BEHIND THE HALBERD

For more than five centuries, the Pontifical Swiss Guard has stood at the heart of the Vatican. Its halberds, Renaissance colours and solemn ceremonies are recognised throughout the world. Behind that public image, however, lies a far more complex story.

Behind the Halberd follows the men, decisions, crises, rules, objects and unexpected episodes that shaped the Guard from its beginnings in 1506 to the present day. The Sack of Rome, political upheaval, pay disputes, recruitment, family life, wartime neutrality, modern security and even a 3D-printed morion all become part of the same history.

Tiziano Guarneri draws on documentary research and twenty years of first-hand experience in the Pontifical Swiss Guard, more than ten of them as spokesman and head of media relations. Legends are tested against evidence, conflicting sources are left visible when they cannot be reconciled, and the men behind the uniform remain at the centre of the narrative.

This is not a ceremonial chronicle or a list of commanders. It is the story of an institution that survived because it learned how to change without losing the purpose that brought the first Swiss soldiers to Rome more than five hundred years ago.

For readers interested in Vatican history, Switzerland, military history, papal security and the human stories behind one of the world's oldest military institutions.