roleplaying:versailles:versaillesmilitary
Differences
This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.
— | roleplaying:versailles:versaillesmilitary [2014/03/20 21:35] (current) – created - external edit 127.0.0.1 | ||
---|---|---|---|
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
+ | ======The Military====== | ||
+ | | Go Back to ^ [[roleplaying: | ||
+ | =====Louis XV's army===== | ||
+ | >> | ||
+ | The Royal Army was a typical 18th century force. The ranks were filled with mercenaries, | ||
+ | The first 20 years of Louis XV were generally peaceful, a marked contrast to the war-like disposition of Louis XIV (the Sun King). | ||
+ | France had a population of 25 million and maintained the largest standing army in Europe. | ||
+ | It consisted of the following troops: | ||
+ | * guard cavalry | ||
+ | * Life Guards (//Garde du Corps//) had 4 companies (350-420 each) on black horses | ||
+ | * Gendarmes (// | ||
+ | * Lighthorse of the Guard (// | ||
+ | * Horse Grenadiers (// | ||
+ | * Musketeers (// | ||
+ | * Life Guards of the King of Poland had 2 companies (75 men each) on bay horses | ||
+ | * [The Queen of France was a Polish princess, whose father, King Stanislav Leszczynski, | ||
+ | * guard infantry | ||
+ | * French Guards (// | ||
+ | * Swiss Guards | ||
+ | * cavalry | ||
+ | * Gendarmes of France (// | ||
+ | * heavy cavalry had 60 regiments (incl. 3 German, 1 Irish, 1 Belgian) | ||
+ | * carabiniers had 5 regiments called brigades | ||
+ | * dragoons had 17 regiments | ||
+ | * line infantry | ||
+ | * in 1740 were 155 battalions (on average each had 540 men) | ||
+ | * in 1747 were 227 battalions | ||
+ | * in 1750 were 172 battalions | ||
+ | * in 1762 were 187 battalions (on average each had 630 men) | ||
+ | The battalions were formed in regiments. | ||
+ | ~~Until 1718 each battalion had 1 grenadier and 14 fusilier companies, this was then reduced to 1 grenadier and 8 fusilier. This was raised agan to 15 companies in 1734, then dropped to 13 companies from 1749. In 1756 the number of companies was raised to 17 per battalion." | ||
+ | The company had approx. 40 men.In 1757 each battalion going on campaign in central Europe received a light-calibre cannon with limber and 3 horses. | ||
+ | * militia | ||
+ | * - Provincial Militia had 100-120 battalions (on average each had 600 men) | ||
+ | * - Coast Guard Militia | ||
+ | * - Bourgeois Militia | ||
+ | The Provincial Militia was drafted for garrison duty but they were also used as army reserves and considered part of the royal forces and listed as such in the army registers. | ||
+ | In 1780s reaction reigned supreme over the French military administration. | ||
+ | |||