The famous British guards with the tall hats are actually trained soldiers equipped with machine guns!

The red jacked and weird hat wearing men and women who stand in the Sentry Box outside of Buckingham Place are from any of the 5 regiments of Foot Guards (Grenadier Guards, Cold stream Guards, Welsh Guards, Irish Guards, and Scots Guards). Only half of their job is standing emotionless outside of the Queen’s other palace, the other half is actively serving in the military.

Thus, they serve both a decorating and defensive role. However, even when they are acting as guards, they are prepared for a flight. Originally, they carried ceremonial guns but now they are all equipped with machine guns.