Chinese, Manchurians, Kazakhs, and fellow Mongols. Later Khans would hire an even more diverse array which at different points included Persians, Georgians, Armenians, Alans, Koreans, Italians, and Russians.
* The Gardes-Suisses (Swiss Guards) of the French kings, including the more ceremonial body-guards, the Cents-Suisses (Hundred Swiss). During the UsefulNotes/FrenchRevolution they, unlike the Gardes-Francaises (French Guards), who sympathized with the Revolution, remained true to Louis XVI and were killed during the storming of the Tuileries in 1792.
** The French monarchy also had the Garde Écossaise (Scots Guards), originally a company of knights and mounted archers part of a Scottish expeditionary force during UsefulNotes/TheHundredYearsWar that king Charles VII kept with him. With time they formally became his bodyguards, and, as their ranks were enlarged and filled with Frenchmen, became the first company of the Garde du Corps du Roi (Bodyguards of the King), the main cavalry regiment of the royal guard.
* [[UsefulNotes/NapoleonBonaparte Napoleon]]'s Imperial Guard included a squadron of Mamluks (the nucleus of which had been brought over from Egypt, although as time progressed more and more Frenchmen filled the ranks), a regiment of Polish lancers (raised in 1806/7), and a squadron of Lithuanian Tatars (raised in 1812). One squadron of Polish Lancers accompanied him to exile in Elba and later served in the Waterloo campaign.
* OlderThanFeudalism: King David's Kerethites and Pelethites (Cretans and Philistines) in 2 Samuel 15 in Literature/TheBible
* The Middle Eastern TropeCodifier may be the Circassian Guard which protects the King of Jordan. They are drawn from the Circassian people, which originate from north of the Black Sea before being scattered from their homeland. They continue to wear colder-climate uniforms, including wool hats, leather boots, and capes while guarding the kings of the desert country.
* During the [[UsefulNotes/RedOctober Russian Civil War]], the Red top brass was guarded by the Latvian Riflemen. Also, they got Chinese mercenaries -- usually converted from workers who ended up "marooned" when the empire gone down. These were also used in the guards role. which later was codified as the special unit: "The First International Legion of Red Army".
* African mercenaries seem to be the personal choice of many dictators, when the loyalty of their own army becomes suspect. Due to the frequent wars and disintegrating states in parts of African many of these are quite experienced and well equipped.
* The Ottoman Empire's Janissaries, who were Christian children enslaved at a young age from subject territories (mostly those in eastern Europe) and trained into elite military units. The system was engineered to create and ensure loyalty to the Ottoman Sultan alone and prevent the rise of a native military and bureaucratic aristocracy that could rival him. The several Janissary revolts happened once this way of recruiting loosened (as early as the end of the 16th century; it totally ended in the 18th).
** The Ottomans likely got this idea from the Ghilmans, slave-soldiers of Turkic origin used in Muslim Persia after the rise of the Abbasid dynasty, and the also-foreign-slave-soldier Mamluks of Egypt. Similarly to the Janissaries, these ended up laxing their standards and getting locals involved, got too much temporal power and rebelled against their rulers (or, in the case of the Mamluks, ''became'' the rulers).
* King of Poland John Sobieski used former Janissaries taken as [=POWs=] as part of his ''[[BadassArmy Autorament]]''.
* The Walloon Guards, which protected the Spanish monarchs from 1734 to 1820. They were drawn from the Walloon people of Belgium.
* [[SubvertedTrope In a subversion of the expectation that foreign troops would be above palace intrigue,]] in 1373 the ruling regent of Cyprus, John of Antioch, was convinced by his sister-in-law, Eleanor, that his Bulgarian bodyguards were going to betray him, and had them all thrown off the highest tower of St Hilarion Castle. Eleanor had him killed a very short time later.
* The Presidential Guard of Gabon was staffed until the late 90s by veterans of the French Foreign Legion, particularly the disbanded 1st Parachute Regiment. One of them, Louis-Pierre "Loulou" Martin, served President Omar Bongo from 1967 to 1993.
* Watchguard International (established by SAS founder David Stirling) used to supply ex-SAS and British military bodyguards for African and Arabian leaders. The suggestion has been made that this was an unofficial means of maintaining a British presence in former colonies who might find it politically unacceptable to ask for British military aid.
* During the UsefulNotes/SpanishCivilWar, the Nationalists' ''regulares'', colonial troops drawn from the native populations of Spain's North African colonies, so distinguished themselves in battle that after the war Franco formed a personal guard known as the ''Guardia Mora'' (Moorish Guard), who dressed in exotic native uniforms and rode white Arabian horses.
* Gallowglasses (Irish *gall óglach*, literally "young foreign soldier") were originally Norse/Scots warriors brought to Ireland as mercenary regiments and bodyguards for Gaelic Kings and lords. As they settled in the country for generations and became an indispensable fixture of warfare, they became more of an elite class of heavy infantry, with many recruits being native-born.
* [[https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/two-gun-cohen-the-chinese-general-who-swung-the-un-vote-665125 Two-Gun Cohen]], the Polish-born British, Canadian, and Jewish bodyguard to Dr. Sun Yat Sen.
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* Gallowglasses (Irish *gall óglach*, literally "young foreign soldier" were originally Norse/Scots warriors brought to Ireland as mercenary regiments and bodyguards for Gaelic Kings and lords. As they settled in the country for generations and became an indispensable fixture of warfare, they became more of an elite class of heavy infantry, with many recruits being native-born.

* The Western TropeCodifier today is likely the Swiss Guards that protect UsefulNotes/ThePope in UsefulNotes/VaticanCity, UsefulNotes/{{Rome}}. The silly pants may make them seem a little like {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}}s, but they were a terror on the battlefield in the late 1400s to early 1500s, and they retain their tradition faithfully. And while they ''look'' silly, anyone trying to do harm to His Holiness will come to realize, to their detriment, that they are ''highly'' trained military professionals--they have all completed basic training with the [[UsefulNotes/SwissWithArmyKnives Swiss Army]], are chosen according to exacting standards of physical fitness, and are given further training once they arrive in the Guards. And although they are most often seen with their ceremonial weapons (swords and halberds) for guard duty and for the tourists, this is in reality their version of the 18th-century uniforms worn by the BritishRoyalGuards; when actually guarding the Pope, they carry the standard-issue weapons of the Swiss Army: the SIG Sauer P220 handgun, the SIG SG 550 assault rifle, and the MP5 submachine gun … and they wear more practical, monochrome uniforms while at it.

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* The Western TropeCodifier today is likely the Swiss Guards that protect UsefulNotes/ThePope in UsefulNotes/VaticanCity, UsefulNotes/{{Rome}}. The silly pants may make them seem a little like {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}}s, but they were a terror on the battlefield in the late 1400s to early 1500s, and they retain their tradition faithfully. And while they ''look'' silly, anyone trying to do harm to His Holiness will come to realize, to their detriment, that they are ''highly'' trained military professionals--they have all completed basic training with the [[UsefulNotes/SwissWithArmyKnives Swiss Army]], are chosen according to exacting standards of physical fitness, and are given further training once they arrive in the Guards. And although they are most often seen with their ceremonial weapons (swords and halberds) for guard duty and for the tourists, this is in reality their version of the 18th-century uniforms worn by the BritishRoyalGuards; when actually guarding the Pope, they carry the standard-issue weapons of the Swiss Army: the [[CoolGuns/{{Handguns}} SIG Sauer P220 handgun]], the [[CoolGuns/AssaultRifles SIG SG 550 assault rifle]], and the [[CoolGuns/SubmachineGuns MP5]] submachine gun … and they wear more practical, monochrome uniforms while at it.

A character of great power or wealth has their importance underscored by having a cadre of bodyguards from a foreign land. These guards will be elite, disciplined, faintly exotic, and extremely competent.

*** Subverted as there hadn't been any Tsaesci Blades in centuries, but later generations of the Blades still had strong influence from the Tsaesci. Blades armor, weapons, and architecture is all strongly influenced by the Tsaesci, who had a [[FantasyCounterpart very Japanese aesthetic]] compared to the Tamriel's [[StandardFantasyWorld largely European one]].

* ''Film/AustinPowers'' has Dr. Evil and Random Task, a parody of Oddjob.

* In ''Film/KaamelottPremierVolet'', tyrant Lancelot hires a bunch of Saxon mercenaries led by Horsa to help enforce his ReignOfTerror. They're expensive, but they're also good at their job, which is something quite rare in the MedievalMorons-[=populated=] kingdom of Logres. Also, there's Quarto the slave merchant, who has two idiotic Visigoth henchmen/bodyguards.

* The Western TropeCodifier today is likely the Swiss Guards that protect the Pope. The silly pants may make them seem a little like {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}}s, but they were a terror on the battlefield in the late 1400s to early 1500s, and they retain their tradition faithfully. And while they ''look'' silly, anyone trying to do harm to His Holiness will come to realize, to their detriment, that they are ''highly'' trained military professionals--they have all completed basic training with the [[UsefulNotes/SwissWithArmyKnives Swiss Army]], are chosen according to exacting standards of physical fitness, and are given further training once they arrive in the Guards. And although they are most often seen with their ceremonial weapons (swords and halberds) for guard duty, this is in reality their version of the 18th-century uniforms worn by the BritishRoyalGuards; when actually guarding the Pope, they carry the standard-issue weapons of the Swiss Army: the [[CoolGuns/{{Handguns}} SIG Sauer P220 handgun]], the [[CoolGuns/AssaultRifles SIG SG 550 assault rifle]], and the [[CoolGuns/SubmachineGuns MP5]] submachine gun … and they wear more practical, monochrome uniforms while at it.

* In ''ComicStrip/LittleOrphanAnnie'', Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks has Punjab and the Asp, an [[SimSimSalabim Indian Mystic]] and [[AllAsiansKnowKungFu East Asian martial artist]] respectively.

* In ''Manga/KenganAshura'', which resolves around lethal underground martial arts matches fought between corporate elites to resolve shady business deals or lawsuits outside the public eye, a considerable amount of the fighters work as bodyguards or bouncers in their daily life, and despite the innocent-sounding job description, most of them are ''terrifying'' people [[EvenEvilHasStandards with a personal set of standards]] that ''rarely'' extend to their opponent's safety. [[BoxingBattler Kaolan Wongsawat]], [[TheChampion Agito Kanoh]] and [[MasterOfAll Rolón Donaire]] are all among the strongest fighters in the series, with their main occupation being the personal bodyguards of billionaires. A case of TruthInTelevision, as many professional MMA fighters, boxers, amateur athletes and powerlifters work bodyguard or bouncing jobs in RealLife to rake in the cash to support their main occupation.