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Talk:Swiss Guards

What happened in 1870?
When the Italian kingdom annexed what was left of the Papal States in 1870, what role, if any, did the Swiss Guard play? Michael Hardy 19:27, 1 Sep 2004 (UTC)

The Kingdom of Italy annexed what was left of the Papal States in 1870 by invading and occupying papal territory. This invasion culminated in a brief battle for Rome on 20 September 1870. During this battle the Swiss Guard deployed to various locations inside the Vatican in order to defend the papal palace against an Italian assault. Although there was fighting along the city walls, the Italians consciously avoided any military action against the Vatican, so the Swiss Guard did not engage in any combat. Casimiro M (talk) 02:24, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

Uniforms
Their uniforms are worth of mention I think. They were designed by Michelangelo.--Drozmight 11:30, 8 Apr 2005 (UTC)

Unlikely--Vatican website says: "It is commonly thought that the uniform was designed by Michelangelo, but it would seem rather that he had nothing to do with it."

Date uniforms introduced? I changed this from 1915 to 1914 because National Geographic says 1914, and I can't find anything that says 1915.
 * I read the article and take it that these are the uniforms they wear today? On the Vatican website it states that the Swiss have had a uniform since their introduction into the Vatican.--MrNiceGuy1113 (talk) 19:12, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

Ahh... should there be something to debunk the misconception then? I'll add "It is widely believed that Michelangelo designed the uniforms still in use by the Swiss Guard today, however, according to the Vatican, it is likely he had nothing at all to do with it."--Drozmight 15:52, 11 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * This seems like a logical change, although I'm not sure you need to put, "according to the Vatican." I think the reference should be sufficient enough.--MrNiceGuy1113 (talk) 19:04, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

World War II
I read elsewhere that the Swiss Guard kept Nazi troops out of the Vatican during the Nazi occupation of Rome. Is this true? And if so, does anyone know the details?

24.8.106.182 (talk) 16:52, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

When the Germans occupied Rome in September 1943, the Swiss Guard (and other units of the papal armed forces, such as the Palatine Guard) went on emergency alert. This included increasing the number of guard posts. The guardsmen abandoned their halberds and swords for Mauser Model 98 rifles, bayonets, and bandoliers holding sixty rounds of ammunition. These actions were purely precautionary. Although German paratroopers for a time patrolled Italian territory beyond St. Peter's Square, the Germans made no effort to enter Vatican City and there were no confrontations between the Swiss Guards and German troops. At the time, the Guard numbered only around sixty personnel, so it could have mounted only a symbolic resistance to any attack or incursion. In any event, on the day the Germans occupied Rome Pope Pius XII issued an order forbidding the Swiss Guard from shedding blood in his defense. The best source on the history of the Guard is the recent history by Christian-Roland Marcel Richard.Casimiro M (talk) 21:58, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

Weaponry
I did some research on Google, and found that the Swiss Guards are armed with the Sig 75 9mm Pistol specifically. Any objection to adding this to the page where the Sig pistol is mentioned? Matt 10:15, 18 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Tread lightly. I think expanding on their role in protecting the pope during a very volitile period (in the way of powerful weapons) is important and should be expanded on, but it should not be the focus of the article. Nick Catalano (Talk) 12:20, 18 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Couldn't tread much lighter than what I did :-) Matt 06:42, 19 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * Ahh. My mistake. You added it to the Sig page. not this page... my apologies... I thought it would be improper on the Swiss Guard page... Nick Catalano (Talk) 05:13, 22 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * No, I added the phrase "P 75" to this page, after the reference to them training with their issue Sig handguns. Just thought it might be useful to know what KIND of handguns were issued.  I never thought to add it to the Sig page.  Matt 09:00, 22 Apr 2005 (UTC)
 * The Swiss Guard is a very functional military unit, trained in HK submachine gun usage, and all are issued sidearms. Their functional uniforms are grey coveralls and a black beret; only in their ceremonial roles do they wield the halberdier.  During WWII, as Hitler moved in Italy, the SG took up positions behind heavy machine guns and mortars, prepared to mount a defense of the Vatican.  They are far more than just for show.  Talk 09:00, 22 Apr 2005 (UTC)

The grey coveralls are worn only by new recruits during their training exercises. The routine uniform is a black beret, dark blue, white-collared doublet cinched at the waist by a brown belt, and dark blue pants.Casimiro M (talk) 21:26, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

Vincenz Oertle, a Swiss historian, wrote a book about the weapons of the modern Swiss Guard. This book is based on his research in the archive of the Swiss Guard and visits to the armory of the Guard. He shows that during World War II the Guard had rifles and pistols, but did not have heavy machine guns or mortars.Casimiro M (talk) 23:18, 5 April 2008 (UTC)

"Not only are the guards fully trained and equipped in modern tactics and weaponry, they also receive instructions in using the sword and halberd." Can anyone source the bit about instruction medieval weaponry? This makes it sound like the Swiss Guard is trained to use these weapons with deadly intent, but I can't find any verification of that at all. I suspect any training with medieval weapons is purely for the nature of drill and ceremony. Rapier42 22:21, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

I think you're right about the training in halberd and sword. Since the ceremonial aspects of the corps' work loom so large, recruits have to be trained in the use of the halberd--marching, presenting arms, etc. Nobody wants a reception of a chief of state to be marred by the clatter of a halberd dropped by a guardsman. Neither the halberd or the sword are intended as first-line weapons. I have been told by an employee of the Vatican that pistols and submachine guns are available at each guardpost. The Swiss Guards on duty at the Porta Santa Ana (the "service entrance" to the Vatican) carry pistols openly on their belts, as anyone who walks by the gate can see.Casimiro M (talk) 18:44, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

Official language
The page reports that German is the official language of the guard, and presents the oath in German. Besides the fact that it seems to me quite strange a police unit speaking a different language from the official one of its country, the oath is given in the guard language: this means that most of the guards speak in German, some in French, and a few in Italian. Would you please check this matter?--Panairjdde 09:07, 21 Jun 2005 (UTC)

It is true that the official language of the Swiss Guard is German. More than half of the Swiss people have German as their native language, so it would be quite impractical to use one of the less common languages. Furthermore it is quite unrealistic that the Swiss Guard should speak the official language of the Vatican City, because that would be Latin. I assume that you meant the most commonly used language in their country: Italian. I think that the Guardians have to understand Italian at least, so that they can communicate with the other people in the Vatican City, but that's only speculation. 62.46.183.40

If you look at the Annual Report on the official website of the Swiss Guards, you will notice that they switch back-and-forth between the several languages with each page break. While each recruit takes the oath in his native tongue, I think it is safe to assume that they are in fact multi-lingual, as are most europeans. --StanZegel 22:06, 9 August 2005 (UTC)

The Swiss guard actually have to fluently speak at least 6 of the worlds main languages with four of these being - English, Italian, German, and French. (Vanessa Carter 30/10/05)
 * There is nothing about this in the conditions for admission, and I very much doubt that it is the case. It would be extremely hard to find 100 people in Switzerland who fit the condition of admission AND fluently speak 6 languages. Schutz 14:20, 23 December 2005 (UTC)
 * I have met Swiss people who speak German, Swiss German, English and French. Switzerland seems to be a country that is excellent at languages. I am sure it is not hard to find men who meet the physical requirement and language requirement. Also, those that need to take an Italian course seems to be what most Europeans would do, learn the language of the country.--MrNiceGuy1113 (talk) 19:23, 26 April 2012 (UTC)
 * It's true that in multilingual European countries such as Switzerland, it's common for people to speak more than one of the country's official languages (even though I'd like to add that Swiss German is not usually counted as a language different from German; it's a dialect of Standard German, but not a language in its own right). This, plus the fact that many of them will also learn one or more foreign languages, makes them quite poyglot, especially by comparison to American standards of language learning (no offence intended). But believe me, even in Switzerland it would be very rare to find somebody fluent in six or more languages - and even those rare people who do must still satisfy the other requirements, plus they must be willing to enlist for the Swiss Guard (rather than use their linguistic skills to get another, presumably better paid, job elsewhere). It is very unlikely that the Swiss Guard could easily recruit enough people to fill vacancies if fluency in six languages were a requirement - for which we have no evidence anyway. SchnitteUK (talk) 18:45, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

According to the official site of the Swiss Guard (http://www.schweizergrade.org), each Guardian who is serving at an entrance has to participate in an Italian course.ṭ

Estermann Murder Section
This section seems rather random. Should it have more preface and/or explanation within the paragraph? It seems like someone just copied the section from another article that had previously mentioned some issues that are unclear in this article. I don't know enough about the incident to revise it, but if someone else could fix it, I think the article would be better. Clarkefreak ∞ 02:08, 26 Jun 2005 (UTC)

 * Removed two things:
 * The "Further information at Mehmet Ali Ağca"; it's an only very marginally related and completely unconfirmed connection.
 * "It is also of note that Estermann was the first captain commander of the Swiss Guard who was not a noble."—can somebody explain to me what a "Swiss noble" is supposed to be?
 * Lupo 08:07, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

Could we get a mention of who Alois Estermann is in the section? His name is in the first sentence and initially the relation to the whole article isn't clear.

BOOKS. I recommend the book BLOODY LIES IN VATICAN, by a group of Vatican peoples who signed "Disciples of Truth", edited in Italy by Kaos Edizioni. It's original title is, in Italian, BUGIE DI SANGUE IN VATICANO. I don't know if an English version is available. Val

The Oath..
..is actually all German; there's not a single French or Italian word in it (OK, one or two are very obviously derived from Latin, but that's it, they're still German). Plus the translation of the part the recruits have to say is sort of faulty; "so wahr mir Gott und seine Heiligen helfen" means "may God and his saints help me".. 23:56, 18 November 2005 (UTC)
 * What's your point? The reason they showed the German oath is because that's what it most commonly given. --KelticKTalk 23:51, 7 February 2006 (UTC)

Dates
In the article the Swiss Guard entered Vatican City on January 22nd, but according to the January 21st page, it happened on that date.

Moreover, we say the Swiss Guard started fighting in 15th century, but we only speak about 16th century or later events.

gala.martin

 * Yes, the introductory paragraph is confused. Swiss Guards are/were small Swiss mercenary detachments that serve(d) as bodyguards at foreign courts. Other Swiss mercenary troops fought for many armies but were not "Swiss Guards". The mercenary business started after the Burgundy Wars, i.e. in the late 15th century. The Papal Swiss Guard was the first "Swiss Guard" and, as the article correctly states, became operative in early 1506, i.e. the 16th century. I'll amend that lead section. And January 22 is correct. Lupo 08:07, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
 * I've fixed January 21 and January 22 regarding the Papal Swiss Guard.

 * Oops, actually the Papal Swiss Guard was not the first. The Swiss Historical Encyclopedia on the general Subject of "Swiss Guards" says (in French): "En 1497, le roi Charles VIII créait la compagnie des Cent-Suisses de la garde, première unité suisse permanente au service d'un souverain étranger, corps de parade plutôt que militaire, supprimé en 1792 par l'Assemblée nationale, rétabli en 1814 par Louis XVIII et qui subsista jusqu'en 1830." ("In 1497, king Charles VIII of France founded the "Guard of the Hundred Swiss", the first standing Swiss unit in the service of a foreign power, more a parade corps than a military unit, which was dissolved in 1792 by the Assemblée nationale (either the Legislative Assembly or the National Convention), reconstituted by Louis XVIII of France in 1814, and which subsisted until 1830.") There we have the 15th century (by a mere 4 years). Lupo 08:54, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

 * Good job, Lupo! I was wondering if we should shortly write this date (1497) in "Swiss Guard in France", since we cite Guard of the Hundred Swiss. Gala.martin 21:17, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

The Papal Swiss Guard and the Swiss constitution
The article currently says on the Papal Swiss Guard that it "is an exception to the Swiss rulings of 1874 and 1927". I thought all mercenary services were explicitly forbidden already in article 11 of the 1848 constitution of Switzerland [http://www.verfassungen.de/ch/verf48.htm#Art.%2011. "Es dürfen keine Militärkapitulationen abgeschlossen werden"] (its first constitution as a modern federal state). In fact, the Swiss Historical Encyclopedia says (in French): "Comme la Constitution fédérale de 1848 interdisait toute nouvelle capitulation militaire, Pie IX se décida à conclure un accord directement avec la garde. Depuis lors, le recrutement se fait par relations personnelles." ("As the constitution of 1848 prohibited all new military capitulations, Pope Pius IX decided to sign a contract directly with the Guard. Since then, all recruitement is done through personal private channels.") What are these "relations personnelles", and what is the legal standing of a Swiss Guard? Is it viewed (legally) not as a military or mercenary service but as an ordinary employment? May a Swiss citizen legally serve as a mercenary under a private contract (say, in the French Légion étrangère)? I thought not. What about the Papal Swiss Guard? Why the mentions of 1874 and 1927, and what "rulings" are meant? (1874 probably refers to the revision of the Swiss constitution, but I am unaware of that revision having changed anything with respect to mercenary services.) Lupo 08:37, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

I'm no expert on law but it says "Es dürfen keine Militärkapitulationen abgeschlossen werden" meaning that no new mercenary contracts are to be signed. It does not say that older contracts are abolished. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.204.167.190 (talk) 10:58, 26 July 2009 (UTC)

Papal Swiss Guards vs. other Swiss Guards.
I think the article should be Papal Swiss Guards and the link from vatican related articles changed. --Gbleem 02:55, 24 April 2006 (UTC)

 * No. However, if this article grows, we could separate out Papal Swiss Guard and just leave a summary here. The Papal Swiss Guard was nothing special, and in fact rather insignificant in history (maybe with the exception of their role in the Sack of Rome), whereas e.g. the Cent-Suisses have a rich military history. What does make the Papal Swiss Guard special is the mere fact that it still exists today. Lupo 07:03, 24 April 2006 (UTC)

Estermann Killing
This section claims critics attacked Estermann's character. No evidence is offered as to who was supposedly doing this and what they were saying. If a statement like this is used sources and evidences have to be provided. The entire article lacks anything much in the way of sourcing, but this entire paragraph seems for the most part to be POV-pushing. FearÉIREANN \(caint)|undefined 22:49, 25 July 2006 (UTC)

Images
I'd prefer to see the vaguely redundant Image:SwissGuardsatPrefettura.jpg and Image:Vatican 2.jpg removed, as they offer nothing that the main image does not - and some more unique images brought in, perhaps of the murdered officer, the ranks, a procession, something more than a "touristy postcard image" which is better suited to remain on WIkicommons Sherurcij (Speaker for the Dead) 17:50, 27 December 2006 (UTC)

Actually, this is not an image of Swiss Guards at the Prefettura Pontificia. The scene is the guard post at the so-called Bronze Doors, an entrance to the papal palace located in the right hand colonnade of St. Peter's Square. The Bronze Doors are the main entry for visitors with appointments in the various offices housed inside the papal palace. This spot is very popular with tourists seeking photos of Swiss Guards on duty. Casimiro M (talk) 18:32, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

Family Tradition?
It appears that the Pfyffer von Altishofen family has a tradition of being the head of the Swiss Guard since the 1500's. It would be interesting to read more about this. --Kimonandreou 15:31, 5 January 2007 (UTC)

"Estermann killing" section
I notice this was removed by an anonymous editor on 14 January. Granted, the section seems to have been a bone of contention in the past, but it seems somewhat remarkable that there should now be no mention of Estermann at all on the page, apart from in the list of Commanders. One would think that him ceasing to be one ten hours after the appointment as a result of a violent death would be worth a mention! Nick Cooper 22:49, 10 February 2007 (UTC)

Salary?
Does anyone know how much members of the Swiss Guard are paid? Just wondering, (12.218.46.67 04:06, 11 March 2007 (UTC)) It's 1300€. And they don't have to pay for living and so on. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 23:32, 12 February 2013 (UTC)

Travel Abroad
Does anyone know - Does the swiss guard travel with the pope?Agatha61 17:43, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

When the pope travels, two or three Swiss guardsmen accompany him as personal bodyguards. These guardsmen usually are graduates of "executive protection" courses organized in Switzerland. The Vatican relies on the Italian police and security services to provide the bulk of protective services when the pope travels inside Italy, and on the services of the host country when he travels to other countries.Casimiro M (talk) 18:22, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

They Get 1300€ a month. Source: Wikipedia page about the swiss guard in german. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 12:03, 20 December 2012 (UTC)

Marriage
Are the guards of the Pope allowed to marry? If so, when? The Guard Commander whowas murdered had a wife. I am a neutral editor (talk) 03:02, 3 April 2008 (UTC)

When joining the guard one has to be unmarried, however after 3 years of service and when signing to serve another 3 years and have attained at least the rank of "korporal" one can marry and stay in the guard. (taken from www.schweitzergarde.org) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.204.167.190 (talk) 11:02, 26 July 2009 (UTC)
 * Which is, as a matter of "nice to know", the occasion for women and prospective children to become Vatican State citizens. --84.154.87.182 (talk) 09:48, 2 October 2010 (UTC)

Women?
I'm just curious, are there any women Swiss Guards? I've only seen pictures of men. Thanks! Kim A M —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.161.151.116 (talk) 15:11, 24 April 2008 (UTC)

The Swiss Guard is an all male organization.Casimiro M (talk) 17:12, 25 April 2008 (UTC)

Yes, its men only still. Bolinda (talk) 04:29, 20 September 2008 (UTC)Bolinda

Swiss German
Hi,

I removed the sentence: "Its official language is Swiss German."

There was no source for it, and it was already discussed in 2005 (see the section "Official language" above).

If there is an official language, it should be precisely noted whether it is Swiss German, Swiss Standard German, Standard German, simply German or something else - according to the cited source, of course.

Thanks for understanding. --Amir E. Aharoni (talk) 13:43, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Swiss Guard Uniforms
They look like clowns; I wonder if whoever designed them, did not make them that way to MOCK the church. Italians DO have a wry sense of humor. 67.148.120.93 (talk) 13:58, 13 February 2010 (UTC)stardingo747

 * Don't be childish. Or did you think 16th-century Europeans got their duds from Men's Wearhouse?

Martial Arts
Is it true, that the swiss guard is trained in original medieval martial arts with the long sword? This would be the last existiting tradition line of the long sword.--85.3.27.44 (talk) 08:54, 22 March 2010 (UTC)

Both the halberds and swords are decorative and not intended for use as defensive weapons. The Swiss Guards receive no training in the use of the sword as a weapon. The Guard is equipped with modern firearms and the guardsmen periodically practice with these firearms at Italian police firing ranges. Casimiro M (talk) 02:11, 26 October 2010 (UTC)

Carrying on tradition, the recruits still train to handle swords and the Guard's trademark weapon: a combination spear and battle-axe known as the halberd.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,351640,00.html#ixzz1pZERjlGm — Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.54.92.120 (talk) 13:01, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

Swiss in Spanish service
Sorry to have to delete the good faith edit stating that Swiss Guards served the Spanish monarchy during the 18th century and formed part of the victorious Spanish army at the Battle of Balien in 1808. This appears to reflect confusion with the Walloon Guards first raised in 1704 and recruited from south-eastern Belgium throughout their hundred-year long history. There were six Swiss mercenary regiments in the Spanish Army until after the Napoleonic Wars and some of these did fight at Balien. They were however ordinary infantry regiments and not Swiss Guards or Household troops in any sense. Accordingly they fall outside the scope of the present article. buistR 07:49, 6 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Two Spanish Swiss regiments took part in the battle of Bailén...on the French side: Reding's and Preux's. Many of their soldiers defected to join back the Spanish forces. On the Spanish side there was another Reding's Regiment (both Reding's regiments were named after their Colonel: Nazario and Carlos Reding). On the other hand, the mastermind of the Spanish victory was Teodoro Reding (Theodor von Reding). In 1808 there were 6 Swiss infantry regiments in Spanish service, amounting to 12 battalions. The Preux's Rgt. on paper was from Valais, that at the time was on paper an independent territory. The Wallon Guards also was one of the Spanish units.

Feldweibel
I redirected Feldweibel to Feldwebel. That page includes a reference to the spelling difference within the Swiss army.--Gaarmyvet (talk) 01:51, 6 December 2010 (UTC)

Band
Image:Gardes suisses au Vatican.jpg appears to be primarily an image of the "Swiss Guard Band" in that they are carrying musical instruments as well as being armed with swords. Is the band a separate formation? It seems unlikely that a force of 135 would also have to provide a band, but the issue isn't addressed.--Gaarmyvet (talk) 16:14, 14 August 2011 (UTC)

Their webpage states that Guards "can learn additional wind instruments." http://www.guardiasvizzera.va/content/guardiasvizzera/en/guardia/vita-nella-guardia.html So i guess, it is indeed made up of serving members. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Festusdirk (talk • contribs) 22:41, 12 August 2017 (UTC)

quite a number of swiss i know plays or played in some kind of brass band, so i guess it might be a reasonable common hobby for others, too. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Festusdirk (talk • contribs) 22:28, 12 August 2017 (UTC)

Redundancy?
Having read the Vatican section on this page, and then following the link to Military of Vatican City, it appears that the relevant section here is longer than the entire page there. Is there a point to this? Should the two pages be merged? Should this page be trimmed to include only a brief referring paragraph to the more specific page? --Michael K Smith Talk 17:48, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

 * The question perhaps is which is the more appropriate home for this subject. Either (i) Military of Vatican City which is a relatively brief overview page providing links to specific articles dealing in greater detail with Noble Guard, Palatine Guard and Papal Gendarmerie as well as Swiss Guards; or (ii) Swiss Guards which also covers the Swiss household troops of France and other nations. This would have to be maintained as a separate page if the Vatican section was transferred to another article.

 * My preference would be to keep the present structure, which arguably gives the clearest and most direct access for readers to whichever guard unit is being researched.Buistr (talk) 05:12, 21 December 2011 (UTC)

Uncited material
I pulled out some uncited material the other day. Someone restored it, requesting that I add a "citations needed" tag instead. Because that is not how WP:V works, and because the article has already been so tagged for more than a year, I have stricken the material again. When it has inline citations to reliable sources, it should be fine to go back up. — Bdb484 (talk) 14:38, 21 April 2012 (UTC)

 * The material deleted (essentially the text of the oath taken on enlistment) was incorporated by editor Roper on 6 August 2004. Unfortunately he or she has long since ceased involvement in Wikipedia. Could someone with current knowledge of the Pontifical Swiss Guard provide the inline citation sought? My own contributions to this article have been limited to the French Gardes Suisse. Buistr (talk) 05:29, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

 * I restored the deleted content and add refs from the Holy See. Applying WP:V without checking with Google first is a bit harsh. --Alberto Fernandez Fernandez (talk) 08:10, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

 * Initial Googling yielded what you came up with, which is material from the pope's website. I'm not sure that the Vatican constitutes a WP:RS for this information (or for babysitting). Thoughts? — Bdb484 (talk) 18:26, 26 April 2012 (UTC)
 * Swiss guards are the Vatican state "police" force. So Vatican official website is a reliable source for this factual information. Interpretation or explanation of the oath may need other sources Imho

Alberto — Preceding unsigned comment added by 188.189.91.252 (talk) 19:35, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

 * I get that they provide those services for the Vatican, but I'm not clear on whether that makes the Vatican a reliable source, as they aren't really an arm of the Vatican, but something more like an outside contractor. If Bank of America uses Pinkerton Security to load and unload its vaults, Pinkerton may be the official security team for BOA, but that doesn't make BOA the authoritative source on Pinkerton's history. My understanding was that this was an analogous relationship. Is that correct, or is the Pontifical Swiss Guard not actually Swiss? — Bdb484 (talk) 19:49, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

 * No, it is a military unit of the Vatican which for historical reasons recruits in Switzerland. The Swiss state has no formal connection with it (except for lifting their normal ban on foreign service for Swiss citizens). Thanks for clearing this up Alberto - if the Vatican website is not a reliable source for their own form of traditional wording then what is? Thanks also to Bdb484 for cleaning out the "in popular culture" section. Some remarkably irrelevant rubbish had accumulated there.Buistr (talk) 20:08, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

 * To my understanding, they are linked to the person of the Pope and the Holy See and not to the Vatican State. That's why imho putting their oath on wiki article brings an added value to the article. But I want to correct my previous statement about "vatican police force", they are NOT the police force but the personal guard of the Pope (hence the wording Pontifical/Papal Swiss Guards). The civilian police force of the Vatican State (not the Holy See) is the Corps of Gendarmerie of Vatican City. Hope I made my point clearer --Alberto Fernandez Fernandez (talk) 07:31, 27 April 2012 (UTC)

 * If that's the case, it seems like that would be a good source. Do we have anything establishing that this is the case? — Bdb484 (talk) 16:32, 30 April 2012 (UTC)

Misc. Comments
Does anyone know - Is the swiss guard the only protection the pope has, or is there any additional security? Jfeckstein 02:43, 6 Aug 2003 (UTC)

I think it is the only official protection. But the italian security forces (police, army etc) do the main job about pope and Vatincan safety. Gala.martin 17:01, 24 January 2006 (UTC)
 * I found this article stating that the pope is protected by a combination of Swiss guard, Italian police and Vatican police forces. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1950150,00.html--MrNiceGuy1113 (talk) 18:50, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

There's also the Gendarmeria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corps_of_Gendarmerie_of_Vatican_City The Swiss Guard's are responsible for the Pope as a military corps and the Gendarmeria is responsible for the vatican state as the vatican police. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 12:05, 2 February 2013 (UTC)

Removed ceremonial. The Swiss Guard is the pope's main bodyguard and so are not primarily ceremonial.

When visiting Rome in 1955, the priest we visited mentioned a time when 400 Swiss Guards died in battle. When did the limitation to 100 men occur?
 * In 1979 the Swiss Guard was limited to 100. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/577173/Swiss-Guards--MrNiceGuy1113 (talk) 18:54, 26 April 2012 (UTC)

JFeckstein: There is also the Vigilanza, or Vigilance Corps, the Vatican cops.

I, personally, am very very dubious on defining the Swiss Guard as a military; They really are at best an honor guard, and have no practical military capability at all. - Penta 20:05, 24 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Agreed. More like a secret service type organization? Protection of the head of state is not necessarily military. Nick Catalano (Talk) 12:21, 18 Apr 2005 (UTC)

The Vigili Urbani or Corpo dei Vigili are disbanded and re-established with alarming frenquency, the Swiss Guard once numbered in the thousands consisting of several regiments drawn from all over Switzerland. The current number is set due to Vatican security being guaranteed by both Italy (thanks to Mussolini) and Switzerland. While the guard is armed with medievel weaponry for its ceremonial duties, it does have access to small arms and other infantry weapons donated to it by other countries. And the troops themselves are trained by the Swiss military. The Italian Carabinieri provide the immediate back up force to the guard and are seen patrolling the more public areas of Vatican City.

Up till the 1930'2, the SG's had several thousand soldiers and other organizations also existed. --68.80.223.233 06:20, 3 Sep 2004 (UTC)

I doubt that the Swiss Guard ever came close to numbering several thousand soldiers, and it certainly did not in the 20th century. At the time of the Papal States the pope had an army that numbered in the thousands (including Swiss mercenaries), but the Swiss Guard that we're talking about, i.e. the pope's palace guard, represented only a specific unit in that larger force. In the 20th century it is unlikely that the SG ever mustered more than 200 men. According to a recent history of the SG authored by Christian Richard (himself a guardsman), in the summer of 1914 the strength of the Guard had fallen to forty men. More normally, the strength of the unit seemed to have been closer to 100.Casimiro M (talk) 19:56, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

Does anyone have a picture of the Guard in ceremonial headgear? 60.51.70.27 10:20, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

Oldest Standing Army?
At the end of this entry, it says that the Swiss Army is the oldest standing army. But within this article, it says that at times, the Swiss Army has been disbanded and was later reestablished years later. This would seem to undermine the claim that it was the oldest standing army since for years, it didn't exist at all. 69.125.134.86 (talk) 16:37, 9 December 2012 (UTC) Are you talking about the Swiss Army or the Swiss Guard? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 20:50, 6 March 2013 (UTC)

Further more the 1st Line Infantry Regiment (1er régiment d'infanterie de ligne) has continuously existed since 1479, unlike the Swiss guarsd or the Yeomanry unit mentioned in the article it still sees active duty. The Wikipedia article on the 1st Line Infantry Regiment also states thatit is the oldest active duty unit in the World. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Line_Infantry_Regiment — Preceding unsigned comment added by 148.88.244.182 (talk) 19:11, 13 March 2013 (UTC)
 * Interesting point but I think the Papal Swiss Guard has a more convincing case. There was always a senior French infantry regiment under various names but revolutions and other political changes meant that there were frequent breaks in its lineage and little continuity in term of tradition, personnel, location etc. Buistr (talk) 19:30, 13 March 2013 (UTC)

Split
I believe that the content on the Pontifical Swiss Guard deserves to be a separate article. - Presidentman talk · contribs (Talkback) 23:32, 19 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Any article on "Swiss Guards" will inevitably be dominated by the Papal bodyguard as the sole surviving example of this type of military unit. However there is a strong connection between the modern guard at the Vatican and the historic Swiss Guards who served at the French and other royal courts. On the grounds of simplicity and ready access, I think that there is a good case for retaining a single article.Buistr (talk) 01:23, 20 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Splitting would leave an "other than papal" article that would be little more than a stub.-- Jim in Georgia Contribs  Talk  03:01, 20 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Well, right now, it looks like a badly-performed merge, so, unless we can retool this article, I'm still in favor of splitting. - Presidentman talk · contribs (Talkback) 19:47, 20 December 2012 (UTC)

I agree! Build up a new wiki page for them! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 10:25, 20 December 2012 (UTC)

 * I've come from the RfC, although I'm not an official commenter. I have done some work on the Papal Zouaves and other (admittedly non-military) aspects of the pre-1871 Papal States.  My opinion is that there is more than enough in this article for three articles - one on the general phenomena of Swiss merceneries, one on the Pontifical Guard (which really needs its own article) and one on the guards who served the French crown.  The fact that these can be interlinked means that there really is not a problem with putting in one article.  The current article is rather unbalanced with the article talking about one historical phenomenem (impoverished Swiss men fanning out across Europe as merceneries as a way of life) and another (a small subset of Catholic Swiss men serving in one of the world's smallest armies as a special dispensatiion from their country's government).  JASpencer (talk) 22:20, 23 December 2012 (UTC)

Oppose I agree with Buistr that the article, as is, has a nice blend of history and current practice (although it still needs a fair amount of work). All the best,  Miniapolis  ( talk ) 22:30, 23 December 2012 (UTC)

 * On reflection I have come to agree that a split would tidy up coverage of two essentially separate topics (sorry Miniapolis!). My own contributions have been almost entirely to the "French and others" section of the article which could remain in its present form down to the "Papal Swiss Guard" sub-heading, with appropriate links. Note that there is a third article on Swiss Mercenaries which covers the phenomenon of poverty leading to foreign soldiering in terms of both the free companies of the 15th-16th centuries and the Swiss line (i.e. non-guard) regiments in foreign service of the 17th-19th centuries. Buistr (talk) 02:02, 24 December 2012 (UTC)

Comment - [from uninvolved editor invited by RfC bot] This is a borderline case. Relevant guidelines include Summary style, Content forking and Article size. The size of the article (readable prose text) is only 17 kB, which is not very large (60 kb is large; 100 kb should be split for sure). So size alone does not suggest a split. Another issue is WP:Notability ... but the proposed new article clearly meets notability threshold. So, it boils down to what is best for readers. I think either way is fine: split or leave merged. However, if they were split, it seems that the remaining article (non-pontifical) would be rather small. (As an aside: it looks like the Pontifical SG section used to be its own article, and was merged into this article at some point in the past ... is there some story there?). --Noleander (talk) 20:49, 28 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Support This force is significant given that it is the oldest military force still in existence. I believe there is plenty of present-day sourcing, as well as older sourcing, and the force was featured prominently in the Dan Brown novel Angels & Demons. People would expect this force to have its own article.-- The Devil's Advocate tlk.  cntrb. 06:31, 3 January 2013 (UTC)
 * Support The Pontifical Swiss Guard is sole remaining element of the historical Swiss Guard in the popular imaging of Swiss Guard in this day, this age. It deserves its own article.Whiteguru (talk) 10:10, 11 January 2013 (UTC)
 * Support Let's get it done! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.77.31.253 (talk) 23:23, 12 February 2013 (UTC)

Sure, it is different. but do we really have to create a whole other article? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.231.161.29 (talk) 02:26, 16 February 2013 (UTC)

Oppose Although different, there's no need to split the article to create a new one. The current article is not so long, and the differences between the two corps could perfectly being exposed here, in different sections.--HCPUNXKID (talk) 15:25, 22 June 2013 (UTC)

Oppose - doesn't warrant new page. Good blend of the past and present. Buzzards-Watch Me Work (talk) 21:13, 13 March 2015 (UTC)

 * Support They are two really distinct articles. One part is about troops that have been disbanded by centuries, the other is about a group that is still in activity Eccekevin (talk) 02:27, 22 January 2016 (UTC)
 * Support, this isn't getting better. It is confusing to have Pontifical Swiss Guard as a section-redirect to a giant h2-section taking up most of the page. Use WP:SS. Check the solution on de-wiki, where de:Schweizergarde redirects to de:Päpstliche Schweizergarde, and a disambiguation link goes to de:Gardes suisses (Frankreich). --dab (𒁳) 13:24, 17 November 2016 (UTC)
 * Support Completetely uncontroversal. Chicbyaccident (talk) 13:29, 17 November 2016 (UTC)

Years
An IP editor did us the favor of updating the number of years the Guard has existed. Is there a template that's supposed to do that?-- Jim in Georgia  Contribs  Talk  13:46, 28 February 2013 (UTC)

SWISS regiment in Waterloo Campaign 1815
You might want to add that one Swiss regiment served in the Waterloo campaign in 1815. They suffered heavy losses in the last French victorious battle in the Napoleonic era- at the Battle of Wavre, June 18, 1815. They served in Grouchy's detached army wing --Joey123xz (talk) 02:51, 28 November 2014 (UTC)

 * True but they weren't Swiss Guards - rather a composite unit made up of the remnants of the four Swiss line regiments that had served Napoleon from 1803 on. I think that you will find reference is made to them under the article Swiss Mercenaries. Buistr (talk) 03:30, 28 November 2014 (UTC)

nice article, but ...
... why dont you not consult the german version „Schweizer Truppen in fremden Diensten“ and the references there? A massacre of papal swiss troops 1859 in Perugia led to a special law, which in turn ended in the same year de facto the service of the last official swiss regiments in foreign service (in Naples). The „Hundertschweizer“ were on duty from 1497 until 1830 and the „Schweizer Garderegiment“ was established in 1616 ... Toni Moser (talk) 08:09, 4 June 2020 (UTC)

Sabaton's The Last Stand
The Last Stand, a song by Sabaton, speaks of the Swiss Guard in 1527. This should be included in the Popular Culture section. Stick-Destiny (talk) 18:24, 8 January 2021 (UTC)

title: Talk:Swiss Guards


text:
Quintuple Alliance

The Quintuple Alliance came into being at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1818, when France joined the Quadruple Alliance created by Austria, Prussia, the Russian Empire, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The European peace settlement concluded at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.

After following the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (in Aachen), the Alliance powers met thrice: in 1820 at the Congress of Troppau (Opava), in 1821 at the Congress of Laibach (Ljubljana), and in 1822 at the Congress of Verona.

While Britain stood largely aloof from the Alliance's illiberal actions, the four continental monarchies were successful in authorising Austrian military action in Italy in 1821 and French intervention in Spain in 1823.

The Alliance is conventionally taken to have become defunct along with the Holy Alliance of the three original continental members following the death of Emperor Alexander I of Russia in 1825. Despite the Alliance's dissolution, the Great Powers of France, Britain, and Russia would go on to intervene in the Battle of Navarino.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Quintuple Alliance


text:
Holy Alliance

The Holy Alliance (Heilige Allianz; Священный союз, Svjaščennyj sojuz), also called the Grand Alliance, was a coalition linking the monarchist great powers of Austria, Prussia, and Russia, which was created after the final defeat of Napoleon at the behest of Emperor (Tsar) Alexander I of Russia and signed in Paris on 26 September 1815.

The alliance aimed to restrain liberalism and secularism in Europe in the wake of the devastating French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars; it nominally succeeded in this until the Crimean War. Chancellor Otto von Bismarck managed to reunite the Holy Alliance, as League of the Three Emperors, following the unification of Germany in 1871; the alliance again faltered by the 1880s over Austrian and Russian conflicts of interest over the decline of the Ottoman Empire.

Establishment
Ostensibly, the alliance was formed to instil the divine right of kings and Christian values in European political life, as pursued by Alexander I under the influence of his spiritual adviser Baroness Barbara von Krüdener. It was written by the Tsar and edited by Ioannis Kapodistrias and Alexandru Sturdza. Under the treaty European rulers would agree to govern as "branches" of the Christian community and offer mutual service. In the first draft Tsar Alexander I made appeals to mysticism through a proposed unified Christian empire that was seen as disconcerting by the other monarchies. Following revision, a more pragmatic version of the alliance was adopted by Russia, Prussia, and Austria. The document was called "an apocalypse of diplomacy" by French diplomat Dominique-Georges-Frédéric Dufour de Pradt.

The agreement was at first secret, and mistrusted by liberals though liberalism was effectively restrained in this political culture until the Revolutions of 1848. About three months after the Final Act of the Congress of Vienna, the monarchs of Catholic (Austria), Protestant (Prussia), and Orthodox (Russia) confession promised to act on the basis of "justice, love, and peace", both in internal and foreign affairs, for "consolidating human institutions and remedying their imperfections". The Alliance was quickly rejected by the United Kingdom (though George IV declared consent in his capacity as King of Hanover), the Papal States, and the Ottoman Empire. Lord Castlereagh, the British Foreign Secretary, called it "a piece of sublime mysticism and nonsense". Nonetheless, Britain participated in the Concert of Europe.

Organization
In practice, the Austrian state chancellor and foreign minister, Prince Klemens von Metternich made it a bastion against democracy, revolution, and secularism. It also allowed coordinating suppression of Polish efforts to restore an independent state, by Austria in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, by Russia in its Congress Poland and by Prussia in the Grand Duchy of Posen and in West Prussia. The monarchs in the Alliance used it to suppress revolutionary influence (especially from the French Revolution) from entering their own nations. The Alliance is usually associated with the later Quadruple and Quintuple Alliances, which included the United Kingdom and (from 1818) France with the aim of upholding the European peace settlement and balance of power in the Concert of Europe concluded at the Congress of Vienna. On 29 September 1818, Alexander, Emperor Francis I of Austria and King Frederick William III of Prussia met with the Duke of Wellington, Viscount Castlereagh and the Duc de Richelieu at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle to demand stern measures against university "demagogues", which would be realized in the Carlsbad Decrees of the following year. At the Congress of Troppau in 1820 and the succeeding Congress of Laibach in 1821, Metternich tried to align his allies in the suppression of the Carbonari revolt against King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. The Quintuple Alliance met for the last time at the Congress of Verona in 1822 to advise against the Greek Revolution and to resolve upon the French invasion of Spain.

The last meetings had revealed the rising antagonism between Britain and France, especially on Italian unification, the right to self-determination, and the Eastern Question. The Alliance is conventionally taken to have become defunct with Alexander's death in 1825. France ultimately went her separate way following the July Revolution of 1830, leaving the core of Austria, Prussia, and Russia as a Central-Eastern European block which once again congregated to suppress the Revolutions of 1848. The Austro-Russian alliance finally broke up in the Crimean War. Though Russia had helped to suppress the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, Austria did not take any action to support her ally, declared herself neutral, and even occupied the Danubian Principalities upon the Russian retreat in 1854. Thereafter, Austria remained isolated, which added to the loss of her leading role in the German states, culminating in her defeat during the Austro-Prussian War in 1866.

title: Holy Alliance


text:
Atari XEGS

The Atari XE Video Game System (Atari XEGS) is an industrial redesign of the Atari 65XE home computer and the final model in the Atari 8-bit computer series. It was released by Atari Corporation in 1987 and marketed as a home video game console alongside the Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega's Master System, and Atari's own Atari 7800. The XEGS is compatible with existing Atari 8-bit computer hardware and software. Without keyboard, the system operates as a stand-alone game console. With the keyboard, it boots identically to the Atari XE computers. Atari packaged the XEGS as a basic set consisting of only the console and joystick, and as a deluxe set consisting of the console, keyboard, CX40 joystick, and XG-1 light gun.

The XEGS release was backed by new games, including Barnyard Blaster and Bug Hunt, plus cartridge ports of older games, such as Fight Night (Accolade, 1985), Lode Runner (Broderbund, 1983), Necromancer (Synapse Software, 1982), and Ballblazer (Lucasfilm Games, 1985). Support for the system was dropped in 1992 along with the rest of the 8-bit computer line, the Atari 2600, and the Atari 7800.

Development
In 1984, following the video game crash of 1983 when Atari, Inc. had great financial difficulties as a division of Warner Communications, John J. Anderson of Creative Computing stated that Atari should have released a video game console in 1981 based on its Atari 8-bit computers and compatible with that software library. The company instead released the Atari 5200, which is based on the 8-bit computers but is incompatible with their software.

After Jack Tramiel purchased the company, Atari Corporation re-released two game consoles in 1986: the Atari 7800, which had previously been released in a brief test run in 1984; and a lower cost redesign of the Atari 2600.

Atari conceived the console in a plan to increase the company's console market share while improving sales of its 8-bit home computer family which had started with the Atari 400 and 800. Providing a "beginning computer" and "sophisticated game console" in one device, was thought to convince more retailers and software developers to support the platform. Matthew Ratcliff, who had been contributing editor for Antic magazine, recalled that "Atari executives asked the heads of several major toy store chains which product they'd rather sell—the powerful 65XE home computer for about US$80, or a fancy new game system for about US$150. The answer was, 'You can keep the computer, give us that game machine!" In May 1987, Atari's Director of Communications, Neil Harris, updated the online Atari community by outlining this plan, noting that the XEGS was intended to further the 8-bit line by providing mass-merchants with a device that was more appealing to their markets.

The XEGS is a repackaged Atari 65XE home computer, compatible with the existing range of Atari 8-bit computer software and peripherals, and thus can function as a home computer. At a more premium US$159 1987, it co-existed with the Atari 7800 and remodeled Atari 2600, and was occasionally featured alongside those systems in Atari print ads and television commercials.

Games
The XEGS shipped with the Atari 8-bit version of Missile Command built in, Flight Simulator II bundled with the keyboard component, and Bug Hunt which is compatible with the light gun. As the XEGS is compatible with the earlier 8-bit software, many games released under the XEGS banner are simply older games rebadged. This was done to the extent that some games were shipped in the old Atari 400/800 packaging, bearing only a new sticker to indicate that they are also compatible with the XEGS.

Peripherals
The XEGS was released in a basic set and a deluxe set. The basic set includes only the console, and a standard CX40 joystick with a grey base to match the XEGS rather than its original black. The deluxe set consists of the console, the CX40 joystick, a keyboard which enables home computer functionality, and the XG-1 light gun. The keyboard and light gun were also released separately outside North America. This is the first light gun produced by Atari, and it is also compatible with the Atari 7800 and Atari 2600.

The system can use Atari 8-bit computer peripherals, such as disk drives, modems, and printers.

Reception
Atari sold 100,000 XE Game Systems during the Christmas season in 1987, every unit that was produced during its launch window. Matthew Ratcliff called the game and computer combination "a brilliant idea", which "has been selling out almost as fast as toy stores can get them in". He said, "The XEGS may not seem like such a hot idea to serious Atari computer users. But just think about it. If you were afraid of computers or don't have the foggiest idea what to do with one, you'd have absolutely no interest in an Atari 65XE—even if it could play great games. However, you'd probably have no compunction about buying a great video game system, the XEGS, as a new addition to the family entertainment center." In 1988, he wrote in Antic magazine that, to switch between light gun and joystick games, active XEGS gamers are frustrated by the need to continually re-plug their devices and power cycle the system, due to the system's lack of autodetection, which is complicated by its awkwardly downward slanting ports. He said "Barnyard Blaster and Bug Hunt could have been just a bit smarter" by including the simple routine that he was forced to write and publish as a workaround.

title: Atari XEGS


text:
ISO 3166-2:FR

ISO 3166-2:FR is the entry for France in ISO 3166-2, part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which defines codes for the names of the principal subdivisions (e.g., provinces or states) of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1.

Currently for France, ISO 3166-2 codes are defined for the following subdivisions:
 * Metropolitan France (3 levels):
 * 12 metropolitan regions
 * 3 metropolitan collectivities with special status
 * 95 metropolitan departments
 * 1 European collectivity
 * Overseas France:
 * 1 dependency
 * 5 overseas collectivities
 * 1 overseas collectivity with special status
 * 3 overseas departmental collectivities
 * 1 overseas territory
 * 2 overseas unique territorial collectivities

Each code consists of two parts, separated by a hyphen. The first part is FR, the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code of France. The second part is either of the following:
 * one digit followed by two letters: European collectivity
 * two digits: metropolitan departments
 * two digits followed by a letter: metropolitan collectivities with special status
 * two letters: overseas collectivities, overseas collectivity with special status, overseas territory (matching their ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes)
 * three letters: metropolitan regions
 * three digits: overseas departmental collectivities, overseas unique territorial collectivities

The metropolitan departments use their INSEE codes, which are currently used in postal codes, and used in vehicle registration plates until 2009. INSEE codes are assigned as follows:
 * – except  : departments created before the 20th century, assigned in alphabetical order (prefixes in the form of "Bas-" and "Haute-" are ignored at the primary sort level), except Paris and Yvelines, which replaced the former departments Seine and Seine-et-Oise respectively after the reorganization of the Paris region in 1968;
 * : Territoire de Belfort, which was given department status in 1922;
 * – : departments created after the reorganization of the Paris region in 1968;
 * and : Corse-du-Sud and Haute-Corse, which were created after the division of Corsica in 1975, whose INSEE code was.

Current codes
Subdivision names are listed as in the ISO 3166-2 standard published by the ISO 3166 Maintenance Agency (ISO 3166/MA).

Click on the button in the header to sort each column.

Second-level subdivisions

 * Explanatory note

Dependency, overseas territory, and overseas collectivities

 * Notes

Subdivisions included in ISO 3166-1
Besides being included as subdivisions of France in ISO 3166-2, several subdivisions are also officially assigned their own country codes in ISO 3166-1.

The dependency Clipperton Island (FR-CP) is also exceptionally reserved the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code CP on the request of the International Telecommunication Union.

Metropolitan France (the part of France located in Europe) was previously officially assigned its own set of country codes in ISO 3166-1, with alpha-2 code FX, before it was deleted from ISO 3166-1. The code is now exceptionally reserved on the request of France.
 * Explanatory note

Changes
The following changes to the entry have been announced by the ISO 3166/MA since the first publication of ISO 3166-2 in 1998. ISO stopped issuing newsletters in 2013.

Former metropolitan regions (before 31 December 2015)

 * Notes

title: ISO 3166-2:FR


text:
French Sudan

French Sudan (Soudan français; السودان الفرنسي as-Sūdān al-Faransī) was a French colonial territory in the Federation of French West Africa from around 1880 until 1959, when it joined the Mali Federation, and then in 1960, when it became the independent state of Mali. The colony was formally called French Sudan from 1890 until 1899 and then again from 1921 until 1958, and had a variety of different names over the course of its existence. The colony was initially established largely as a military project led by French troops, but in the mid-1890s it came under civilian administration.

A number of administrative reorganizations in the early 1900s brought increasing French administration over issues like agriculture, religion, and slavery. Following World War II, the African Democratic Rally (RDA) under Modibo Keïta became the most significant political force pushing for independence.

French Sudan initially retained close connections with France and joined in a short-lived federation with Senegal in 1959, but ties to both countries quickly weakened. In 1960, the French Sudan formally became the Republic of Mali and began to distance itself further from Senegal and France.

Colonial establishment

French Sudan was formed as a set of military outposts as an extension of the French colony in Senegal. Though the area offered France little economic or strategic gain, the military effectively advocated greater conquest in the region. This was partly due to a fascination with the great empires, such as the Mali Empire and the Songhay Empire that rose to prominence in the area, and partly due to the promotional opportunities that military conquest offered for French military personnel.

French conquest began in 1879, when Joseph Gallieni was dispatched to the area to establish a fort and survey the land for a railroad from Dakar in Senegal to the Niger River. This was followed with the establishment of a number of French forts and political alliances with specific leaders in the region in the early 1880s. The administrative structure of the area was still largely under control of the French Governor of Senegal, and the most significant colonization were simply the military forts and outposts, including the important one established at Kayes in 1881 by Gustave Borgnis-Desbordes. Though the civilian administration of the French governor of Senegal formally ruled the area, military officers in the region largely bypassed these leaders and answered directly to commanding officers in Paris. Desbordes gradually took over more territory, often using inter-ethnic rivalries and political tension among leaders in the area to appoint French-supportive leaders.

French civilian administrators struggled with the military leaders, and the two forces went through a number of leadership changes over the territory, until Louis Archinard was appointed military governor in 1892. Archinard led military campaigns against Samori Ture, Ahmadu Tall, and other resistant leaders in the region, with varying success. Archinard's campaigns were often executed through direct military control, without civilian oversight. As costs increased, the French administration decided to replace Archinard's control over the area with a civilian governor, Louis Albert Grodet.

Administration and jurisdiction

The region was governed under a number of different names between 1880 and 1960. The area was Upper River from 1880 until 18 August 1890, when it was renamed French Sudan, with its capital at Kayes. On 10 October 1899, French Sudan was divided, with the southern cercles joining coastal colonies, and the rest split into two administrative areas called Middle Niger and Upper Senegal. In 1902, the region again was organized as a unified colony under the name Senegambia and Niger (Sénégambie et Niger). The name changed again in 1904 to Upper Senegal and Niger (Haut Sénégal et Niger). Finally, in 1921, the name changed back to French Sudan (Soudan Français).

Borders and administration of the colony similarly changed a number of times. Originally, and for the initial period, the colony vacillated between military administration and civilian administration from Senegal. In 1893, French Sudan formally came under civilian administration, which lasted until 1899. At that point, a reorganization of the colony split 11 southern provinces to other French colonies like French Guinea, the Ivory Coast and Dahomey.

The area that was not reorganized was governed in two administrations linked to other French colonies. Following this, the territory of the colony was reestablished in 1902. Though the borders shifted slightly, there was little territorial change until 1933. At that point, the colony of the French Upper Volta (Haute-Volta, modern Burkina Faso) dissolved, and the northern territory was added to French Sudan.

In 1947, Upper Volta was reestablished, and the French Sudan borders became those that eventually became the borders of Mali. Kayes was the original capital city from the 1890s until 1908 when the capital moved to Bamako, where it remains.

Agriculture
The colony supported mostly rain-fed agriculture, with limited irrigation for its first 30 years. The only cash crops were nuts gathered close to the railroad between Kayes and Bamako. However, following successful tests of growing Egyptian cotton in West Africa during World War I, Émile Bélime began to campaign for the construction of a large irrigation system along the Niger River. Starting in 1921, significant irrigation projects around Koulikoro and later at Baguinéda-Camp and the Ségou Cercle began to bring water. The French believed this project could rival the major cotton growing centers of Egypt and the United States.

Unlike other agricultural projects in French West Africa, the French Sudan irrigation project initially relied on families voluntarily resettling along lines established by the colonial authority. Unable to attract enough volunteers, the colonial authorities began to try forced resettlement to the cotton project. The Office du Niger was founded in 1926 as the main organization facilitating planned, irrigated agricultural projects. Farmers resisted forced resettlement and petitioned for permanent land rights to the irrigated land (which was usually held as property of the Office du Niger). Despite these efforts, a significant cash crop economy did not develop in the French Sudan.

Religious policy
Like much of the rest of French West Africa, the colony had a number of policies regarding Islam and the Muslim communities. The Arabic language and Islamic law were preferred in the colony by the French in the establishment of colonial government, largely because both were codified, and thus easy to standardize.

Though they maintained a formal neutrality policy in regard to religion, the French colonial administration began to regulate Islamic education in the early 1900s. In addition, fear of a pan-Islamism political rise throughout North Africa and the Sahel led the French to adopt policies that aimed to prevent the spread of Islam beyond where it already existed and to prevent Muslim leaders from governing non-Muslim communities. Indigenous religions and Christianity existed under less formal policies, and French efforts often used these to balance the spread of Islam in the region.

In the 1940s, a religious movement called Allah Koura began in the San Cercle based upon the visions of a single person. Local administrators allowed the Allah Koura movement to spread and practice, seeing it as a potential limiting influence on the spread of Islam farther south. In the late 1950s, Muslim protests and riots throughout the colony further contributed to a growing independence movement.

Slavery policy
The French slavery policy for much of the 19th century was inconsistent and context-dependent. Slavery had been formally outlawed in 1848, but enforcement was often non-existent. Slaves were freed in directly administered colonies in 1883, and active interdiction of slave caravans began in the 1890s. This was dependent on the military situation, however; slavery was not interfered with in allied areas, but anti-French chiefs saw their runaway slaves welcomed and settled in villages de liberte. These functioned as labor reserves for the French, however, and many former slaves left them quickly.

In 1903, the government instructed French administrators not to use slave as an administrative category anymore and to not help masters recapture runaways. In March 1905, a slave exodus began in Banamba that preceded by six months a formal French decree ending slavery throughout French West Africa. With legal protection, almost a million slaves followed this example by moving away from their masters and settling elsewhere. The French supported these efforts by creating settlements around the Niger River and digging wells for communities elsewhere so they could farm away from their former masters.

This process affected the southern and western parts of present-day Mali most significantly, but in the northern and eastern parts of the colony large numbers of slaves remained in servitude to their masters. According to rough estimates, throughout the area of present-day Mali, about one-third of former slaves moved away from the slavery relationship, while two-thirds remained with their masters. In the 1920s, most Tuareg households still had slaves who tended to the house and animals.

Though slavery persisted, some aspects of the relationship changed with the French administration. Escaped slaves could find official protection by French authorities in the cities for a limited time. Slaves could sometimes renegotiate the terms of their servitude in the changed political situation. Some were willing to agree to remain in servitude if they received control over their family life and some land to pass to their children. In addition, the French administration actively worked to end slave raiding and the most clear manifestations of the slave trade, greatly reducing those means of acquiring slaves. However, for many decades after the 1905 abolition of slavery, the practice continued in much of French Sudan.

Independence
Following the passage of the Loi Cadre by the French National Assembly in 1956, many of the colonies in French West African began to hold elections to increase the self-determination of their territories. In the first elections held in French Sudan in 1957, the African Democratic Rally (Rassemblement Démocratique Africain, commonly known as the RDA) won the elections in French Sudan, as well as winning majorities in neighboring Ivory Coast, French Guinea, and the Upper Volta. Following the French constitutional referendum of 1958, which received an overwhelming majority in support, the République soudanaise declared itself a republic with internal autonomy on 24 November 1958. The Sudanese Republic, as the area was now called, was the second colony after Madagascar to join the French Community, which provided it internal autonomy while linking its currency, foreign policy and defense with France.

In early January 1959, there were plans for a federation linking the Sudanese Republic with Senegal, Dahomey, and the Upper Volta in a federation of autonomous states. By April, however, neither Dahomey's nor Upper Volta's legislatures had ratified the federation, and so the Mali Federation was formed with only the Sudanese Republic and Senegal. In 1959, Modibo Keïta's RDA party won all 70 seats in the legislative elections in the Sudanese Republic and joined forces with the dominant party in Senegal, headed by Léopold Sédar Senghor. The federation achieved independence on 20 June 1960 within the French Community; however, divisions between Senghor and Keïta on the governance of the federation resulted in its dissolution on 20 August 1960. The area of French Sudan formally proclaimed itself the Republic of Mali and, with increasing radicalization of Keita, left the French Community in September 1960.

title: French Sudan


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Kure Atoll

Kure Atoll (Hōlanikū; Mokupāpapa)  or Ocean Island is an atoll in the Pacific Ocean 48 nmi west-northwest of Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands at 28.41667°N, -178.33333°W. A coral ring 10 km across encloses a lagoon several meters deep. The only land of significant size is called Green Island and is a habitat for hundreds of thousands of seabirds. A short, unused and unmaintained runway and a portion of one building, both from a former United States Coast Guard LORAN station, are located on the island. Politically, it is part of Hawaii, although separated from the rest of the state by Midway, which is a separate unorganized territory. Green Island, in addition to being the nesting grounds for tens of thousands of seabirds, has recorded several vagrant terrestrial birds, including snow bunting, eyebrowed thrush, brambling, olive-backed pipit, black kite, Steller's sea eagle and Chinese sparrowhawk. It is currently managed as a Wildlife Bird Sanctuary by the State of Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resource–Division of Forestry and Wildlife as one of the co-trustees of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument with support from the Kure Atoll Conservancy.

Kure is seasonally inhabited by small crews of two to eight volunteers and biologists who work to restore and manage the native ecosystem.

Kure was discovered in the 19th century and was a common site of shipwrecks. In the late 20th century it was home to a radio base that supported location finding, and in the 21st century it is mostly a nature reserve.

Geography and ecology
The International Date Line lies approximately 100 miles (87 nmi/160 km) to the west. Although located to the west of Midway Atoll, Kure Atoll has a time zone 1 hour ahead at UTC−10:00 (the same as the rest of Hawaii). Kure is the northernmost coral atoll in the world. It consists of a 6-mile (10 km) wide nearly circular barrier reef surrounding a shallow lagoon and several sand islets. There is a total land area of 213.097 acre, with Green Island on the southeast side. A growing number of Hawaiian monk seals (Monachus schauinslandi) haul out on its beaches. The polynesian rat (Rattus exulans) has been on the island since it was discovered.

The coral reef is a rough ring shape about six miles across and has two islands within, Sand Island and Green Island. Green Island is in the southeast quadrant of the ring, with an area of 235 acres. Sand Island is about one acre in size and lies to the west of Green Island. Sand Island is not known to have plant life.

Green Island has a wide variety of vegetation including groves of Beach Naupaka (Scaevola taccada), which are a popular habitat for birds. Another type of tree on Green Island is the heliotrope tree (Tournefortia argentea), there are two groves of ironwood trees (Casuarina equisetifolia), and other common plants are Verbesina and Bermuda grass. A survey of plant life in 2001 counted about 50 different species of plant on Green Island.

Green Island is roughly triangular with a point to the north and with a northwest beach extending down to a western point. The east side arcs down from north point and the shore includes east beach, southeast beach, and south beach, which arcs around to West point on the south side of the island. Overall Green Island is 1.5 miles long and up to half a mile wide. The highest point is 25 feet.

Seabirds known to be at Kure in one survey:
 * Black-footed Albatross (Diomedea nigripes)
 * Laysan Albatross (Diomedea immutabilis)
 * Wedge-tailed Shearwater (Pufinus pacificlcs)
 * Red-tailed Tropic-bird (Phaethon rubricauda)
 * Blue-faced Booby (Sula dactylatra)
 * Brown Booby (Sula Leucogaster)
 * Red-footed Booby (Sula sula)
 * Great Frigate-bird (Fregata minor)
 * Gray-backed Tern (Sterna lunata)
 * Sooty Tern (Sterna fuscata)
 * Noddy Tern (Anous stolidus)
 * White-capped Noddy Tern (Anous minutus)
 * White Tern (Gygis alba)

As of 2002, 92 species of algae have been discovered in the central lagoon of Kure Atoll.

Geological history and future

The geological history of Kure is generally similar to Midway, but Kure lies close to what is called the Darwin Point, the latitude north of which the rate of natural reef subsidence and destruction surpasses the rate of reef growth. At approximately 30 million years old, it is the oldest in the Hawaiian Island chain. As Kure continues to be slowly carried along to the northwest by the motion of the Pacific Plate, it will move into waters too cool for coral and coralline algae growth to keep up with isostatic subsidence of the mountain. Currently the atoll is warmed by the pools of water at the ends of the warm Kuroshio Current, keeping it in a very comfortable range in winter. Barring unforeseen evolution, it will then begin to join the other volcanic and reef-topped remnants of the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain to the northwest, all of which are now seamounts.

History
In the Hawaiian language the term Mokupāpapa was used for any flat island with reefs. The northwestern islands are associated with Kāne Milohaʻi in Hawaiian mythology, the brother of Pele, creator of the islands, who was left to stand guard for travelers. Another Hawaiian name for Kure Atoll is Hōlanikū, meaning "bringing forth heaven."

19th century

Before the mid-19th century, Kure Atoll was visited by several ships and given new names each time. Sometimes spelled Cure, its English name was for a Russian navigator who sighted the atoll. It was officially named Kure Island in 1924 and then Kure Atoll in 1987. The old name for island was Ocean Island.

Two shipwrecks in the early 19th century were the Gledstanes and the Parker, in 1837 and 1842 respectively. The Gledstanes crewmembers were able to make it to the island and then were able to build a new vessel from the debris of their old ship. Some of the survivors then sailed it back to mainland Hawaii. Once they reached Hawaii, they sent a ship back to rescue those who had stayed behind on the island. The shipwreck of the Gledstanes was found in 2008. The Parker's crew had a somewhat more difficult time but did manage to get to land by floating on a raft for several days. On Ocean (now Green Island) they managed to survive on a diet of birds and other wildlife at the atolls. They even encountered the dog from the Gledstanes who had been living wild on the island in the previous years. They attempted to make contact with the outside world by attaching messages to seabirds. The Parker had shipwrecked in September 1842 and having lived at Kure Atoll, many of the crew were finally rescued on April 16, 1843, with the remainder taken off on May 2, 1843. The first rescue ship was the James Stewart and the second rescue ship was the whaler Nassau.

Many crews were stranded on Kure Atoll after being shipwrecked on the surrounding reefs and had to survive on the local seals, turtles, and birds. The shipwrecks remain on the reef today, including the USS Saginaw (1859). Because of these incidents, King Kalākaua sent Colonel J. H. Boyd to Kure as his Special Commissioner. On September 20, 1886, he took possession of the island for the Hawaiian government. The King ordered that a crude house be built on the island, with tanks for holding water and provisions for any other unfortunates who might be cast away there. But the provisions were stolen within a year and the house soon fell into ruins.

In 1867, the USS Lackawanna surveyed the atoll to produce more accurate charts of the reefs.

The USS Saginaw wrecked on the atoll in October 1870. The crew was able to abandon ship, but not much was saved. A crew of five sailed the captain's gig to the island of Kauai, but only 1 survived the difficult month long voyage. Despite this, word did get to the authorities, which sent a rescue ship to the stranded crew which was able to rescue them in January 1871.

The Dunnottar Castle shipwrecked in 1886, and the crew was able to reach Kauai but some lives were lost.

20th century
Largely neglected for most of its history, during World War II Kure was routinely visited by U.S. Navy patrols from nearby Midway to ensure that the Japanese were not using it to refuel submarines or flying boats from submarine-tankers for attacks elsewhere in the Hawaiian chain. During the Battle of Midway, a Japanese Nakajima B5N "Kate" bomber, operating from aircraft carrier Hiryū, piloted by Lieutenant Kikuchi Rokurō, and which had been involved in the initial Japanese attack on Midway's US installations, crash-landed near Kure after being damaged by US fighters. Once ashore, Lt. Kikuchi and the two other members of his crew (Warrant Officer Yumoto Noriyoshi and Petty Officer (1st Class) Narasaki Hironori) refused capture and were either killed or committed suicide when an American landing party tried to capture them.

In the 1950s, there was a radar reflector on the island, and the island was also used for a scientific study of Pacific birds. In 1959 zig-zag stripes were cut through the groves of Scaevola bushes to make habitat space for albatrosses.

In 1960 construction began on a LORAN base and it was finished in 1961. Also in 1961, the tug Port of Bandon sank on the reef. The base included buildings for the LORAN station, a 625 foot high LORAN radio tower, and a 4000-foot airstrip.

Between 1963 and 1965, the Polynesian rat (Rattus exulans) population was studied.

In 1966 a Boeing 707 jet airliner made an emergency landing at Kure Atoll.

Kure is located within a major current which washes up debris from the Great Pacific garbage patch, such as fishing nets and large numbers of cigarette lighters, on the island. These pose threats to the local animals, especially birds, whose skeletons are frequently found with plastic in the stomach cavity.

On October 16, 1998, the longline fishing vessel Paradise Queen II ran aground on the eastern edge of Green Island of Kure Atoll, spilling approximately 4,000 gallons of diesel fuel before recovery operations could commence. Debris from that shipwreck continued to pollute the reef and shoreline for many years, endangering wildlife and damaging the coral reef. The long-term impact of this and other wrecks within the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) highlight the dangers to sensitive habitats in the area. To help ensure their protection, the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument was designated a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) in 2008 by the International Maritime Organization. In addition to avoiding specific areas, owners must identify when their ship enters and leaves the PSSA's 10 nautical mile wide reporting area so a timely response can be taken should there be a maritime emergency.

From 1960 to 1992, a United States Coast Guard LORAN station was located on Green Island. A short coral runway was built on the island to support Coast Guard operations, but it was abandoned and is currently unusable. Although there is no permanent human population, the atoll is formally part of the City and County of Honolulu. It became a state wildlife sanctuary in 1981. Since 1993 the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources and volunteers from the Kure Atoll Conservancy group have helped to restore the atoll to a more natural state. Jean-Michel Cousteau produced a video on a voyage to Kure which first aired in 2006. Since 2010 the Division of Forestry and Wildlife has had a year-round presence on Kure Atoll.

21st century
In 2002 the wreck of a 19th-century whaling ship was found at Kure Atoll. This wreck was further explored in 2005, 2006, and 2008; it is thought it may be the wreck of the sailing ship Parker. The Parker was a whaling ship that wrecked on Kure Atoll in 1842. The crew was rescued after a few months.

The wreck of the USS Saginaw was found in 2003. The research dive studying the wreck was featured in the book A Civil War Gunboat in Pacific Waters: Life on Board USS Saginaw.

In 2008, the shipwreck of the vessel Gledstanes was found. The Gledstanes was a British whaling ship that wrecked in 1837.

In 2010, the wreck of a sailboat was recovered from Kure Atoll. The sailboat was discovered in 2007, and was determined to be the boat of sailor who departed from Fiji in 2006, but was lost at sea.

In 2020 a crew of four stayed on the island from February through to October. While there is no television or cell phone service, limited internet connectivity allows for emails to be sent and received. The island is occupied by two crews each year that are rotated in and out. Their job is to keep an eye on the island, and they also try to clean up trash that washes up on the island.

Amateur radio
Because of its particularly remote location, Kure Atoll has been the scene of several amateur radio DX expeditions, or DX-peditions. Because the radio propagation path between Kure and Europe runs right over the North Polar region, opportunities for distant communication with Kure are particularly popular among European amateurs.

The callsign prefix for Kure Atoll as of 2017 is KH7K, and for nearby Midway Atoll KH4, on the DXCC list. They were briefly deleted from the DXCC list and had to be re-added after a review, due to a legal change of the overall regions status.

Some of the DXpeditions to Kure were:
 * 1969 – Callsign: KH6NR/KH6 – From November 11 to November 14, 1969, Marine Staff Sergeant Don Chilcote, KH6GKV (now VE6NN), and Navy ICFN Gene Lewis, KH6HDB (now W5LE), operated from Kure Island, using the U.S. Navy Reserve Training Center, Honolulu's callsign.
 * 1970 – Callsign: W7UXP/KH6 - October by WB2OIF, KH6HCM/W7UXP, KH6HGP/W7WOX
 * 1971–72 – Callsign: KH6EDY—The U.S. Coast Guard Kure Island LORAN station's callsign.
 * 1973–74 – Callsign: KH6HDB – From September 1973 to September 1974, Gene Lewis, KH6HDB (now W5LE), operated from Kure Island. Lewis had been one of the two operators to activate Kure during the one-week DXpedition of KH6NR/KH6 during November 1969.  He subsequently joined the Coast Guard for the express purpose of getting to spend a one-year tour of duty on Kure Island.
 * 1997 – Event call sign: K7K. This was a joint scientific/radio operation including four fish and wildlife scientists and the eight members of the Midway-Kure DX Foundation's 1996 Midway team. The team included four scientists from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
 * 2005 – Event call sign: K7C. The team consisted of 12 amateur radio operators from the United States, Canada, and Germany.
 * 2018 - the Pacific Island DX-pedition Group's 4th application since 2014 was rejected by the Hawaii Dept. of Land and Natural Resources, citing the inability to provide "adequate safeguards for the resources and ecological integrity" of Kure Atoll, despite successful Amateur Radio activations, with U.S. Fish and Wildlife representation, on Palmyra, Navassa, and Baker Islands with no harmful impact to those island habitats.

LORAN Station (1960–1992)
Kure's Green Island was home to a radio geolocation station from the early 1960s to 1992. Called LORAN (short for LOng RAnge Navigation), the base was operated by the U.S. Coast Guard and supported the LORAN-C system. This land-based electronic navigation aid helped ships and aircraft locate themselves on the Earth's surface. This base was shut down because the LORAN system was superseded by the Global Positioning System (GPS), which uses satellites in Earth orbit rather than ground stations like at Kure Island. The LORAN station was commissioned on 18 March 1961 and was decommissioned on 2 July 1992.

Kure's LORAN base had a 625 foot radio tower that was later demolished when operations ended.

The ham radio call sign for the Kure LORAN Station was KH6EDY.

The site was surveyed in 1959 and construction began in 1960. The survey team was attacked by rats in the night. The base was staffed by about 20–30 or so personnel, and the base received many awards over its history including the Coast Guard Unit Commendation in 1986–1989.

Airstrip
The Kure airport had one 3800 ft. long runway, and is now closed. Its ICAO code was PM64.

Aircraft that routinely operated from the airstrip included U.S. Coast Guard HC-123B Provider and HC-130H aircraft and several types of U.S. Navy fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters from Midway. Flights routinely carried mail, cargo, and passengers to Kure Atoll since its completion in the 1960s.

The airstrip was also known to have been used for emergency landings, including a Lockheed Constellation (C-121) in 1961 and a Boeing 707 in 1966.

Shipwrecks
Kure Atoll is noted as the location of various shipwrecks: Some of the noted wrecks at the atoll include:
 * 1837 Gledstanes
 * 1842 Parker
 * 1870 Saginaw
 * 1886 Dunnottar Castle
 * 1888 Ocean Pearl
 * 1937 Statu Maru
 * 1961 Port of Bandon
 * 1976 Houei Maru

The wreck of the whaling ship Gledstanes was found in 2008. Many of the crews survived by living on Kure until they could leave the island.

Climate
Temperatures at Kure Atoll range from about 45 to(-). There is usually a wind of about 10 - 15 mph that blows from the northeast trade winds.

The data chart below is taken from Midway Atoll due to a lack of any weather stations present on Kure Atoll.

Kure Atoll features a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw) with high year-round temperatures. Rainfall is evenly distributed throughout the year, with only two months being able to be classified as dry season months (May and June).

title: Kure Atoll