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The Governor's Guards of
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
are four distinct units of the Connecticut State Guard, a part of the organized militia under the Connecticut State Militia. There are two foot guard units and two horse guard units. All four units are formed fully of volunteers and serve under the authority of the Connecticut Adjutant General and the Governor of the State of Connecticut, who serves as the Guards' Commander-in-Chief.


History

Four Connecticut Governor's Guards companies were raised during colonial times to serve and protect the Governor on his travels between
New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...
and
Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
, both of which served as state capitals until 1875, as well as escort dignitaries traveling throughout the state. One foot guard unit and one horse guard unit served the
Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
area, and the other two the
New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...
area. * The First Company Governor's Foot Guard was created in 1771 with a Second Company raised in 1775. The First Company Governor's Foot Guard is the oldest American military formation in the United States with an unbroken lineage. * The First Company Governor's Horse Guards was organized in 1778 and chartered in 1788. It is the oldest, continuously active mounted
cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...
unit in the United States. * The Second Company Governor's Horse Guard was organized in 1808 in New Haven.


First Company Governor's Foot Guard

The First Company Governor's Foot Guard was organized in Hartford in October 1771 as the Connecticut Governor's Guard, and is the oldest military organization in continuous existence in the United States. Although other organizations may have been formed at an earlier date, the First Company is unique in its record of unbroken service. Hartford, in 1771, was remote from larger towns. It was a small town of 3,000 inhabitants, with few churches and schools. The journey to New York or Boston took three days in a stagecoach which ran but once a week. Small as it was, Hartford was not lacking in public spirit. A group of leading young men in Hartford decided it was time to organize a select company for the purpose of escorting the Governor and General Assembly at the General Elections after an unfortunate incident in 1768, when a “trainband” made a farce out of the escort duty. Certainly another reason for the decision was that a company from East Hartford actually did escort duty in 1769 and 1770. Accordingly, Samuel Wyllys and others petitioned the General Assembly. The petition was granted by the Assembly, and Samuel Wyllys, a young man of 32, was elected Captain, William Knox, Lieutenant, and Ebenezer Austin, Ensign. The company was known at this time as the Governor's Guard. The ceremonial uniform of the First Company, as far as can be determined, is substantially the same as the original one, although it has picked up elements from different time periods over the years. Tradition hold that the original uniform was copied from that of the
Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarchy; due to this, it often ...
, the personal body guard of Queen Charlotte. The uniform consists of a scarlet coat, the tails of which are faced with buff, and a black velvet frond crossed with silver braid. The vest and breeches are of buff, and the leggings are black velvet. The hat, or 'busby' as it is known, is of bear skin with a shield in front bearing the State Coat of Arms and supports a red and black feather plume on the side. Enlisted men wear white cross straps. Sergeants dispense with the cross straps and wear a white belt, sword and shoulder scales. Officers wear a black and silver belt, fringed epaulets, and carry a saber instead of a sword. The First Company Governor's Foot Guard has been closely connected with many historical events. In 1777, although not obligated to do so, it resolved to join the patriot army at Saratoga. As an advance guard of reinforcements under Captain Jonathon Bull, they were crossing the Rhineback Flats on their way to Saratoga when they were met by a messenger with the good news of Burgoyne's surrender.


Second Company Governor's Foot Guard

It was not long before citizens of New Haven, Connecticut's other capital, felt the need to establish a unit of Governor's Guards composed of their own citizens. The Second Company was organized in New Haven primarily by
Benedict Arnold Benedict Arnold (#Brandt, Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American-born British military officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of ...
who was elected the company's
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
. This caused the original unit to take the name First Company Governor's Guard and the new organization to take the name Second Company Governor's Guards. It was in 1778, with the establishment of a unit of Governor's Horse Guards, that the original unit changed its name for the final time to "First Company Governor's Foot Guard" and the newer unit adopted the name "Second Company Governor's Foot Guard". Both units of Foot Guard are recognized by the state of Connecticut as separate and distinct entities. Earlier, at the start of the
American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
recognizing that members of the Second Company Governor's Guards were keen to travel to
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
where the fighting had begun at Lexington and Concord, the colonial authorities wished the Guards to remain at home and kept their weapons locked up. On April 22, 1775, Captain Benedict Arnold called his men together at a tavern and successfully demanded the keys to the magazine for his company's weapons or else they would break into the storehouse. He reportedly stated, "None but the Almighty God shall prevent my marching." This event is commemorated on Powder House Day. During the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, men of the 2nd Company formed Company "K" 6th Connecticut Volunteers and fought in 26 battles in the conflict. The New Haven Armory served as the home of the 2nd Company from about 1930 until 2010.


First Company Governor's Horse Guards

Source:


1658-1777

An organization of mounted troopers for the purposes of escorting dignitaries and others throughout Connecticut has been a tradition since 1658. The first cavalry 'horse guard' troop in Connecticut consisted of 37 men and horses from Hartford and surrounding towns, organized under Major John Mason, the colonies' military chief. Their uniforms were styled after the "Oxford Blues" of England's Royal Regiment of Horse Guards, and their shoulder patch was the winged thunderbolt. Captain Richard Lord, who came to Hartford in 1636 from England, led the troop. Lord was succeeded by Captain Samuel Talcott in 1687, who commanded "the troop of horse of that county" when they "conducted
Andros Andros (, ) is the northernmost island of the Greece, Greek Cyclades archipelago, about southeast of Euboea, and about north of Tinos. It is nearly long, and its greatest breadth is . It is for the most part mountainous, with many fruitful and ...
] honorably, from the ferry, through Wethersfield, up to Hartford." Andros visited Connecticut to purloin its charter, which was according to legend hidden in a Charter Oak, large oak tree to prevent him from getting it.


1778-1840

Captain Thomas Y. Seymour, an officer in the
Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...
, organized the Horse Guards in 1778 upon his resignation from the army and return to Hartford. Members were private citizens, many veterans of the Revolutionary War, and within ten years, the organization had grown to a point where it petitioned the governor to become an organized "troop of volunteer Horse, or Light Dragoons." The petition was ratified and the "Governor's Independent, volunteer Troop of Horse Guards" was chartered on May 19, 1788, with Capt. John Caldwell and First LT Thomas Seymour at the helm, who served as the company's first two commandants, respectively. The Troop's first headquarters was an armory at Arch and Main streets in Hartford. The Horse Guards escorted prominent individuals, including Connecticut's Governors and others, such as George Washington on October 19, 1789 (Wethersfield to Hartford) President John Adams on August 2, 1798 (escorted from Wethersfield to Hartford); President James Monroe on June 23, 1817 (escorted from Wethersfield to Hartford); General The Marquis de Lafayette in September 1824 (escorted from Vernon to Hartford); and President Andrew Jackson (escorted through Hartford beginning "north on Main to Morgan, to Front, to State, to Asylum, to Trumbull, to Pearl, to Prospect, to school"). The uniform during this period was described as "a bear skin dragoon hat, white broadcloth coat brilliant with lace and braid of gold, red belt above tight pants, and boots with yellow tops."


1840-1911

The troop suffered from a period of inactivity during the 1840s; they did not appear to escort anyone or participate in any drills, parades including inaugurals, or other public events. Wishing to revive the Troop, some Hartford citizens began a new Horse Guard, adopting the 1788 charter, with Col. Samuel Colt, inventor of the Colt revolver and grandson of John Caldwell, elected as commandant. However, unbeknownst to anyone, the Horse Guards ''was'' still in existence, with Major Henry Boardman serving as commandant. Eventually, when both Horse Guards petitioned to be recognized as the 'true' First Company, the Governor acknowledged Boardman's Horse Guards, forcing Colt to direct his troop under a new name. After all the confusion, Boardman quickly resumed the troop's activities, escorting presidents and governors. At this time, the troop's uniform consisted of a "bear-skin cap ornamented with a rosette and gilt eagle, dark blue single breasted coat with brass buttons, and trousers of sky blue doeskin with straps under the instep; all trimmed with orange colored piping."


1911-1919

When the Connecticut General Assembly passed an act authorizing both units of the Governor's Horse Guards to re-organize as cavalry in the Connecticut National Guard, the First Company delayed due to some opposition. It did eventually reorganize as Troop B Cavalry, C.N.G., since the Second Company Governor's Horse Guards had reorganized first as Troop A Cavalry. Troop B then began the long and hard training process designed to bring it in line with federal cavalry standards. During 1911, Troop B raised money for a ne
armory
including stables and a drill shed, which was built between 1912 and 1913 on Farmington Avenue in West Hartford. It still stands today as a commercial building of offices called 'The Armory.' On June 18, 1916, President
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...
activated the National Guard troops in response to an attack by
Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa ( , , ; born José Doroteo Arango Arámbula; 5 June 1878 – 20 July 1923) was a Mexican revolutionary and prominent figure in the Mexican Revolution. He was a key figure in the revolutionary movement that forced ...
on New Mexico, and deployed Troop B to the Mexican border at Nogales and Arivaca, Arizona, where they remained for several months guarding the border. Capt. John Henry Kelso Davis, a Trinity College graduate, was the commander of this operation. On April 6, 1917, less than six months after Troop B returned from Arizona, President Wilson declared war on Germany. Troop B was split into two Troops, B and L, and ordered to recruit to war strength. Troops B and L were drafted into federal service on August 5, 1917, and became the 101st Machine Gun Battalion, 26th Division. They served in France at Chemin des Dames, Toul, the Champagne-Marne Defensive, the Aisne-Marne Offensive, the St. Mihiel Offensive, the Troyon Sector, and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, before returning to America in April 1919 and being demobilized. After World War I, in 1919, the unit was reorganized as Troop B of the 122nd Cavalry, Connecticut National Guard.


1940-1945

In May 1940, Troops Band A were federalized as part of the 1st Battalion of the 208th Coast Artillery Anti-Aircraft (AAA), which was called to active duty three days after Pearl Harbor as the 745th Antiaircraft Artillery Gun Battalion. The 745th was stationed at Townsville, Queensland, Australia. Back home in Connecticut, the Troop operated, trained, and drilled a "Home Guard" which consisted of two troops that remained active during WWII in Avon, Connecticut.


1946-Present

Troop B C.N.G. ceased to function in 1946 as a National Guard Unit, and the First Company Governor's Horse Guards once again became part of the Organized Militia of the State of Connecticut as a "self-sustaining unit in its military operations." In 1955, the First Company relocated to its current location, Arch Road in Avon, CT, a property that encompasses over 37 acres of riding trails, a drill field, a 50-stall stable, and two outdoor riding rings. It has kept the same Charter that was accepted in 1788, and refers to its by-laws for all troop functions and positions. The Troop's activities consist of various ceremonial duties: parading, providing personnel and horses for dedication ceremonies, escorting dignitaries, and attending inaugural celebrations for the Governor of the State and, on several occasions in recent years, the President of the United States. The First Company Governor's Horse Guards holds drill every Thursday evening, during which the riding platoon practices mounted drill formations and equitation. Training for new recruits takes place once or twice per year and lasts 16 weeks, in which recruits are trained in military bearing, drill and ceremony, horsemanship, horse care, and cavalry traditions. Volunteers who seek to become recruits must be between 18 and 60 years of age and a United States citizen, and no prior military or horse experience is required.


Horses

The horses of the First Company Governor's Horse Guards are geldings of sound health and temperament in brown, chestnut, or bay coloring between 15 and 16hh. They are often donated to the troop by private owners or purchased using troop funds, whereupon they become property of the Connecticut Military Department. Breeds vary and include
Quarter Horses The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of or less; some have been clocked at speeds up to . ...
, Standardbreds, and
Thoroughbreds The Thoroughbred is a horse breed developed for horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are considered ...
.


Second Company Governor's Horse Guard

The Second Company Governor's Horse Guard was chartered in 1808, as the New Haven area horse guard unit in the state. It is housed in Newtown, Connecticut and performs ceremonial and community functions, among which have been the development of a therapeutic riding program.


Present day

All four units of the Governor's Guards remain active today as subordinate units of the
Connecticut Military Department The Connecticut Military Department is a state agency of the government of Connecticut. Its primary components are the Connecticut Army National Guard, the Connecticut Air National Guard, and four companies of the state militia. The Military Dep ...
under the command & control of the Connecticut Adjutant General. Their mission today remains primarily ceremonial, but they can be called up to active service to augment the Connecticut National Guard for state emergency operations. They perform their annual training each August at Camp Nett in East Lyme. Over the years, the location of their headquarters has changed due to space availability and financial costs. Currently, the headquarters are as follows: *First Company Governor's Foot Guard -
Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
*Second Company Governor's Foot Guard - Branford *First Company Governor's Horse Guard - Avon *Second Company Governor's Horse Guard - Newtown


COVID-19 Pandemic Response

In March and April 2020, members of the Foot and Horse Guards were activated to assist the Army and Air National Guard, as well as the Connecticut Department of Public Health in configuring and staging their Mobile Field Hospital amid the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. The units periodically train in the practice of assembling and takedown of the mobile field hospitals at Camp Hartell in Windsor Locks.


See also

* Connecticut Wing Civil Air Patrol * National Lancers *
Naval militia A naval militia or maritime militia is a volunteer organization comprising civilian sailors who train periodically to support naval operations during emergencies or times of war. List of naval militias * Naval militias in the United States * B ...
*
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary (USCGAUX, CGAux, or USCG Aux) is the uniformed, civilian volunteer component of the United States Coast Guard. Congress established the unit on 23 June 1939, as the United States Coast Guard Reserve. On F ...


References

*''History of First Company, Governor's Foot Guard Hartford 1771–1901'' 1902 Case, Lockwood and Brainard


External links


First Company Governor's Foot GuardFirst Company Governor's Horse GuardSecond Company Governor's Foot GuardSecond Company Governor's Horse Guard
{{State Defense Forces Connecticut Z Guards regiments Military units and formations established in 1771 Military units and formations established in 1788 Cavalry regiments Connecticut militia Military in Connecticut Military units and formations in Connecticut Military units and formations established in 1775 Military units and formations established in 1808 History of Connecticut 1771 establishments in Connecticut Ceremonial units of the United States military