Old Guard - End of The Old Guard

End of The Old Guard

The Old Guard was disbanded by the victorious Sixth Coalition in 1814, along with the rest of the Imperial Guard. During Napoleon's 1815 return from exile, the Old Guard was reformed, and fought at the Battle of Waterloo.

The 2e Regiment de Grenadiers-à-Pied was pivotal in the defense of the town of Plancenoit against the Prussians. The 1er Regiment, charged with protecting the field position around Napoleon himself, served as a rear guard after the failure of the attack of the Middle Guard on the British center. The Old Guard cavalry was involved in the unsuccessful midday charges against the British infantry, and was unavailable at the battle's decisive moments.

In August 1815, Louis XVIII ordered the Imperial Guard abolished. By December all the Old Guard regiments were disbanded. Ex-guardsmen ended up in a variety of places after their units' disbandment. Some re-enlisted into the king's army. Most lived out their lives watched with suspicion by Bourbon police. When Napoleon's body was returned to France in 1840, many of the surviving Old Guard paraded in threadbare uniforms.