Jules Maxime Repond (1853–1933) was a Swiss lawyer and law professor, writer and journalist, politician, entrepreneur and military officer. He served as commander of the Pontifical Swiss Guard for eleven years, during 1910 to 1921. He was the son of Elie Jean Joseph Repond and Augustine, née Sprenger, of

Villarvolard Villarvolard ( frp, Velâr-Volârd) is a former municipality in the district of Gruyère in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed ...

canton of Fribourg The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...

, and elder brother of psychiatrist Paul Repond. Repond was professor for

Roman Law Roman law is the law, legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the ''Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...

Fribourg University The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a public university located in Fribourg, Switzerland. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisiu ...

from 1880. He was elected to the

Grand Council of Fribourg The Grand Council of Fribourg (french: Grand Conseil de Fribourg) is the legislature of the canton of Fribourg, in Switzerland. Fribourg has a unicameral legislature. The Grand Council has 110 seats, with members elected every four years. R ...

as representative of the Gruyère District in 1882. He was editor of ''Le Bien public'', the journal of the

liberal-conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

party of Fribourg (1879–1888) and wrote for a number of newspapers including the ''Gazette de Lausanne''. He was president of the

Swiss Alpine Club The Swiss Alpine Club (german: Schweizer Alpen-Club, french: Club Alpin Suisse, it, Club Alpino Svizzero, rm, Club Alpin Svizzer) is the largest mountaineering club in Switzerland. It was founded in 1863 in Olten and it is now composed of 111 s ...

in 1907. He also established the first

Raiffeisenbank Raiffeisenbank refers to cooperative banks in Europe that are rooted in the early credit unions of Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen. The name is found in: * Raiffeisen Bankengruppe (Austria), Austrian group of cooperative banks. ** Raiffeisen Zentra ...

in the canton of Fribourg. In 1905 he purchased Chenaleyres castle in

Autafond Autafond is a former municipality in the district of Sarine in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016, Autafond was annexed by the municipality of Belfaux. History Autafond is first mentioned in 1236 as ''Auta-fonz''. Geog ...

. In the

Swiss Army The Swiss Armed Forces (german: Schweizer Armee, french: Armée suisse, it, Esercito svizzero, rm, Armada svizra; ) operates on land and in the air, serving as the primary armed forces of Switzerland. Under the country's militia system, re ...

, he was promoted to the rank of '' Colonel brigadier'' (

OF-6 An officer of one-star rank is a senior commander in many of the armed services holding a rank described by the NATO code of OF-6. The term is also used by some armed forces which are not NATO members. Typically, one-star officers hold the rank o ...

) in 1902. As commander of the 3rd Swiss infantry brigade from 1902 to 1908 he was noted for his strict discipline, and especially his opposition to alcohol abuse. Pope

Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...

chose Repond as successor of Leopold Meyer von Schauensee in 1910. During his eleven-year service, Repond was instrumental in developing the

Pontifical Swiss Guard The Pontifical Swiss Guard (also Papal Swiss Guard or simply Swiss Guard; la, Pontificia Cohors Helvetica; it, Guardia Svizzera Pontificia; german: Päpstliche Schweizergarde; french: Garde suisse pontificale; rm, Guardia svizra papala) is ...

into its modern form. He noted that the "Swiss Guards" in the Vatican were mostly "Swiss" only in name, born in Rome to parents of Swiss descent and speaking the Roman

Trastevere Trastevere () is the 13th ''rione'' of Rome: it is identified by the initials R. XIII and it is located within Municipio I. Its name comes from Latin ''trans Tiberim'', literally 'beyond the Tiber'. Its coat of arms depicts a golden head of a lio ...

dialect. He proposed to recruit only native citizens of Switzerland during his command. He re-organized the guard corps, whose service had become a very relaxed position of purely ceremonial nature, introducing rigorous military exercise. He also attempted to introduce modern arms, but Pius X only permitted the presence of firearms if they were not functional. Repond's reforms and strict discipline were not well received by the corps, culminating in a week of open mutiny in July 1913. In his project to restore the Swiss Guard to its former prestige, Repond also dedicated himself to the study of historical costume, with the aim of designing a new uniform that would be both reflective of the historical Swiss costume of the 16th century and suited for military exercise. The result of his studies was published as ''Le costume de la Garde suisse pontificale et la Renaissance italienne'' (1917). Repond designed the distinctive Renaissance-style uniforms still worn by the modern Swiss Guard. The new uniforms were completed in May 1914. Repond also designed the modern banner of the Swiss Guard, quartered by a

Swiss cross The national flag of Switzerland (german: Schweizerfahne; french: drapeau de la Suisse; it, bandiera svizzera; rm, bandiera da la Svizra) displays a white cross in the centre of a square red field. The white cross is known as the Swiss cross ...

, with the

papal coat of arms Papal coats of arms are the personal coat of arms of popes of the Catholic Church. These have been a tradition since the Late Middle Ages, and has displayed his own, initially that of his family, and thus not unique to himself alone, but in some c ...

of the reigning pope in the upper hoist and the

Della Rovere The House of Della Rovere (; literally "of the oak tree") was a noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estat ...

coat of arms of Julius II in the lower fly, and a vignette with the commander's coat of arms in the center. Pius X rejected the proposal, and the first such banner was made in 1914, with the della Chieasa coat of arms of

Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (Latin: ''Benedictus XV''; it, Benedetto XV), born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, name=, group= (; 21 November 185422 January 1922), was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His ...

. After his retirement from service in 1921, Repond dedicated himself to the study of archaeology, especially on the topic of

clothing in the ancient world The preservation of fabric fibers and leathers allows for insights into the attire of ancient societies. The clothing used in the ancient world reflects the technologies that these peoples mastered. In many cultures, clothing indicated the social ...

. His monograph on the topic, ''Les secrets de la draperie antique'' was published with the

Pontifical Academy of Archaeology The Pontifical Academy of Archaeology (''Pontificia Accademia Romana di Archeologia'') is an academic honorary society established in Rome by the Catholic Church for the advancement of Christian archaeological study. It is one of the ten such Pont ...

in 1931. Repond was a recipient of the

Order of Pope Pius IX The Order of Pope Pius IX ( it, Ordine di Pio IX), also referred as the Pian Order ( it, Ordine Piano), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. Currently, it is the highest honor conferred by the Holy See (being ...

and of the

Order of St. Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

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