"HELVETIORUM FIDEI AC VIRTUTI ("To the loyalty and bravery of the Swiss")" - Inscription on the Lion Monument
Everything can be bought, even loyalty. Imagine you are a French king and subsequently you are in the middle of a whirlwind of intrigues, conspiracies and schemes. You can not trust your fellow Frenchmen as every Frenchman could take part in a plot against you. What can you do? Turn to somebody foreign, someone who is not stained by French treachery. The Swiss had a long and reputable background in the field of mercenarism, dating back to the middle ages. The thing that made them the most famous and reliable mercenaries during the XVI and XVII centuries was their professionalism, loyalty and discipline.
To be continued...