The Presidential Guard Regiment () was a military unit of the Turkish Armed Forces stationed in Çankaya Köşkü, the official residence of the Prime Minister of Turkey (office abolished in 2018) and until 2014 the official residence of the President of Turkey. The Guard Regiment was the only unit in the Turkish Land Forces to wear turquoise and white ceremonial uniforms.
History The Turkish Presidential Guard Regiment was established in July 1920 under President Atatürk. Its original role was to provide security in Ankara, in what was then a small and isolated city. As a battalion sized unit it saw active service during the war with Greece.
In 1927 the Guard Battalion, as it was then known, was expanded to 2,500 men and renamed as the Presidential Guards Regiment. During World War II the unit was expanded again and restructured as a brigade and then a division. In 1948 it was reduced to battalion strength and in 1953 merged with the separate Parliamentary Guard Battalion, under its final title of Presidential Guard Regiment.
Primarily visible as a ceremonial and honor guard unit, the regiment included a horse mounted escort. Under President Erdoğan during 2015 the Guard provided small detachments in various historic Ottoman costumes at public functions.
2016 coup Following the abortive coup attempt of 2016, almost 300 members of this unit were arrested. Shortly thereafter, the Turkish government announced that the entire Presidential Guard Regiment was to be disbanded. Though plans for full disbandment were subsequently abandoned, the Presidential Guard was reorganised and its ceremonial responsibility for the protection of the presidential palace was handed over to a special police operations unit.
Mounted Ceremonial Unit The Mounted Ceremonial Unit () was established within the original guard battalion on July 18, 1920, and was restructured as the Presidential Guard Regiment Cavalry Group in 1961. The unit, which was transformed into the Presidential Guard Regiment Mounted Ceremonial Unit in 1969 and renamed the Presidential Mounted Ceremonial Unit in 1975 with the addition of a riding team, was attached to the Army War College Command on October 4, 1984, under the name Mounted Sports Training Center Command. The vast majority of the 130 horses in the unit are of the Gemlik breed native sport horses with geographical registration certificates, produced by the Horse Production and Training Battalion Command of the Military Veterinary School and Training Center Command.
Commanders
# Name Term start Term end 1 Lieutenant Colonel Topal Osman 1920 1923 2 Colonel İsmail Hakkı Tekçe 1920 1940 3 Infantry Major Hüsnü Dumlu 1940 1942 4 Infantry Major Necdet Ergezen 1942 1943 5 Infantry Major Daniş Karabelen 1943 1948 6 Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Gani Güvener 1948 1950 7 Staff Major Nüzhet Bulca 1950 1953 8 Staff Colonel Bahattin Ertürk 1953 1955 9 Staff Colonel Refik Tulga 1955 1956 10 Staff Colonel Bahattin Ertürk 1956 1959 11 Staff Colonel Osman Köksal 1959 1961 12 Staff Colonel Şükrü İlkin 1961 1962 13 Staff Colonel Cihat Alpan 1962 1962 14 Staff Colonel İsmail Hakkı Bayındır 1962 1966 15 Staff Colonel Dündar Baykal 1966 1969 16 Colonel Hadi Öztekin 1969 1971 17 Staff Colonel Yılmaz Tokatlı 1971 1973 18 Staff Colonel Hüseyin Topa 1973 1974 19 Colonel Abdullah Erkun 1974 1976 20 Staff Colonel Hasan Sağlam 1976 1977 21 Colonel Rasim Burakan 1977 1981 22 Staff Colonel Çevik Bir 1981 1983 23 Staff Colonel Halit Edip Başer 1983 1986 24 Staff Colonel Yaşar Büyükanıt 1986 1988 25 Staff Colonel Ersin Yılmaz 1988 1990 26 Staff Colonel Yaşar Karagöz 1990 1991 27 Staff Colonel Hasan Iğsız 1991 1993 28 Staff Colonel Aslan Güner 1993 1994 29 Staff Colonel Nusret Taşdeler 1994 1996 30 Staff Colonel Kerim Şahin 1996 1997 31 Staff Colonel Cihangir Akşit 1997 1999 32 Staff Colonel Tayyar Elmas 1999 2000 33 Staff Colonel Abdullah Recep 2000 2001 34 Staff Colonel Kamil Başoğlu 2001 2002 35 Staff Colonel Ferit Güler 2002 2004 36 Staff Colonel Hamza Koçyiğit 2004 2006 37 Staff Colonel Burhanettin Aktı 2006 2008 38 Staff Colonel Muharrem Metin Özbek 2008 2010 39 Staff Colonel Şener Topuç 2010 2012 40 Staff Colonel İsmail Güneşer 2012 2013 41 Staff Colonel Muhammet Tanju Poshor 2013 2015 42 Staff Colonel Muhsin Kutsi Barış 2015 2016
References