An honor guard is a ceremonial military or paramilitary unit that renders formal courtesies during state visits, treaty signings, arrivals of heads of state or government, the presentation of diplomatic credentials, and funerals of senior officials. The practice is a core element of diplomatic protocol and signals the rank accorded to a visitor under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961), though the convention itself does not prescribe the specific honors.
Typical components include:
- A guard of honor (troop formation) presenting arms as the dignitary passes.
- A military band playing the national anthems of the host and visitor.
- A gun salute (commonly 21 guns for a head of state, 19 for a head of government, with lower counts for other ranks in most Commonwealth and U.S. practice).
- An inspection or "trooping past" the formation, often along a red carpet.
Honor guards serve three diplomatic functions. First, they communicate the status the host assigns to the guest; downgrading from a full ceremonial welcome to a more modest reception is a recognized signal of displeasure. Second, they reinforce the host state's sovereignty and martial tradition before foreign and domestic audiences. Third, they create a controlled, photogenic setting that anchors media coverage of the visit.
Units regularly used in this role include the U.S. 3rd Infantry Regiment ("The Old Guard"), the United Kingdom's Foot Guards of the Household Division, France's Garde républicaine, and the Russian Federation's 154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment. At the United Nations, ceremonial honors are generally not rendered to visiting officials inside the Secretariat, reflecting the organization's non-sovereign character; honors instead occur at the host country mission or airport.
Funerary honor guards—such as the continuous watch at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, maintained since 1937—extend the same protocol logic to commemorating the war dead and recently deceased statespersons. Disputes over honors (seating, salutes, precedence) remain a frequent source of low-level diplomatic friction.
Example
In April 2024, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was received with a full honor guard and 21-gun salute on the South Lawn of the White House during his state visit hosted by President Joe Biden.