History JustForFun / PoniesWithPikes

* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: The Northern Guards officers. Unlike most other branches of Royal Guards, the Nothern Guards' officers are almost exclusively made of senior NCO guardpony who have gotten battlefield commission.

* JustForFun/DaringDo tends to come across members of the Royal Guard once and a while on her travels. Unfortunately, most of them tend to be either [[ObstructiveBureaucrat obstructively stuffy]] about her snooping around everywhere or are simply [[PoliceAreUseless dumb as bricks]].

* [[EnsembleDarkhorse Ensemble Darkpony]]: Princess Luna's Own Night Guard, which has the unique and dubious honour of having been both an ally and an enemy to their comrades. Their [[CombatPragmatist pragmatic]], [[TheDeterminator tenacious]] and [[MyCountryRightOrWrong borderline-fanatical]] fighting style has earned them a certain degree of independence as a combat unit, and are rumoured, deep within their hearts, to not be a part of the REG after all.

* [[BritishRoyalGuards Equestrian Royal Guards]]: The TropeMaker. They are the origin of the stoic, not-moving-for-anypony guard archetype as is constantly portrayed in media. Originally practiced by the Celestian Guards, and still done today during royal visits.

* [[ItsRainingMen It's Raining Ponies]]: A natural outgrowth of the fact that a third of the Guard are pegasi.

* [[NoTrueScotsman No True Equestrian]]: Just like with their homeland[[note]] ("not ''truly'' a part of Equestria", etc)[[/note]], the Lance-Canids' allegiance to Canterlot is dubious only on paper; for the past half-century, they have diligently served alongside the other Royal Guardsponies as an 'independent' Equestrian regiment, though taking ''[[BoisterousBruiser extreme]]'' [[InvertedTrope pride]] in their freelance, mercenary-like image inside Equestria.

* [[ReassignedToAntarctica Reassigned to Stalliongrad]]: The TropeNamer; Stalliongrad is absolutely infamous for hostile weather, dangerous wildlife, relative desolation, and worst of all, bad food. Less than 10% of personnel stationed there are volunteers; the rest GotVolunteered for incompetence, insubordination, or cowardice. The reputation is so horrible that becoming a Northern Guard is sometimes presented as an alternative to prison. There was a rumor that Captain Shining Armor was going to be reassigned to Stalliongrad after his command's failure in Canterlot, but this was promptly squashed when the Crystal Empire returned.

The single most embarrassing moment in the 2000+ year history of the guard is widely considered to be the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 War for Equestria]] where it didn't just fail to protect Canterlot or the Princesses but ''[[EpicFail did not even get the chance to deploy]]'', leaving the Battle of Canterlot to be fought and won by a RagtagBunchOfMisfits (including [[EpicFail a con artist cat, a Hippogriff/Seapony Princess and]] ''a crew of 5 pirates'') rather than the 45,000 trained Equestrian soldiers. It's considered by many Equestrians to be a serious WhatTheHellHero moment. Again, the Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment is strictly enforced.

'''[[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment And this is all that will be said about this matter]].'''

Contrary to popular belief, Equestria ''has'' a substantial amount of chemical weapons in stock but whether or not to safely dispose of them [[BrokenBase remains a hot issue in Equestrian politics]] [[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment and should be treated with extreme caution]].

* [[ArmyOfThievesAndWhores Army of Thieves and Horses]]: Army of Thieves and Horses: The Northern Guard

* BadassDecay: Since the formation of the Element Bearers, the Guard has forfeited a lot of their power and influence in Equestria. '''[[Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment Moving on.]]'''

The single most embarrassing moment in the 2000+ year history of the guard is widely considered to be the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 War for Equestria]] where it didn't just fail to protect Canterlot or the Princesses but ''[[EpicFail did not even get the chance to deploy]]'', leaving the Battle of Canterlot to be fought and won by a RagtagBunchOfMisfits (including [[EpicFail a con artist cat, a Hippogriff/Seapony Princess and]] ''[[UpToEleven a crew of 5 pirates]]'') rather than the 45,000 trained Equestrian soldiers. It's considered by many Equestrians to be a serious WhatTheHellHero moment. Again, the Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment is strictly enforced.

* The Ducal Mustangia Cavalry AKA the Ducal Lance-Canids: (''If Not Us, Then No One Does'') A strictly Mustangian earth pony force "on indefinite lease" to the Royal Crown in Canterlot [[note]]Thus the prefix 'Ducal'[[/note]] since the formal peace of the Thirteen Years' War in 1631. The Lance-Canids started out as mercenary companies employed by the local Mustangian dukes, and united in the chaos of the 13 war years as a national guard to the seceding Duchy of Mustangia. Evidently, none of it lasted. ''Probably'' one of the most ferocious Earth Pony regiments out there. Wear woolen harnesses under their silver armour and [[NiceHat Nice plumed Caps]]. Their unit insignia is a red phoenix. Their headquarters are in Kiger, Mustangia.

* The Royal Provost Battalion: (''Harmony Through Justice, Justice Through Wisdom, Wisdom Through Harmony'') The 1200 pony-strong military police of the Guard (not to be confused with Gendarmerie detachs), who seem to dispatch in indefinite amount of zealous, but hopelessly inept [[TheInquisitorGeneral Inquisitors General]] to cause trouble in the ranks. Annoying at best and harrowing at worst, they have garnered a universal {{Hatedom}} and -- just as often as they seek to find things wrong with REG soldiers -- they serve as the common soldier's showcase of everything wrong with the Royal Guard[[note]]elitist and detached unicorn [[ArmchairMilitary [=COs=]]], aggressive and sadist pegasus [[TheNeidermeyer [=NCOs=]]], and thick and dull earth pony [[{{Mooks}} troopers]], etc..[[/note]]. On the other hand, [[SeriousBusiness they also make sure commercial production of foods and beverage respects the health laws (mercilessly cracking down on any breach)]], [[ActuallyPrettyFunny and are rumored to invent many of the jokes told on their battalion]] (telling them to their faces when they're in service still counts as a crime). Wear golden armour and helmets with red manes, which has led to the desultory nickname of "redcaps." Have a silver star badge as their unit insignia. Their HQ is in Hoofington.

-->-- '''[[AuthorsOfQuote Starswirl the Bearded]]''', on the fame and infamy of the EUP Guard.

For more information about this page, [[labelnote:click here.]]This page is not about RealLife armed forces, it's a parodical ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' version of a typical ForcesWithFirepower page. It follows the ''FIM'' continuity. Anyone can edit the page and add facts and bells and whistles to build a mythology around the famous Royal Guard, but remember that this is an In-Universe page, so all edits should be done from the POV of an Equestrian pony. Also, even though this is first and foremost a WordOfDante page, try not to stray any further from canon than necessary, or to a point that it outright conflicts with it. And while we're at it, try to make any new facts you bring in harmonize with what other users already edited, in order to make the whole collaborative mythology-building thing work. This page is a companion piece to ''JustForFun/{{Equestria}}'', so feel free to check it out and edit it as well.[[/labelnote]].

For more information about this page,[[labelnote:click here.]]This page is not about RealLife armed forces, it's a parodical ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' version of a typical ForcesWithFirepower page. It follows the ''FIM'' continuity. Anyone can edit the page and add facts and bells and whistles to build a mythology around the famous Royal Guard, but remember that this is an In-Universe page, so all edits should be done from the POV of an Equestrian pony. Also, even though this is first and foremost a WordOfDante page, try not to stray any further from canon than necessary, or to a point that it outright conflicts with it. And while we're at it, try to make any new facts you bring in harmonize with what other users already edited, in order to make the whole collaborative mythology-building thing work. This page is a companion piece to ''JustForFun/{{Equestria}}'', so feel free to check it out and edit it as well.[[/labelnote]].

* The Royal Signals and Reconnaisance Regiment: (attributed: ''To Know The Unknown Is To Win The Unwinnable'') [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial Does not exist]]. [[MemeticMutation But if it did]], [[SpyFromWeightsAndMeasures it would actually be the Royal Guard's military intelligence wing]]. As nopony is willing to officially confirm its existence, the scope of its activities is dubious [[note]]Usually, they claim to be in charge of the recon cavalries and maintaining communications between the units and Canterlot, but it's still certain that they have also carried out acts of sabotage on and behind frontlines, employ a large number of informers and spies on all sides of the border, specialise in analysis, research and decryption work to crack enemy intelligence, and sit on a stash of some intriguing, highly developed magic with seemingly no precedent or purpose. And all their work is highly classified in any case[[/note]]. They have their own task force though -- the Security Assistance Squadron, whose existence, surprisingly and quite ironically, ''has'' indeed been confirmed. Of course, they have no coat of arms or uniforms of their own. Thanks to their direct links to the Princely Offices, there is confusion about whether they can even be assumed part of the Guard proper. Their HQ is, of course, unknown. Canterlot would be a good guess, though.

* The Elements of Harmony AKA The Friendship Council: (''Friendship is Magic.'') A small team that exists outside of the normal chain of command founded in 2010 to combat the return of Nightmare Moon during the 1000th Summer Sun Celebration made up of Princess Twilight Sparkle (Magic/Friendship), Rainbow Dash (Loyalty), Fluttershy (Kindness), Pinkie Pie (Laughter), Applejack (Honesty), Rarity (Generosity) and any of their allies most notably Spike the Dragon and Starlight Glimmer, but can include anyone willing to help them out regardless of whether or not they are citizens of Equestria, ranging from a con artist cat and a group of pirates to Princess Celestia herself, who was originally the pony the team reported to but they have since gained total independence from the chain of command when Twilight the team leader was coordinated as Equestria's fourth Princess. It should be noted that as Rainbow Dash also happens to be the newest full member of the Wonderbolts membership in this team does not forbid simultaneous membership in other units. Their headquarters is in Ponyville, have no uniform of any kind and was officially renamed the Friendship Council by Princess Celestia during an interview following the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1 The Return]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 of Tirek]].

** [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Commander-In-Chief (Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, Years active: 115-2019; Princess Twilight Sparkle, Years active: 2019-)]] -- There is no higher authority in the country though it has become common to turn to either Princess Twilight (Leader of the Friendship Council) or Princess Cadance should both of the dyarchs be unavailable. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna retired in late 2019, handing both of their authority to Princess Twilight.

* 1006 (EUP Guard): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E1TheCrystalEmpirePart1 The Crystal War]]'': Everything began when the Crystal Empire, led by the rebellious Unicorn King Sombra, tried to expand its border into surrounding (Equestrian) Seaddle territory and enslave the local population. In the next two weeks, the Princess Sisters amassed a 7500 strong-army and marched against the city state, eventually pushing back an avid, yet undersupplied and unprepared Crystal Guard in the Battle of Horstings. King Sombra famously ordered to [[KickTheDog raze the conquered land as they retreated]]. The Crystal State itself was overrun [[CurbStompBattle very easily]], and the most spectacular event of the entire campaign was perhaps the Alicorn Sisters personally tracking down King Sombra during the retreat and sealing him under the Sir-Ascot-Glacier. Only about 400 ponies were lost on Equestria’s side, half of them civilian ponies of the surrounding lands. [[note]]The Crystal numbers themselves are unknown –--the Crystal Empire was lost to a spell as the Royal Guard was making preparations its formal annexation.[[/note]] That said, relationships with Griffonstone soured as part of the fallout of this campaign. The Griffons had close ties to the region, and when the Crystal Empire was lost in time, they blamed the Royal Sisters for this failure, particularly Princess Luna.

* 1618 -- 1631 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/ThirtyYearsWar Thirteen Years' War]]'': The escalation of tensions between the Equestrian Crown and the Griffon Union after Princess Celestia threw a [[DiplomaticImpunity misbehaving]] Griffon envoy [[ShootTheMessenger out a Throne Room window]]. [[note]]For the record, he ended up fine. Hopefully, the Princess knew that he could fly.[[/note]] Seeing this as an act of diplomatic impiety (and appreciating an opportunity to utilize some cutting-edge magic and technology), the Griffon Union declared war and landed ''èn masse'' on Equestria's eastern shores, venturing deep into Pony lands. The Griffons managed to capture the seaside fort of Rostrum, using it as a rally point for mercenaries[[note]]traditionally, the bulk of the Griffon fighting force[[/note]]. After the Royal Guard scrambled east to (futilely) prevent the Griffins advancing inland to Mustangia and ultimately Canterlot, the situation only grew worse when they were pushed back, which Mustangia took as an opportunity to try and secede from Equestria. As the war dragged on, the Griffons' own mercenaries began defecting and going rogue across the whole region. It took an entire decade for the fighting to die down and the respective sides to regroup behind their respective sides of the Grand Strait. Officially, the war was a draw, but cost all sides about 200,000 lives and a million ponies displaced.

* 1899 -- 1902 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar The Boors' War]]'': The last great attempt of Equestria to tame the Badlands. Setting up the colonies of Equitoria, the settlers soon found their biggest problem to be the native Diamond Dogs who lived under the earth and robbed towns, plundered supply routes and occasionally even abducted ponies as bounty. The EUP Guard was called in to safeguard the Pony settlers but was quickly overwhelmed with the Diamond Dogs' presence, who at that point had already resorted to irregular warfare (against the painfully rigid, outdated and unflexible tactics of the Guard) to great effect. Even though the Guard proceeded to increase their presence constantly over the months, the Badlands remained to be dangerous and utterly uninhabitable regions, last not but least because of such 'neutral' threats like dragons and hydras. Even though the casualties were minimal (less than 200), Princess Celestia essentially declared the cause not to be worth the trouble, sacked the responsible commanding officers, beat the retreat and reorganized the EUP Guard into the Equestrian Royal Guard, updating it for the modern world with new, more flexible tactics. To this day, there is some sort of unspoken [[note]] 'unspoken' because it is a ''massive'' OldShame[[/note]] agreement between the Diamond Dogs and Equestria that keeps Ponies (especially the Royal Guard) out and the Diamond Dogs in. The colonies are still there as well, but are destroyed beyond recognition.
* 1914 -- 1945 (Equestrian Royal Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI The Great]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Changeling War]]'': Under the directions of their new Queen, Chrysalis I, the Changeling empire made repeated, but fairly subtle attempts to expand into Equestrian territory. When Princess Celestia chose not to react [[note]]Basically, she did not want to start a war over the sparsely populated wasteland of the Frozen North a second time[[/note]], Chrysalis saw this as an allowance to swallow several whole counties. She invaded Northern Equestria, Mustangia, Germaneigh, Cowstria, and even swung over the Grand Strait to take Eastern Griffonstone, the southern region of Yugryphonia, and all of the Foallands from the air, and ultimately landed in Saddle Arabia, making entire continents her enemies in record time [[note]]Besides Griffonstone, Saddle Arabia and the Zebra Chiefdoms were quick to show their support for Equestria in a matter of hours[[/note]]. It was perhaps the most world-spanning conflict that Equestria took part in. Royal Guards from all over Equestria were ordered to march up north and fend off the Changelings' "thunder and lightning", as they themselves called this new, swift form of conquering land. Chrysalis made heavy use of terror and mind control to make the captured states her puppet countries, and managed to put the Guard under constant pressure over years in a row. However, thanks to the Guard making up in fervour and technology what the Changelings had in flexibility and numbers, the stalemate between the two sides was upheld. Soon, neither side could advance even a mere dozen miles. It was not until Griffonstone launched an all-out offensive from the east and successfully thinned out the Changelings’ ranks that the stalemate ended[[note]]This would be one of the last acts of a unified Griffonstone. Unbeknownst to Equestrian scholars, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E8TheLostTreasureOfGriffonstone a raid by Arimaspi]] of Tambelon stole the Idol of Boreas shortly after the end of the war, resulting in increasingly fractured griffon territories[[/note]]. Those Changeling colonies that didn’t retreat were retaken by the Guard in a matter of weeks. The Changelings ended up with less land than before the war, and were utterly humiliated by the winning powers. This built-up animosity still persists in present times. More than half a million ponies were taken out, and more than three Million lost their homes.

** '''The Invasion of Canterlot''': The surprise attack by Commander Tempest and the Storm Guard on Canterlot and the beginning of their invasion of Equestria, resulting in the petrification of Princesses Celestia, Luna and Cadance along with a Pegasus named Derpy "Muffins" Hooves, the escape of the Friendship Council who set out to get help from the Queen of the Hippos, the occupation of Canterlot, the enslavement of all ponies in town and the [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking interruption of the first ever Friendship Festival]].
** '''The Escape from Klugetown''': When Tempest tracks Twilight down to the home of a con artist cat named Capper in Klugetown on the far side of the Badlands after Twilight discovers that they are not looking for the Queen of the Hippos but the Queen of the Hippogriffs, the timely interference of Verko the local Crime Boss gave the Friendship Council just enough time to escape onto an airship revealed to belong to Captain Celaeno who’s in the employ of the Storm King, and in the aftermath Tempest takes Capper captive who due to a single act of generosity by Rarity claims the Princess was heading to Black Skull Island when they were in fact heading to Mount Aris.

** '''The Battle of Canterlot''': The remaining members of the Friendship Council assisted by Capper, Celaeno, her crew and Princess Skystar now in Hippogriff form sneak into Canterlot using a trojan cake and Capper’s silver tongue before proceeding to [[{{Pun}} storm]] the Canterlot Palace, all while taking on a hoard of Storm Guards and a tornado unleashed on the city by the Storm King, before reuniting with Twilight while separating the King from the staff and after Twilight got her hooves on the staff the Storm King attempted to turn petrify the elements but ended up petrifying himself and smashed into the ground resulting in the only known casualty of the war when Tempest protected the elements, having swapped sides after being betrayed by the Storm King and having her life saved by Twilight, in the end Canterlot and Equestria is liberated, the petrified ponies returned to normal, all other ponies are freed, the princess get their magic back, the damage to the city is repaired, Princess Twilight grants Tempest clemency and the Friendship Festival resumes.

* 2019 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E1TheBeginningOfTheEndPart1 King Sombra's]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E2TheBeginningOfTheEndPart2 Return]]'': Due to unknown reasons, King Sombra was reported to have invaded the Crystal Empire despite sources saying that he was destroyed. In terrifying speeds, he seized control of the Crystal Empire before Princess Cadance and Shining Armor can properly raise defences due to the suddenness of the situation, resulting in their defeat. However, Princess Cadance managed to send a message for help to the Friendship Council, resulting in their quick deployment, the subduing of King Sombra and the liberation of the Crystal Empire. However, it was too soon to celebrate, as it turns out that King Sombra actually faked his defeat to destroy the source of the Friendship Council's power, the Elements of Harmony. With it gone, he set his sights on Ponyville and Canterlot, employing mind control on the populace to act as his army and pony shields. The Princesses were noted to be absent at this crucial time due to them preventing the Everfree Forest from overrunning Ponyville with the destruction of the Elements of Harmony. This effectively leaves the Friendship Council the only force available for quick deployment to liberate Canterlot. After a decisive battle with the brainwashed populace and guards, King Sombra was smote for real in the throne room. In light of this abysmal failure even by the usual standards, Princess Celestia has [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E4SparklesSeven ordered a complete overhauling of the castle's defences]].
* 2019 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E24TheEndingOfTheEndPart1 Evil's]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E25TheEndingOfTheEndPart2 Endgame]]'': Tirek formed an alliance with the fugitive Chrysalis and his fellow inmate from Tatarus after escaping. The reason for the jailbreak is still not publicly known. Multiple notable locations while simultaneously attacked, stretching the local forces thin. Places included the School of Friendship, the Canterlot borderlands and Canterlot Castle itself. After a cataclysmic battle on three simultaneous fronts, the Equestrian forces were thoroughly defeated on all fronts with the majority of Canterlot Castle being destroyed in the conflict. Not only that, it has been noted that racist rumors have been circulating around since The Festival of the Two Sisters, resulting in the return of the Windigoes and a deep freeze that lasted several days. The Friendship Council were the only known organization in action that managed to escape to the Crystal Empire, the only Equestrian stronghold left. However, the people that escaped combined with the international exchange students manage to rally themselves and their own nations respectively under a single banner, resulting in an army consisting of armed forces from several other nations on a scale that has never been seen since ''The Great Changeling War''. At the lead of the Friendship Council, they launched a second counter-offensive that defeated the evil alliance for good. Shortly after, Princess Twilight Sparkle was crowned the main ruler of Equestria.

Many have argued that the Guard's golden age had come to an end as Princess Celestia and Luna seemed to have decided to give it a more of a symbolic, ceremonial role rather than a seriously military one. The were tremendous budget cuts on military expenditure, the amount of Guards was heavily reduced, and new recruits were given inferior training compared to that of their senior comrades. It is not an uncommon thought that the reason behind this decline in focus can be attributed to Princess Celestia outsourcing her royal magic power, in the form of the Elements of Harmony, to six members of the public one of whom is the newest member of the Wonderbolts and [[{{Nepotism}} another was Celestia's personal Student and a close relative of an important Guard commander a commander that just so happened to marry Celestia's adoptive niece]] who had participated in the capture of Princess Luna, and later became known as the Friendship Council. This is somewhat equivalent to the "Honorable Artillery Companies" of other lands which, at times, have tasked civilian technicians with operating their heaviest firepower.

It was only after Discord’s defeat at the horns of Celestia of the Sun and Luna of the Moon that the Pegasus warrior culture recovered from being nearly swept away by the Discordian influence. After their coronation as the Princesses of Equestria in 1 ad[[note]]After Discord[[/note]], Celestia and Luna recognised the potential of the Pegasus legacy, and began recruiting male Pegasi into a PraetorianGuard to defend the young Equestrian royal court from competing forces. In the years following its formation, the aptly named the EUP Guard -- or ''E''arth Pony, ''U''nicorn and ''P''egasus Guard -- grew into an army, originally split into two branches in 690 ad -- the Celestian Guard, commanded by Princess Celestia, and the Night Guard, led by Princess Luna. For the sake of balancing the power between the two, each army took turns acting as the national defence force alongside their commander every sunrise and sunset.

The Night Guard was defeated in battle within a year, surrounded and forced to capitulate by the Celestian Guard. Even though all its members were pardoned by Princess Celestia, TheRemnant of the Night Guard was dissolved or usurped into the ranks of the Celestians soon after. It was at that time that the terms “Royal Guard” and “Celestian Guard” became synonymous -- Princess Celestia took control of all the country’s troops under her banner, reshuffling the EUP Guard's command structure to form specialised task groups called the PPP's -- the ''P''ony ''P''rotection ''P''latoons, under the command of the former Celestian Guard officer Firefly. Under Celestia's thousand-year single rule, she expanded the Guard further, splitting it yet again into two branches in 1415, but differentiated by purpose rather than allegiance. In the spirit of the ancient Pegasus Warriors, the Royal Equestrian Air Force was formed as an extended hoof of the ground-based Royal Guard and the Royal Equestrian Navy (thus reverting to its original post-Discordian designation) in 1899. This gave birth to the Wonderbolts two years later, a legendary brigade of crack flyers who were routinely tasked with high-risk missions, and garnered nearly unprecedented pop-cultural fame, becoming the poster children of the Royal Guard's glory for a long time and in 1902 the EUP Guard was officially reorganized into the modern Equestrian Royal Guard when [[UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar The Boors’ War]] revealed just how painfully rigid and outdated the guard actually was.

It has been a traditionally small detachment, starting with only seven members and seldomly holding more than ten ponies ever since. They are easily distinguishable by their unconventional uniform design of blue bodysuits and goggles, though they had a variety of historical custom uniforms.

* Spears: Largely ceremonial, as they must be held in the foreleg and cannot be carried at the gallop. Therefore they are regularly used on guard duty by all units, when leaving the post is not an option (since casting away one's weapon in the face of the enemy is a court martial offense), it also motivates guards to stay put in all circumstances, and instead use the lance to keep enemies at tip-point.

* Bows: Far less mobile than those of other lands, Equestrian archers rely on a standup bow, reinforced and weighted at the bottom; however, the bow can be easily pivoted for aiming. Due to this, archers are always delegated as support units and never maker up a primary front line, being dependent on regular cavalry protection. There are varieties of ammunition, such as ice arrows for use against dragons.

** Howitzers: The main artillery of the Equestrian military. There are two model currently in use: the 6-inch 26 cwt howitzer made by Royal Armament, who can fire a 6 inch shell up to 10,400 yards (with longer-ranged munitions being currently in developement), is the main model, used by Unicorn and Earth Pony regiments; and the smaller Mod. 56, a 'pack' howitzer (so called due the ability to be easily broken down in packages for easier transport) made by the OTO company, firing a 4.13 inch up to 10,900 yards, in use with the Foalini regiment (who originally requested its development, as the cwt 26, unable to be broken down, was nearly impossible to move in mountain terrain) and Pegasus regiments (who can move the lighter piece with superior ease compared to the cwt 26).
** Mortar: A "Mortar" is a smaller version of the howitzers already in service. Unlike other experimental designs listed here, this on is expected to be finished in less than a few months but they will not replace howitzers on the battlefield.
* Rockets: Another obsolete weapon designed to carry explosives to great heights and distances, these are now better known as firework carriers -- though in some cases military and police ordnance -- ponies are tasked with safely launching them over public events, their only function is to create colorful displays of light and sound. It has been theorized that these might one day be improved to carry larger payloads, or even [[Fanfic/OurFirstSteps carry ordinary ponies to the Moon.]] It is thought that this last is why Princess Luna has blocked any further development. Though, rockets in combat haven't left researcher's minds completely.
* Grenades: A grenade is a thrown explosive that can be used by the common infantrypony and thrown up to 40 yards. The grenade is stick shaped with a explosive ordinance up on top. The grenade is activated by a pull cord at the bottom of the stick and explodes after a five second delay. Infantryponies have occasionally tied up to six of these grenades together for a bigger explosion.

* Crossbow: Standard issue to every gaurdspony out on the front lines. Has a range of 500-600 yards and can accept various forms of ammunition. Traditional one shot crossbows have been phased out in favor of repeating crossbows that fire four arrows before having to reload.

** Explosive Arrow: Arrow with a tip designed to explode with the assistance of chemicals after either instant contact of a five second delay. Used against dragons.

* Ballista: Formerly standard anti-infantry and anti-dragon projectile launching weapon. The arrows the weapon launches can reach up to 500 yards and can launch varying types of ammunition. No longer issued to front line units but are still issued to rear guard units.

* Tank: Based on the designs of a wood-plated, earth pony-drawn chariot by the popular Earth Pony leader Jan Horse, a tank would be an armored military vehicle armed with a high powered canon and maned by a crew of at least five ponies. Leading "tank" scientist Desert Fox boastfully proclaimed that these vehicles would be the future of warfare and Equestria had to keep up with the times in terms of military prowess, despite Princess Celestia's hesitance to do so.
* Rocket Launcher: A "Rocket Launcher" would be a weapon that launches a 2.36-inch Rocket from a tube like object designed to take out multiple groups of enemies, garrisoned buildings, or artillery positions. The main reason that the weapon is not on the a battlefield as of this writing is due to problems with getting to rocket to launch reliably.

The Royal Equestrian Navy is perhaps the most funded and the most traditional part of the military, currently being the largest navy in the world[[note]] recent reports state that the Griffon Republican Navy and the Minotaur Union's People's Revolutionary Navy is currently catching up[[/note]]. The exact amount of ships currently in Royal Navy use is unknown, but is speculated to be around 400 ships (including airships). Prince Blueblood of Canterlot is known to be one of the more prominent supporters of the navy.

* Galleon: The standard ship of the Royal Navy, able to carry 200-400 sailors and comes equipped with three ballistas on the port and starboard and one ballista on the bow and stern.

* Ship of the Line: A huge and heavily armored ship that is able to carry 410 sailors comes equipped with four ballistas on the port and starboard and one ballista on the bow and stern. A Ship of the Line is designed to take multiple hits from either cannon or ballista fire and partake in [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_of_battle line battling]].
* Battleship: The Royal Navy has a long history with Battleships. First used in the Great Changeling War, the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Agamemnon_%281906%29 HHS Starswirl]] served alongside her more antiquated counterparts throughout the until her sinking in 1919. A typical Battleship is typically armed with heavy caliber cannons designed to rain Tartarus on enemy positions on the shore. Other Battleships include the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Lord_Nelson_%281906%29 HHS Lord Blueblood II]] and the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Dreadnought_%281906%29 HHS Royal]].

The chemical would be launched by howitzer or cannon[[note]]gas grenades were planned, but the project was canceled by the War Department when the war ended.[[/note]] and would come in the form of a warhead that looked no different from a conventional one. The warhead would land in the ground unexploded, making it appear to be a dud. The "dud" however was anything but, as the gas would begin to leak, catching the unsuspecting victim by surprise, ending them.

Also contrarily to common belief, there were survivors of these chemical attack, though they were usually either horribly disfigured[[note]]attempts to repair the physical trauma gave way to the post war boom of reconstruction surgery[[/note]], disabled for the rest of their lives, or afflicted with [[ShellShockedVeteran Post Traumatic Stress Disorder]] (with severe cases ''[[RuleOfThree being afflicted with all three]]''). One of these survivors, an Earth Pony named Sergeant Hammer Down[[note]]great grandfather of famed military commander Broken Arrow[[/note]] starred in a movie titled ''Personal Circle in Tartarus: Tales from The Great Changeling War'' that was released in 1966.

During the early years of of Royal Guard, the draft was a necessity to keep the numbers of the Guard up to counter mass numbers of enemy troops or overrun those more advanced than them. As the years passed and opinions changed, the usefulness of conscription became questioned more constantly, with critics commonly citing ''The Great Changeling War'', where conscripts were heavily utilized by all three sides and were often sent to the front lines with the bare minimal training[[note]]and according to recently unearthed documents from the war, sometimes they were either sent out with less than that or none at all[[/note]].

DraftDodging was also common in Equestrian society despite it being punishable by either life-long prison or hard (and usually extremely dangerous) labor under the grounds of treason. Draftees would often flee to Saddle Arabia and be granted political asylum or (depending on the war) The Griffon Empire, whose strained relationship with Equestria would make them more than happy to hide Equestrian draft dodgers. During times of conscription, factories and farms across the country see a large increase of job applications, due to workers of those occupations being excused from the draft.[[note]]According to records from Apple Family Farms, at least 65% percent of their workforce during wartime were made up would-be draftees.[[/note]]

In 1948, Princess Celestia released that the amount of trained Guards currently in service and in reserve would be plentiful enough to defend Equestria from attack. Later that year, she approved a law that would ban the use of conscription except for cases of dire emergencies (such as Equestria on the verge of falling to enemy forces).

The nations around Equestria are naturally expressing grave concern about this development. A promising Griffon scientist promptly constructed a thesis on counteracting the power the princesses have, only stating that [[AtomicHate "Even the tiniest of things in existence can make two enemies see eye to eye".]] The Griffon Republican government is expected to hear this thesis in full sometime within the year.

* BlingOfWar: The Celestian and Imperial Crystal Guards are perhaps the best examples, having gold-plated and crystalline armor, respectively. The Night Guard subvert this by having more subdued, darker armor, though it is still rather ornately-designed.

* CombatPragmatist: One of the reputations of The Night Guards; according to the rumors, they have authorization to infringe ROE[[note]]Rules of engagement[[/note]] and have pardons for other shadowy actions. Major-General Shadow Stab denies this claim, saying that such behaviors are unbefitting for a guardpony.

** The Security Assistance Squadron, Equestria's top secret special forces unit.
** Lest we forget her umbrella organisation, the Royal Signals and Reconnaisance Regiment, which sounds like, well, Signals and Recon, but... isn't ''just'' that.

** [[EnsembleDarkhorse The Night Guards]] have reputation of being one. However, they deny the claim, saying that there is no such thing as "elite" guards, that all the guards in Equestria are professional soldiers who serve Royal Highnesses with all their capacity.
** The Security Assistance Squadron. Nobody knew the unit even existed until they were seen in one photo taken during the Saddle Arabian embassy siege of 1980. They were spotted one more time in 1993 Battle of Somaroia, fighting alongside GIGN. It is speculated that most members of SAS is selected from the Wonderbolts and the Night Guards.

* [[BritishRoyalGuards Equestrian Royal Guards]]: The TropeMaker. They are the origin of the stoic, not-moving-for-anypony guard archetype as is constantly protrayed in media. Originally practiced by the Celestian Guards, and still done today during royal visits.

* GlassCannon: The general consensus on many Pegasus and Unicorn brigades. The former are perfect targets and traditionally [[FragileSpeedster lightly armored]] to make flying less of a chore. With the latter ones it's usually [[SubvertedTrope subverted]], as, unless they are actual [[SquishyWizard wizards]], they tend to do (and specialize on) a lot of defensive magic in the form of pioneer and defence expert companies. For one famous example may be none other than former Shield Casting Specialist Prince Shining Armor.

* LegionOfLostSouls: Some regiments of The Border Guards, but particularly the Northern Guards. To get an Equestrian citizenship, a foreign soldier needs to serve for six years in the unit. Barely half of them make it all the way.
* MundaneUtility: The Wonderbolts often perform in airshows and many branches of guardponies assist in agriculutural production.

** Among the more wistful members of the Night Guard, the Battle of Everfree Hall is know as The Humiliation of Everfree.
* [[NoTrueScotsman No True Equestrian]]: Just like with their homeland[[note]] ("not ''truly'' a part of Equestria", etc)[[/note]], the Lance-Canids' allegiance to Canterlot is dubious only on paper; for the past half century, they have diligently served alongside the other Royal Guardsponies as an 'independent' Equestrian regiment, though taking ''[[BoisterousBruiser extreme]]'' [[InvertedTrope pride]] in their freelance, mercenary-like image inside Equestria.

* RuleAbidingRebel: The Lance-Canids like to see themselves as the bad boys of the Guard, constantly only a paycheck away from ditching the Equestrian Crown and finding a better bidder. In reality however, they're... just a standard regiment with Mustangian mercenary roots and a slightly higher-than-average cider consumption. Just don't tell them that.
* SociopathicSoldier: During the early days of the Northern Guards, the Stalliongrad branch of the Royal Guards were absolultely ''infamous'' for the sheer varieties of cruel conduct, both to friend and foe. Fortunately, the behavior has substationally improved by now.
* SoldiersAtTheRear: One of Earth Pony Regiment's major roles, and it has several battalions devoted exclusive to logistic support.

The Royal Guard boasts more than 45,000 personnel[[note]]In NEIGHTO standard, this would be a bit bigger than a corps[[/note]], 30,000 of them active and 15,000 as reserves, and includes members of all of the three major Pony races (Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasi), but admissions from minorities, including griffons and mules, are generally accepted. Thus, the Royal Guard makes up a typical 0.5% of Equestria's entire population, and that doesn't even include the various militias and foreign mercenaries that have fought alongside the them from time to time.

Its primary roles are the protection of the Royal Family, the defense of the nation's sovereignty and its borders, and to enforce the rule of harmony in times of peril. The latter, as well as the policing of the public and upholding the law, is left to each regiment's Gendarmerie detachments -- soldiers who are tasked with law enforcement duty. They typically make up two thirds of the unit, and involve every soldier at least once in the course of his time served.

For more information about this page,[[labelnote:click here.]]This page is not about RealLife armed forces, it's a parodical ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' version of a typical ForcesWithFirepower page. It follows the ''FIM'' continuity. Anyone can edit the page and add facts and bells and whistles to build a mythology around the famous Royal Guard, but remember that this is an In-Universe page, so all edits should be done from the POV of an Equestrian pony. Also, even though this is first and foremost a WordOfDante page, try not to stray any further from canon than necessary, or to a point that it outright conflicts with it. And while we're at it, try to make any new facts you bring in harmonise with what other users already edited, in order to make the whole collaborative mythology-building thing work. This page is a companion piece to ''JustForFun/{{Equestria}}'', so feel free to check it out and edit it as well.[[/labelnote]].

* The 4th Pony Protection Platoon A.K.A. The Wonderbolts: (''Fly Like Lightning, Strike Like Thunder''; however, their original slogan is ''[[PretentiousLatinMotto Altius volantis]]'' -- ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E7NewbieDash Soaring higher!]]'') In keeping with their status as elite soldiers, they have the least standardised uniforms, and do not require dyed manes or dyed coats. Their standard issue uniform consists of blue nylon body suits and wind goggles. Their unit insignia is a yellow thunderbolt with white wings. Their headquarters are in Winsome Falls, Neighgara.

* The King's Girthka Spears: (''Paragon of Brotherhood, Predator of Fear'') A Royal Neighpalese Cavalry unit serving the Equestrian Crown. In Equestrian-Neighpalese War of 1815, fought between Equestria and the Girthka Kingdom of Neighpal, Princess Celestia saw the potential of Girthka soldiers as well-trained and sturdy light cavalry with the bonus of an ancient military tradition. Their Equestrian HQ is in Fillydelphia.

* The Border Guard: (''We Are The Moats, We Are The Walls'') A term referring to all the regiments of the Royal Guard stationed on the various borders of Equestria. They tend to be often stationed hostile spots, far away from major cities, and thus is frequently undersupplied. A large part of the ranks is made up of criminals, [[LegionOfLostSouls foreign soldiers seeking Equestrian citizenship]], and [[ReassignedToAntarctica misbehaving/incompetent Royal Guards]]. Due to the limited budget, even by Royal Guards standards, they are the only non-militia guardponies without any uniform. The biggest regiment, the one in Stalliongrad which is also known as The Northern Guards, is particularly (in)famous. Their headquarters are in Vanhoover, Northern Equestria and Dodge Junction, Appleloosa.
* The Ducal Mustangia Cavalry AKA the Ducal Lance-Canids: (''If Not Us, Then No One Does'') A strictily Mustangian earth pony force "on indefinite lease" to the Royal Crown in Canterlot [[note]]Thus the prefix 'Ducal'[[/note]] since the formal peace of the Thirteen Years' War in 1631. The Lance-Canids started out as mercenary companies employed by the local Mustangian dukes, and united in the chaos of the 13 war years as a national guard to the seceding Duchy of Mustangia. Evidently, none of it lasted. ''Probably'' one of the most ferocious Earth Pony regiments out there. Wear woolen harnesses under their silver armour and [[NiceHat Nice plumed Caps]]. Their unit insignia is a red phoenix. Their headquarters are in Kiger, Mustangia.

* The Royal Provost Battalion: (''Harmony Through Justice, Justice Through Wisdom, Wisdom Through Harmony'') The 1200 pony-strong military police of the Guard (not to be confused with Gendarmerie detachs), who seem to dispach in indefinite amount of zealous, but hopelessly inept [[TheInquisitorGeneral Inquisitors General]] to cause trouble in the ranks. Annoying at best and harrowing at worst, they have garnered a universal {{Hatedom}} and -- just as often as they seek to find things wrong with REG soldiers -- they serve as the common soldier's showcase of everything wrong with the Royal Guard[[note]]elitist and detached unicorn [[ArmchairMilitary [=COs=]]], aggressive and sadist pegasus [[TheNeidermeyer [=NCOs=]]], and thick and dull earth pony [[{{Mooks}} troopers]], etc..[[/note]]. On the other hand, [[SeriousBusiness they also make sure commercial production of foods and beverage respects the health laws (mercilessly cracking down on any breach)]], [[ActuallyPrettyFunny and are rumored to invent many of the jokes told on their battalion]] (telling them to their faces when they're in service still counts as a crime). Wear golden armour and helmets with red manes, which has led to the desultory nickname of "redcaps." Have a silver star badge as their unit insignia. Their HQ is in Hoofington.
* The Royal Signals and Reconnaisance Regiment: (attributed: ''To Know The Unknown Is To Win The Unwinnable'') [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial Does not exist]]. [[MemeticMutation But if it did]], [[SpyFromWeightsAndMeasures it would actually be the Royal Guard's military intelligence wing]]. As nopony is willing to officially confirm its existence, the scope of its activities is dubious [[note]]Usually, they claim to be in charge of the recon cavalries and maintaining communications between the units and Canterlot, but it's still certain that they have also carried out acts of sabotage on and behind frontlines, employ a large number of informers and spies on all sides of the border, specialise in analysis, research and decryption work to crack enemy intelligence, and sit on a stash of some intriguing, highly developed magic with seemingly no precedent or purpose. And all their work is highly classified in any case[[/note]]. They have their own task force though -- the Security Assistance Squadron, whose existence, surprisingly and quite ironically, ''has'' indeed been confirmed. Of course, they have no coat of arms or uniforms of their own. Thanks to their direct links to the Princely Offices, there is confusion whether they can even be assumed part of the Guard proper. Their HQ is, of course, unknown. Canterlot would be a good guess, though.

* The Foalini: (''Nobody Passes Here!'') Specialist mountain troops, originally raised among the donkeys residing in the Foal and Crystal Mountain ranges as militia and raised in status to permanent regiment in 1872. Composed by a vast majority of donkeys and mules with smaller numbers of Cowstrian immigrants and Earth Ponies, they distinguished themselves in the Great Changeling War, in which they led the local militias in stopping dead the initial Changeling push into Neighgara County and were able to stifle typical Changeling infiltration tactics thanks to the latters' ignorance of the local cultural peculiarities. The same conflict made them somewhat infamous for their propensity to blow up pieces of mountains on the head of the enemy, as exemplified by the demolition of the Changeling Tooth with an immense amount of explosives (incidentally preventing the Changelings from using an even larger amount of explosive to blow up the Equestrian Tooth occupied by the Foalini). They have a friendly rivalry with the Night Guard (that, before the Banishment, served also as mountain troops). Their uniform is a gray-green light armour with a single black feather (white for officers) on the left side of the helmet instead of a plume, and their insignia (also worn on the helmet) is an eagle in a slightly different gradation of green. Their headquarter are in Neighgara Falls.
* The Elements of Harmony AKA The Friendship Council: (''Friendship is Magic.'') A small team that exists outside of the normal chain of command founded in 2010 to combat the return of Nightmare Moon during the 1000th Summer Sun Celebration made up of Princess Twilight Sparkle (Magic/Friendship), Rainbow Dash (Loyalty), Fluttershy (Kindness), Pinkie Pie (Laughter), Applejack (Honesty), Rarity (Generosity) and any of their allies most notably Spike the Dragon and Starlight Glimmer, but can include anyone willing to help them out regardless of whether or not they are citizens of Equestria ranging from a con artist cat and a group of pirates to Princess Celestia herself who was originally the pony the team reported to but they have since gained total independence from the chain of command when Twilight the team leader was coordinated as Equestria's fourth Princess. It should be noted that as Rainbow Dash also happens to be the newest full member of the Wonderbolts membership in this team does not forbid simultaneous membership in other units. Their headquarters is in Ponyville, have no uniform of any kind and was officially renamed the Friendship Council by Princess Celestia during an interview following the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1 The Return]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E26TwilightsKingdomPart2 of Tirek]].

** Specialist -- A Trooper promoted into a specialised field of expertise (e.g. defence, magic, engineering, ambulance, etc).

* 1006 (EUP Guard): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E1TheCrystalEmpirePart1 The Crystal War]]'': Everything began when the Crystal Empire, led by the rebellious Unicorn King Sombra, tried to expand its border into surrounding (Equestrian) Seaddle territory and enslave the local population. In the next two weeks, the Princess Sisters ammassed an 7500 strong-army and marched against the city state, eventually pushing back an avid, yet undersupplied and unprepared Crystal Guard in the Battle of Horstings. King Sombra famously ordered to [[KickTheDog raze the conquered land as they retreated]]. The Crystal State itself was overrun [[CurbStompBattle very easily]], and the most spectacular event of the entire campaign was perhaps the Alicorn Sisters personally tracking down King Sombra during the retreat and sealing him under the Sir-Ascot-Glacier. Only about 400 ponies were lost on Equestria’s side, half of them civilian ponies of the surrounding lands. [[note]]The Crystal numbers themselves are unknown –--the Crystal Empire was lost to a spell as the Royal Guard was making preparations its formal annexation.[[/note]] That said, relationships with Griffonstone soured as part of the fallout of this campaign. The Griffons had close ties to the region, and when the Crystal Empire was lost in time, they blamed the Royal Sisters for this failure, particularly Princess Luna.
* 1010 (EUP Guard): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E2PrincessTwilightSparklePart2 The Banishment]]''. In the aftermath of Princess Luna's attempt to usurp the throne, much of the Night Guard, [[MyMasterRightOrWrong loyal to Luna in spite of her madness]], launched a civil war to [[VillainousLegacy carry out her will]]. It was stopped later that year, thank to many of them [[HeelRealization coming to grips with the error of their ways]]. The overall toll of this conflict is largely unknown, but is estimated at around 6,000.

* 1618 -- 1631 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/ThirtyYearsWar Thirteen Years’ War]]'': The escalation of tensions between the Equestrian Crown and the Griffon Union after Princess Celestia threw a [[DiplomaticImpunity misbehaving]] Griffon envoy [[ShootTheMessenger out a Throne Room window]]. [[note]]For the record, he ended up fine. Hopefully, the Princess knew that he could fly.[[/note]] Seeing this as an act of diplomatic impiety (and appreciating an opportunity to utilise some cutting-edge magic and technology), the Griffon Union declared war and landed ''èn masse'' on Equestria's eastern shores, venturing deep into Pony lands. The Griffons managed to capture the seaside fort of Rostrum, using it as a rally point for mercenaries[[note]]traditionally, the bulk of the Griffon fighting force[[/note]]. After the Royal Guard scrambled east to (futilely) prevent the Griffins advancing inland to Mustangia and ultimately Canterlot, the situation only grew worse when they were pushed back, which Mustangia took as an opportunity to try and secede from Equestria. As the war dragged on, the Griffons' own mercenaries began defecting and going rogue across the whole region. It took an entire decade for the fighting to die down and the respective sides to regroup behind their respective sides of the Grand Strait. Officially, the war was a draw, but cost all sides about 200,000 lives and a million ponies displaced.

* 1899 -- 1902 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar The Boors’ War]]'': The last great attempt of Equestria to tame the Badlands. Setting up the colonies of Equitoria, the settlers soon found their biggest problem to be the native Diamond Dogs who lived under the earth and robbed towns, plundered supply routes and occasionally even abducted ponies as bounty. The EUP Guard was called in to safeguard the Pony settlers, but was quickly overwhelmed with the Diamond Dogs’ presence, who at that point had already resorted to irregular warfare (against the painfully rigid, outdated and unflexible tactics of the Guard) to great effect. Even though the Guard proceeded to increase their presence constantly over the months, the Badlands remained to be dangerous and utterly uninhabitable regions, last not but least because of such 'neutral' threats like dragons and hydras. Even though the casualties were minimal (less than 200), Princess Celestia essentially declared the cause not to be worth the trouble, sacked the responsible commanding officers, beat the retreat and reorganized the EUP Guard into the Equestrian Royal Guard, updating it for the modern world with new, more flexible tactics. To this day, there is some sort of unspoken [[note]] 'unspoken' because it is a ''massive'' OldShame[[/note]] agreement between the Diamond Dogs and Equestria that keeps Ponies (especially the Royal Guard) out and the Diamond Dogs in. The colonies are still there as well, but are destroyed beyond recognition.

* 1991 -- 1999 (Equestrian Royal Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheYugoslavWars The Yugryphonian Intervention]]'': In 1990, Yugryphonia, an apostate south-eastern region of Griffonstone, used the country's precarious political climate (read: the ''Griffon Civil Wars'', which began in the wake of wild internal strife) to declare independence and began drawing up paramilitary forces. Equestria, which had been at odds with Griffonstone ever since '82 and were deeply worried that the war's violence may sweep over the Grand Strait, hastily hatched a treaty of mutual respect with Yugryphonia. When a Gryphon nationalist army marched into Yugryphonia and the Yugryphonian National Guard opened fire, Equestria warily abstained, but filed an international plight for Yugryphonia in the NEIGHTO. It was only when the Yugryphonian conflict got so thoroughly out of claw that the Princesses (including the newly ascended Princess Cadance) and by extension, Equestria's allies as well, felt that the harmony of the entire theatre was too far in peril to be ignored, and organised a peacekeeping mission that deployed 500 Equestrians, 380 Saddle Arabians and 115 Zebricans to Yugryphonia. This peacekeeping force was officially neutral, and served mainly as a deterrent for both sides, interfering only in the wake of unjustifiably unharmonious actions perpetrated by the combatants. Naturally, no Griffonstone faction approved of that, but the combatants ultimately retreated from Yugryphonia. Peacekeepers are still stationed in the region as observers, and even though Yugryphonia is largely free, it has yet to be recognised as an independent state by most of the world.

* 2010 (Elements of Harmony): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E1MareInTheMoon The Return o]][[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E2ElementsOfHarmony f Nightmare Moon]]'': Notable for the rediscovery of the physical Elements of Harmony, the Elements finding new bearers, and Princess Luna being redeemed.

* 2015 (Friendship Council): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E11PartyPooped The Thirty Minutes War]]'': Botched attempts to create diplomatic overtures with Yakyakistan resulted in numerous threats by Prince Rutherford to declare war. Indeed, before Element of Laughter Pinkie Pie managed to placate the yaks, the prince had formally declared war against Equestria, and during his entourage's rampage caused about 40,000 bits worth of damage (in addition to all the rest of the damage he caused earlier that day). Fortunately, Pinkie Pie managed to convince the yaks to stop their rampage and a thousand moons of peace was declared before they could cause more damage than a group of cider-binging fratcolts.
* 2015 and 2000 (Friendship Council): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E25TheCutieRemarkPart1 Starlight’s]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E26TheCutieRemarkPart2 Revenge]]'': When the deranged unicorn Starlight Glimmer used a modified time travel spell to alter the past in an attempt to get revenge on the Friendship Council, said Council's Element of Magic Princess Twilight and her assistant Spike[[note]]the sole dragon on the Council[[/note]] were dragged along with Starlight by the time travel spell, forcing them into the only conflict in Equestrian history to use a historical event as a battle field and involve alternate timelines. Ultimately, the conflict resulted in the redemption of Starlight Glimmer, who Princess Twilight took on as her personal student. This event was and technically remains highly classified, though the Council, especially Pinkie Pie, has been rather reckless when discussing it.

* 2016 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E25ToWhereAndBackAgainPart1 The Changeling]]'' ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E26ToWhereAndBackAgainPart2 Revolution]]'': As payback for losing ''The Siege Of Canterlot'' and [[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW her subsequent defeat and capture after the liberation of Wuvy-Dovey Land]], after [[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFiendshipIsMagic her jailbreak]] Chrysalis I captured and replaced the entire top brass of Equestria, including all five princesses, Prince Shining Armor, and the entire Friendship Council using still-unknown means[[note]]although her AntiMagic throne may give some clues[[/note]], ''in the span of a single day''. (The deception was so well done that it took the originals confronting their doppelgangers after their rescue, and the award ceremony speech the day after, for the mass kidnapping to be public knowledge.) The princesses, Council, prince, and others were then rescued at the hands of unlikely heroes Starlight Glimmer (former now-reformed cult leader and current student of Princess Twilight), Trixie Lulamoon (stage magician, stage name Trixie The Great and Powerful), Thorax (a changeling defector to Equestria), and Discord (the reformed Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony). Thorax broke into the throne room of Chrysalis I. As Chrysalis attempted to drain all love from him (her typical method for executing traitors), Starlight Glimmer encouraged Thorax to share his love with the changelings, a behavior which turned out to sate Changeling love hunger over a long period. The result was an explosion that shattered Chrysalis' throne, effectively igniting a coup within the Changelings, which ended with Thorax being installed as King. In the aftermath, Thorax and Celestia brokered a peace treaty between Equestria and the Changelings. Chrysalis' whereabouts are currently unknown.
* 2017 (Friendship Council): ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 The War for Equestria]]'': A major 3-day conflict that interrupted the first ever Friendship Festival, where the renegade unicorn Tempest Shadow lead the Storm King's armada into conquering Equestria for the sole purpose of giving the Storm King the magic of Equestria's four adult Alicorns in exchange for getting her horn repaired, known for being the only three days in history where the Sun never set for more then a few seconds and for being the first major conflict to involve pirates fighting on the side of Equestria and infamous for the Royal Guard being nowhere to be found for the duration of the conflict and for Princess Twilight trying to steal a priceless magical treasure from Queen Novo. Major events in this conflict include...
** '''The Invasion of Canterlot''': The surprise attack by Commander Tempest and the Storm Guard on Canterlot and the beginning of their invasion of Equestria, resulting in the petrification of Princesses Celestia, Luna and Cadance along with a Pegasus named Derpy "Muffins" Hooves, the escape of the Friendship Council who set out to get help from the Queen of the Hippos, the occupation of Canterlot, the enslavement of all ponies in town and the [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking interruption of the first ever Friendship Festival.]]

** '''The Sinking of Celaeno's Ship''': After Rainbow Dash convinces Celaeno and her crew to turn their backs on the Storm King and help them her carelessly performing a Sonic Rainboom told Tempest exactly where they are and while the Friendship Council abandoned ship with a makeshift hot air balloon that Twilight made while in freefall before Tempest could find them while Celaeno tried to stall, this resulted in Tempest blowing up the ship in mid air with Celaeno, her crew and Capper all on board, luckily there were no casualties.
** '''[[OverlyLongName Princess Twilight’s Attempted Theft of Queen Novo's Pearl of Transformation]]''': Upon arriving at Mount Aris the Friendship Council discovered that the Hippogriffs turned themselves into Seaponies and abandoned their home to escape the Storm King using their Pearl of Transformation so Twilight not trusting her friends due to their poor decision making as of late tasks the others with distracting Princess Skystar, Queen Novo and the other Seaponies under the guise of showing them the time of their lives so she can steal the Pearl with the Goal of turning the Ponies in Canterlot into something strong enough to fight the Storm King and his armada, however she is discovered just as Pinkie was about to convince the Queen to give them the Pearl resulting in them being thrown out of Seaquestria.
** '''The Capture of Princess Twilight''': Twilight’s stunt results in the group having a fight with everypony besides Spike leaving to give Twilight space, which Tempest takes advantage of to capture Twilight and take her back to Canterlot where she and the other Princesses have their magic drained into the Staff of Sacanas making the Storm King the most powerful being on the planet. However, everyone the Elements befriended throughout this “epic adventure” show up wanting to help.

* 2018 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E25SchoolRazePart1 The three-day]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS8E26SchoolRazePart2 magic failure]]'': Probably the biggest societal collapse since the return of Tirek. For three days, reports of magic failing with increasing frequency are being raised throughout the nation with no clue as to how it is even happening. Unicorns lost the ability to cast magic by the end of the first day, pegasi and earth ponies lost their own magical abilities by the end of the second day and even artifacts are losing power by the end of the third day. The Friendship Council were sent to Tartarus to question Tirek due to his expertise in draining magic as well as being a possible suspect while getting any clues to this mystery. However, all this was a RedHerring, as the real culprit was operating in the catacombs under the School of Friendship. All other Royal Guard forces have been reduced to trekking on foot due to the lack of magic as the culprit was discovered by EEA Chancellor Neighsay around the third day. Reports as to how the matter was resolved from the student body who were present at the scene was the fact that the saviours of the day were the international exchange students. The culprit's fate after being apprehended by the Royal Guard is declared an international secret.
* 2019 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E1TheBeginningOfTheEndPart1 King Somb]][[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E2TheBeginningOfTheEndPart2 ra's return]]'': Due to unknown reasons, King Sombra was reported to have invaded the Crystal Empire despite sources saying that he was destroyed. In terrifying speeds, he seized control of the Crystal Empire before Princess Cadance and Shining Armor can properly raise defences due to the suddenness of the situation, resulting in their defeat. However, Princess Cadance managed to send a message for help to the Friendship Council, resulting in their quick deployment, the subduing of King Sombra and liberation of the Crystal Empire. However, it was too soon to celebrate, as it turns out that King Sombra actually faked his defeat to destroy the source of the Friendship Council's power, the Elements of Harmony. With it gone, he set his sights on Ponyville and Canterlot, employing mind control on the populace to act as his army and pony shields. The Princesses were noted to be absent at this crucial time due to them preventing the Everfree Forest from overrunning Ponyville with the destruction of the Elements of Harmony. This effectively leaves the Friendship Council the only force available for quick deployment to liberate Canterlot. After a decisive battle with the brainwashed populace and guards, King Sombra was smote for real in the throne room. In light of this abysmal failure even by the usual standards, Princess Celestia has [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E4SparklesSeven ordered a complete overhauling of the castle's defences.]]
* 2019 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E24TheEndingOfTheEndPart1 Evil's]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E25TheEndingOfTheEndPart2 endgame]]'': Tirek formed an alliance with the fugitive Chrysalis and his fellow inmate from Tatarus after escaping. The reason for the jailbreak is still not publicly known. Multiple notable locations while simultaneously attacked, stretching the local forces thin. Places included the School of Friendship, the Canterlot borderlands and Canterlot Castle itself. After a cataclysmic battle on three simultaneous fronts, the Equestrian forces were thoroughly defeated on all fronts with the majority of Canterlot Castle being destroyed in the conflict. Not only that, it has been noted that racist rumors have been circulating around since The Festival of the Two Sisters, resulting in the return of the Windigoes and a deep freeze that lasted several days. The Friendship Council were the only known organisation in action that managed to escape to the Crystal Empire, the only Equestrian stronghold left. However, the people that escaped combined with the international exchange students manage to rally themselves and their own nations respectively under a single banner, resulting in an army consisting of armed forces from several other nations on a scale that has never been seen since ''The Great Changeling War''. At the lead of the Friendship Council, they launched a second counter-offensive that defeated the evil alliance for good. Shortly after, Princess Twilight Sparkle was crowned the main ruler of Equestria.

In recent times, the Royal Guard, and to alesser extent it's EUP predecessor, has received a rather negative portrayal from media. They are often generalised as being incompetent, cowardly, or plain stupid. While those portrayals do the actual Guard no real justice and are grossly [[{{Flanderization}} simplifying the reality of things]], the Royal Guard did manage to get a lot of bad press after a decade-long cavalcade of embarrassing incidents.

Nonetheless, this decision caused a lot of derision among many guardsponies, as these element bearers were allowed to wield a power equal only to that of Discord, even though only one of them has had any kind of military training. That many of those Element Bearers had been indicted with [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E16ReadItAndWeep criminal]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E3LessonZero charges]] in the past and had regularly been the sources of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E20GreenIsntYourColor scandalous headlines]] and many [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E10SecretOfMyExcess catastrophes]] on their own accord, only served to turn the knife in the wound a bit more. However when asked about this Princess Celestia replied that as far as she is concerned the Element Bearers (which she referred to as the Friendship Council thus revealing their official name) are a part of the royal guard just completely independent of the chain of command... which doesn't really help matters at all.

Its current Commanders-in-Chief are the Equestrian Heads of State, Their Royal Highnesses Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, in a unique case of dual command.

** [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Commander-In-Chief (Princess Celestia and Princess Luna)]] -- There is no higher authority in the country though it has become common to turn to either Princess Twilight (Leader of the Friendship Council) or Princess Cadance should both of the dyarchs be unavailable.

* 2019 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E24TheEndingOfTheEndPart1 Evil's]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS9E25TheEndingOfTheEndPart2 Endgame]]'': Tirek formed an alliance with the fugitive Chrysalis and his fellow inmate from Tatarus after escaping. The reason for the jailbreak is still not publicly known. Multiple notable locations while simultaneously attacked, stretching the forces thin. Places included the School of Friendship, the Canterlot borderlands and Canterlot Castle itself. After a cataclysmic battle on three fronts, Equestrian forces were thoroughly defeated on all fronts while majority of Canterlot Castle was destroyed in the conflict. Not only that, it has been noted that racist rumors have been circulating around since The Festival of the Two Sisters, resulting in the return of the Windigoes. The Friendship Council were the only forces that managed to escape to the Crystal Empire, the only stronghold left. However, the people that escaped combined with the international exchange students rallied, resulting in an army on a scale that has not been seen before. At the lead of the Friendship Council, they launched a second counter offensive that defeated the evil alliance for good. Shortly after, Princess Twilight Sparkle was crowned the main ruler of Equestria.

* CityGuards: Any unit tasked with the protection of a single urban centre, like the Royal Unicorn Brigade for Canterlot and the Equestrian Griffons' Armed Battalion for Rostrum.

* CovertGroupWithMundaneFront: The Security Assistance Squadron, Equestria's top secret special forces unit.

* EnemyMine: The Security Assistance Squadron has allegedly cooperated with GIGN, National Griffon Intervention Group, in order to fight insurgents and warlords in several Zebrican countries. Due to their exploits, the number of pirates in the coast of Somaroia has decreased significantly.

* FunWithAcronyms: The revolutionary REVAAL ('''R'''apid, '''E'''arly '''V'''erification of '''A'''rmy, '''A'''irborne and '''L'''ogistics) system, which was introduced by the Royal Signals and Reconnaisance Regiment around 1939, allowed the Guard, through an intricate network of outposts, informants, messengers, semaphore towers, lighthouses, musical signals and even firework salutes and the regular postal service to relay often vital intelligence messages across Equestria with unprecedented speed.

* MyGreatestFailure: The War for Equestria has become known as the three most humiliating days in the 2000+ year history of the Guard and the Siege of Canterlot back in 2012 is not gladly remembered by most Guardsponies either, both for obvious reasons.

* TheSpook: The Night Guards. There is absolutely NOTHING known about them other than that they serve Luna. This is in stark contrast to their Celestian couterparts, who like to revel in publicity and keep up an active image in the public eye. The Night Guard ''never'' had an image to speak of, giving outside speculation much more room.

* 2010 (Elements of Harmony): ''[[MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E1MareInTheMoon The Return o]][[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E2ElementsOfHarmony f Nightmare Moon]]'': Notable for the rediscovery of the physical Elements of Harmony, the Elements finding new bearers, and Princess Luna being redeemed.

* 2017 (Friendship Council): ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 The War for Equestria]]'' A major 3-day conflict that interrupted the first ever Friendship Festival, where the renegade unicorn Tempest Shadow lead the Storm King's armada into conquering Equestria for the sole purpose of giving the Storm King the magic of Equestria's four adult Alicorns in exchange for getting her horn repaired, known for being the only three days in history where the Sun never set for more then a few seconds and for being the first major conflict to involve pirates fighting on the side of Equestria and infamous for the Royal Guard being nowhere to be found for the duration of the conflict and for Princess Twilight trying to steal a priceless magical treasure from Queen Novo. Major events in this conflict include...

* ArmyOfThievesAndWhores: Army of Thieves and Horses: The Northern Guard

The single most embarrassing moment in the 2000+ year history of the guard is widely considered to be the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 War for Equestria]] where it didn't just fail to protect Canterlot or the Princesses but ''[[EpicFail did not even get the chance to deploy]]'', leaving the Battle of Canterlot to be fought and won by a RagtagBunchOfMisfits (including [[EpicFail a con artist cat, a Hippogriff/Seapony Princess and]] ''[[UpToEleven a crew of 5 pirates]]'') rather than the 45,000 trained Equestrian soldiers. It's considered by many Equestrians to be a serious WhatTheHellHero moment. Again, the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement is strictly enforced.

'''[[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement And this is all that will be said about this matter]].'''

Contrary to popular belief, Equestria ''has'' a substantial amount of chemical weapons in stock but whether or not to safely dispose of them [[BrokenBase remains a hot issue in Equestrian politics]] [[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment and should be treated with extreme caution]].

* [[ArmyOfThievesAndWhores Army of Thieves and Horses]]: The Northern Guard

* BadassDecay: Since the formation of the Element Bearers, the Guard has forfeited a lot of their power and influence in Equestria. '''[[RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement Moving on.]]'''

The single most embarrassing moment in the 2000+ year history of the guard is widely considered to be the [[WesternAmimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 War for Equestria]] where it didn't just fail to protect Canterlot or the Princesses but ''[[EpicFail did not even get the chance to deploy]]'', leaving the Battle of Canterlot to be fought and won by a RagtagBunchOfMisfits (including [[EpicFail a con artist cat, a Hippogriff/Seapony Princess and]] ''[[UpToEleven a crew of 5 pirates]]'') rather than the 45,000 trained Equestrian soldiers. It's considered by many Equestrians to be a serious WhatTheHellHero moment. Again, the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement is strictly enforced.

Nonetheless, this decision caused a lot of derision among many guardsponies, as these element bearers were allowed to wield a power equal only to that of Discord, even though only one of them has had any kind of military training. That many of those Element Bearers had been indicted with [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E16ReadItAndWeep criminal]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E3LessonZero charges]] in the recent past and had regularly been the sources of [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E20GreenIsntYourColor scandalous headlines]] and many [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E10SecretOfMyExcess catastrophes]] on their own accord, only served to turn the knife in the wound a bit more. However when asked about this Princess Celestia replied that as far as she is concerned the Element Bearers (which she referred to as the Friendship Council thus revealing their official name) are a part of the royal guard just completely independent of the chain of command... which doesn't really help matters at all.

[[IThoughtItMeant No, it has nothing to do with]] [[HeroesGoneFishing Ponies fishing and catching Pikes]]. [[IncrediblyLamePun And neither it is a tasteless pun on Ponies riding Bikes]].

Its primary roles are the protection of the Royal Family, the defense of the nation's sovereignty and its borders, and to enforce the rule of harmony in times of peril. The latter, as well as the policing of the public and upholding the law, is left to each regiment's Gendarmerie detachments - soldiers who are tasked with law enforcement duty. They typically make up two thirds of the unit, and involve every soldier at least once in the course of his time served.

Its current Commanders-In-Chief are the Equestrian Heads of State, Her Royal Highnesses Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, in a unique case of dual command.

* The 4th Pony Protection Platoon A.K.A. The Wonderbolts: (''Fly Like Lightning, Strike Like Thunder'' however their original slogan is ''[[PretentiousLatinMotto Altius volantis]]''-''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E7NewbieDash Soaring higher!]]'') In-keeping with their status as elite soldiers, they have the least standardised uniforms, and do not require dyed manes or dyed coats. Their standard issue uniform consists of blue nylon body suits and wind goggles. Their unit insignia is a yellow thunderbolt with white wings. Their headquarters are in Winsome Falls, Neighgara.

* The Equestrian Griffons' Armed Battalion: (''These Rocks Rule None But Harmony'') An independent national guard regiment under local administration, tasked with defending the Free City of Rostrum, a Griffon fortress exclave and port inside Equestria. Made up entirely by Griffons from both Equestria and Griffonstone, it's the only unit with the authority to traverse Griffon territory, following the 1963 Treaty of Rostrum that regulated the territory's special 'inter-border' status that effectively made it a very neutral TruceZone and buffer between the two great powers. They wear silver Griffin armour (most notably with cabassets with yellow feather plumage), and their unit insignia mirrors the coat-of-arms of the town - a bird's claw grasping a thunderbolt. Their HQ is in Rostrum.

* The Royal Provost Battalion: (''Harmony Through Justice, Justice Through Wisdom, Wisdom Through Harmony'') The 1200 pony-strong military police of the Guard (not to be confused with Gendarmerie detachs), who seem to dispach in indefinite amount of zealous, but hopelessly inept [[TheInquisitorGeneral Inquisitors General]] to cause trouble in the ranks. Annoying at best and harrowing at worst, they have garnered a universal {{Hatedom}} and - just as often as they seek to find things wrong with REG soldiers - they serve as the common soldier's showcase of everything wrong with the Royal Guard[[note]]elitist and detached unicorn [[ArmchairMilitary [=COs=]]], aggressive and sadist pegasus [[TheNeidermeyer [=NCOs=]]], and thick and dull earth pony [[{{Mooks}} troopers]], etc..[[/note]]. On the other hand, [[SeriousBusiness they also make sure commercial production of foods and beverage respects the health laws (mercilessly cracking down on any breach)]], [[ActuallyPrettyFunny and are rumored to invent many of the jokes told on their battalion]] (telling them to their faces when they're in service still counts as a crime). Wear golden armour and helmets with red manes, which has led to the desultory nickname of "redcaps." Have a silver star badge as their unit insignia. Their HQ is in Hoofington.
* The Royal Signals and Reconnaisance Regiment: (attributed: ''To Know The Unknown Is To Win The Unwinnable'') [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial Does not exist]]. [[MemeticMutation But if it did]], [[SpyFromWeightsAndMeasures it would actually be the Royal Guard's military intelligence wing]]. As nopony is willing to officially confirm its existence, the scope of its activities is dubious [[note]]Usually, they claim to be in charge of the recon cavalries and maintaining communications between the units and Canterlot, but it's still certain that they have also carried out acts of sabotage on and behind frontlines, employ a large number of informers and spies on all sides of the border, specialise in analysis, research and decryption work to crack enemy intelligence, and sit on a stash of some intriguing, highly developed magic with seemingly no precedent or purpose. And all their work is highly classified in any case[[/note]]. They have their own task force though - the Security Assistance Squadron, whose existence, surprisingly and quite ironically, ''has'' indeed been confirmed. Of course, they have no coat of arms or uniforms of their own. Thanks to their direct links to the Princely Offices, there is confusion whether they can even be assumed part of the Guard proper. Their HQ is, of course, unknown. Canterlot would be a good guess, though.

** [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Commander-In-Chief (Princess Celestia and Princess Luna)]] - There is no higher authority in the country though it has become common to turn to either Princess Twilight (Leader of the Friendship Council) or Princess Cadance should both of the dyarchs be unavailable.
** [[FourStarBadass General, Marshal (Air Force only), Admiral (Navy only)]] - Branch commander rank. Formerly collectively referred to as Commander (archaic).
** [[ColonelBadass Colonel, Commander (Navy only)]] - Commands all troops in one region or two.
** [[TheCaptain Captain]] - Has command over a regiment or other complete task force or vessel.
** [[CavalryOfficer Lieutenant, Wing Commander (Air Force only)]] - Commands a battalion at best, a company at worst.
** Cornet, Acting Lieutenant, Sheriff (doubles as political office) - A broad assortment of equal ranks without command, tasked with the sub-command (or temporary command) of a unit ''or'' command over irregular units (such as Militias and Border Guards).
** [[EnsignNewbie Officer Cadet]] - Officer in training.

** Warrant Major - Leads the platoon.
** [[SergeantRock Sergeant]] - Leads one whole section.
** Lance Corporal, Wing Leader (Air Force only) - Leads one combat team/one maneouvre team respectively.

** Specialist - A Trooper promoted into a specialised field of expertise (e.g. defence, magic, engineering, ambulance, etc).
** Private, [[WingMan Wing-Pony (Air Force only)]], Trooper (RPB only) - The standard rank that makes up the bulk of the Guard.
** [[NewMeat Recruit, Air Cadet (Air Force only)]] - Soldier in training.

!!Notable Events Involving The Royal Guard[[note]]In-keeping with the Equestrian tradition of 'NeverSayDie', please NeverSayDie.[[/note]]
* app. 250 bd - 251 bd (Pegasus Army): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E13HearthsWarmingEve The Eternal Winter Scramble]]'': As the disastrous winters of the 200s bd destroyed most of the crops and reserves of the three Pony Tribes, and the 250 Conference failed, the three tribes scrambled for the last hoofful of fertile lands of the modern-day Canterlot area. Often, it resulted in occasional fights, territorial clashes and raids in the Hoofington, Cloudsdale and Everfree provinces, especially perpetrated by Pegasi. The animosity continued and grew worse until the three leaders ended up seeking refuge in the same cave...
* app. 100 bd - ? bd (Pegasus Army): The beginning of the ''[[DarkAgeEurope Discordian Era]]''. According to a letter of commission, one of the few historical artifacts that has remained from this time, the Pegasopolis Guard tried to fight the Discordian influence by order of the Equestrian Commonwealth in Canterlot. It is unknown how far it was successful, but the entire Commonwealth eventually succumbed to the Chaos in the next few decades.
* 10 - 115 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheHundredYearsWar The Equestrian Unification Wars]]''.
* 1006 (EUP Guard): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E1TheCrystalEmpirePart1 The Crystal War]]'': Everything began when the Crystal Empire, led by the rebellious Unicorn King Sombra, tried to expand its border into surrounding (Equestrian) Seaddle territory and enslave the local population. In the next two weeks, the Princess Sisters ammassed an 7500 strong-army and marched against the city state, eventually pushing back an avid, yet undersupplied and unprepared Crystal Guard in the Battle of Horstings. King Sombra famously ordered to [[KickTheDog raze the conquered land as they retreated]]. The Crystal State itself was overrun [[CurbStompBattle very easily]], and the most spectacular event of the entire campaign was perhaps the Alicorn Sisters personally tracking down King Sombra during the retreat and sealing him under the Sir-Ascot-Glacier. Only about 400 ponies were lost on Equestria’s side, half of them civilian ponies of the surrounding lands. [[note]]The Crystal numbers themselves are unknown – the Crystal Empire was lost to a spell as the Royal Guard was making preparing its formal annexation.[[/note]] That said, relationships with Griffonstone soured as part of the fallout of this campaign. The Griffons had close ties to the region, and when the Crystal Empire was lost in time, they blamed the Royal Sisters for this failure, particularly Princess Luna.

* 1011 – 1019 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheCrusades The Saddle Arabian Campaign]]'': The Saddle Arabian Sultan, as an outspoken friend of Princess Luna, was enraged by her banishment, leading him to refuse to recognize Celestia's status as Equestria's true princess, sever all trade with Equestria, and expel Equestrian ponies from the country. Celestia decided to make him recognize her rule by force, and for that reason called for the nobleponies of Equestria to invade and occupy Saddle Arabian cities and trade posts in her name. All counties of Equestria complied, and soon a force of nearly a hundred thousand ponies ventured to the horse nation, capturing several major metropolises including Mareusalem and Coltstaninople. The Sultan then turned to the Khalifs and Emirs of Saddle Arabia for defence. The captured cities switched owners several times as more noble equines from both sides headed into the battle for their respective nation's honour. Eight years and 65000 lives later, all Royal Guard companies had been beaten back, and the Saddle Arabian borders were restored, with the Sultan's begrudging recognition following suit. Thankfully, relations between the nations have been mild and positive ever since this very humbling conflict.
* 1618 – 1631 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/ThirtyYearsWar Thirteen Years’ War]]'': The escalation of tensions between the Equestrian Crown and the Griffon Union after Princess Celestia threw a [[DiplomaticImpunity misbehaving]] Griffon envoy [[ShootTheMessenger out a Throne Room window]]. [[note]]For the record, he ended up fine. Hopefully, the Princess knew that he could fly.[[/note]] Seeing this as an act of diplomatic impiety (and appreciating an opportunity to utilise some cutting-edge magic and technology), the Griffon Union declared war and landed ''èn masse'' on Equestria's eastern shores, venturing deep into Pony lands. The Griffons managed to capture the seaside fort of Rostrum, using it as a rally point for mercenaries[[note]]traditionally, the bulk of the Griffon fighting force[[/note]]. After the Royal Guard scrambled east to (futilely) prevent the Griffins advancing inland to Mustangia and ultimately Canterlot, the situation only grew worse when they were pushed back, which Mustangia took as an opportunity to try and secede from Equestria. As the war dragged on, the Griffons' own mercenaries began defecting and going rogue across the whole region. It took an entire decade for the fighting to die down and the respective sides to regroup behind their respective sides of the Grand Strait. Officially, the war was a draw, but cost all sides about 200,000 lives and a million ponies displaced.

* 1862 - 1891 (EUP Guard): ''The Buffalo Wars'': A desultory series of actions during the Southwestward Expansion of Equestrian settlers into traditional buffalo lands.
* 1899 - 1902 (EUP Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar The Boors’ War]]'': The last great attempt of Equestria to tame the Badlands. Setting up the colonies of Equitoria, the settlers soon found their biggest problem to be the native Diamond Dogs who lived under the earth and robbed towns, plundered supply routes and occasionally even abducted ponies as bounty. The EUP Guard was called in to safeguard the Pony settlers, but was quickly overwhelmed with the Diamond Dogs’ presence, who at that point had already resorted to irregular warfare (against the painfully rigid, outdated and unflexible tactics of the Guard) to great effect. Even though the Guard proceeded to increase their presence constantly over the months, the Badlands remained to be dangerous and utterly uninhabitable regions, last not but least because of such 'neutral' threats like dragons and hydras. Even though the casualties were minimal (less than 200), Princess Celestia essentially declared the cause not to be worth the trouble, sacked the responsible commanding officers, beat the retreat and reorganized the EUP Guard into the Equestrian Royal Guard, updating it for the modern world with new, more flexible tactics. To this day, there is some sort of unspoken [[note]] 'unspoken' because it is a ''massive'' OldShame[[/note]] agreement between the Diamond Dogs and Equestria that keeps Ponies (especially the Royal Guard) out and the Diamond Dogs in. The colonies are still there as well, but are destroyed beyond recognition.
* 1914 - 1945 (Equestrian Royal Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI The Great]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Changeling War]]'': Under the directions of their new Queen, Chrysalis I, the Changeling empire made repeated, but fairly subtle attempts to expand into Equestrian territory. When Princess Celestia chose not to react [[note]]Basically, she did not want to start a war over the sparsely populated wasteland of the Frozen North a second time[[/note]], Chrysalis saw this as an allowance to swallow several whole counties. She invaded Northern Equestria, Mustangia, Germaneigh, Cowstria, and even swung over the Grand Strait to take Eastern Griffonstone, the southern region of Yugryphonia, and all of the Foallands from the air, and ultimately landed in Saddle Arabia, making entire continents her enemies in record time [[note]]Besides Griffonstone, Saddle Arabia and the Zebra Chiefdoms were quick to show their support for Equestria in a matter of hours[[/note]]. It was perhaps the most world-spanning conflict that Equestria took part in. Royal Guards from all over Equestria were ordered to march up north and fend off the Changelings' "thunder and lightning", as they themselves called this new, swift form of conquering land. Chrysalis made heavy use of terror and mind control to make the captured states her puppet countries, and managed to put the Guard under constant pressure over years in a row. However, thanks to the Guard making up in fervour and technology what the Changelings had in flexibility and numbers, the stalemate between the two sides was upheld. Soon, neither side could advance even a mere dozen miles. It was not until Griffonstone launched an all-out offensive from the east and successfully thinned out the Changelings’ ranks that the stalemate ended[[note]]This would be one of the last acts of a unified Griffonstone. Unbeknownst to Equestrian scholars, [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E8TheLostTreasureOfGriffonstone a raid by Arimaspi]] of Tambelon stole the Idol of Boreas shortly after the end of the war, resulting in increasingly fractured griffon territories[[/note]]. Those Changeling colonies that didn’t retreat were retaken by the Guard in a matter of weeks. The Changelings ended up with less land than before the war, and were utterly humiliated by the winning powers. This built-up animosity still persists in present times. More than half a million ponies were taken out, and more than three Million lost their homes.

* 1991 - 1999 (Equestrian Royal Guard): ''[[UsefulNotes/TheYugoslavWars The Yugryphonian Intervention]]'': In 1990, Yugryphonia, an apostate south-eastern region of Griffonstone, used the country's precarious political climate (read: the ''Griffon Civil Wars'', which began in the wake of wild internal strife) to declare independence and began drawing up paramilitary forces. Equestria, which had been at odds with Griffonstone ever since '82 and were deeply worried that the war's violence may sweep over the Grand Strait, hastily hatched a treaty of mutual respect with Yugryphonia. When a Gryphon nationalist army marched into Yugryphonia and the Yugryphonian National Guard opened fire, Equestria warily abstained, but filed an international plight for Yugryphonia in the NEIGHTO. It was only when the Yugryphonian conflict got so thoroughly out of claw that the Princesses (including the newly ascended Princess Cadance) and by extension, Equestria's allies as well, felt that the harmony of the entire theatre was too far in peril to be ignored, and organised a peacekeeping mission that deployed 500 Equestrians, 380 Saddle Arabians and 115 Zebricans to Yugryphonia. This peacekeeping force was officially neutral, and served mainly as a deterrent for both sides, interfering only in the wake of unjustifiably unharmonious actions perpetrated by the combatants. Naturally, no Griffonstone faction approved of that, but the combatants ultimately retreated from Yugryphonia. Peacekeepers are still stationed in the region as observers, and even though Yugryphonia is largely free, it has yet to be recognised as an independent state by most of the world.

* 2012 - Ongoing (Equestrian Royal Guard): ''[[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW The Wuvy-Dovey Land Relief Mission]]''.

It was only after Discord’s defeat at the horns of Celestia of the Sun and Luna of the Moon that the Pegasus warrior culture recovered from being nearly swept away by the Discordian influence. After their coronation as the Princesses of Equestria in 1 ad[[note]]After Discord[[/note]], Celestia and Luna recognised the potential of the Pegasus legacy, and began recruiting male Pegasi into a PraetorianGuard to defend the young Equestrian royal court from competing forces. In the years following its formation, the aptly named the EUP Guard - or ''E''arth Pony, ''U''nicorn and ''P''egasus Guard - grew into an army, originally split into two branches in 690 ad – the Celestian Guard, commanded by Princess Celestia, and the Night Guard, led by Princess Luna. For the sake of balancing the power between the two, each army took turns acting as the national defence force alongside their commander every sunrise and sunset.

The Night Guard was defeated in battle within a year, surrounded and forced to capitulate by the Celestian Guard. Even though all its members were pardoned by Princess Celestia, TheRemnant of the Night Guard was dissolved or usurped into the ranks of the Celestians soon after. It was at that time that the terms “Royal Guard” and “Celestian Guard” became synonymous - Princess Celestia took control of all the country’s troops under her banner, reshuffling the EUP Guard's command structure to form specialised task groups called the PPP's - the ''P''ony ''P''rotection ''P''latoons, under the command of the former Celestian Guard officer Firefly. Under Celestia's thousand-year single rule, she expanded the Guard further, splitting it yet again into two branches in 1415, but differentiated by purpose rather than allegiance. In the spirit of the ancient Pegasus Warriors, the Royal Equestrian Air Force was formed as an extended hoof of the ground-based Royal Guard and the Royal Equestrian Navy (thus reverting to its original post-Discordian designation) in 1899. This gave birth to the Wonderbolts two years later, a legendary brigade of crack flyers who were routinely tasked with high-risk missions, and garnered nearly unprecedented pop-cultural fame, becoming the poster children of the Royal Guard's glory for a long time and in 1902 the EUP Guard was officially reorganized into the modern Equestrian Royal Guard when [[UsefulNotes/TheSecondBoerWar The Boors’ War]] revealed just how painfully rigid and outdated the guard actually was.

* Lances: Bigger and entirely wooden counterparts of the spear which, on the other hoof, ''can'' be carried on the move - affixed to a guardspony's armor and pointed directly to his front. They come in different weights and sizes, but are primarily the heavy cavalry's aggressive weapons, meant for charges on the battlefield to punch through the enemy's lines. Thick bulky ones are traditional weapons of the Crystal Empire, where it has since also become a national sport in traditional jousting tournaments.

* Cannons: Many would be surprised to hear that cannons - large cast-iron tubes on wheels that use black powder cartridges to propel loads forward really fast - have their roots on the battlefield. While they do have chiefly civilian uses nowadays (like propelling confetti, fireworks or stuntponies), artillery was once designed to hurl cast iron and carved stone projectiles into the enemy ranks with devastating results. Nowadays, artillery has been abandoned by the Guard in favor of the much more effective and cheaply available detonation spells. But the concept of firearms itself has not yet been entirely disused...

* Rockets: Another obsolete weapon designed to carry explosives to great heights and distances, these are now better known as firework carriers - though in some cases military and police ordnance - ponies are tasked with safely launching them over public events, their only function is to create colorful displays of light and sound. It has been theorized that these might one day be improved to carry larger payloads, or even [[Fanfic/OurFirstSteps carry ordinary ponies to the Moon.]] It is thought that this last is why Princess Luna has blocked any further development. Though, rockets in combat haven't left researcher's minds completely.

* Airship: Built by the Goodyear-Zeppony Corporation as pleasure and passenger craft, dirigible airships are garnering an ever-greater share of Equestria's travel industry. The Pegasus Weather Service makes airships (otherwise vulnerable to storms) surprisingly reliable. Militarized versions have become a major asset to the Navy, as they have greater endurance than pegasi and can be operated by unwinged ponies. There is significant InterServiceRivalry over the role of aircraft, and the Navy is also known to be experimenting with helicopter carriers. Two major types of airships exist - the large and rigid [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Los_Angeles_%28ZR-3%29 ''Los Pegasus'']] class and the smaller, non-rigid blimps. Airships are lightly armed and used for maritime patrol, often with a few pegasus scouts to extend their range.

** And of course, there is the [[UsefulNotes/{{NATO}} NEIGHTO]] - '''N'''eighbouring '''E'''quine '''I'''ntegrity and '''G'''eopolitical '''H'''armony '''T'''reaty '''O'''rganisation, a loose defence coalition of several Equine or near-Equine nations, spearheaded by Equestria. Includes, among others, the Crystal Empire, Saddle Arabia and Zebrica as member states.

* InsistentTerminology: For all you Pegasi - It's a ''platform'', not a cloud. There are many types of clouds, but only the ones that can carry your weight are platforms. [[FelonyMisdemeanor Don't mix it up]].

** The Royal Signals and Recons are this, though inverted and to a lesser extent - officially, they don't even exist, but hints and clues just ''keep'' trickling through the facade. And Canterlot has done nothing to shoo these elephants out of the room. And the less said about the [[StreisandEffect Streisandalwood Effect]], the better.

-->-- '''[[AuthorsOfQuote Starswirl The Bearded]]''', on the fame and infamy of the EUP Guard.

** '''The Battle of Canterlot''': The remaining members of the Friendship Council assisted by Capper, Celaeno, her crew and Princess Skystar now in Hippogryph form sneak into Canterlot using a trojan cake and Capper’s silver tongue before proceeding to [[{{Pun}} storm]] the Canterlot Palace, all while taking on a hoard of Storm Guards and a tornado unleashed on the city by the Storm King, before reuniting with Twilight while separating the King from the staff and after Twilight got her hooves on the staff the Storm King attempted to turn petrify the elements but ended up petrified himself and smashed into the ground resulting in the only known casualty of the war when Tempest protected the elements having swapped sides after being betrayed by the Storm King and having her life saved by Twilight, in the end Canterlot and Equestria is liberated, the petrified ponies returned to normal, all other ponies are freed, the princess get their magic back, the damage to the city is repaired, Princess Twilight grants Tempest clemency and the Friendship Festival resumes.

** '''The Capture of Princess Twilight''': Twilight’s stunt results in the group having a fight with everypony besides Spike leaving to give Twilight space, which Tempest takes advantage of to capture Twilight and take her back to Canterlot where she and the other Princesses have their magic drained into the Staff of Sacanas making the Storm King the most powerful being on the planet, However everyone the Elements befriended throughout this “epic adventure” show up wanting to help.

** '''The Burning of Ponyville''': Nopony knows how, when or why Ponyville was set ablaze given that the entire population of the town was in Canterlot for the Friendship Festival and none of the perpetrators have come forward about what happened, all that is known is that it accured before Canterlot was liberated in the Battle for Equestria. Luckily the town is known for quick rebuilds due to the regular monster attacks that have been plaguing the town for several years.

** '''The Burning of Ponyville''': Nopony knows how, when or why Ponyville was set ablaze given that the entire population of the town was in Canterlot for the Friendship Festival and none of the perpetrators have come forward about what happened, all that is known is that it accrued before Canterlot was liberated in the Battle for Equestria. Luckily the town is known for quick rebuilds due to the regular monster attacks that have been plaguing the town for several years.

The single most embarrassing moment in the 2000+ year history of the guard is widely considered to be the [[WesternAmimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 War for Equestria]] where it didn't just fail to protect Canterlot or the Princesses but ''[[EpicFail did not even get the chance to deploy]]'', leaving the Battle for Equestria to be fought and won by a RagtagBunchOfMisfits (including [[EpicFail a con artist cat, a Hippogriff/Seapony Princess and]] ''[[UpToEleven a crew of 5 pirates]]'') rather than the 45,000 trained Equestrian soldiers. It's considered by many Equestrians to be a serious WhatTheHellHero moment. Again, the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgement is strictly enforced.

* 1618 – 1631 (EUP Guard): ''[[ThirtyYearsWar Thirteen Years’ War]]'': The escalation of tensions between the Equestrian Crown and the Griffon Union after Princess Celestia threw a [[DiplomaticImpunity misbehaving]] Griffon envoy [[ShootTheMessenger out a Throne Room window]]. [[note]]For the record, he ended up fine. Hopefully, the Princess knew that he could fly.[[/note]] Seeing this as an act of diplomatic impiety (and appreciating an opportunity to utilise some cutting-edge magic and technology), the Griffon Union declared war and landed ''èn masse'' on Equestria's eastern shores, venturing deep into Pony lands. The Griffons managed to capture the seaside fort of Rostrum, using it as a rally point for mercenaries[[note]]traditionally, the bulk of the Griffon fighting force[[/note]]. After the Royal Guard scrambled east to (futilely) prevent the Griffins advancing inland to Mustangia and ultimately Canterlot, the situation only grew worse when they were pushed back, which Mustangia took as an opportunity to try and secede from Equestria. As the war dragged on, the Griffons' own mercenaries began defecting and going rogue across the whole region. It took an entire decade for the fighting to die down and the respective sides to regroup behind their respective sides of the Grand Strait. Officially, the war was a draw, but cost all sides about 200,000 lives and a million ponies displaced.

* 2016 (All of Equestria): ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E25ToWhereAndBackAgainPart1 The Changeling]]'' ''[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E26ToWhereAndBackAgainPart2 Revolution]]'': As payback for losing ''The Siege Of Canterlot'' and [[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW her subsequent defeat and capture after the liberation of Wuvy-Dovey Land]], after [[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFiendshipIsMagic her jailbreak]] Chrysalis I captured and replaced the entire top brass of Equestria, including all five princesses, Prince Shining Armor, and the entire Friendship Council using still-unknown means[[note]]although her AntiMagic throne may give some clues[[/note]], ''in the span of a single day''. (The deception was so well done that it took the originals confronting their doppelgangers after their rescue, and the award ceremony speech the day after, for the mass kidnapping to be public knowledge.) The princesses, Council, prince, and others were then rescued at the hands of unlikely heroes Starlight Glimmer (former now-reformed cult leader and current student of Princess Twilight), Trixie Lulamoon (stage magician, stage name Trixie The Great and Powerful), Thorax (a changeling defector to Equestria), and Discord (the reformed Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony). Thorax broke into the throne room of Chrysalis I. As Chrysalis attempted to drain all love from him (her typical method for executing traitors), Starlight Glimmer encouraged Thorax to share his love with the changelings, a behavior which turned out to sate Changeling love hunger over a long period. The result was an explosion that shattered Chrysalis' throne, effectively igniting a coup within the Changelings, which ended with Thorax being installed as King. In the aftermath, Thorax and Celestia brokered a peace treaty between Equestria and the Changelings. However dissenters who prefer the old ways roam about, rallying around the deposed Chrysalis, whose whereabouts are currently unknown.

** '''The Battle for Equestria''': The remaining members of the Friendship Council assisted by Capper, Celaeno, her crew and Princess Skystar now in Hippogryph form sneak into Canterlot using a trojan cake and Capper’s silver tongue before proceeding to [[{{Pun}} storm]] the Canterlot Palace, all while taking on a hoard of Storm Guards and a tornado unleashed on the city by the Storm King, before reuniting with Twilight while separating the King from the staff and after Twilight got her hooves on the staff the Storm King attempted to turn petrify the elements but ended up petrified himself and smashed into the ground resulting in the only known casualty of the war when Tempest protected the elements having swapped sides after being betrayed by the Storm King and having her life saved by Twilight, in the end Canterlot and Equestria is liberated, the petrified ponies returned to normal, all other ponies are freed, the princess get their magic back, the damage to the city is repaired, Princess Twilight grants Tempest clemency and the Friendship Festival resumes.