Cent - gardes Squadron The Cent - gardes Squadron , ( French : L ' Escadron des Cent - gardes ) , also called " Cent Gardes à Cheval " ( Hundred Guardsmen on Horseback ) , were an elite cavalry corps of the Second French Empire primarily responsible for protecting the person of the Emperor Napoleon III , as well as providing security within the Tuileries Palace . They also provided an escort for the emblems of the Imperial Guard and their award ceremony with flag and standard bearers . The squadron was created by decree on 24 March 1854 by the Emperor , who may have modelled the new unit on the British Life guards . When on duty the Cent - Gardes had to stand absolutely still and render honours only to the Emperor and members of the Imperial family . Although theoretically not part of the Imperial Guard , they were under the orders of the Grand Marshal of the Palace . Description . Headquarters and soldiers . The Cent - Gardes squadron consisted of a headquarters , 11 officers and 137 privates , totalling 148 men at the time the unit was created , Later they would be increased to 190 , including officers , and finally numbered 221 commissioned officers and guardsmen , including a lieutenant colonel , at the time that they were finally disbanded . The soldiers of the squadron were recruited from the cavalry regiments of the Imperial Guard or from those of the line , and they had to be at least 1 . 80m tall . Their salary was 1 , 000 gold francs a year for guards and trompeters , an amount which was particularly high at the time , and after 7 years of service , their pay was increased 80 additional cents per day . The headquarters of the Cent - gardes were located at 37 rue de Bellechasse 75007 in Paris . Their original barracks were in Sevres in the old farm of La Belle Polle . Napoleon III however had a farm built in the Swiss - style to lodge the Cent - gardes squadron and their horses in the new " Pavillon des Cent - guardes " in Marnes - la - Coquette , near the castle , in the area of " Villeneuve - l ' Étang " . Uniforms and weaponry . For off duty wear ( " tenue de ville " ) , their attire comprised a sky - blue tunic lined with red silk , red trousers with black stripes plus a cocked hat and sword . In full dress , the Cent - gardes wore white breeches with their light blue tunics plus a breastplate embossed with the French Imperial Eagle and a helmet with a white plume . For Palace guard duty , the Cent - gardes were issued with a surcoat of fine chamois cloth decorated with gold braid on the chest and embroidered with the Imperial coat of arms . Their weapons consisted of a snap - clasped Treuille - de - Beaulieu musket , breech loading , 11mm caliber , brass furnitures , a barrel and a lath which fitted into a bayonet , and a sword for walking out dress . Campaigns . In 1854 the Lieutenant colonel Jacques Félix Auguste Lepic was the commanding officer succeeded in 1855 by Colonel Baron Albert Jacques Verly . The latter commanded the squadron until 1857 when he was replaced by Captain Armand Ernest Junqua . The Cent - gardes escorted the Emperor during the Second Italian War of Independence at Magenta and Solferino where Verly , the Commander - in - chief , was wounded in his arm . During the Franco - Prussian War of 1870 part of the squadron accompanied the Emperor to Metz , and in the Battle of Sedan they were constantly at his side . The squadron was disbanded by a decree of 1 October 1870 and their men transferred to the Second Regiment of Cuirassiers , which served with distinction in the defense of Paris following the dissolution of the Second Empire .