45 e régiment d'infantry

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Régiment de la Reine-Mère
Régiment d'Artois
Régiment de La Couronne
45 e regiment d'infanterie

Insigne régimentaire du 45e regiment d'infanterie.jpg

Internal association badge
active 1643 to 1998
Country Armoiries république française.svg France
Armed forces FranceFrance French armed forces
Armed forces FranceFrance Armée française de terre
Branch of service infantry
Type Mechanized infantry regiment
Location Laon
Patron saint Saint-Maurice d'Agaune
motto Tete haute, en avant

The 45 e régiment d'infanterie ( 45 e RI ) was an association of French infantry. The regiment took part in all wars with French participation from its formation up to World War II . It no longer exists today.

Before regiment numbering was introduced on January 1, 1791, it was last named Régiment de La Couronne in the royal French army .

Lineup and significant changes

It was the first regiment that was deployed under King Louis XIV . On June 25, 1643, the Queen Mother Anna of Austria, as regent of France , granted Maréchal Nicolas de L'Hospital a patent for the establishment of a regiment of infantry. Until her death in 1666, it was to bear the name Régiment de La Reine-Mère ("Regiment of the Queen Mother").

  • 1643: Established as Régiment de La Reine-Mère (regiment owner was the mother of the king, Anna of Austria )
  • 1666: Renamed the Régiment de Genlis
  • 1666: Renamed the Régiment d'Artois
  • 1673: Renamed the Régiment de La Couronne
  • January 1, 1791: renamed 45 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne ci devant La Couronne
  • 1793: In the course of the premier amalgams , the regimental association was dissolved. The 1st battalion was used to form the "89 e demi-brigade de bataille" and the 2nd battalion to form the "90 e demi-brigade de bataille".
  • 1803: Re-establishment of the 45 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne from the 45 e demi-brigade d'infanterie, which had nothing to do with the previous 45 e RI
  • During the first restoration, the name was changed to 42 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne
  • During the reign of the Hundred Days, it was renamed 45 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne
  • In the course of the Second Restoration, the regiment was disbanded in 1815. It is not known when the reconstruction took place.

Mestres de camp / Colonels

Mestre de camp was from 1569 to 1661 and from 1730 to 1780 the denomination of rank for the regiment holder and / or for the officer in charge of the regiment. The name "Colonel" was used from 1721 to 1730, from 1791 to 1793 and from 1803 onwards.

After 1791 there were no more regimental owners.

Should the Mestre de camp / Colonel be a person of the high nobility who had no interest in leading the regiment (such as the king or queen), the command was given to the "Mestre de camp lieutenant" (or “Mestre de camp en second”) or the “Colonel-lieutenant” or “Colonel en second”.

  • June 25, 1643: Mestre de camp François Marie de l'Hospital, duc de Vitry et de Châteauvillain
  • June 7, 1667: Colonel Bruslart marquis de Genlis
  • June 1673: Colonel Bruslart marquis de Genlis de Bethencourt
  • September 1675: Colonel Bruslart marquis de Genlis de Proyard
  • March 12, 1677: Colonel Hardoin Bruslart chevalier, then marquis de Genlis
  • March 30, 1693: Colonel Nicolas de Prunier, marquis de Saint-André-Beauchêne
  • July 26, 1698: Colonel Louis marquis de Polastron
  • May 11, 1707: Colonel René François de Froulay, chevalier de Tessé
  • February 27, 1712: Colonel Jean-Baptiste comte de Polastron
  • March 10, 1734: Mestre de camp en second Armand Louis de Béthune, marquis de Charrost
  • November 11, 1735: Mestre de camp en second Louis Ferdinand Joseph de Croy, prince et duc d'Havré
  • May 26, 1745: Mestre de camp en second Jean-François Gabriel marquis de Polastron
  • March 17, 1758: Mestre de camp en second Alexandre Eléonor de Saint-Mauris, comte et prince de Montbarrey
  • November 30, 1761: Mestre de camp en second Pierre-Constantin Le Vicomte, comte de Blangy
  • June 22, 1767: Mestre de camp en second Claude Antoine de Bésiade d'Avaray, marquis d'Avaray
  • November 11, 1782: Colonel Marie-Gabriel-Florent-Auguste comte de Choiseul-Gouffier
  • January 1, 1784: Colonel Augustin-Louis-Charles marquis de Lameth
  • March 1788: Colonel Jean Baron de Spens d'Estignols
  • September 1788: Colonel marquis de Lameth
  • October 21, 1791: Joseph-Marie-Anne de Moyria
  • June 29, 1792: Colonel Charles Étienne Guillaume Blandin de Chalain

(...)

  • 1875–1883: Colonel Anatole Chevallier
  • 1889: Colonel Pierre Gustave Abadie
  • 1901: Colonel Rambaud
  • 1918: Colonel Clément
  • 1939–1940: Lieutenant-Colonel Henri-Paul Desroche

Uniforms and flags during the ancien régime

Because of his services in the siege of Maastricht in 1673, the regiment was renamed Régiment de La Couronne ("Regiment of the Crown") by order of the king . It also received a new flag with a crown in the center of the cross beam and with the inscription Dedit hanc Mastrika coronam (“Maastricht brought him the crown”).

  • Régiment de La Reine-Mère de 1643 to 1666

  • Régiment d'Artois 1666 to 1673

  • Régiment de La Couronne 1673 to 1791

  • Colonel's body flag

  • Régiment de La Couronne 1720 to 1734

  • Régiment de La Couronne 1734 to 1757

  • Régiment de La Couronne 1762 to 1776

  • 1776 to 1779

  • Grenadier 1779 to 1791

  • Grenadier of the 45 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne 1791 to 1795

Mission history

Franco-Spanish War (1635-1659)

  • 1643: As soon as the line-up was completed, the regiment was assigned to the siege of Thionville , in the final phase of which it participated until the end of August 10th. Then it crossed the Rhine opposite Offenburg and fought in the siege of Rottweil . A battle followed near Mertingen against a superior force of imperial, Bavarian and Lorraine troops. After an unsuccessful fight, the regiment had to surrender and was taken to Augsburg and Regensburg without receiving any military honors . The brutal treatment inflicted on them plunged most of the officers and soldiers into deep despair.
  • 1644: Reorganized in winter, the regiment moved to Flanders and took part in the campaign of the year. It distinguished itself during the siege of Gravelines, where the Capitaine de Prémont was badly wounded.
  • 1645: After spending the winter in Boulonnais, “La Reine-Mère” was deployed to the siege of Fort Mardyck (near Dunkirk), where it replaced the Régiment de Piémont in the trenches. The fort was captured on the same day. Thereafter Lencke, Bourbourg , Menen (Belgium) and Cassel were conquered. Lille followed on August 30; the brave Major du Liège, a veteran of the siege of La Rochelle , and the Capitaine d'Arnaud were mortally wounded in the attack. In the same year the regiment was still used in the sieges of Béthune and Saint-Venant .
  • 1646: That year the siege of Courtrai followed . Some companies engaged in a battle with enemy cavalry on June 24th . The Capitaine Saint-Julien-Alland was killed, the Major de Bourgogne and three other officers were wounded. The regiment ended the campaign with the siege of Fort Mardyck , Bergues and Dunkirk.
Siege of Fort Mardyck 1646
  • 1647: Used in the capture of Knokke and in the siege of Diksmuide and Lens
  • 1648: "La Reine-Mère" fought in the battle near Ypres and in the battle of Lens . Here it was in the first line and was instrumental in the success. The Marquis de Vitry distinguished himself, but was wounded several times.
  • 1649: After the regiment commander had transferred to the rebels of the Fronde , the regiment was withdrawn from him on January 18 and provisionally handed over to Lieutenant Colonel Hargonne des Bergères, who was thus under the command of Louis II de Bourbon, prince de Condé , moved to the siege of Paris . On April 29th, the Marquis de Vitry was given back command of the regiment and was ordered with his unit to Flanders. Here the regiment was involved in the siege of Cambrai and Condé-sur-l'Escaut , the rest of the year was spent in the Duchy of Guise .
  • 1650: Relocated to the Guyenne under the command of Bernard de Nogaret de La Valette d'Épernon , who stationed it in Nérac to monitor the activities of the Mécontents (insurgents). From there it was turned off for the siege of Cognac and then came to the army of Maréchal Plessis-Praslin in Champagne, where it took part in the Battle of Rethel .
  • 1651 to 1653: Fight against the Fronde rebels. Under Turenne it took part in the victories at Bléneau and the battle at Étampes . At the beginning of 1653 the regiment was in Collioure . In July it moved to Catalonia , on September 22nd it fought in the battle near Bordilly, only to be used in the siege of Gérone . Then it moved to Foix to spend the winter there.
  • 1654: In July, together with the Régiment d'Harcourt cavalerie , it reinforced the army of Armand de Bourbon-Conti and crossed the mountain passes with them. The regiment marched without flank security, was attacked by the garrison of Puigcerdà and dispersed. It was then used in the relief of Roses and in the capture of Puigcerdà.
  • 1655 to 1660: In 1655 it was involved in the conquest of Cap de Creus . The following year it served in Catalonia and was commanded to Flanders in 1657, where it was involved in the capture of La Mothe-aux-Bois . In 1658 the siege of Dunkirk followed. In November it belonged to the army assembled at Oudenaarde, and it was to remain there until February 1660, when the city was taken by the Spanish.

War of Devolution (1667–1668)

After the death of Anna of Austria in 1666, the regiment changed its name from "Régiment de La Reine-Mère" to "Régiment d'Artois"; it was then stationed in this province. It then fought under this name in the campaigns of 1667 in Flanders and 1668 in Franche-Comté .

  • 1670 to 1671:

In September it was part of the small army corps that occupied Lorraine. Here it was involved in the capture of Épinal, Chastel-sur-Moselle and Longwy. In 1671 it was reinforced to two battalions.

Dutch War (1672–1678)

When war broke out in 1672, "Artois" was assigned to the Corps de Montal, was in Charleroi in May and was involved in the capture of Kaiserswerth and the sieges of Orsoy , Rheinberg , Duisburg and Utrecht .

  • 1673: During the siege of Maastricht in 1673, the regiment was so distinguished that it was renamed and raised to the rank of royal regiment with the new name "Régiment de La Couronne". On June 18, several regiments attacked an important outbuilding , "Artois" was able to conquer it under the eyes of the king, who then gave him an unusual honor: He was given a new flag with the crown and the inscription "Dedit hanc Mastrika coronam “Allocated. During this siege it lost the Capitaines Cabassos and Grenadien as well as the Lieutenant d'Esquigny.
Battle of Cassel
  • 1674: At the beginning of the year the regiment moved to Franche-Comté and was involved in the brigade association with the Régiment Royal in the capture of Besançon and Dole . In July the 1st battalion moved to Charleville to the army of the Maréchal de Condé and fought in the battle of Seneffe , the 2nd battalion joined the army of Maréchal Turenne in August and fought in the battle of Ensheim.
  • 1675 and 1676: reunited, the regiment fought in January in the battle of Türkheim and then lay in Metz until 1676. It was then assigned to the army of Maréchal François de Créquy and took part in the sieges of Dinant, Huy and Limbourg and on August 11th in the battle near Konz . The lieutenant colonel was fatally wounded. Enclosed in the city during the siege of Trier, the regiment was able to distinguish itself and then moved to Metz, from where it moved on to Marsal (Moselle) in September . Subsequently commanded to Flanders, it was used in the siege of Condé, Bouchain and the capture of Landrecies and Aire.
  • 1677: In March the Colonel en second , the Marquis de Genlis, was killed in an attack on a Spanish redoubt off Saint-Omer. Then came the Battle of Cassel . Here the regiment, together with the Régiment Royal and the Régiment d'Anjou , was able to drive the enemy out of the Piennes Abbey and occupy it. Two lieutenants were killed in this operation, the new commanding officer and nine other officers were wounded. After the battle, it moved into quarters in Stenay, but left the city on June 4th to join the army of the Maréchal de Créquy. This was followed by fighting at Morville, where the Colonel fell en second on June 15, and on the heights of Sainte-Barbe northeast of Metz, where the Duke of Lorraine was routed. On November 14th, the regiment was able to penetrate the city through a breach during the siege of Freiburg .
  • 1678: Back in Flanders, "La Couronne" was used in the siege of Ghent and Ypres and in the battle of Saint-Denis .

Northern War (1679)

The regiment fought in Germany and ended the campaign after the defeat at Minden . After the peace treaty it moved into garrison in Saarbrücken.

Reunion War (1683–1684)

In July 1683 the regiment moved to the field camp near Wallerfangen , from where it arrived on April 29, 1684 in front of the besieged Luxembourg fortress . Here it was on duty in the siege trenches, and six officers were wounded. After taking the fortress, “La Couronne” moved to Flanders and was garrisoned there.

War of the Palatinate Succession (1688–1697)

During 1688 and partly in 1689 the regiment was in the Landau Fortress and was busy repairing the ramparts. On August 2, 1689, the 2nd battalion of the army was commanded by Maréchal de Duras and took part in the campaign in the Palatinate. The following year the whole regiment was deployed here and after the end of the campaign relocated to the Maritime Alps . Here it was involved in the conquest of the county of Nice and guarded the crossings to Savoy during the winter.

  • 1692: Commanded back to the Meuse, the siege of Namur followed, participation in the battle of Steenkerke and the bombardment of Charleroi. Winter quarters were taken in Ath.
  • 1696 to 1697: Campaign in the Netherlands. Then the regiment left Namur on June 12th to join the army on the Rhine. After a short deployment it was relocated to Italy and arrived there in time to be deployed under Nicolas de Catinat in the Battle of Marsaglia . It then stayed in the Alps until the peace treaty with the Duke of Savoy was concluded during the siege of Valenza in 1696. In the following year it was used in the campaign on the Meuse and the following year it was transferred to the field camp in Compiègne, where the "Régiment du comte d'Hautefort-Bosen", established in 1695, was incorporated.

War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714)

At the beginning of the war the regiment occupied Namur and was involved in the battle of Nijmegen against the Dutch in 1702. After the campaign, the regiment spent the winter in Bosen (today Nohfelden ), which was enclosed in 1703. On May 13th, “La Couronne” was able to withdraw, taking ten cannons and six mortars with it. Polastron and several other officers were wounded and one officer fell. In August it stood at the siege of Breisach, where on the 26th it was able to repel a strong defeat of the fortress garrison. From October the regiment was deployed in front of Landau, where it was able to distinguish itself in the attack on the counterguard on November 13th .

In December it was one of a total of 19 battalions commanded to Spain under the Duc de Berwick .

  • 1704: In February the regiment stood on the border with Portugal and was deployed in the receipts of Salvaterra, Segura, Ponha-Grazia, Ucepedo, Cebreros , Idanha-a-Nova , Mousanto, Castelbranco, Portalegre , Castel de Vide, Montalvão and Marvane .
  • 1705: Commanded into the field camp of Balbastro on January 14th, the unit was involved in the looting and burning of Grans, 300 mules were required to transport the booty. Then took place under the Maréchal de Tessé, the participation in the siege of Gibraltar . On January 27, 1705, the 2nd Battalion of the Régiment de Médoc was incorporated. However, this incorporation had serious disadvantages for the officers of Médoc and led to massive protests, which is why it lasted only for this campaign.
  • 1706: Under the Maréchal d'Asfeld, he was deployed in the siege of Monçon, followed by the siege of Barcelona in April . The captain of the Grenadiers de Saint-Vincent was killed in the attack on Mont-Jouy. After the end of the siege "La Couronne" marched to Castile for the relief of Badajoz , rubbing on August 29 at Tajo a Portuguese department. In the same year the regiment was still used in the siege of Cartagena .
  • 1707: In the battle of Almansa on April 25, the two battalions stood in the front line in front of the Régiment d'Orléans and earned praise and recognition from the Spanish king in the battle. In doing so, it lost its commander, Lieutenant Colonel de Polastron, ten captains and a large number of other officers. In the same year the capture of Requena, Valencia , Saragossa , Alcira and Mequinenza , the battle at Xàtiva , the siege of Tortosa , the forts Arnès, San-Juan, Pont, Aulot, Ager, Montanana and Vénasque followed.
Miquelet (Austrian-Spanish franc shooter)
  • 1709: In July, the unit passed Catalonia and moved to Roussillon , where on September 2 it was involved in the victory over the troops of General Frankenberg, who was thus prevented from crossing the Ter . It spent the rest of the campaign, together with the Normandy and Artois regiments, fighting the miquelets (militia who fought for the Habsburgs or militia because they were more or less uniformed), which upset Roussillon.
  • 1710: Assigned to the Dauphiné to defend the province. Then return to Spain.
  • 1711 to 1712: Siege of Girona , which capitulated on January 24th. The Capitaine Briaçon fell. "La Couronne" then took winter quarters in Roussillon and returned to Spain via the Pyrenees in July 1712 to take part in the siege of the Castell de Cardona . Here it guarded, among other things, the bridge at Las Carminas, which was massively attacked by the troops of Field Marshal Guido von Starhemberg on December 11th and 15th. Both times the attacks were successfully repulsed. A third attack on December 22nd also initially failed, but when it was seen that the enemy began to cross the river off the beaten track and threatened to cut off the regiment, it had to withdraw honorably. The action had cost the regiment 200 dead, including the Comte de Mellun, Colonel en suite, the Capitaine Bonnet, commander of the 2nd Battalion, and the Major d'Aultry (Major was not a rank, but a position; he was the Chief of the Regimental Staff), who was hit by three musket balls. In 1712 the regiment in Spain was mainly occupied with defensive tasks.
  • 1713 to 1714: First the regiment marched to the relief of Girona and in the following year, after various fights against Catalan units, stood at the siege of Barcelona. On May 16, it captured the Fort des Capucins, together with the Spanish Guard.

Quadruple Alliance War (1717-1720)

In 1719 the regiment was commanded to the Pyrenees and fought there against its former allies. It was used in the capture of Fontarabie , San Sebastian and Urgell as well as in the blockade of Roses .

War of the Polish Succession (1733-1738)

At the beginning of the war, “La Couronne” was used to guard the border in Champagne. In 1734 the unit was reinforced to three battalions and moved to the Moselle with the Corps of the Comte de Belle-Isle . The regiment stood at the siege of Trier and opened the siege of Trarbach on April 25th, which capitulated on May 2nd. Then the French advanced against Grevenburg via Trarbach, which was conquered after a short siege. From here the regiment marched to the siege of Philippsburg , where it occupied two siege trenches. In 1735 it was used to defend the Rhine island against Seltz . On October 20th it fought in the battle near Klausen , in which the lieutenant colonel, the Marquis de Charost, was fatally wounded. The rest of the year the regiment spent in the field camp of Saint-Maximin. After returning to France, it was stationed in Metz.

War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748)

  • 1741 to 1743: "La Couronne" was part of the army in Westphalia when the war broke out. It spent the winter in the Duchy of Berg and in July 1742 was in the field camp near Mülheim an der Ruhr , from where it set out for Bohemia in August . After the union of the "Westphalian Army" and the "Bavarian Army" it belonged to the reserve under the command of the Maréchal de Saxe , with whom it was involved in the Brammerhoff skirmish, the capture of Falkenau , the battle at Elbogen and the destruction of Kaaden , Pogen and Deggendorf was involved. It spent the winter in a field camp near this town and marched in January 1743 to the relief of Braunau am Inn and then returned to Deggendorf. On May 1, the regiment left Deggendorf to defend the Danube crossings at Plattling and Pilsting , whereupon the Austrians crossed the river at Pocking . "La Couronne" saw itself threatened by the containment, but was able to move to Regensburg by skillful maneuvering . As one of the last units, the regiment marched towards France in July and was billeted in Metz.
Battle of Fontenoy
  • 1744: Relocation to Flanders with the use of the siege of Menen and Ypres as well as the occupation of the abbey and castle of Vermezelles. At the end of the campaign, the regiment was in the field camp near Courtrai.
  • 1745: Siege of Tournai. Together with the Régiment des Gardes françaises , it rejected a failure of the besieged. Battle of Fontenoy : Here it was in the second line behind the Régiment du Roi . "La Couronne" suffered heavy losses from the English artillery, the Duc d'Havre, the Colonel-Lieutenant de Rigal, the entire regimental staff, 37 officers and 260 men were eliminated in a very short time by the effective fire of the English. After the battle it was back in front of Tournai, where the grenadiers excelled in attacking a Vorwerk. Participation in the capture of Oudenaarde, Termonde and Ath followed.
  • 1746 to 1748: Siege of Brussels . On January 29th, the regiment was able to take the suburb of Flandre and capture an opposing detachment that was on its way to the Château de Kokelberg. After taking the city, the unit was in the camp of Cinq-Étoiles. In August it was used for the conquest of Huy and took up quarters there. In September the unit was assigned to the king's army, which assembled in the Tongres encampment. Afterwards participation in the battle of Roucourt with subsequent transfer to the coast of the Aunis , where it remained until the end of the campaign. A fourth battalion was set up in July 1747, the regiment then spent the winter in Normandy and returned to the Netherlands in 1748, where it was used in the siege of Maastricht . Here the grenadiers and those of the Régiment de La Tour du Pin were able to distinguish themselves when a covered path was taken with great vigor . By order of September 1, the regiment was reduced to three battalions.

Peace time By order of January 15, 1749, the 3rd Battalion was disbanded. In 1753 the regiment was in the camp of Mézières, from where it was used in the following two years to work on the connecting canal between the Leie and the Aa .

Seven Years War (1756–1763)

  • 1757: The regiment was under the command of Maréchal d'Estrées and fought in the Battle of Hastenbeck and the Battle of Roßbach .
  • 1758: At the beginning of the year the regiment, together with others, guarded the Dutch border between Xanten and Fort de Skencke. This was followed by a deployment in the battle of Krefeld , where it was exposed to musket fire from six battalions without giving way. It was used in the battle near Sandershausen . The unit switched from Contades' army to that of Maréchal de Soubise and fought on October 10 at the Battle of Lutterberg . After the capitulation of Kaiserswerth, the regiment was used again for observation on the Dutch border.
  • 1759: Used in the battle of Minden
  • 1760: In the battle near Korbach and in the battle near Warburg . Here it was positioned with the Régiment de Bourbonnais , the Régiment de Lochmann and the Régiment de Jenner on the heights, where they were attacked with might by the enemy. Five such attacks could be repulsed. "La Couronne" lost half of the officers that day, the Comte de Montbarrey as Colonel en second was hit by a cannonball and two musket balls and was fatally wounded as a result. After the Battle of Warburg, the regiment only had battalion strength. In the battle of Kampen Abbey , the regiment was able to distinguish itself again when it supported the Régiment d'Auvergne and the Régiment d'Alsace within the scope of its possibilities. It was then ordered to Dunkirk for refreshment.
  • 1761: In June the line returned. On August 30, there was a battle against the troops of General von Kielmansegg near Roxel , where the grenadiers and hunters rushed against the field fortifications in front of Roxel, drove the crews under the ramparts of Munster and took 400 prisoners.

This remarkable battle increased the reputation of the regiment - it was the last military action of the unit under the monarchy. The regiment now moved to its peace garrison at Le Quesnoy .

Peace time As was common in this period, the regiment changed garrisons frequently. It moved to Givet in May 1763, to Arras in December of the same year, to Condé in August 1765, to Dunkirk in November 1766, to Valognes and Cherbourg in June 1767, to Brest in October 1768, to La Rochelle in October 1769 In June 1770 to Landrecies, in December of the same year to Douai, in June 1771 to Sedan, in October of the same year to Verdun, in October 1773 to Quesnoy, in October 1774 to Metz, in September 1776 to Nancy and in April 1778 to Saint -Omer. It spent the last months of this year in Avranches and Lisieux. In November 1779 it moved to Le Havre, in August 1780 to Coutances, in October of the same year to Lisieux, in October 1781 to Cancale, in November 1783 to Arras, in October 1785 to Lille, to Camp de Saint-Omer in September 1788 and then back to Lille.

Wars of the Revolution and the First Empire (1791-1815)

Richard Ansdell (1815–1885): In the Battle of Waterloo, Sergeant Charles Ewart of the Royal North British Dragoons secures the captured flag of the 45 e RI against recapture by a French lancer

"La Couronne" left Lille to be transferred to Béthune, where it remained until the outbreak of hostilities in 1792. This was followed by transfer to the field camp at Maubeuge. When the Prussians marched into Champagne , the 1st battalion was assigned to the “Armée des Ardennes” (Ardennes Army) and the 2nd battalion to Lille. The 2nd battalion was involved in the defense of Lille and in 1793 that of Quesnoy. Colonel Goulu, who had entered the regiment as a simple soldier in 1776, was wounded and taken prisoner here on December 22nd.

After the cannonade at Valmy , the first battalion switched to the “Armée du Nord” (Northern Army) and took part in the siege of Namur. In 1793 it was assigned to the "Armée du Rhin" and remained there until the regimental units were dissolved in the course of the premier amalgams . The 1st battalion was used to set up the "89 e demi-brigade de bataille" (or "89 e demi-brigade de premier formation") and the 2nd battalion to set up the "90 e demi-brigade de bataille" ( or “90 e demi-brigade de premier formation”). This ended the history of the regiment for the time being; it only begins again with the reorganization of a "45 e régiment d'infanterie" in 1804.

1815 to 1852

By order of September 18, 1830, a fourth battalion was set up and the regiment was brought to a personnel strength of 3,000 men.

Sardinian war

1859: Battle of Magenta

Franco-German War

First World War

  • 1914 :

The regiment consisted of three battalions and was stationed in Laon , Hirson and Sissonne . It belonged to the 8th Infantry Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division in the 2nd Army Corps. At the outbreak of the war it first moved to Bouillon in Belgium, where it was on August 6th in Alle and Vresse , on August 9th in Rochefort , on August 11th in Maissin, on August 14th in Houyet and on August 15th in Hastière found.

  • August 21-23 : Battle of Charleroi - Fights at Onhaye and Guise
  • September 2nd and 3rd: Transport by truck - one battalion to Montmirail and two battalions to Provins
  • Battle of the Marne (September 5-13): Fights near Montmirail, Orbais, Viffort, La Fosse-au-Coq, Chenoise , Courtacon and La Ferté-Gaucher . The three battalions were divided into the sectors of the 4th Infantry Division (near Bazoches), 8th Infantry Division (near Courville) and 10th Cavalry Division (on Mont-Saint-Martin) in the Corps Conneau.
  • Battle of the Aisne - Fights at Berry-au-Bac , Breny, Hartennes (September 10th), Branges (September 11th), Amifontaine, Corbeny and Pontavert (September 17th). On that day, the cavalry corps to which the 45 e RI was assigned was ordered to march off to Compiègne .
  • 1915 :
Arrival in Salonika
Operations against the Vardar with the French Army of the Orient (“Armée d'Orient”) in November , then retreat to Salonika. In December defensive battles against Bulgarian armed forces near Demir Kapiya in South Macedonia, battles near Miletkovo, Vardarovci, Topcin.
  • 1916 :
  • Fight in the Saloniki sector
  • 1917 :
  • Fight at Salonika Front - Battle of Skra-di-Legen
May 10th to August 30th: work at Barakli

Second World War

The steeple of Marquette-en-Ostrevant

On September 3, 1939, the regiment by the Région militaire, Center mobilisateur d'infanterie; reserve A RI type NE; CMI 21, mobilized at La Capelle and Hirson under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Desroche. It fought on the Scheldt near Bouchain , where it was able to prevent the enemy crossing over the river from May 20th to 26th. This delay, which was annoying for the Germans, meant that Adolf Hitler personally went into the immediate vicinity of the affected section of the front and had the commanding general of the 8th Army Corps explain to him from the church tower of Marquette-en-Ostrevant why there was a single infantry regiment here Could delay advance in such a way.

The regiment fought until the Armistice of Compiègne within the scope of its possibilities and was then disbanded.

Regimental flags since the revolution

On the back of the regimental flag (since Napoleonic times) the campaigns and battles in which the regiment took part are listed in gold letters.

  • 1st Battalion 1791

  • 2nd Battalion 1791

  • 2nd Battalion 1792

  • 2nd Battalion 1793

  • 45e RI 1804 av.png
  • 45e RI 1812 av.png
  • 45e RI 1830 av.png
  • 45e RI 1830 rev.png
  • 45e RI av.png
  • 45e RI rev.png

Honors

The flag ribbon is decorated with the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 with two palm branches for two honorable mention in the army command.

Members of the regiment have been entitled to wear the Fourragère in the colors of the Croix de guerre since May 23, 1919 .

  • Croix de guerre 1914-1918

Motto

Tête haute, en avant
(head up and forward)

literature

  • Général Louis Susane: Histoire de l'infanterie française. Volume 4. J. Dumaine, Paris 1876, pp. 135–153 ( full text in the Google book search and in Ancestramil ; PDF; 185 kB). English edition: C. Terana, Paris 1985.
  • Général Serge Andolenko : Recueil d'historiques de l'infanterie française. Eurimprim, Paris 1969.

Web links

Commons : 45e regiment d'infanterie  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Victor Louis Jean François Belhomme: Histoire de l'infantry en France. Volume 5. Henri Charles-Lavauzelle, Paris / Limoges 1902, p. 151 ( digitized on Gallica ). New edition: Pluriel (Hachette Livre), 2013, ISBN 978-2-01-286076-6 .
  2. ↑ «  Décision n ° 12350 / SGA / DPMA / SHD / DAT du 14 September 2007 relative aux inscriptions de noms de batailles sur les drapeaux et étendards des corps de troupe de l'armée de terre, du service de santé des armées et du service des essences des armées, Bulletin officiel des armées, n ° 27, 9 November 2007  »(German:“ Provision n ° 12350 / SGA / DPMA / SHD / DAT of September 14, 2007 on the appearance of the inscriptions on the flags and standards of the Troops of the army, the medical service and the fuel supply branch. Published with the official army bulletin No. 27 of November 9, 2007 ")
  3. ↑ "  Arrêté relatif à l'attribution de l'inscription AFN 1952–1962 sur les drapeaux et étendards des formations des armées et services, du 19 novembre 2004 (A) NORDEF0452926A Michèle Alliot-Marie  " (German: "Order AFN 1952–1962 on the assignment of the inscriptions on the flags and standards of the formations of the army and the services of November 19, 2004 (A) NORDEF0452926A Michèle Alliot-Marie ")
  4. ↑ This also applies to units that have already been disbanded, as they can (theoretically) be put back into active service at any time