Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde impériale
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Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde impériale |
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|---|---|
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| active | 1804 to 1815 |
| Country |
 France
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| Armed forces |
 Napoleonic Army
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| Armed forces | Guard impériale |
| Branch of service | Cavalerie de la Garde impériale |
| Type | Heavy cavalry |
| Strength | 1016 |
| Insinuation | Vieille Guard |
| Location | École militaire (Paris) |
| Butcher | Coalition wars |
| commander | |
| commander | Last: Claude-Étienne Guyot (1813–1815) |
| Important commanders |
Michel Ordener (1804–1806) |
The Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde impériale were a regiment of the heavy cavalry that belonged to the Garde impériale of the First Empire .
Already at the time of the directorate and the consulate there was a guard , but after the establishment of the Empire in 1804 it was considerably enlarged - among other things by the allocation of the regiment of the "Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde impériale".
The target number was 1,100 officers , NCOs and men, commanded by a Général de division or a proven Général de brigade such as Frédéric-Henri Walther or Louis Lepic . The staff were battle-tested veterans who, over time, were nicknamed "Les Dieux" ("The Gods").
During their existence, the "Grenadiers à cheval" were rarely to be found in the foremost ranks of the battle order, since they always had to stay as a tactical reserve at the side of the imperial staff. However, each of their appearances was spectacular, for example:
- they had significant role in ensuring that the Russian Guard Cavalry in the Battle of Austerlitz was put to flight
- they escaped an impending encirclement in the battle of Prussian Eylau
- they beat the Bavarian Cavalry in the Battle of Hanau back
Furthermore, they distinguished themselves in the campaign in France in 1814, when they did not suffer a single defeat. The attacks, which were always successful, helped the regiment to gain the reputation of being the most respected regiment of the heavy cavalry in France.
Under the First Restoration , the regiment was renamed Corps royal des cuirassiers de France . They were also supposed to be equipped with a cuirass , but Napoleon's return prevented this project. They were given back their old name and rank in the imperial guard, took part in the campaign to Belgium and fought in the battle of Waterloo . The regimental commander, Colonel Jean-Baptiste Auguste Marie Jamin, fell in the attack on a British infantry camp. A few months later, after Napoleon's final deposition and the return of the king, the unit was disbanded.
organization
In October 1796 the French government ordered a mounted guard to be set up to protect the Directory . A troop consisting of two companies of 112 riders each was set up. In the following year the unit was given the name "Grenadiers à cheval" (at that time, grenadiers were used to denote an elite group, the original meaning of the term had been lost). As a result of the coup d'état of 18th Brumaire VIII , the Guard des consuls was reorganized by decree of November 28, 1799 . This consisted of other units from the "Régiment de grenadiers à cheval", which together with the regiment of the Chasseurs à cheval formed the cavalry of the consular guard. Each regiment consisted of two escadrons with two companies of 86 riders each.
When the unit was named "Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde impériale" in 1804, it had 1,018 riders, divided into four escadrons of two companies each with a target number of 123 riders and a regimental staff of 32 men.
In 1805 two companies of Velites with a total of 400 men were incorporated, forming one and at the end of the year two escadrons. At that time the regiment had a strength of 968 riders, with an additional 342 Velites it made a total of 1,310 men. It formed a brigade with the Dragons de la Garde impériale until the end of the Empire. The two Velitenescadrons were merged into a fifth Grenadierescadron in 1811, which brought the regiment to a strength of 1,250 men.
1813 was one he régiment of éclaireurs de la Garde impériale affiliated with the grenadiers under the command of Colonel Claude Testot-Ferry. From then on it was called "Éclaireurs-grenadiers". The unit was housed in the École militaire in Paris .
Combat activity during the consulate and in the empire
Battle of Marengo
The regiment's first notable deployment took place in the Second Coalition War at the Battle of Marengo on June 14, 1800. Here the “Grenadiers à cheval” lay in reserve without activity until the evening when two escadrons Austrian dragoons appeared on the road to Novi and were attacked by the “Guard Consulaire” with 360 horsemen. Totally surprised by this, 210 of the 285 Dragoons were killed. While Napoleon was about to lose the battle against the Austrians, the Boudet division appeared on the battlefield, led by Louis Desaix , and immediately intervened in the battle. In support of this, the Kellermann Brigade took action against the right wing of the Austrians. From his position, the Colonel Bessières organized a massive attack with the cavalry of the "Guard Consulaire" and thus panicked the Austrians. Those who resisted were knocked down by the "Grenadiers à cheval", and three flags fell into the hands of the grenadiers. Nonetheless, the numbers showed serious Austrian resistance: the grenadiers had recorded 24 dead, 24 riders wounded and 48 dead horses. After the battle, Bessières was praised by the First Consul:
"Sous votre commandement, la Garde s'est couverte de gloire, elle ne pouvait pas faire mieux dans les circonstances données"
"(Under your command the Guard covered themselves with glory, under the circumstances they could not do more.)"
A few months later, Colonel Michel Ordener became the regiment's commandant.
Battle of Austerlitz
Five years passed before the regiment could again prove itself spectacularly in the battle of Austerlitz . When the Third Coalition War broke out, the "Grenadiers à cheval" were part of the Garde impériale and crossed the Rhine on October 1, 1805 . Ten days later they stood near Augsburg and took part in the battle near Ulm on October 20th . However, they were only able to distinguish themselves again on December 2nd on the plateau near Pratzen in the battle of Austerlitz. During the battle Napoleon wanted to attack the Austro-Russian center and split it in two. By late morning the situation had already developed in favor of the French when the Russian Guard under the command of Grand Duke Konstantin Romanov massively attacked the Vandamme division grouped around the hill “Staré vinohrady” . Right at the beginning a battalion of the 4th e régiment d'infanterie was destroyed by the Russian cavalry, in the process the French lost their eagle and more than 400 men. The "24 e régiment d'infanterie légère" was also attacked and withdrew in disorder. At that moment Napoléon decided to use the guard cavalry. At that time, this consisted of four escadrons Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde impériale and the Mamelouks de la Garde impériale , plus four escadrons of the "Grenadiers à cheval" with two batteries of the mounted guard artillery. A first attack by two escadrons of the "Chasseurs à cheval", supported by three escadrons of the grenadiers, blew up the Russian cavalry and cleared the way for the Russian guards infantry. However, seven Cossack escadrons and the Russian guard cavalry arrived at the same time and prevented the French from advancing further. To save his cavalry, Napoléon deployed the rest of his “Chasseurs à cheval” and the Mameluks, and then the last escadron of the grenadiers. The latter attacked and clashed with the regiment of the Russian Chevalier Guard. After a brief scuffle, the grenadiers dispersed their opponents, whom they had inflicted heavy losses. 200 men were taken prisoner, including the commandant, Prince Nikolai Repnin-Volkonsky , with his staff. The booty also included 27 guns. The grenadiers had only two dead and 22 wounded (including six officers) to mourn. With this attack, the last Russian attack on Pratzen was repulsed. The plateau remained in French hands until the end of the battle.
Battle of Prussian Eylau
On May 18, 1806, the Général Ordener was replaced by Général Frédéric-Henri Walther . Walther was also "Commandant en second" (second in command) of the Cavalerie de la Garde impériale and represented Bessières in his absence. The "Grenadiers à cheval" did not take part in the campaign in Prussia, but were deployed in the campaign in Poland the following year, where the Russian army was persecuted through the Polish winter. The poor roads and the proverbial poverty of the area led to considerable difficulties with supply and education.
After a few maneuvers and minor skirmishes, the battle of Prussian Eylau broke out . The Grande Armée was slightly outnumbered at this point. Ney's corps was still a long way off, and Napoleon was in a dangerous position. He ordered the Maréchal Murat to ride a massive attack with all the reserve cavalry available. At the beginning Murat deployed the two dragoon divisions Klein and Grouchy as well as the cuirassier division Hautpoul . The French riders penetrated through the first and then through the second opposing line, after which the last formations were threatened by encirclement. As a consequence, the French Emperor ordered the Maréchal Bessières to support the reserve cavalry with the cavalry of the Guard. A second attack took place at the same point by the "Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde" and supported by the heavy cavalry (consisting of the 5 e régiment de cuirassiers and the "Grenadiers à cheval"). The "Commandant en second" of the grenadiers, Colonel Louis Lepic, led the attack at the head of two escadrons, penetrated the first and second line and only stopped at the opposing reserve. In the heavy snowfall that began, the grenadiers lost their bearings, were surrounded by the Russians and asked to surrender. Lepic replied:
«Regardez-moi ces figures et dites-moi si elles ont l'air de vouloir se rendre! »
"(Look at these figures, they don't look like they wanted to surrender!)"
He then ordered an attack, broke through the Russian encirclement and reached the French lines. In gratitude for this action, Napoléon immediately promoted him to the "Général de brigade". The regiment had four fallen and 14 wounded officers, as well as a large number of fallen or wounded horsemen. However, the action of the guard cavalry had enabled the reserve cavalry to escape encirclement. The French were able to maintain their positions late in the evening.
War in Spain
In 1808, French forces invaded Spain. The "Grenadiers à cheval" were assigned to the 2nd Army Corps of Bessières. During the uprising of the Dos de Mayo the regiment was in Madrid .
The highest regimental doctor Gauthier was wounded. Then the grenadiers marched through the northwest of the country. On June 14, 1808, Bessières with 14,000 men faced two opposing corps of about 22,000 men and fought the battle at Medina de Rioseco (not far from Valladolid ). The regiment's escadrons involved in the battle supported the attack of Général Merle's infantry .
Campaign in Germany and Austria
At the beginning of 1809 the emperor gathered his guards in central Germany and the Fifth Coalition War began . Napoleon himself was present at the battle of Aspern , where he endured the Austrian fire. When a bullet damaged his boot, Général Walther asked him to withdraw from the danger area, otherwise his grenadiers would use gentle force to bring him to safety - Napoléon then followed his request.
In the battle of Wagram the regiment was part of the reserve on the first day of the fight. On the second day, the "Grenadiers à cheval" were deployed together with the rest of the guard cavalry to cover the column of Général MacDonald , which carried out an attack on the Austrian center. After initial success, MacDonald saw an opportunity to drive the enemy's retreating troops to flight, and to do so he summoned the Nansouty reserve cavalry and all cavalry commanders present in the sector to attack. The "Grenadiers à cheval" did not take part, but left the attack to the Lanciers polonais de la Garde and the Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde . After the battle, MacDonald complained to Walther about his inaction. The latter stated that neither Bessières nor the emperor had given the order for an attack and that the guard could not act without direct orders from either of the two. At MacDonald's objection that this attack by the Guard was of crucial importance, Walther greeted him and walked away angrily.
Back in Spain
During the following two years only individual companies of the regiment were actively deployed, for example in Spain, where they accompanied Bessières in the north-west of the country and were also deployed to support the army of Maréchal Masséna in Portugal. Wellington made the crucial mistake of maneuvering into a difficult position at the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro on May 5, 1811. Masséna needed the entire force of Bessières to defeat the Anglo-Portuguese army, but Bessières only sent a more symbolic reinforcement, a few escadrons dragoons and the "Grenadiers à cheval", a total of 800 men under the command of Général Lepic. Nevertheless, Masséna managed to exploit a weak point in the line of Wellington, whose defeat was beginning to show. Massena sent his aide de camp , Charles Nicolas Oudinot , to Lepic with orders to attack immediately. But Oudinot was soon back with nothing achieved, as Lepic refused to do anything without orders from Bessières, since Bessières alone had to give orders over him. But Bessières was nowhere to be found, and Wellington escaped.
Campaign in Russia
Shortly before the Grande Armée invaded Russia, the "Grenadiers à cheval" were brought together in Spain in 1812. With a strength of 1,166 men, they were integrated into the 3rd Brigade of the Guard Cavalry. They consisted of five escadrons, commanded by Perrot, Mesmer, Rémy, Hardy and Morin. The first section of the campaign from June to September was a long period of idleness for the Guard, they did not take part in any battle, then arrived at the Borodino battlefield in time to participate in the victory over the Russian army. During the occupation of Moscow and the fire in the city , the "Grenadiers à cheval" "" were used as a police force because of their discipline and moral integrity. From mid-October the Grande Armée began to withdraw from the city and began their long journey back to Poland.
For the "Grenadiers à cheval" there was nothing left to do but protect the imperial headquarters. The constant fighting, the cold and the hardships on the march back made the regiment difficult. At the beginning of the Battle of the Beresina , the "Grenadiers à cheval" and the "Chasseurs à cheval de la Garde" were just 500 men strong. Nevertheless, the morale was still high.
Campaign in Germany
At the beginning of 1813 the regiment was reorganized and was operational again in April. On April 27th it was visited by Napoleon in Erfurt. Three days later, the grenadiers received news of the death of their chief, Des Maréchal Bessières, who had been shot by a bullet near Rippach .
The regiment fought brilliantly in the Battle of Dresden and was deployed in the Battle of the Nations near Leipzig to support the Guards infantry in taking Reudnitz . The regiment's only important activity in this campaign was in the Battle of Hanau in October . The Austrian and Bavarian troops under the command of Carl Philipp von Wrede tried to block the retreat of the French after the Battle of Leipzig. Napoléon was forced to use his elite troops. He gave a personal address to the grenadiers before the order to attack came.
The guard cavalry attacked and threw back a large number of enemy riders. In this battle the colonel major of the regiment, the Général Louis Marie Levesque de Laferrière , was hit by six saber blows on the shoulder and arm, while the Lieutenant Guindey, who killed Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia in the Battle of Saalfeld , here himself was one of the fallen.
On November 24, 1813, the commander of the regiment, the Général de division Frédéric Henri Walther, died in Kusel from an unknown cause. His successor was Général de division Claude Étienne Guyot, the command of the guard cavalry took over Général de division Étienne de Nansouty. In December 1813, the "1 er regiment des éclaireurs de la Garde impériale" was renamed "Éclaireurs-grenadiers".
Campaign in France
In 1814 the war shifted to French soil, the French army was in poor condition, outnumbered and poorly equipped. The Nansouty Guard Cavalry was destined more than ever to play a key role in Napoleon's intentions to thwart the Allies' plans. The grenadiers were reorganized into two groups: one belonged to the cavalry division of Général Laferrière-Levesque and was 909 strong, the other with 401 men to the guard reserve cavalry of Maréchal Ney .
In the battle of La Rothière the grenadiers fought together with the other regiments of the guard cavalry against overwhelming odds. During the battle of Montmirail they pursued, together with the Mameluks of the Guard and the "Dragons de la Garde impériale", the fleeing corps of Fabian Gottlieb von der Osten-Sacken and destroyed two Russian brigades.
In the battle of Château-Thierry , artillery batteries of the coalition army were successfully attacked. In the battle of Vauchamps two days later they crossed the infantry camps of the Russian Kapzewitch division and were involved in routing the troops of Blücher .
After that, the regiment was involved in several important conflicts, such as the Battle of Craonne , in which the Colonel-Major of the Grenadiers, Général Levesque de Laferrière, was crushed by a cannonball. Some of the grenadiers were in the city during the Battle of Paris . They were integrated into the Guards Cavalry Brigade of Général Pierre d'Autancourt . As part of this brigade, they tried to defend the heights of Montmartre , but had to retreat under the incessant hail of bullets.
restoration
After Napoleon's abdication and the First Restoration , the grenadiers were stationed in Blois under royal orders . With this order of May 12, 1814, the troop was renamed "Corps royal de cuirassiers de France". By order of June 21, 1814, the number of personnel was set at 42 officers and 602 riders in two escadrons.
Napoleon's return
With the return of Napoleon from the island of Elba at the end of March 1815 and the beginning of the rule of the Hundred Days , the grenadiers got their old name and organization as well as their status in the army back. The number of personnel was increased to 1,042 officers and horsemen. With the beginning of the Sixth Coalition War , the grenadiers were integrated into the heavy cavalry division of the Guard. Her only engagement was the Battle of Waterloo . The regiment was in reserve with the cavalry von Kellermann until the emperor decided to use them to support the cuirassiers von Milhaud and the light cavalry of the guard in the attack on Mont-Saint-Jean. The grenadiers attacked three times, led by Général Guyot, but the losses were considerable. Major Colonel Jean-Baptiste Auguste Marie Jamin was killed at the head of his men, as were Lieutenants Tuefferd and Moreau, and 16 other officers were wounded. Two horses were killed under Guyot and he himself was badly wounded.
After Napoléon's abdication again, there was no future for the "Grenadiers à cheval"; on November 25, 1815, by order of the king, they were dissolved.
Commanders of the corps
The first nominal commander was Jean-Baptiste Bessières during the Italian campaign (1799-1800). After the Battle of Marengo in 1808, he was replaced by Colonel Michel Ordener . In the course of the Battle of Austerlitz, Colonel Louis Lepic became "Colonel en second". The Général Frédéric Henri Walther succeeded Ordener in May 1806 and remained in this post until his death in November 1813. He was succeeded by his representative Claude Étienne Guyot , who in turn was followed by Louis Marie Levesque de Laferrière and Jean-Baptiste Auguste Marie Jamin . Levesque de Laferrière and Guyot had to surrender command because of their serious injuries, Jamin was one of the dead in the battle of Waterloo.
Michel Ordener (1755-1811). Painting by Henri-François Riesener, before 1800, in the collection of the Palace of Versailles.
Claude Étienne Guyot (1769-1837). Painting by Antoine-Jean Gros .
Frédéric Henri Walther, Colonel of the "Grenadiers à cheval de la Garde" (unknown artist)
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Uniforms
The uniform of the "Grenadiers à cheval" was similar to that of the "Grenadiers à pied". The skirt was made of imperial blue cloth with a white collar and white borders . The lining of the skirt and the folds of the skirt's lap were scarlet, each decorated with a white garnet. The pocket flaps were decorated with scarlet piping . The buttons were made of copper and decorated with the imperial eagle. Trousers and gloves were the color of an egg shell, the boots in the style of cuirassiers. They wore a tall hat made of black (the trumpeter made of white) bearskin with scaled copper chin straps. In contrast to the grenadiers on foot, they did not have a faceplate on the front of the hat, but the hat had a lid made of scarlet material (called “cul de singe” / “monkey hole”), covered with a golden-yellow border sewn in a cross shape. On the left side was a scarlet neck , the case of which was fastened in a cockade in the colors of the tricolor. In addition there was the hanger made of a braided cord of yellow wool with two similar tassels .
With the light uniform (tenue de ville) , instead of the bearskin hat, a three-cornered hat made of felt was worn, the shape of which was reminiscent of that of the emperor. Aiguillettes (a multi-strand lacing, led from the epaulette to the head strip) made of golden-yellow wool were created for the uniform skirt.
Armament and equipment
The "Grenadiers à cheval" wielded a saber , a musket , a cartridge on the bandolier and two pistolets . The saber was equipped with a white metal handguard in which a copper grenade was embedded as an ornament. The scabbard was made of copper, but for weight reasons it had a large openwork area on both sides and was lined with black leather. The saber tassel was made of white buffalo leather.
Horses and equipment
The troops were equipped with black horses , dark black- and- brown or dark foxes . The saddlecloth was made of blue cloth and decorated with a double strand of golden yellow wool. The bridle was the same as that of the heavy cavalry. The curb was decorated with a grenade on each side.
Flags
Regimental flag model 1804, front side
Regimental flag model 1804, reverse side
literature
- François-Guy Hourtoulle: D'Eylau à Friedland. Histoire & Collections, Paris 2007, ISBN 978-2-35250-020-9 .
- Alain Pigeard: La Garde impériale (1804-1815) (= Bibliothèque napoléonienne ). Tallandier, Paris 2005, ISBN 978-2-847341-77-5 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
- Alain Pigeard, Vincent Bourgeot: La Cavalerie de la Garde Impériale. Soteca, Saint-Cloud 2013, ISBN 979-10-91561-58-7 .
- Ian Castle; Christa Hook (Ill.): Austerlitz 1805. Le chef-d'œuvre de Napoléon (= Armées et batailles , No. 2). Del Prado / Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2004, ISBN 978-2-84349-178-8 .
- Jean Tranié, Juan-Carlos Carmigniani: Napoléon. 1814. La campagne de France. Pygmalion / Gérard Watelet, Paris 1989, ISBN 978-2-85704-301-0 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
- Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Charras, Philippe Vandermaelen: Histoire de la campagne de 1815. Waterloo. Dürr, Leipzig 1857 ( full text in the Bavarian State Library ).
- Édouard Louis Joseph Melchior de la Tour d'Auvergne: Waterloo. Étude de la campagne de 1815. Henri Plon, Paris 1870 ( full text in the Internet Archive ).
- Émile Marco de Saint-Hilaire: Histoire anecdotique, politique et militaire de la Garde impériale. Eugène Penaud, Paris 1847 ( digitized on Gallica ).
- Oleg Sokolov: L'Armée de Napoléon (with a foreword by Jean Tulard ). Commios, Saint-Germain-en-Laye 2003, ISBN 978-2-9518364-1-9 .
- Jean Tulard et al .: Histoire et dictionnaire de la Révolution française. 1st edition. Robert Laffont, Paris 1987, ISBN 978-2-221-04588-6 (Review: Tulard (Jean), Fayard (Jean-François), Fierro (Alfred). - Histoire et dictionnaire de la Révolution française. In: Revue française de sociologie. July-December 1989, No. 30 3/4, pp. 641-642).
- Ronald Pawly; Patrice Courcelle (Ill.): Mounted Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard (= Men-at-Arms. No. 456). Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2009, ISBN 978-1-84603-449-7 .
- Paul Lindsay Dawson: Napoleon's Gods. Grenadiers à Cheval de la Garde. Lulu.com , Raleigh 2013, ISBN 978-1-4467-4799-5 .
- Emir Bukhari; Angus McBride (Ill.): Napoleon's Guard Cavalry (= Men-at-Arms. No. 83). Osprey Publishing, Oxford 1978, ISBN 978-0-85045-288-4 .
Footnotes and individual references
- ^ Tulard, 1987, p. 860
- ↑ de Saint-Hilaire, 1847, p. 160
- ↑ de Saint-Hilaire, 1847, p. 160
- ↑ Pigeard, 2005, pp. 139, 140
- ↑ de Saint-Hilaire, 1847, p. 144
- ↑ Dawson, 2013, pp. 65–67 ( limited preview in Google Book Search)
- ↑ Pigeard, 2005, p. 142
- ↑ Pawly, 2009, p. 5
- ↑ Dawson, 2013, p. 67 ( limited preview in Google Book Search)
- ^ Castle, 2004, p. 74
- ↑ Pigeard, 2005, p 143
- ↑ Hourtoulle, 2007, pp. 4, 13
- ↑ Hourtoulle, 2007, p. 61
- ↑ Sokolov, 2005, p. 455
- ↑ Pigeard, 2005, p. 145
- ↑ Tranié, Carmigniani, 1989, pp 291, 292
- ↑ Tranié, Carmigniani, 1989, p 118
- ^ A no longer existing rank above the colonel and below the général de brigade - corresponded roughly to the brigadier des armées du roi of the royal army
- ↑ Charras, Vandermaelen, 1857, p. 285
- ↑ de la Tour d'Auvergne, 1870, p. 293
- ↑ Deputy Regimental Commander
- ^ Tony Broughton, The Garde Imperiale and Its Commanders during the Period 1804-1815. In: The Napoleon Series .