15 e régiment d'infantry

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Régiment de Béarn (1762)
15 e regiment d'infanterie

Insigne régimentaire du 15e regiment d'infanterie alpine (1939) .jpg
Insigne régimentaire du 15e Régiment d'Infanterie Alpine.jpg

Association badge of the 15th e régiment d'infanterie
active 1576 to 1940
Country Blason France modern.svg Flag of France.svg France
Armed forces Blason France modern.svg Flag of France.svg french army
Armed forces infantry
Branch of service Mountain troop
Type regiment
Patron saint Saint-Maurice d'Agaune
motto Sans peur et sans reproche

The 15th e régiment d'infanterie was an infantry regiment, set up in 1576 as the Régiment de Balagny de Montluc in the Kingdom of France , in service during the Ancien Régime and then with a few interruptions until it was dissolved in 1940. Until it was standardized by the numbering created during the Revolution there individual names - most recently that of the province of Béarn . It belonged to the Petit Vieux (the little old) regiments, after the six regiments of the Grands Vieux , the big old ones , with the most respected regiments of the French army.

Another regiment with the same name existed between 1684 and 1762.

Lineup and significant changes

The regiment took its name from the province of Béarn for the least time of its existence. From its establishment in 1597 to 1763, the regiment owner was a member of the high nobility.

  • 1576: Creation of a guard company by François-Hercule de Valois, duc d'Alençon
  • 1597: The Guard Company became the Régiment de Balagny de Montluc .
  • April 11, 1612: Renamed the Régiment de Rambures
  • August 4, 1676: Renamed the Régiment de Feuquières
  • April 27, 1700: Renamed the Régiment de Leuville
  • March 15, 1718: Renamed the Régiment de Richelieu
  • February 24, 1738: Renamed the Régiment de Rohan
  • 1745: called Régiment de Crillon
  • October 19, 1746: Renamed the Régiment de La Tour du Pin
  • February 20, 1761: Renamed the Régiment de Boisgelin
  • December 10, 1763: Renamed the Régiment de Béarn (the name of the Régiment de Béarn , which was dissolved last year, was adopted). The Swiss "Régiment de Karrer" was incorporated.
  • 1776: The Régiment de Béarn was divided. The 1st and 3rd battalions continued to form the Régiment de Béarn, while the 2nd and 4th battalions were used to re-establish the Régiment d'Agénois , which was dissolved in 1749 .
  • January 1, 1791: All regiments lost their names and from now on were only referred to by numbers. The Régiment de Béarn became the 15th e régiment d'infanterie de ligne (ci-devant Béarn) .
  • 1793: In the course of the premier amalgams , the regiments were abolished and used as a tribe to form the Demi-brigades de bataille. The 1st battalion was assigned to the 29 e demi-brigade and the 2nd battalion to the 30 e demi-brigade.
  • 1803: re-establishment of the 15th e régiment d'infanterie de ligne
  • 1814: During the Restoration and the Rule of the Hundred Days , the regiment kept its name.
  • July 16, 1815: After the final abdication of Napoléon Bonaparte, the regiment was dismissed along with the entire Napoleonic army .
  • August 11, 1815: re-established as Légion du Finistère
  • 1820: The 27 e Légion du Finistère was renamed the 15 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne .
  • On October 16, 1870, the remains of the regiment in the Soissons fortress fell into German captivity.
  • On November 23, a new dépôt of the 15th Infantry Regiment was set up in Bayonne. From this the 15th e régiment de marche was formed.
  • 1871: Renaming to 15 e régiment d'infanterie de ligne
  • 1882: last renaming to 15 e régiment d'infanterie
  • 1914: Establishment of the 215 e régiment d'infanterie as a reserve regiment

Mestres de camp / Colonels / Chefs de brigade

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, "Chef de brigade" from 1793 to 1803.

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, the command was given to the “Mestre de camp lieutenant” (or “Mestre de camp en second”) or the Leave a colonel lieutenant or colonel en second.

  • October 9, 1595: Jean de Montluc de Balagny
  • 1603: Damien de Montluc de Balagny
  • April 11, 1612: Charles, marquis de Rambures
  • May 25, 1627: Jean, marquis de Rambures
  • March 17, 1633: François, marquis de Rambures
  • June 14, 1642: René, marquis de Rambures
  • April 10, 1656: Charles, marquis de Rambures
  • 1671: Louis Alexandre, marquis de Rambures
  • 4th August 1676: Antoine de Pas, marquis de Feuquières
  • January 20, 1689: Jules de Pas, marquis de Feuquières
  • April 27, 1700: Louis-Thomas du Bois de Fiennes, marquis de Leuville
  • March 15, 1718: Louis-François-Armand du Plessis, duc de Richelieu
  • April 16, 1738: Louis-Marie-Bretagne-Dominique, duc de Rohan-Chabot
  • January 1, 1745: Louis des Balbi de Bertons, marquis de Crillon
  • October 19, 1746: Philippe-Antoine-Gabriel-Victor-Charles, marquis de La Tour du Pin-La Charce
  • February 20, 1761: René-Gabriel, comte de Boisgelin
  • November 30, 1764: Anne-Louis du Quingo, marquis de Crénolle
  • 1788: Colonel Gilles Dominique de Boisgelin de Kerdu
  • 1791: Colonel Michel-Ange de Castellane
  • 1791: Colonel Jean Charles de Myon
  • 1792: Colonel Marie Louis de Varennes

[...]

  • 1803: Colonel Faure
  • 1804: Colonel Hilaire Benoit Reynau (wounded July 14, 1807)
  • 1808: Colonel Paul Louis Marie Dein
  • 1813: Colonel Charles Aimable Levavasseur (wounded July 20, 1813)
  • 1830: Colonel Anatole Mangin
  • 1830: Colonel Charles Jean-Baptiste Parchappe
  • 1859: Colonel Martin Daudel
  • ?: Colonel Théodore Eugène Fraboulet de Kerléadec (killed on September 11, 1870 in the Battle of Gravelotte )
  • September 12, 1870 - December 25, 1870: Colonel Joseph Derroja

[...]

  • 1888: Colonel Jean Edmond Dessirier

[...]

  • 1940: Colonel Jean Favatier (killed on June 5, 1940 near Béhen )
  • June 5, 1940: Commandant Giaubert

Uniforms and flags of the royal army

  • Régiment de Richelieu 1720

  • Regiment de Rohan 1734

  • Regiment de La Tour du Pin 1757

  • Regiment de Béarn 1762

  • Régiment de Béarn 1775

  • Régiment de Béarn 1776

  • Régiment de Béarn 1779

  • Régiment de Béarn 1791

  • Regimental flag used continuously from the "Régiment Balagny de Montluc" until 1791

Mission history

Huguenot Wars

  • 1596 to 1598

The Maréchal Balagny de Montluc set up a regiment on October 9, 1596 from the remains of the Cambrai garrison, which entered the service of the king on March 6, 1597. On May 6, 1598, it was disbanded again after various operations on the border in Hainaut . Only the personal company of the regiment owner, formerly the guard company of the Duc d'Alençon , was kept in service.

  • 1600 to 1618

In 1600 "Balagny" was set up again and used in the campaign to Savoy. In 1603 it was again reduced to two companies.

  • 1610 to 1618

Damien de Montluc, his father's successor as regiment owner, received the order to reinforce the regiment to the level of 10 companies and to bring it to a place where the king wanted to issue a secret order. Because of the murder of Henry IV , this was no longer carried out and the regiment was reduced to two companies. In 1612 Damien de Montluc was killed. The cause is unclear; there is talk of a duel or, what is more likely, an ambush on Rue Neuve-des-Petits-Champs in Paris. He was succeeded by his brother-in-law Charles de Rambures, one of the bravest officers of his time. He set up the regiment again in 1614 and moved with it to Brittany . When King Louis XIII arrived in Nantes to take possession of the province, he found the well-equipped and 2,000-strong Régiment de Rambures there. Very satisfied with what he saw, he set it up together with the Régiment des Gardes françaises to conquer the city of Blavet , which was held by rebels and where there was a risk that it would be extradited to the Spanish.

Reduced to two companies, the campaign of 1615 under the Maréchal de Botsdauphin followed with the participation in the siege of Creil-sur-Oise. The regiment then moved to Poitou to suppress uprisings there. Rebuilt to the level of 10 companies, it was used in 1616 with the troops of the Comte d'Auvergne to relieve Péronne , which was besieged by the Duc de Longueville. The following year it was used in the attack on the suburbs of Laon . The army of the princes was pushed back. The siege of Rethel followed. In 1618 it was again reduced to two companies.

  • In 1620 "Rambures" was used in the battle near Ponts-de-Cé and arrived in 1621 under the command of the Comte d'Auriac as the first unit to siege Saint-Jean-d'Angély on site. During the siege, it was able to distinguish itself in association with the Régiment de Navarre .
Siege of Saint-Jean-d'Angély

This was followed by the capture of Bergerac , where the regiment remained in garrison until the Peace of Montpellier. A détachement of 300 men marched in 1622 in support of the Duc d'Elbœf and then participated in the siege of Sainte-Foy-la-Grande held by the Marquis de la Force with 500 men .

  • In 1624 the unit left Bergerac and moved to Saint-Maixent. It served two years in Picardy and was commanded to La Rochelle in August 1627 to take part in the siege that followed there.

Garrison was moved into Angoulins and then a battery for six guns was built on the Pont de Coureilles. This was in use during the entire siege. A detachement of 400 men crossed over to the Île d'Oléron and then on November 7th to the Île de Ré , where they went ashore at Fort de La Prée to fight the British who were present. After the surrender of La Rochelle, the unit, together with the Régiment de Piémont , occupied the Fort de Tasdon. The one he Capitaine Dubois de Liége was appointed deputy commander of La Rochelle.

On November 7, 1728, the regiment received the order to march to Fouras in order to monitor the movements of the English fleet from there.

  • February 1629: Fouras was left to join the army in Piémont, where “Rambures” could excel in the battle near Pas-de-Suze. Back across the Alps, the regiment reached Privas on May 24th , where it was used in the conquest.

Thirty Years' War

  • 1630 to 1635

In 1630, the unit under François-Henri de Montmorency-Luxembourg marched back into the Piémont and arrived before Exiles, which was conquered shortly afterwards. The battle at Veillane followed. Relocated to Lorraine , "Rambures" fought in the siege of Vic , Moyenvic and Marsal (Moselle) . In the following year the regiment was one of the forces of the Maréchal de la Force who fought in Languedoc against the army of Monsieur and in the battle near Castelnaudary . Afterwards back in Lorraine, the regiment was used in the siege of Trier .

  • In 1633 "Rambures" stood at the siege of Nancy .

This was followed by participation in the siege of Bitche and the fortress of La Mothe with subsequent expeditions in the vicinity of Metz under the command of the Maréchal de La Force. To relieve Heidelberg, the frozen Rhine was crossed in winter. After the imperial troops had been routed, they returned by the same route.

Franco-Spanish War

After the imperial army withdrew from Lorraine and the Barrois, where they wreaked horrific havoc, the regiment was used in the pursuit battles.

On September 15, 1635, the “Régiment de Rambures”, like the others of the Petits Vieux group , received the white body flag and the white flag ribbon. For this purpose a body company (compagnie colonelle) was set up.

At the same time, Cardinal Richelieu gave the regiment the name "Régiment d'Île de France", but this was only of a theoretical nature, as this was not implemented in practice.

In January 1636, "Rambures" formed the vanguard of the corps in Épinal , which should break the ring around the besieged Colmar . It arrived in town on January 30th, bringing 600 horses loaded with provisions. From there it set out for relief to the besieged Kaysersberg and Haguenau . On February 16, the troops returned to Épinal. As soon as she got there, she had to move back to Haguenau, which was threatened again. A detachement of 300 men left Épinal on June 3rd, took Saint-Dié and Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines by surprise and on June 10th stood in front of Haguenau, which only had food for three days. In September, the regiment joined the army, which pursued the imperial in the direction of Franche-Comté . In 1627 the unit was involved in the fighting for the hamlet of Ivoy and for the villages of Le Catelet and Damvilliers. After the end of the campaign, the winter quarters in Damvilliers and Ivoy were moved. The troops spent the first half of 1638 in Lorraine and then, in August, joined the Comte de Hallier's army, which besieged Catelet. On September 14th the place was taken and the regiment was put in charge of guarding it. On March 1, 1639 it moved to Thionville , where it was commanded to guard the artillery park during the siege.

Battle of Thionville 1639

On June 7th it fought in the Battle of Thionville. Then the regiment withdrew to Metz, where it was busy for some time to replenish the personnel losses. In 1640 it participated in the siege of Arras and in 1641 in the siege of Ares. "Rambures" suffered great losses on May 26, 1642 in the battle of Honnecourt .

In the Battle of Rocroi on May 19, 1643, the regiment was able to distinguish itself again. Together with the Régiment de Piémont , it was on the left wing of the first line. "Rambures" left a large number of dead on the battlefield, including the Capitaines Mesnil, Froyelle, Villiers and Bergues. On June 15th the regiment was again in front of Thionville, and after its surrender it moved on to the siege of Sierck , which gave up on September 2nd.

Sierck

In 1644 the Duc d'Orléans moved to Flanders with the siege of Gravelines. In these battles the Capitaine de Rouret and the Lieutenants Guisbert and Bride were killed. After this campaign, the regiment was commanded in the Bourbonnais . After fighting against the Spaniards, he was moved back to Flanders with the participation in the siege of Fort Mardyck , Cassel, Béthune, Saint-Venant and Menen. Garrison was then taken up in Menen.

On June 13, 1646, the unit arrived in front of Courtrai, which was occupied by the Spanish. Since not all of the siege troops had arrived, the city could not be completely enclosed. The Spaniards used this opportunity to reinforce the crew with 3,000 musketeers and three cavalry regiments . "Rambures" was able to repel a garrison failure during the siege.

After taking Courtrai, the regiment moved to Bruges, where it was loaded onto two Dutch ships and taken to Fort de Mardyck. It was then used in the siege of Dunkirk , which capitulated on October 10th.

In February 1647 the unit had moved into quarters in Courtrai and was able to repel an attack by the Spaniards. A company was deployed to defend Armentières . The following year the regiment was used in the siege of Ypres and in the battle of Lens .

1649 followed the participation in the siege of Cambrai , from where the troops were deployed to take Condé . In 1650 it was able to distinguish itself, together with the Régiment de Piémont, in the battle of Rethel . The following year the unit operated under the command of the Maréchal de Caumont at the Scheldt estuary near Neuville-sur-Escaut . Winter quarters were taken in Burgundy , after which it went back to Picardy . Several garrisons were garrisoned in Ardres , then, commanded to Paris, the regiment fought at Saint-Antoine. Returning to Ardres, they tried to keep the city under control, which had not been untouched by the unrest in all of France.

In 1654 the unit was used in the sieges of Sainte-Menehould, Stenai and du Quesnoy and in the relief of Arras. In 1655 the regiment was transferred to Saint-Quentin. On August 16, the siege work began in front of Condé. After the city surrendered, it took up quarters there. In November it drove an enemy corps of 3,500 men under the command of Prince Claude Lamoral II de Ligne from outside the city walls.

Battle in the dunes

This was followed in 1656 by the siege of Valenciennes and the capture of La Capelle, in 1657 the siege of La Mothe-aux-Bois, the capture of Saint-Venant, the relief of Ardres and the destruction of Watz, Bourbourg and Mardyck. The year 1658 saw the regiment take part in the siege of Dunkirk and the battle of the dunes . Here the regiment managed to force an English battalion of the Duke of York to surrender. The year ended with the sieges of Berghes, Menen and Ypres. When the Peace of the Pyrenees was ratified , it was garrisoned in Menen.

The regiment was reduced to four companies and stationed in Rouen. In 1663 "Rambures" was assigned to the expedition to Lorraine, which ended with the capture of Marsal (Moselle) .

War of Devolution (1667 to 1668)

On the occasion of the war, the regiment was increased to 10 companies and initially stationed in Saint-Quentin. An operation was not planned, but after the siege of Lille had caused great difficulties, it was then ordered to reinforce the army. After taking the city, it marched to Courtrai and in January 1668 to Charleroi.

The regiment was stationed in Calais in 1671 and moved in the same year in the camp of Dunkirk, where it XIV before King Louis happened Revue . At that time it consisted of 32 companies of 53 men each.

Dutch War (1672 to 1678)

In 1672 the regiment accompanied the king to Tongeren , where 20 companies were garrisoned. The other 12 companies moved with the army to the Rhine. After the winter break, the regiment remained on standby. In August it joined the Prince de Condé's army, which covered the siege of Maastricht. In 1674 it was used in the battle of Seneffe . Here it stood on the far left wing and was distinguished by its tenacity in attacking the village of Fay. In the battle it lost the Lieutenant-Colonel Hébert, the Capitaines de Briseuil, Campagne, Bonnière and Mommereuil, the Lieutenants , Ensignes and Sous-lieutenants La Varenne, Legrand, Culan, Varimont, Letendart, Sosseval and Saint-Martin and more than 200 Man of a total of 1,100 dead and wounded. After the withdrawal of the Prince d'Orange and the beginning of the siege of Oudenaarde , the regiment withdrew to Metz . On November 11th, it joined the Turenne army in the Dettweiler camp . The 2nd battalion marched to relief to Haguenau, which was besieged by the Austrian General Piccolomini. After the imperial had withdrawn from Schlettstadt, the unit took up quarters here and in Colmar . It was still used in the battle near Mulhouse on December 29th.

In January 1675 the regiment moved to Breisach in the brigade unit . On March 10th, the attack on Neuburg on the Rhine followed , which could be captured in a short time. Together with three cavalry regiments, a bridge was built over the Rhine near Altenheim in June to give Turenne an opportunity to retreat. After Turenne's death, “Rambures” came under the command of the Maréchal de Luxembourg in Alsace . On July 29, 1676, the 18-year-old colonel and regiment owner, the Marquis de Rambures, was killed by a musket ball when a gunshot went off in the quarters while handling weapons and hit him in the forehead. The regiment, bearing the name "Rambures" for 60 years, has now been taken over by the Marquis de Feuquières.

The "Régiment de Feuquières" took part in a battle near Basel that year. It stood on the Rhine in 1677 and fought in the siege of Freiburg , where it suffered great losses.

Relocated to the army in Flanders in 1678, the troops were used in the capture of Ghent and Ypres. Together with other regiments, “Feuquières” protected the king's headquarters in the monastery of Saint-Denis against an attack by the Prince of Orange on August 14th.

Reunion War (1683 to 1684)

The regiment was garrisoned in Toul and did not take part in the war.

War of the Palatinate Succession (1688 to 1697)

From Tournai they marched off to the siege of Philippsburg . The Capitaines Despoix and Contremoulins and the Sous-lieutenant Dupuy fell. The lieutenant-colonel d'Armours and two captains were wounded. From here the regiment moved to Heilbronn in January 1689 . When the regiment had to leave Heilbronn to withdraw to Pforzheim, 200 imperial dragoons from the Starhemberg regiment advanced through another gate and immediately began to massacre the wounded and sick who were left behind.

The regiment remained in Germany in 1689 and 1690. On August 18, 1690, it launched an attack on Waldkirch near Strasbourg. The grenadiers were able to distinguish themselves here, and Capitaine Moussy was killed.

"Feuquières" was commanded in 1691 in the Piémont, where it joined the army of Nicolas de Catinat and took part in six campaigns with the Régiment de La Marine . It began with the siege of Veillane, which gave up after 24 hours, then the siege of Carmagnola, in which it lost 50 soldiers on the first day, the lieutenant-colonel de Vraignes and two captains were wounded. There were no notable operations for the rest of the year and the following.

Plan of the Battle of Marsaglia

In the Battle of Marsaglia the regiment was able to distinguish itself on the left flank, with two captains killed.

Despite the signing of the peace treaty with the Duke of Savoy, the emperor maintained the state of war and besieged Valenza , where the regiment defended the left trenches on September 26, 1696. After the fighting ended, the unit was commanded to the Moselle and moved from Rijswijk to Briançon after the peace was signed . It remained here until the outbreak of the War of the Spanish Succession .

War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714)

In 1701 the "Régiment de Leuville" received the order to march to Toulon in order to be embarked there. It was then transported to Italy and distinguished itself at the siege of Chiari . Then it marched to Cremona and as reinforcement on to Mantua , which was besieged by the troops of Eugene of Savoy . Here it could stand out in several failures . On January 25, 1702, the commandant of the fortress, the Comte de Tessé , sent a détachement under the captain of the grenadiers Boutteville to burn a large supply and fodder store of the enemy. The camp, seven miles away, could be destroyed without Boutteville losing a man. After the siege was lifted, “Leuville” was left alone to guard Mantua until the end of the campaign. A voluntary détachement fought in the battle of Luzzara . In 1703 the regiment left Mantua and joined the army of the Duc de Vendôme , with whom it was involved in the capture of Bersello, Nago and Orgo as well as in the bombardment of Trento . Winter quarters were then moved into Monferrat. In 1704 the sieges of Vercelli and Ivrea followed and in the spring of 1705 those of Verrua in Savoy. In an attack on March 1st, the Capitaines d'Ache, Birabin and Fresne fell. At the end of April the regiment returned to the army of Vendôme on the Minico and fought in the battle near Moscolino; in the battle of Cassano it was part of the reserve without being used. Participation in the attack of October 16 on the imperial lines near Cremona, then occupation of Castelleone and Gumbetto. Then it returned to Mantua. In 1706 the unit was charged with guarding the passages on the Adige .

1706 "Leuville" returned to the front line and was involved in heavy fighting. At a review by the Comte de Médavy, only 400 men were still in working order. At the end of 1707, these 400 men received the order to guard the exits from the Alps and were relocated to the Rhine the following year to refresh themselves. After fighting against imperial patrol corps, the regiment was moved to the positions on the Lauter between Wissembourg and Lauterbourg. It remained here until 1712, when on August 16 of the same year it was able to repel a strong enemy attack with great losses of its own. In 1713 he took part in the sieges of Landau and Freiburg in the corps of the Maréchal de Villars .

Quadruple Alliance War (1717-1719)

In 1718 the Duc de Richelieu became the new regimental owner. He was imprisoned in the Bastille the following year for his involvement in the Cellamare conspiracy . It was accused that his regiment, which was garrisoned in Bayonne , should have surrendered the city to the Spaniards.

The regiment therefore moved out without its colonel and was used in the siege of San Sebastian and Rochas.

In January 1723 the unit moved to Poitiers , in April 1725 to Bayonne, in September 1727 to Collioure , in October 1728 to Poitiers, in April 1730 to Cambrai and Bouchain , 1731 to Lille and 1732 to the camp of Berlaimont . In July 1733 it was garrisoned at Calais and Maubeuge

War of the Polish Succession (1733-1738)

When the war broke out, the regiment was in Schlettstadt . In the same year it fought at the siege of Kehl and then spent the winter in Besançon. In the following year it took part in the battle near Ettlingen and in the siege of Philippsburg . The regiment was able to stand out in the siege, but had to mourn the Capitaines de Gasc, d'Angosse and Mouzières and more than 100 men as dead. After the campaign, “Richelieu” moved into winter quarters in Schlettstadt. Due to illness, the number of soldiers dropped to 900. In 1735 the unit was reinforced to three battalions. She was involved in the occupation of Trier, where she stayed until May 1736. She was then sent to Metz to work on the fortifications. In October 1737 the command was sent to Maubeuge, 1738 to Rocroi, Charleville, Mézières and in April 1739 back to Metz. In September 1740 garrison was moved into Verdun .

War of the Austrian Succession (1740 to 1748)

Under the new name "Régiment de Rohan", the unit left Verdun on September 7, 1741 to join the army intended for the campaign to Bavaria. They gathered in Fort-Louis and crossed the Rhine on September 22nd. The regiments "de Rohan" and "de Souvre" were commanded to Braunau am Inn together with two regiments of dragoons . Then it was used to protect a crossing over the Enns and then ordered to Linz , which was besieged from January 1742 by strong forces of the Austrian Field Marshal Kevenhüller .

On January 25, the city had to surrender, and on the assurance that they would no longer fight in Germany, the occupation received free retreat. The regiment marched to Strasbourg and was immediately sent on to Besançon.

In February 1743 the regiment was transferred to Metz and soon afterwards it was merged with the army of the Maréchal de Noailles, which was located near Weissenburg. Then the Rhine was crossed at Speyer and three other regiments moved into quarters in Heidelberg.

The regiment fought with two battalions in the defeat at Dettingen . After the battle it was assigned to the rearguard together with the “Régiment de Piémont”. On that day it lost the Capitaines de Terson, Richebourg, Charse, Vignacourt, Dunelle and Vilhouette, then the Lieutenants Rouville, La Croisille, Richard, La Vorichaie, Montplaisier, Beauplan, Real and Baltier to the fallen; Major Luc-Major, Commandants La Biganière and Hiky, 14 Capitaines and 11 Lieutenants were wounded. The total losses were over 600 men.

"Rohan" crossed the Rhine on the retreat near Worms and took up defensive positions on the Lauter, where it again suffered losses in battles against Austrian cavalry. The regiment then moved into winter quarters in Saarlouis .

On March 15, 1744, the march to Flanders began with the participation in the sieges of Menen and Ypres. Then transfer to the field quarters near Courtrai. Winter quarters were taken in Sedan .

Battle of Fontenoy. "Crillon" is on the right wing.

On January 1, 1745, the regiment became the property of the Marquis de Crillon, with whom it operated in the Tournai area.

In the battle of Fontenoy , the regiment was on the right wing of the first line. It leaned against the Piémont regiment on the right and a Swiss regiment on the left. In the course of the battle it was possible to capture an enemy battery with eight cannons. The own losses amounted to about 50 men.

In July the regiment, together with the Regiment de Normandie and some other units, was placed under the command of the Comte du Chayla. "Crillon" formed the vanguard of this troop and came across a corps of 6,000 British. After a fierce battle, several flags were captured and 1,400 prisoners were taken. Our own losses amounted to 180 killed and wounded. The king then awarded 14 Ordres royales et militaires de Saint-Louis and awarded 22 gratuities .

The unit then took Ghent and after a few days was commanded to occupy Ostend . This could only be carried out by force of arms and cost the regiment the lieutenants Castelnau and Richard in the dead, five other officers, including the Lieutenant-Colonel de Lestang, were wounded.

Then "Crillon" was used in the capture of Nieuwpoort and was then commanded to Calais, where it was supposed to prepare for an invasion of England, which was then not pursued further. In January 1746 Calais was abandoned, the regiment marched to Bruges and then to Ghent, where it remained during the siege of Brussels . At the beginning of the campaign in June, the unit was at the siege of Mons and was involved in the capture of Fort de la Haisne, which cost the regiment more than 200 men in losses. Then "Crillon" was transferred to the reserve corps of the Comte de Clermont in Aarschot . In September the unit was used in the siege of Namur , with losses of 200 men and three officers. Thereafter, the Marquis de Crillon was promoted to Maréchal de camp , and the regiment passed to the Comte La Tour du Pin. It then marched to Antwerp , where a fourth battalion was posted. In 1747 the regiment was assigned to the Corps of the Marquis de Contades and took part in the defeat of the forts on the left bank of the Upper Scheldt and in Dutch Flanders. This was followed by the siege of Hulst , which surrendered on May 11th, the capture of Axel and participation in the battle of Lauffeldt . Here “La Tour du Pin” fought doggedly on the right wing, the village of Lauffeld was taken several times and was lost again. The Maréchal de Saxe was convinced of his victory and started a new attack with the regiments “La Tour du Pin”, du Roi and Orléans . The regiment rushed ruthlessly at the enemy in a bayonet attack and was able to throw him back. The king, greatly impressed by this, pronounced five promotions to lieutenant colonel, awarded 13 orders of the "Croix de Saint-Louis" and granted 27 gratuities. The Capitaines Magnenville and Dreux as well as the Lieutenants Vaudry, Sagenan, Le Franc and La Durantie had fallen, the Colonel and 22 other officers were wounded.

The winter quarters were moved into Brussels. In 1748 the siege of Maastricht followed . The regiments "La Tour du Pin", de La Couronne , Orléans and Alsace - supported by the Régiment de Rohan cavalerie - carried out a concentrated attack on a bottle on April 29 at 9 pm .

After the end of the war, the regiment returned to France and was initially stationed in Lille. In September 1751 he was transferred to Dunkirk, in September 1752 to Valenciennes, in July 1754 to the Saarlouis camp, in October 1755 to Maubeuge , and in July 1756 to the camp near Le Havre . After the camp was closed, quarters were first moved to Le Mans, then to Saumur , La Flèche and Baugé .

Seven Years War (1757 to 1763)

In May 1757 the regiment moved to Germany, crossed the Rhine at Mainz on August 1st and advanced with the French army against Hanover, where the Duke of Cumberland was pursued as far as Stade . After the Battle of Roßbach , the unit was in Lüneburg to cover the withdrawal of the defeated army. With her she withdrew to the Aller . In February 1758 the "Armée de Hanovre" was moved back to the Rhine and distributed to quarters around Cologne and Kleve.

“La Tour du Pin” was at Xanten and was spread over the whole of the Netherlands. In the battle of Krefeld the regiment was exposed to a five-hour artillery fire. Without firing a shot, it suffered casualties of more than 500 men; the Capitaines Rogues-Hautes, Halgouet, Duvigny, d'Hourmelin and La Bourdonnaye had died, and nine other officers were wounded. The campaign continued with marching movements in the Cologne area. Finally the regiment took up winter quarters again in Xanten. In 1759 it was assigned to the reserve corps under the Marquis d'Armentières. On July 9th it fought at the siege of Münster, where it attacked the St. Mauritz Gate of the city wall on July 9th. After a few minor operations, “La Tour du Pin” moved to Gießen and Kleinlinden and returned to Cologne on January 21, 1760. It ended the campaign with the reserve troops in Düsseldorf . On July 10, it fought alongside the Régiment de Royal-Suédois and the Régiment de Castellas in the battle near Korbach and on July 31 in the battle of Warburg . This was followed by deployment in the battle of Kampen Monastery .

February 20, 1761: Renamed the Régiment de Boisgelin

Johannisberg defended by the regiment on August 30, 1761

On May 1, the regiment left Cologne, where it had spent the winter, joined the reserve corps of Louis de Bourbon, comte de Clermont , and fought with them in the battle of Vellinghausen and in the battle of Roxel. Winter quarters were moved into Düsseldorf. On August 25, the unit occupied the Johannisberg near Friedberg (Hesse) . On August 30th, General Nikolaus von Luckner tried to seize the Johannisberg. He attacked the mountain from the rear with 40 squadrons of cavalry, while the Hereditary Prince of Hanover attacked the front with 19 battalions. The French troops won the battle. The English and Hanoverians lost 600 fallen, 1,500 prisoners, 1,200 horses, 15 cannons and two standards. The Regiment de Boisgelin lost 28 men killed, plus the Capitaines Saint-Sauveur, d'Hauteville, Dumas and Ranchin, and the Lieutenants Roghon, Desroulins and Lorgeril. 256 men and the Commandant Dumesnil as well as 13 Capitaines and nine Lieutenants were wounded.

The king praised the Maréchal d'Estrées and awarded 14 orders of the “Croix de Saint-Louis” and granted 15,000 livres of gratuities.

The regiment returned to France via Flanders and moved into garrison in Calais in March 1763.

In the course of the reorganization of December 10, 1762, the regiment was renamed after the province of Béarn in Régiment de Béarn , since the previous regiment of the same name had been dissolved the year before.

This was followed by the constant change of garrison that was customary in peacetime. In November 1764 the regiment came to Dunkirk, in August 1765 to Diedenhofen, in October 1767 to Brest, in November 1769 to Metz, in October 1771 to Diedenhofen, in September 1772 to Valenciennes and in November 1774 to Metz.

In 1775 the 4th Battalion was ordered to Brest, where it was embarked for Santo Domingo on November 20th .

With the reorganization of 1776, the regiment had to surrender the 2nd and 4th battalions to set up the Régiment d'Agénois .

With the reorganization of January 1, 1791, all regiments lost their names and were henceforth only designated with numbers. Until the premier amalgame in 1793, the regiment was now called "15 e régiment d'infanterie (ci-devant Béarn)".

The "Premier amalgame" brought about the dissolution of the regimental association, the two battalions never met again. The previous order was turned upside down and the regiments became Demi-brigades de bataille .

When the regiments were reintroduced in 1803, a new "15 e régiment d'infanterie" was created, which had nothing to do with the old one.

Wars of the Revolution and the First Empire

Fallen or wounded officers of the regiment between 1804 and 1815

  • fallen: 36
  • died of her wounds: 20
  • wounded: 107

1815 to 1848

  • In 1830 the 1st and 2nd battalions were sent to the expedition to Algeria. They fought in the Battle of Staoueli on June 19th and participated in the capture of Algiers on July 5th . The 1st Battalion was deployed on July 18 to capture Blida and Medea. Battle on July 23 at the Col de Mouzaïa. In December, both battalions were part of the corps sent to the province of Medea .
At the end of December she returned to France.
By order of September 18, a 4th battalion was set up, increasing the regiment's staff to 3,000 men.

Crimean War

Franco-German War

  • 1870: July 20: The regiment left Soissons and arrived in Thionville that same day . The number of personnel on August 1 was 61 officers and 1,779 NCOs and men.
A 4th (reserve) battalion left the Dépôt on August 12 and was used to set up the "6 e régiment de marche" (6th marching regiment).
On August 18, the regiment suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Gravelotte , two-thirds of the crew had failed.
The remnants of the regiment formed the Dépôt of the 15th Infantry Regiment in the fortress Soissons and were taken prisoner of war on October 16 after the fortress was surrendered.
On November 23, a new dépôt of the 15th Infantry Regiment was set up in Bayonne. On March 1, 1871, it had a strength of 12 officers and 299 NCOs and men.
In the meantime, a “15 e régiment de marche” had been set up. It fought in battle in the forest of Vigneulles on September 21 .

1871 to 1914

  • 1871: Garrison in Perpignan
  • 1879: Relocation of the regimental staff and the 1st and 2nd battalions to Castelnaudary . The 3rd Battalion moved into the barracks in Carcassonne .

First World War

  • 1907 to 1914: Garrison in Albi

Throughout the war the regiment was part of the 32nd Infantry Division.

1914

1915

  • February to August: trench warfare in Champagne
  • Autumn battle in Champagne: fighting on Mont Têtu (September 25th) and on the Butte de Tahure

1916

1917

  • January to June: Attack fighting near Verdun (altitude 304, Mort Homme)
  • November to December: Trench warfare near Aspach (Moselle) in Alsace
  • December to February 2018: Trench warfare at Le Voilu in the Vosges

1918

  • February to April: Trench warfare near Aspach (Moselle)
  • May to August: aggressive fighting near Kemmel in Flanders
  • August to October: Aggressive fighting on the Ailette near Fresnes and Couvron
  • October to November: aggressive fighting near Pouilly-sur-Serre and Crécy-sur-Serre in the Aisne department

Interwar period

In January 1939, the regiment was transferred to the Pyrénées-Orientales department to carry out the “Plan de barrage” . This plan was to prevent an uncontrolled transfer of the international brigades defeated in the Spanish Civil War to France.

Second World War

When the war broke out, the unit was mobilized as the “15 e régiment d'infanterie alpine” (15th Mountain Infantry Regiment). It was first under the command of Colonel Favatier, then from June 5, 1940 by Chef de bataillon Giaubert. It belonged to the 31st Mountain Division.

In heavy defensive battles in the south of Amiens against German troops of the 9th Panzer Division , the 10th Panzer Division and the infantry regiment "Greater Germany" from May 20, 1940, the 1,200-strong regiment was wiped out. The survivors surrendered to the Germans on June 6th. Only 300 men were taken prisoner and taken to Saint-Fuscien . There, an unknown number of them were shot by the Germans in front of the villagers.

A stele commemorating the battles of the regiment on June 4th 1940 has been in Yonval since June 6th, 1998 .

Regimental flags since Napoleonic times

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.

In its history, the regiment carried a good dozen different flags one after the other:

  • 1804 to 1812

  • 1804 to 1812

  • 1854 to 1860

  • last flag carried (front)

  • last flag used (back)

Awards

The flag ribbon is decorated with the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 Croix de guerre 2 p.png with two palm branches for two honorable mention in the army command.

The members of the regiment have the right to wear the Fourragère in the colors of the Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (even if it is re-established) .

Motto

Sans peur et sans reproche
(without fear and above reproach)

literature

  • Général Serge Andolenko : Recueil d'historiques de l'infanterie française. Eurimprim, Paris 1969.
  • M. Pinard: Chronologie historique-militaire. Volume 2 ( digitized on Gallica ), 4 ( digitized ), 5 ( digitized ), 7 ( digitized ) and 8 ( digitized ). Claude Hérissant, Paris 1760, 1761, 1762, 1764 and 1778.
  • Pierre Vasselle: La bataille du Sud d'Amiens: May 20 – June 8, 1940. Abbeville 1947.
  • Jacques Riboud: Souvenir d'une bataille perdue. 1939/1940. François-Xavier de Guibert, 2006, ISBN 978-2-7554-0006-9 .
  • René Chartrand: Ticonderoga 1758. Montcalm's victory against all odds (= Campaign , Volume 76). Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2000, ISBN 978-1-84176-093-3 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
  • Pierre Lemau de la Jaisse: Cinquième abrégé de la carte générale du militaire de France, sur terre et sur mer. Depuis Novembre 1737 jusqu'en Décembre 1738. Gandouin et al., Paris 1739, OCLC 458013263 .

Footnotes

  1. ↑ formerly Béarn
  2. ↑ 15th March Regiment
  3. ↑ See Regiments dissous. Le 15 e Régiment d'Infanterie Alpine (1939–1940) - 3 e partie. In: Infantry. No. 18, 1990, p. 9 (PDF; 13.88 MB).
  4. ↑ Victor Louis Jean François Belhomme: Histoire de l'infantry en France. Volume 5. p. 151 ( digitized on Gallica ).
  5. ^ D. Vincent: Souvenir d'un soldat de 1870. Siège de Soissons. Reims 1901.
  6. ^ Aristide Martinien: La Guerre de 1870–1871. La mobilization de l'armée. Mouvement des dépôts (Armée active). Du 15 July 1870 au 1 er mars 1871. L. Fournier, Paris 1911, p. 69 ( digitized on Gallica ). New edition: Hachette, Paris 2018, ISBN 978-2-01-961552-9 .
  7. ↑ René Grando, Jacques Queralt, Xavier Febrés: Camps du mépris des chemins de l'exil à ceux de la résistance. 1939-1945. 500,000 républicains d'Espagne indésirables en France. 2nd Edition. Llibres del Trabucaire, Perpignan 1991, ISBN 2-905828-32-3 , p. 186.
  8. ^ Général Serge Andolenko : Recueil d'historiques de l'infanterie française. Eurimprim, Paris 1969.
  9. ↑ «  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 ")
  10. ↑ "  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 ")
  11. ↑ This also applies to units that have already been disbanded, as they can (theoretically) be put back into active service at any time

Web links

Commons : Drapeaux du 15e régiment d'infanterie  - Collection of images, videos and audio files