The mercenaries have distinguished themselves, and are distinguished, from the rest of the combatants for fighting for a benefit, normally economic, and not for ideals or just causes. But throughout history, and on multiple occasions, they have also been characterized by being part of the personal guards of kings, warlords, dictators... And they were almost always foreign mercenaries; I suppose because they are oblivious to internal disputes and because of the fear of coups by rivals.
As examples of personal guards made up of foreign mercenaries:
- The incursions of the Germanic peoples into the Roman Empire gave way to peaceful emigrations. Many of these "barbarians" (foreigners) formed the personal guard of Roman emperors.
- The Varega Guard It was made up of Norse tribes (Vikings) and was the personal guard of the Byzantine Emperor Basileus II.
- The Abbasid caliph of Baghdad, al-Mutasim, had a personal guard made up of Turkish slaves who would later hold important positions in the army itself.
- The Swiss Guard (Corpo della Guardia Svizzera Pontificia) is the personal guard of the Pope and the Holy See since 1506.
- The Walloon Guard , whose members were recruited in Flanders and protected Felipe V.
- The Moorish Guard of Franco during the dictatorship. It was made up of the remains of the 85,000 Moroccans who were part of the rebels in the Civil War.
There is also a direct relationship between slave soldiers and mercenaries :the Mamluks in Egypt, Turkish Janissaries… I recommend the article «Slave Soldiers»
Do you know of any other personal guard made up of foreigners?
Source:The Years of Fear – Juan Eslava Galán.