Napoleon's Red Lancers

Napoleon's Red Lancers

Author: Ronald Pawly

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-03-20

Total Pages: 118

ISBN-13: 1780965575

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The legendary Dutch 'Red' Lancers – the 2nd Light Horse Lancers of Napoleon's Imperial Guard – were formed in 1810 after the emperor annexed Holland and its army to France. The former hussars of the Dutch Royal Guard got a handsome new uniform, a new weapon, and a hard-driving new colonel in Baron Edouard Colbert. His lancers distinguished themselves in Russia in 1812, at huge cost; in Germany in 1813, and in the Low Countries in 1814. When Napoleon returned from exile in 1815 the Red Lancers were with him until night fell over Waterloo. Ronald Pawly is the world's leading expert on the archival and pictorial record left by this regiment; his detailed text is illustrated with rare portraits and photographs, and eight glowing colour plates of a surprisingly wide variety of uniforms.


Napoleon’s Polish Lancers of the Imperial Guard

Napoleon’s Polish Lancers of the Imperial Guard

Author: Ronald Pawly

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-02-20

Total Pages: 123

ISBN-13: 1780964110

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This book draws on original regimental records to give by far the most detailed account ever published in English of the organization and personalities of the most renowned of the foreign units that served in the Emperor's armies. Unlike most of his foreign troops, these Polish horsemen were true volunteers, who owed their honoured place in his Imperial Guard to their proven courage and dash on battlefields from Spain to Russia. The text is illustrated with rare portraits and photographs, and with detailed colour plates of the Lancers' magnificent uniforms.


Napoleon’s Dragoons of the Imperial Guard

Napoleon’s Dragoons of the Imperial Guard

Author: Ronald Pawly

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-04-20

Total Pages: 121

ISBN-13: 1780964048

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Dressed in distinctive green uniforms and classically inspired copper helmets, the Dragoons of the Imperial Guard were raised in 1806 by the same criteria as other Guard units – by selection of picked, literate veterans from Line regiments who had six to ten years of service, and citations for bravery in at least two campaigns. The following year they were named Dragons de l'Impératrice in a unique compliment to the Empress Josephine. As a ceremonial regiment it enjoyed many privileges, but it also saw combat on a number of occasions, including the battles of Essling and Wagram (1809), the Russian campaign (1812, when it suffered severe losses), at Bautzen, Wachau and Leipzig (1813), in the 1814 Campaign of France, and at Ligny and Waterloo (1815).


Napoleon's Line Infantry

Napoleon's Line Infantry

Author: Philip Haythornthwaite

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-11-20

Total Pages: 91

ISBN-13: 1782007016

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Napoleon's line infantry was founded upon that of the Ancien Régime. A total re-organisation began on 1 January 1791 with the abolition of the old regimental titles, and over the next two years an increasing number of conscript and volunteer battalions were formed. Their quality varied from the proficiency of the early National Guard regiments to the untrained and ill-equipped rabble of the levée. To combine the discipline and steadiness of the regular army with the revolutionary fervour of the new army, the Amalgame was decreed on 21 February; by this measure each regular battalion became the nucleus of a new Demi-Brigade.


Conscription in the Napoleonic Era

Conscription in the Napoleonic Era

Author: Donald Stoker

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2008-10-09

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 1134270100

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This edited volume explores conscription in the Napoleonic era, tracing the roots of European conscription and exploring the many methods that states used to obtain the manpower they needed to prosecute their wars. The levée-en-masse of the French Revolution has often been cited as a ‘Revolution in Military Affairs’, but was it truly a ‘revolutionary’ break with past European practices of raising armies, or an intensification of the scope and scale of practices already inherent in the European military system? This international collection of scholars demonstrate that European conscription has far deeper roots than has been previously acknowledged, and that its intensification during the Napoleonic era was more an ‘evolutionary’ than ‘revolutionary’ change. This book will be of much interest to students of Military History, Strategic Studies, Strategic History and European History.


Napoleonic Light Cavalry Tactics

Napoleonic Light Cavalry Tactics

Author: Philip Haythornthwaite

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2013-12-20

Total Pages: 149

ISBN-13: 1780961049

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During the Napoleonic Wars all the major combatants fielded large numbers of light cavalry. These nimble, fast-moving regiments performed a variety of vital roles, from reconnaissance and keeping contact with the enemy during the movement of armies, to raiding, skirmishing, and the pursuit to destruction of beaten enemies. In practice, light cavalry were often also employed for battlefield charges alongside the heavy cavalry. Featuring period illustrations and specially commissioned colour artwork, this is the second volume of a two-part study of the cavalry tactics of the armies of Napoleon and those of his allies and opponents. Written by a leading authority on the period, it draws upon drill manuals and later writings to offer a vivid assessment of how light cavalry actually fought on the Napoleonic battlefield.


Gallantry and Discipline

Gallantry and Discipline

Author: Andrew Bamford

Publisher: Frontline Books

Published: 2014-10-20

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 1848327439

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The 12th Light Dragoons served throughout Wellington's campaigns in the Peninsula, most notably at the Battle of Salamanca in 1812, and later at Waterloo where they suffered heavy casualties supporting the Union Brigade's famous charge. The principal source for this book are the papers of Sir James Steaurt _ Colonel of the regiment for almost all of the period in question _ supplemented by other regimental records, Horse Guards paperwork, and letters and memoirs, allowing both an official understanding of events, and several threads of human interest which develop through the narrative.??The book is divided into two halves, first providing an overview of the regiment and the role of Steuart as Colonel, before moving onto an account of the regiment on home service during the early years of the Napoleonic Wars and then on active service in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo. This concludes with a discussion of the lessons learnt during the war, as particularly exemplified by the 12th being one of the regiments selected for conversion to lancers in the aftermath of Waterloo.


Napoleon’s Carabiniers

Napoleon’s Carabiniers

Author: Ronald Pawly

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-03-20

Total Pages: 119

ISBN-13: 1780965559

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The two privileged regiments of Carabiniers survived the French Revolution with their elite status intact. They covered themselves with glory at Austerlitz, Friedland, Ratisbonne and Wagram where their bloody losses shocked Napoleon into ordering them new helmets and cuirasses. Re-formed after near annihilation in Russia in 1812, they fought at Leipzig and in many actions of the 1814 French campaign, and made one of the final charges at Waterloo. lllustrated with rare early prints and meticulous colour reconstructions, this book details their story, and their unique uniforms, from surviving period documents.


Napoleon's Cuirassiers and Carabiniers

Napoleon's Cuirassiers and Carabiniers

Author: Emir Bukhari

Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Published: 1977-06-30

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780850450965

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Owing to the heavy casualties suffered by the Carabiniers in the 1809 campaign, the Emperor decreed that they should be armored to the same advantage as the Cuirassiers. In this way the two corps drew together in being the only troops of the Grande Armeé who were armoured, while at the same time they diverged in breaking away from their traditionally similar dress. Emir Bukhari does a splendid job of examining the uniforms and equipment of Napoleon's Cuirassiers and Carabiniers of the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), in a text complemented throughout by numerous illustrations and diagrams including eight full page color plates by the ever popular Angus McBride.


Napoleon's Guards of Honour

Napoleon's Guards of Honour

Author: Ronald Pawly

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2012-03-20

Total Pages: 120

ISBN-13: 1780965591

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One of the least understood of Napoleon's corps were the four regiments of Gardes d'honneur, raised in 1813 during the frantic rebuilding of the French cavalry after the huge losses in Russia. Recruited from the leading social classes, uniformed and equipped at their own expense, and accompanied by servants to take care of such unpleasant chores as stable duty, these men were promised commissions as officers after a year's service in the ranks. Though spectacularly unready for combat upon their arrival with the army, the Guards of Honour would gain skill and confidence while serving alongside the élite cavalry of the Imperial Guard in the campaigns of Saxony and France, 1813-14, and distinguished themselves in battle at Hanau and Rheims. The story of their organisation, uniforms and service is researched from rare archives and memoirs, and illustrated with portraits, surviving uniform items, and meticulous colour plates.