The Presidential Honor Guard ( es, Guardia de Honor Presidencial) is a branch of the

Armed Forces of Guatemala The Guatemalan Armed Forces ( es, Fuerzas Armadas de Guatemala) consists of the National Army of Guatemala (''Ejercito Nacional de Guatemala'', ENG), the Guatemalan National Defense Navy (''Marina de la Defensa Nacional'', includes Marines), the ...

, which is responsible for ceremonial duties of state as well as the protection of the

President of Guatemala The president of Guatemala ( es, Presidente de Guatemala), officially known as the President of the Republic of Guatemala ( es, Presidente de la República de Guatemala), is the head of state and head of government of Guatemala, elected to a ...

and his/her

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

. It currently has its headquarters at Avenida De La Barranquilla.

History

When it was founded, it had its facilities on the 8th Street and 5th Avenue in Guatemala City, where the National Library is currently located. By general order on 29 January 1874, it was called the Honor Guard Barracks, with its first commander being General Julio García Granados. In 1884, it formed a

military band A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the tit ...

. Between 1886 and 1891, during the government of

Manuel Barillas Manuel Lisandro Barillas Bercián (17 January 1845 – 7 April 1907) was a Guatemalan general and acting president of Guatemala from 6 April 1885 to 15 March 1886 and President from 16 March 1886 to 15 March 1892. He was born in Quetzaltenango, ...

, it was known as the 2nd Battalion. The battalion is where European influence of military bands in Guatemala, particularly when an Italian opera company arrived in the country in the latter half of the 19th century, bringing conductor Pietro Visoni to the country to be asked by President

Miguel García Granados Miguel García Granados y Zavala (29 September 1809 – 8 September 1878) was a Spanish-born Guatemalan politician and military general who served as President of Guatemala from 1871 to 1873. Early life García Granados was born in El ...

to take control of the bands of the 1st and 2nd battalions, after which Visoni merged the two and established the Martial Symphony Band, which is still in existence today. On 24 May 1891, it was referred to as the Honor Guard once again. It had several headquarters transfers, during the mandate of

José María Orellana José María Orellana Pinto (11 July 1872 – 26 September 1926) was a Guatemalan political and military leader. He was chief of staff of President Manuel Estrada Cabrera and President of Guatemala between 1921 and 1926, after overthrowing Conse ...

and

Jorge Ubico Jorge Ubico Castañeda (10 November 1878 – 14 June 1946), nicknamed Number Five or also Central America's Napoleon, was a Guatemalan dictator. A general in the Guatemalan army, he was elected to the presidency in 1931, in an election where ...

, in 1940 it was named Infantry Regiment by General Ubico, It played a decisive role in the October 1944

Guatemalan Revolution The period in the history of Guatemala between the coups against Jorge Ubico in 1944 and Jacobo Árbenz in 1954 is known locally as the Revolution ( es, La Revolución). It has also been called the Ten Years of Spring, highlighting the peak y ...

, when military personnel, at command of Major

Francisco Javier Arana Francisco Javier Arana Castro (; 3 December 1905 – 18 July 1949) was a Guatemalan military leader and one of the three members of the revolutionary junta that ruled Guatemala from 20 October 1944 to 15 March 1945 during the early part of the ...

, with heavy artillery, joined the popular movement and allowed the entrance of a group of 14 university students.

Duties

The Presidential Guard is made up of around 350 military personnel, and forms the third security ring for the Guatemalan presidency. Since 1998, the security of the president and his/her family has been led by the Secretariat of Administrative Affairs of the Presidency and the Presidential General Staff. In April 2008, it was announced that it will be converted into a special anti-drug group.

References

{{Reflist Military of Guatemala Guards of honour Protective security units Military units and formations established in 1874

History

Duties

See also

References