Warburg French Flags Project: Flags of French Infantry Regiment La Couronne

La Couronne first raised 1643 in Louis XIV's minority by the Queen Mother. Took the name La Couronne after the siege of Maastricht in 1673. 2 battalions. Ranked 28th in 1756.

The motto Dedit hanc Mastreka coronam - Maastricht won this crown was probably placed on the flags only late in the 18th century; it does not appear on the 1757 MS illustration nor is it mentioned in the 1753 État Générale entry. However, I have included a version with the motto as people like to use it in the SYW despite its probably being anachronistic!

Flags carried in this pattern from 1693-1791.

The regiment was very active in almost all French army campaigns from 1643 onwards and a list of actions in which it was involved would be too long for this account. Kronoskaf gives a more detailed history and Susane Volume 5 the source from which I believe much of the Kronoskaf account is extracted.

Text below is my translation from Susane of the regiment's activity in the SYW (as always, a very pro-French account which can sometimes be taken with a pinch of salt!):

La Couronne took part in the camp assembled at Mezières in 1753. It was employed for the two following years in work on the canal at the junction of the Lys and the Aa. In 1756 the Seven Years War began where the regiment acquired new laurels. Of all the important actions of this unlucky war, but not without glory for the troops, the battle of Bergen is the only one where it was not involved.

On the 24th July 1757 the regiment contributed to the victory at Hastenbeck; lieutenant of grenadiers Miguet was killed there. [Susane claims the regiment was at Rossbach 5th November but Kronoskaf and other sources do not appear to agree.]

At the beginning of 1758 it was ordered along with other corps to protect the Dutch frontier from Xanten up to the fort of Skencke. On the 23rd of June, at the battle of Krefeld, it endured the fire of six enemy battalions without breaking. It contributed on the 23rd July to the success of Sandershausen. Detache don the 5th October from the army of Contades, it joined the army of Soubise on the 8th and fought on the 10th at Lutterberg with the greatest courage. It then rejoined the main army on the 23rd. After the capitulation of Kaiserswerth it was once again charged with observing the Dutch frontier.

[Susane's claim that the regiment was at Minden on the 1st of August 1759 is not supported by Kronoskaf.]

In 1760 the regiment was part of the corps commanded by the Count of St Germain. On the 10th July this corps was responsible for the greatest contribution to the fight at Corbach, and La Couronne was distinguished above all the regiments that surrounded it. At the affair ofWarburg on the 31st July it was posted on the heights with Regiments Bourbonnais and Jenner [Swiss]. Furiously attacked by the enemy, these regiments charged them five times and caused them to give way. La Couronne lost on the field of battle half its officers, amongst them the colonel-lieutenant, the Count de Montbarrey who had performed prodigies of bravery and who had been struck by a cannon ball and two musket balls. The soldiers, encouraged by the example of their leaders, fought with extraordinary persistence. One saw men who had fired off all their cartridges picking up stones to throw at the enemy; others, finding these means unsatisfactory, fought hand to hand with the Allies. The regiment was so shattered after Warburg, that during the rest of the campaign it could put in the field only a feeble battalion. It was still able to distinguish itself at Clostercamps on the 16th October, seconding the efforts of Regiments Auvergne and Alsace.

It was sent to recoup itself at Dunkirk and then rejoined the army in June 1761. On the 30th of August the regiment distinguished itself in the combat of Roxel near Münster against the troops of General Kielmansegge. The companies of grenadiers and chasseurs attacked the enemy in the village where they were entrenched, chased them out of it and followed them until they were in range of the cannon of Münster itself, taking 400 prisoners. This splendid combat, specific to the regiment, was its pinnacle of glory and was also its last action of the war.

At the peace the regiment went into garrison at Quesnoy.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Légion Britannique: The All New Sheet Of Speculative Infantry Flags

Here is my new flag sheet for the infantry of the Légion Britannique. This says "Hanoverian" far more clearly than the last version, I think, but is still true to the British-style of flag design as carried by the Légion:

I shall not change the dragoon guidons as I think the design says "Hanoverian" very clearly anyway, with its use of the running white horse.

Standards of French Cavalry Regiment Commissaire-Général 1730s-1770

First raised 1635 and became Commissaire-Général Cavalerie in 1654. 2 squadrons in 1756. Ranked 3rd in the cavalry.

The standards shown here were probably carried from at least the 1730s to 1770. The shield shows the arms of Bissy; M de Bissy was Mestre de Camp of the regiment from 1736-1748.

1719: Spain
1733 and 1734: On the Rhine
1741: Westphalia
1742: Bavaria
1743: Returned to France
1744: Italy
1745; The Rhine
1746: Flanders
1747: Valence
1749: Verdun
1752: Mezières
1755: Lille
1757: Stationed at Bitche, then to the Army of the Lower Rhine for the invasion of Hanover. At the battle of Hastenbeck on 26th July. At the end of the year in winter quarters at Göttingen.

With Soubise's army in 1758 and at the battle of Lutterberg on October 10th but not seriously engaged there.

At the battle of Bergen April 13th 1759 then with the French offensive into Western Germany. At the battle of Minden on August 1st.

For 1760, Susane claims the regiment fought bravely at both Corbach July 10th 1760 and at Warburg 31st July that year but Kronoskaf does not record the regiment at either of those two actions...

Susane says that, having been almost destroyed, the regiment was then sent to guard the Channel coast.

Absorbed Beauvilliers Cavalry in 1761 and made up to 4 squadrons.

And this is a depiction of the uniform in the Seven Years War from the New York Public Library collection. The saddle cloth is incorrect and should be red with a yellow border (to 1759) or bordered yellow and red after 1759.

Revised Third Battalion Légion Britannique Speculative Flag

I published my speculative flags of the Légion Britannique some time ago and a few people have used them and posted pictures. The latest posting of these troops with my flags here: http://www.jemimafawr.co.uk/2023/09/12/hannover-siegt-der-franzmann-liegt-my-15mm-syw-hanoverian-german-allied-army-part-5-legion-britannique/ points out that the regimental flag of the third battalion should be orange. I had misread the rather deceptive plate I had used for the battalion and saw the uniform facings as red, not orange. So this is the corrected flag in glorious technicolour orange at last:

I shall eventually revise the whole sheet and add this flag to it but for now this supplementary sheet will have to do.

More French infantry flags replaced with lighter shaded versions

Today I have replaced the following French infantry flags on the blog with lighter versions (listed in the order I uploaded them, not alphabetically!):

Vastan
Enghien
Aquitaine
La Marche Prince
Tournaisis
St Chamont (St Chamond)
Cossé Brissac

More to follow!

 

List of French flags with lighter shading updated and uploaded today...

Today I have replaced the following French infantry flags on the blog with lighter versions (listed in the order I uploaded them, not alphabetically!):

Rouergue, Touraine, Talaru/d'Aumont, Belzunce, Picardie, Auvergne and La Marche

More to follow!

This image shows a snapshot of the new versions:

Flags and uniform of Hanoverian Militia Regiment Celle (von Hauss)

I am just dipping my toes into the somewhat messy world that is Hanoverian flags of the Seven Years War here; all those very different flags, often with complex allegorical images, are a nightmare to create! But the militia carried simpler flags and this is my interpretation of the militia flags from the description in Niemeyer and Ortenburg's work on the Hanoverian Army in the Seven Years War.

They spent the war garrisoning Celle and neighbourhood so there is nothing exciting to relate about their wartime activities - but wargamers can often find useful roles for militia; it is all fantasy based on reality, after all! ;-)

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Reducing the overly dark shading of some of my earlier flags...

I have been asked to lighten the shading of some of my earlier flags, especially French flags. I am inclined to agree that the shading of the Colonels' white flags is often too dark so will be working on producing lighter versions. So far I have replaced the flags of French Regiment Condé; see here: https://nba-sywtemplates.blogspot.com/2013/05/minden-french-flags-project-regiment.html I shall post notices of which flags are changed in future as I post them.

Here is the older version of Condé:

And here is the new lighter version:

Highly speculative flags of the Mainz Lamberg Regiment

The Mainz Kreis regiment was created from companies taken from Mainz infantry regiments Wildenstein and Riedt in 1756, by an agreement between the Archbishop of Mainz and Austria. It was organised on the Austrian pattern, and consisted of 2 battalions with 6 companies each and 2 companies of grenadiers, plus a garrison battalion. The regiment was disbanded at the end of the war in 1763. Although not a part of the Reichsarmee proper, it saw a lot of action serving with the Austrian Corps which fought alongside the Reichsarmee for much of the war.

These are my very speculative flags for the regiment; we know nothing of the appearance of the real flags, if any were carried.

The regiment spent much of the war serving alongside the Austrian field army so saw a great deal of action. At Prague on May 6th 1757 two battalions of the regiment, stationed just south of the gap in the Austrian lines where the Prussians broke through to win a hard fought victory, suffered heavy losses of 409 men. After the battle roughly one battalion joined the garrison of Prague and another battalion continued serving with the Austrian field army. It was at the battle of Moys on September 7th, when an isolated corps of the Prussian army was successfully attacked and its commander, the somewhat sinister Winterfeldt, who was a close friend of Frederick, was killed, possibly shot in the back by his own men. Later that year this battalion was at the siege of Schweidnitz and then at the battle of Breslau on November 22nd in the Reserve Corps. Having become part of the garrison of Breslau after the battle it was captured when the Prussians recaptured Breslau on 21st December but the men were later exchanged.

In 1758 the battalion with the Austrian field army was involve din the battle of Hochkirch on October 14th as part of the column under Lieutenant Colloredo that attacked the village from the east. On November 20th 1759 the regiment was at the battle of Maxen, where a detached Prussian corps was destroyed. In 1760 the regiment was with the Austrian corps serving with the Reichsarmee and was involved in the combat of Strehla on August 20th, where a smaller and more agile Prussian force thwarted a Hochkirch-style envelopment by the allies. In 1761 and 1762 the regiment was still in Saxony serving with the Austrian corps attached to the Reichsarmee. The two field battalions were at the embarrassing defeat of Doebeln on May 12th 1762 then both served with their grenadier companies at Freiberg on October 29th. Campitelli's Corps of which they formed part put up a good fight against the northern Prussian attack, although the battle was decided elsewhere on the battlefield.

And this may have been the uniform in use in 1756 (although there is much uncertainty about it):

Warburg French Flags Project: Standard of French Cavalry Regiment Sainte-Aldegonde, formerly Viefville

First raised 1st March 1674, by Louis du Faure de Satilieu, Marquis de Saint-Sylvestre.

2 squadrons strong and ranked 38th in 1756.

This is my reconstruction of the cavalry standard, with its pomegranate tree in flower, which seems to have been carried from at least the 1730s to 1761. I have seen only verbal descriptions. (The French name for pomegranate "grenadier" presumably comes from the pomegranate fruit looking remarkably like a grenade in shape.) One major frustration with French cavalry standards of the period is that we often do not know what the emblems were; in Pierre Charrié's book the words "motif inconnu" occur with tedious regularity!

Colonels:

Saint-Sylvestre 1674; De la Rocheguyon 1716; La Rochefoucault 1726; M. d'Urfé 1731; M. du Châtelet 18th January 1734; M. de Beuvron 18th March 1734; D. de Fleury 15th February 1738; M. de la Viefville 20th August 1743; M. de Sainte-Aldegonde 10th February 1759

Very active in many combats of the 1670s, until reduced in 1679 then re-established in 1682. Again, saw much action in the 1680s and 1690s.

1700: Army of Italy; combats of Carpi and Chiari, then the combat of Volta where it took a detachment of Imperial cuirassiers.
1702: Battle of Luzzara
1703: Combat of Castelnuovo
1704: Taking of Verceil, Ivrée and Verrue
1706: Battle of Castiglione
1707: In Flanders
1708: Battle of Oudenarde
In Flanders to the peace

1733: Camp of La Sâone then to Italy and he conquest of the Milanais
1734: Battles of Parma and Guastalla
1735: Taking of places in the Modénais
1736: Back to France and quartered in Sens

1741: Bohemia; taking, defence and retreat from Prague
1743: Battle of Dettingen
1744: Flanders
1745: Italy; combat of Refudo
1746; Battles of Pleasance and Tidone
1747: Defence of Provence
1748: Camp of Valence

In Germany for the first two campaigns of the Seven Years War
1758: Battle of Lutterberg October, where it was in the Reserve of Cavalry
1759: Remained on the Rhine
1760: At Warburg July 31st in the first line

Reformed 1st December 1761 and incorporated into La Reine Cavalry

And this was the uniform in 1756:

The Reichsarmee: Flags of Infantry Regiment Hessen-Darmstadt

Hessen-Darmstadt IR or Prinz Georg Infantry: Upper Rhenish Kreis

On 3rd May 1758 the battalion had a strength of 752 musketeers and 105 grenadiers, a total of 860, with 2 attached 3 pounder cannon.

This small single battalion regiment was reckoned to be the best infantry unit in the Reichsarmee; Soubise called it "excellent" (Duffy, Prussia's Glory), the only regiment he reviewed to be called so. Prince Georg of Hessen-Darmstadt was also reputedly the best general in the Reichsarmee; a former Prussian officer, he had left the Prussian service and joined the Reichsarmee at the command of his father Landgraf Ludwig VIII. For a sympathetic and detailed account of the travails of the Reichsarmee and the doings of the estimable Prince Georg in the 1757 campaign leading up to Rossbach, see Duffy's wonderfully readable Prussia's Glory.

Duffy says that in the Circle of the Upper Rhine (Oberrheinische Creis) "here the lead was taken by the Landgraf Ludwig VIII of Hesse-Darmstadt who was a Protestant, but dedicated to the ideal of the Reich. His single-battalion regiment was the best that the Reichsarmee proper had to show, and represented something of a sacrifice on the part of Ludwig, for he could have hired it out on very favourable terms to a foreign prince. "You can imagine nothing more splendid than the sight of the Darmstadt Grenadiers when they come on guard. They are picked, tall and fine-looking men who put the French to shame"." Despite its high quality the regiment was not immune from the bane of all armies of the period. Duffy later says: "The regiment of Hesse-Darmstadt was the best of the Reichsarmee, yet the secretary of its Prince Georg was happy to record that by 29 July it had lost "only" 116 men from desertion."

At Rossbach on 5th November 1757 the regiment was one of the few to perform well and honourably during the rout of much of the Reichsarmee; it was one of the four regiments which were able to "retreat in closed-up formation under continuous fire" which seem to have been Blue Würzburg, "the disciplined and intact battalion of Hesse-Darmstadt and the Swiss regiment of Wittemer and Diesbach which not only retained all their colours, but retrieved a colour of one of the regiments which had fled." (All quotations from Duffy, Prussia's Glory.)

Later in the war at 1st Torgau (Zinna) on the 8th September 1759 the regiment once again proved its quality: "with the exception of the battalion of Hessen-Darmstadt, the entire Reichs infantry fled in panic." (Duffy, By Force of Arms.) The Reischsarmee force was three times the size of the Prussian force that routed it!

And this was the uniform in 1757:

Mollo and Knötel show 2 different variants of the collar on this uniform, very unlike the normal type of collar shown by Pengel and Hurt, so I've done two variants for those (like me!) who are niggled by these things; P and H's more conventional collar-type is on the left, the one in the middle is Mollo's and the one on the right is Knötel's collar. The Osprey on the Austrian infantry of  1740-1780 also shows the Knötel-style collar.

Cavalry Standards of Charles VI as carried by the army of Maria-Theresa in the 1740s

Here are two Austrian cavalry standards of unknown regiments as depicted in the MS Triomphes de Louis XV:

Earlier depictions of Austrian cavalry standards do suggest some were as plain as this, although most of the surviving later 18th century standards in the Austrian Army Museum in Vienna have astonishing amounts of elaborate gold and silver embroidery.

The Standard of French Hussar Regiment Royal Nassau in the Seven Years War

First raised 1756 as the Volontaires de Nassau-Saarbruck and 2 squadrons strong. In April 1758 it was renamed Volontaires Royaux de Nassau and then in June that year became the Royal Nassau Regiment and ranked 56th in the cavalry (but becoming 55th in 1760, 38th in 1761 and 34th in 1762). Then it was 600 strong made up of 4 squadrons. It was recruited in Strasbourg and principally in the area of Landau, in the Palatinate, on the frontiers of the Sarre and in the County of Saarwarden. The colonel was the Prince of Nassau-Saarbruck.

 

The regiment seems to have had a lively war; as Kronoskaf gives a detailed account there is no point in my repeating it here. I have no independent account of my own so I recommend that anyone wishing to know the regiment's exploits in detail should look there: https://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=Royal-Nassau_Hussards

This image of the uniform is from the New York Public Library website https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e4-3e47-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99: 

 

Warburg French Flags Project: Flags of French Swiss Regiment Lochmann 1752-1771

First raised 1752 from the canton of Zurich. 12 companies of 120 men each. Colonel from the beginning was the Baron de Lochmann (to 1777). Ranked 114th in 1753.

I present two sets of flags of the pattern carried from 1752-1771; the État Générale of 1753 gives a different colour spread from that suggested by more recent authorities like Pierre Charrié, Rigo, etc.. So you can choose which to use!

My translation of the text from Susane volume 7 of the regiment's activities in the Seven Years War:

The regiment took part in 1755 in the camp of Richemont and then was attached in 1757 to the Army of Germany. It first saw action at the battle of Hastenbeck and took part in the occupation of Hanover. At the beginning of 1758 it was employed guarding the banks of the Rhine and it was one of the four regiments engaged on the 23rd June at the battle of Krefeld. It acquired much glory in the campaign of 1760, notably at Korbach and Warburg. In the last action, which took place on the  31st July, it fought with admirable vigour and foiled, with Jenner, all the efforts of the enemy. It thus gave the time for the rest of the army to retreat. At the end of the action, Colonel Lochmann was wounded and fell into the hands of the enemy. The regiment served also in the campaigns in Germany in 1761 and 1762, and spent the winter at Gueldres. On its return to France the regiment took up residence at Mezières and then went to Thionville in May 1763.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Standard of French Raugrave Cavalry alias Volontaires Liégois

The unit was first raised as Raugrave Cavalry in 1743 as a "light horse" unit. It was renamed Volontaires Liégeois in 1756. It had consisted of only 100 men in 4 companies but in November 1756 it was increased to 300 men in 2 squadrons. In February 1758 it was renamed Cavalerie Liégeoise and increased to a total of 320 men in 2 squadrons (each of 2 companies).

Standard 1758-1762:

 

The emblem is the famous perron or column of Liège.

Brief service history:

1757: With the Army of Saxony; Rossbach Campaign
1758: With Broglie's Army to July then with Soubise
1758: July 23rd Battle of Sandershausen; heavily engaged
1758: October 10th Battle of Lutterberg; not heavily engaged
1759: April 13th Battle of Bergen
1759: From June with the main army under Contades
1759: August 1st Battle of Minden
1760: September 7th Two companies of the regiment captured with their standards

From then to the end of the war I cannot find any significant actions in which the regiment was involved. The regiment was disbanded at the end of the war.

And this was the uniform in 1758:

Image courtesy of NYPL: https://iiif-prod.nypl.org/index.php?id=1236204&t=v

Warburg French Flags Project: Flags of French Swiss Regiment Jenner 1751-1762

It's some time since I focussed on a specific battle and its French flags. Warburg offers a variety of new infantry flags including some attractive Swiss flags. Once I complete the flags for Warburg there will be well over 100 French flag sets on the blog.

The battle of Warburg took place on the 31st July 1760 and was a French defeat. A detailed account of the battle can be found on Kronoskaf here:  

http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=1760-07-31_-_Battle_of_Warburg

Jenner Infantry:

First raised 1672 as Erlach Infantry. It was always recruited from inhabitants of Berne. Became Manuel 1694, Villars-Chandieu 1701, May 1728, Bettens 1739, Jenner 1751, Erlach de Riggisberg 1762, Ernest 1782

At the start of the Seven Years War Jenner ranked 49th and had 3 battalions

Flags 1751-1762:

Summary of Service before the Seven Years War:

Franco-Dutch War 1672-1678

1672: Siege of Nijmegen
1673: Siege of Maastricht
1674: Battle of Seneffe
1675: Siege and capture of Bellegarde
1676: Garrison of Bellegarde
1677: Combat of Espouilles
1678: Siege of Puigcerda and return to France
1684: Siege of Luxembourg

Nine Years War 1688-1697:

1689: Siege and then defence of Campredon
1691: Storming of Seu d'Urgell
1693: Capture of Rosas
1694: Battle of Torroella; sieges of Palamos, Girona, Ostalrich and Castelfollit
1697: Siege of Barcelona

War of the Spanish Succession 1701-1713:

1701: To the Army of Flanders
1702: Combat of Nijmegen
1703: Battle of Ekeren
1704: Campaign between Rhine and Moselle
1706: Battle of Ramillies
1708: Battle of Oudenarde and defence of Lille
1709: Battle of Malplaquet
1712: Defence of Arras, battle of Denain, and sieges of Douai, Le Quesnoy and Bouchain
1713: Siege of landau

1715: Reduced from 3 to 2 battalions

War of the Polish Succession 1733-1735:

1733: 3 battalions again and joined the Army of the Rhine
1735: Combat of Klausen

1737: Reduced to 2 battalions again

War of the Austrian Succession 1740-1748:

1742: At Dunkirk then to Douai
1743: At Douai Up to 3 battalions again
1744: To Courtrai then Menin and Ypres
1745: 2 battalions to the siege of Tournai and then at the battle of Fontenoy. Then at the sieges of Oudenarde, Ostend, Nieuport and Ath
1746: Sieges of Bruxelles, Antwerp and Namur and the battle of Rocoux
1747: Battle of Lauffeldt and the conquest of the Dutch Flanders
Sent back to Normandy after heavy losses
1748: On the coast of Brittany


This is my translation of the account from Susane Vol.6 of the regiment's history in the Seven Years War:

The regiment took the name of Jenner in 1751 and took part in the camp of Gray in 1753. It was reduced to two battalions on the 1st of April 1756 and was one of the twenty battalions promised by Louis XV to help Maria Theresa; but France found herself also involved in the Seven Years War and Jenner was sent to the Army of the Lower Rhine. It took part in 1757 in the victory of Hastenbeck and the conquest of the Electorate of Hanover, and then in the battle of Krefeld in 1758. In 1759 it was at the siege of Münster where Colonel Jenner was wounded and Lieutenant Colonel De La Chennelas was killed. In 1760, the regiment fought at Korbach under the command of the Comte de St Germain; it then came under the command of the Chevalier de Muy and covered itself in glory at Warburg, where, with Regiments Bourbonnais, La Couronne and Lochmann, it withstood the enemy attack and enabled the retreat of the army; Colonel Jenner was once again wounded. In 1761 it was at the affair of Villingshausen and was part of the detachment which pushed forward into the Electorate of Hanover. Returning from this expedition it took up winter quarters in Gueldres and in 1762, when the peace was signed, it was sent to Strasbourg. By then it was called Erlach. In 1763 it was sent successively to Phalsbourg, Metz and Longwy.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Infantry Flags of the British/Hanoverian Légion Britannique - speculative version

As my Légion Britannique flags have been popping up here and there (used by people who have had the sheets emailed to them by me) and there has consequently been more interest I thought I'd make the infantry flags more easily available here on the blog. We know that the Légion used British style flags but have no images of them so I created my version based on British flag regulations of the Seven Years War. There is also a sheet of dragoon guidons, but it is too big a file to be put on the blog, so if anyone wants that they will still have to contact me so I can email it to them.

The Légion Britannique was raised for service in the Hanoverian Army in 1760. It was paid for by the British government and carried flags of British pattern, although its officers were Hanoverian. It consisted of 5 battalions, each of 4 infantry companies and a dragoon squadron; the strength of each battalion was intended to be 500 infantry and 101 dragoons.

As the Légion was raised from deserters, foreigners and sometimes prisoners of war, its quality can be imagined, and losses from desertion and capture were many. Despite its inauspicious make up, units of the Légion were capable of distinguished service, as with the 3rd battalion which fought well in the defence of Hamm in 1761 and the 2nd battalion which was overcome at the defence of Meppen only after a fierce resistance. French prisoners taken at Warburg in July 1760 were later enlisted in the Légion's light companies. Near the end of the war the Légion was taken into Prussian service, which cannot have pleased many of its troops!

And here is the dragoon guidon sheet, in very low resolution; the actual sheet is nearly 4 MBs and too big to post here. If anyone would like a copy, please let me have an email address via the Contact Form (don't put your email address in the comments as you really don't want it to be picked up by bots and to be spammed!).

The '45: Flag of unknown Jacobite regiment but possibly of Kilmarnock's Footguards or Duke of Perth's Regiment

Captured Jacobite flag - regiment unknown but possibly of Lord Kilmarnock's Foot Guards or Earl of Perth's Regiment. Attribution is very speculative.

No.7 on the list of captured Jacobite flags says: "On a staff a white silk colours with the Stewart's Arms, God Save King". Any reconstruction based on that very short description is bound to be somewhat imaginative!

I have done two slightly different versions. Version one is based on Angus McBride's illustration in the Military Illustrated article on the Jacobite Army from July 1991 by Stuart Reid. At that time Reid suggested the flag perhaps belonged to Kilmarnock's Footguards. Version two with the different motto is based on the description in Stuart Reid's new book Like Troops of Hungry Wolves; The Battle of Culloden 16 April 1746 (this is a bit unfair to wolves but no doubt these are the mythical variety, not real wolves). In the new volume Reid suggests the flag may have belonged to the Duke of Perth's regiment; both attributions are highly speculative but we currently have nothing better.

Lord Kilmarnock's Footguards began as his Horseguards, when they were raised after Prestonpans by William Boyd, 4th Earl of Kilmarnock. Cavalry were always in low numbers in the Jacobite army and during the invasion of England the Horseguards temporarily incorporated Strathallan's Horse. In February 1746 the Horseguards' horses were given to the newly arrived Fitzjames Horse (one squadron of which, about 130 strong but without their horses, had evaded the English fleet and arrived in Scotland. The rest of the regiment had been captured) and Kilmarnock's men became Footguards. Recruiting was always difficult, it seems. At Culloden the Footguards, by then only about 50 strong at the most, were involved towards the end of the fight - they were originally in the second line near the right flank - and Kilmarnock surrendered to the English. (Reid, in his account from 1991, claims that the Footguards did not live up to their name and fled without firing a shot. Kilmarnock was subsequently executed on Tower Hill.) In his most recent book Reid questions the likelihood of such an elaborate flag being made as late as February or early March 1746 and suggests that instead the flag may have been made for the Duke of Perth's regiment. See below.

The Duke of Perth's regiment was assembled by James Drummond, 3rd Earl of Perth. The first 160 men fought very well at Prestonpans. After that battle they took in many redcoats but most of them signed up only to desert afterwards. Many of the Duke of Perth's men were not volunteers and coercion was common; Christopher Duffy tells a tale of four under-gardeners at Drummond Castle who were told that if they did not sign up "they were to be turned out of the Duke's service". When they refused they were inveigled by a stratagem into joining the regiment against their will. For the invasion of England the regiment incorporated part of the Strathbogie regiment and made up to an impressive 750 men. At the time of the battle of Falkirk the regiment was involved in the abortive siege of Stirling Castle but subsequently served at Culloden where it held the far left of the front line, having originally been in the second line. By then they were probably only around 200 strong.

Standard of French Cavalry Regiment Dauphin Étranger

First raised March 1674 according to Pajol, Les guerres sous Louis XV (the État Général of 1753 says 1666). 2 squadrons strong in 1756.

This standard was carried from 1674-1762 by Dauphin Étranger, according to Charrié, and he also says that Dauphin Cavalry adopted the same standards when it absorbed Dauphin Étranger in 1762.

 

1727-1630 On the Saône
1732 Camp of Alsace
1734 and 1735 On the Rhine
1742 Bavaria
1743 Alsace
1744 Saverne
1745 The Rhine
1746 and 1748 Flanders
1755 and 1759 Hanover

Looking through the Orders of Battle for the Seven Years War I cannot find any combats in which the regiment was engaged.

Reformed 1st December 1761 and incorporated into Dauphin Cavalry

And this was the uniform in 1756 (most details from the État Général of 1753):

The '45: Flag of Fraser Regiment commanded by Charles Fraser of Inverallochy

The regiment was raised in the Fraser lands in October 1745 after much "shilly shally stuff" (as Christopher Duffy calls it) by its notorious chief Simon Fraser of Lovat. It was 500 strong (with the Chisholms) at Falkirk and 400 strong at Culloden, where it was stationed on the right centre of the front line. The acting commander Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Fraser the Younger of Inverallochy was possibly killed at Culloden - and possibly not (according again to Christopher Duffy).

The arms are those of Charles Fraser of Inverallochy, not the Lovat arms; this is taken from the reconstruction by Stuart Reid, based on the short description of a flag captured at Culloden and included in the list of captured flags of Hu Wentworth. There were three regiments of Frasers; the other two were commanded by the Master of Lovat and James Fraser of Foyers.

Rossbach French Flags Project: Flags of French Swiss Regiment Planta

Here is another missing regiment from my Rossbach project.

First raised in 1677 as Regiment Stuppa. It subsequently had many name changes: Surbeck 1692, Hemel 1714, Bezenwald 1729, La Cour Au Chantre 1738, Grand-Villars 1748, Balthazard 1749, Planta 1754, D'Arbonier 1760, Jenner 1763

In 1756 the regiment ranked 63rd and was of two battalions.

The flags of this regiment in the SYW are disputed; I have taken the Ordonnance flag design from the 1757 MS. Charrié also describes this flag as I have here depicted it.

My translation from Susane on Planta in the SYW:

In 1757 it was part of the Army of Germany; it marched to the Weser and found itself on 5th November at the battle of Rossbach where it suffered greatly. Lieutenant Colonel d'Arbonnier was wounded there and taken prisoner, as well as battalion commanders Jossaud and Arder, aide major Wielandt, captains Grenut, Affleger, Turtin, Gallatin, Bertenschalz, Bouscard, Faller and six lieutenants.

[Christopher Duffy says little of the conduct of Planta at the battle of Rossbach in his book Prussia's Glory; but there is a legend associated with them and Diesbach: "The two Swiss regiments [Diesbach and Planta] were like rocks in the swirling sea of fugitives and Prussians as they steadily carried out a fighting retreat. Frederick is said to have remarked, "What is that red brick wall that my artillery cannot manage to bring down?", and, being told it was the French Swiss infantry, he silently saluted them by doffing his hat as they marched off the field with colours flying and drums beating." Osprey Campaign 113 Rossbach and Leuthen 1757 by Simon Millar, page 35. There is no definitive evidence for this story but it is an attractive one!]

In 1758 the regiment, which had retreated to Dusseldorf, came under the command of the Comte de Clermont and on the 23rd June was at the battle of Krefeld. On the 13th April 1759 it was at the battle of Bergen where, placed in the orchards of the village, it received the first attack of the Allies. On the 1st of August, it fought also at Minden, where Captain Vespyel lost an arm. On the 31st July 1760 both Planta and the regiment of Touraine vied with each other in their courageous conduct at the affair of Warburg, and covered the retreat of the army with admirable order and intrepidity. After that battle it became d'Arbonnier and continued to serve in Germany up to the peace, always brilliantly upholding the honour of its flags. On returning to France the regiment went into garrison at Metz.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Rossbach French Flags Project: Flags of French Swiss Regiment Reding

This is a stray set from my Rossbach French Flags Project.

First raised for the French service in 1672 as De Salis-Zizers. Served in the War of the Polish Succession and the War of the Austrian Succession. Was of two battalions and in 1756 ranked 51st in the French army.

It had many name changes: Porlier 1690, De Reynold 1692, De Castellas 1702, De Bettens 1722, Monnin 1739, Reding 1756-1763, Pfiffer (or Pfyffer) 1763 and De Sonnenberg 1768.

The flags are disputed. I have chosen to depict those as shown on the 1757 MS. The 1753 État Général describes the flags as having quarters with black and yellow flames. Kronoskaf shows flags with red, white, green and yellow flames. Charrié says the arms of the flags carried the motto Semper Fidelis but cites no source. Unfortunately there is no depiction of the flags in the 1721 MS.

History in the Seven Years War from Susane (my translation):

In 1756 it took the name of Reding and in March 1757 made its way by Liege and Stokheim to the army of Marshal d'Estrées. It was at the battle of Hastenbeck on the 24th July, where Captain Bitner and a lieutenant were wounded. It then went with Marshal Richelieu on his expedition to Hanover. It contributed to the taking of Minden and of Hanover and then rested in the camp of Halberstadt until the 7th October. It then left the army of Richelieu to go to reinforce that of Soubise and thus found itself on the 5th November at the unfortunate battle of Rossbach. There it lost Lieutenant Muller and among the many wounded were captains Reynold, Montaudon, Schatzel and Wiltz,and six lieutenants. Reding served in 1758 under the Count de Clermont. [Susane says that the regiment "was wrecked at the battle of Krefeld on the 23rd June" but curiously Kronskaf does not place it at that battle.] Returning to France, it was put into garrison at Hunungue, where it was able to absorb new recruits. Now renamed Pfiffer, the regiment was in garrison at Colmar at the end of 1762. It went from there to Phalsbourg in May 1763.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

The '45: Unidentified Jacobite flags (all with saltires)

There are quite a number of Jacobite flags whose regiments have not been identified. Here are a selection, all based on traditional Scottish saltire designs.

Flags of French German Regiment Royal Suedois (Lenck 1714-1734 and Appelgrehn 1734-1742)

The regiment was called Lenck from 1714-1734 then Appelgrehn 1734-1742; the earlier flags were carried by both. From 1760 the more elaborate flags were carried by Royal Suedois to 1791. There is some disagreement about the Colonel's flag of the early version; the 1721 MS shows it without fleur de lys as I have depicted it. The 1757 MS shows the pattern of blue and white stripes on the post-1760 flag differently from most modern versions, and I have followed that depiction for my version. These things are often disputed!

First raised 1690. In various actions of the Nine Years War (1688-1697).

In 1701 increased to two battalions. War of the Spanish Succession: 1702: Combat of Nijmegen. 1706: Battle of Ramillies; Defence of Menin. 1708: Battle of Oudenarde. 1709: Battle of Malplaquet. 1711 Attack on Arleux. 1712: Recapture of Douai, Le Quesnoy and Bouchain. 1713: Sieges of Landau and Freiburg.

Reduced to one battalion in 1714.

War of the Polish Succession: 1733 increased to three battalions. 1734: Capture of Trier, Trarbach and Philipsbourg. 1735: Battle of Klausen.

1737: Reduced to one battalion again.

War of the Austrian Succession: 1741 increased to two battalions. 1742: Invasion of Bohemia including the Combat of Sahay and defence of Prague. Given the name Royal Suedois in 1742 in recognition of its performance in the siege of Prague. 1743: In Bavaria and defence of Eger. 1744: Recapture of Wissembourg and the Lines of the Lauter, Combat of Augenheim and the attack on Donauworth. 1745: Combat of Pfeffenhoffen. 1746: Battle of Rocoux. 1746 November increased to four battalions. 1748: Siege of Maastricht. 1748 December reduced to three battalions.

From Susane (my edited translation):

In the SYW:

In 1756 the regiment took part in the camp of Dunkirk, which it left the following year to head to Germany. It arrived at Cologne on the 16th April, and was distinguished in the battle of Hastenbeck. Lieutenant Dahastierna was killed there and Captain Dalhielm wounded. It then went with Richelieu to Hanover and contributed to the capture of Minden and Hanover. The same year it provided the piquets which entered Harbourg and contributed to the fine defence made by the Marquis de Péreuse. Returning to the Rhine at the beginning of 1758, it took part with Vaubecourt in the combat of Alpen on the 12th June, near the canal of Rheinfeld.

The regiment fought with some distinction at the battle of Bergen in 1759. On the eve of the battle, on the 12th April, it had been placed in the orchards behind Bergen and it withstood the first attack of the enemy, which penetrated into the street of the village. In 1760 at Korbach the regiment was one of the units which was most heavily engaged. It was then under the command of the Count of Saint-Germain and remained under his command until the peace. It had been increased to three battalions on the 18th January 1760 by incorporating the regiment of Royal-Pologne. The Ordonnance of 21st December 1762 reduced it to two battalions. On re-entering Germany the regiment was put into garrison at Huningue. It was sent to Fort Louis in May 1763.

Uniform plate to follow.

The '45: Jacobite Flags of Ogilvy's Forfarshire Regiment, 2nd Battalion, the Camerons and Gordon of Glenbucket's Regiment

Here are three more flags of the Jacobites in the '45. The history of the Ogilvy Regiment can be found in my previous post of the probable 1st Battalion flag.

I have produced flags with the heraldic emblem reversed on the reverse of the flags as well as flags with the emblems not reversed, as I do not know which was actually used. So, you can choose which you use!

 

Gordon of Glenbuckets [some authors spell it Glenbuchats]

An important leader, old Gordon of Glenbucket recruited his regiment in Strathbogie and the eastern glens. It may have been 300 strong at that stage. The regiment was with the Jacobite army in its invasion of England, although one company was lost as part of the garrison of Carlisle. It missed Falkirk as it was serving in the trenches at the siege of Stirling Castle. It was present at Culloden, where it ended up near the left flank of the first line having been initially in reserve, and it was probably disbanded at Ruthven on 18th April 1746.

Clan Cameron

The first clan to be raised for the Prince's army and also one of the strongest. Colonel Donald Cameron the younger of Locheil (acting chief of the clan) took some persuading to join the rising but once persuaded was a strong supporter of the cause.  The Camerons had many branches and so the regiment became one of the largest and most efficient in the army. It was in all the major actions. At Prestonpans it was up to 600 strong. Ludovic Cameron of Torcastle brought a further 450 men to reinforce the regiment. At Culloden they were 400 strong (according to Duffy, Fight For A Throne) but others say it was 600 strong, and they were stationed near the right flank of the first line. They made a fierce onset and suffered heavy casualties in the battle. The regiment was not disbanded until 27th May 1746.

The '45: Jacobite Flag of the Manchester Regiment (and a possible Prince's standard)

The Jacobite Manchester Regiment:

Raised in Lancashire and Manchester with a nucleus of officers from the Duke of Perth's Regiment, this was the only largely English regiment in the Jacobite army, and it was commanded by Colonel Francis Townley, a Catholic who had served in the French army. At its peak it was about 300 men and marched to Derby but many men were lost by desertion on the retreat and as it then joined the garrison of Carlisle (by which time it was only about 115 strong) it was lost when the city was surrendered on 30th December 1745. Despite apparently being promised clemency, an example was made of the survivors in order to deter other English supporters of the Jacobite cause. Townley and almost all his officers and NCOs were hanged, drawn and quartered (a brutal and theatrical mediaeval punishment designed to intimidate), and the surviving rank and file were mostly deported to the colonies to serve as slaves.

A witness at Townley's show trial said that the regiment's colours had the words Liberty and Property on one side and Church and Country on the other, possibly on a St George's red cross.

The Jacobite flags captured at Culloden were burned by the public hangman in Edinburgh and we have a list of those burned - but the descriptions are not very complete. A few Jacobite flags still survive, as do descriptions of  a few others no longer in existence.

The red flag bordered blue with a central white square may have been one of the Prince's standards:

Flags of the Piedmontese Guards in the 1740s

First raised in 1636 by Duke Charles Emmanuel II as the Regiment de la Garde or Regiment aux Gardes. From 1704 and through the reign of Charles Emmanuel III it had two battalions.

The regiment fought in the War of the Polish Succession. It was heavily involved in the War of the Austrian Succession. In 1742 it was in N E Italy in the Po plains. In September that year it advanced to the Alps from where it then fought in Savoy as part of the advance against an invading Spanish army. In January 1743 it returned to Piedmont to await the Franco-Spanish invasion of Piedmont. In the mountains around Casteldelfino it was involved in a bitter struggle against an enemy column on the 8th October. In 1744 it fought with other units at the redoubt of Monte Cavallo on the 19th July. The 2nd battalion was fortunate to lose only 36 men. Both battalions were at the battle of Madonna dell'Olmo on the 30th September 1744. They were on the right wing, the position of honour, in the first line. Enemy cavalry attacks were driven off. In 1745 the Gardes were again on the right wing of the Sardinian line at the battle of Bassignano on the 27th September. In 1746 they were part of Leutrum's counter attack and fought under the walls of the city of Valenza 17th April to 3rd of May. Both battalions fought in the south-west in the Mediterranean theatre and the 1st battalion was employed in the Provence offensive. The 2nd battalion fought at the siege of the fort of Priamar in Savona from he 1st to the 18th December 1746 followed by the siege of Genoa; on the 21st May 1747 along with Regiment Piemont it fought off an enemy attack at Madonna della Misericordia. From there it was sent protect the southern frontier of Piedmont. The 1st battalion was recalled from Provence to the Alpine frontier to oppose a French army crossing the Montegeneve. At the battle of the Assietta Ridge on the 19th July 17147 the battalion held the centre of the line.

This was the uniform in the 1750s; the 1740s uniform was very similar, with yellow lace on the tricorne and coat and waistcoat, and brass buttons.

Flags of Spanish Infantry Regiment Zamora 1728-1768

Descended from a tercio first raised April 1580. Very busy in the late 16th and through the 17th centuries.

With the French army in the War of the Spanish Succession. In 1706 it was at Ramillies and later capitulated at Ostend in July that year. It went to Spain in 1710. The 1st battalion went to Catalonia and the 2nd to Old Castile. The two battalions were reunited in 1713 and were stationed in Extremadura until September 1716. Became the Regimiento de Zamora in 1715.

The regiment garrisoned Pescara in 1734 at the beginning of the War of the Polish Succession. It joined the main Spanish army in Tuscany in 1735. In 1736 in returned to Spain.

In the War of the Austrian Succession the 2nd battalion served with the fleet and was in the naval combat of Cap Sicié near Toulon. It then returned to Ceuta. In 1745 the regiment went to Camp Gibraltar and in 1746 returned to Africa, where the 2nd battalion was in garrison at Ceuta. In 1748 the regiment went to Cadiz. After garrison duty at Oran in 1751-4 the regiment returned to Cadiz.

During the Seven Years War the regiment marched towards the Portugusese border to join the Spanish army gathering there and commanded by the Marquis de Sarria. The 2 battalions took up their quarters in villages near Ciudad Rodrigo. As part of the brigade of the Count de Maceda the regiment took part in the siege and capture of Almeida on 25th August. Then as part of the brigade of Ribaguero the regiment advanced to Salvatierra, which place surrendered on 9th September. The fortified town of Segura surrendered shortly after. Operations ended shortly after.

Ranked 8th in the Seven Years War.

[Information summarised from the Kronoskaf account which has much more detail on the earlier history of the regiment. I've also had a look at the very full mid-19th century source which Kronoskaf uses and it was gratifying to see that even with my rusty schoolboy Spanish (from over 50 years ago!) I could make sense of much of it. Isn't it amazing what arcane material can be found on the 'Net these days!]

And this was the uniform in 1759: