~FrenchRevolutionary

Infantryrnan
1791-1802
TERRY CROWDY Wa5 bom in
London in 1970.lnitially a
re-enactOf", his interest in the
Revolutionary and Napoleonlc
Wars led to writing for
specialisl magazin es . Having
assisted with Campaign 70:
Marengo 1800, his r;rst
Osprey tille was Warrio. 57:
French Napoleonlc
Infantryman 1803-15. He
is currently resean;:hing
several projects 10. Ospray
in addition lo sludies on
espionage during lhe Marengo
C<lmpaign aOO a hislory of the
~ncomparable' 9U Légére.

CHRISTA HOOK bogan he.

illuslrating career In 1986.
He. wo.k has featured
extensively in the wortds of
publishing and lelevislon, and
she has establis hed herself as
one of Osprey'. most popular
iIIustratol'$. He. illustrations
combine tha historian's
attention lo detail with the
artist's sense of drama and
atmosphere, and they are
sought after by collec:tol"$
worldwide. She has had work
selec:ted for the l.aing Land
and Seascape ElIhibilion 2000
al \he Mall, and the Not the
Royal Academy Edlibition
2000 al the Uewellyn
A1eunder Galler,.
 ÜSPREY
Warrior • 63 PUBLl SH ING

French Revolutionary
Infantryman
1791-1802

Te rr y Crowdy . Illustrated by Christa Hook ,

Fnl publisI!ed in o.eal e..~a1n in 2000 by ~ Publbhing, Elms Cou1, Artist's note
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Author's note
Edil,"" Thomas Lowres
Design: Ken vail o.ap/1ic Design, cambridge. UK
Ind<o. by Alison WortI1 ington AII pictures not credited are from klnd permission of Alfred
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FRONT COVER Frenen tI'oopS !igohling Aussia n s on the

'Devil's Bridge' (25 s.ptember 1799).
 CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 4
CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS 5
THE NATIONAL GUARD 6
THE CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS 8
SCHOOLlNG THE SOLDIER 10
TRAINING 13
EMIGRATION AND INSUBORDINATION 16
ON A WAR FOOTING 18
FINAL PREPARATIONS 20
INTO BATTLE 24
UNDER SIEGE 29
SUSPICION AND TERROR 31
AMALGAMATION AND JACOBINISM 41
HARDSHIPS ON CAMPAIGN 43
MARAUDERS AND PUNISHMENT 49
REQUISITIONS AND CONSCRIPTS 51
CONSOLIDATION 57
GLOSSARY 59
BIBLIOGRAPHY 59
COLOUR PLATE COMMENTARY 60

INDEX 64 3
 FRENCH INFANTRYMAN
OF THE REVOLUTIONARY
WARS 1791-1802

INTRODUCTION
he d isastrous fre nch pe rformance

T during lile $even Years \Var (1756-63)

in itialcd a rcvolu tlon in military
thinki ng. Under a succession 01' refonning
ministers, regimema l unifonns, organisation
and training were st..'lndardised, new wcapons
introduced a nd recrui tme nt ce ntralised.
Tacties and strategy carne under review and
surnme r trainin g camps were scheduled fo r
practising manoeuvres.
Wh ile these modernising reronns were
im ple m e n ted, lhe com mon inran tryman 's
conditions of service lcft muc h LO be desired .
Soldiers were looked down upon by ,'1 11 grou ps
in socie ty. A !lew fo rm o f pun ish me n t was
inu-o duccd (beating lhe victi m 's back with lhe
flat o f a 5\\'ord ), which \\las considered O\'c rly
Pn lSSian a nd h umilialing.
Throughoul socic ty enlighf.e ned political
p hilosoph ics fue lled rese n tme nl agai nst
noble privilegc. Franee ban kmpted itself
by supporting lh e revolutio n in 13ritain's
American colonies, while a ~ries of pOOl'
harYCsls fud led rc\'olutionary fen'our. In 1789
\
th e King scnt forcign mcrccna ries to keep
ordc r in r aris, bUI thcy came lO blows wüh the
King's h o usch old Gardes Fran r,;aises, who
sided with the n cwly fo rmed National
Assembly, opencd tire 011 lhe foreigners and
then LOok a \'ery active pan in lhe storming of
lhe Bastille.
The soldic rs hopcd lha l lhe political
revolution of 1789 logelher wi th a uthoriry
oyer lhe anny passing from th e King lO the
:\"atio l1al Assembly in the folJowi ng year,
\\'ould see lhei.. complainlS al ¡ast addressed.
Whe n the Na lio na l Asse m bly issued its

179 1 fus ilieo- b y Hoffmann . The m utln le& over poor pay
and service conditions left the mon archy w ithout an)'
4 means 01 defe ndinll It self agai nst the revolutiona'l' tide.

Former Gard es Fra~arses ",ere
incorporaled inlo Ihe Paria
National Guard tollowlng lhe
atlack on lhe Basti lle.
Garrisoned in Paris., these
household troops were Ihe fin 1
lroops lo ope nly support t he
Nat iona l Assem bly.
Oedaration of Lhe Righ ts of Man (26
August 1789) soldiers expeCled the
same rights as their fello\\' cilÍzens.
H owe,re r, th ey we re d isappoi n ted
when the go\'ernmenl became aware
o f lhe problem o f striking a balance
between lhe soldiers' rights as citizens
a nd the need to maintain military
discipline.
Soldiers in garrisons became
poliocally active, j oining local Jacobin
clubs and fonning commiuees in the
regimenL~. Tite ;\Iational A...~ embly 's
ban on these commiuccs coincided
with a series of mutinies over con-
ditions of service, pay and discipline,
lhe 1l10Sl significant occurring in
Nancy in AU/:,'l.lst 1790. Worricd that a
general mudny would !cave Francc's
fronti crs defenceless, the National
Assembly ordc red lhe :\lancy mutiny to
be sllpprcssed al all costs: French
soldiers fired 011 one another for me
first time. The m utiny's ringleaders suffered draconian punishments,
wh ich caused publie uproar a nd led 10 an increase in lensions wilh in
lhe anny. At the beginning of 1791 lhe milita!')' were in a CTlSIS,
which threatened la undo all lhe positive reforms of lhe previolls
lhree decades.
CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS
(General Bonaparte's campaigns in ¡laJics)
1789 Declaration of National Assembly (17 June); National Guard fOfmed in Paris
(11 July); Gardes Fran~aises join attacK on Bastille (14 July).
1790 Nobility and titles abolished (19 June); Nancy Mutiny (15 August).
1791 Regimental lilles replaced by numbers (1 January): th e King attempts to flee
France (20 June); Oeclarati on of Pilnilz - Auslria an d Prussia demand royal
authority be restored in France (27 August).
1792 Allied troops begin massing on French frontl er (7 February); Franca declares
war on Austria (20 April); formalion of First Coallllon agalnst Franca (26 June);
BrunswicK Manifesto - Al lies hold people of Paris responsible for King 's
con linued safely (1 August); Longwy falls lo Prussians (5 September); battle of
VaJmy, allied advance on Paris halted (20 Septembef1; monarchy abolished
(21 Septembefj; proclamalion of Republic (22 Septembefj; viclory al Jemappes
(6 November).
1793 Execution of Louis XVI (21 January): France declares war on Brilain (1
february); France declares war 041 $pain (7 March); General Dumouriez
defealed al Neerwinden (18 March); Dumouriez defects to allies (5 April):
Committee of Public Safety formad (6 April); levée en masse - universal maje
COflscription decreed (23 August); victories al Hondschoote (8 September) and
Wattignes (15-16 October).
1794 Battle of Toumai (23 May); victory al Fleurus (26 June).
1795 Trealy of Basle - Prussia leaves war (16 May); emigres land at Ouiberon Bay
(21 June); victory at Loano (22-24 November). 5

Strasbourg Natlon al Qua rds men
enjoya break from Iralnl " g . Th e
preslige 01 Gu erd se rvl ee w a$ In
marked contrast t o e "torced
serviee in the hated mllitia,
whic h formed o ne of l he
com mon people'$ blsge,t
grieva nces agaínst I he anelen
rég ime.
1796 Bonaparte assum es command 01 Ihe Army of Italy (27 March): victory at LOOi
(10 May); Mi/an taken (15 May); victory at Cas tiglione (5 Augusl ); deleal al
Wiírzburg (3 Seplember); victOty at Areole (15-17 November).
1797 VlCfary at Riva/i (14 January); Armisfiee of LeíJben (1 8 April); Trealy of Campo
Farmio Austria recognises FrerJch annexallon 01 8elgium; Cisalpine Republic
eslablished in northern Italy (17 October).
1798 Bonaparle embarks for Egypt (19 May); French landlng In lreland (22 August);
Second CoaIition f ormed againsl France (24 December).
1799 Defeat at Slockach (25 March); Russians erJler Milan (28 ApriQ; Massena
delealed at First Zurich (5 June); deleals al lhe Trebbia (17-1 9 June) and Novi
(15 August); Massena is viclorious againsl the Allies al Secood Zurich (25
Seplember); Bonaparte retums from Egypl (9 October); defeal al Genola (4
November); Brumaire coup: Bonaparte becomes First Cansul (9-10 November).
1800 Siege of Genoa begins (21 ApriQ; viclory al Slockach (3 May); Frenen begin
crossing St Bemard Pass (1 5 May); BonapaFte enters Mi/an (2 June); Genoa
lalls (4 June); victorias at Montabello (9 June) and Marengo (14 June);
Convention of Alessandria (15 June); victor)' al Hohef'1linden (3 December).
1801 Treaty 01 Lunéville - Austria w ilhdraws Irom coalitlon on Campo Formio terms
(B February); French capitu lale in Egypl (31 AugusI).
1802 Treaty 01 Am iens between 8ritain and Franca (27 Marc h).
THE NATIONAL GUARD
During the summer of 1789 a rn ass hysteria knowll as th e Grande Peur
(gt'eat rea r) swepl FrJ.nce . In response lO bO th lhe upheaval in Paris and
countl]'wide reports of brigandage, NalÍonal Guard units spnmg up aU
over Franee LO defend pcople and prope n y. Thc Guard was o rgan ised al
locallevel, generally drawn from the middle classes and of"ten trained by
former soldier.;. In the capital the Cardes Franc;:aiscs were disbanded
and absorbed into the París National Guard , which had been created on
11 July 1789 10 defend the city's 60 districlS.
A student named Pouget recalled those early days:

When at last me great revolution dawned, I anxiously foll owed irs

phases, as everything moved a t such a pace. The National Guard
was called up in aid ofthe Nacion's re preselHalives; I ....'as named
sergent of Craon's and to prove to my fell o,\' cilize ns that 1 was
worthy of their choice, 1 dril led mysel fardu ously in lhe manual of
a rms and the cadenced marc h. For an instruc tor I had a corporal
of the Régiment de Rouergue, who was happy wilh my progress.
My young fellow citizens were as zealous as myself, not missing
their training. They were soon ready lO appear under arms and lo
march p roperl)' ... ft ....'as al this time Lhal a [alse rumOUf spread
rapidl)' across the countryside lhrowing il imo alarm. Mounled
m essengers rode from village to "ilIage, announcin g thal a hosl of
brigands were burning the wheat, which was a lm051 ready for
harvest. Al Craon, they beat la generaleand 1 was soon al lhe head
of a strong patrol anned with muskets, but without ammunition,
searching the countryside from left to right not knowing where to
d irect our search and finding neither brigands nor fires. The
most excitable wanted 10 go bum and 1001 (he nearby Chaleaux .
... 1 managed to calm them not without difficulty and persuade
m em thal this was an ill ch osen cime.

The Grande Peurwas also well remembered by J can PicITC Sial:

AJened by m e tocsin, m e inhabitallts of the town and iLs environs

anived in mobs, sorne anned ,\ith old muskers, omer.; ",im
sc)'thes and sorne simply wim vine poles. This gathe ring of men,
without order or discipline presented a very curious sight
Follm\ing that da)', the Nacional Guard was organised. AJthough
r was only 16, 1 enrolled myselfand, with my falher's approval, our
tailor made me a fine Nacional Guard unifonn. 1 was very
proud on Sundays, following my plaloon's manoeU\-TCS on the
road to Meyssac.

In the early days, many liber<l.l aristocrats gave tltcir patronagc to the
Guard and used their influcnce to help find anns and equipment.
Pouget r ecalled that the owner ofthe local chaleau \Vas named honorary
colonel of the local guard and that, 'It was tO the credit of our honorary
colonel mat the National Guard obtaincd 50 muskers from Monsieur
Taffin , the commandant of Toul.' Thc cOSt of being in the guard,
especially for m e officers, could be high. H aving recentl)' left the arm)',
ex-corporal Le Roy found himself c1CC1Cd major of the Talmay cantan 's
National Guard. His family's resources were stretched to breaking poinl
by the cosl of his epaulcucs: 'Therefore I fo und myself ha\ing lO work
a ll week as a hattcr again lO sustain m yself. ' He re membere d, 'On
Sundays 1 gave muskc t drill lO the National Guard. This occupalion ke pt
me going during the winler of 1790 and 179].' 7
 THE CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS
On 1 january 1i9 1 lhe infanlJ"Y was reorganiscd into lO4 line regiments
a nd 12 chasscur batmlions (liglH infamry). A report 10 the Assem bly
noted lhat thcsc units "'ere \', 'oefully under-srrength. I nitially the
A.ssembly \,..m ted lO bring lhe standing anny up to full srrength and raise
baualions of National Cuardsme n as its reserve. However, many
politicians distrusted lhe army after lhe mutinies of 1790, the widespread
desertion and lhe inabiliey of o fficers lO control their m e n: many
wondered if lhe existing ann}' could really be trusted with defending
France's frontiers against lhe expected couIlter-revolutiollary backla~h.
Consequently, on 21 J une (lh e day after the King's failed attempt to
flee France) and 22.1nly 1791 , the fo rmation of 185 battalions of gardes
nalionaux vo/vn/aires \\~,tS ordered. These men wcrc to be the piek of lhe
Nationa1 Guard, whosc families were considercd a.s active, tax-paying
citize ns and ideologically reliable. The battalions wcr c r,úsed quickly in
the de!Jaftcment:.· ncarcst lhe threalened fronticrs and in Paris whcre lh e
r cvolutionades were 1110st active. ASter this wave of patriotic enthusiasm
101,000 m en were operational by October 1791.
Pouget, no\\' a licUlellal1l in tite National Guard, remcmbered the appeal:

On 25 June 1791, il \\~.ts lhe camival day of Craon 's Patron Saint.
Decorated wilh his sash, the mayo r, preceded by drummers and
aceompan ied by a m unicipa l cJe rk ca rrying a r egisler, q uill and
ink, went to lhe meadow where the dancing was h eld to
prom ulgale a decrec a nd make an appeaJ lO lhe yOlllh to cngage
in the service of lhe Homcland a nd !.he King. The mayor made a
speech fu ll of patriolism and called upon those arollnd him to
support the NalionaJ Assemhly's plans ... AH lhe yOllths shollte d:
' U Monsieur PougCl will sign up, we shal\ too! ' 1 immediatcly took
the quil1 , signed and a ll my young fel lo\\' citizens followed me. The
lcngth of service was unlim ited, but the mayor had leam t."d that it
\\"ould o nly be for a maltcr of two or three years. lnJul}' that same
ycar, a1l those en roJlcd reccived lhe order to go to the district
capital to respond 10 lhe can which had been made by thc King.

In contrasl, 13ia l's parcnts forhade him to volllnteer. Dctcrmined to

enliH, he secretly procured a horse and one niglll ·when all th e house
was slccping, by rnea ns 01" a ladder, I escaped through my bcdroom
window ",'Ítho ut waking a nyone.' H e we nt to the next 10Wl1 and plcaded
to be allowed to enlist:

Scn:rdl days laler, t.he Ma-r"'hal/.uee ordered me to Brivc, lo be

properly exami ned and accc pted 0 1' rejened . .\1y parents were in
despajr, nOl unde rsta nding wh y 1 had enlisted. They o pposcd m y
dcparting and pUl al! lUy bdongings undel' lock and kcy. Thu5, 1
h ad to lea\'e wilhjuSI Ill)' ne\\' National Gu ard coal and me shirt 1
was \\'caring. Arrivin g al Bri\'c, we wefe 500n inspccrcd and
examin ed by lhe alllh o ritics. The}' rej ected those of wcak
constitution and ..hose that were too o ld, un less Lhe y were fonner
soldicrs 1 was e xamincd kindly by these gen tJe mcn and
8 unanimously passed. J was lhe youngcst with the exceplion of two
 o r three kids of 15--16 years, whom they had taken as drummers. A town e le r1c reeords the names
On o ur departure, \\'e wel'e acdaimed by m e c mire population , 01 yolunleers in a regisler. Most
which had massed a long OUI' coute. TIlOse who had been rejec led me n e xpec:led lo serve o nl)' for
a Single c:ampaign or as long as
m ade the ir adieus Wi lh lears in lheir C)'cs, dcsolated thar lhe}' the imrnediate threat of ;nyasion
co uld nor fo llo\\' uso It was lruly a uniq uc speClacle LO see th is lasted. As Ihe war s trelc:he<! ¡nlo
m otle}' column o f bi7.al're ly a u.ired men m arch pasto Sorne wore 1193 man)' deserte<! during the
clogs; o rh ers \llore smocks 0 1' wece drcssed in \'arious ande n harsh wlnl e r.
régime un iforms. AlI were entlam ed wirh m e desire to serve the
I-Io m eland. T he j ourney was a checr ful one, with e\'er)'one
singing patr iolic hymns.

On his departu re, Po uge l was chosen to command the eraon

\'olunteers 0 11 t he il' rna rch lO Nanc)'. After collecting anotb e r
dctachme m orvoluntee rs in nearby Nc uwillcr, Pouget arrived a t Na ncy
with 150 m e n:

Soon afler OHr arrival we were directcd to the Sainte-C'..athcri ne

barrack.s. There we en te red a lacgc hall wherc rhe royal
commissione r announced lhal we wcce going LO procced with lb e
office r nom inations a nd thal each man sh ould indicate 0 11 a
ballo r papel' whom he walHed lO nom inate as captain. AH the
yo uths eried out; ' What roc? \Ve all \~-dm MOl1sie ur Po ugetl'
Altho ug h I was less well known LO lhe young men from l\euwiller,
not a single voice asked fo l' a seere l ballo t, and 1 was una nimously
prodaime d eaptai n. Th e King's com missioner congrdtula tcd and
e mbraeed me. That da)' was one of lhe beS t in m y tife. 1 was o n l)'
lwemy-fou r years old a nd I had e ntered the anny as a captain. 9
 Sial's battalion was organ ised into e ighl companies, each named
after lhe ca nlons ofthe men that form ed them, with the grenadiers later
se lected fro m the pic k of eac h co mpany. Like Pouget, 6ial's company
\Vas fo rmed of me n from two separate can lons - his nalive Meyssac and
nearby Reynar. Before the election for office rs began, Bial was called lO
one side by lhe local director a nd lold, 'You a re very probably going lO
be named Lie utenant. "Ve ask you lO use your influ ence on the
volunteers of your canto n lo give lhei r vOles lO Monsieur Crauffon of
Beynat, who is littIe known whe re you a re fro m, bUl ",ho will make a
good captain .'
Bial agreed to camass on Crauffon 's behalf and in nlm was made
lie utenant. After the oflicer elections, ' they then proceeded ",,'i\h Ihe
e\ection of the SQus-offtciers, choosing forme r soldiers by preference. With
lhe nominations over, they made all the ele<:ted officers enter the
Director's office for the reading of me organisational decree and the
election report. \Ve were then made lO take an oath la lhe King and la the
Nadon . The n ext day che battalion assembled lO receive weapons and lhe
officers were presented to the me n.'
Despite rheir continued u npopularity, th e regulars were not v.;thout
recruits themselves. J ean Stan islas Vivien h eeded th e]r caU fo r
\'olunteers, partly to escape being bullied by his elder brother but also
bccausc 'al! young Frenchman able to bear arms we re becoming
soldicrs. 1 , ..'anted to be onc also ... It was a Strange feature o fth ose times
that masses of citizens rushed to com plete the formation of volun teer
baltalions ... while n o one stepped forward to fil l the Line regime nts,
where [he governme nt paid a signing-up bouney.'
Anothe r e n thusiastic lad was Putigny, ",ho signed u p to 5e Régiment,
fo r merly Royal NaV"d.rre, in 179 1 ' to d efe nd th e H omeland , its
independencc and its Iiberey'. After signing up ""'¡th recruitment agents
al his vil!agc's fCte da)', he wen t to the local town to buy shoes a nd gaiters
fo r thc 14-day journe)' to j oin the regime nt al Valendennes. H is firs t
imprcssions ofhis new career were very good : 'Cod ! T hose soldiers were
magnificent, \\'ith their black tr icom s and c rossbelts as white as their
C0<115 . ' After arriving at Valencien nes and resting for the night, he woke
tO the sound of drums an d was led off with h is fellow recruits b), au
adjudant-major 'to the quartermaster to be registe red , afte r which me
surgcon made us undress, examined us al1 over a nd the n pUl us under
m e measuring tape ... 1 measured n o more than rour reet, eleven aod a
half inches [1.6 1mJ; 1 was not tal1 enough . ''Vou are lOO small," said the
surgcon. "1 was 001)' seventeen last h arvest and I wil l grow bener in lhe
scrvicc ofthe Homeland. " - "You have a vigorous and delerm ined air for
your age. !t's your choice, you can go home or stay." - ~ I will stay.'''

SCHOOLlNG THE SOLDIER

After passing his mcdical, Putigny , .¡as introduced lO his sergent-major
who in lum called for a soldie r lO take him to h is barrack room a nd
meet his cor poral: ':\1y guide and 1 went into a room o n me second floo r
as the troop re turned from d riUing. Sorne men placed their muskets on
racks, hanging up their cartridge boxes unde r a shel f on which the
10 haversacks were aligned geomctrically. M)' guide presell ted me to my
Table 01 monetary value corporal, a tall thín fcllow, who gavc me a foreed mendacious smile.
"Welcome new-boy, you're not sick at lcast?~ I did not rcply. His pale
4 liards '" 1 deniet'"
expression became more serious, then gcntlc: "lt's nothing, little--Qne,
12 deniet'"s '" 1 sou
you' lI gel used lO iL ~' PlItigny's corporal introdllccd him to his bedmate,
20 sous '" 1 livre
explaining lhal soldiers slept two la a bed a mi that ' the yOllngest sle pt
3 livres '" 1 ecu
with the longest serving'.
8 ecus '" 1 Louis
On paper a soldier's ralÍons were bener than the food cnjo)'ed b), the
a\'e rage peasan L Allhough bolh shared a staplc dic l of bread (the
soldier's was eaten dry or mixed into lhe soup) , the soldier rcceived a
half-pound meat ration daily, except on Frida)' for rcJigiolls reasons.
However, th is included the weighl of th e bone, and in man)' g-,¡rrisons
the supply offresh meal ,",,'aS erratic, so bulle .. 01" oH was oElen substituted
for meat. In the garrison, food was servcd twicc a day in wooden or
earth enware dishes.
Sh aring food from a cOllllnunal gmnelk was a ritual lO which al!
recruits were quickly introduced: 'The drums sounded again: "Come on,
SOllp'S ready." An enormous gamdle sleamed in lhe middlc of a long
e mpty lable. AlI lhe d iners SUiTOlmded il with spoon in hand. Thc
corporal advanced first, chose carefully, then, with his spoon full,
cautiously stepped back one pace, before lasLÍng lhe POtato and tumip
ratatouiHe. My bedmate imitaled him, and by order of seniority each in
turn repeated the manoeuvre until lhere v.'aS nOlhing left in lhe gamel1e.
Th is ceremOIlY amused me. The warmth of the soup comforted me. l
spread my ponion o f meaton a fine piece ofralion bread.' Recalling lhe
bread ration, a reclUit called Gen 'ais, who had enrolled in a chasseur
battalion with his frie nd Tolin , recalled: 'The dai!y ration of a pound
and a half of bread was a liule short, bUl il \\'aS on ly a malter of days
before we were accustomed to il:
After shari ng his first meal, Putigny received his nom de geurre, lhe
na me all his comrades would kno,," him by. ' Sourguignon , our corporal,
questioned me. "Where are you from ne",-bo)'?" "Bresse," J replied. "And
whal's your name?" He made me repeat my name lwice. "That's nice,"
he said . "Here you will be Le Bre$$Qn." From then on this nickname
represen ted me on me list of men pUL up on lhe barrack room door.'
Gen'ais and Tolin were introduced to another greal French military
tradition: 'Soon after our admission, lhe sergenl of our subdivision ...
lOld us that it was also CUSlOmal]' fo r those enlering barracks for the first
tim e to grease ¡he marmite. T h is phrase was unknown LO uso We looked at
o ne another. To save our embarrassmen l, lh e sergent said lO us: "YOl!
should give to me, as commander of the subdivision, lhe sum which )'Ol!
judge suitable. This sum wi11 be used lO buy brandy for lhe whole sub-
di"ision. \Ve thought that this was a runn)' wa)' of greasing a marmile, but
Tolin , \\ithout any hesitation , pUl his hand in his pocket and showed
him the rest of our funds:
Afte r a first night's sleep sharing a bed in lhe barrack room, Putigny
went to collect his uniformo Un til the regiment's tai lors properly filted
Putigny's full parade uniform , he h'a5 given d Olhes from lhe slops chest:
'The sergtmlrtnajor called for me and look me to the stores. The)' supplied
me with a com plete fatigue uniform, which "las old and patched up, and
a fine wh ite coaL ' Also underage a nd undersi7.ed , Girault had e nlisted as
a soldier-musician in the Régime nt de Perche and , like Putign)', recei\'ed
a te mporal]' unifonn: 'Arter se\'eral days ! began my sen'¡ce, d ressed in 11
 an old coar that reached lO my anklcs. They had not been able to find m}'
size, but that did nOl SlOp me from bcing as happy as a king.'
'Two days after our arrival, we ,,'cre complete ly u nifo rmed , anncd
a nd equipp ed ,' remembered Gen~i1 i s:

\Ve found ourselvcs dressed like right dumm ies. Our habit.s wcrc
like vast overcoats on us, lhe brecchcs were like O\'cralls, lhe vestes
rcached to our knees and one shoe was big e nough fo r bolh fee e.
But the most ridiculous thing was lhe casque thal this corps wore
with its bearskin caterpillar on lOp. These casqltes were so \Vide
and high chat ou r faces and ears wcrc e ntirely covered ... Al
midday roll call , when th e guard was changed , our captain carne
inlo lhe barracks. Allhough he was a scrious man , on seeing our
costumes he could nOl stop himself from laugh ing. He asked lhe
sergent-majorwho had taken us to Slorcs, ifhe h ad nOl not.iced lhe
d imcnsions ofth e objects, which had becn issued? ... Our captain
ordcrcd us to follow him. H e took us to tite cIoth ing store where
we foun d wh at fitted uso

The a rt of deaning and cating for lh e uniform also had lO be

learned. 'Thcrc was no drill on Saturda)',' re mcmbe red Putigny. ' 1 spenl
lhe da)' with my comrades, labelling my mcagrc bclongings and packing
them more effi cicntly into my haversack, which I stored a hove lhe bed
... 1 clea ned m}' clothes, polish ing the metal buttons wi th Tripoli, and
lastly, lovingly brushed my u niform.'
Cervais's corporal explained how lO deall lh c metal coat huttons usillg
a patience. ' He pulled a piece ofwood fro m his pocket thal looked like lhe
end of a board, scven or eight incbes long, 1:\\·0 ¡nches ,~ide. AJollg ilS
length, at the cemre, was a grOO\'e and near to the e ncls, a hole lhe
d iameter oC a coat bmton, lhrough which he passed o ne o f my bUllons.
He ru bbed it v·áth a brush a nd in a second, the hutton was polished.'
Put.igny descrilx.>s me complicated s)'stem of me soldien;' pay and the
deductions made from ir: 'The sold jers of atine regime nt were paid six sous
per day, fi ve of which were he1d back by the corpoml for la grenouille, with

TABLE OF TYPICAL SQUA D ACCOUNTS

La Tulippe, caporal, commander 01 the barrack room.Finances lrom 1 May1788
over 5 days far 16 men al o ne livre per day. o r .. 16 liv res.

EXPENSES
1S1 Bruno, 36 pourlds of bread al 2 SOLlS 6 deniers 4 livres 10 SOLlS
Laneur, 12 pourlds 01 meal al 6 s. 6 d. lar 3 days 51 18 s.
SaJI lar 5 days 16 s.
Paul, Vegelables lar five days 21 13 s.
2nd Aubert Grease lar lour days 10 s.
A squad _ bi_ from Régiment NicoIas Candl~ 6,.
de Bassigny. AIthouyh from a Fortin Far a broom 3,.
sIighUy Nrt;H period (1788), thI$
Fourrier Given lar Layer who is in hospital 12 s.
system of deductions contInued
4th Aubert 8 pounds 01 meal al 6 s. 6 d. lar 2 days 21. 12
into the NapoIeonic Wan. ...
Total 16 livres
~ une of the~·
majoñ dut>es was lo efIeek wIth Certified. (Signature 01 the corrvnanclef 01 lhe barrack room)

12
local tr.tden that the men wet"II not
sc:rimping on food lo buy 1IIIcohoI. -'" (Signature 01 the duty offiCer 01 the week)
which each week we bought meat, bread, "egetables and candles. The six¡J,
sou remained in the regimental chest and was paid C\'Cry four months: four
Jmnc.t, six sous - a fortunc! Ves, but from thaL, the price of shoes, shirts and
swckings \\~d.<; deducted, On tap ar thaL, each man paid one sou a week pcr
shirt to the washe rwomc n and one sou more tO the barbcr. '
Tradirionally soldicrs in garrison had bcen able tO secure extra work
in the civilian sector, either employing me CrMts mey had practised
before enlisting, or pro\~ding manuallabour. One complaim before me
Revolution ....'as tha t officers would dcmand a cut, or wimhold me soldie r's
pay com ple tely, whilc he held a sccondary j obo H owever, Putign),
bemoaned: ' .4,. )'oung recruit could hardl)' afford the tem ptations on oB"er:
In rhe barrdcks, the cantiniere's display tempted us with al! s-or lS of lhings
which we imagincd indispensable. In town there was me IlITe of t.he
tavern, of wine and song.'
Befare his training began, Gcrvais remarked on his daill'
romine, or th e jour mili/aire: 'The sum total of all our work was
rcsponding twice a day tO 1"011 call and preseoliog ourselves before lhe
gamelle twi.cc a dal" The rest of lhe time was speOl going for walks a nd
playing drogue, a verl' complicated cal"d game, which we had very q ui ckly
learncd and al which we were lhe tOp dogs.' AH tbis was SOO/1 to ch ange:
' My happincss was OOt loog lived.' Soldier-musician Girault suddenly
discovered: 'Every d al' 1 had tO go ao d learo drill.'

TRAIN ING
Before his firsl driU sessiol1, Putign y's corporal introduced him lO the
tools of mc trade: ' Bourguignon showed me his musket, le u.i ng me
admire its sparkling balTel a nd lIS snow-white sling, berore revealing the
secret of ilS wh ite ness: wYo u take me pipe c1ay; reduce it to a powder,
mix it wilh a liule glue and it is as brilliant as a star." He emptied the
treasurcs ofhis carlTidge box on tbe table before me - the t""·o pac kelS of
can ridges, the musket mOlSo He explained to me how to strip down the
\\'eapon , lO load il aod lO exu-aCl a ball. H e showed me the bed marrow
uscd lO grease it a nd lh e piece of c10th fO I" wiping it. Lastly, at the bottom
of ¡Jle canridge box, th e re was a small pipe and a large silver medallion. '
The recrui LS were lrained according to , t he newly introduced dril!
regulatioo of 1 August 1791. The basis of drill th roughout both the
Revolutiooary and Napoleoni c Wa rs, this regulation divided rrai.ning
iOlO separate écoles (sch ools) . In lhe firs t, the écok de .lOldat, the soldicr
was iostructed in poise, basic root a nd musket dril! and loadin g. lt was
described by the chasseur recruit Gervais:

We assembled on the exercise ground twice a day, for two hours

each time, to receive our mil ilary instruction. At eight in the
morning. sabre al the side, canridge box on the back, but without
a musket, we were on the exercise ground, each allocated LO a
corporal c harged with instructing uso He began by ma king me
point my reet outwards, relax me backs ofrny knecs, tO draw back
lhe waist, lO shirt the uppe r body forwards, hold rny head straight,
the arms han ging against my body. Ivly God, it secmed lO me mal
lhis wen l on rorever a nd aU the while, this brave fellow of a 13
 caporal found nOlhing was properly po~itioned. I lhought he was
d o ing this la mnusc himse lf o r la annoy me, but seeing that all the
olhers werc bci ng treated lhe samc way, 1 was forced to realise
tha t he was bcing serio us and 1 conforrncd with good grace. Aftcr
twO hours of lh is exe rcise, during which m e re had been several
breaks, m)' com rade and I wc re as tired as after a whole day of
wal king ... \Ve Icarne d l O ma rc h, wh ich seemed a joke lO us. Fo r
lhe fjrst days we marehed like turkeys stuck in m e mud, withoul
ou r dumsincss upseu ing our inSLruc tors, who always taugh t in a
kindly mann e r. After th ree weeks, arm.s drill ".dS taug he II is not
surprisi ng how extre m e ly ti red we were by this new dril!
co nsidering ou r young age.

M
• o o o o •• G o o o •• • L

- -- -- -- -- --
Th e volunteers were ;ssued a

E F
-- -- G
-- -1 new-style tent holding 16 meno
TIle addlllonal slze 01 these
ma~ lhe smaller voluntee r

" O O • O O
• "" 00 00 O U
"" U batullons and lhe regu lars'
eampa (seo Warrior 57: French
Napolleonle InfantTyman
O IIIII IIIII IIIII IDD IDD IIIII IDD IDD IDD 1803-15) almost ldentieal in size.

e
O
IIIII "
IIIII
O
IIIII
O
IIIII
• "
IDD IIIII IDD
O
• IDD
IDD
oH Kav: (A) Chef de bataillon; (O)
edjudant.major; (C) captains; ID)

O
" O
• A
O
B
U O
• OH
lieufeonants and ~us·lieutenants;
(E) adjudant; (F) drummers; (G)
cantlnlilres; (H) orderlies¡ (1) eook
IIIII IIIII fires¡ (JI grenadier eompany; (K)

• • H
fusilier eompany¡ (l) fa/sceau,,;
(M) flllg post. (Mart;n Laneaster)

Al lhal tim e a regu la Lioll musket with bayonet wcighed thirteen

lO fOllrte en pounds, SOlllctimes more.

Afler salisfactorily eom pleting lhe sehool of lhe soldier, reeruits were
trained in lhe école tU j>eldon, where platoon manoeuvres and firin g wefe
taughe In lhe prcvious sehool, recruits we re drilled individually or in
th rees. F'or platoon exe rcises, thcy were formed up in r<lnks by he ight
o rder: lhe tallesl in the front, shortest in lhe middle and those o f
average height in lhe rear ra nk. '\Ve were no t used to marching in
ranks,' nOled Gelvd.is. ' F'onu na lely, we only m a rc hed in two rdnks, and
because we were in hc ig ht order, we fo und ourselves on lhe Idt of lhe
second rank, which helped liS a liuJc. Howne r, a devil of a co rporal,
placed a l lhe extre me left o f lhe linc, constantly repealed, "Keep rour
dressing." Ir I'd had no idea of discipline, 1 \\"ould have asked why he
14 d ldn '( mind h is own busin ess.'
 Gervais's tor ment did not last forever: 'Th ey came 10 us and
announeed lhat we had passed the icou (k peUlOtI; we were all proud.'
Having struggled with lhe weight of his muskel, Cervais was even more
pleased when, 'The sergen/Anajor, having remarked th at the musket w'ith
which I was anned was too heav)' for me, made a report to the captain
who had a small dragoon-pauern musket gi\'e n to me. It weighed three
o r four pounds less than th e one I had used until then. It was a
considerable relief to me. I was a ble to make more progress with my
a nns drill in 1"\\'0 weeks than 1 had made in 1:\"0 months " .¡th my previous
m uskel. I was soon admitted into lhe úoU th balaiUon.'
In thjs lasl sehool the soldiers we re taught how lO mareh manoeuvre
in columns. They were instructed how 10 change lheir direction of
march , lo eounter-march, lO avoid obstacles, and in the different \\'a)'s of
changing between column to lineo The men wcrc also drillcd in the
formation ofthe colonne d'attaque 01' altack column, t\\'o companies wide
and fou r deep.
The volunteer battalions were taught drill froIT\ a simplified version
of lhe 1791 regulations, which only requircd voluntcer battalions to
fo rm up in tv.'o ranks. As a large perccntage of their men had already
been taught basic drill in the National Guard, lhe voluntecrs made good
progress with the more advanced training: '\-Ve spent our time on
inStl1.lcling the volunteers and the officers,' recalled Pouget: In two
months' time, we could execute bau.alion manOCllvres passably wd!. \-Ve
had a good esprit de corps, and fo r a commandc r wc had a former
soldier ""ho had sen'ed as a captain in Prussia anel Fnll1cc. He was abl)'
supported by our adjudant-major anel the adj uda m sous-officier, both of
whom had come from the Line. 1 ....'as pcrmancnt1y occupied \\.¡th the
instruction , administration and policing of my bclovcel company. It onl)'
manoeuvred well under m y command as m)' licu tcnant anel sous-
lieulenant were tOlally lacking in the gnl.ces of lhcir profession . My
sergent-mo.jor supponed me wdl ... Six wccks aftcr our fonnalion, the
battalion was uniformed and we soon rcccivcd the oreler 10 leave Nancy
and go to the frontier.
Lieutenant Bial's voluntcer battalion had bec n sent 10 a training
camp n ear Paris: Our tents were SCl up alongsidc a baualion fro m Paris.
The cquipment was saon complete. \Ve then occupied ou rselves wilh
our instnlction, from [he commandcrs lO Lhe conunon soldiers. I
procured a book of thcory, which I studied closel)' ... Few officers had a
deep knowlcdge of thc theory, as many did nOl appreciale the necessity
of Iearning it ... The camp of Soissons buzzed wilh activi t)'. The
instrucuon of the volunteers was condllcled withOUl respite. Our
ba[talion couId now present itself in the line properly. \Ve received from
Paris all [he materials, tools and cam paign utensils, finally our
equipment, and fo r our headgear a very a,.. kward Roman-st)'le casque.'
The p rogress of the volllllleers was noticed by Lieutenan t Simon
of the Régimen t de \Valsh, lhen on gar r iso n duty in the fortress of
Lo n ~'Y n ear the Luxe mbollrg borele r. His im pression was \'cl"}'
positil'e: ' \Ve have several baualions o f volunteers he re; the)' are
infin itcly better train ed and be u e r disciplined lh an our regime n ts. lf
lhey stay for more lhan ayear, they will be excellent troops and if
the Nation knows ils interests, il will regiment the m a nd keep them as
long as possible. 15
 The volunteers of '9J \Vere p roud of their units a nd had ti good esprit
de corps. Bial re membercd his baualion cornmandcr expelling <In
insubordina tc soldier who \\"as conside red a disgrdCC la h is comradcs.
The haualia n was assembled and lhe troublemakt:r lcd before lhe
cornmandcr: ' He said that he had bcen happy Wilh us until nO\\1, hu l thar
he would nO{ suffer bad soldiers in h is battalion, \Vho were gu illy of
disho no ur, \Vho were unwo nhy of scrvin g with bravc m c n a nd \Vho
consequemly dCh'Taded th em by wcarin g a soldier's (Dat. H e Cul off Lhe
man's pigtail himself, pulled offhis lapels an d his bllltons and laslly had
h im escorted from lhe town by a cOlJ>Oral a nd faur men.·

EMIGRATION AND INSUBORDINATION

Following lhe Revolucion, lhe regular arrny's offi ccr corps Ilnderwent
cnonnous change, which in lurn had a detrimental etrecl 0 11 the morale
a lld disci pline ol' their subordinates. Since the mutin ics of 1790 officers
had found lheír men increasingly disobedíent a nd suspiciol.ls of rheír
loyalty to rhe new political regime. In turn many oHiccrs had tfouble
accc pting the suddcn crosion of their noble privilegcs and emigrated
across the frontier, whc re lbey were r umoured to be fOl"ln ing a coul1ler-
revolutionar)' a rmy.
Licutenant Elien ne d' )-)aSlre l had witnessed sevc ra l acLS of
insubordinatio n whilc serving in lhe Régiment d 'Artois. Rc"olmionary
activit)' had been m ostl)' limited to debates a mong lhe officcrs and lhe
soldic rs' poli tical club. Thc ul1derlying te nsions spiUed o\'cr occasionally,
notably when lhe !lew 179 1-pauern tricolour fl ag arrived in Rcn nes:

The rcceptio n al" the tricolour flag occasioned a scelle o f

insubordination, which dcpri\"ed us ol" se\'eral offi cers and served
as a pretext to lhe revolutiOllaries lO inspire defiance amollg the
soldicrs. At the moment whcn lhe fl ag was blessed and givCll to
lhe battalion, lhe commander gave the o rders lO lcave lh e
c hurch , but the soldiers would no t budge. Stirre d up by lhe
you ths who had assisled with the cere mony, they declarc d that
lhey would not leave the old flag to be hung from lhe church
vauhs. The)' insisted lhal lh e fl ag ought tu be senl 10 Palis to be
burned with those of Lhe whole army. We could 1l0t enforcc our
comrnands because lh e}' had been persuaded that lhe old flags
wOll ld be sent to the émigrés to serve as a rallying sign and
e ncOllrage dcsertiOIl . Scci ng h is a uth o r ity ig no re d , the
com ma nder len the churc h a nd was followed by six o r seven
Olher offi cers. The n Capitainc SermizeUes, who had slayed, took
the fl ag and lfd.\'C it lO lhe priest to be h ung in the church . He
then ga\'e lhe com m ands; lhe battalion executed lhem and
I"elurned 10 barrd.cks in order. Th is eyen t wa.s dcbated in lhe
soldiers' club. As Illany soldicrs and sous-oHiciers participalcd ,
a motíon was passed Lh a l lhe officers who had left lhe OPPOSITE Followl ng tradition,
the flaga o, 1791 were blessed.
battaliOIl in the church should be arresled and their co nduct
Despite tha s ubaequent policy of
in"estigated. Fo rtunately lhe}' had expected sOlIlelh ing like lhis dechri sti ani sation, the majority
and had leEt Renncs. They wcre struck frOIIl th e regimental 01 soldiers would keep their
1 16 register nonelheless. l alth. (Myrbac:h)
 As I·cports of brigandage spread, officers beeame increasing l)' lIneasy
aboUl lhc securiry o f thei r families a nd esla(es. M ter lhe Killg's faired
altempl to flec Frailee inJune 1791 , what ....'as at 6rsl a trick.lc bccame a
110od. Otnecrs a nd lheir familics flcd across the fro ntier wiLh lhe ir
belongillgs, lcaving th e ir boarded-lIp ancestral homes al lhe mcrey of
looters. Leuers from oflieers at this time demonstrate lhcir rcasoning.
D'Avlo n , wrote on 6 FebnJary 1792 from Gre noble: 'The 40c régimen t,
form e rl)' Soissonnais, no lon ger exisLS due to lhe insubordination of its
soldiers. No longer ablc to se rve lIseflllly, 1 give up the posilion I ho ld.'
Lieutenant d'Assézot in Re nnes on 28 Fcbruall' 1792 wrote: 'Mollsieur,
sinee the general insurrection o f lhe first batlalion of 48c régim e nt
d'infalllerie ",hich occurred th is mo rning, 28 February 1792, and sceing
tha t an officer 's voice, the mOllth piece of the law, is complete ly ig llored ;
that the confidence bctween liS and OUT subordinates is c mirel}'
deslroyed and seeing that our p resenee is totally use1ess in rc-
establishing mililary disciplin e, I l"esign the eharge oflieutenant that His
M~j csty had deigncd to honoul" me with.' Colonel d 'Auel al Be rgues,
6 Juuc 1792, wrote: 'Family mallers of me grcatest impol"tanee a nd the
poor Slatc of rny health make it impossiblc for m e lO eontinue sen'Íce,
obliging me lO retire to rny ho me. [n eonsequence, 1 give In )' resignanon
of the post of coloncl o f the 1ge régimelH d 'in fanlerie a nd pass the
eommand of lhis regiment, as well as the command of the fortress, to
Monsieur Desponches who is lhe pre mier lieutenant-colone l, unlil the
Killg has a nnou nced my rc placement.'

In January 1791 eac h of the

12 chasseur battalions was
ON A WAR FOOTING composed of el9ht c:ompanies
0159 men, Includlng: 1 capitaine,
The Nalional A'ósembl)"s dcc1arano n o f war agaimt AlL'ótli a on 20 April 1 lieutenant, 1 aous-lIeutenant,
1792 was grected with widesprcad cntbusiasm.ln garnson al Vale ncienncs, 1 sergent-major, 1 caporal-
PlItigny and h is comrades were assem bled to hear lhe d ecla ration oI' \..~M lourrier, 4 caporaull, 4 appointés
(chosen men). 1 tambour
being a nnounced: 'At lhe e nd o f (he reading of this proclamalion, a
(drumrnerj, 6 car.llbiniers
liberl)'-tr ee \.,.-..s planted ",ith grcat pom p in lhe ban-ack's collrt)'ard and (matksmen) and 40 chas.seurs.
watered \\'Íth wine, althollgh less co piousl)' than our throat<;.' (Martín Lancastllf)
Despite [he enthusiasm
and the exernons of lhe yeal"
before, when the anny"''aS pUl 1"
011 a wa r footing France was
still sho rt of meno Therefore , l' '1 l' r'
on 12 July 1792 thc A<;''óembl}'
decrccd (he raising of 52,000
reeruil<; fOI" the regular a rmy ~ UIII ~
and 42 new ba ualio ns of
volullt<:.'Crs wi th 36,000 me ll .
The heighf re stric tion was

•
abolished, allowing many
Sergent-major
rejeeled U1C year befare to j oin Capitaine Wlil
up. In some areas the
municipal authorities wcrc Sous-lieutenant UIll Sergent fmiJ
foreed into a form of locali~cd
eonse ription, those m ost lieutenant § Caporal [íJJ
18 '"
willing 10 sen·e had airead}'
 nocked to lhe colours in lhe previous year. Eligible men were entered
into a ballot and the required numbcr drd,....n out lO meet the quotas.
The high standards set by !he first wa\'c of \'o luntcers in 1791 "'ould
not be matched agajn . The volunleers of '92 lacked the pool of talent seen
me year before whe n it carne lO eleclÍng officers and NeOs, which in turn
manifested itself in dedining discipline. Roch Godan, a commander of a
volunteer baualion and fonn er soldie r in the Régirnc nl d'Orléans,
demonstr.ues me volatility of lhis second wave of\'oluntccrs:

The baualion had receh'ed J 5 sous a day in pay, wh ich me

In April1791 th" c:h.asseur
battalions went on to a w ar
1ootlng, expandlng the $I%e ot a
company to 130 men, Includlng
three officers (Martln Lancaster)
Départemene paid al its own expense. Whe n lhe pay passed [ O me
governmen t, ie was reduced lO the ra te paid to me anny. This
reduction gave rise to ge neral grumbl ing. Despite all the orders
infonning the volun teers th at uley had nothing to complain
about; that they were being paid lile aU the o ther troops in the
army; despite all the representations and thrcats, wc had great
difficultr making them hea r reason. T he most slubborn dcscrtcd
... A rebellion among the men LOol pl ace, direcled against me
pcrsonalIy: l. Beeause J made lhem driU evcly day; 2. Bccause
th,",' said 1 gave them the wrong amount ofbrandy eaeh moming;
3. BecalL~e the surplus of par which lhey pretended 1 rceeivcd,
according to mem , went into m)' pockel and that of lhe
quartermaster's; 4. Because they were volu nteers and wan tcd to
be treated as sueh , saying that th e officers ought tO lool at them
as their benefaclors, because they had been elected as officcrs
d unng me unit's fonnation and th at it was up 10 lhem 10 appoint
o thc rs instead . Indeed. before the mminy burst. lhey had chosen
e ight cornmissioners from a mong th e mselves lO llame a nd
rcplace those officers who did nQl SUil the m ... f inally we
disco\"crcd their plan . At evening r01l call, I a rrested lhe eight
commissioncrs and put the m in lhe lown prison. The llext
moming, around nine o'dock, their supporters wen t lO release
them from the prison. 1 found lll}'se1f near lh e m, when one
shouted, 'Thcre he is!' 1 went and slood in front of them 10 order
 them to rcjoin the ranh, when suddenly more than fifty feH o n
me, some ycllin g 'SlJ'ing him upl ', o thers ' Kili him! Kili him! H e's
a despot who supports lhe ancien régime and has contempt fo!"
libe rty and cquality.' A mob of men sel about hitLing me and
scralching In}' fa ce, but 1 was fo rtunately sa\'ed by some of m}'
bl-a\'e officers, who took me home. Despitc being covered in
blood, 1 wantcd to a nn mysdf\~;th m}' sabre and pistols and with
the help of the officers 1 had with me, retum, sabre and p iSLOl in
hand, 10 force the m 10 disperse, T he oflicers advised me 10 be
more prudenL

Nevertheless the re were exccptions, particularly among tbose

rejccted as too short or too yOllng the year befare. Studeot Soulbau lt
expressed his enc.husiasm in a lelle r to his falher: " have enrolled \~;th
lhe volumeers in Paris and 1 am soon to leave and fig ht the enemies oC
the H omeIand. 1 \\ras born a Fren ch man ; 1wanl to share the dangcr and
lhe glory ... freedom 01' dealh , that is my mOllO. '

FINAL PREPARATIONS
vVhile lhe new volunteer battalions were being formed , active troops
were ordered into camps nearer lhe fronLiee Making read)' 10 \cave
winter quarters al Mea, Pouge l prepared his campaign equipmcllL '1
bought lWO horses in addition to those 1 airead}' owned. At lhis sLage, the
govemment granted three horses 10 a captain ; one fa!' him , one fo r his
orderI}' and the third to carry his le m , his food and his belon gings : this
third was called a cheval de hát. The lieutenant and the sous--l ieutenant
had a h orsc each for riding and a cheval de Mi betwcen mern as lhey
shared lhe same tene'
Fol' o rdinary soldiers like Putigny lhere seemed 10 be plen ly 10 look
forward LO: " Ve were newly uniformed , covered by a woollen blanke t for
two and e ne ten t per squad. \Ve wefe excited after hearing the fu mour
that we were leaying. The wash en. . omel1 returned linen to us, which we
folded and packed: \Ve also folded our blankets. \Ve ro lled pegs,
uprights a nd mallets into the lent'S canvas and , followin g tradition,
loaded lhe whole lot on tO the back of the worst horse, led by the most
inept soldier in the compan)'.'
Although horses cafried the te nts, lhe rest of lh e sqllad's eqllipment
\'vdS carr ied on the me n 's backs. PlItigny explains that ' m e yOllngesl
received the privilege of carrying me mannite, then by o rder of senionlY,
the pickaxe, me sho\'el, lhe water can, the gamelk.s, !.he bag of meat and
the bread bag ... Th e corporal car ri ed n Olhin g, apart fram the precio us
sachet oC sal t and pepper.'
Pouget's voluntcer ballalion (4e de la i \.feurthe) ani\'ed al the fron tier
to fi nd that ' tlle Gcnerals had lraced out a cam p near lO thc \~llage of
Tiercclet. \Ve \,'ere no more than fou!' leagues fro m Luxembourg.' As
the first stage of setting up camp, the camp sen~ce orders wen.: read out
to lhe men. 'With this formality concluded ,' remembered PlItigny, 'we
fonncdfaiseauxan d she hered lhe rn from the rain by cove nng the m \\~ lh
a manltatl. \Ve then had to hurr)' to pUl up the tenIS to shelter ourseh'es.
20 Each man had LO pass a peg Ihrough the cords auached to lhe bottom
Folklore would have It t hat tha
volunteers were all revolutional"jl
sans-culottes, Iac:klng in training
and equipment but charged with
patriotic and revolutlonary
enthusiasm. AJI~h many .... ere
men 01 principie, tneir
profieiency under alm'" camo.
Irom months 0 ' d rll1 in the
Summer 01 179t .

of the caIl\'as, which was thcn hammered into th e soft earth by capm-al
Bourguignon \\ith his malleto With thc tent lying nat th e central upright
was buried in ule m ud and was quickl)' fixed in position with a wcdge.'
The camp \\'<1S laid o ut so [hat ' In front o f [he road were [he piles of arms
and Lhe flags. Then came all of [he infantry's len ts in four parallel lines,
p receding the line of h orscs and me ca\'alryrnen. :'\ext came the swcct-
smelling line of lhe ki[chens and finally, the marquee lents oCMessieurs
lhe officers.'
The soldiers slept on a bed of straw, [WO men sharing a blanket: 'We
slepl six on each side, lhe most senior in the rniddle - J saon learned
why,' conlinues Putigny. 'Around midnight, sorne large drips fell on rny 21

.: ~ do the j ob properly ... I-lowever, al the first
Until1791 infantry battaUons
included a company of
chasseu rs. Although they w ere
suppressed , the practlce
continued unofficlaUy wlth
specialist b; lal~un selected.
22
nose. POCkClS 01' \Valer fonned a nd gathered al
ehe edges of lhe te nt, dripping on to my face.
To spare mysclf lh is inconvenience, I edged
my way cautiously between thc [eet of tlle
sleeping soldiers and gave the canvas a
good whack with a stick, sening off a
cacophony of whinging [rom those
illside. ' Volunteer Paul Th iebault
o f the Paris National Guard
suffe red a similar problem : ' On
the very firs t nigh t, we received
a pretty exac t idea of lhe
ddigh ts of campaign !ife ...
[The rain] carne d own in
lOTTcnts all night long and
lhe wretch ed canvas, which
was our only defence from
lhe weathe r, \Vas soon wel
lh rough .'
AJeer this first night under
can vas, Thiebault guickly
learned about the realities of
life in lhe fiel d : 'The next
mo rning, 1 was o n ranons and
bread, a nd bcg-dll as soldiers say,
by collarillg all !.he hard j obs,
felc hi ng waler, ma king soup. My
fi rst so up was my last - it was
d isgusLing alld il was settled that this
rask should be allo ued to tlle greediest
man, who could !.he n be relied upon to
of th ese al fresco mcals 1 lost a good third of
roy lawful share. 1 always hatcd eating my food
too hot, while some men have, as soldiers say, their
throalS pavcd. Thus, as each Illall dipped his spoon in
tunl wilh a movement as regular as th at ofthreshers in a barn, while 1 was
blowlng on m}' firsl spoonful ro}' \'oracious comradcs \Vere putting dovm
!.hcir second, in such \Vise that 1 onl)' escaped missing scvcral tUTIlS at lhe
pricc of a scalcling pala te, throat and sto mach .'
Pouget was more enthusiastic about camp life: 'The troops there were
ta.ken halffrom regulars, halffrom volunteer ballalions. These n\'o t)'pes
of soldiers were mixed one battalio n after the Olhcr ... The regulars a nd
thc volunteers were as inept as one a nothe r in pUlting up and slackening
their tents. 1 wrote about this to ffi)' motller and did nol omit (O in fOl"ln
!.hat 1 was writing 10 her sitting on the ground wi.lh a drum ben\'een my
legs in place o f a lable. Thc camp dulies were organ ised : Camp guard,
grand gua rds. advanced posts, palrols. post r ounds. pasS\vords.
reconnaissances were !.he lerms rhat agreeabll' sl.1"Uck ml' cars.·
To trad itional regimen tal rivalry was now addcd disln..ls t between
regulars and volunteers: TIle rcgulars were suspicious of thc menle of the
\'oluntccrs. who in turn were disdainful ofprofessional soldiers and their
assooatlo ns with the monarchy. The situaLio n \'las no t helped by lhe
highe r rate of pay enjoyed by the volunteers O\'er lhe regulars a nd also
the ir ado pnon of the blue coat in place of the traditional whi le. Putigny
d id no t think highly of his ne\\' com rades in a rms: 'Our o ld régimen t de
Navarre \Vas o n the right, sand".iched be tween sorne vo lunteer battalions
from Pa ris. We hardly fra te rnised \~i th those boastful, slO\'e nly bawlers.
They were dressed in blue habit.s, except o ne who wore the grey habiJ of a
\'c(cr,m of fi ne bearing. O n the lefr of his chesl, three red medals h ung
proud ly, representing 72 )'cars service, 0 1' 24 per m edal. H e had sen'cd all
his ¡¡fe since bcing an enfant de trlJllpe schooled by the Gardes Fra n ~a i ses.
He had watched his son sign "P, but the son had desel1.ed a nd the old VOlunt"rs await the arrival
of r.-gular tToops. repairing
man, for honour, took his place, ho ping to withstand lhe ca mpaign and footwear and refreshing
hold h is place in the ranks. Il was a great consola tion fo r him th at we the mselves with brandy
told him to come and visit lhe Nava rre , whe re he would tí nd hi mself in a bought from the cantinlere.
more sold ie rly atmosphere.'
Lie ute na nt Bial fo un d
himsclf embro ile d in a d ue!
afte r an officer inslIhed the
volunteers, calJing thcm by
rhe nickname Cannagno¿'.s.
The C\"cning befare h onollr
was to be satisfied, Bial was
paid a timel)' \isit by his
fencing insm.cto r: 'M)' o ld
maste r at anns soon a rrivc d ,
pleased lO see his pu p il
was putting his Icssons to
profitable use ... he w'<lnted
( O give me a fi nal k"SSOn ...

[Nc.xt monl ingl we we nt l a

the chosen ground . In
position, 1 soon realised
tha( m)' adversary was no
stronger than myseJf. Tha t
r eassure d me. H e made
many fein t~, bUl 1 waited
resolutely. 1 wa$ nimbJc and
not too cJumsy; 1 parried
him and 1 cJoscd in on him.
He fell back ami 1 rcalised
tha( thc m omcnt had come,
whe n o n e 0 1' lh e other
would be hurt. My epée
lightly scrd.tched his arm.
His ann bCg"<ln to blc<.>d a
¡¡(tle, wh ich pelluitted lhe
\\imesses to inter\'ene a nd
put an e nd lO the fi gh t.'
Bial 's ad\'crsary apologiscd
a nd imited him to d inner,
aftcr whic h they pa n e d
as good fric nds. Bial's 23
comr.ddes acclaimed him for defe nding !.he honour of the \'olunteer
battalions. Bial himself 1f.d\'C his master al anns an ecu 'wi!.h which lO d link
rus health ' .

INTO BATTLE
As Lhe hoslilities approaehcd, many regular regiments rccovcred lheir
disciplinc. T he gaps crealed by é migré offieers were fillcd by capable ,
long-serving sous-officie rs, wh o despite laeking !.heoretical knowledge
we re eompctc nt in platoon-level command.
Aite r imprcssivc pe rfonn anccs in th e training eamps, lhe volunteers
\\'e re faci ng their moment a l' truth. Whe n lhe first ShOLs were cxchanged
o n 28 April 1792 , les bleus had a less than trium phant start. A small force
under Gencral Dillon advanced fram Lille and erosscd the border into
Belgium, whcre it e ncountercd an Austria n force. The next day Dillon
decided lO withdraw and a panic descended across his troops, who cried
'belrayal' and S,W<lgely murdercd him. The same panie ovcrtook a force
u nder Ge neral Biron, who was lueky to avo id Dillon's fate. Standing on
lhe ram part of Valenciennes, Puligny saw the 'firsl retrcating soldiers
unex pectedly arri\'e pcll-meU in panicked nigh t'.
The ne r\'QUS anxict}' was fell by \'Olunteer Cognel.: 'As night rel!, severa!
of our }'Oung soldicp.> thoughl th al lhl.'}' had secn an enemy column , which While "rtil1e.y prote<:l$ the road,
line infantry m OYe$ off 10 support
had reached OU T lines after passing through !.he fon~<lrd pasLs. Thcy cried
tírailfeurs . The thick 9unpowder
"Aux armes!" A panic resulted in !.he new baualions, which was soon d ispelled, smoke meant th a1 skl rmish
thanks to !.he stcad}' bearing of tllC rcgulars ... Wh en calm was finall}' screens couid obscure the
established, 1 went v.1.!.h one oC my fric nds to a battalioll of regulan;. 111ere 1 movements o, 1roopS behind.
found a sensible man , full of the spirit of his

..
prok"ssion , wha demanstratL--d to me ha\\'
absurd this panic \\'as; that it w..,s imJX1SSible
for a C.J.m p as wel! co\'cred as ours lO be
attacked \\ithollt a preliminar}' engagement.'
This rncident brought it hame to Cognet that
"oluntecr commanders were onl)' 'elected
young men, wilhollt experience and withoul
real autJlority' .
The sum me r of 1792 passcd with
outpoSl skirmishes alo ng the fron tiers.
before France was in"adcd and Paris
threatened, resul ting in the first pirc hed
battJes of lhe war. The enemy adv<tnce
caught PLUigny Ilnawa res. While working in
camp, he watched as:

a chasseur from the forward post~

gallopcd in to alert headquancrs
mat the Austrians were attacking .
Towards nine o' d ock in lhe moming,
a fusillad c caught our attention and
soon bccomc so hea,,)' and so close
that we were despatched at rhe
double from cam po The whole a rm)'
was airead)' under arms. There was
no question of our fi rst having soup
a l" distributing lwO days of
supplememary rations. Therc was
ol1 ly Lime to drop ou r tools and
march off against lhe enemy, with cmpt)' stomachs. [lbe General] Intermbed c:olumns 01 volunteers
made liS load our weapans: "en avant, pas de charge, march !" ... The and regulan under Austrian
salvos of balls and bullets had pinncd down our advance-guard in artillery llre at Anderte-cht
(13 November 1792).
lhe woods where it could not deplo)' and a caval ry charge forced it
to retreat in disorder Our tirst line dashed itself against an
invisible ellemy, [e l1 back and then re-formed. The b'round
trembled bcneatb our feel and was shaken b), the cannonade. ' Etl
avant NaValTC, wühout fear! ' Al the old regimental haute ery, \Ve
retoJ"ted 'á la bairmeU( ... For our part, \Ve were engaged in a copse
of fi\'e or six-ycar-old trees, slill \'ery much in leaf despire the
seasoIl. The eanister hacked off' the branches. An officer fell into
m)' arms and 1 roUed over \\~th him. Personally I received nothing
but a rain of reddish leaves and m'¡h~ from the hazelnut trees.

Volllllleer Parison also recalled lhe inrensit}' of lh e fi refight: 'The

cannonballs and shells fell as thick as fIies. The muskell)' against liS w'as
so greatlhat balls fe ll in from anel bchind us like hai l.'
""e sta}'ed in position for around half an hour, al l'arme UlI bms,
expased LO enem}' fire , which sent a hail of cannon balls and shells al liS,'
reme mbcred d'Hastrel. ' We had no cannons \..ith which la re ply and our
pasilion was e\'e n more critical as il was the firsr time thal otlr soldie rs had
been unde r fire . BUl the}' showed all th e firmne.ss of hardened soldiers 25
 and not one of them quit fue r,mks. The
sang-froid of our colonel contribuled greatly
to reassUling the baltalion. A shell fell a few
paces from him, a nd as a few soldiers
ducked he said tO the m calmly, ~ Don ' l move,
it's nothing bul a shel l. ~'
Musida n Cirauh and the regimental
band were asked lO come fo rward and play
fo r lhe lroops under Ci re. They added to !.he
cacophony of pre-re\'olutionary regimenlal
war c r ies and patr iotic songs wilh a
rendition of the popular (.<1 Ira, a song
wh ich urged lh e stringing up of aristocrats
from lampposts. Their rendition was short-
lived:

... for the piece was hardly begun

when two o f our musicians were
wounded and one kil1ed, bringing a
rapid stop to the music. Th is ....'as not
reassuring, as it was lhe Cirsl time I had
seen action. Fonunalely, tile only
damage 1 sustained was on my ouúit,
which was com plcleJy plastered with
the bntins o f an officer, who was killed
several paces in front of me. The
sarne tenifyin g artillery discharge had
C"drried off twc nty-one men of 5th
cam pany's fron t rank. Each instant we
were obliged lO lie dO\~11 to avoid !.he
shell fragmc nts. In lhe morning, they
picked up ple nt)' ofwounded and carried them lo the village. BUl A 9~nad¡er ~rgent b~aks tne
!.he enemy had directcd several can non at a hollow, through which fall of a wounded officer. The
cramped conditions 01 fighting
they had to pass. Those cany;ng the wounded were killed along
in the threa-rank lonnation is
with !.hem. We soon had to force soldiers lo perform this taSk and clearly demonstraled in this
many unfonunatcly perished as a resultoT saw a soldier carrying a lJCene. (Bellangé)
wounded man on his shoulders. The lacter had his head carri ed off
by a cannonball bUl the man carrying him walked more than len
paces without notidng.

Austrian dragool1s charged Purigny's regiment as it cleared the woods,

but olle soldier stood bis ground in scarch of a prize: "Ve held firmo A
Gascon in lhe company camc to grips \\<;th an enemy horseman, killing
him \'0;111 a m uskC1 shol. TIle fonner, wrapped in his large white coal, had
n01 ye1 10llched lhe canh whcn lhe Gascon had aIready seized the horse.'
In COntraS1 Cogn el w·as lucky lO sup"ive being caught in the open
during an Austrian cavalry chargc: '1 was pursued for a long time by lwO
cavalrymen, whom 1 had !.he Itlck 10 hold aL hay \~; tll no thing but flashes
in lhe pan. My IllUSkCl, or ra mcr the o nc !.hat 1 had grdbhed from the p ile
whe n we were auacked, could not fire , as iL had bcen lUined by the
torre ntial rain, which had inundatt:¿ lIS for fony-cight hours. It mmt be
26 said that lhe plain was Ci lled with lirailleurs; in the middlc ofall lhe smoke
r,
,
A eantin;ere does her part to
revive !he wounded men belng
evacuated from tne 'Ield. Note
the metal-hel",*ted engllMlef'$
on the right.

Dne 01 the most signlflcant
reforma 01 the revolutlon.ary era
saw ordinary !;Oldle... recelvlng
pensions Unked lo the S8vertty 01
their wounds. Soldiers went Into
action knowing \ha' If they were
killed, their widows would
receive stal.. lIssistance. (Seele)
and detonations, rny two enemies did not pcrceivc th e uselessncss of ffiy
defence. I was saycd by their error and rcjoillcd rny comrades.'
In reserve licutcnant Simún watch ed as ' lhe battalion 01' the 5&
regi ment, fonnerly Rohergue ... "'as senl by the GcnerallO go 10 repd me
enemy cava Ir)' ... The drurnmers beal lhe chargc and lhe band playcd Ca
Ira. They feU 011 the deplo}'ed ca\'alry, which could nOl \\it.hsland the
shock fOI" long. It sa"cd itself in disorder aftcr bticf resistan ce. '
 As lhe Aust ..ian caval!l' retreatcd, Putigny's regirnent regrouped
behind a wood: 'Nava ....e had becn rc-fonned in a clearing whe ..e lh e
other bauali ons we ..e; lhe auack was takcn up again . Seeing the leaves
moving, lhe Aust ..ians g ..eeted li S with a rcnewed m lling fire. Too bad;
we exited lhe woods a nd deployed. MEn avant Navarre, ",ithom fear:" Vl'e
climbed lhe hill al lhe pas de <:ha rge. The voIunteers fmm Paris aIso
came up singing lheir songs. SlIPported by ca\~dlI1', the marvd lolls
Berche ny Hussars, \\'e gOl right amongsl those who resisted, push ing lhe
enc m y back Wilh our bayonets.'
Fired up by lhe music and drums, Fre nc h saldiers d osed with the
e nero}' in hand-to-h ancl combat: 'Toda)' we took a redoubt with the
bayon ct,' n:callcd \'olunteer Charles Franr;:ois. ·1 was on e oi" thc first to
gel up; an ém igré sei;r.ed hold of me, bul my cororades carne up as we
were grdPpling together. He could n Ol wreSl my gun from me, <lnd fl ed ;
we rOlO arter him an d just as he was jumping a hedge, 1 shovcd rn}'
bayonct into his body; he fe ll a nd 1 killed him and took hi~ boots and
also h is pursc, which contain ed fiftY- lh ree sous.' Volunteer Parison wrote
home describing the shock of combat. H is frie nd 'Gabriel Vidal was
killed at m}' side on l.he 18 ~ovember by the émigrés and I almost was
too. Two of them fel l on me, but 1 did not lose m y head. I thr ust tri}"
ba}'onel into Ihe stomach oC one and one of my comrades cut the hcad To IJteady hlIJ untested volunteer
bana llon s at the baHle of Valmy,
off lhe othcl". ' Lieu tenant Si mon also recall ed a clase shave: ' 1 received
Genera l K ellermann brigaded
a sabre cut fro m an Austrian corporal tha t alrnost cut off twO fin gc l"S of th em w ith battali ons of regulars,
my lefL hand. He was CUl down by my gre nadie rs.' halting t h<l Duke ot Brunswick's
After the batue, Pu tigny's priority was foad: 'We bivouacked in a-dvanee on Paris. (.Job)
posiuon , hUlT}~n g lO make saup: being dmnk 011
\;ct011' did nOl compcnsatc the hunger in our
bell ies for long ... T hc viclors cooked their thín
saup ove .. a pile of <:oals (our bread had been left
in cam p). We slept 011 the baulcficld without straw
a nd witho ut te nlS before continuing the pursuiL'
O' Hast..el's '\\'hole battalion slept Oll lhe
heights. Il was a penelratillg cold. 1 was dug into lhe
ground like a rabbit, but thc cold soon woke me. 1
mO\·ed c10se 10 a fire, a ..ound which I couldn't see
anyon e. :-.Jo sooner had 1 taken a step than a sour
voice cursed me as he gOL up. I tricd to &1.ve rnyself
by j umping over Lhe tire, but 1 kickcd up the coals,
which fel! on lh e ol.he1' soldiers, whom I could not
~ce because of the grey ovcrcoats cm·cring thern
cntirely. The ..e was a general uproar, each man
shouted and tried to oUldo one another with
cun;es. Utte rly disconcened, I j umpcd into rny hale
where 1 shivered unul the nexl dar In the rnoming,
the camping equipment arrived, but we could ont)'
set up cam p with greal difficult)' as the ground was
sandy a nd lhe pegs would Ilot h oId. This
inconvenience MIS al! the more disagrccable, as the
winds in tha t region a re freque nt and ...i olent. In
addition, cach night SlI<l.y horses came by, prowling
around the tc nts a nd gelung caught up in me
28 cords,oftcn pullcd them clo\\'n.'
r It \\~d.~ in (hese miserable conditions that lhe soldiers began to h ear
tltat Frdllce had dec1ared ilSclJ a rcpublic on 22 Septembcr 1792, and
that thc King had been imprisoncd. lJp at lhe frontlinc Liclltenan t
Siman \\Tote home for cOllfirmation of m is news: 'The rdin has llat
slopped a ll nigh l. In m}' Ji fe , my teeth have never chattered so hard. \'\'ell,
al dawn \Ve are l ea\~ng these damncd woods. Sorne of lhe soldiers ha\'c
JOSI thcir haLS, theír muskcts; o lhcrs are barefoot. As fo r mysclf, 1 ha\'c
pancd with my hausse col; my tra nseN an d rny Q\'crcoat are Lom. To cap
it a ll we have Ilo t found any bread : Thi:; c\'cning we have a had a piccc of
biscuil o •• We are up la ou r necks in misery. The o nIy lhing mal
consoles us is (ha t lhe e ne my is m uch worse off than liS. Rum o nr h,L~ it
that wc are no\\' Repubti cans, tha tlhc National Convention has dcposcd
the King. Wc don 't know ¡rlhal news is tnlc.'

UNDER SIEGE
Capitaine P OUgC l found his bo rder forlrcss base was under siege :

[The Gencral] camped our bau.alion on the glacis with a simple

palisade separating liS from lhe enemy The General did not
order a single sortie, limiting himselfto sc"crdllight cavalry patrols.
Whe n he went out in person, which he did "cry often, he penniued
well-mouIllcd oflicers to accompanr h im, independent of his
escorL I wCnt out \\ith his aúJes-lk-camp as oflen a.~ m}' duties
a l1owed. Ofie day the General went along the Luxembourg A camp at Le Qu esnoy, onu nf
lhe ma ny fortresH'S Ihal came
road . His illlc ntion \\~dS not to u nseule lhe Prussian vedenes, wh ic h
und9l' s iege in lhe c arty part of
were Slill far off, bU l they fi red severa! cannonballs at uso Before lhe Ihe war. (Reconslilution-
rC\'o lution, it \Vas not lhe custo m to I1re on a Gencrdl, who wentout author's photo)
 to reconnoitre his adversary's positions.
The General took lhis as an insult and a
laek of regard for custom. \Ve rCUlnled
to the tm....n al the ¡rallo p, not out of fear
from the projectiles, nor the approaeh o f
the enem )', but beside ourseh'es with
indiJ:,'llation . The General weut up onto
the rtllnparLS and fired some sixteen-
pOllnders on the eneffi)' headquarters a t
CatIlum, a chaleau near lhe T hionville
road, rendering il uninhabitablc ... That
same night lhe enemy planned 10
undertake a major as.'illult on the town
without digJ:,ring prdiminary tren ehes or
a line of circulllvallation. At eleven
o 'dock at night, lhe)' opencd up with a
heavy bombardmcnt on the fortress.
They lhrcw more than 300 projeetilcs,
eannonballs and shells before lhe
artiller}' 011 lhe rampan rcplied ... The
Linc artillerymcll and Nacional Guard
gunners had mel earlicr in the da)' and
had drunk lhcmsclves slupid. Onl)' aftn
a long il1le rval did lhe fo rtrcss reply and
ilS 6re was so badly direcled that severdl
cannonballs passed oveT the redoubt thal
I had been detailed to defe nd . 1 sem a
~¡, lO make them change lheir aim.

In a leller lO a frie nd , Lie ulenant Simon

also recalled lhe detrimental el:Tect alcohol had o n defenders: 'We losl Soldlers have removed their
several grenadiers in lhe trenches yeslerday and tonigh t. 1 have bcen havere.acks and "abits, stacking
t hem round a misceau while tkey
lighu)' wounded on the big loe of my leh. foot, by a stone fmgment
attend to fatigue dutie$.
thrown up by an enemy cannonball. 1 have had a part of lhe trieolour (Recon$titution - author'$ photo)
plume on my chapeau carried a\Vay by balL A volunteer from olle of lhe
new Paris battalions, known here under lhe name of ¡he heud choppers,
who '\~dS working on lhe trench, bein g dn.mk, fired his muskel into an
ammunition box. The ball passed through one of my grenadicr's legs,
eaTT)'ing off two fingers of lhe righ t hand an d entering lhe body of one
of our best gunners,jusl be!ow the heart. Those who were around him
rceeived powde r burns.'
Danger \\~aS ever-present <lnd Pouget had several narrow escapes:
'One da}', after coming baek from gl..lard dut}', Ilhrew myself on my bed
fo r a rest. We \Vere on lhe glacis, near the LlL"Xembourg gateo I heard a
largt: dctonation fro m lhe ene my eam p a nd gOL up immedialely. As I left
my lent, a sccond detonation was heard mueh nearer 10 me. A fl-agment
of a bomb fired al lhe lown propelled an enormous lu mp of casl iron
lhrough my lent, landing in lhe middle o f my bed , which I had juslleft
out of simple curiosity, and buried iL~e!fsi x inehes into the soiJ.' Putigny
also recollnted lhe ¡ucky escape o f his captain during a siege. Arter
spending 30 hOll rs working in the trenches under lire, 'our Capi taine
30 Gariot went off lO a hOllse neal" the redoubt where his d inner had been
prcparcd. He opened (he door; a cannonball c ntered with him and
smashcd his boiled egg and a tankard of beer. T he sen '<lnt d roppcd his
tl<l>' and left the rest of the meal on the floo r.'

SUSPICION AND TERROR

By lhe cnd o f 1792 the Frcnch had bec n blooded and had tasted vic tory
at lhe bau]cs of Vahny and Jelllap pcs. Following these battles the
French recovered 10st territor)', rec1aimed their fortrcsses and even
made tcrritorial gains, taki ng Brusscls. Howevel; ratlic r than elalion, a
growing sense of paranoia gripped the army, which suspectcd its
cOlll lllandcrs of belrayaL J Dupuy of 12e chasseur battalion serving in
Ke llennan n 's avan l-gardc recalled lhe p ursu it of th c Pmssians from
Fre nch tc rritor}': '$ince }'cste rday even ing we have been a quarter of a
league fro m Longwy. Our traops entered yester day, although lhe
Prussians \Vcre slill lhere. They he1d half the town aud we the other.
T h ey 1ll0uIlted guard at lhe gates 00 thdr side. T hey evacuated it Lada}'
at rnidday. There is surcl}' an arrangement \,;ch the Pl'ussian King, fo r
since lhc 17th we ha\'c bcen forbidde n fram Il l'ing on them 01' laking
a ny booly while fo llo\Villg them. Their horses fall dead a t e\'e'1' instam .
The o thc r da}', we waited in a Ileld rol' te n hOllrs, while th ey filed
th rough a village . 'rhc}' came lO ask our General fol' two hOllrs and
when thcy had p assed , they carne to ask ror more stH!. Ycster day evening
sorn e of o ur ehasseurs look sorne of thcir horses. 'rhe Gencral ordered
thcm lO be rctu rned and the}' had to pay back double the price the}'
had rece ived for those lhal were sold.'
This growing atmosphe rc of suspicion was not helped by the anioos
o f Capitaioe Pouget and his comrades: 'One da}' a Prussian o fficer
The glory enjoyad by successful
i.\pproached us; we waited for him and when he \Vas wiiliin carshot he
Frenc:h generals w3s often
bcgan a conversation in Frcnch ... He said lo us that his brothe rs in fteeUng. Fearlul of a milita ry coup,
arms an d h c would be d cligh ted to make ou r acquain cance. political commissars w ere sent on
Conseque rllly he inviled us lhc ncxt day lO come an d empty a bowl of mi$$ion lo ensure their Ioyalty.
punc h , which he would prepare
in a fann , which \va.'I considered
lO be neutral lcrritory ... H e
wou ld come with an eq ual
n umbe r 0 1' ofti ccrs and he gave \
his word of ho ooul' that this was
1l0t a trap ... The following da)',
\Ve all arrived al the appoimed
p lace Witll no guarantce omer
lh an mililary word of honour.
\Ve did not Icave withou t
cxchangin g our llames and the
llame ()f the corps in whic h we
ser"cd. "Ve swol'e that ir lhe
fortu nes of war saw us fa ]] inlO
olle anotller's hands, we would
mutually act as friend.~ and
protcctors. \Ve offered a drillk
in rClurn for these gcntlcmen , 31

Reserns movi ng up durlng the
action .. t Tírle mont (16 Mareh
1793). Dumounez'a s ubsequent
desertion pl"OYOked the .... olesale
restructunn9 of the Freroeh arm)'
under the J¡If;obin reglme .
32
lhe neXl d ay al the same time. The re union "'aS as merr), as the
preceding one an d we lert o ne a nother as long-s ta nding frien ds.'
Pouge l thoughl it wise to in form lheir co m mande r abou l these
meeti ngs before he found out h imself. H e gave thc m a severe
re primand , wa rn ing the m lhat lhe 'Conve ntio n had selll rc prcscllla tives
lO me arm)' a nd if our thoughtlessness had been made known lO them,
lh e)' would have a rrested us as traitors, put us on trial a nd condcmned
us LO capi lal punishme nt.' AH con lacts \.\'ilh lhe Prussia ns quickl}' ceased.
The a ppearance of these Représentan ts du Pc uple \..,.<15 o minously
noted by d' Hastrel: 'T he Conve ntio n 's com missan;, sent lO sta}' wim lhe
a rm)', ca rne along lhe line in full COSlume and passcd lhe rroops in
re\iew. One could distinguish the m b), thcir tricolour sash and their hats
dcco rated \~i th a similar ribbon , sunnounted b), threc tricolou r plumes.'
Th e commissars' principal task \\'as to e nsure th at gen c rals remained
loyal to m e govenlment and that its orders we re ca rried out. Th e
National Co nvention was fearfnl of Caesarism - a popular general
marching with his a rmy on Pa ris. In 1792 Gene ral Lafayette had
attem pted this to maintain the constitutional mon archy a nd Gen eral
Dumouriez tried the same on 5 April 1793. Although DUIllouliez was
egu all)' u nsuccessful and dcfectcd ro lh e Allies, th e rcpcrc ussions of this
event were e nonnous. Thc follO\\ing dayJacobin extre mists took con trol
in Paris, forming th e infamous Commiuec of Public Safc ty.
The commissan;' powcr o"er th e ann}' in th e fie ld was absolule. Anyone
unlucky el10ugh LO be suspccted of treason or simple fai lure was liable lO
be guillotined. D'H asrrd quickly realiscd lh a1 allhough it was a tim e of
e nonnous opportlmity and rapid promotion, some times il was beuer lO
avoid me Iimclight: 'Gcm:ra1 O arke wal1lt.'d lO make me adjudant-géné ral
but I refused mis dangerous honour. Each day, me people's representatives,
under me masr fii,'ololls pretexts, arrcsted colonels and generals as traitors
a nd sent th e m lO me re\'ollltionru)' ui bunal in Pmis LO feed lhe guillotine.
I mough t 11 wise tO re main in obscurit)'.'
Afte r a re u'eat d ' H astrel saw ·(WO speci al
eommissars sent by !.he Kational ConvenGon a rrh'e
at the anny, They had been invesled w1lh unlimited
powers tO investigate lh e causes of [lhe defeatJ.
l1Iis is always o ur gove mme nt's polic)'. Al the
slightesl check, they cry lreason and th e n dismiss
lhe Generals, a rrest them , ShOOl lhem or wrongly
guillotin e th e m To gain popu larity th e
representatives flatle r the soldiers and stir up
distrust against lh eir comma nders. So, when an
oflice r t1ies LO do his dut.'}', they accuse h im of
anstocrac)'; lhe soldiers denounce him and the
rep resentatn'es, ,.,.; thout a ny examina tion, dismiss
him. Ir, in COntrast, a soldier is brought befare a
mililar)' tribunal, he is cert...tin to walk aw:a)' as white
as sno\\'. ACter rhat, it is easy to imagine how far
d iscipline goes. The representa tivcs a t prescnt ft.-cl
mat it is necessary to re-establish d iscipline, but mcy
fear becoming un popular. In the meantime the
sold ie rs a re free tO all exccsses. 111e anny will saon
be l10thing but a ga thering of brig-,mds in uniform. '
 Standard Bearer, 1193

LO!

A
 Recruitment

""t'" -

B
.;:::;; ,..:..
.. ""*'.-.....:-1.
i!: "'" =--

e
 Feo de pelelon

D
E
 ~
..
E
•
.~
F
•
Crossing too Alps
 Chasseur, 1800

H
 Roch Godart's experiences echo d 'H astrel : 'The officers dcnounced
me beca use 1 mad e them dl'ill for five days and drilled lhe SOl/..S-offiders
00 lhe sixth; because 1 pUL lhe m under anns two hours before dawn ,
afler m e patrols carne in ; because 1 exercised too much se\'erity and m at
... 1 treatcd m e rn like under lhe ancien régirne; that 1 was an u tter
despOl a nd too brutal towards the m . Arnong m ese denouncers were
officers of all ranks, who were lhe most foul vile cowa rds, Ilo t wan ung to
leam, speaking insignificam words about liberty and equalily a nd
radicalism. all m e while pre aching la thc so ldiers about disobed ience
and exhorung m ern to rebell ion .· J o liclerc was sympatheuc allho ugh
resigned to his superior's plighl: 'our officers have 3rrested our coloncl,
whose fale h as to he decide d ... This is what happens lO lhose lha l are
IlOl killed by lhe enerny. They are locke d up or guillocined . Tha l's lile
way of this world.'
T he dark days of La Te1'1'tUrwou ld remain in place until, as d 'H aslrcl
described with sorne rc li ef, ' the fortunate revoluuo n of9 The rmidor (27
Jul), 1794) and lhe fall of Robespie rre. This n ews caused greal sensation
in the ann}'; cach blessed the heavens to h ave finall)' stopped this Ligcr
thirsty for lhe blood ofFrench m e n .'

AMALGAMATION AND JACOBINISM

A more positi\'c aspect oC the J acobin regime ,""ere the re fonns of Lazare
Carnal, :\1inistcr of \Val' and so-called 'Organiscr of Victor}". Cam a l
ad\'ocate d a poliey of Total War, tum ing over thc cn tire nauon 's resources
lO lhe purs uit ohictory. As ",eU as addressing the issuc ofrecruionent, he
oversa\>l lhe restructuring of the a rlUy, fusing Ihe rem nants ofthe regular
anny wi m the voluntcer batralions to create a single na cio na l anny.
A series of laws wcrc passed call ing for the embrigademerlt of (\\'0 The deml·brigades swe pt away
ell ou l wanl t ....;:es of t he royal
battal ions oí volulltccrs with o ne baual ion of regulars. 'In the spring of
enny. The tradilionaJ white
1794,' lhough t Putign)', 'th e army was transformed.' The am algamations Infentry <:oet gaye way to the
were the sce nes of grcal cere mon}', as described by Orson: 'The three bl ue of t he yolunteers.
battalions were gath crcd in che plain
of OtterSladl. Gé néral Bcaupuy said
th ese words: ~ Thi rd battali o n of
Rhóne-el-Loire, fi fth Manch e and fift h
Seine-et-Oise )'o u here are he ncefo rth
u n ited, forming just a single corps;
may the best harmony rc¡gn between
)'ou for lhe service of ch e Republicl "
Then, th e re ""as a roll on the drums
and the Ge neral had the three
battalions parade past togcther. taking
lhe llame of the 205c demi-brigade. '
T his process extended l O the ligh t
infantry baualio ns lOO, which took lile
ne"" title of demi-brigades légire. The
amalgamation ceremany for the ge
dem i-br igade Légere, was preside d
ove r by RepreSentalive Gi lle t. ",ho
announced, 'Office rs, sous-offi ciers, 41
 The revolutlonary calendar was
THE REVOLUTIONARY CALENDAR Introduced in Octeber 1793,
remaining in u M untiI1806.
Month Slgnifying EquivaJent E.ch month was divided into
Vendemaire Grape harves1s 22 Sep - 21 Oct th ree decades 01 ten days
Fogs 22 0c1 - 20 Nov named: Primedi. Duod i. Tridi,
BnJmaire
Quartldl, Qulnlldi, Sextldi,
Frimaire Frosls 21 Nov - 20 Dec
Septidi, Oclidi. Hendidi and
N;vooe Snows 21 Dec -19 J an D6eadi. In le ap years the
PluviOse Aains 20 Jan -18Feb sansculQttldes (f' t e days.)lasted
Ventóse Winds 19 Feb - 20 Mar fer sb. days.
Germinal Bud, 21 Mar - 19 Apr
FlOféal Rowers 20 Apr - 19 May
Prairial Meadows 20 May - 18 Jul
Thermidor Hea! 19 Jul - 17Aug
Fructidor Fruit 18 Aug - 16 Sep
Sansculottides 5-day holiday 17 Sep - 21 Sep

soldiers, swear ene! promise obedience to the law and military discipline.
Swear lO main lain libeny, equali LY, lhe consúlutioo, th e un ity and
indivisibility of lhe French Republic ar la die! ' Gille t recorded that after
the speech, 'tilere \'las a 1'011 on the drums, lhe people 's representative
instructed the uni t commanclers to a rder ground anns. The battalions
were d isrnissed, mingled logether: officers, sous-officiers and soldiers gave
one another fraternal kisses. h would be impossible lO describe lhis
touching sce ne. 3,000 men lhrowing lhemselves into one anothe r's a nns,
embracing one anothe r, pressed around lhe people's represelll.ative .... A
wonderful moment: it brought lears of joy and emotion to my eyes. After
expres...ing lheir ha ppiness, the reeall was sounded a nd each resumed h is
position , Citizen Eirisch, the most sen ior baualion com mande r, was Open s u pport for!he e lliled
appoin ted as the eommander of the demi-brigade. T he three baua lions monarehy and Cathofic Chureh
fuelled a bltler civil war in the
soon fi led past lhe Nation's representativc in a grand parade, then "'ent
we5t of France. Like !he later
back to their billets.' Napoleo nlc SJU8fTilla war in Spain,
Thc J aeobin go\'ernment also made attempts to revolutionise the flghting in the Vendée was
militaI)' societ}', as Putigny nOled: 'Soldiers of all ranks \\'e re invited to IM)t ed fer atrocities on both sides.
addrcss olle allothe r commonJy
as "Citizcn", while eveI)where,
on largc posters over doon vays,
onc rcad that this was an
honourable titlc.'
Al th e time the revol-
utionary calendar was adopted
(22 September 1793), a policy
of dechrislia n isation was
imple mellled. Although rhe
gm'ernrnelll wanted LO suppress
the Church 's conside ra ble
power, it also believed mal Man
had to be accountable tO sorne
higher authority. T he rcfore a
state religion 1u1Own as The C111l
Qf ¡he Sllpreme Being was
42 introduced. Howeve r, it "'as
 The civil war spread lo the south of
France, wlth the pOrt of Toulon raising
the Bourbon flag and going OYe<" lo the
British on 28 August 1793. Even at the
time of Bon.aparte' coup, !he cMI wars
tled up many much-needed troops.

unrealistic tO expect soldiers lO

turn away from the Chu rch
entirely. Jo liclerc revealed the
dual s)'ste m in a leller to his
mo th e r o n Easter dar 1795
(using the republican date of
16 Germinal Vear 3): 'Toda},
Easte r da)', two or three Masses
we re ce le brated in town for lhe
firSl time. It has been two years
since 1 have been. There was as
much delight among the soldiers as with the inhabitants.'
Joliclerc's faith had sun"¡ved m e savage civil war fought in lhe weSl of
Fnmcc, wherc some departments had declared m emselves in favour of
lhe monarchy and lhe Church. H e had witnessed th e atrocities
com mitled after me government sen t troops to 'ravage the Dé parteme nts
of Deux-Sevres and la Vendée . We carried name and tire; muskel in one
hand and a lOrch in lhe o lher. Men and women, all \\'ere pUl la lhe
sword . It was necessary mal aU pe rished, excepl small
children . These Dé parteme nts must sen 'e as a n
cxample lO the others who are lh inking ofrcvolt. V'/e
havc aIread}' burn ed a round seven lcagues o f
countr}'side. Sorne soldiers have made their formne.
Everything can be pillaged. '

HARDSHIPS ON CAMPAIGN
The "Var of Libeny' SOOI1 becarnc a war of attrition
thal dragged on almost \.'.1thOlll respite for a decade.
Even before hostilitics comme nccd, soldiers arriving
al the frontline found thal lheir auiludes to soldicring
changed dramatically. One of the firsl casualtics of \\'"'dT
was parade-ground neatness. Thieballlt was rather
surprised at me reality: 'Being aboul tO appear before
troops, who had been fi ghting for whal seemed to liS
!he enonnous time of six momhs, we look extra paios
lO reach tbe camp in tho roughly sma n condition, but
our efforts were n01 \...eU rewa.rded . One of their

Aftef" severa! years o, war many voIunleenJ a nd kMes knew no

other ~fe lhan sokIiering. They gnw up ..ery q .... kly under firo,
facing the annies DI Prussia, Austria, Britain, Spain, Russia and
ll.ukey. They were In tum UMd as an instrument 01 liberation,
taking the revoIution _ !he trontiers, and ot ~ion, savagely
suppressing interna! anti-9O'Il!mment dissent. (Myrbach) 43

Général K~lennann's Armée des
Alpes on tn e frontiers of ltaly
(Octo-bet" 1793). The ltallan
theatre would play host to rnany
of France's most notable vletorles
and make the reputstlon of sorne
of lis most fa mous soldiora.
44
grenadi ers who had bccn lying in the mud for
a mOllth ""'aS heard lO say to an omer as dirry as
himself, "Come along and scc sorne grenadiers
j ust out of the band-box." A remark mat made
such an im pressio n on us thar by me next day
we could not be distinguished from me resr of
the troops.'
The terrible hardships faeed by soldien>
fearured hea"ily in their leuers home. 'The ice
and sno\\',' moaned \"oluntccr Parison , ' has
falle n in sueh great quantity. We a re poorIy
unifonned , \'enninous and itehy, but we hope
to be baek in Franee soon.' Officer Pierrc
Girardon wished thal he eould 'change my
underwear; lt has been three momhs since my
breeches left my legs, me same for my boots. 1
",,':in not speak of lh e liee.' Fran<;ois CUh'TIy of
the 2ie Régim e nt fowsed on his exhausted
condition : " "'ould li ke tO say that for cight
mon ths , have bee n so wealy. Ah\~ays sleeping
on the ground, spending nightS in bi\'ouacs,
alwa)'s under lh e nose of lhe enemy, our
regiment is always at the from, we should have
800 in our baua lion when aClually we a re no
more than 200.'
Record ing lh e e ffects of baule, Caporal
JoTidcrc "'rote ro his mother aboUl me fatc of
his local comrades: ·We suffe red hcavily
d uring the alIad:.. Hugon fro m Nozeroy was
sho t in the leg; Carrez from Com m unailles had a ball in lhe neck.. Liuk
Chauvin had one enter h im bd ow the ear and pass through lhe mouth ,
breaking his ja\\'. Vernier froro Mignovillard had his leg sTightl)'
wounded by a caniSler round. Onc oC the Ducrets fro m Asure tte has a
ball in his fOO L Our drummer, one oCthe Tinots from Nozeroy, has olle
in the knee. :vlagnien's brothcr from Nozeroy has a ball behind the
shoulder. Sorne of lhose not from round our way were laid out stolle
dead. We had others carried from th e battl efield bU l wh o died several
hours later; there was OIle of them wh o'd had hi s to ngue c ut off by a
ball. AlI these men were in our compa ny. r myselr\\'aS hit on the nose
by a canister round.'
One of the most cornrnon picas in letters was ror money LO be sent.
France had in troduced a paper currenc)' ealled assignats, which were
\"ery rarely accepted by merchants and became all but worthless. 'For
100,000 li\Tes in assignats, rou would not get a pound of bread, lhus OUT
pa)' is worthless,' pleaded J olidere. 'Um il now, I used m)' pay for an
ounee of lObacco which eOSl me 10 li vrL'"S pe r o unee, bm 1 thin k. tha t
soon 1 \\':ill nOl be a ble lO have it. The rcfore 1 m ust sell my possessions to
gel sorne coinage. They sa}' that we are going to have two soIs a day, but
until no\\' \'le have had nOlh ing and what could we do ....<ith t"\\'o sois?
NOlhing. The Republican coins of 15 soIs, 30 sois a nd 6 fran es a re
\\·ortllless; the peasantS do nOl wam them ... An assigna t of one hu nd red
sois was valued at one sol in cash ; but 110t any more. An ccu of 6 francs
 was sold for 1,000 livres fOT a few days; bU l today you
can '[ fin d this price. lf lhe gove rnment does nO[ take
measures, the assignat's wonh ""i!1 disappcar
complctcly. '
Without a do ubt lhese lettcrs gene raled srmpamy
from fam ily a nd fr ie n ds, who in turn offered
encourage me nt however lhey could. One fa mer,
Nicholas Thirion, ..... rote 10 his son on 25 May 1794: '1
receivcd your letler, my son, dated 22 noreal. YOUT
mo ther, yo ur sisters an d m ysclf, we were all deligh ted
10 leam tJla t you a re well . The ft."Ver 1hat you have had
is nomillg but a light indisposition for a republican
who must know how 10 sufrer and die in lhe defence
of his country ... Take co uragc; never stra)' from [he
pr incipies that 1 have insLilled in rou. Learn lO bear
hungcr, thirst, lhe cold a nd the heat. \Vhen yOl! suffer,
know lhat il is fO I" your parents and your Homeland.
V·,rhen you march into combat, never forget it is for
your father, your mother, your brothers, )'our sisters
an d to prefe r death la ignom iny.'
J oliclerc's mothe r wrote to her son, naively
wondering why he had süll nat come home when
olhers had returned , apparently with perm ission. His
reply ......as clear: 'You tel! me lha t man}' volunteers have
taken lheir lea ..'e and that J llave not wanted to take
mine. Fear not, fo r whe n I take ir, it ..viii be au thorised.
You tell me mal whe n i1 was a utumn 1 promised you
that I would come in lhe spring and then when it was
spring, I would come in lhe au lumn a nd so o n. This is
how 1 spend my life a nd my youlh. There are sorne far
bener lhan me who, like myself, are settlcd here. Would
rou prefer thal 1 spelll lhis lire in Sv\"i.tzerland, in
Gennany or in Engla nd? I 30m al m )' post and 1 wil l stay there . Would you En .entlnelle - an infantryman
prefer me tO be a ba ndil in woods of Salins, by the coast, pursued by .tand s guard. Everything a
gendannes, or obliged to become a highwapnan? That is the life r.bat soldler owned he carried In his
coat pockets, mon ey bell, his
awaits yonng men on the runo Do you find that attractive? '
havers ack or s trapped lo il.
Sol diers maimed or struck down by sickness were commonly
di scharged and se nt home. Howevér, there were more bizarn: cases of
discharge: 'We were b ill eled with the 3e bataillon de l'A.in, in which
was found a soldicr wh o a te living animals. He was named Kerrere
and was only twe nty-two years old. H e presented himself before lh e
commissars charged with examining men praposed for dischargc, who
gave him a ¡¡ve catoH e seized it by th e n eck and th e four paws, and rhe n
gnawed its nails, feet a nd legs. M ler this preliminary operation, he bit
afTthe lower jaw, lhen lhe u ppe r, swallowing it whole. T hen, gripping his
"ictim b}' the ncck and (he hindquarten;, he started 011 its back with an
appetile lhal sic kened lhe 3ossistants, who dismissed hi m from scrvice.
But he did not wam to abandon his prey. He put it in his hag, promising
to fini sh it for his supper.' (d ' HasLrel)
:\>lore d3ongerous than enem)' bllllets, the threat of sickJless and
disease always loomed nearby. PuLigny pickcd up a conLagiollS disease
lhal had been sprcad during lhe siege of Ypres. His spnptoms were: 45

As supp.y 'ines bro«e down,
unifonnity suffenld heaV'ily, with
trousers and gaiters in p.artleular
being replaeed wlth whatever
earne to hand ..
••
'stomaeh aches, migrc.incs and rever.
The hau alio n surgean purged me
,.,.i.thour result. 1 w"c.s given another
med icadon a nd swaUowed p inl.S of
tepid "''aler. AlI this water could nOl
make me vomit! 1 w"c.s men seized by
an ahsurd desire for on ion sou p.
Finally, stufTed and inflated, 1 roUed
up in my coal no longer knowing
whieh saint lO pray to, when an abru pl
re hef left me b rokc n <lnd withoul
stre ngth . They cV""dcuated me lO an
abbey near LiBe, whieh had been
transformed into a hospital.. ' H osp itals
were generally drcaded and avoided al
a11 costs. j olicJerc, who said his body
\Vas 'covcred whh boils', explained
why: '1 had great need of purging
ffi)'sclf, bUl 1 did nOl dare go lO
hospital, ncver havin g been exeept
when wounded. YOl! go inlo hospitals
wilh half a rever and as soon as yOl! a re
thae, sorne ¡;reat iUness strikes you,
\\Iith lh e resull lhat more of""len lhan
not, )'ou neve r leave. Thal is why 1 dare
not go the re.'
Dcspite the hardships, man y men
found lime lO strike up rela Lionships
wi lh local wome n . Lie urena nl Fr.ln.;ois com me nted sl}'ly lhal in !\"amur,
'The women a re much more patriotie lha n in Franee, although lhey a re
not as preuy..' Captain Frc.m;:ois was subtle r: " a rranged to gel in to my
compan)' a young washen ..-oman, who belo llged lO thal d e mi-hrigade .
She was seventeen or eighteen )'ears old and married lO an o ld German
sergent, who had belongcd to th e Suedois rcgime n l ...... I o btained a
barrel of spirits for this little princcss, to hang across her shoulders, a
runnel an d sorne glasses and asked the command er of lhe second
battalion to a ppoint h er as a vivandicrc oo 1 procured for her one of
...
those carts called a char-a-banc in Ce rlllan y, wilh twO horses, which had
been commandeered from a r ich peasant.. She could lhen purchase
wholesale . Her husband was p1cased al secing lhe prosperily o f his dear
better-half; he liked me very much and knowing lhal il was to me sh e
owcd h er splendour, he often said LO me, "Quanermaster, my ",ife is a t
your scn 'lce
Cantinieres could pe rfonn ot1ler r oles. Wh ile tigh ling tJle British in
Belgium , Putigny recal1cd: '\Ve concealed 1WO three-gun haue ries u nder
the foliage along a wide lane \Vith a battalio n behind each of lhe m. After
a small de monstration we soon a u racled a red geometrie mass, les
Goddem.. \Vith an accclerc.ted pace,j usl as we wished, the}' seomfull)' wem
past the prudem Austrians a nd walkcd r ighl inlO the trap, which we had
su..'adil)' fallen baek on. Oul' can non c rac kled , the hattalions threw
themsel\'es forwards, we lUfIled roulld a nd advaneed . 11$ Coddem,
almough very numero us, were sh akell , routed and clUs hed without
merey. Their blood a nd meir scarletjackets rncrged: after th is camage A carabinier and grenadi8f" s hare
lhe soil was as red as lhe blade oC my bayonee Many \\'ere hideously a drink with sorne C3l1alrymen,
praetising tkeir channs on two
n1ulilated. An old English colonel, his li mbs hacked off by canister fire,
loeal glrls.
was still breathing. His son, who could have escaped, carne and gave
himsclf up so as to take care of him, bUl he had airead)' been heaten to
this task by our cantiniere, Mother :Marea n. She followed lhe baualion
dcvotedly and would help the wounded under a rain of OOlls. Friend or
foe , all were entitled to her help. She "'ent on campaign with me
Navarrc infantry with anome r woman, La Martine, who was our
company's washerwoman. '
Although lhe creation of the demi-brigades did much to harmonisc
lhe spirit of infanlrymen, rivalry with Olher parts oC tbe army still
COlllinued. In l\Iay 1795 sous-lieutena nt Vivien becarnc cmbroiled in an
affaire d'/lOnneILrw h ile sha ring lfd.rrison dUl)' in Lillc wilh lSe Chasseurs
a Che val's depot squadro n: ' One e\"cni ng, a liule before nightfall. 1 was
rewmi ng with one of my eornrades, a sous-liellte nanl like myself.
Reaching the drawbridge we found ourselves walking in lhe same
dircction as two chasseur officers, one ofwhom was a capmin in civilian
drcss with his hair in cadtmettes, a sryle th e n caBed ti la vjctime.~ The two
ofJiccrs stopped sho n and the one ",ho had been <Iddrc !>.~c d asked his
critic if he had cut many off in his !ife? "No comrade, yours wi.l1 be the
fi rst, bu t while I have said mat rn)' fingers are itching 10 cut off your
cadenettes, 1 wOllld also Iike to cxpress ffi)' displeasure at sccing an officer
dfcsscd as a mu.~r.adi11. " "Monsicur," replied the captain in tum, "1 am
neither your comrade nor yOllr egual in rank and as such 1 can ignore 47
-
you without a ny cxplanation; bul A eantiniént w;th brandy barrer
for m}' 0""11 satisfaclion, I want la strapped across her back.
Jollclerc revealed that he fell
lell rou that my attire is not subjecl
back on alcohol to survive: '1 buy
lO ce nsure by anyone o lhe r than w;ne, beer 01' brandy here. One
m)' commandc r \.\'ho, beca use of a MedS a lew shots to support
serious \\"o und which has nOl rel ~rf. without whOch one

healed, willi ngly allOl . . ecl me 10 would not be abre to endure

wear lhis civiJian coa! and finall}' ... the rain, whlch has been
contlnual thls month.'
that rou should know that my
fin gers are itching to apply several
blows of IUf Iiding erop across yo ur
race."'
As lhe capt.ain WCnI to slrike,
Vi,~en threw himsclf betv·:een the
tvw adversarics aud held them
aran, further ann oyillg the captain ,
whose anger was no\\' directed al
Vivicn. A duel was arrangcd fOI" me
follov,in g morning al scven o'cJock
outside lhe ciladcl. 80th Vivicn
and lhe cap tain arri\'cd with their
seconds who 'dccidcd the cho ice of
arms by tossing a coin', It was decided lhat the duel would be fouglll wl th
S\vords until lhe first blood ....'aS dra ....'I1. The captain said: 'Fate does not
f,\\'our )'ou a nd I forcscc thall probably have a considerab le superiority in
arms over you. Thcrcfore monsieur, 1 leave me rncans of fighti ng lO your
discretion.' '''Mollsic ur,'' 1 replied, "as fate has dccidcd thus, we will fig hl
with S\\·ords." I crossed blades with m)' adversaJ)', who appcared amused by
m}' clumsiness. '
Thc captain 's second stc pped ron\'ard and look bolh sworcls by lhe
hand. ""ith much vehe mcllce he said !bal he would 1101 suff"e r !bis a ny
morc, thal lhe insult was 1101 held on rn)' parlo that 1 had pUL myself
forv·¡ard because m}' comrade had not tbe couragc lo back his words.
wtly, that J had made sufficient and generous proof of this by fighling
for somcon e else in a dud against one of lhe premier swordsmen in
Francc and tha t this had to finis h now. "[He's] right,~ said lh e captain,

0~4'.óo/lt~
r!7CutjllatYaD
'1k.laJ?uú.ri<lO;,)'" l.l-tJlk!o:-'"'if\~
-oíi-~(~....t7 -cM,.,.f,... ""7---1-

48 An aaslg nat worth SO r¡vres.

throwing away his S'word and taking me by the hand. 1 fell into his anns
and all was fi nished.' Wi lh honour satisfied , the chasseu rs o rganised a
dinner a1 1he Golden Lion Hotel whe re 'we proceeded to consu me a most
clegant dinner, which was washed-down with thc fin est and mos! delicate
wines; fo r that time, i1 was lIuly an extraordina rily Immrious spread .'

MARAUDERS AND PUNISHMENT

Following the embrigademe1ll, one immed iate cha nge was obvious: 'Th e
tcnts were taken away,' moaned Puligny. J oliclc rc was e\"en more
unhappy: 'It is as cold as wi m er a nd we have no tents to cover ourselves
with as they ha\'e been take n away, lhey 5a)', to wash off the lice, which
devour us.' Although this measure sim plified logistics, it cncouraged Frenc:h sokUers ask a civillan fer
soldicrs to dispe rse a nd seek shelter tO avoid exposurc lO the cleme nts. food. By taklng the war across the
Al thc same time, men at the front were reduced to living off the la nd frontlors of Franoe, the gove mment
as supply ¡ines broke down. Qua rte red in a village near the Rhine, Serge m- passed Ihe responslbility of feeding
tl\e soldiers on 10 the occupied
M~jor Orson 'ofte n wel1l hunting and fishing wilh the peasants.' Most
territorles whenl they were
rcsortcd to simple lheft, oflen threate ning or ir~j uring any local inhabitan {S blUeted. Thl$ created a lasting
who dared tu resisto Determined to clamp dov{n on maraudcrs, Orson 's resentment of French occupation.
captain set a tmp to catch some he
suspectcd: '\Ve stood in ambush behind a
hedge; the mamuders were nOl a long
time co ming, fonn ed in rank, as if they
we re on parra l. They wcre anned ,\~ th two
m uskelS; that g-ave them away, The
commande r lel thc m approach and leapt
u p, crying "Vou nlscals! Vou eannot
escape; lhe re are guards at }'our quan elS."
Hearing the \'oiee of thcir eommande r so
close in the darkness, they were all seized
by panic. T.....o me n smycd, all the others
tcok flight, abandoning thcir potatoes.
Reruming to the \~ llagc, lhe eom mande r
ordered me lO make a roll call: sergent
Martin and cajXlral Ré tif and his squad
we re faund missing .. . The n cxt day we
pUl them in prison .'
Before th e Revoluti on , routine
punishme nt co nsiSled of a blow fro m
th e fla t of a sword-blad e across the
victim 's back an d adm inistered by a sous-
officie r. The num bel" of blows varied
according to lh e severity of lhe offe nec-
15 blows fo r being caugh t with a woman
in lhe barrack room and 25 lo r being
foun d d r unk. In 1786 a n in fam olls
pun ish ment '\'as iOlroduced. Stripped to
the waist. eaplu red desertel'S were Coreed
ro ' run the gaun tlel': a double rank of 50
to 100 me n would each give lh e \~ etim a
blow with e ithe r a ramrod 01" musket 49
 1 &

sling. Physical attacks on officcrs were harshl}' punished - the ofTending

hand was cut off before tlle vicum was hanged. Apart from looting
churches, ""here lhe guilty were ha nged and lheir bodies bumed,
mutiny was the mosl serious offcncc. Af"ter lhe suppression ofthe Nancy
muuny in AuguSl 1790, lhe suspcclcd ringleader was broken on lhe
wheel, while 27 were hanged and many alh ers scntcnced to life on the
galle}'s.
In 1791 mi li ta!]' pun ish mclll was drasticall}' rcformed. Soldiers now
had the same righLS as civilians. Officers werc no longer pennitted to
humiliate. injure or insull thejr subordinalcs, but instead gave them
custodial sentences. T he war brought more c hanges: in 1794 soldiers'
appeals were heard by a court-martial oC ninc judges (three officers and
six men) and th e death sentcnce retum ed. Somctimcs it was deemed
necessary to make examples lO rcinforce discipline. Aftcr the batde of
Fleurus in 1794 , Vivien witnessed an example being made of
12 grcnadiers \Vith the approval oC Général Bcrnadotte, the fmure
Marshal and King of Sweden :

Twdve grenadiers afthe régim e nt de Beauce wcrc arrested at the

h ome of the vi llage priest and accused of marauding ...
Unfortunately, the grenadicrs had been arrcs tcd by the
gendannerie attached ca Ceneral Headquarters, so the pleas of
thcir batlalion commande r wem without succcss: the}' were laken

A heayily laden sold lar offera hi ,

50 spoils for a share In the broth.
 befare a court-martial. Allhollgh in their defence, the good priest
decJared to have no complaim againsl thc grenadiers, that he had
givcn the m the hens thal lhey were accused of stealing without
the threar of'~o l ence, they were al! condemned, without appeal,
tO death. The e \'e ning lhe sentence was given , Rernadotte's
Di,1.sion , of which the ballalion fonned a pan, was spedally
asscm blcd and lined up, fo rming th ree faces of a square. Bea uce
was fo rmed on the right, as il had lO file past lbc com1.ctcd men
first. The twelve grenadie rs were surrouoded by an eseort of
geodannes, both mounted and on f001, to the centre of lhe
Di\'ision, to hear the reading of lhe judgemeo t against them a nd
la suffer thcir exeeution the re. Everything was rcady: A platoon of
60 srrns-officiers and eorporals waited for lhem aod a large ditch ,
destincd to reccivc their bodies, had been dug ten paces from
them. They were twcJvc fine young men of good height; the cJdcst
had o ot yet reached his thirtieth year. They still wore lbe ald
white uniform of the régirnent de Beauce ... Those poor
wrelches, nuhe r than resign ed and silenl, on seeing lh eir
eomrades lined up as unhappy witnesses lo tlleir exeeution, fi lled
lhe air with thcir wailing. Spontaneously, lhey threw lhemscJves at
lhe feet of General Bernadotte. e mbraci og his knees and begging
him to pardon thdr offence, for they were not criminals. The
venerable priest, almost as pitiful as lhem, haods raised lO the sky,
implored lhe merey of the Alm ighty fo r the men, his brothers
who were oot bom for such a fatal deslioy. Bul lhe law had
spokeo! A roll on the drums was heard along the whole lioe and
the vr.ueh ing soldiers, overwhelmed with sadness, their hcac\s
lowered and thcir e)'es fu ll of tears, faced themselves la lbe side
so as not LO see thd .. bnwe comrades, as worthy of d ying fo r tlIór
H omeland as thc mselvcs, fall beneath the murderous lead. None
of Ihe condemned wanted a bliodfo ld Ilor woul d lhey kneel. The)'
reeeived their death standing uprighl and faci ng foru'ards,
p ressed one against the other. The platooll advanced in silenee;
lhe commands were givcn by three successive sweeps of tlle epee;
a delonation was heard, a cJoud of smoked covered lhe honiblc
sp ect.'l.de: They had suffercd their fate .

REQUISITIONS AND CONSCRIPTS

After 1792 su ecessive governmcnl'i sought a reliable method of
reinforcing the units al lhe front. The law of 24 February 1793 ordered
a levú of 300,000 men lO eornplemCOl the exisring field battalions, The
men were to be selected by ballol OT b}' clection under the super.~sion
of the m unicipal aUlhorities. Then on 23 AugtlSl 1793 lhe gm'ernmenl
decTeed the laJie en masse, penllanentl}' cillliog up aU Fre nc h bachelors
and widowers belween 18 a nd 40 )'ears old for military serviee until the
end of the war. Despile lhe lhreatcning shadow of the guilloti ne, lhe
public response was less lhan clllh usiastie.
Pion de Loches was dele nnined to sta}' o ut of the anny and reeorded
(he rneans of evasion he e mployed: Al the beginning of the Revolution 51
 OPPOSITE Ne wly a lTlved
requ;sil;o ns bel ng d rllled. Al a
tim e whe n s ix millio n Frenc: hme n
spoke n o Freneh a' a ll , un ltli had
tradition a lly been ree",.ited on s
regiona l bas is. The req ulsltlons,
however, were sen t lo Ihe front
On an ad hoc: bélsis, oh e n S8f"Ylng
with me n whos . dia lKts lhay
could nol understa nd. (Myrt¡ltCh)
I young and single, why don 't you
i recalled: 'We marched without
1 avoided the call-ups ordered by the govern ment three times . On 5
Augus t 1792, they asked fo r o ne sixth of all lhe inhabitan ts of m}'
com mune, aged between eigh leen an d sixty years old. Those who would
naL submit themselves paid wilb tbcir plIrse. My falhe r, m}' linde, my
brotbc r a nd myselfbought, for the modcst sum o f one hund red eeus in
assignats, a d runkard named Charlo t acre, for me r Garde-Fran¡;aise,
wh o wcm to me frontie r more aboard a car riage tha n on foot as he had
ulccrdted legs. M [e r several mon ths be retunlcd home, co\·ered in rags.
On 15 March 1793, they a n nounced a levy of Ih ree hllnd red thousand
men in Lons-lc Saulnier ... Patriotism d id not seU itsclf as dearly in 1793
as in 1792. To be stuek off the list COSt me a f¡vc-livrc assignat that a
ho usc sc rvant p ut down in my name al lhe council asse m bly o fli ee.
Again 1 had paid with my pu rse.
Shortly after [he Levée e n masse, a people's rep rcscntati\·e anived in
Pion de Loche's toV-ln and seleeted a batch of men from the localJaeobi n
club. Not being a membe r, Pian de Loche escaped again, but v,<lS finally
caught: 'On 4[h Oetober, 1 signed up as a soldic r in lhe bataillon
de rrquisition of [he district of Lons-le-Sa.ulnier: ''You 'rc leaving men ,
ci tizen?" asked rhe eouncillor
\\'ho received my cngagement.
"\Vith oul d oubt, sinee Lhey
forced me to." - "So this is nor
volun ta ry?" - "No, a militaf}'
ca reer does nOl a ppeal. " -
"Ho\\'ever, }'ou are roung: the
place of aH young me n is al the
frontier." - "But you are also
set a n example; you who passcs
h imsel f for a pa triot?" Thc
councillor \Vas left speeehless.'
In sharp COntras t to th e
departure parade recorded by
Bial in 1791, Pion de Loches
order, in deep siJ ence, each left
to bis own thougbts.' Nor were
tbey received Wilh e m husiasm at
the from , as PUligny describes:
A reorgs nlsatlon In 1796 s aw a
r8num berln g O, Ihe demi-bri9ades
made by. drawing o, lots. Des pite
!he upheava ls , old mil itary traditions
were not ellminated e nti re ly. When
c onscrlpt Routie r w¡os a ssigned lo ¡o
unit, I>e leao med lhal il had been the
'r6gimenl de Pe rcl>e befa re the
Aevolution, the n, . n e r becoming the
5ge d e ml-brigade , it took the number
102 In a Ion e ry made by the anny
carps.' Desplte Ihe c h¡onges in title,
he was plelt5ed lo lea m Ihal ;1 still
'e njoyad a n exce llent reputa lion' . 53
 'In November lhe requisition law of 16 August 1793 gavc us a load of Line infantry on garri$<"ln duly.
mcn of aH conditions and from \~J. ri ous provinces.' Unlike lhe fin;t waves The Campo Formlo treaty gave
many frontlln e unla a brlef
ofvoluntcers taken from tll C National Cuard , the requisitionsoften arrived
.espite from the flghtlng. While
a l lhe front lacking basic tra ining. Putigny was less than im pressed some troop!l W8n1 collecled for
wim thcir quality: 'During a firing exercise, one of them, after having a po!lsible expeditlon against
loadcd his m uskel, left lhe ramrod in m e barrel. The inSlfUcto r Britain, othen sel sail on
commanded - "Annes, jouc, feu ·. The shot ""ent off, the ramrod lOO. Bonaparte's. exped ition lo Egypt..

Leaving lhe barrel it went th rough a wi ndow and dro"c through the leg
of an cldcrly man lying in his bed . Woken wim a starl, pinned like a
butlcrlly on a cork, the poor wretch could not moye and cursed like a
man possessed.'
Fortunately for Franee, tliC need for manpowcr was rcduced a fter the
1797 Campo Fonnio U"ealy drcw lhe '\Var LO a temporary close. Léon-Michel
Routicr, whose father was a eaptain and veteran of lhe Vcndée eampaign ,
remembcred: 'After so mueh misfo rtune, di.sorder aIld anarehy, Franee,
still a rcpublie, breathed a Hulc under the DirectoriaJ go\'emmenl, a
bizan-c, unsLL"la.inable regimc com posed of five pha ntom kings hitho ut
stre ngth nor d ignity. The eountr)' wa." in this posilion whc n rear vn arrived
bringing with it new demands of men for our annies. '
In 1799 a seeond eoalition, spcarheaded by Russia and Austria, led a
new assault on Repubtiean Franee. The mass requisitions had given
Franee a numClieal superiorily during lhe Firsl Coalition war, but lhe
s)'ste rn was unsLL~tainable witho ut the threat of terror, previously inspired
by the now dcposed Colllllliucc of Public SafelY. To halt th e steadily
advaneing Allics, a long-lelm solution to reeruitlllent was necdcd, whieh
54 1\~<lS bOlh sustainable a nd more publicly aeeeptable. Général Jourdan 's
answer was his famo tls conscription law (5 September 1798) . This systc m,
which would survive into the Napoleon ic \\'ars, rendered al! single men
aged 20-25 lia ble for military ser.>lce. A 10lte!)' was used la decide who
would ac tually be called up, wilh a portion being held on standb)'. The
conscripts were subj ect to a medical lo e nsure they were ac tuall)' fit fo r
sc r."¡cc; those who failed ",ere re p laced by lhe rese r.'es. The conscripts
rcccivcd lheir basic training in local ly for med auxi!iary baualions, which
wcrc thc n incorporatcd ioto existing demi-brigades.
Ro uticr, who was callcd up in 1799 when the gm'ernment 'called lO
lhe fidd lhe who le of its fi rst d ass, thal is to say the youths o f lwenl)' lO
twen ty·onc years old,' wrotc: 'The fi rst class was peculia r in lhal ric h and
poor were forced lO march , rep lacemen ts not having bee n permilled.
This gathering o f youth was curious to see for the i1l assortmenl of its
compositio n and the c mbar rassmen t, which the dandies in oul'
detachme nt sool1 fo und the msel\"es in.' The conscr iption process was
also re me mbered by Coign et: ' One day 1 was summ oned lO lhe lown
hall. There lbey asked me my name and Ch ristian names, rny p rofession
and age. 1 answered thal 1 \....<1.5 named]ean-Roch Coignel, and was bom
in Druyes-les-Bclles-Fontain es, in the Department of the Yonne. "How
old are )'ou ?" - ~ I was born on lhe 6th of August, 1 77 6. ~ - "You can
retire. " This set m y head to throbbing. "What in the world did th ey wa nl
v."¡lb me? 1 had d one n o th ing. ~ 1 said this to my master and mistress, ",ho
replied, "The)' wish lO e nrol you for consc ription ~ O n lh e sixth
Fn.ctidor, year \11 1, two gendarmes came and left with me a wa y-bill a nd
an orde r tO start for Fon tainebleau on 10 Fruc tidor. 1 immediately made
preparations for m)' departurc .... With my little bundle unde r m)' arm ,
1 reached Rozoy, lbe fi rst militaf)' halting-place, whe re 1 spen t the n ight.
1 look my billcting-orde r, a nd p resented iL to my host, who took no
notice ofme whatever. The n 1 ","enL om Lo buy someth ing to make a stew,
a nd the butchc r gave it to me. 1 fe h quite desolate when 1 saw tha t piece

T1ralllewrs operated best in pai l"5,

protectillfl Orle anolher while
loading. 55

Fighting Russians on the Oevil's
Bridg.a in Switzerland. Alter iI
disaslrous start, Che Ios.ses of
t799 campaign -.re stabili$ed by
Générni Massena's vlctories In
Switzertand. (Seele)
56
o f meat in the palm a l' m )' hand. I gave it to m)' landlady, a nd asked her
10 have the kindness tO have it cooked for me, and went to lind some
vegetablcs fo r her ... Thc n cxt da)' I reach cd Fontai nebleau, ",he re some
ver)' casual officers reccivcd us and p u l liS in barracks, which we re in
wrelc hed condition . Our fine battaJion v.~<lS formed within a fonnight; il
nu mbered eightee n hundred men. As Ulere was no discipline, a mutin)'
at once occurred, and half of the m left a nd wen t home. Thc battalion
commandcr reponed them lO Pa ris, and each man was allowcd fi ftee n
days la rcjoin his baualion, or else be rcgarded as a deserter, and
punished accordingly ... Gompanies were formed, and grcnadiers
seleCled. 1 bclonged 10 this lauer compan)', which numbered a h undred
and lwent}'-fi\'e me n, and we were uni fo rmed at once. We received an
entire o utfit, and immediatcJy began tO drill n...;ce a day. The gendarmes
brought the straggle rs back, and we were brought into orde r again ....
\Ve were made to carry and present arms and fix ba)'onets. They
undenook to make sold iers of lIS in uvo months.'
Designated for 102e demi-brigade, Routicr arrived al ils de pot in
l a ndau during [he winter: 'The recruiLS were treated roughl), al this
tim e and lacked many of lhe essentials, principall)' parts 01' lhe uniform
... In the most intense cold, we were galhe red each morning by drum
call a nd began by breaki ng <lnd removillg me ice aroUlld Our quarters;
from there wc were conduc tcd to the ramparts to sweep away the sno\\'
and mark out our exercise ground from which we returned immediatel)'
aftcr man-oeuvr es completely froz e n. The
slightcst failu re lO stand com p letely still
allractcd blows from our instrucLOrs while we
suffe rcd horribly from the rigours of the
season. The n igh t bought anolhe r lOrture for
me, for we slept thrcc per bed , and as a
conscript 1 had lhe honour of occup)'ing rhe
rniddlc where m y position was ver)' often
unbcarable. Fo rtunately 1 had money and 1
d ispelled my sorrow in my moment.o; of
freedom and gaincd, by this means, several
subaltcIl1 proleCtors.'
Goignet also bought drin ks for \'eterans
and bcnefited from their patronage. Mtcr two
months his a uxiliar)' battalion was
'incorporated in lhe 96th derni-brigadc de
ligne, composed of old a nd expe ricnccd
soldiers, and officers who were very strict ... 1
becarnc very sltilfu l in me use of arms. 1 \Vas
supple, and 1 had two good training masters
who hdped me on . They had examin cd me,
and so had feh rny bcJt-pockets; uley lhercfore
paid court to me. 1 paid for their drams. It \'.'aS
necessar)' to deal in this \\'<l.y with these hard
d rinkcrs ... .\'Ir two masters pushcd me
forward; four ho urs of drilling, twO hours in
lh e fencing school, making six hours daily.
T his life lasted lhree monms, and 1 paid for
mally drams for these tipplers.'
CONSOLIDATION
On 9 O ctoher 1799 Gene ral Bonaparte landed
in Fr.mce a(tcr escapi ng fra m Egypl. Bonaparte
had bcc n a 19-ycar-old sous-lieutenanl in the
Royal Artillery al lhe time lhe Ca rdes Fran~aises
j oincd in lhe assauh on lhe Bastille, hUI a decade
later was among lhe most famous generals in
EUTope. A l110nth a[ler landing, Bonapane had
made a n allianee wilh Icading p o liúc ians,
affirmed lhe loyallY of lhe troops in lhe capilal
and ovcrthrown la Direcloire in the Brumaire
coup. As First ConSll l of lh e RCPlIblic, Bonapartc
need ed th e a rml' lO ga jo a \lctory for him 1hat
would cnsure bis palitical surviv<tl.
Before bis [amous Marengo cam paign ,
Bonapartc illspcCled lh e d cmi-brigades deslined
for $witzcrland aud made a point of haranguin g
officers and sous-offic iers, taking rhem ¡n LO his
confidencc, cxplaini ng why it was necessary 10
Ilghl, what rol e lhey wou 1d play and what was
expcClcd of them. Th roughollt the campaign
Qrders du jour ke pt lhe men info rmed of their
progress and rhe comin ued jmponance of their
missio n . Un its such as lhe ge Légere, whi ch
made lh e dccisÍ\'c coun lel'auack al Marengo.
were rewal'dcd with a till e (l'lncomparable) and issued \~i (h a spccially Casualties. muddy t errain, smoke
comm issioned flag. Individual soldicrs cited for bravery were re ....'a rded and c1eat ening musketry a ll
with armes d'honneur a nd lhe ran ks of h is pe rsonal bodygua rd. (he p layed a pal1 in disrupting the
neal d. e$Sl ngs and sync hron ised
Carde Omsulaire, were opened tO the finest soldiers in Frdnce.
movements 01 lhe parade
AIle r re lUrning fram th e Ma rengo cam paign, Bonapane ordered ground. Ha\l'e. sack s wi1 h
detailed inspcctions of lh e infantry dem i-brigades, and from theír eam paign equ ipmenl 5tra pped to
findin gs a nd with the be nefn of peace was able 10 fini sh (he job tha l I hem t ul1her red ueed t he apaee
the reformc rs had begun almosl four decades earlier. The First Consu1 eaeh miln had to opera te in.

A typieal French bi\l'ouae. With no

tents, men malle do w ith
temporary shellers lo protect
agalnsl the e lements and calleel
st nlW lor beddiog. SeVi! ra l tak e
the oppol1uni ty t o do t heir
Lau ndry, whieh they hang from an
Imp rovise<! elothes line. (Coburg
K uns tsamm lu ngenl 57
did noc fu ndamenta]])' c ha nge a nything, bUI buil l on the successful
refor ms al ready in place (mosl nombly the 1791 drill regula ti o n a nd
J ourdan 's co nsc riptio n law) , fixed lhe establishmen t o f lh e a rmy a nd
spe n t mo ney o n it o nce again. Although France 's infan tryrnen "'ere
nol quite lhe citize n-so ld iers lhe revolUli o naries had e nvisaged ,
neithe r ""ere lhey the social paria hs of lhe a ncien régime. Unde r lhe
Consu late, men in un ifo rm acquired a new-found social p reslige
backed by a eonfi dc nce inspi red by \vartime success.
Putign y, a teenage recruil in lhe Régime nt Navarre in 1791 , who had
m e n 10 the nlllk of serge nl-maj or in lhe Consu1ship, pe maps sums u p a
soldie r's view o f things: Bonaparte, he believed , had returned the army
to the condition il h ad becn in when he had enlisled in 1791. During
one of lhe First Consu] 's in spcctions, he saw Bonaparte 'was inte rested
in everythin g, asking us fa milia rly what we were doing, if we had been
paid, if we were hap py.... O n lca\'ing, he tasted our soup and on e h eard
him say in his j crky tone "It's good , but 1 want them to have more; and
these walls are dirty - gel lhem painted." His orders were followed: lh e
bedding was improved , lhe walls painted and soup was in abundan ce .
Thc sous-officiers each reccivcd a book on military theory and O UT
instruction was pcrfcclcd . Orde r, our well-being and d isciplin e
sleadil} improvcd. Our demi-úrigades re turned to the old titIe o f régiment,
each re taining lhcir n umbcr.... Our com ma nder was henceforth called
colonel, o r "le colon" as we said.' Noc lon g aflcr, these regime nts would
be ordered lO lhe camps around Boulognc and h oned into thc f"ture Supply wagons and card play¡ng
Emperor's legendary Crande Ann¿c. French 50Idleni by Kobell.
 GLOSSARY
Aneien régime (Ut. former reglme). Pe!iod before the
Revolution.
Cadeoettes Hair plaits wom on the side 01 the head, in
tron l 01 the ear.
1 Gir:ault Philippe-René, Les campagnes d'un tnusicien
Chasseur Ughl ¡nfanuy or cavalryman.
De ügne UI. 01 the lioe.
Drogue Popular carel game played by two pairs.
Éclaireur Scout. A1so refers lo ad hoc avant-garcle units
formad by revolutionary units.
En avant! ut. 'Forwards!'
En tirailleur Deployed In sklrmish fOfTllalion.
Escouade Squad 01 men unda!' a caporal.
Faisceau A slack 01 muskets supported by intenocked
bayonels.
Fusil Musket.
Gamelle Cook poi shared by up to saven meno
Habil Soldier's coal.
Hausse-col Symbol 01 offlcar rank , worn around the neck.
La grenouille (Lit. the !reg). Squad kitty for food elc.
Légere Llght troops
Légion Body 01 troops rai sed to fight in Ihe advanced
guard, composad 01 In!antr)', cavalry and artillery.
liberty-tree A yoong Iree, surmounted by a red Phrygian
cap (bonnet de liberté), was a common symbol of the
Revolution.
Uvre (Ul Pound). Unit of weight and monetary value.
Maréctlaussée Forerunner of the gendasmerie, charged
with policing !he countryslde, keeping the roads safe for
travellers and capturing cleserters.
Muscadin Anti-Jacobin Muscadins were nouveau riche who,
afler la Terreur, indulged in decadeot lifestyles and had a
tlamboyant. sometimes scandalous, dress sense.
Pas accéléré Accelerated pace of 100 steps per minute.
Pas de charge Attack pace, usuaIIy about 120 steps per mirvte.
Patience A thin piece of woocl used far protectiog the
uniform cloth while poIishlng buttons.
Sans-culote (Ut. without breeches). Properly a Jacobin
revolutionary, but a term oflen given to French soldiers
by foreigners.
Sous-officier Non-commlssioned officer (not including caporal).
Serre -file (Lit. c lose-file). The tourth rank where the officers
and NeOs were located.
Tripoli (Or rottenst one). A siliceous limestone used as
powder for pollshing metal.
Veste Sleeved fatigue Jacket wom by soldiers under, or in
place ot, their habit.
BIBLlOGRAPHY
Bial, j ean Pie rre, Les carnets de coúmel 1792- 1814
( 1926)
Cailloux, Fra n ~o is-Re n é , dit Pougel, Souvenir.s de
guern 1790-1831 ( 1997)
Chuquet, Anhur (ed. ), LeUres de 1792 ( 19 11 )
Chuque t, Anhur (ed .) , LeUres de 1793 ( 19 11 )
Coign e l, j ean Roch (ed. Lorédan Larch ey), Les
cahiers du capüaint Ccignet, 1 799-1815 (1890)
Emouf, Souvenirs militaries d 'un jeune aUA, soldat de
larepublique, 1793-1801 ( 1881)
Forrest, Ajan , Soldiers of the French R.euolulum
(1990)
Gcrvais, A la conquife de l'Europe (1939 )
d'Etat-Major ( 1901)
Godan, Roch (ed. J.B. Am aine), Memoms du
GinéralRoch Codarl, 1792-1815 ( 1895)
j oliclerc, Fram;ois, joliclerc, Voúmlaire aux armies de
la rroolution: Ses reitres, 1793-1 796 ( 1905)
Le Roy, Claude r .M , Souvenirs de G.F.M. Le RfI)"
major á'in/anime ve/eran des armes de la
&publique el I'Empi-re, 1767-1851 (1908)
Lo}", L, Hútoriques du 84e rigimmt ( 1905)
Lynn,John A., Bayonets o/ the Republic ( 1996)
Maury, E. (ed. ), 1..el/res de votan/aires républicains,
1791- 1794 (190 1)
Picard, Emest (ed.), Av service de la nation: Lett11'-S
devolontaires, 1792- /798. (19 14)
Piéron, Licutenant, Histoire d'un régimen! la 32e
demi-brigalÚ (1775- 1890) ( 1890)
Pion des Loc hes, An ta ine, Mes campagnes
1792-1815 (1 889)
PuLigny, Putigny, grognard d'i'.111pire ( 1950)
Rou tier, Capita in e Léon-l\'liche l, Récits d'un
soldat de la Ripublique t:t de l 'Etnpire 1792-1830
(2001)
Simon, Claudc, Correspondance de Claude Simon,
lie1ltenant de gnmadiers du regimenl du Walsh au
armées Nord, des Amennes, el de Sambre-et-.Meu.se,
1 792- 1793 (1899)
Vivien, j ean Stanislas, Souvenirs de ma vie militaire
1792-1822 (1907)
Vuillemin, H enri, Du silex au Piston. La grande
aventure des fusUs réglemenlaires fran r;ais
1 717-1865 (Tradition hors sé rie No . 2)
(1997 )
A visit lO the collections in Paris, at Musée de
l'Armée and thc Musée de Carnavalet, are highly
recommended, whi le thc palace of Versailles
contai ns many famous paintings. The Military
Archives al Vincenncs hold a wealth o f sunriving
in speclion re po rts, o rgan isationa l c hanges,
service reco rds, rcgisters, a nd a li brary holding
many regime ntal histories. Outside Paris, the
¡I,'lusée de I'Emperi in Salon de Pro\·ence a nd
the Musée de I'Arméc in Brussels a re both
of inleresl. Most major European m ilita ry
collections a nd battlefic1d muscums (including
Marengo) hold aflefacLS relating to the periodo 5.
 COLOUR PLATE COMMENTARY
A: STANDARD BEAREA . 1793
The regimenta l colours decreed on 30 June 1791 were
carried by a sergem-ma;or (1) with the banaJioo's caporaUJI
fouriers (company quartermasters) fOfming a colcur guard
around him. Normally the flag was carried in the righ t hand,
with the pole resting on Ihe righ t hip , bul in battle the flag
was held al the base 01 the pole and carnee! sloped over Ihe
right shoulder. The 1791 flag carried the motto 'Discipline
and Obedience lo Ihe Law'. 11 sported the dual symbols 01
monarchy (fleurs de Iys) and the nation (Ihe tricolour edging).
After Franca became a republic (22 Seplember 1792) all
symbols 01 monarchy were abolished: Ihe fleurs de Iys
symbols were covered over by trleolour patehes, while lhe
pike haad (2) was filec! down inlo a lozeoge or replaced. The
sergent-major's lealher casque earríes the tricolcur cockade
(3) and also a non-regulatlon tricolour plume. SoIdiers often
decorated their bonnet de po/ice or foraga cap (4) with
republican symbolism and patriolic messages (5).
On 1 Augusl 1792 the Legislative Assembly ordered the
manufacture 01 half a million pikes due lO a shortage of
muskels. Mhough mos! unlts would receive muskels before
reaching the frQfltline, many saw pikes as more than a
simple stopgap. In Ihe ear1y years of the war a cult had
developed among many tacticians who though! tha! French
troops were best employed on tl"le offensive and Ihal
bayonets were thelr natural weapon. A1lhough Fren ch
armies had abandonad the pike before 1700, l o I he
revol ulionary sans-cu/otes in government ¡he pike was !he
weapon of tne 'sovereign people' and aven mora suilable
than th e bayonet 10 achieve batllefield success. Political

RIGKT A tr3n $13110 n o, the 'Irst verse 01 Rouget de Lisle's La Marseillaise ,

whieh was 'i.st performed In Stra sbourg on 20 April 1792 and 'irst sung in LA MARSEILLAISE
Paris by fédéráes from Morseille. Bl ol first heard the song in Brussel s' Arise children 01 the Homeland.
Grand TheatTe: 'At the end of the show, the stalls asked with loud eries for The day 01 glory has arrived;
the new hymn of the Freneh, whieh was alroady famous, although only Against us tyranny's
known " short time. An actor came forward s before the sc:enery and s ung Bloody standard is raised.
la Marseillaise In a strong , tlne tone. Atter the tirst verse, the room Do you hear in the countryside,
resounded with erles o f: Vive la Franca! VIve les Franyais! Everyone was
The roar 01 those bloodthirsty soldiers?
st anding and lhe women in Ihe bolles waved l heir handkerchiefs•••. Th e
They are coming inl0 our midst
neu moming, la Marse illai" w as su ng in all the streets "nd squ"res.·
To cut the throats 01 our sons, our 'NÍVes!
To arms citizens!
BELOW Marklng the 14 July celebr:ations in 1792, 20,000 representatives
Form your battalions.
lrom the provlnelal Natlonal GuaRi (fédérus) _ re invited by the National
Assembly lo paris. Arrivlng belatedly on 30 July, the fédérus from March. march,
Marseille (Picturedl Orr1ved slllgl"'9 Roger de Lisle's new patriotic songo Le! impure blood
Fa lling in with extremi st democrat s, Ihe fédérées demanded the King'5 Water our furrows
i mmediate abdlcatlon and attac:ked !he Tuilleries Pal"ee on 10 August, a
mOYe prvei pitali ng the fal! 01 the Bourbon monarchy.

60
oratOfS deludee! Ihamsalves into th inking battalions 01
pikemen would be a match fOf welH raJned, musket-firing
enemy troops. A selection 01 pike heads (6) are shown
bearing Ihe slamp 'AN' standing lor Ihe Ateliers Nationaux,
the slate-owned workshops where Ihey were manu factured.
B: RECRUITMENT
Before th e Revolution, Ihe I rad itional meth od 01 inlanlry
recruilment had been raco/age - Ihe soliciting 01 rec ruits in
town sq uares and laverns on market and fte days. In
garrison, splendidly attired recruitment parties, consisling of
an officer, sergent and drummefs. would atlrac! recruits by
playing martiaJ music and displaying posters. TIle racoJeurs
would promlse adventure, glory and a hefty slgning-oo
bounly lo all would -be recruits. 1I no recru its were
forthcoming, Ihe raco/eurs were known 10 l arga! d runks, or
resort 10 strong-arm tactics.
The process was nol entirely without seruples. Jean
Stanislas Vivien recalls how he ullimately lailed in his
atlempl l o enlisl in Ihe regular army: 'One morning I wenl lo
sign up al Ihe home 01 the Rég iment de Berwick's colonel.
"My friend," said I hal brave man, "you appear loo young lo
contract a voluntary engagement: do you have your parenl's
cansen!?" "No colenel," 1repl ied lo him, "bu! 1will gel it." -
"Bu! my friand, you do no! have ¡he required height lor
military serviee in a regiment 01 !he line!" - MColonel, it will
1lO! be lacking, I am only tifteen years old, I wiU grow and one
day I will be one of your bes! grenadiers.· - "But my friend,
yOtJ do not nave !he strength l o caffY a musket with bayonet,
a haversack and a cartridge bo)(. with cartridges insidel" -
A trio 01 mU$icians rehear.¡e. Muslc played iII significa nt part
in the gOllernment's pian to revoiutionhae the Frenc h army.
Aithoug h ¡oumals were printed for th e aoldl era to read ,
nothlng could !)eat the power of song i n kee plng the
revolullonary spirit alive.
"Colone!, willingness and courage will hoId me in place until
thal comes: - "Oh well rny lriend, since you have sueh a
tille lemperamenl lor Ihe King's service, lake yoursell with
Ihis lickel lo the home 01 Ihe regimental lreasurer who will
sign you up and pay you lorty francs.~' Vivien's parents were
pleased lt1al he had signed up, bul nls uncle was less
enlhusiastlc and managed l o have him re leased alter goi09
lo Ihe Colonel 'l o annul the engagement eonlract and pay
back the forty francs I had received from the treasu rer. '
c: DEPAATURE
National Guard volunleers prepare lo leaye Paris IOf the
camps on Ihe Ironlier. The enlhusiasm !ha! greeted the call
lor volunleers in tha summer 01 1191 came in response lo a
very real fear lnal tha RevoIution was Ihreatened by loreign
power5. Rumours 01 an émigré army lead by Prince de
Conde formlng aeross the border were inCl"88sed aft.er Louis
XVi was caught attempting lo flee Franca al Varennes. This
cou nter-revolulionary army presented ilsell as a 'crusader
army' going lo save Paris, the 'New Jerusalem' againsl Ihe
infidel revol ulionaries or sans-colotes. The Declaration 01
Pilnitz and the Brunsw ick manifeslo made il clear Ihal
Austria and Prussia supported the émlgrés and were
prepared lo use force lo reslOfe Louis XVl's absolute
aulhOfity.
The volunleers 01 1791 brought more Ihan simple
enthusiasm, as a large number of them had previously seen
military service. A large proportion 01 their battalion
commanders were lormer nobles, with 65 par cant having
had prior mililary experience. More Ihan a Ihird of volun leer
officers had previously served as caporau)(. or sergents; wilh
more th an 12 per cenl of caplains having served in Ihose
ranks lor seyen years or more. The ofllcer co rps was
assisted by a substantial number 01 sous·officiers who had
servee! in the royal army. The consequence 01 th is was Ihal
there was a good cadre of former soldiefs lo train and lead
Ihe untried volunteers. Even with Ihis lasl group (79 per cent
01 whom were under 25 years 01 age), II mUSI nol be
discounted tha! many nad aJready received baslc traini09 in
Ihe National Guaro before headi09 off 10 lhe camps aJong
Ihe frontier.
D: FEU DE PELETON
When in line formal ion, a battalion could dellyer volleys in
three ways: by battalion, by hall ballalion or by com pany
(peleton). Allhough Ihe feu de balail/on wou ld deliver a
devaslating vo lley, il would leave Ihe battalion vulnerable
during Ihe 20-30 seconds it took lo reload. Firing by wings
or (eu de demi-bataillon, alleviated Ihis concern, while leu de
peleton offered greater security slilL On the battalion
commander giving the command - (eu eJe pe/e ton,
commencez le {eu - lhe caplains would relire from the tronl
rank 10 the centre 01 lheir company, two paces 10 !he rear 01
the serez fiie. The companies would lt1en lira in succession,
starting wlth the fi rst company, Ihen Ihird, fifth and seventh,
lollowed by the second, fourth, sidh and eighth.
Fren ch inlanlry were lrained lo l ire volleys in three ranks.
To accomplish th is, on Ihe command Armes, the fronl ran k
(where Ihe tallesl men were placed) would knee l belore
bringing the musket lo fu ll cock. On the command Joue
(present), Ihe men in the Ihird rank wou ld take an eight-inch
sidewards step wilh the right foot so Ihal Iheir muskel 61
cleared the shoulder 01 the man in l ronl 01 them. On ¡he
cornmand Feu (Iire) all three ranks would lire simultallOOUsly.
TlIe Iront rank would stand up on the command Chargez
~oad), when all three ranks would reload without further
command in the quickest possible time. The firing woul d
continue until a ceasefire was ordered by a roll on the drums.
E: DEPLOYEZ LA COLONNE
Obstacles and difficult tarraln ofien foreed battaJions to
advance in narrow, deep columns and risk deploying back
into line under anemy fire. TIla versatila colorlne d'attaque
(attack column) coontered this handicap by a1lowing the
lead division to apeo tire Immediately while the rest 01 the
column deployad from behlnd 11. Te depley, Ihe cemm ander
gave tne command 'deployez la c%nne'. On the command
'bataillon, a cfroite el agaucha', the fronl division (Iourth and
lifih co mpanies) would hall, wh ile th e co mpanies behind
laced o utwards. On the command: 'pas accéléré - marche!'
Ihay would step off al 100 paces a minute and ta ke thei r
position in the line.
In the meantime, the lead division would begin a speci es
01 independent firing cal led I he feu de deux rangs. Unlike
volley firing, only the lronl Iwo ranks lired and then only by
l iles lrom the rig ht, causing a ripple effect. The second and
Ihird ranks would then exehange muskets, and anolner
ripple-l ire would begin. After flrlng. eaeh man would quiekly
raload and lire independently. As eaeh eompany carne inlo
line and alignad ilsell on Ihe cenlre, they loo would
commence firing.
F: BAPTISM OF FIAE
Une infantry help hard-pressed ehasseurs elear Austnan
skirmishers from a wood In 1792. The opening 01 hostilities
saw many oulposl elashes In which the Freneh idenlifled a
shorlage 01 light inlantry. As well as inereasing the number
01 chasseur battalions, companies 01 volunteer skirmishers
and special eombined-arms légions were raise<:!. Many line
regiments selected men from among the hardiesl and lhe
best shots lo make up ad-hoc Ilght Infantry units as Ihey had
done in Ihe Seven Years War. Puligny lalked aboul the
lormalion 01 Ihase éc/aireur companies. Ihe lorerunners 01
the Napoleonic vo/ligeurs. Puligny explained they we re
Ught infantry carabiniers were originally selected from the
best shots in each company and w.... often armed with
rifled carbin es. Increaslngty th ey became used as shock
troops like grenadlers.
composed 01 'eighl meo par company detachad out in lront
lo reconnoitre d ifficull ground'.
Sorne line regimenls were senl in lo bolsler the avanl-
garde divisions 01 Ihe various annies, or al leasl furnish
delachmenls. In t he American War 01 Independence
(1775-83) French inlantry baltalions had Included a
company 01 chasseurs. D'Hastrel recalled how this practise
was revisited: 'Our colanel received the arder lo lorm two
companies of chasseurs deslined lo for Ihe army's
advanced guard, wtlich were lo be commandad by willing
officers.'
Some French light Iroops were armed with riflad carbines
(see plal e H) to counter those usad by Austri an skirmishe rs .
However, their slow rate 01 lire (Iour times slower Ihan a
smoolh-bored musket). Ihe nead lar special ammunition and
a lendeocy lar the barre! 10 loul, making it difficult lo
hammer llame Ihe ball, mean! !ha! !he 1777-pattern musket
remalned !he prelerred weapon 01 French skirmishers.
Q: CROSSING THE ALPS
Cne 01 the most lamous leals performed by revolutionary
inlanlrymen was l he backbreaking task 01 haullng Ihe Armée
de Réserve's artillery over Ihe SI Bernard Pass in May 1800.
Of particular nole were the soldiers of the 96e demi-brigade
who refused payment 01 a bounty lar their JaboUf. After !he
campaign, Bonaparte (ewarded il s grenadiers by issuing
them wilh bearskin caps. Coignel 's accoonl 01 Ihal leal
recalled: 'Each 01 I he guns was pl aced in a trough; al lhe
end 01 Ihe trough there was a large mortise by whlch to drag
the gun, managed by a strong and intelligent gunner with
forty grenadiers under his orders .. . The next morning al
daybreak, our master placed us by twentías al our plecas,
len on each side 01 a gun. I was put in the IIrsl place, 10 lhe
right, in front; it was the mosl dangerous side, because it
was next lo !he preciplces. TIlan we started off wi lh our
Ihree pieces. Two men camed each axle-tree, Iwo carried a
whee l, lour camed the upper part 01 the caisson, eight
carried Ihe chest , eighl olhers Ihe muskels. Every one had
Joliclerc sent his mother an
inventory of his uni'orm: '1
n'larch without soc:ks, with
trousers that I made from
an apron I lound In the
Vendée. I have a s¡ood habit,
a good veste, fine bm ecnes
aOO a good overcoat made
01 hea...,. mounlaln cloth,
which is almosl new and
hardly used because il is
l oo hot and too heavy. I
wou ld want you to have it,
as you could make a good
skirt. I took It fro m a house
in Condé. I will .....ke sorne
winter trouse, s lrom il. I
""ve a pai, of new shoes in
my haver.oack , two shirts, a
pair of canvas s¡alters, a
neck scart and a
handkerchief.'
his special dl1ty and posi tian. tt was a most temble ;oumey.
From time lo lime thefe were commands 01 ~Halt· or
~Advance~, and not a word was spoken. AlI this was mere
pastime. bu! when we reachad the snow, mallers became
more serious. The road was covered with ice, whlch cu t our
shoes and o ur gunner could not manage his piece; il slipped
conslantly. He was obtigad lo mount il anew. This man
needed all his courage to be able to hoId out; ·Hatt!~
·Advance!~ he cried every moment, and all moved an in
silence. We had gone over a league 01 this terrible road, and
il was necassary l o give us a moment lo resl and lo put on
some new shoes, lar I hose we had on were in tatters ... We
slarted off again we ll shod. "Come, my horses," said our
gunner, ~Iall in. advance. When we reach the snow Ilelds, we
shall move more easily and not have so much trouble." We
did reach those lerrible fields 01 perpetuaJ snow, and lound
less difficulty; our gun-lrough slid atong more rapidly ... Alter
Ihe grealast exertion we reached the loot 01 Ihe monaslery.
For lour hundred leal Ihe aseen! is very rapid, and we could
sea that some I roops had gane on ahead 01 USo The road
had been open ed and paths cul ou t leading lo the
monaslery.'
H : CHASSEUR , 1800
One 01 Ihe most noliceable tactical innovations 01 lhe
revolutiooary petiod was the deployrnent 01 mass skirmish
sereeos in battle. The lighl infantry's fighling role had
Iraditionally been limitad to the petit guerra - Ihe war 01
outposls and patrols. In pilched battl e, light inlanlry wou ld
olten sereen Ihe wings 01 Ihe army, leaving the heavy
inlantry lo slug it out in the centre, joining in the pursuil or
covering a retreat. During lhe Revolutionary Wars. increasing
numbers 01 infantrymen fought dispersad en rirail/eur. TIlair
functioo was lo screen aclvancing columns by peppering the
enemy line with musketry. Enemy officers were priority
targets as the tirailleurs looked lo disrupt enemy command
and contro l capabilil ies. They would also largel enemy
artillery crews, th us reducing Ihe casualties in Ihe advancing
co lumns behind. Allhough all infantry were able lo perform
th is role, light infantrymen were prelerred as they were more
usad lo operating iodepeoclently - line troops olten feeling
vulnerabte away from the security 01 the closad ranks. (Sea
Warrior 57 lor more 00 French skirmishing tacties.)
The slandard inlantry weapon 01 th e war was Ihe 1777-
pattern fusil d'infanteria, shown here d isassembled (1) along
w ilh bayonet (2), sabre -oriquat (3). The 1777-pattern musKet,
Ihe 'Ilve loot darinel' as it was nicknamed, weighed belween
4.5 and 4.7 kilos. It was 1.52 metras in leoglh wilh a 17.5
milllmelre calibre barre! maasuring 1.137 metres. In 1793 lhe
Committea of Public Salety ordered Ihe manulacture 01 the
carbine de VersaiJ/es, a rifled barrelled carbine (4) bul it lailed
10 make Ihe desired impact (sea plate F). The carbine's
speciflcalions were: lenglh 1.025 metres, barrel lenglh 0.65
melras, welghl 3.450 Kilos: calibre 13.5 milimelres.
During Ihe Consular period, armes d 'honneur (weapons 01
honour) wem introduced as the lorerunner lo the lamous
léglon d'honneur. Deserving inlantrymen were awarded Ihe
fusil d'honneur, which carriecl a silver plaque (5) 00 the
musket stock with !he recipieol's name and a briel cilation.
Distlngulshed drummers were awarded silver-plaled
drumstlcks, and lar officers Ihe coveted sabre d'honneur
was accompanied by double payo 63
 INDEX
;alcohol 2~. ~'7.!IO. 4S
Amien •. Tr.... ryol(I802) 6
AlKkrkd".ba,tlcof(I7'!r.l¡ 25
:ui>tocruy. and. """ G,W"tb 7
l\n,,~ de Réot",.,
63. F
Année da Alpes 4-1
annes d.'honne .. ' 57.63. G
;um:¡ dnll 1~15
anille')' 63. F
d'A>o<'ru<, Lo 18
:u..igno'"1+'~ . 48
allaCk ooJ"m", 15. 6~, Jo;
d.'And, Col. 18
A... ,lriano, ""Üonl again" 24-$
d. 'A,-I"n 18
Ba.s1c,'jj-ca'yuf{l7'.l:;1 ~ ,1'1I""rcl, Lt Eli~nn~ lG. 25-(;. 28. 32. 41. 4~. 63
"""(;n~,,,,,nningnf(liR9)
b>,ltle f"nnalíu", 26, 57.
Reaupuy, ,,,,no
-11
Ikmatlolle. c.,,,. 50, &1
8; ,,11, Ltjnll Picrrc 7, 11-10,
Bi ron , Ge n, 24
Ilon!",r"', Na""1"",, 6. 57-/!. 6~
Rnm,wid,. n "kc nf ~
Hrumwid.Manifc~1O (1m) 5
bullon poli'hing 12
Ct> T,a ~&
(:aill<>uX. f,....ul(<>Í ... II.c"~ w ¡'''''Re,. CaPI.
c:oknd.u, 'e>'nI",ion,,'Y 1 2
Oompo Fonuio. Trealy of 6. 54
c=po and. ump hfc I ~ . ~'O-I. %9. 50. ~9. 57
""n¡iBie..,. U. 27, 4!;-7,.j.8
C&r.lbini ..... 47. n
Co.mo'. ¡"=,, .1]·2
ca,..ary 4 7
~ .. n, M. r . C
.si,.., "fbanl,llio1\' 18,19
Ghn.tianity. and. th<, army 16. 17. ~2-3
ej,il ..", 4t , 43 . • 3
Cogn<" 1 ... ~.:!&7
O::>ign~'. Juo R""h ~. 6~
c"l"nne d'~,""'lu<' I~. 6~. E
,,,,,mm;",,,,
of Puhlic Saf~,,· 5.
con""rip'''''' !ó4-6
"" al.. rcqu;';,i<>n.
C.. gny. Fran~o ;, 44
dailym'l\in e 13
demi.u,i)(adc.. ~ 1 ·~. 41 . 53
D...'¡I". R,idge (root. 56
Dillon. Cen . 24
dochorgc. ""••,,,,, \". 45
di,dpli ne ·1. 1(,.18.24. 019-51
d"";L>e 45-6
drill 13-15
dudo 47-9
Oumourie •. ' ..n, 5. ~2
O.. pu)".J. 31
"dai..., ..... 62-3. •'
«ole de b:n'úlle 15
«ole de ""lelOo I.!- I!">
<'cok oc ><>Id:o, 1~ 14
f.g)p1. r , en<h ,",,]>NIi,;"'n 10 (1791:\-1801) 6
crni¡p-4tion uf oIIic".. 16- 18
enginccr:. tl
~uipm<"nl ~>O. 45. ~7
ku de peklOn 61·2. D
flring S)~'em. and ,<;Ióninfl" 14-15.61.2. O
¡La¡¡> 60. A
64 ~,innof,rkolo", 16.17
food 11.12.?!!, ~9 on campo and <".unp life ~'(}.1. 22
Ft1Il~ois .
Ch,...I". 1'& 46 0'\ milil<lry a.ctions 29-30
r...,nch Re>"Olution 4-". 29.60 :and P"",,\:on. '1·2
dfcc. onarrny 16-18.31'-41 on ,,,,Jning 1"
rr~n.h Re>"Olurionary \\':ln 5-6.24-31. O • .'>l 01\ 'UIUlllC<'rillK 7.8
r..... i~c'" 4 Pn_Jan .. ...,1:11;0,," w;,b ~1·2
PUtll,I""Clll> 49-51
Garde> ••~ 5. 5 Putlgny
'""n...u 11 .12,13-15 un Can",.-, ",fQrm, ~ndJarobi"" ~I. 42
Cill ..... R<cp. 41 ·1' on rlttlan.';on of".,... 18
Girudon. Picrrc .¡.¡ jjjndS 45-6
C;<auh. Philipl"'"René 11·11'. W on m,Hcary ae';o, .. 24, 25. ~'6. 28. 3I}.1.'¡&;-
Godart. Gton, Roch 1(I.'!Q. 4 1 oomiliur.ry life 1(1..13.20.49
Cra"ru- Pe'" 6-7 0" N~pok<>" 58
K",,,ad;cn. 26. 47 on non"'1:"I .. ",Irli~,.. 2~ •.~3-<I
"" ion! ""f_1
.~ h ~adgca, l.~, 60, A "".",i'men' 9,10. 1!!-2\J, 51.(l. 6 1. B
6~, Jo; health 4'i-6 >tr nllQ '"01<"""",..
honou, wc ~p<>'" 57, 6~, G rdo,m.
ho,"", 20 e,Amn", 41·2
l ~. 2$-1 h<»pital> .¡Q N"l"'ko,,·. 57-$
pr •.Rt:\'OI\1tinn.ry
i"fantry 24.45 ,54,62·3. F 'e~ul;". 10.25
haly. figh'ing in 6. H ,d~,ion. ,,'i,h "ohu\( e," 22-'1
",ligion. and th"arn,y 16,1 7,42.3
J.mb;n . a n d J::tcooin;"m 32.41_1' ""qn;'i,;on, 31-'1.52
J cmappt"S.b<ot~cof{17(2) ".31 rin~'(! carbón"l 63. e
J ohcle<c. Fr1n<;ois 41 , 43, #5. #. 4!.1, 6~ righu. citi..,,,,· a"d ..,Idk... · 4-3.50
J ourdan. c<'n, r.t-5 Ro"~i",, 1 ~ .... ~fkb~1 53. M.!6. ~6
",,,,,¡,,S ,he gaunlk\ 4').5(1
Kt:llcnnann, Cen. 28. 44
SI Boornud P..... c""';ng of (1Il00) 1>, 63. F
l~~l"'''e. C.m_ ~2 Simon. lA C1aude 13. 27. 28.!9.:W
Le Q.>csrwy ~ "'''8'". "'''''¡uUu''ary ~'6. 60
Le Roy. (~ r.M _ 7 Soulbauh 20
Loclln. Piol1 de 51 -3 ....",brd bo.';,n'n. 00-1. A
Loui!l :-""\'1 4.3,29.61 .upplia 12.~9
l..unbille.T...,atror(I80I) 6 .upply ..-agonl 58
s..i,...,t1and.a<,i"", in froa •. S6
ma...,hingrlrill 13-15
lA ManriJiai", 60
taoC,ic.o 63
M;uoena. \Ia",h. Andri 6
",,,,,bilLo U
,cm. 14. 21·~
Thl .. t>anh. Panl 2"2.4$-1
~2 .....1 >'\iI1n. fighring "'''' 6 ll,iri<.on, Kicholu 45
miLi,ia 6
,;"";11." .. U . 55 . 63
moncy 401.. 5. 48 TIrlcmon,. b,t(tle of (1 ~3) 32
, .. IDeo 11
Tonl"" '13
mordk 16-1~. 31 -2 l",it\ing 13-16. ,>6
mll<ic an rl mll<idam 2ó,61
,",u,k .. 1.'1-15.63. G
""i{ornu 11· 12, 23. 41. 46,63
mu ,;n;c. ?i, 50
h e~dgca, 15.60. A
Kancy Mutin)' (1 700) 3, 50
)útional A~.., mhl}' 4-~, 11, IR \·o1my. bo ,d,· Clf (1792) 5. 28. ~l
National ÚJm"ntioll 32 \·cnd;;e. ~ghting in 42.43
N~tional Glla, d 5. 5,6-7, R, 6 1, e Vnicn.J<·an Stan;'l;", 10, 47.9. 5(}.1. 61
in f ,ench lI.e,"Olution 60 ,"Olley flrlng ~1.2. D
pilrt
p .."inci>.\ (f~den,,,,,) 60 ",Iun,"",,, 9.2 1. %5, 25. 43. 61. e
Stn<bourg 6 d;";lplioe 16
li .., military a<tio'" 24-3
....,n,; ' m~n\ 11-10, 11l-20
o(f><crs 24
",I~tio" ... i,1t regula!). 22-'1
cmigr.otion 16-18
e",uring 10)...1'1' 31 ,.... n,ng 15
or¡r.rn ... tion;rnd T"COIlf.rn ... tion 8. 18. 19 unir","" 23
ar-. Sg._Maj. 41 •.19 ... alJo dcm,-brilr.uk..
P:....... n 2.'i. ~8. 44 ....... potu 6(1.1. 62. M. A, G
I"Y 11'-13 _a4nnill~ry
pen';",.. Ti
pi"'" 60-1. ). ""',"l'"
Pilnitz, 1)c'Cw,n;on of (1191) 5 anny', r~la,¡"n, "i,h 1",,>.\ -16
Po""",. c. p~ ( r ",n~oi .. René Caill"",, ) call1ini''r<:"i !3. !7. 46-i. 48
Insights into the daily lives of history's fight ing men and
women, past and present, detailing their motivation, t raining,
tactics, weaponry and experiences.
Full colour artwork
Unrivalled detail
OSPREY
PUBlISHING
www.os preypubJish in g.com
French
Revolutionary
Infantryrnan
1791-1802
This title, a prequel to Warrior
57: Frelleh Napo/eon;e IlIfantrymall
1803- 15, concentrates on the
period from the storming of the
Bastilte in 1789 until Bonaparte's
election as Consul for Life ln
1802. The meticulously
researched text provides an
authentic portrait of m ilitary life
during the Revolution an d
beyond, with excellent use of
contempora.ry saurces, including
IlIustr"ations
many iltum inating and vivid
quotations from the mem oirs
and Jettcrs of those wh o serve<!
during th e 'Wars of Liberty'. It
follows typical volunteers of
1791, through the earIy stages
of the war, the Civil War in
thc west of France and ¡nto
Bonaparte's second ltalian
campaign, culminating in the
Photographs Battle of Marengo in 1800.
I SBN 1-84176-552-X
9