Preobrazhensky Lifeguard Regiment | |
---|---|
Active | 1683–1917 |
Country | Tsardom of Russia Russian Empire |
Branch | Imperial Russian Army Russian Army (1917) |
Type | Infantry |
Role | Imperial guard |
Size | Regiment |
Part of | 1st Guards Infantry Division, Guards Corps |
Garrison/HQ | Saint Petersburg |
Commanders | |
Colonel-in-Chief | Emperor of Russia |
Insignia | |
Banner of the regiment |
The Preobrazhensky Life-Guards Regiment (Russian: Преображенский лейб-гвардии полк, Preobrazhensky leyb-gvardii polk) was a regiment of the Imperial Guard of the Imperial Russian Army from 1683 to 1917.
The Preobrazhensky Regiment was one of the oldest infantry regiments in Imperial Russia, along with the Semyonovsky Regiment. Among the two, the Preobrazhensky Regiment was the first to be formally established by Peter the Great from his so-called "toy army" in 1690, and became part of the Western-style regiments in the Russian armed forces. The regiment distinguished itself in battle several times during his reign in the wars against Sweden and the Ottoman Empire.
Along with the Semyonovsky Regiment, the Preobrazhensky Regiment formed the 1st Brigade (known as "Peter's Brigade") of the 1st Guards Infantry Division stationed on the Fontanka in Saint Petersburg. It served in several campaigns during World War I and was disbanded shortly before the October Revolution in 1917 by its last commander, though it was not officially dissolved until May 1918.
The Preobrazhensky Regiment was recreated in 2013 as the 154th Preobrazhensky Independent Commandant's Regiment, the official honor guard regiment of the Russian Armed Forces, stationed in Moscow.