How do you join The Queen's Guard?

In order to join the Royal Guard, a trainee soldier has to pass the British Army Recruit Battery (BARB) test. The scores of the BARB test helps to categorise whether they join a combat role or one of the combat support groups.
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How much does a Queen's Guard make?

After getting an acceptable score on the BARB test, a soldier is ready to join the Queen's Guard. The salary for this job is paid based on a list defined by the British army, with values starting at £20,400 (or around $28,266).
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How long do you have to train to be a Queen's Guard?

The British Army has tried various synthetic substitutes for the skins, but so far, the man-made fur caps lose their shape in strong winds and get waterlogged in heavy rains. The Guards are members of the British Army who get 30 weeks of training, two weeks more than the regular infantry.
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Does the Queens Guard do anything?

The Queen's Guard is not purely ceremonial in nature. They provide sentries during the day and night, and during the later hours, they patrol the grounds of the Palace. Until 1959, the sentries at Buckingham Palace were stationed outside the fence.
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What happens if you touch a Queen's Guard?

If idiots act threateningly towards the Royal Family, the Queen's Guard, or the general public around them, they will stop you. If you touch their bear-skin hat, they'll probably ignore you or shout at you. If you grab their rifle, the next thing you'll see is the end of their barrel.
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What Does The Queens Guard Actually Do?



Can Royal Guards talk?

Although we'd be forgiven for believing that the Queen's guards have taken a vow of silence while in post, they can indeed speak on some occasions. Although we do not recommend provoking them to do so, the can speak (or more specifically yell) if visitors come to close to them or acts aggressively.
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Do royal guards get fired for smiling?

The Queen's Guard are punished if they smile

If they are caught laughing or smiling by a superior officer they are fined around ₤200 (approximately $260) from their pay.
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Can you hit the Queen's Guard?

Guards are not to be touched

One guard explained what happens if you touch a guard. “You are allowed to get them away by shouting warnings at them. If they fail to move away or start to act aggressively we present our bayonets… to remind them that we can do more harm than them.
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Can the Queen's guards be female?

Captain Megan Couto has become the first female ever to lead the Queen's Guard at Buckingham Palace.
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Do the Queen's guards go to war?

If you've ever been to Buckingham Palace, you've probably noticed the armed guards wearing the bearskin caps standing sentry. These aren't your average security guards roaming through shopping malls. They are Queen's Guards and are fully-trained operational soldiers — and most have been deployed to combat zones.
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Are Queens guards guns loaded?

Those guns aren't loaded…

The Guard's intimidating weapons only have ammo in them when they are aware of a potential serious security threat. The guard on Reddit, who uses the username “nibs123,” says that he has never carried a loaded gun as a Guardsman.
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How tall are the Queen's guards?

The Queen's guards aren't as tall as they used to be

'The height requirement has been brought down to 5' 10", but traditionally, if you were in the Queen's Company within the Grenadier Guards, you had to be 6' 2" or over. They were known as “the models” because they were so tall.
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How long is a Queen's guard shift?

The guards at Buckingham Palace and St James Palace are on duty for 24 or 48 hours. During that time a Guardsman will have 2 hours on sentry duty and then 4 hours off.
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How many Queen's guards are there?

Altogether the Guard consists of three officers and 36 soldiers. What are the guards that stand in front of the castle wearing red coats and those large black fur hats? Are they called sentries or just guards? They are called the Queen's Guard.
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Why do royal guards wear big hats?

"The idea was that you made your foot soldiers look taller and therefore more fearsome," said Richard Fitzwilliams, a royal commentator based in London. "They used to fulfill a practical need for a foot soldier in battle. They were used when fighting the French in the Napoleonic wars.
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What does it take to be a Royal Guard?

In order to join the Royal Guard, a trainee soldier has to pass the British Army Recruit Battery (BARB) test. The scores of the BARB test helps to categorise whether they join a combat role or one of the combat support groups.
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Why do the royal guards stomp?

According to a report by DailyMail, the Queen's Guards are given specific orders to deal with obstacles that may come on their marching route. They are allowed to shout 'Make way for the Queen's Guards' and also stomp their feet.
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Do royal guards get paid?

Royal Guard Salary. 6% of jobs $25,000 is the 25th percentile. Salaries below this are outliers. 20% of jobs $39,000 is the 75th percentile.
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What are the Queen's guards not allowed to do?

You just can't move

While on duty, Queen's Guards are not supposed to move or respond to anything that the tourists may throw at them. However, the rules indicate that after being still for at least 10 minutes, they can march up and down the street in order to stretch their legs and avoid passing out.
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Can you take pictures with royal guards?

You're definitely welcome to have your picture taken with the Guards. They're used to it and it won't be an issue.
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Are bearskins real fur?

The standard bearskin for the British foot guards is 11 inches (280 millimetres) tall at the front, 16 inches (410 millimetres) to the rear, weighs 1.5 pounds (0.68 kilograms), and is made from the fur of the Canadian black bear.
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Does Changing of the Guard happen every day?

Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace does not take place every day. The current schedules are: August - May: The Queen's Guard change on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. June - July: The Queen's Guard change daily.
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How often do The Queen's guards change?

The Queen's Guard soldiers actually work in shifts of 2 hours each, which means new guards begin their shift every 2 hours.
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What is the British queen guard cap called?

It's called a 'bearskin', a type of ceremonial military cap that dates back to the 17th century. And yes, despite some controversy, the bearskin is exactly as its name suggests. Bearskin hats are made from the skin of American black bears, taken annually during the Black Bear Cull in Canada.
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