Royal Guard (France)

From Worldatplay

The Royal Guard (French: Garde Royale) is an elite military force tasked with protecting the French Royal Family. It is unique in that it operates fully independently of the armed forces and does not operate under the authority of the Minister of Defense (as the other units do), but is answerable to the King and no one else. The training of the Royal Guard is said to be of the highest standard, and few units in the world - if any - can match its level of efficiency. In addition to being proficient with almost any kind of weapon, each member is trained in at least three disciplines of martial arts and forced to undergo a rigorous training regimen to bring themselves to peak human strength, physically and mentally. Every one of the Royal Guard's 50,000 members is zealously loyal to the King and would die for him without a moment's hesitation. Little is known about the structure/organization of the Royal Guard or what weapons it uses, but it is universally believed that its equipment is superior to that enjoyed by its counterparts in the other components of the military.