Old Guard

American  

noun

1. the imperial guard created in 1804 by Napoleon: it made the last French charge at Waterloo.

2. (in the U.S.) the conservative element of any political party, especially the Republican Party.

3. (usually lowercase) the influential, established, more conservative members of any body, group, movement, etc..

   the old guard of New York society.

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old guard ¹ British  

noun

1. a group that works for a long-established or old-fashioned cause or principle

2. the conservative element in a political party or other group

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Old Guard ² British  

noun

1. the French imperial guard created by Napoleon in 1804

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Etymology

Origin of Old Guard

Translation of French Vieille Garde

Example Sentences

This was a position shared by both the old guard and the new.

From Slate

The old guard will say it's part of the game but word it how you will - it's cheating.

From BBC

That tension with boxing's old guard irritates Paul.

From BBC

Is this the out-of-touch old guard asserting authority, or a young person’s reckless, impulsive mistake?

From Salon

Instead, the old guard of social media is determined to wring every advertising dollar out of a bevvy of dying platforms, and maximize engagement by attempting to counteract a drop in user-generated content with A.I. slop.

From Slate