Chevau-légers du Grand-duché de Berg
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Chevau-légers du Grand-duché de Berg |
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 Lancier de Berg on the attack. Drawing by Richard Knötel |
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| active | 1807 to 1813 |
| Country |
.svg){kind=small} Grand Duchy of Berg
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| Armed forces |
 Grande Armée
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| Armed forces |
Cavalerie de la Garde impériale
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| Branch of service | Light cavalry |
| Type | regiment |
| Insinuation | Guard impériale |
| Location | Dusseldorf |
| Butcher |
Battle of Majadahonda Battle of Villodrigo Battle of the Beresina Battle of the Nations near Leipzig |
| commander | |
| Important commanders |
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The Chevau-légers du Grand-duché de Berg (1807–1808; 1808–1809: Chasseurs à cheval du Grand-duché de Berg, 1809–1812: Lanciers du Grand-duché de Berg, 1812–1813: Chevau-légers lanciers du Grand-duché de Berg) were a regiment of light cavalry from the Grand Duchy of Berg , assigned to the Cavalerie de la Garde impériale in the Napoleonic Army .
The regiment was set up on May 21, 1807 by order of Joachim Murat , at that time as his personal bodyguard. Set up in Munster, the regiment consisted of three escadrons of two companies each . This included a company Gardes du Corps , which in 1808 had been reinforced to an Escadron.
Positioning and organization
"Le grand-duché de Clèves-Berg, qui avait été conquis par la France révolutionnaire, fut accordé en 1806 par Napoléon à Murat, qui le fit bien entendu entrer dans the Confédération du Rhin , le 12 juillet de la même année. »
"The Grand Duchy of Cleve-Berg, which had been conquered by revolutionary France, was handed over by Napoléon to Murat in 1806, who incorporated it into the Confederation of the Rhine on July 12 of the same year."
"Son contingent était fixé à 5000 hommes dont 4 regiments d'infanterie, 1 regiment de cavalerie, 5 compagnies d'artillerie et 1 détachement de sapeurs mineurs pontonniers. »
"The military contingent is 5,000 men, including four regiments of infantry , one regiment of cavalry, five companies of artillery and a department of sappers, miners and pontonniers (bridge pioneers)."
In 1808 the 1st Escadron, consisting of the Gardes du corps , was incorporated into the Garde impériale and ordered to Spain to accompany Joseph Bonaparte on his entry into Madrid.
The 2nd Escadron stayed with Murat when he took possession of the Kingdom of Naples . On November 17, 1808, the entire unit was transferred to the Garde impériale .
The 3rd and 4th Escadron had stayed in Münster and were used on August 29, 1808 to set up the "Régiment des chasseurs à cheval de Berg".
The previous "Corps des chevau-légers" was dissolved on January 11, 1809, and the riders were distributed among the other regiments of the guard cavalry.
At the end of 1809 the "Chasseurs à cheval de Berg" were renamed "Lanciers de Berg" and on December 17th they were assigned to the Imperial Guard.
Fighting
This new unit was sent to Spain where it was used to fight the guerrillas and the British forces.
On August 11, 1812, the regiment in the 3rd Brigade under Colonel Fortunate Schiazzetti was in action near Majadahonda .
In the same year, the "Lanciers de Berg" formed a brigade together with the 15 e régiment de chasseurs à cheval and the "Légion de gendarmerie à cheval de Burgos" , which was used on October 23 of the same year in the battle at Villodrigo . Here she formed the right wing of the French forces.
In March 1812 a second regiment was set up, which took part in the Russian campaign together with the 1st regiment . This 2nd regiment was almost completely destroyed in the battle of the Beresina near Baryssau .
During the campaign in Germany in 1813, the remaining riders belonged to the 1st Division of the Cavalerie de la Grade impériale under the command of Général Philippe Antoine d'Ornano and were used in the Battle of Dresden . The next day the regiment was attacked by opposing troops and wiped out. 169 men were killed, two officers and 110 men were taken prisoner.
In the Battle of the Nations near Leipzig , the remnants of the regiment were deployed on October 16 in the great cavalry attack led by Joachim Murat. The cavalry deployed had to record 60% losses.
After that there was no further refreshment, the remaining riders were distributed to the guard cavalry, the regiment was disbanded in the same year.
Uniforms
The uniforms followed the Polish style, but were modified with each change of status.
Chevau Legers
The large uniform of the Chevau-légers de Berg was designed in the Polish style. The headgear consisted of a Tschapka in dark amaranth red with a white border . The front was decorated with a gold-colored face plate. There was also a white feather trim and a curtain made of white lacing.
The uniform skirt ( kurtka ) was white with an amaranth red stand-up collar, there were also chest discounts of the same color - in officers' case these were bordered with a silver border, and the buttons were also decorated with similar braids. The officers' stand-up collar was also decorated with a silver border. There were epaulettes made of white wool on the shoulders . Men wore a white leather belt, officers a white waistband. The bandolier was made of white leather for both of them. The long amaranth-red trousers with a bridge were fitted with double white lampasses . The buttons were made of pewter . Shoulder cords (aguilettes) made of white wool were worn on the right shoulder.
This uniform was replaced by a field uniform during the 1st Escadron's mission in Spain. The Tschapka was protected by a dark gray cover (the plume was not worn), the kurtka and trousers were now also gray, only the leather and the epaulettes remained white. The light gray coat was rolled over the right shoulder to the left hip.
Chasseurs à cheval
The kurtka and pants were now green with amaranth lapels and badges. The troops now wore a black fur hat with a red Kolpak .
Lancers
The uniform remained the same, only the fur hat was replaced by the Tschapka.
Chevau leggers lanciers
The uniform did not change.
trumpeter
Traditionally, the trumpeters wore their uniform in the opposite colors of the troupe.
Equipping the horses
The horses wore an amaranth-red saddlecloth with a white border, in the lower, rear corner the white embroidered letter "J" (for Joachim), and above that a crown of the same kind. The bridle was made of black leather. The coat bag that was strapped behind the saddle was made of amaranth-red fabric with a white border - double for officers - around the front.
Armament
The saber of the light cavalry and a mousqueton were carried. In addition, after the incorporation into the Guard impériale, there was a lance with a red and white lance flag. The lance followed the pattern of the non-commissioned officers of the Lanciers polonais de la Garde impériale .
literature
- Alain Pigeard: La Garde impériale 1804–1815 (= Collection Bibliothèque napoléonienne ). Tallandier, Paris 2005, ISBN 978-2-84734-177-5 .
- Liliane and Fred Funcken: L'uniforme et les armes des soldats du Premier Empire. Volume 2: De la garde impériale aux troupes alliées, suédoises, autrichiennes et russes. Casterman, Tournai 1969.
- François-Guy Hourtoulle, Jack Girbal, Patrice Courcelle: Soldats et uniformes du Premier Empire. Histoire et Collections, 2004, ISBN 978-2913903548 .
- Emir Bukhari; Angus McBride (Ill.): Napoleon's Guard Cavalry (= Men-at-Arms. No. 83). Osprey Publishing, 1978, ISBN 0-85045-288-0 .
- René Chartrand; Christa Hook (Ill.): Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon's Army (= Brassey's History of Uniforms ). Brassey's, London 2000, ISBN 978-1-85753-220-3 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ HOURTOULLE, Girbal, Courcelle., 2004
- ↑ Bukhari, McBride, 1978.
- ↑ Bukhari, McBride, 1978, pp. 25, 37.
- ↑ Funcken, 1969, p. 86.
- ↑ Funcken, 1969, p. 90.
- ↑ Bukhari, McBride, 1978, pp. 35, 37.
- ↑ Bukhari, McBride, 1978, pp. 25, 26
- ↑ Funcken, 1969, p. 52.
- ↑ Bukhari, McBride, 1978, p. 48.
- ↑ Pigeard, 2005, p. 366.
- ↑ Funcken, 1969, p. 50.
Web links
- Grand duché de Cleves-Berg: 1 he régiment de chevau-légers lanciers. Rafael Pardo's website
- Eugène Leliepvre: Chevau-légers de Berg. In: Historical Miniatures by George Grasse
