Imperial Guard of Napoleon III - When he declared himself Emperor in 1852, Napoleon III also determined to emulate his illustrious uncle and form an Imperial Guard. In many ways it mirrored the Guard of 1803-15 particularly in the matter of organization by including all branches of the army within its ranks. Ironically, Napoleon III’s Guard endured three years longer than that its predecessor but ceased to exist just as abruptly. After hard fighting and victory over the Austrians in the Italian unification war of 1859, it suffered a humiliating defeat and subsequent disbandment at the hands of Prussia at Sedan in 1870. The Guard and its uniforms are described in detail within these pages along with the illustrations of Maurice Toussaint. Toussaint was a popular illustrator of military subjects in France during the latter part of the 19th Century and his colorful and lively paintings capture perfectly the essence of the last “Garde Imperiale”. - Uniformology Uniform Books