General
old guard
What does old guard mean?
The Old Guard is leather culture's founding myth — the period from roughly the end of WWII to the late 1960s, when gay leather circles ran on tight clubs, rigid protocol and a borrowed-from-the-military chain of command. Honorifics were mandatory, ranks were earned, and everything had a rule. Worth knowing: historians treat the 'returning WWII vets built it' story as more legend than verified fact — no single person actually fits the whole tale. But the romance of it still shapes how a lot of leather people talk about 'how it used to be done.'
"She runs her house Old Guard style — collars are earned, titles are real, and nobody skips a step."
Origin
Refers to gay leather culture c.1945–late 1960s; widely considered the subculture's 'origin myth,' heavily romanticised and partly contested by historians.
Frequently asked questions
Were the Old Guard really WWII veterans?
That's the legend, but it's contested. Returning servicemen influenced early leather culture, yet no clearly documented individual fits the full myth — many influential figures came from later Korea/Vietnam eras.
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