Swiss troops in French service for Napoleon Bonaparte 1798–1815
Almost ten years after the outbreak of the French Revolution , Swiss troops were again in French service for Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 .
In 1792, the French National Assembly introduced compulsory military service for its citizens and dismissed the King's Swiss troops. Now, due to the enormous troop needs of France's wars against its European power rivals , they were needed again.
16 Swiss troops served Napoleon in the First Napoleonic War from 1798 to 1802, in the suppression of the Haitian Revolution in 1802 and in the establishment and decline of the Napoleonic order in Europe from 1803 to 1815.
The occupation of Switzerland and annexation as a vassal state of France in 1798 by the Napoleonic troops and their effects became the starting point for the creation of today's Swiss Confederation .
Swiss troops in foreign service was the name of the paid service of commanded, whole troop bodies abroad, regulated by the authorities of the Swiss Confederation by international treaties .
These treaties contained a chapter regulating military affairs: the so-called surrender (or private surrender if one of the contracting parties was a private military contractor).
Overview of Swiss troops in French service for Napoleon Bonaparte
| General Napoleon Bonaparte 1795–1804 | ||
| # fra | designation | year |
| 71 | 1st Helvetic Half-Brigade | 1798-1805 |
| 72 | 2nd Helvetic Half Brigade | 1798-1805 |
| 73 | 3rd Helvetic Half-Brigade | 1798-1805 |
| 74 | 4th Helvetic Half-Brigade | 1798-1800 |
| 75 | 5th Helvetic Half-Brigade | 1798-1800 |
| 76 | 6th Helvetic Half-Brigade | 1798-1800 |
| 77 | 1st Helvetic Legion | 1799-1800 |
| 78 | 2nd Helvetic Legion | 1799-1800 |
| 79 | Beli Regiment | 1799-1800 |
| Emperor Napoleon I 1804–1815 | ||
| # fra | designation | year |
| 80 | 1st Swiss regiment | 1805-1815 |
| 81 | 2nd Swiss regiment | 1806-1815 |
| 82 | 3rd Swiss regiment | 1806-1815 |
| 83 | 4th Swiss regiment | 1806-1815 |
| 84 | Valais battalion | 1805-1811 |
| 85 | Neuchâtel battalion | 1807-1814 |
| 86 |
Battalion Stoffel (2nd Foreign Regiment) |
1815 |
- Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) - ruler of Europe - rise and fall
1779
cadet
1795
General
1799
first consul
1804
emperor
1812
general
Defeated in 1812
1814
caricature
1815
exile
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Auxiliary troops of the French occupying forces during the Helvetic Republic 1798–1803
He, Napoleone Buonaparte, was just twenty-six years old when in 1795 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Interior by the First Directory of the First French Republic . The scion of the Corsican landed nobility, gifted with outstanding military talent and filled with burning ambition, was catapulted to the top of society by the chaotic upheavals of the revolution. Four years later, a military coup made him a member of the board of directors, which he was able to overthrow as the first consul . In 1804 Napoleon Bonaparte, as he called himself in the meantime, crowned himself as sole ruler to Emperor Napoleon I. He was to shape the European continent until 1815 - for better or for worse - like no other before or after him.
In 1797, after his victorious campaign in Italy , a trip through Switzerland made Napoleon convinced that the situation there was favorable for the export of revolution . The 2nd Directory of the First Republic then decided to transform the old Confederation into a unified republic based on the French model and commissioned the Basel guild master Peter Ochs to draft the constitution for a "Helvetic" republic . In addition, Napoleon moved a division from Italy to Versoix near Geneva and occupied the southern part of the former duchy of Basel in the Jura. The reaction of the federal authorities of the Ancien Régime was shockingly helpless.
The spark of the Helvetic Revolution came from Basel, where a freedom tree was erected in January 1798 . The old confederation broke up in a few months, finally when the French troops of General Schauenburg occupied Switzerland in the same year , breaking the treaty on the perpetual peace of 1516 . Only in central Switzerland, in Valais and in Graubünden was there longer resistance, but it was brutally broken.
As an occupying power, France established the Helvetic Republic as a subsidiary republic and concluded a formal offensive and defensive alliance with the Helvetic Directory as early as 1798 :
- Abolition of the previous neutrality (Switzerland became its vassal state from the protectorate of France);
- Agreement of mutual offensive and defensive assistance (Swiss troops in French service could now also officially be used in war of aggression);
- Free passage for French troops over the military roads through the Valais, the Simplon and Great St. Bernard passes as well as along the High Rhine and Lake Constance (one of Napoleon's main goals);
- Confirmation of the salt supply to the Confederates.
Extract from the surrender that follows :
- A corps of 18,000 men in 6 brigades;
- The half-brigade consists of a large and a small staff and 3 battalions;
- The battalion was composed of 8 fusilier and 1 grenadier companies;
- The large staff with 12 officers and 4 non-commissioned officers: 1 brigade commander, 4 battalion commanders, 1 quartermaster, 3 adjutant majors, 3 field doctors, 3 adjutant non-commissioned officers, 1 train non-commissioned officer;
- The small staff with 2 NCOs, 8 soldiers and 4 non-combatants: 1 drum major , 1 drum corporal, 8 wind players, 2 craftsmen (gaiter, cobbler, tailor, gunsmith);
- The fusilier company with 123 men: 1 commander, 1 lieutenant, 1 second lieutenant, 1 field woman, 1 fourier, 4 sergeants, 8 corporals, 104 fusiliers , 2 tambours;
- The grenadier company with 83 men: 1 commander, 1 lieutenant , 1 sub-lieutenant, 1 field woman , 1 fourier , 4 sergeants , 8 corporals , 64 grenadiers , 2 tambours;
- The half-brigade led by a colonel, the brigade by a brigade general and above them, as the chief chief of the troops, the division general;
- Its own jurisdiction (although part of the French army!) With a court martial located in Basel, with the commander of the 2nd half brigade as permanent president, 1 commissioner of the Helvetic directorate, 1 reporter, 1 clerk and 6 judges (2 captains, 2 lieutenants, 1 lieutenant and 1 non-commissioned officer);
- The blue uniform (from 1803 red) with different colored lapels and collars depending on the half-brigade (from 1803 the 1st half-brigade white, the 2nd blue and the 3rd yellow), consisting of 1 uniform skirt, 1 white vest, 1 white trousers, 1 black felt hat, the uniform heads with the number of the half-brigade (1st to 3rd in yellow and 4th to 6th half-brigade in white), the officers with silver armpits and degree insignia (to be procured at your own expense);
- The equipment: 1 knapsack, 2 pairs of shoes, 2 pairs of gaiters, 2 pairs of stockings, 2 shirts, 1 work smock, 1 leather sack with items (handkerchiefs, brushes, knives, etc.);
- The armament: 1 rifle, 1 cartridge pouch with cleaning kit, 1 rifle sling, 1 bayonet, personal leather kit. The NCOs from sergeant onwards wore a saber and the officers a sword.
Since the Helvetic Republic was unable to provide enough rifles from its own production and mostly of insufficient quality, General Schauenburg delivered the standard rifle of the Napoleonic era from the French armories of Grenoble, Metz, Mainz, Neu-Brisach and Hünigen: the French infantry rifle model 1777 , from the royal arms factory in Charleville (in the Ardennes), was a muzzle loader with a caliber of 17.5 mm, 146 cm (188 cm with bayonet) length over all and 4.12 kg (4.46 kg) weight. It had a nineteen-part flint lock and fired cartridges consisting of a paper case with black powder and a bullet. The shooter had to bite off the paper case with the bullet with his teeth, pour some powder from the open paper case into the powder pan of the lock, let the bullet slide out of his mouth into the barrel, use the ramrod to stuff the saliva-moist piece of paper in front of the bullet Cock the lock, aim and pull the trigger. The average rate of fire was around one shot per minute. The maximum firing distance stated was 234 m, with the effect practically missing over 130 m.
Of the target population of 18,000 men, the 19 Swiss cantons, with a total of almost 350,000 male residents, had to raise the following contingents:
Bellinzona 360 men, Zurich 2,370, Waldstätten 820, Basel 500, Oberland 510, Baden 580, Leman 1,750, Solothurn 460, Freiburg 940, Bern 1,970, Aargau 670, Lucerne 950, Schaffhausen 310, Linth 1,050 , Lugano 780, Wallis 460, Thurgau 820, Säntis 1'330 and Graubünden 1'370.
Schauenburg specified Bern, Friborg, Lausanne and Basel as collection locations and Thun was added by the Helvetic Directory. They therefore had to be partially evacuated by the French occupation. The recruits were led there in groups of 20 to 30 men from the subordinate advertising spaces in Vevey, Nyon, Yverdon, Avenches, Lucerne, Zurich, Frauenfeld, St. Gallen and Appenzell.
| Name, duration of use |
(71 fra ) 1st Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1805 (72 fra ) 2nd Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1805 (73 fra ) 3rd Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1805 (74 fra ) 4th Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1800 (75 fra ) 5th Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1800 (76 fra ) 6th Helvetic Half-Brigade 1798–1800 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1798, offensive and defensive alliance with surrender of the First French Republic to the Directory of the Helvetic Republic. |
| Stock, formation |
Of the target population, 18,000 men in 6 half-brigades , by the end of May 1799 less than a quarter of these had actually been reached, around 4,000 men (1st half-brigade: 98/935 officers / man; 2nd: 92/643; 3rd : 64/500; 4th: 87/367; 5th: 89/617; 6 .: 79/567; total: 509 officers, 3,587 men. 775 officers and 17,225 men were required).
In addition, the number of desertions was horrendous (the supply in the exploited country was mostly catastrophic and the payout irregular, if at all). In January 1800, the number of half-brigades was therefore reduced from six to three: the 4th half-brigade was merged with the 2nd, the 5th with the 2nd and the 6th with the 1st half-brigade. In an attempt to reduce desertions, the three half-brigades were also moved to France. |
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Helvetic Republic. |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
The first commanders appointed were:
Battalion commanders: Johannes Merian from Basel, Louis Blanchenay from Morges, Fortunat Anton Rudolf Hartmannis from Graubünden;
Battalion commanders: Samuel Turtaz von Orbe, Beat Felber von Luzern, Joseph Crosier von Estavayer.
Battalion commanders: Georges Bazin from Duiller, Jeremias Obertäufer from Herisau, Alois Jost von Zizers;
from 2000 commanded:
|
| Use, events |
The half-brigades were primarily intended to protect the Helvetic Republic.
General Massena , under Ober-General Schauenburg, commander of the French occupying power in Switzerland, deployed the 1st half-brigade in 1798 to suppress rebellions in the Bernese Oberland and in 1799 all half-brigades in the first battle for Zurich . The 1st Half Brigade was already busy with fortification and fortification work in the north of the city of Zurich in March, was then relocated to Zurzach and taken back to the Koblenz-Zurzach area when Archduke Karl approached . The 2nd half-brigade was in the Fricktal and Rheinfelden from May, while the 3rd and 4th half-brigade were initially in Bern and later also on the Rhine. The 5th Half-Brigade defended two redoubts on the Zürichberg under adjutant major Abraham Rösselet from Twann and Lieutenant Manthe from Nyon and was relocated to the Lausanne-Yverdon area because of their great losses. The 6th half-brigade was deployed in the Brugg-Wildegg area. In the second battle for Zurich , the Helvetic auxiliaries were not deployed, with the exception of the 2nd half-brigade. At the last moment she rushed to the front, under the command of battalion commander Beat Felber from Lucerne (Colonel Jost Schwytzer was at the court martial in Basel), at Näfels, she took back a bridge over the Linth from the Russians and thus forced General Suworow to retreat the Panixerpass . The target numbers never reached and affected by rampant desertion persuaded the French high command in January 1800 to combine the six into three half-brigades and relocate them to French garrisons: the 1st half-brigade to Mainz, the 2nd to Landau and the 3rd to Strasbourg. With only about 2,100 men left, they were part of General Moreau's French Army on the Rhine, where they were primarily used to guard roads and river crossings and to escort supply columns. They were used in Heidelberg and Waiblingen and, for example, secured the gorges of the Neckar from Heidelberg to Wiesloch . In the same year they fought in the 4th French Corps of Division General Bruneteau near Hohenlinden against the Bavarian-Austrian troops under Johann von Österreich . In 1801, after the Treaty of Lunéville , the remnants of the three half-brigades of Moreau were assembled in Strasbourg and ordered back to Switzerland: the 1st half-brigade to Basel and in autumn to Freiburg, the 2nd to Zurich and later to Lucerne and the 3rd. to Lausanne. Since many periods of service had expired, maintaining the population turned out to be difficult. At the end of 1801, French interests turned south: The 1st half-brigade, with a recruiting depot in Freiburg, was relocated to Briançon via Grenoble. The 2nd half-brigade, with a recruiting depot in Lucerne, moved via Sion, Simplon Pass, Milan, Mortara, Salo on Lake Garda to Ravenna. The 3rd Half Brigade moved to Toulon via Geneva, Chambéry, Valence, Montelimar, Avignon and Aix-en-Provence. From there she was transferred to Corsica in January 1802 by General Morand on the frigate l'Hirondelle and the corvette l'Abeille. The staff and the 1st battalion occupied Bastia and the 2nd and 3rd battalion Ajaccio . Individual detachments were then stationed on the islands of Capraia and Elba . In 1802 the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Half-Brigade was embarked for the Antilles in Ajaccio. The protests of the board of directors of the 3rd half-brigade that this was not in accordance with the surrender of 1798, which did not (expressly?) Allow shipping, remained ineffective. The Helvetic Directory did not stand up for them. So the troops went with General Morand on the French warship "La Redoutable", in the absence of battalion chief Joseph Plazid Ab Yberg from Schwyz with Captain Hans Kaspar Wipf from Schaffhausen (the Graubünden Colonel Andreas Ragettli had been refused the command) St. Domingue (now Haiti) against the slave revolt in this French colony. The inventory included:
The losses in the Battle of Vertieres were considerable. Of the 635 men, only 11 survived the campaign. Yellow fever , against which the locals were immune, claimed the most victims . The expedition, like the French, was unsuccessful. Haiti won independence in 1804. In the autumn of 1802, the Helvetic Directory had to flee from Bern to Lausanne during the Stecklikkrieg under pressure from the rebels led by General Bachmann . The 1st and 2nd half-brigades called for help were reluctantly moved to Lausanne by Napoleon. General Rapp initially reached an armistice, but only a renewed French invasion of Switzerland ended the hostilities, shortly before the Helvetic Directory had to flee across Lake Geneva to Savoy. In November 1802, the 1st half-brigade then added the crew of Besançon and the 2nd half-brigade moved to Forlí via Geneva, Turin and Vercelli. In 1803 the 1st Half Brigade was relocated to La Rochelle for coastal protection with detachments in Bayonne , Rochefort and Nantes . Napoleon had an elite battalion spun off from it, which moved to Samer (east of Boulogne) under Fortunat Anton Rudolf Hartmannis . It was used on French warships, parts of which fell into English captivity. A delegation of the 1st half brigade also represented the Swiss troops at Napoleon's coronation in 1804. The 1st Battalion of the 2nd half-brigade was moved to 1805 to Naples and the 2nd and 3rd battalion Rimini, Bologna, Ferrara and Legnano to Forlí before 1805 contracted all three demi-brigades in Livorno and in the 1st Swiss regiment were incorporated . |
The promotion of these French auxiliaries was ineffective. Too many Swiss capable of military service had fled into exile, joined the emigrant regiments or joined the anti-French forces. In addition, the advertising was also opposed by the Helvetic Directory set up an independent Swiss legion of 22,000 men under General Augustin Keller, from Solothurn, and Chief of Staff Johann Gaudenz von Salis-Seewis, from Seewis in the Prättigau, which, however, did not even have 4 ' 000 men. In 1799 the board of directors ( Johann Lukas Legrand , Pierre-Maurice Glayre , Urs Viktor Oberlin , David Ludwig Bay and Alphons Pfyffer ) agreed with Massena that the existing Swiss regiments, with the exception of the 100 men of the Royal Swiss Guard and the Valais Beli regiment, des King Viktor Amadeus III abdicated in Piedmont during the French invasion in 1798. to regroup into a Helvetic Legion under French command.
| Name, duration of use |
(77 fra ) 1st Helvetic Legion 1799–1800 (78 fra ) 2nd Helvetic Legion 1799–1800 (79 fra ) Beli Regiment 1799-1800 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1799, offensive and defensive alliance with surrender of the First French Republic to the Directory of the Helvetic Republic. |
| Stock, formation |
Around 2,000 men in 2 Helvetic legions as 2 half-brigades with 3 battalions each. |
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Swiss regiments in the Savoy-Sardinian service that were abolished in 1798: von Ernst (Bern), von Belmont (Wallis), Schmid (Glarus), Zimmermann (Lucerne), Bachmann (St. Gallen and Appenzell), Peyer im Hof (Schaffhausen, Zug , Schwyz, Uri and Obwalden). The Beli regiment (Colonel Johann Rudolf Beli, approved by Graubünden in 1742) was not included. The competition for officer patents prevented this. The majority of the officers in the Swiss legions were Swiss. The majority of the team came from outside Switzerland. In 1800, the remnants of the Beli regiment were ultimately divided between the two Helvetic legions. |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
The commanders were:
|
| Use, events |
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Fortified Mantua in 1866
The two Helvetic legions under General Joubert in northern Italy had to cope with heavy losses in 1799 : on the Adige between Legnano and Postrengo (near Verona) with a draw and in the lost battle near Magnano . The entire 1st Helvetic Legion was captured there and, together with the Swiss, held captive of war in Styria, Carinthia and Hungary until 1800 after the occupation of Alexandria, which had been removed from the Battle of Cassano in 1799, which was lost against Suworow. The Swiss caught near Mantua are different . They were neutralized in France for a year. The remnants of the Helvetic Legion were finally transferred to the 3rd Helvetic Half-Brigade in 1800, after the remnants of the Beli regiment had been distributed to the Legion. Only a few returned home. |
The Helvetic Constitution brought significant progress to Switzerland: civil rights, territorial reform, state benefits (post office, single currency, school system), freedom of trade and commerce, secularization, and more. But the occupying power mercilessly exploited Switzerland. The state assets of the republics of Bern, Friborg, Solothurn, Lucerne and Zurich, as well as their arsenal holdings, were confiscated and a horrendous war tax of 16 million livres was decreed. Switzerland became a transit country and theater of war, had to bear enormous requisitions and atrocities of war. As soon as the occupiers loosened the military grip, internal party conflicts broke out. Until after the withdrawal of the French troops in 1802, the federalists finally gained the upper hand.
Combat troops for Emperor Napoleon I to conquer Europe in the mediation period 1803–1813
Napoleon appointed the federalist Louis d'Affry , mayor of Friborg, Mayor of Switzerland and in 1803 presented him with the mediation act . There was no referendum. With that the old Confederation was abolished and the federalist Swiss Confederation began as a de facto vassal state of France. But the turbulent times were replaced by external and internal peace. The economy and general condition of the country recovered. The industrialization of Switzerland began with the textile and machine industries. A first national feeling ( Unspunnenfest ) developed and the reforms of the Helvetic Republic continued in many areas. Swiss pedagogy ( Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi ) and the school system achieved an international reputation. Charitable works were created ( Linth correction ).
As early as 1803, the Diet signed a defensive alliance and a military capitulation for 25 years with the French envoy Michel Ney, representative of the First French Republic, in Freiburg and was thus integrated into the French alliance against Europe :
- France demanded 16,000 men or, if French territory was occupied by the enemy, 24,000 men in 4 regiments (plus 1 depot regiment of 1,000 men per regiment) in 2 brigades under Swiss generals;
- Every year, 20 places were reserved for young Swiss at the polytechnic school in Paris;
- The uniforms were red with yellow, royal blue, black or sky blue facings, depending on the regiment;
- Free exercise of religion and individual jurisdiction were granted;
- The troops were not allowed to be deployed outside of mainland Europe;
- The service period for soldiers was 4 years and reinstatement;
- The right of recall for personal use has been established;
- The salt supply was also reorganized: the compulsory purchase of 200,000 quintals of salt per year was, however, a tribute.
The recruitment of these Swiss troops took time and ultimately had to be taken over by the cantons and municipalities, which, despite the ever-increasing amount of extra cash, were unable to meet their quotas. Even if the increased unemployment due to the continental blockage eased the situation for a time: The grip to deport unpopular people and the conviction of criminals for the very least reason for military service promoted desertion. Napoleon threatened coercive measures, even annexation. In 1812, however, he allowed the Diet to reduce the number of regiments to 3 battalions and 1 depot half-battalion with 1,000 men each, i.e. 12,000 men in total. For this purpose, Switzerland should provide 2,000 recruits annually, in the event of a war in Germany and / or Italy 3,000.
| Name, duration of use |
(80 fra ) 1st Swiss Regiment 1805–1815 | |
| Year, contractual partner |
1805: The daily statute with Emperor Napoleon I, according to the military capitulation of 1803. | |
| Stock, formation |
Target stock: 4,000 men in 4 battalions with 9 companies of 112 men (plus 1 depot regiment of 1,000 men).
1812: Reduction of the requirement to 3 battalions of 1,000 men each (plus 1 depot half battalion of 500 men). |
|
| Origin squad, troop |
The 1st and 2nd Battalion were formed from the 3rd Helvetic Half-Brigade, the 3rd Battalion from the 1st Helvetic Half-Brigade and the 4th Battalion from the 2nd Helvetic Half-Brigade. |
Swiss Grenadier 1812
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| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commanders were:
|
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| Use, events |
The 1st Swiss Regiment took part in 15 battles: 1805 - Trafalgar and Castel-Franco, 1806 - Sainte-Euphemie and Rogliano, 1807 - Rolonda, Sainte-Euphemie, Sainte-Ambrosio and Capri, 1809 - Capri, 1812 - Vilnius, two Mal Polotsk , Berezina and Wilna, 1813 - Bremen . The regiment became part of Napoleon's Italian army and moved to Naples in 1806. It served King Joseph I, Napoleon's brother, and from 1808 King Joachim I , his brother-in-law. The regiment did not leave Naples until 1812, coming from Calabria, together with the other three Swiss regiments and the Neuchâtel battalion near Stettin for the fatal Russian campaign . Ragettli arrived there with the battalion commanders Scheuchzer and Dulliker. Dufresne had stayed behind in Piacenza. The four Swiss regiments were assigned to General Oudinot's corps operating on the northern flank . Above all, they had to cover the withdrawal of the defeated and disintegrating Grande Armée to Wilna (Vilnius). The Swiss regiments paid unusual for the first and second battles near Polosk, but mainly on the Berezina , where they lost 80% of their stocks, but also diseases and the extremely cold weather with poor supplies (food, material and above all ammunition!) high toll. Only 700 Swiss are said to have returned from Russia, most of them unable to work and severely disabled. After the Russian campaign, the regiments were reduced to depot battalions due to the great losses. In 1813 the 4 regiments / depot battalions were deployed at different locations and did not take part in the Battle of the Nations near Leipzig . In 1814, when Napoleon was overthrown, the Diet placed the Swiss troops in French service under the reinstalled Bourbon Louis XVIII. and left it at that when the exiled Napoleon surprisingly returned to Paris from the island of Elba in 1815 and was able to take over the government for a hundred days. With the exception of the four Swiss regiments, the French army defected to him. In the same year, after some hesitation, Switzerland recalled its troops. They were finally dismissed by Napoleon by decree on April 2, 1815. His attempt to directly change the regiment commanders' minds had only been successful with some of the members of the 3rd Swiss Regiment . |
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| Name, duration of use |
(81 fra ) 2nd Swiss Regiment 1806–1815 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1805: The daily statute with Emperor Napoleon I, according to the military capitulation of 1803. |
| Stock, formation |
Target stock: 4,000 men in 4 battalions with 9 companies of 112 men (plus 1 depot regiment of 1,000 men).
1812: Reduction of the requirement to 3 battalions of 1,000 men each (plus 1 depot half battalion of 500 men). |
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Confederation. |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commander was:
|
| Use, events |
Artillery fortress Roses (today)
The 2nd Swiss Regiment participated in 18 battles: 1808 - La Grenouilliere, Roses, Figuieres, and Evora, 1809 - Coruna , Ferrol, Oporto , Gerona , and Burgos, 1810 - Burgos, Corales, Toro, and Ribas, 1811 - Catalonia , 1812 - Belver, Polotsk, and Beresina, 1814 - Schlettstadt. The regiment was mainly used in Spain . Then in 1812, coming from Marseille and Toulon , it was brought together with the other three Swiss regiments and the Neuchâtel battalion near Stettin for the fatal Russian campaign. Colonel Castella commanded the battalion commanders Franz Peter Niklaus Von der Weid von Seedorf, Joseph Ignaz von Flüe and Captain Hartmann Füßli. After the Russian campaign, the regiment was reduced to a depot battalion due to its heavy losses and was disbanded in 1815 (see 1st Swiss Regiment ). |
| Name, duration of use |
(82 fra ) 3rd Swiss Regiment 1806–1815 | |
| Year, contractual partner |
1805: The daily statute with Emperor Napoleon I, according to the military capitulation of 1803. | |
| Stock, formation |
Target stock: 4,000 men in 4 battalions with 9 companies of 112 men (plus 1 depot regiment of 1,000 men).
1812: Reduction of the requirement to 3 battalions of 1,000 men each (plus 1 depot half battalion of 500 men). |
|
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Confederation. | |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commander was:
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| Use, events |
The 3rd Swiss Regiment had its recruitment depot in Lille and fought in 15 battles: 1808 - Jaen, Bailen , and Cara-de-Deu, 1809 - Tuy and Oporto , 1810 - Cádiz, León, Pueblo, and Sanabria, 1812 - Drissa , Polotsk, Lepel, Berezina, and Vilna, 1814 - Besançon. First, the 1st Battalion, Charles d'Affry, Freiburg, accompanied by the regimental commander, marched to Andalusia to the corps of General Dupont . This (2nd Corps d'Observation de la Gironde) consisted of a cavalry division and a strong artillery and genius division with 38 guns, three infantry divisions, a total of 24,000 men. The battalion with Colonel von May, Battalion Commander d'Affry, Adjutant-Major Karl-Emmanuel von der Weid from Freiburg, Captain Rudolf Karl Amédée von Muralt from Bern and 1,178 men were subordinate to General Vedel’s 2nd Infantry Division. The 3rd Battalion from the 4th Swiss Regiment with the second Colonel (Colonel en second) Nicolaus Freuler from Glarus, Battalion Commander Ludwig Christen from Unterwalden, Captain Johannes Landolt from Zurich, and Lieutenant Kaspar Schumacher from were assigned to the 1st Infantry Division of General Barbou Lucerne, Feldweibel Georg Heidegger from Zurich and 709 soldiers. These two "red" Swiss battalions of Dupont and the two in Madrid caught by Dupont taken Spanish (the remote Napoleon Spanish Bourbons ) "blue" Swiss regiments Jung-Reding and de Preux on the French side came in 1808 in the Battle of Bailen in a tragic situation. Once again there was a direct encounter between Swiss troops in opposing ranks . On the Spanish side, in the ranks of the rebels, the four "blue" Swiss regiments Wimpfen, Alt-Reding, von Reding and Traxler, loyal to the Spanish Bourbons , fought under Theodor von Reding . The French "blue" regiment Jung-Reding threw the Spanish "blue" regiment Alt-Reding from its positions. When the rumor of an armistice got around, many members of the French "blue" regiments Jung-Reding and de Preux, despite the efforts of the officers, defected to Theodor von Reding. The battle ended with the victory of Redings and the surrender of Dupont. The commander-in-chief Castanos received the laurels for this, although he was not even present in Bailen! This victory destroyed the aura of invincibility of the Napoleonic troops and led to the capture of General Dupont and, together with the 17,000 French prisoners, also around 1,700 Swiss troops, including Colonel Ludwig von May. Unlike the officers who were released after some time, the crew was held in Spanish captivity for a long time: first under the most miserable conditions on dismantled warships near Cádiz (pontons of Cádiz) and then until 1815 on the island of Cabrera . The 3rd Swiss regiment alone lost over 1,000 men. Few survived. Second, the 2nd Battalion, Jonathan von Graffenried, Bern, moved to Northern Spain to the Corps of General Bersiéres (later Soult ), where it was practically wiped out in the guerrilla war. The 3rd battalion, Emil Andreas von Peyer-Imhof, Lucerne, was not complete until 1808 and was deployed to Flanders for guarding the Belgian coast west of the Scheldt and for building the Schelde-Oise canal , with camp in Bellicourt near St. Quentin. From 1810 it was on the islands in the mouth of the Meuse and in Breda and suffered badly from rampant malaria . The 4th Battalion, Johann Baptist Bucher, Nidwalden, was only able to march in 1809 and, like the 3rd, was deployed in Flanders for the coastal defense in Dunkirk , later in Bruges and on the islands in the mouth of the Scheldt as part of the 17th French military division . The regiment was united for the first time in Bergen-op-Zoom in 1811 , recruited to 1,750 men and together with the other three Swiss regiments and the Neuchâtel battalion near Stettin for the fatal Russian campaign. Colonel Thomasset had the battalion commanders Peyer Im Hof, Hieronimus Weltner, von Graffenried and Bucher in the depot in Lille. After the Russian campaign, the regiment was reduced to a depot battalion due to its heavy losses and was released in 1815 (see 1st Swiss Regiment ). Some members of the regiment were then recruited by the 2nd foreign regiment, the Stoffel battalion . |
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| Name, duration of use |
(83 fra ) 4th Swiss Regiment 1806–1815 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1805: The daily statute with Emperor Napoleon I, according to the military capitulation of 1803. |
| Stock, formation |
Target stock: 4,000 men in 4 battalions with 9 companies of 112 men (plus 1 depot regiment of 1,000 men).
1812: Reduction of the requirement to 3 battalions of 1,000 men each (plus 1 depot half battalion of 500 men). |
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Confederation. |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commander was:
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| Use, events |
The 4th Swiss Regiment was deployed 22 times: 1807 - Heilsberg and Friedland , 1808 - Lisbon, Alcolea, Obidos, Rolicia, and Vimeiro , 1809 - Chaves, Tuy, and Oporto, 1810 - Vallavoid, 1811 - Magas, 1812 - Zoa , Llanguez, Polotsk, Berezina, Borisov, Cedano, Wilna, and Kovno, 1813 - Delfzyl, 1814 - Besançon. The regiment was initially in France before it was deployed in East Prussia in 1807 and then on the Iberian Peninsula in 1808 . This war in Spain from 1807 to 1814 was fought with relentless severity, including against civilians. The guerrillas had blurred the line between civilians and combatants. The disturbing pictures by the contemporary Spanish painter Francisco de Goya i Lucientes are impressive evidence of this. The 3rd battalion of the regiment got into a tragic situation in 1808 together with the 1st battalion from the 3rd Swiss regiment in the corps of General Dupont in the battle of Bailén (see 3rd Swiss Regiment ). The regiment came from Cherbourg in 1812, together with the other three Swiss regiments and the Neuchâtel battalion near Stettin for the fatal Russian campaign. Colonel d'Affry commanded the battalion commanders Bleuler, de Maillardoz and Im Thurn. After the Russian campaign, the regiment was reduced to a depot battalion due to its heavy losses and was released in 1815 (see 1st Swiss Regiment ). |
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| Name, duration of use |
(84 fra ) Valais battalion 1805–1811 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1805, military capitulation with sixteen paragraphs of the State Councilor Anton Valentin Sigristen of the Republic of Valais with Emperor Napoleon I, separated from the Helvetic Republic by France in 1802:
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| Stock, formation |
1 battalion with staff of 661 officers, NCOs and soldiers in 4 fusilier and 1 grenadier company. |
| Origin squad, troop |
From the Republic of Valais . |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commanders were:
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| Use, events |
The recruitment dragged on, although Napoleon had meanwhile relaxed the requirements regarding body size and company strength (from 129 to 83 men). The discussions between the French Minister of War and the Council of State about filling the officer positions continued. The drafting of the team by the Swiss Regiment de Preux in Spanish service and the formation of a separate guard for the Republic of Valais of 600 men were also in competition. The Valais battalion was subordinated to General Reille's relief army , which was supposed to relieve General Duhesme's corps, which was trapped in Barcelona by the Spanish uprising , and was deployed in Catalonia. In 1808 it finally reached Reille's troops in Perpignan and was ambushed for the first time as an escort for a grain transport to the south, in which it proved itself excellently. 
Simplon Pass road built by Napoleon 1800–1807
In General Joba's brigade, the Valais battalion was reduced to around half due to combat missions during the sieges of Gerona and the Roses fortress as well as due to the unfamiliar climate, epidemics and exhaustion due to insufficient supplies, despite regular recruits. The main task of the battalion remained the service as escort of the French requisition units against the insurgents outside the secured cities. In 1810, Napoleon annexed Valais and declared it the Simplon department (the Simplon and Great St. Bernard passes were of strategic importance), withdrew the Valais battalion from Spain and converted it to the 3rd battalion of the French 11th light infantry regiment. |
| Name, duration of use |
(85 fra ) Neuchâtel battalion 1807–1814 | |
| Year, contractual partner |
1807, imperial decree , initiated by the French Minister of War, Marshal Louis-Alexandre Berthier , Prince of Neuchâtel and Valangin. | |
| Stock, formation |
1 battalion with 875 men in 1 small staff, 4 fusilier, 1 voltigeur and 1 grenadier companies with a company stock of 160 men (3 officers, 6 NCOs, 2 reels and 2 soldiers' children included) as well as yellow uniform with red facings ("les canaris ", German: the canaries ).
Obviously, the recruitment was arduous. At the end of 1807 there were only 479 officers and soldiers in training at the Besançon depot! In 1808 Napoleon assigned the battalion an artillery battery of 83 men with 2 guns 6 caliber and ammunition wagons. |
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| Origin squad, troop |
From Neuchâtel, Valais and the Swiss Confederation. | |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commander was:
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| Use, events |
In 1808 the battalion in Le Havre was deployed against the English and was more than halved due to deaths, epidemics and desertion, but was restored by the end of the year. In the 1809 campaign to Germany and Austria, it was assigned to the headquarters of the Grande Armée , responsible for the protection of communications. At Wagram it excelled in defending an important bridge over the Danube. In the campaign to Spain it took part in the siege of Ciudad-Rodrigo and the fighting in Alcoa from 1810-1812 , before it was pulled together with the four Swiss regiments near Stettin for the fatal Russian campaign of 1812. The Neuchâtel battalion was with the Main power en route, was practically eliminated in Smolensk and on the march and in 1813 only participated in company strength in Dresden and Leipzig . It was abdicated in Chartres in 1814. |
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The defeat of Napoleon in 1813 at Leipzig left Napoleon's allies to fall away and gave the other side (Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden) a boost. Their invasion of Paris in 1814 led to the deposition of Napoleon by the French Senate , his abdication and exile to the island of Elba .
The daily statute relieved all Swiss troops from their oath and subordinated the 4 Swiss depot battalions to the restored King Louis XVIII. When Napoleon unexpectedly returned in 1815, they were called back to Switzerland.
| Name, duration of use |
(86 fra ) Battalion Stoffel (2nd Foreign Regiment) 1815 |
| Year, contractual partner |
1815, instructions from Napoleon, who had returned from Elba, to War Minister Marshal Davout to form eight foreign regiments, including the 2nd foreign regiment made up of Swiss. |
| Stock, formation |
1 battalion of 526 men including 41 officers and 146 NCOs and drums. |
| Origin squad, troop |
Volunteers from the 3rd Swiss Regiment. |
| Owner, commander, namesake |
Commander was:
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| Use, events |
Colonel May of the 3rd Swiss Regiment had left Paris before the official discharge of his troops and had returned home. Napoleon therefore handed the regiment over to the loyal Colonel Stoffel, who was in formation and won over members of the regiment to transfer to the 2nd foreign regiment. A battalion of around 500 men was formed, a second never came about. The Stoffel battalion took part in the campaign to Belgium in 1815. It was not directly involved in the decisive battle of Waterloo , but tried at the same time and in parallel, as part of General Habert's 10th Division , to take the town of Wavre , which was tenaciously defended by the Prussians . In two unsuccessful attacks on the "Pont du Christ" bridge over the Dyle river, the battalion lost 9 officers and 111 non-commissioned officers and soldiers, i.e. around a quarter of its population. The French finally won in Wavre. But in the meantime the battle in Waterloo had ended in favor of the Allies. The brave efforts of the only Swiss troops on this fateful day were tragically in vain. A few weeks later the Stoffel battalion in Agen with 52 officers and 312 NCOs and soldiers was abdicated and dismissed. |
The Battle of Waterloo in 1815 marked the final end of Napoleon and his empire. He died of stomach cancer in 1821 in exile in Sankt Helena .
Napoleon Bonaparte was a phenomenon of the French Revolution. He consolidated their achievements and spread them across the continent. At times he did it alone against all and changed Europe permanently. Napoleon's rise was vertiginously steep, his influence sweeping for a decade, his fall - with a spectacular stop - abrupt and violent.
The rule of law and the ideal of (individual) freedom that it left behind have since become an indispensable part of the self-image of the people of Europe. They paid the price for this on many battlefields with hundreds of thousands of dead, displaced, uprooted, disabled and injured people.
But Napoleon's end was not the end of Swiss troops in French service. Their story would go on under his successors, the Bourbons of the Restoration .
See also
- Swiss troops in foreign service
- Swiss troops in French service for the Valois royal family 1480–1589
- Swiss troops in French service for the Bourbon royal house 1589–1792
- Swiss troops in French service for the Bourbon royal house 1814–1830
- Philippe Henry: Foreign services. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- Images from Napoleon's war in Spain by Francisco de Goya
literature
- Heinrich Türler, Viktor Attinger, Marcel Godet: Historical-Biographical Lexicon of Switzerland . Fourth volume. Neuchâtel 1927, OCLC 929267763 .
- Moritz von Wattenwyl: The Swiss in foreign military service. Separately printed from the Berner Tagblatt , Bern 1930, OCLC 72379925 .
- Paul de Vallière, Henry Guisan , Ulrich Wille : Loyalty and honor, history of the Swiss in foreign service (translated by Walter Sandoz). Les Editions d'art ancien, Lausanne 1940, OCLC 610616869 .
- Fernando Bernoulli: The Helvetic half-brigades in the service of France 1798-1805 . Verlag Huber, Frauenfeld 1934, OCLC 314036593 .
- First Helvetic Constitution ( Wikisource )
- Mediation file ( Wikisource )
Web links
- Cabrera prison island
- Beresinalied ( Beresinalied on Youtube)
- Army of the Interior (French)
- General Charles Antoine Morand (French)
- General Dominique Joba (French)
- General Antoine Vedel (French)
- Society "3me Regiment Suisse 1806-1815" (French)
- The 4th Swiss Regiment (French)
- The Neuchâtel battalion (French)
- 1813: Battle of the Nations near Leipzig (documentary ARD, youtube)
- 1815: Waterloo - Napoleon's last battle (documentary ZDFinfo, youtube)
Individual evidence
- ^ Peter F. Kopp: Ochs, Peter. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ First Helvetic Constitution ( Wikisource )
- ^ Andreas Fankhauser: Helvetic Republic. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Paul de Vallière, Henry Guisan, Ulrich Wille: Treue und Ehre, history of the Swiss in foreign service (translated by Walter Sandoz). Les Editions d'art ancien, Lausanne 1940.
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↑ Fernando Bernoulli: The Helvetian Half-Brigades in the service of France 1798-1805 . Verlag Huber, Frauenfeld 1934, Appendix: List of senior officers in the six Helvetian half-brigades (initial budget):
name first Name Degree HB place Perrier Dominique 0 commander 1 Estavayer Siggi Peter 1 adjutant major 1 Canton Bern Lander Leopold 1 adjutant major 1 Rorschach Ragon? 2 quartermasters 1 ? Ruchonnet Frédéric 2 quartermasters 1 Vevey Merian Hans 3 battalion commander 1 Basel Blanchenay Louis 3 battalion commander 1 Morges Hartmannis Rudolf 3 battalion commander 1 canton of Grisons Real de Chapelle Rodolphe 4 captain 1 Moudon Frey Hans Ludwig 4 captain 1 Basel Engler Joseph 4 captain 1 canton of Grisons Chollet Antoine 4 captain 1 Freiburg Richard? 4 captain 1 Nyon Desaillaux Jean François 4 captain 1 Vevey Altermatt Karl (son) 4 captain 1 Solothurn Magatti Giuseppe (father) 4 captain 1 Lugano Oberried Heinrich 4 captain 1 Basel Jenny Hans 4 captain 1 Dwindling Camarés Jean Mazard 4 captain 1 Lausanne Roux Jean Pierre 4 captain 1 Montreux Bays Joseph 4 captain 1 Châtelard Jolimay? 4 captain 1 Yverdon Buxtorf? 4 captain 1 Basel Schaefer Hans Jakob 4 captain 1 Seltisberg Reding Xaver 4 captain 1 Näfels Clerc Jacques 4 captain 1 Romont Mercier Pierre Abraham 4 captain 1 Penthereyez Druet Pierre 4 captain 1 Faoug Corre by Louis 4 captain 1 Yverdon Leaf man Franz Joseph 4 captain 1 Aegeri Besançenet Jean Jacques 4 captain 1 Yverdon Schmidt Joseph 4 captain 1 Solothurn Rivaz Rudolf 4 captain 1 Lugano Diesbach Niklaus Rudolf von 4 captain 1 Bern Bugget Jean 4 captain 1 Bellegarde Schwytzer Jost 0 commander 2 Lucerne Zingg Karl 1 adjutant major 2 ? All of Diethelm 1 adjutant major 2 Rümlang Reymondin Jean Samson Louis 2 quartermasters 2 Pully Snell Auguste 2 quartermasters 2 Nyon Felber beat 3 battalion commander 2 Lucerne Croisier Joseph 3 battalion commander 2 Estavayer Lichem Ludwig 3 battalion commander 2 Solothurn Dulliker Ludwig 4 captain 2 Lucerne Ernst Beat Ludwig from 4 captain 2 Bern Pfister Joseph Placidius 4 captain 2 Gossau Andermatt Cajetan 4 captain 2 Baar Quadri? 4 captain 2 Lugano Goeldlin Baptist 4 captain 2 Lucerne Neuhaus beat 4 captain 2 Cerlier Gaudard Paul Friedrich 4 captain 2 Bern Reymond Louis 4 captain 2 Canton of Leman Denervo Barthelmi 4 captain 2 Bulloz Chessex Jean David 4 captain 2 Montreux Brunner Joseph 4 captain 2 Solothurn Flugi Niklaus 4 captain 2 canton of Grisons Pfander Hans 4 captain 2 Belp Martinet Jean Jacques 4 captain 2 Lausanne Piaget Louis 4 captain 2 Orbe Thomann Hans Gaspar 4 captain 2 Zurich Baud? 4 captain 2 Canton of Leman Huber Hans Jakob 4 captain 2 Augst Nikisch? 4 captain 2 Austria Belasi Felix 4 captain 2 Lugano Stucki Benedict 4 captain 2 Münsingen Imhof Jakob Martin 4 captain 2 Kanton Aargau Bell Franz Joseph 4 captain 2 Lucerne Real Chrétien 4 captain 2 Lausanne Gubler Urs 4 captain 2 Canton of Solothurn Zwicki Melchior 0 commander 3 Mollis Basin George 3 battalion commander 3 Duiller High Baptist Jeremiah 3 battalion commander 3 Herisau Ragettli Andreas 3 battalion commander 3 Flims Kasthofer Niklaus Samuel 4 captain 3 Bern Chuard Victor 4 captain 3 Payerne Carli? 4 captain 3 Freiburg Bavier George 4 captain 3 Chur Purry Melchior 4 captain 3 Schwyz Grossmann Franz 4 captain 3 Brienz Bieri Christian 4 captain 3 Schangnau Porcelet Henri Samuel 4 captain 3 Estavayer Langhans Karl 4 captain 3 Bern Oguey Emanuel 4 captain 3 Ormond Clement? 4 captain 3 Bex Diesbach Bernhard von 4 captain 3 Burgdorf Comte Frédéric 4 captain 3 Nyon Sturzenegger Leonhard 4 captain 3 Trogen Dennler Hans 4 captain 3 Langenthal Lambert Joseph 4 captain 3 Yverdon Frey Peter Karl 4 captain 3 Zurzach Gaudron Louis 4 captain 3 Châtel St. Denis Eck Anton 4 captain 3 Schänis Galati Melchior 4 captain 3 Glarus Lord Emanuel 4 captain 3 Bilens Because? 4 captain 3 Freiburg Flüe Ferdinand Von der 4 captain 3 Obwalden Weather? 4 captain 3 St. Gallen Nänny Hans Konrad 4 captain 3 Herisau Falcini Louis 4 captain 3 Lucerne Wattenwyl Ludwig from 0 commander 4th Bern Spelti Friedrich 3 battalion commander 4th Glarus Guillot Pierre Joseph 3 battalion commander 4th Valais Sterki Emanuel 3 battalion commander 4th Morges Brunner Franz Xaver 4 captain 4th Lucerne Gresser Hans 4 captain 4th Wyl Tissot? 4 captain 4th Lausanne Brun François 4 captain 4th Canton of Leman Büel Ulrich 4 captain 4th canton of Grisons Fischer Ludwig 4 captain 4th Bern Meyer Franz Bernhard 4 captain 4th Lucerne Tardi Emanuel 4 captain 4th Estavayer Im Thurn Franz Konrad 4 captain 4th Schaffhausen Hottinger Hans Kaspar 4 captain 4th Herrliberg Bourgeois? 4 captain 4th Moudon Theiler Hans Heinrich 4 captain 4th Waedenswil Rouiller François 4 captain 4th Vaulruz Meyenfish? 4 captain 4th Kaiserstuhl Wayermann Rudolf Friedrich 4 captain 4th Bern Braillard Jean Pierre 4 captain 4th Sottens Mechler Jakob 4 captain 4th March (Canton of Linth) Dubois? 4 captain 4th Vevey Bonne François 4 captain 4th St. Saphorin Guiguer Charles Jules 4 captain 4th Prangins Ruplin? 4 captain 4th Canton of Thurgau Rossat? 4 captain 4th Grandson Jütz Jakob 4 captain 4th Schwyz All Wilhelm 4 captain 4th Rümlang Turtaz Samuel 0 commander 5 Orbe Barthés Pierre 1 adjutant major 5 Canton of Säntis Rösselet Abraham 1 adjutant major 5 Twann Little Hans 1 adjutant major 5 ? Weber? 2 quartermasters 5 Vevey Scheuchzer Hans 3 battalion commander 5 Zurich Gugger? 3 battalion commander 5 Canton of Säntis Dufresne Charles 3 battalion commander 5 Vevey Begos Charles 4 captain 5 Aubonne Tschudi? 4 captain 5 Dwindling Coraggioni Joseph Gaspar 4 captain 5 Lucerne Joss Joseph 4 captain 5 Zizers Ferlus Claude Gédéon 4 captain 5 Nyon Bodmer Kaspar 4 captain 5 Stäfa Wyder Hans 4 captain 5 Aarmühli Korrodi Kaspar 4 captain 5 Zurich Rüttimann Franz 4 captain 5 Sursee Daniesis Peter Anton 4 captain 5 Rorschach Burnand Heinrich 4 captain 5 Moudon Meyer Timotheus 4 captain 5 Lucerne Arpeaud Samuel 4 captain 5 Cheseray Chollet Nicolas 4 captain 5 Freiburg Burckhardt Andreas 4 captain 5 Basel Peyer Thomas 4 captain 5 Willisau Duplessis Emanuel 4 captain 5 Ependes Miller Joseph 4 captain 5 Grossdietwil Faucherre Gabriel 4 captain 5 Moudon Stockmann Niklaus 4 captain 5 Unterwalden Maigroz Isaak 4 captain 5 Lutry Mathis Hans 4 captain 5 Church Village Verret Jacques Emanuel 4 captain 5 Nyon Morosini Claude 4 captain 5 Lugano Egger Arnold 4 captain 5 Meiringen Fisherman crispin 4 captain 5 canton of Grisons Tobler Johannes 0 commander 6th Appenzell Feer Wilhelm 2 quartermasters 6th Canton of Säntis Huber Leonhard 2 quartermasters 6th Basel Gessner Kaspar 3 battalion commander 6th Zurich Müller Andreas 3 battalion commander 6th St. Gallen Tschudi Christian 3 battalion commander 6th Glarus Visinand François Louis 4 captain 6th Corsier Flüe Niklaus Von der 4 captain 6th Saxelen Ackermann Jakob 4 captain 6th Mühlehorn Germann Franz Joseph 4 captain 6th Lichtensteig Schmidt Franz 4 captain 6th Altdorf Chapuis Jean Siméon 4 captain 6th Rivaz Barra Jacques 4 captain 6th Lugano Chimney Hans 4 captain 6th Kerenzen Miller Peter 4 captain 6th Frutigen Duprez Jacques 4 captain 6th St. Maurice Voitel Heinrich 4 captain 6th Solothurn Bourgeois Henri Frédéric 4 captain 6th Yverdon Holderegger Hans Baptist 4 captain 6th Appenzell Traxler Xaver 4 captain 6th Stans Book Christian 4 captain 6th Ringgenberg Effinger Augustin 4 captain 6th Einsiedeln Jacker Niklaus 4 captain 6th Erschwil Hopf Samuel 4 captain 6th Cerlier Knots Joseph 4 captain 6th Oberegg Dörrig Laurenz 4 captain 6th Appenzell district Crack David Friedrich 4 captain 6th Bern Gwerder Aloys 4 captain 6th Schwyz Straumeyer Peter 4 captain 6th Büsserach Grémion? 4 captain 6th Nerigues Weymann Ludwig 4 captain 6th Altstätten Chenaud Avril 4 captain 6th Tour de Trême - ↑ Hans Braun: Weber, Johann. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ A b Hubert Foerster: Perrier, François Dominique. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Hans Braun: Wattenwyl, Beat Ludwig von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ a b c Martin Bundi: Ragettli, Andreas. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ A b Franz Auf der Maur: Ab Yberg, Joseph Plazid. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Fernando Bernoulli: The Helvetian Half-Brigades in the Service of France 1798-1805 , Verlag Huber, Frauenfeld 1934.
- ↑ Jürg Stüssi-Lauterburg: Stecklikrieg. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Niklaus Laupper: Bachmann, Niklaus Franz von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Andreas Fankhauser: Keller, Augustin. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Andreas Fankhauser: Salis, Johann Gaudenz von (-Seewis). In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Sébastien Rial: Ernst, Franz Friedrich Samuel von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Alain-Jacques Tornare Czouz-: Affry, Ludwig von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Mediation file ( Wikisource )
- ^ Gilbert Marion: Réal, Rodolphe (de Chapelle). In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Pierre de Castella: Castella, Nicolas Antoine Xavier de. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Fritz Dick: The 3rd Swiss Regiment 1806–1812 and its Solothurn officers in the service of Napoleon I , Yearbook for Solothurn History, Volume 17, 1944.
- ↑ Hans Braun: May, Rudolf Beat Ludwig von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ Gilbert Marion: Thomasset, Frédéric-Georges. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Hubert Foerster: Weid, Karl-Emmanuel von der. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ^ The prisoner island of Cabrera
- ↑ Guy C. Dempsey: Napoleon's Mercenaries, Foreign Units in the French Army under the Consulate and the Empire, 1799 to 1814 , Greenhill Books, London 2002.
- ^ Bernhard Truffer: Sigristen, Anton Valentin. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Constitution of the Republic of Valais (1802)
- ↑ Le 3ème régiment suisse Website of the company "Le 3ème régiment suisse"
- ^ Page "Bataillon Neuchâtel" in French Wikipedia: fr: Bataillon du prince de Neuchâtel .
- ↑ Derck Engelberts: Bosset, Jean Henri de. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Erich Trösch: Stoffel, Christoph Anton. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
- ↑ Olivier Meuwly: Valliere, Paul de. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .