Snapshot of Progress On The Prussian Hussar Guidons - Updated

Prussian hussars stopped carrying guidons sometime in the 1740s (I have variously seen the years 1743 and 1746 quoted) (although during the Seven Years War Hussar Regiment 5, the Black or Death Hussars, was allowed to carry two captured French standards, those of Polleresky Hussars and Royal Cravattes). As all cavalry units on the wargames table look a good deal more attractive with flags (well, in my opinion, anyway!), I decided to do the guidons of the then existing 6 regiments of Prussian hussars. This is a snapshot of progress on those guidons. I still have the sleeves and the reverse of the guidons to complete.

Eventually I hope to see Seven Years War Prussian hussar regiments on the wargames table carrying these guidons, in defiance of regulations!

As so often, I am working on many small or large flag projects behind the scenes and this gives a glimpse of one of them.

Update: And here's a sample sheet, showing the guidons of Hussar Regiment 6 in pretty much complete form:

It will take some time to complete and post all the guidons; people tell me they like some history and a uniform plate with my flags and that will be fairly time-consuming to do!

Flags and uniform of Prussian Infantry Regiment 11 von Below (later von Rebentisch and then von Tettenborn)

Chefs: Major General Lorenz Ludwig von Below, later Lieutenant General from 4th December 1749; Major General Johann Carl, Baron von Rebentisch from 12th September 1758; Major General Hans von Tettenborn,  later Lieutenant General from 25th July 1763 to 1776

First raised 1685-7.

In the Seven Years War this was another regiment which largely saw action against the Russians. As part of Field Marshal von Lehwaldt's Corps it first saw action on August 1st 1757. The battle of Gross-Jägersdorf was lost in the brutal forest fighting in Norkitten Wood but the retreat was fairly orderly. The grenadiers had very heavy casualties. After the Russians withdrew the regiment was sent with its grenadiers to Near Pomerania to tackle the Swedes landing there; in April 1758 they prevented an attempted Swedish landing at Peenemünde. In January and February of that year the Russians again occupied East Prussia. However, the regiment remained with the Pomeranian Corps, commanded by Count Dohna, to hold off the Swedes until the Russians arrived. It was eventually sent to Frankfurt an der Oder in late July, as the Russians had already attacked Küstrin.

At the battle of Zorndorf, 25th August 1758, a massive Russian cavalry attack on the right wing threw the regiment into a panic; it had already endured two hours of artillery bombardment. Ultimately the regiment lost 19 officers and 707 men, as well as losing the King's approval. General von Rautter and Major General von Below, the regiment's chef, were both immediately dismissed. In 1773 the King held a review of each company of the regiment at Graudenz. There he told the officers: "You know the reason why I was dissatisfied with the regiment." Major von Reibnitz replied: "Yes, Your Majesty but I was shot through the body [at Zorndorf] and many were fatally wounded!" The King said: "Yes, a few of you are still here. If you promise to lead the regiment well... I'll forget everything. Will you promise that?" They all exclaimed: "Yes, Yes, Your Majesty!" So the King replied: "Very well, I won't think about it again. I'll forget everything."

In 1759 the grenadiers were at Kay on July 23rd suffering relatively few casualties but on August 12th lost 263 men at Kunersdorf. The regiment was captured at Maxen on November 20th with Finck's Corps. It was restored with difficulty to one battalion in 1760, took part in the defence of Breslau from 31st July to August 4th and then in the siege of Schweidnitz from August 8th to October 10th, its last major operation of the war.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

French Cavalry Standard - Royal Piémont

First raised Turin 1670 by the Duke of Savoy. Given to Louis XIV 1671. Became Royal Piémont 6th May 1671.

Campaigns and Stations:

1727: On the Sambre
1730-2: On the Sâone
1734: Italy
1735: Bayeux
1741: Army of the Rhine
1742: In Bohemia
1744: Provence
1745, 1748: Flanders
1749: Maubeuge
1750: Joigny
1751; Charleville
1752: Bourges
1754: Belfort
1755: On the Moselle
1757: Hanover
1758: June 23rd Battle of Krefeld; October 10th Battle of Lutterberg
1759: Évreux
1760: Arrived too late for the battle of Corbach; but on October 16th was at the battle of Klostercamp where, with Balincourt Cavalry, it fought a rearguard action against British cavalry which gave the French infantry time to rally and make a successful withdrawal
1761: Westhofen
1763: Rocroi, where it incorporated the regiment of Talleyrand April 11th

And this was probably the uniform in 1756:

French Cavalry Standard - Royal Cavalry (and Royal Étranger and Royal Roussillon Cavalry)

First raised 16th May 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu. Took the title Royal in 1642 and given to the King by the Cardinal in 1643.

Note: Royal Étranger and Royal Roussillon Cavalry carried identical standards, according to Pierre Charrié. Between 1725 and 1762, so did Royal de Carabiniers.

Campaigns and Stations:

1719: In Spain
1727: Richemont
1732: Gray
1733-4: On the Rhine
1741-2: In Bohemia; retreated February 1743 and refitted at Colmar
1744-8: In Flanders
1749: Neuchatel
1750: Avesnes
1751; Rennes
1754: Sedan
1756: Soissons
1757: Three campaigns in Hanover
1761: Incorporates Vogué Cavalry 1st December
1763: Reorganised 19th April at Guise

And this was probably the uniform in 1756:

Flags and uniform of Prussian Infantry Regiment 4 von Kalnein (later von Rautter, then von Kleist, then von Thadden)

Chefs: 30th October 1745 Major General Carl Erhard von Kalnein, later Lieutenant General; 14th October 1757 Major General Carl Friedrich von Rautter; 20th September 1758 G F von Kleist to 27th January 1761; to 8th June 1774 Major General Georg Reinhold von Thadden, later Governor in Glatz

First raised 1672

In the Seven Years War it served almost entirely against the Russians. It was in the Corps under the command of Field Marshal von Lehwaldt which had the task of securing East Prussia; as an East Prussian regiment it was therefore defending its homeland. The East Prussian troops had been mobilised in February 1757. The Russians under Field Marshal Count Apraxin crossed the border on August 1st 1757 and joined the corps of Count Fermor west of Insterburg, to a total of 55,000 men with 79 guns. 73 year old Lehwaldt had 26,000 men with 20 heavy guns. He planned to attack the Russians from the south on August 30th in an attempt to push them back to the Pregel. The Prussians surprised the Russians at the edge of the Norkitten Forest and the regiment helped drive the Russians back into the forest, losing 78 men and the commander of the grenadier battalion (4/16), Johann Dietrich von Polentz. The musketeer battalions became isolated in the smoke and thick woodland, losing heavily; in the confusion some Prussian battalions were firing into each other. Lehwaldt finally withdrew his battered army from the field, having lost 4,000 men. The victorious Russians were even more disorganised and had lost more heavily, with their supply arrangements in disarray. Both armies evacuated East Prussia.

The next year in August a larger Russian army was at the Oder at Zorndorf, led by Count Fermor, a better commander than Apraxin. The First Battalion of IR4 was in the left wing commanded by Lieutenant General von Kanitz. The grenadier battalion was commanded by Major von Kleist and on the left wing in the advance guard. The left wing attacked first. The grenadier battalion, after attacking a Russian artillery battery, being involved in an attack against the Russian counter-attack then in the afternoon facing the Russian cavalry attack, suffered 28 dead including the commander, 206 wounded and 176 missing or captured and thus lost two-thirds of its strength. (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) actually shows around 80% casualties for the grenadiers at Zorndorf.) It was relegated to defending a bridge in Schwedt/Oder. Kanitz's wing veered off to the right and ploughed into the centre of the Russian army, counter to the plan of attack, having initial success but then being routed by a flank attack. Several East Prussian regiments collapsed. Seydlitz led a cavalry attack that helped give the infantry a breather. But Frederick henceforth harboured a deep dislike of all East Prussian regiments including IR4. Eventually both armies separated and drew off to lick their wounds. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 75% casualties for IR4 1st Battalion at Zorndorf.)

In 1761 Major General von Thadden became chef; the regiment had lost its recruitment base and received poor replacements. On July 21st 1761 the regiment was involved in the attack at Burkersdorf and was able to redeem itself to some extent attacking the northern defences. Two Pour-le-merites were awarded in recognition.

Duffy AFG1 says of the regiment: "A poorish regiment, badly knocked about at Gross-Jägersdorf and Zorndorf. Of its Chefs, Rautter was disgraced for his performance at Zorndorf, while Thadden was known as a drunkard".

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Flag of the Lübeck Burgerwehr in the 18th Century: Updated

This is an update, on which I have worked on and off for ages, of a flag template I posted way back in 2008. As a recent theme has been French militia flags I thought I'd post this one of a German city guard unit.

The Hanseatic Towns of Lübeck, Bremen and Hamburg all had foot regiments dressed in Prussian-style uniforms but in red, with white facings and small clothes for Bremen and Lübeck. The uniform had blue cuffs and apparently no lapels for Hamburg. The Bremen grenadiers seem to have had grenadier caps with white metal and brass front plates, those of Lübeck with largely brass plates. Buttons were brass for Hamburg and tin for the other two. I don't know if this flag was actually carried by the Lübeck infantry regiment or a separate burger militia unit as information seems scarce.

These are Lübeck grenadiers of the 18th century by Knötel:

 

And this is a Knötel plate of the uniforms of some of the Hamburg troops in 1755:

Update: Colonel's Flag of the bourgeois Sedan Militia

As promised, here is the colonel's flag of the bourgeois Sedan Militia. There is not much more to say except that not all the militias had a white colonel's flag, as far as we know, and where they did they sometimes at least seem to have included a coat of arms. This one includes the royal arms in the centre.

French Cavalry Standard - Du Roy Cavalry (and Royal Pologne and Royal Cravate)

Just to keep things ticking over while I work on the text for Prussian IR4, the flags of Prussian IR 15, the detail of another Austrian WAS flag from the Triomphes Louis XV, etc., etc., here is another French heavy cavalry standard, as the previous ones have gone down well:

Regiment first raised 1635. Ranked 5th amongst the French heavy cavalry. 2 squadrons strong in 1756. Increased to 4 squadrons in 1761. Served in the War of the Polish Succession and the War of the Austrian Succession. In the Seven Years War was at Hastenbeck 1758 and Borck 1761. Uniform was blue with red cuffs and lapels; waistcoat and breeches yellow; buttons pewter and lace on tricorn white. Wore the cuirass. Shabraque bordered with the Royal livery, red with white lace.

Note that, acording to Pierre Charrié, Royal Pologne and Royal Cravate carried identical standards, which is useful!

Experimental French cavalry standards - Bourbon and Bourbon-Busset

By way of experiment, I've done versions of the SYW standards of French cavalry regiments Bourbon and Bourbon-Busset. As this is a tentative posting I will not spend lots of time writing up the regimental histories or drawing the uniforms at the moment.

I say this is an experiment, as cavalry standards are often extremely detailed and yet the final product will be printed very small and so much of the laboriously created detail is likely to be lost in the printing, even on decent paper laser printed. These standards I have created have a fair amount of detail but I have tried to produce something that, when printed small, will still look good. As I don't have a laser printer (or even a working really good quality inkjet) at the moment, to produce decent printed versions, I'd be grateful if someone who does might be able to have a go at printing these and send me photographs. Thanks!

Flag of French Milice d'Autin 1689-?

Absolutely the last French militia flag for now. I could not resist this one either; I'm just having too much fun, with fancy flags and no complicated text to write! It's like a graphic artist's holiday. Ha ha.

Flag of French Milice de Lorraine 1742

I can find no information on this unit but rather liked the flag so here it is. It is unusual enough to please even ImagiNations users, I think! :-)

This (and the previous posting) was a somewhat unintended wander into the byways of French militia flaggery. I shall return again sometime but next I'll be back with Prussian, regular French and other flags.

I've now done the actual flags for Prussian Infantry Regiments 4, 11, 14 and 16 but still have to do the uniform plates and text, never a quick task.

Willz Harley's French Militia With My New Flag; French Militia Flag Also Posted

Willz Harley posted some shots of his nice French militia regiment on the Fife and Drum Forum yesterday. He did not have a proper militia flag so had used one of my white French colonel's flags. I had planned to do some French militia flags at some point, although, as Pierre Charrié explains in his splendid and comprehensive flag book Drapeaux Et Étendards Du Roi, we know very little about many of them. However, we do have details amongst others of the Milices de Sedans so I created the ordonnance flag yesterday evening and emailed it to Willz. He has now attached it to the standard bearer and sent me some pictures of the colour party; see attached images. At some point I will draw the colonel's flag of the bourgeois Sedan Militia and post it; it is more elaborate than the ordonnance flag.

Here are 3 of Willz's pictures which he said he would be happy for me to post here:

 

 

Willz has shown his militia in standard plain French uniform; we have little information on what many militia units wore and it is likely some wore civilian clothes.

This is his unit with the previous white flag:

Kronoskaf has useful summaries of what we know of the various militia units: http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=French_Army#Militias

And here is the ordonnance flag of the Milices de Sedan for those who would like to use it for their Militia:

Flags and uniform of Prussian Infantry Regiment 2 von Kanitz

Having done the flags for Prussian infantry regiments at Prague, Kolin, Rossbach and Leuthen (apart from IR15 on which I am still working), I am now filling in the gaps in my coverage on the way to the ultimate ambition of doing all the Prussian infantry flags of the Seven Years War. The next regiments I do will therefore be IRs 2, 4, 11, 14 and 16. Here are those of IR2:

Chefs: 12th June 1750 to 1769 Major General Hans Wilhelm von Kanitz, later Lieutenant General

First raised in Far Pomerania and the Neumark December 1655.

In the Seven Years War 1757-9 the regiment had the pleasure of fighting the Russians in four major battles and suffering heavy losses. After the Russians moved into East Prussia on 1st August 1757, 73 year old Field Marshal von Lehwaldt moved against them and encountered superior Russian forces in the Norkitten Forest near Gross Jägersdorf. The regiment was part of the first attack, advancing with lowered bayonets and breaking through the Russian first line on the right wing and then, midst the fog and smoke, colliding with the second line of Russians. With no support from artillery or cavalry the attack crumbled in the face of Russian resistance. In the confusion the Sydow Regiment fired on the rear of the front line Prussian battalions which were then driven back by the Russian counter-attack. The regiment lost 16 officers and 489 men in the battle.

A year later on 25th August 1758 IR2 and six grenadier battalions led the initial attack on the Russians west of Zorndorf in the Zabern valley. The left wing under Lieutenant General von Kanitz (the regimental chef)  followed with fifteen battalions. There followed two hours of bitter combat. The left wing veered off to the right in the confusion and was attacked by Russian cavalry that threw it back. Prussian cavalry under von Seydlitz attacked the Russians and gave the left wing some much needed breathing space. But when the King began his main attack against the Russian left wing, Russian cavalry struck Kanitz's battered regiments. Frederick had now seen the East Prussian regiments "fail" twice and so, apart from IR2, they fell into disfavour. IR2 lost 20 officers and 844 men in the battle.  (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) shows around 45% casualties for IR2 at Zorndorf.)

On August 25th 1759 Lieutenant General Wedell, under what he saw as explicit orders from Frederick to attack the Russians, threw his army against them at Kay (Paltzig) even though they outnumbered him two to one. The assault against a prepared Russian position on the Paltzig Heights was inevitably a bloody failure. A third of Wedell's force were casualties and IR2 lost 13 officers and 642 men. The King himself then took command against the Russians and three weeks later, on August 12th, attacked the Russians and Austrians in their prepared positions at Kunersdorf, east of Frankfurt an der Oder. After initial success the Prussian infantry ground to a halt in the heat and dust of the Kuh-Grund in front of the Grosser Spitzberg. A final attack by Austrian and Russian cavalry under Loudon routed the struggling Prussians. The regiment lost nine officers and 472 men. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 25+% casualties for IR2 at Kunersdorf.) They had therefore in two years lost a total of 58 officers and 2447 men!

The remainder of IR2, one battalion strong, were captured by the Austrians at the Elbe bridgehead near Meissen on December 4th of that year. Having lost its own recruiting grounds and station, the regiment was sent to the Stutterheim Corps in Pomerania to be recruited with fresh recruits from Mecklenburg.

The grenadiers fought at Torgau on November 3rd 1760, in the third attack of von Hülsen. On August 1th 1762 the regiment fought in the victory of Reichenbach under von Bevern and then took part in the successful siege of Schweidnitz, which capitulated on October 10th.

Christopher Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition says of IR2: "Unusually hard-fighting (especially for an East Prussian regiment) with consistently high casualties. One battalion captured at Meissen 4th December 1759." In favour with Frederick after the Seven Years War.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Flags of French regiments disbanded 1749: Flags of French Regiment Beauce

First raised 23rd September 1684

One battalion.

 

Summary of service from Susane Volume 8:

1689-1697: Served on the coast

War of the Spanish Succession:

1701: Army of Italy; blockade of Mantua. Then into garrison in that city.
1707: Army of Flanders
1708: Battle of Oudenarde
1709: Army of the Rhine
1710: Army of Flanders
1711: Combat of Arleux
1712: Sieges of Douai, Quesnoy and Bouchain

War of the Polish Succession:

1733: Army of the Rhine; siege of Kehl
1734: Siege of Philipsbourg
1735: Combat of Klausen

War of the Austrian Succession:

1742: Army of Bohemia; taking of Prague. Defence of Prague. Stayed there after the departure of the army. Obtained an honourable capitulation 26th December.
1743: Army of the Alps
1744: The colonel killed at the battle of the Madonna of Ulmo
1746: Battles of Plaisance and Tidone
1747: Conquest of Nice; combat of Exiles. Stayed in Italy up to the peace

The illustrious Chevert entered the regiment in 1710 as a sous-lieutenant; he was a lieutenant-general by 1748

1749 10th February; The regiment was incorporated in the regiment of Talaru, which later took the name of Beauce, and the grenadiers went to the Grenadiers de France

And this was probably the uniform in the later 1740s:

 

Kolin Prussian Flags Project - Flags of Prussian Infantry Regiment 22 Anhalt-Dessau

First raised March 1713.

Chefs: 31st May 1741-1760 Colonel Moritz, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau, later Field Marshall; 22nd April 1760-1768 Major General Balthasar Rudolf von Schenckendorf, later Lieutenant General

The regiment was with the King's army that took the Saxon army at Pirna; the grenadiers were at Lobositz. As IR22 was involved in the siege of Prague it missed the battle but was hard hit at Kolin 18th June 1757. It was part of the right wing under Bevern which should have been held back or "refused" to act as a reserve but Bevern's force "was plagued by misunderstandings which led to five of its battalions being led into an attack on the Prezerowsky Hill" (Duffy, By Force Of Arms). Although the decisive action of the battle was on the left wing, IR22 and its companion regiments suffered very heavy casualties in the final phase of the battle. IR22 lost 26 officers and 1165 men, four-fifths of its manpower. The grenadiers fought at Rossbach and Leuthen. (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) shows around 25% casualties for the grenadiers with IR17 at Leuthen.)

The prisoners taken at Kolin returned at the beginning of 1758 and IR22 joined the Pomeranian Corps that met up with  the King on August 22nd that year. On 25th August the army met the Russians at Zorndorf; IR22 was with its grenadiers. The regiment was in Kanitz's wing  and faced the Russian cavalry counterattack. Losses were heavy. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 25% casualties in both of IR22's musketeer battalions and 50& casualties in the grenadier battalion with IR17, which was in the advance guard.) The regiment was at the relief of Kolberg in October.

The grenadiers fought at Kay on July 23rd 1759 and the musketeer battalions took Frankfurt on the Oder under Wobersnow.  The grenadiers fought at Kunersdorf on 12th August. losing about 30% casualties (Duffy AFG1). The regiment marched from Pomerania under Kleist to join the King at Fürstenwalde.

It was with the King again in 1760 at the unsuccessful siege of Dresden July 10th to 22nd. The grenadiers were demolished at Landeshut. At Torgau on November 3rd it was in reserve with the main army. It was later part of the renewed attack under Hülsen that broke through and joined up with Zieten's attack, and decided the battle in favour of the Prussians, just when the Austrians were congratulating themselves on a victory. The commanders of both musketeer battalions received the Pour-le-merite.

IR22 was with the King again in 1761-2. At Burkersdorf 21st July 1762 it was part of the attack under Neuwied at Ludwigsdorf which stormed the defences there and captured them. Four company commanders were awarded the Pour-le-merite.

Christopher Duffy, Army of Frederick The Great, says of IR22: "Massacred at Kolin and suffered heavily at Zorndorf. On 5th January 1741 the regiment entered Breslau "in blue and red uniforms with straw coloured waistcoats... a splendid collection of men, with fine shining weapons that were a delight to see" (Steinberger)".

And this was the uniform in 1756 :

Flags of French regiments disbanded 1749: Flags of French Regiment Vexin

First raised 31st August 1684 or 21st September 1684 or 1st December 1684 (depending on the source of the information)!

One battalion.

 

Summary of service from Susane Volume 8:

1689: Army of the Alps
1690: Battle of Staffarde
1692: Army of Flanders; siege of Namur
1693-1696: Army of the Alps
1697: Army of Flanders; siege of Ath

War of the Spanish Succession:

1701: Army of Flanders
1703: Battle of Ekeren
1704: Army of the Alps
1705: Taking of Chivasso; battle of Cassano
1706: Siege of Turin; battle of Castiglione
1707: Defence of Toulon
1708: Army of Dauphiné
1709: Army of Flanders; battle of Malplaquet
1711: Combat of Arleux
1712: Battle of Denain; sieges of Douai, Quesnoy and Bouchain

1727: Camp of Sâone

War of the Polish Succession:

1734: November; to Italy by sea
1735: Taking of Guastalla, Reggiolo and Revere
1736: September; back to France

War of the Austrian Succession:

1742: Army of Flanders
1743: Army of the Lower Rhine; battle of Dettingen
1744: Army of Flanders
1745: Army of the Rhine
1746: Army of the Meuse; siege of Namur; battle of Rocoux
1747: Battle of Lauffeldt
1748: Siege of Maastricht

1749 10th February; Incorporated in the regiment of Vermandois and the grenadiers to the Grenadiers de France

And this was probably the uniform in the later 1740s:

Kolin Prussian Flags Project - Flags of Prussian Infantry Regiment 7 Braunschweig-Bevern

This is a very short mini-project as Prussian Infantry Regiments 7 and 22 are the only infantry regiments missing from my blog for the battle of Kolin 18th June 1757 (except for the flags of Prussian IR15 which I have been endlessly putting off doing as they are uniquely complicated and a lot of work... Must get them done sometime, though).

Chef: 1741-1781 Colonel August Wilhelm, Prince of Braunschweig-Bevern, later Duke and General of the Infantry, Governor of Stettin

First raised as a full regiment November 1676.

In the Seven Years War: At Lobositz on October 1st 1756 the regiment stormed the Lobosch Hill with the bayonet, having run out of ammunition, and the officers of the regiment received eight Pour-le-merite medals for its conduct that day. (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) shows around 15% casualties.) On 21st April 1757 the regiment spearheaded the advance through the mountains to Bohemia near Reichenberg. Having missed Prague on 6th May, the regiment was in the first line and leading brigade at Kolin on 18th June. It led the advance onto the Krzeczhorz Heights. In the afternoon it stormed an Austrian battery which had been doing great damage to it. After the Prussian cavalry had driven off an Austrian counterattack, IR7 threw itself at the enemy once more in a bayonet attack which captured some enemy guns. But the battle was already lost and IR7 suffered very heavy casualties in the final Austrian and Saxon cavalry attack. IR 7 lost 26 officers and 1018 men. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 75% casualties.) The regiment was not restored to full strength until the following winter.

At Zorndorf on August 25th 1758 the regiment suffered heavy casualties as part of Kanitz's wing which drifted to the right and hit the centre of the Russian position. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 40% casualties.)

1759 was a very bad year for the regiment, which took part in the defeat at Kay (Paltzig) on July 23rd and then on August 12th at Kunersdorf, where the grenadiers alone suffered 117 dead and 200 wounded. (Duffy AFG1 shows around 45% casualties amongst the grenadiers (with IR30) and about 15% in IR7 itself.)

At Torgau on November 3rd 1760 the regiment was with Hülsen and twice attacked the Süptitz Heights in vain, suffering heavy losses. At Freiberg on October 29th 1762 it tasted success, capturing five cannon and a flag, as part of the southern attack under General von Stutterheim.

Duffy AFG1 says of the regiment: "Saw especially heavy fighting at Hohenfriedberg, Kolin and Zorndorf. Frederick regarded it as a typically reliable Pomeranian regiment and one that "had done honour to the House of Brandenburg from time immemorial". The genial Duke of Bevern was Chef for 40 years."

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Flags of French Regiment Bigorre 1684-1762

First raised 9th September 1684 and created from companies of Regiment Navarre. One battalion. Ranked 78th in the SYW.

Flags carried from 1684-1762

Summary of Service History (from Susane Volume 8):

1690: Army of the Alps; taking of Cahours and Suze; battle of Staffarde
1691: Conquest of Savoy and Nice
1693: Battle of Marsaglia
1696: Siege of Valenza
1696: Army of the Moselle
1700: Army of Italy
1701: Combats of Carpi and Chiari. Into garrison at Mantua
1705: Army of Spain. Conquest of Andalucia
1707: Siege of Lerida
1709: Army of Dauphiné
1710: Army of Flanders
1712: Sieges of Douai, Quesnoy and Bouchain
1733: Army of the Rhine
1734: Siege of Philipsbourg

WAS
1743: Army of the Lower Rhine; battle of Dettingen; combat of Rheinweiler
1744: Retaking of the Lines of Lauter; siege of Fribourg
1745: Taking of Kronembourg
1746: Army of Flanders; battle of Rocoux
1747: Defence of Provence; the recapture of the Isles of Sainte-Marguerite; conquest of Nice
1748: Defence of the Rivière de Gênes, Italy

SYW: Served on the coast of Brittany; defence of Belle-Île-Sur-Mer 1761

Disbanded 25th November 1762

And this was the uniform in the SYW:

Flags of French regiments disbanded 1749: Flags of French Regiment Beaujolais

Beaujolais first raised June 1685. One battalion.

Summary of its service (from Susane):

    1690 : Army of the Alps
    1691 : Conquest of Savoy and Nice
    1693 : Battle of Marsaglia (4th October))
    1696 : Army of the Rhine
    1701 : Army of Germany, then to the Army of Italy; battle of Chiari
    1702 : Combat of Santa Vittoria; taking of Luzzara and Borgoforte
    1703 : Expedition to the Tyrol
    1704 : Sieges of Verceil, Ivrée and Vérue. The colonel, killed before Verceil, was replaced by his       brother Etienne Le Ménestral de Hauguel de Lutteaux 20th July 1704
    1705 : Battle of Cassano (16th August))
    1706 : Battle of Castiglione
    1707-11: Army of Dauphiné
    1712: Army of the Rhine
    1713 : Sieges of Landau and Fribourg
    1719 : Army of the Pyrenees
    1733 : Occupation of Lorraine
    1742 : Army of Flanders
    1743 : Army of the Lower Rhine; battle of Dettingen
    1744 and 1745 : Defence of Alsace
    1746 : Siege of Namur; battle of Rocoux
    1747 : Went to Provence. Retaking of the Isles of Sainte Marguerite; conquest of the County of Nice; combat of the Assiette, where the colonel Jacques Gabriel Bazin Marquis de Bezons was seriously wounded
    1748 : Campaigns on the Rivière de Gênes, Italy
    10th February 1749 : incorporated in the Regiment de Traisnel, which became Beaujolais, and the grenadiers sent to the Grenadiers de France
    
And this was the uniform in the 1740s:

Prague Prussian Flags Project - Flags of Prussian Infantry Regiment 3 Anhalt-Dessau; then von Kahlden; latterly Anhalt-Bernburg

Chefs: From 23rd December 1752 Major Colonel Leopold Friedrich Franz, Hereditary Prince of Anhalt Dessau later Major General ; from 5th January 1758 Major General Henning Alexander von Kahlden, died 22nd October 1758 of wounds received at Zorndorf; from 31st March 1759 Major General Franz Adolf, Prince of Anhalt-Bernburg,  later Lieutenant General, to 1784

The regiment was at Lobositz on October 1st 1756 and was thrown in as the last reserve to help with the attack on the Lobosch Hill after the cavalry fight in the plain below. At Prague it was part of the right wing's first line under Braunschweig-Bevernand which broke through the Austrian line south of Kej. Casualties were heavy in the fight round the Rokenitz Brook. (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) shows around 40% casualties.) At Kolin on 18th June (without its third battalion) again it was on the right wing under the Duke of Bevern, and it was claimed that Bevern's inaction assured the defeat. It then helped protect the retreat at Planjan. (Duffy, AFG1, shows about 50% casualties.) On November 22nd the grenadiers suffered defeat at Breslau and then enjoyed victory at Leuthen on December 5th  (Duffy, AFG1, shows about 20% casualties) .

As a result of the loss of a battalion at Kolin the regiment did not see service again until the battle of Kay (Paltzig) on July 23rd 1759; its three battalions of the avant garde were commanded by Lieutenant-General von Manteuffel. Under heavy artillery fire the regiment fought through to the Russian gun positions but was thrown back with heavy losses. Four further attacks had the same result. On December 12th seven companies of the regiment were captured by the Austrians on the right bank of the Elbe at Meissen.

When Frederick surrounded Dresden on July 10th 1760, the first two battalions of the regiment were routed with heavy losses in the Pirna suburb as far as the Grosse Garten, during a night attack by the enemy forces in the city on July 21st. The King was furious and demoted them to garrison duty. He also took away the other ranks' sidearms and also the braid on the hats of the officers and NCOs. The army was deeply impressed by this punishment. Three weeks later at Liegnitz the regiment redeemed itself by charging at the Austrians and breaking through their lines and forcing Loudon to withdraw his battered command over the Katzbach.  (Duffy, AFG1, shows about 45% casualties.) The King restored the regiment to favour, paying for the braid on the hats out of his own pocket.

IR3 attacks the Austrians at Liegnitz (Menzel)

Frederick gives IR3 back its sidearms and hat braid (Röchling)

In 1762 the regiment under its commander Major General Franz Adolf, Prince of Anhalt-Bernburg captured Leutmannsdorf but lost the commander of its second battalion. The regiment was awarded two Pour-le-merite medals for the action.

Christopher Duffy (AFG1) says: "In the Seven Years War it was filled up with impressed Saxons and performed erratically, disgracing itself at the siege of Dresden in 1760 but redeeming its name at Liegnirz late  in the same year." It was quite highly regarded by Frederick after the war.

 And this was the uniform in 1756:

Flags of French regiments disbanded 1749: Flags of French Regiment Agénois

First raised under this name October/November 1692.

Flags carried from 1692-1749, although the later violet colour was called "gris de lin" up to the 1730s. This may have been little different from the later violet. These flags are one of my favourite sets of the disbanded regiments and I have planned to do them for a long time.

I took the detail of the design from the 1721 French MS as about the closest we have to a definitive version of these flags...

 

Service (from Susane Volume 8); it saw a great deal of action in the War of the Spanish Succession:

In the Army of Germany up to 1694.

Campaigns of 1695, 1696 and 1697 in Flanders.
; siege of Ath.

Army of Flanders 1701.

Combat of Nimègue 1702.

Moved to the Army of the Rhine; battle of Friedlingen 1702.

Siege of Keth and campaigns in Bavaria 1703.

Battle of Blenheim [2nd Hochstedt] 1704; first battalion taken prisoner.

Army of Flanders: Battle of Ramillies in 1706.

Battle of Oudenarde 1708.

Battle of Malplaquet 1709.

Battle of Denain 1712; the colonel of the regiment was badly wounded there.

Army of the Rhine: Siege of Philipsbourg 1734.

Combat of Klausen 1735.

Campaigns of 1739 and 1740 in Corsica.

Army of Bavaria in 1742: relief of Braunau and defence of Deckendorf.

In garrison at Bitche in 1743.

Army of the Alps in 1744; the colonel was killed in the attack on the fortifications of Montalban.

Served in the Alps up to the peace.

Incorporated on the 10th February 1749 in the regiment of Berry and the grenadiers in the Grenadiers de France.

And this was the uniform in the 1740s:

French Flags Mini-Project: Flags Carried By Infantry Regiments at St Cast 1758 Number 5: Regiment Bourbon

This concludes the mini-project as this was the last regular French infantry regiment that fought there, although I may also do the flags of the Volontaires Étrangers who fought at St Cast.

First raised 1635 as Regiment d'Enghien and renamed Bourbon in 1686. Ranked 39th in 1756. Two battalions strong.

Flags carried from at least 1686-1791.

Early history:

Susane lists the regiment's activities in the various civil and other wars of the early 17th century but I shall not recount them here. Kronoskaf here: http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=Bourbon_Infanterie gives an account of the regiment's many activities in the Nine Years' War, the War of the Spanish Succession and the War of the Austrian Succession based largely on Susane.

Bourbon in the SYW from Susane Volume 6 - my translation:

Bourbon took part in the Saarlouis camp in 1753. It served on the coast of Brittany during the six first campaigns of the Seven Years War. It was particularly distinguished in 1758 in the combat of Saint Cast. At the news of the British landings, the regiment gathered on the 10th September at Lamballe, and the affair took place the next day. It attacked the enemy on the right [flank] and, despite the fire of the enemy ships which swept the beach, it threw the British battalions opposed to it into the sea. The colonel-lieutenant le Marquis de Broc, whose conduct had been most notable, was charged by the Duc d'Aiguillon to carry the news of the victory to Versailles.

At the beginning of 1759 Bourbon was sent to Belle Isle. There it spent two years without being attacked. On the 7th April 1761 115 British ships tried to disembark their troops at Port Andras. The regiment surprised the enemy in the middle of the operation, killed 800 of them, nearly all grenadiers, and made 300 prisoner including a lieutenant colonel and a major. But the British made another attempt on the 21st and were luckier. The lieutenant colonel the Chevalier de Sainte Croix defended with great courage up to the 7th June and did not agree to surrender until he had lost all hope of relief. He obtained an honourable capitulation for the regiment which was transported by British ships to the mainland and sent to Arras. It left that town in December 1763 to go to Dunkirk.

And this was the uniform in 1756:

Prague Prussian Flags Project - Flags of Prussian Fusilier Infantry Regiment 41 Wied

The Prague Prussian infantry flags project moves towards its close with this, the penultimate flag set. It is not one of the most exciting or attractive sets of these flags nor is the last flag set, that of IR3, which will be posted sometime soon. After that I may, as part of the plan ultimately to post all the Prussian infantry flags, work on the the flags carried at Kolin that have not already been produced in this and previous projects.

 

Chef: 27th July 1746 to 1765 Colonel Franz Carl Ludwig, Count von Wied zu Neuwied, later Lieutenant General

 

 

First raised for the service of Württemberg in 1716, the regiment was taken into Prussian service in 1741.

The regiment took part in the siege of Pirna in 1756. Increased by 300 men in January 1757, it went to Bohemia in April 1757 and fought at Prague on May 6th as part of the second line, right wing, reinforcing Hautcharmoy's division in the breakthrough south of Kej. It fought at Kolin on June 18th along with its grenadiers. The regiment was taken out of the second line of the left wing by the King and sent into the gap between Prinz Franz and Pannewitz's Brigades to launch a new attack on the Krzeczhorz Heights. The King himself led the attack with drawn sword and the attack succeeded around 5.30pm. In the battle's finale at Novemesto the grenadiers helped protect the retreat of the second line's right wing, with the artillery, wounded and fugitives. The regiment lost 1018 men including its commander Colonel Herwarth von Bittenfeld. (Duffy, Army of Frederick the Great, 1st Edition (henceforth Duffy AFG1) shows around 75% casualties; the grenadiers with IR44 lost about 25% casualties.) In August it was sent with Bevern to Silesia. On September 7th the grenadiers were part of the defence of the Jäckelsberg at Moys and lost 204 dead and 68 wounded. On November 22nd in the battle for Breslau the regiment stood its ground and then at Leuthen in December it fought on the right wing, losing 79 dead and 73 wounded.

In 1758 the regiment fought in the siege of Schweidnitz; the grenadiers stormed the Gallows Fort on April 16th. The grenadiers fought at Domstadl and the musketeer battalions in the defeat at Olmütz June 1st to July 1st. On the march back to Landeshut the regiment captured Kronau, which was held by eight grenadier companies. On August 11th the King took it to join Dohna’s Corps. It occupied the ruined city of Küstrin and then helped secure Lusatia against the Austrians. At Hochkirch on October 14th the grenadiers were on the right wing near the village and suffered about 30% casualties (Duffy AFG1) and the rest of the regiment fought against the Swedes at Fehrbellin under Wedell in October before moving to Torgau to secure the Mulde.

In 1759 it was sent to Franconia with the Saxon Corps. In August at Kunersdorf it suffered very heavy losses in the Kuhgrund including its regimental commander Colonel von Böhm. (Duffy AFG1 shows about 40% casualties.) At Maxen the grenadiers were taken prisoner. At Liegnitz on August 15th the regiment led the counterattack on Panten and the commander received the Order of the Black Eagle in consequence. At Torgau on November 3rd the regiment was with Zieten in the Tettenborn Brigade and took the village of Süptitz in the attack from the south that decided the battle after the Austrians thought they had won it.

In 1761 and 1762 the grenadiers fought in Pomerania and Upper Silesia and the two musketeer battalions were with the King at Peilau on August 16th, their last action of the war.

In 1763 the regiment had 1093 Prussians, 125 Saxons and 402 foreigners. The regiment was one of those most highly favoured by the King.

 

And this was the uniform in 1756:

 

 

Flags of French regiments disbanded 1749: Flags of French Regiment Gâtinais

This will possibly be the start of another mini-project, as part of the overall plan to do probably just about every French infantry flag from the 17th to the 18th centuries, if I live long enough. As was true of so many countries, the variety of French flags diminished as the 18th century wore on. Many of the War of the Spanish Succession flags are wonderfully psychedelic and unusual; the flags of the regiments disbanded at the end of the War of the Austrian Succession are also mostly unusual designs, no longer used by the French army after that date. I find the WAS more and more appealing, although I am sorry that the Austrian army was so much less effective in that war than in the Seven Years' War!

The flags of Gâtinais are often depicted with the diagonal designs as pointed triangles but the 1721 MS shows them as here. I trust the 1721 MS as a probably more authentic version of these flags. I would be interested to hear if anyone has evidence to the contrary.

The following summary of the regiment's history is from Susane, Volume 8:

Gâtinais was first raised October 1692. Only one battalion strong for much of its existence.

    1693 : Army of Italy, Battle of Marsaglia (4th October))
    1695 : Army of Catalonia
    1697 : Siege of Barcelona
    1701 : Army of Germany, then to the Army of Italy; battle of Chiari
    1702 : Defence of Cremona, battle of Luzzara, taking of Luzzara, Guastalla, and Borgoforte
    1703 : Battles of Stradella and Castelnuovo; expedition to Tyrol; taking of Asti
    1704 : Sieges of Verceil, Ivrée and Verrue
    1705 : Taking of Mirandola; battle of Cassano (16th August))
    1706 : Siege and battle of Turin (14th May); battle of Calcinato (19th May)
    1707 : Defence of Toulon
    1708 : Dauphiné, attack on Cézanne
    1708 - 1712 : Remained in the Alps
    1713 : Army of Roussillon
    1714 : Siege of Barcelona
    1733 : Army of Germany; siege of Kehl (13th-29th October)
    1734 : Battle of Ettlingen, siege of Philippsbourg (2nd June to 18th July)
    1735 : Battle of Klausen
    1744 : Army of the Alps; Conquest of Nice; siege and battle of Coni (30th September)
    1746 : Battle of Tidone
    1747 - 1748 : Defence of Provence
    In garrison at Toulon and Saint Tropez up to the Peace of 1748
    10th February 1749 : became the 2nd battalion of Lorraine and the grenadiers sent to the Grenadiers     de France

And this, as far as I can tell, was probably the uniform in the WAS. The various volumes of the Abregé De La Carte Générale Du Militaire De France from the 1730s do not specify the pocket detail or numbers of buttons on the cuff or pockets. Rousselot depicts them from 1720-1736 as shown here so in the absence of any other authorities I have chosen to do so too. Again, if anyone has better information, please do let me know in the comments below!