British Royal Guards withdrawn to safer positions to protect them from attacks

[The Brain]

If you're gonna do something do it for real. Having guards that aren't really guards is poor aesthetics.

[CountDeMoney]

Why can't they carry loaded guns rather than wasting manpower and money by having it "guarded" twice?

Don't be stupid.  You don't see The USMC Color Guard walking around locked and loaded at the White House, either.

[Siege]

What kind of piple volunteer to be a royal guard?
Puss in boots.

[Sheilbh]

What kind of piple volunteer to be a royal guard?
Puss in boots.

As I said they're actually an elite regiment. Just like say the marines who also guard the White House

[Admiral Yi]

That's not really addressing Seeb's question though.

Unless all guardsmen rotate through palace-do.

[mongers]

That's not really addressing Seeb's question though.

Unless all guardsmen rotate through palace-do.

There seems to be some confusion here:

Most soldiers found guarding royal palaces are not guardsmen, who are the ones with the nifty bearskins and from the four royal regiments of foot soldiers. Most British army infantry battalions will at some stage find themselves doing guard duty for the royals. Some other non-infantry regiments and corps will also do duty, I think, in addition to others like the RAF regiment who might well, haven't googled to confirm that.

The soldier pictured above with the cavalry sabre (probably blunt for historical accuracy) is from the Blues and Royals, an amalgamated regiment of the two royal cavalry regiments. They provide most of the horsey guard and touristy stuff in London. IIRC where he is at Horseguards, is now just that a place were a guard is mounted solely for the benefit of tourists, there's no royal presence there and now no military barracks or HQ, just a small museum. It's also the place on Whitehall tourists stop to get there photo/selfie taken with the guards on horseback.

[Sheilbh]

I didn't realise. I thought they were all either Household Cavalry or one of the Guards regiments

[mongers]

I didn't realise. I thought they were all either Household Cavalry or one of the Guards regiments

It seems a bit more complicated than my guestimate and in your defences it's a relatively recent event, having only changed in the last 15-20 years. 

Just found a whole wiki page explaining it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen's_Guard

[Razgovory]

Some of those parade ground uniforms make them look like postal employees.

[Sheilbh]

Our postmen aren't that smart (shorts optional)

[Ideologue]

"Just in case someone doesn't notice the sidewalk is not part of the street, safety orange."

[CountDeMoney]

"Just in case someone doesn't notice the sidewalk is not part of the street, safety orange."

Gotta love the Brits use of safety orange for all manner of emergency vehicles, though.  MAH ASS END



Thing is, all their First Responder vehicles are all Benzes, Beemers and Land Rovers.  Pretentious 1%ers.   

[sbr]

I always have people telling me I need to put out orange safety cones when I have ladders set up in public areas of buildings when I am working.

I have never gotten a good answer when I ask why someone would see a 1' tall orange cone but not see the 8' tall red ladder next to it.

[Zanza]

Thing is, all their First Responder vehicles are all Benzes, Beemers and Land Rovers.  Pretentious 1%ers.   

The Mercedes Sprinter in the picture is the most common transporter of that size in Europe. You can get it with a Freightliner badge in the US as well. Hardly pretentious, just the government buying the best available car.

[CountDeMoney]

The Mercedes Sprinter in the picture is the most common transporter of that size in Europe. You can get it with a Freightliner badge in the US as well. Hardly pretentious, just the government buying the best available car.

You don't see Freightliners in Wall Street parking garages or rappers wearing Freightliner badges around their necks, though.   Pretentious!