The Senate Guards of the Republic were an elite security force stationed on Coruscant whose purpose was to protect the Senator's representatives
and chancellor of the Senate, as well as police the Senate district.
Senate Guards were renowned across the Republic, and becoming one was one of the highest honors one could achieve next to Jedi Knighthood.
So exactly how powerful were Senate Guards? Not only as warriors, but also in regard to their political power.
Well, not only were they tasked in protecting the senators from assassinations and the like, but they were also to keep them in check
reporting to their superiors if they suspected bribery or treachery among the senators.
Their sole loyalty was to the Republic as a whole,
rather than any individual or group of senators,
and Senate Guards arresting corrupt senators and representatives wasn't unheard of.
Which is one of the main reasons Palpatine created the Red Guard
who were solely loyal to him, and allowed him an easier time
commanding his servants in his alter-ego as Darth Sidious.
However, as the Republic grew older and more corrupt,
Senate Guards became more suspect to corruption,
and were known to turn a blind eye whenever they witnessed bribery take place within the Senate.
Recruits for the Guard were selected from the most respected and hardened law enforcement agencies from across the galaxy.
Usually from planets within the Galactic Core.
The selection process made sure that the potential recruits were superb fighters,
and were completely loyal to the Republic.
Once chosen, the recruits were sent to the Senate Guard Academy on Coruscant were they trained for years.
At the Academy, they learned Hijkata martial arts,
which focused on deflecting and countering attacks of your opponent's,
turning their attacks and maneuvers against them.
They also became experts at using blasters and melee weapons.
Once they graduated, they were assigned to headquarters where they were to start their service.
Although the Guards were some of the best that the Republic had to offer,
they did have a hard time keeping infiltrators out from within their ranks
nor were they trained in resisting mind control
as there were two cases where Senate Guards actually attempted to kill the ones that they were protecting.
The first case was when the Senate Guard was under mind control and tried to kill a visiting Baroness.
The other case was when apparently two assassins infiltrated the Guard and attempted to assassinate the Chancellor.
In both cases, the other Senate Guards failed to protect their target and the nearby Jedi were forced to step in and do their job instead.
When it comes to equipment, the Senate Guards wore their ceremonial robes and helmets whenever they were within the Senate or executive buildings.
Under the robes and ceremonial helmet crests, the guards were lightly armored wearing what seemed to be light armor weave at best
along with shoulder pads and a regular unmasked combat helmet.
Their weapons varied, but while in their ceremonial garb they were armed with either a Force pike,
or the MK II Paladin blaster rifle.
The Paladin Rifle was a signature weapon of the Guard, and was renowned for its power and accuracy.
It had single fire and fully automatic settings as well as also having a wide stun setting that was effective against large crowds.
Under the robes they seemed to also carry a heavy blaster pistol.
Senate Guards were also given access to speeders and assault vehicles which they used when pursuing culprits.
The best of the Senate Guards were promoted to the Senate Commandos which was even more of an elite subunit within the Guard.
Senate Commandos went through even more training and were given full body armor which allowed them to better fight against heavily armed foes.
With that being said, the commandos seemed to be unprepared when dealing with snipers
or ambushes as seen with their fight against Cad Bane and his crew.
Overall, the Senate Guard was a renowned unit within the Republic that became as incompetent and corrupt as the Senate they swore to protect
nearing the end of their history.
Once the Empire was formed, the Senate Guard was disbanded with most of its members either retiring or joining the ranks of the Imperial military.
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