The Imperial Guard was a small, elite army, directly under Napoleon’s control. Like the corps, it had infantry, cavalry and artillery ... as well as French. They were the most feared men ...

The French cavalry charged on the order of Marshal Michel ... He called for the Imperial Guard, the most feared of all his soldiers. Throughout the fighting he had held them in reserve.

The Band of the Grenadier Guards will perform both countries’ national anthems and a medley of Anglo-French music during the ceremony, hailed as “a symbol of the strength of the relationship ...