The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences, issues, and concerns Thai government school principals have about the presence of armed military guards and how this helps or impedes their school leadership. Data were taken from a larger ongoing study of this topic and the findings suggest that the military protection of schools largely hinders principals' leadership. This study adds to the larger discussion of how school leadership is enacted in different contexts and sheds new light on the military protection of schools in areas affected by violent conflict.