Imperial Guard ( Napoleon III ) Origin . The Imperial Guard of Napoleon III was a military corps in the French Army formed by Napoleon III as a re - establishment of his uncle Napoleon I ' s Imperial Guard , with an updated version of the original uniforms and almost the same privileges . It was formed by a decree of the emperor on 1 May 1854 , and was made up of 17 regiments of cavalry , artillery and infantry , squadrons of train ( supply and administration ) and mounted gendarmes , and a division taken from the corps of military engineers . The emperor added a regiment of Zouave s to the Guard in 1855 , selected from the three existing regiments of zouaves first raised in 1830 . Divisional structure . In its original 1854 structure the Imperial Guard comprised a mixed division of two infantry brigades ( Grenadier s and Voltigeur s ) plus one cavalry brigade of Cuirassiers and Guides . Additional units included two battalions of foot gendarmes , one battalion of Chasseurs a ' pied , five batteries of Horse Artillery and a company of Engineers . During the 1860s the Imperial Guard was expanded to the size of a full army corps . This comprised the following divisions : - 1st ( Voltigeur ) Division ( four regiments of Voltigeurs plus one Chasseur battalion ) ; - 2nd ( Grenadier ) Division ( three regiments of Grenadiers plus Guard Zouave Regiment ) ; - Cavalry Division ( comprised light brigade of Guides and Chasseurs ; medium brigade of Dragoons and Lancers ; heavy brigade of Cuirassiers and Carabiniers ; and two batteries of Guard Horse Artillery ) ; - plus Corps troops ( four batteries of Horse Artillery , squadron of artillery train , squadron of regular train ) . Basis of recruitment . The decree of 1 May 1854 establishing the Imperial Guard required line regiments to nominate experienced soldiers of good character for the new units . This followed the pattern established by Napoleon I , of creating a corps of veterans which could be relied on to provide an elite force that would provide a dependable reserve in battle and be politically loyal in peace . As the Guard was expanded some recruits had to be directly drawn from each annual intake of conscripts , to make up the numbers required . Guardsmen received higher rates of pay and enjoyed better conditions of service than their counterparts in other regiments . Active service . The Imperial Guard served with distinction in both the Crimean War and the Second Italian War of Independence of 1859 , It did not participate in the Mexican Expedition of 1863 - 67 but remained on garrison duty in Paris . During the Franco - Prussian War of 1870 the Imperial Guard was present at the battles of Mars - la - Tour , Gravelotte - St . Privat and the Siege of Metz . Although an elite corps which now numbered over 20 , 000 , the Guard did not perform up to expectations in 1870 . This was mainly due to poor judgement on behalf of its commanders , who at Mars - la - Tour committed guard units piecemeal rather than as than as a single entity in the tradition of the First Empire . At St . Privat two days later , the Guard was held back from battle by General Charles Bourbaki , to the bitterness of the line troops in the front line . Uniforms . The Imperial Guard retained a number of the more spectacular items of its predecessor Corps under Napoleon I , such as the bearskin headdress of the Grenadiers or the heavily braided dolman of the Horse Artillery . To these were added the common features which by 1870 had come to typify the French Army - notably the red trousers worn by most regiments . The Zouave regiment of the Imperial Guard had their uniform trimmed in yellow rather than the red of the other three zouave regiments , and yellow instead of blue tassels . Disbandment . The bulk of the Imperial Guard was amongst the army led by Marshal Francois Bazaine , which was obliged to capitulate at Metz on 27 October 1870 . The Guard was formally abolished by the new French Republican Government , following the fall of the Empire . The 23 depot companies of the infantry of the Imperial Guard were brought together to form the 28th " regiment de march " which fought with distinction during the siege of Paris and subsequently became the 128th Regiment of the Line of the new French Army . Sundry . A row of houses in the English style were built in Rue Alquié , Vichy for the officers of this unit , which would accompany Napoleon III to Vichy . The American officer Philip Kearny was a member of the unit at the 1859 Battle of Solferino .