MEN-AT-ARMS SERIES

f ~ , t l f ~ 185
THE RUSSIAN ARMYOF
THE NAPOLEONICWARS
(1): INFANTR'( 1799-1814
PHILIP HAYTHORNTHWAITE, PAUL HANNON
Publisllt:d in 198i by
Osprey Publishing Ltd
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right 1987 Ospre}' Publishing Ltd
ReprilHl-d 1987. 1989, 1991
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lilt' Publishers.
BritisA ubrsfj Calsloguillg ill Publica/ion Dala
HaYthor!lthw;\itc, Philip J.
'Ille Russian ann)' of the Wars.-
(:.olell-al-arms series; t85)
I: Infantry, t]99-18t4
I. Russia. Amliia-Equipmcllt-HislOry
2. Russia. Amli,iJ-Unifonns-HislOry
3. Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1814-uluipmcnt and
supplies
I. Tilll' II Series
:iSSWoll}] UC4
6
5
S6
5
Filmsct in Greal Britain
Prillll.-d through Bookbuilders Ltd, Hong Kong
AclmowledgenU!:DlS, and author's Dote:
Phonetic translations of Rossian proper names from
the original Cyrillic SCripl in considerable
variations, often dependent upon the language into
which the Russian is hence 'Tula' ma)' be
found as 'Toula' in French. In this book the most
common usage has been adopted, C\fen if the resulting
translation is not philologicall}' perfect. For example:
the Russian generals Wittgenstcin and Miloradov;ch
('Miloradowitsch' in German sources) would be mOSl
corrcctly rendered as 'V'itg'elisti'cjn' and
'M'iloradov'ic' (cvcn though the fonner was of
Prussian descent); but such translation would be
tedious, and not in accord with the vcrsions usually
found in Westcrn sources. Many sources on the
Russian army arc in French or German, but English
translations have been givcn where possible; e.g.
'Little Russia' is preferred 10 the 'Klein RussJand'
which iJ found e\ell in English-language works;
though from common usage the Russian Litovsli' has
been preferred to the translation 'Ulhuanian' in the
title of one of the Guard regimenls,
The author wishes to exlend special thanks to John
Cox; Thomas E. DeVoe; and to H. V. Wilkinson for
his help in supplying copies of carly sources, As usual,
errors or omissions are the author's responsibilit)'
alone.
The Russian Army of/heNapoleonic /fan (1
M"lI:-.a1 (left) ....d officer (riShl), Gre_din... C,'7 The
Hrtn..>1 wnu h i ~ carlridge be. 0.. the f....nl ofhi" wa..lSI bell.,
as carried by IhoH NCO" ,orn>", wilh n>u"keu.. (EagraviDg
diU Vi.....ovatov)
The Russian army was as vast as the ten'itory
from which it was drawn. In 1795 the College of
War calculated that the regular ann)' amounted to
541,741 men, plus 46,601 enrolled cossacks, and at
least a funhcr 100,000 irregular ca\'alry which
could be mobilised in time of war. The infantry
unilS existing at this time included:
II regiments of grenadiers, 4,075 men each. and
3 regiments of between 1,000 and 3,000.
5' rcgimenlSofmusketccrs, each often musketeer
and two grenadier companies, each regiment
numbering 2,424.
Tile Russioll Army
The Russian army thai entered the French
Revolutionary Wars had recently undergone an
unusual change. In the later years of Cathcrine the
Great (1762"""'96) it had been imprOVed by a process
of modernisation instigatccl by her favourite Prince
POIcmk..in; but when the unstable Czar Paul I
acceded to the throne in I 7g6, this work was
undone. Ilaul had for some years maintained a
private army on his estate 31 Gatchina, which he
had dotht.'Cl. and drilled in the style of Frederick the
Great's Prussia, some 25 years oul of date. Driven
by halred ofeverything associated with his mother,
in 1 ovcmber 17cfi the Czarordcrcd the enure army
to adopt the methods of Gatchina-a reLUrn to
automatOll
4
1ikc drill and OUldated uniform.
Among his most outrageous attempts to 'beau-
lify' the army was the lilling ofsted plates around
the knees, to train soldiers to march stiff-legged; and
the filling with shot of hollowed musket-butts to
make a raule whilst drilling. Enlightened com-
manders were replaced by parade-ground mar-
tinets; even the vcteran Suvarov was disgraced, and
employed only from nccessity. The Russian army
which embarked on the European war in 1799 was
thus hopelessly outdated; only on the Turkish
/i'ontier was an clement ofpracticalily maintained.
The murder of Paul I in 1796 by a coun
conspiracy, and the installation of his son as Czar
.\lexandcr I, allowed the modernisation of the
Russian army to recommence, though for some
time the tyranny of Catchina was prolonged by
Alexei Arakcheev, Paul's favourite, who cominued
to exert influence. He became minister of war in
1808, but fortunately resigned in ,810, when he was
replaced by Barclay de Tolly, an officer ofScouish
descent, who became the Russian army's greatest
inAuence for good.
r
/
/
3
uft
Grenadier. Lifeguard Regt. c.Bo. This
iU.."tra'es the "ery Pruss;a"_'''yl.. uMorm ord..rrd by Czar
Paul t, the b...lI\s-f....... ,ed CIlp haviog an ....am..lled eagle device.
Colouring as for Pla.e A,. (Engraving afte.. Viskova,ov)
NiX}"
Infantry, .:.1Iloo; a contemporary popular print. While nol
1I."cu.ra." in e..ery detail,;' shows such ru,ures as
the c:alfskin knapsack used on campaign, aDd righ.) a
cartridge hoI on the fron. of ,he waisl The officer
(,..:Ireme ler.) wl'.. r ...he large gorge. and gauntl...s, and
carries a sponloon Or half-pike; at ex'rt:lIle righ. th..
gllunLl..ted figure is an NCO who carries the pol.. ofa company
fanion or mark.. r Rag. Note theil'll metal Canleen positioned at
,he 'I'n bol1om corner. (Engraving aft.... L Ebn.... )
7 rcgimcnLS or musketeers without grenadiers,
and one 4-banalion musketeer regiment of
4,143 men.
12 muskctcer baualions of 1,019 men, and three
of ',475.
58 garrison battalions, tOlalling 82,393 men.
9 Jager corps 3,992 strong, and three Jiiger corps
of 2,994.
4 regiments of Polish infantry, each 1,447 strong.
Recruitnlentj and Character
Atthe time ofAlexander I's accession he ruled some
43,785,000 people, and thus possessed unlimited
manpower. Over half the male population were
serfs tied to agricultural estates-virtual slaves to be
bought and sold, in 1777 only three per cent ofRus-
sians lived in towns. Treated as chauels, the serfs
provided the army's recruits, serving on 25-year
enlistmcnt (lifetime enlistment prior to 1793) and
garnered by conscription; with no leave permilled,
they rarely if ever saw their families again after
enlistment. Conscription was by a levy on the 'souls'
entered on tax rolls, a quota which might vary from
two men per 500 souls in peacetime to one in 20 at
time of crisis. I n some years no levy was made,
whereas in 1812 there were three levies, each of up
to five men per 100; the 1805 levy offom per 500
produced 110,000 recruits. As substitute conscripts
could be bought, many landowners surrendered
only their most inefficient scrfs, resulting in an army
which was totally illiteratc. His civilian standard of
living being wretched, the Russian soldier was
content with the most miserable of rations and
conditions, and thus a huge army could be
maintained at minimum COSL Excluding his grain
ration, in 1805 an infantryman's annual mainten-
ance (g! rubles) cost:d rubles less than his clothing!
The Russian soldier, ho\\,e\'cr, POSSCSSf..'d unique
qualities. Though 'born to endure every kind of
oppression and misery, they arc liule more than
beasts-lumpish, rap....cious and insatiable beyond
belief, according to one contemporary opinion,
they possessed extraordinary steadiness, stubborn-
ness and loyalty to their officers, their Czar and
their religion. Sir Robert \Vilson, who campaigned
with them, is often quoted:
'The infalllTy is generally composed of athletic
men bet\\'ccn the ages of 18 and 40, endowed with
great bodily strength, but generally ofshon stature,
with marLial countenance and complexion; inured
to extremes of weather and hardship; to the WOfSt
and scamiest food; to marches for dap. and nights,
of four hours" repose and six hours' progress;
accustomed to laborious toils, and the carriage of
hea\'y burthcl1s; ferocious, but disciplined; ob-
stinately brave, and susceptible of cnthusiastic
excitements; devoted to their sovereign, their chief,
and their country. Religious without being
weakened by superstition; patient, docile, and
obedient; possessing all the characterisLics of a
barbarian people, with the advantages engrafted by
civilization' .
A French view that 'lis S01l1 des biles, mau 0" peul
fllfr 1111' bitt' ('They arc animals-but animals can be
killed') gave way to grudging respect. As Marbot
noted in amazement, ' ... the Russians had to be
beaten down man by man. I sa\V individuals
defending themselves as confidently as if they had
been in the midst of their battalions. I noticed
others, ready to collapse from multiplc wounds,
loading their muskets as coolly as on the drill
square'. Inspired by the icons paraded b}l thcir
priests before battle, the Russian infantry were
capable of astonishing feats and lotal, blind
obedience to orders. Marhet recalled that at
Golymin in 1807, ' ... our soldiers fired upon them
at twentyfive paces, they continued their march
without replying ... every regimcm filed past,
without saying a word or slackening its pace for a
mOIllCIH. The stn=els were filled \ \ ~ t h dying and
Lia.. iaf.... try, .".1100, from l.u..mporary ....,;raviog.
Grno.adius (Iefl) ......d....tUi..d by Ih..ir miln alp'" .rod th..
g.......de bad,;" ia the "0'"-" of the eutrid,;.. bo::o: flap; ....
of!i.,..r (right) ........ " a...igum.... l .. 0" his riShl shouldu and
earri... a spo.Uooro. Th.. _au on b;,. imm..dlal.. oiShi carriKa
fotIitHt or battalion marker Oas.
wounded, but not a groan was heard, for they were
forbidden. YOLI might have said that we wcre firing
at shadows. At last our soldiers dmrged the Russian
soldiers with the bayonet, and only when the)'
pierced them could they be convinced that the)'
werc dealing with mcn'. When desperately
wounded the Russian soldier \vould drag himself
eastward simply to die a few yards nearer his
homeland; well might J. S. Stanhope rcmark that
'They really seemed to be made of differem stuR'
from other men: their frames and sinews were,
apparently, as hard as their minds. . thcy only
want a liule more activity to make them superior to
all othcr troops ... a little more educatioll, tOO; for
now they arc merely machines.
Much of this loyalty arosc Ii'om the almost feudal
organisation of regiments in the earlier years; as the
Russian-born Pomeranian officer friedrich v.
Schubert remarked, it was usual for a commanding
officcr 10 remain wilh his regiment for many years,
'so that his name became idcl1tifif.."<i with his
regiment and people always associated the two'.
This continuity of command caused the soldier to
know and respect hisofficcr,lo be 'proud ofhim and
5
will, out or attachmcnt to him, gladly cndure
privations, which would not he tolerated oul or
mere obedicnce',
The casualties and expansion or the army in
1812-14 led 10 the cxperienced officers being
distributed thinly, so thai the reudal character was
losl: ' ... Ihe generals and officcrs became more
knowh..-dgeable . , , and bit by bit thc whole army
took on Ihe character orchessmen', But the abiding
image orthe Russian soldier is that described by the
colonel or the Izmailovski Lireguard whilst losing
777 men at Bordino: '. , , the enemy fire destroyed
our ranks, but railed 10 produce any disorder among
Fusllier (the ord ..,.. eompanie. of. Cren.dier reP-ment)' in
th., uniform nf p Sos- The f..511ier cap _5 K5e1>tiaUy
more squat ..ertlio of 1M ..utn>, in th., 5.LlDe eolOUJ"inJl: and
m.,tal the taDer cap or Ihe rqiment'. Ire....dierL (Priat
puhlished by Edward Orm" i. '107)
6
the men. The lines simply closed up again and
maintained discipline as coolly as ir they had been
on a musketry exercise',
Officers
By general consent, Russian officers were the worst
in Europe, 'very deficient in intelligence and
activity, , , little betlcr than scmibarbarians',
according 10 Bunbury, Linc officers were rccruited
rrom the minor gentry, and though supposcd to
leam their trade as NCOs most wcre promoted in
absentia, and thus joined their units scarcely literate
and unfit to command, The higher ranks wcre
occupied by the nobility; so, with limited promotion
opportunities, Line officers lived a lire or obscurity,
and usually 'spent their time drinking, gambling or
sleeping', Even Ihe pro-Russian Wilson thought
them 'disqualified by the neglect or education, and
the absence orthosc accomplishments which should
distinguish officers', An Austrian commelll is C\'cn
more critical: 'They are absolutely useless ror
anything that has to do with manoeuvre, and in this
respect the ordinary French soldier is worth more
than all the officers or the Russian army put
together. The Russians are brave enough in
combal, but their gallantry goes ror nothing
because they do not know how to direct it or usc it to
strike home, They charge with the bayonet, , , but
they are so clumsy that they never manage to catch
anyone',
The higher ranks were riddled with ineptitude:
Adm. Chichagov dismissed Gen. Markov in [812
because despite being 'bedecked with ribbons and
covered with stars, , , on maps he conruscd roads
with rivers', A more extreme case was that or the
seplUagenarian Irishman Gen. Lacy, commanding
in lhe Mediterranean theatre in 1805, who 'showed
no trace or ever having been a man or talent or
inrormation,., At the councils orwar ... he used to
bring his nightcap in his pocket, put it on, and go to
sleep while others discussed the business'. This
quality or Russian officers rt"Sultcd in the employ-
ment orroreigners in increasing numbers, as officers
migrated LO Russia arter the dereat or their own
countries, They were generally disliked and
distrusted; even the Czar's brother Duke Con-
stantine explained the retreat in 1812 by saying:
'What can we do? It isn'l our rauh ... It is not
Russian blood thaI flows in the veins or the man
T 3 2 G
B
L L C L CNEN L C L C
OM
F
.-
N N N N NNEN N N N N
.-
N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N
S S 5 S 5 S S S
Discipline
Oi iplin "a nfor d with barbarit and a tb
rfi w r inur d to flogging baling b the ane
fth ir CO w I' quit a pt d. Paul I Tactical
who ommand
,
u .
Russian infantry battalion in column: lhree varieties. Each
block represents a platoon (half-COlDpany), i.n three ranks. 'C
represent lhe position of the Colour-e cor.., 'D' the drUIDIDer
and 'M' the lDusician . In each ca e lh usual gap between
platoons was one a r . ~ " i n (28 inches). Top left:'At'tack CoIUIDD'; fOp
right, 'Closed column by platoon ; !J"t/om: Closed colmnn by
division'. The latter could be varied into a doubJe column'
when the gap between the two columns would be wi.dened and
the Colour-escort positioned between the two leading
platoon.
N N
-------L
OF
M
A
C
N
N
N
N
s
RllleJ r 1797 laim d Lhal lh 'oldi I' wiIJ do morc
for an officer who treat him w II and wins hi trust
than on h imply fear . Bar lay tat d that Lh
Ru. ian . oldi I' P . . s all th high r militar
virtu . H rav k n doted and r liable.
n equentl e ha e no need to resort to cruelty .
and KULUZOV xhorted hi offie r to in rill
di cipline by warrior spirit and patriotic fervour
in t ad of brulalit . But alLh ugh th cru Ity wa
thus reduced the Ie el of violence continued to
appal foreign ob er r. The brutish existence of the
Rus ian serfma explain the atrocities committed
in 1812 (though the e were p rpetrated mainly by
partisan band ), and the Ru sian oldieI' habit of
lootin hi n m . though wedi h I' pOl' of
depredations again l them in 18 8 laimed that the
Russian infantry company drawn up in line, lhree ranks deep.
Key: A = Captain; C -= Cadet; DF = DrUlDlDer IFifer ; L =
Lieutenant, = NCO; M = Sergeanl Major; = Second
Lieutenant.
C
-
M 0
-

-
C_OM

-
-
Ru ian inIantry battalion drawn up in line, each company in
lhree rank , two platoon per company.
Ke): I = Cst Company; 2 ~ 2nd Company; 3 = 3rd Company; B
= Battalion cOlDmander (mounted); C = Captain; 0 =
Drummers; E _ EnBign with Colour; F = Fifers; G ~
Gr nadier platoon of Grenadier Company; L = Lieutenant; M
= Drum major; N = NCO, S = Second lieutenant 'cadet officer;
T Tiraill ur platoon of Grenadier ompany.
C
--
7
OrgtlJzi a/ion
Ru sian infantry battalion in square. Each long block
repre enlS a platoon, and each short hlock a half-platoon (or
qu.a.rter-company) each three rank deep. wnbers indicate
the company from which each platoon was drawn; 'C'
indicate the position of the Colour-escort. Left: 'colwnn
fortned hehind the centre of the battalion, adopted when there
was insufficient titne to fortD a true square. RighT: a proper
quare, with each .de facing outward . The 'long' ide of the
square were thus three ranks deep and the short' sides six
ranks deep.
four major fi e captains e en aptain 2nd class
12 lieutenants [2 2nd-lieutenants 12 ensigns 12
cad ts 12 erg ant-major, 12 t ndard-b ar I' 1'2
aptain -at-arm ( ompan arm ur r ) 72
o I 2 gr nadier nin musician, thr
drum-maj I' 36 drummer ei ht f i ~ a quaneI'-
m t I' and a tr a urer (b th lieut nams) an DC
01 nel-in-chief. three battalion three
pI' , a pri t and two altarboys se en urgeon
13 ho pital staff. 1'2 barber 51 craftsmen and 54
train personn I. usketeer regiment w r imilar
ex ept that they had 564 grenadier and 1 I 8
mu ket er and eight musician' Jagers similar but
eight captain and four 2nd aptain' n aptain-
at-arm gr nadier or I' Ijgiou talf: fiv mLl j ian 1
24 drummer fiv horni t in t ad r fiCi I' , lIin
admini trati staff, 19 medi al ta(f 41 train
p rsonn I and I 120 Jag I' .
nd I' Paull, th Rus ian army copied the
Pru ian tyl of naming its regim nt after the
olon I' A1 xand I' I retumed to the pra tice of
naming ach I' gim nt from its [Own or pro inee
thu gi ing ontinuity of tid and a n of 10 aJ
identity. mil 1806 regiment continued to be
group d in In pection' or inspectorate a h
In p tion having its own fa in olour' th I' wa
no p rman nt organi arion larg I' than th regi-
m nt whi h I' ated appallin probl m when an
army took to the field.
In 1805 the infantr comprised 77 regiment and
two battalion of mu ket er 13 I' gim nt of
grenadiers and 20 ofJag rs (ex fuding th uard
and garri on battalion)' the ilitary R form
Commi ,ion pIa ed aU I' gim nts on a uniCi rm
establishment of 2,'256 men for muk t ers and
grenadiers, and 1,385forJag I' .In 18 mo t fth
Inspections w I' aboli h d and I' pIa d (for th
fir t time) by onventionaJ Divi ion num I' d
1-18 a hOi i. ion ha in tw mu 'k t I' and ne
Jag r bri ad each bl;gad f two I' gimenl.. In
IS 7 d1 auc u In pe cion b cam th 19th and
th Divi in, and new 2 I t and 22nd Divi ion
w I' ~ rmed. In 1808 the lasl In pections,
I' mburg and iberia be ame lh 23rd and 24Lh
Divi ion resp ti el . and in 18 5th Divi ion
wa formed with a third brigad' w ak I' than
normal.
whol Ru. ian nation w I' 'hard f barbarian.
and savag' [from whom] v I' inhumanity that
can be nam d or even thought r. rna be expected'
mo 1 for ign b ervers I' I' ed thi critici m for th
co a '. t a higher Ie el, di ciplin could be
nIi reed b public di gra : for xampl, an
ina curat r port from tb th r1and eampai n
in 1799 I d to som regim nt bing puni hed b
bein forbidden to play th ' r nacli I' ' ar h
, hi h ha driv n th m ro de pair' th
re t r cI the privileg aft I' th Ouk f 'I: rk
tran mill d th true fa t .
t th a e sian of Jexander I in 18 I thre type
of infantry regiments exi ted: grenadier mu-
k t rs and Jagers (light infantr ) each regiment
ha ing tw ballalion' on 3 pri] 1802 ea h was
aLlocat d a third battalion. Ea h gr nadier and
mu k t I' I' gim t had on gr nadi I' and two
mu k t I' battali ns (th 3 mu k t - I' or ordinal'
Line infantry w I' t I'm d fu ili I' in grenadi r
regiments). Ja r I' gim nt h d tw battalion of
Jagr and one of carabinier (th latter term
de ribing the grenadi r of Jager c rp ). Each
mu k te r or fusilier battalion e mpri ed on
n di r ompan and thre of mu keteer or
fu iIi rs' ach Jag I' batt Ii n had n> carabini I'
mpan and three ofJa .I' .
In 1802 ach grenadi I' regiment comprised a
olon I-in-chit>f. a e Ion I a lieu enant-col neI,
_c_
8
Th", 'Pol",-",kin' uni(or", by Culr P.ul I a
PalilOh"lyl", .""",It.,1 (" ,hl and Ila., dilllu..eti"e ClIp willa
ernl, "., ioa o( which wa. retai.. ed (or so"'e
linl., tim., hy th., Gu.rds. This eOluemporary prilu also sho_
Ihe cylu..drical valill'" or ........pek, ..0.... by the 6prn u.. Ilac
bau.lroW>d.
Reorganisation, 1811
Barclay de Tolly instituted major reorganisatiolls in
t81O-11, by which the infill1tl)' was organiscd into
Corps on thc French model, each Corps comprising
t\\'o Divisions with a regimellt or brigade ofcavalry
ami one or more artillery companies. I::ach Division
was composed of two Line and one Jigcr brigade,
cach brigade 01" two regiments of threc battalions
each. Henceforth, 't:lite' slaws was no longer
dependellt upon physiquc; inSlead orthe tallest men
becoming grenadiers and thc smallCSI jagers, these
appointments were made on mcrit: 'The slightest
fault will deprive thejager and thc grenadier of his
distinClion . , . not only carelessness in drill and
similar mistakes, but any offence which is
inconsistcnt with the good conduct and honour ofa
crack soldier',
In each baltalion, the firsl company was termed
'elile' (grenadiers in Infantry regiments-lhe term
G.... rdsme.. o( the Preohraje..slti, aod bm.il-
o"",ki Resimnus (lrft to "Kilt), C,I84t. The uaiquely-sbaped
helm"l willa 1.r&DSVe-rse eresl .nd rear 'b." was liller
.-e.... io.. o(lhe dassie 'Polemlt..., helmet abolisht!d by Paull; il
was abandoaled by the Guard by 18o.j" Ilaou!;h wali Worn (or
parade unlillhe (ollowiD! year. Note al_ I.he 'G..... rd' loops 001
Ilae collar and cuff ftap,,- (Eagravins a(ce... Vililtovaro")
was replalcd b) 'ltllantry' in tSt l-
and carabiniers injagcr regiments). All companies
had twO platoons; the plaloon of the elite company
which stood on the right oftlte batlalioll was termed
grcnadiers (carabiniers in lhcjagcrll), and the elite
pilitoon which stood on lhe left was styled
'tiraillcurs'; the ra nk-and-filc of the remaining three
companies continued to be termcd musketeers in
Infalltry regiments, fusilicrs ill Grenadier regi-
mellts, andjagers injagcr regiments, Thc prcvious
mixed nature of regiments changed, Line regimellts
no longcr possessing a grenadier battalion as they
had before. Grcnadier regiments were taken from
their original Divisions and formed illto elite
Grenadier Divisions.
The 1811 reorganisation left the internal
structure of Infantry regiments largely unchanged
and much as already described. Ihough captains
9
Grenadiers, ... ,804' Both wear the ,8th century style of mitre
cap, which was replaced by the shako for all except the Pavlov
Regt. in 1805' ote the cylindrical knapsack with ntess tin
strapped on; and the cartridge box bearing both the universal
brass plaque embossed with a double eagle, and the eparate
grenade in the corners, the distinction ofgrenadiers. Grenade
badges were also always displayed upon the headband of the
cap. (Engraving after Viskovatov)
2nd las were no long I' includd in th
e tabli hm nt of lin I' giment . In addition to a
wagon-rna tel' and I train personnel th re-
gim ntal transport ompany in luded an 001 er
and fiv and a t rinary om er' the train
compri d 12 amhulan 12 wagons 12 ration-
wagons, a I' gimental orR e-wagOIl and a tool-
wa on a h with fI ur horse; plus a regimental
ch Sl, an apoth cary and a prj t s wagon with
thr e horse each-part ofth hu baggag -train
which were infam u for lowing th progres of the
army. 1 hough th axon von hI' ken t in
noted that the Russians 'haY !hi peculiarity that
th y do not willingl relinquish a single wounded
man ... ind d ifit i at all pos ibl the carry rh
bodie of their ollicers away with them the mall
number of medical staff and poor Ie el of treatment
weI' -x mplifi d by Platov' r ply to the Czar s
offer f m r urg on :' d and our Majesty
forbid' th fir f lh n myis not halfso fatal as one
drug.
10
In each regiment th 2nd Bn. wa designated as a
d pAt or I' s rv , th 1 t and 3rd Bn.. rving in th
fild (the 3rd Bn. auld I b I' fi rr d to a the
2nd i.. th c nd field battalion). Th e d pOL
battali n were kn wn as the upply 'm; in
adcli ti n in 1808 training centres were establish d
which could pro es 50--60 000 recruits at a time.
The upply rmy wa not simply are 'erv ; hartly
before th war of /8/2 it wa r organis d as an
a tiv upport fore of thr ca all' and ight
infantry clivi'ion' (106,000 infantry). In Mar h
[8[2 the uppl rmy was mobilised (118 00
m n) and with 60 000 I' cruits, orne wont to form
n w line regim nts in May and ]un . Th elite
companies of depot battalions were detached and
regiment d into on rg-d' I' ombin d gr na-
di I' battalion a han. i till flhre ompani
ofdifferent r giment but k ping th ompani of
a Divi ion t gether; th combined grenadier wer
alia at el to th fi lel army at two batta]j ns p I'
Divi ion.
The grenadier mitre cap, retained throughout the '9th century
by the Pavlov Regt. This illustration shows the uniform of
".,806, before the addition of chinscales at a later date.
(Engraving after Viskovatov)
Table I
33rd Jagers: previously Lithuania Regt. (reraiscd frOIll 31'd Gan'iSOIl Reg!.)
34th Jilgers: previollsly Vilna Regt.
35th jagers: previously Sofia Regt.
361h jagers: previously J)odolsk Regt. (re-raised from 4th Gan;son Regto)
3ith jagers: previously Voronezh Regt. (re-raised from lSI Garrison Regt.)
38th Jagers: previousl)' Galitz Regt. (reraised from Imh Garrison Regt.)
39th Jagers: previousl)' Briansk Reg!. (reraised from 2nd Garrison Regl.)
40th Jagers: previously Odessa Regt.
41St Jiigcrs: previollsly OrlO\' Rlgt.
42nd Jagers: previously Slonia Regt. reraiscd from 6th Garrison Reg!./
43rd Jagers: prcviously :\'ovgorod Regt.
44th Jagers: pre\'iously Veliki-Lutsk Regt. (re-raised from I Ilh Garrison Regt.,
45th Jagers: previousl)' Penza Regt. (rc-raised from 12th Garrison Regt.)
4.6th Jagers: previousl), Saralov Regt. (rc-raised from 131h Garrison Regt.)
(The 20thJagcrs was formed in 1803, 21S1 and 22nd in 1805, and 23rd-:J2nd in 1806). The
47th-49thJagers were formed inJanuary 1811 from the 5th, 7th and 8th Garrison Regts.
respecti ....e1y; the 49th was cOll\'erted to a new Sofia Infantry in March 181 I. but reraiscd
wilh a new 50th Jagers in October 1811.
Supply Anny units were gcneraJly much weaker
than finaline unils, the depOt battalions having
Iirsl sem drafts to their regimelll's field battalions as
well as losing their elite companies to Ihe combined
grenadiers. In 1812, for example, the 32nd Division
was formed from the depOts of the 1st (Grenadier),
II th and 23rd Divisions, numbcringonly about 300
per battalion (i.e. kss than halfstrength); thc 32nd's
ninc ballalions were organised into thc 1st and 2nd
Combincd Infant!'y and a Combincd Jager
Regimcnt (depOts of the 1 nh, 18th and 36th
JagcI'S). Being so much weaker in strength, a
Division's combined grenadier regiment (one
company from each of six battalions), forming two
battalions of three companies each, was used as a
reservc brigade in the Corps 10 which they were
allocated (thc 32nd's grenadiers served with J
Co,ps).
Some changl"S of !'egimental designation occur-
red during this period. in OClober 1810 the
regimel1ls lisled in Table I were converted to
Jagers. with most of the Jnfantry being rcraised in
January 1811 from the previous Garrison Regi-
ments.
Also in October new Vilna, Odessa, Simbirsk
and Tamopoll nfalllry were formed. Jn November
1811 many regiments rt.'Ccivt.'(\ a 4th Bn., known as a
'reservc' baualion, which in IBI2joined the
2nd Bns. in the 30th-471h Di\'isions of the Supply
Army. In January 1811 the RoslOv Reg!. was
converted 10 the Arakchccv Grenadiers (the only
unit to bear a personal name); and in 1813 lhe
Kc.xholm and Pernau regiments were cOIl\'crted to
grenadiers, replacing the Pavlov Grenadiers which
had joined the Guard. In April 1814 the 1st, 3rd,
8th, 14th, 26th and 29th Jiigcrs were designated
Grenadier-Jagers, but relained their numbers.
On active service strengths fell far below tbe
eSlablishmellt of 738 eflcctives per battalion: al the
beginning of the 1812 Ciunpaign, for example,
infant!)' battalions averaged around 600 each,
whieh dwindled as the war progressed. As Lord
Londonderry reported in 1813, "rlle baualiOllS
were so weak Ihal tlu'ee or four scarcely formed a
regiment, and seldom exceeded 250 or 300 men'.
Drill and Tactics
Initially, training dcpcnd(.'(\ upon the command.ing
officer, so that a regiment with a bad CO might be
useless. Manoeuvres conformed to Ihe t\tili/ary Codt
Concerning lhe Fitld StnJice of Infanl':.' (I ;96) and
Tactical Rula for .\lilitary (1797) which.
"
being inspircd by Paul I, stressed appearance, the
soldier marching with motionlcss right arm and the
left cxtended, holding the musket upright, with no
bending of the knee in a goose-step. Rate of march
was 75 paces per minute, Arakcheev introducing a
'quick' step of 110, and later a quicker one of
120-160.
Paul's 1796 Code sought to impose Prussian-sryle
linear tactics, with emphasis upon the firepower of
the three-rank platoon and rolling voUey, wilh
platoon column the basis of manoeuvre. Dismissing
the Code as 'a rat-eaten parchment round in the
corner of an old castle', Suvarov rejeCled linear
tactics in ravour or a mass attack with the bayonet,
and in practice the 1796-97 Codes seem to have
been less significant than the ideas orthe individual
commander, Suvarov's theories having influenced
his subordinates. Kutuzov staled in October 1805
The brass.fronled m;tre cap relained by the Pavlov Rrgl. was
a unique headdress, the I;lyle having been abandoned by all
olber annieS;;1 was therefore a favourite subjert wilb foreign
arlists. This engraving purports to show Ibe Pavlov Regt. a,
Friedland; the uniform ill generally weeurale bUI it
demonsln""" the ;n'pn!ss;on erealed hy the uSe of Ihis
anliqualed headgear. (Engraving by P;geol afterJ. F. Swebaeh)
that 'We shall orten have to exploit the particular
prowess orthe Russians in bayonet allacks'. and in
1812 Bagration procJaim(.-d the maxim that 'The
cannon-ball is a roolish virgin and the bayonet a
wise virgin'. The great rerormer Barela)' stressed the
importance or target-practice in 1810, and in IBII
issued Instructions for Target Practice and Code of
Infantry Service, tbe latter again advising moderation
in discipline: 'reserve chastisement only ror oc-
casions or though even bere you must
proceed with moderation and prudence'. Upon the
expansion of the anny in 1812, training was
reduced to a minimum; as Kutuzov wrote, 'Teach
them to turn and to march as a rronl in platoons and
in sections. Do not look ror any kind of beauty', or
burden the men with anything which might detract
rrom 'the essentials of the business'. The three-deep
line was the accepted rorlllation ror maximising
firepower, but manoeuvre was conducted in
column, either a double column or platoons or
sl."Cuons', or a single column or 'divisions', each
company being termed a 'division' for the purpose
or manocuvre. Ideal ror charges, columns were
1..r"..II')' officer, ('.I80s ..,. The bico.... hal wilh bl"ck plume
...d sold loop conti..uftl in use even .rler the introdacpon or
the shako, roO' WUr in und",u and even on canJpa1gn
(....officially). NOle the la-edged .houlder strap.., _hich _ere
repLacftl by epaulel1" io '1107. (Eagravi..g .f'u Visko..... tov)
extremely vulnerablc to artillery fire, and after
horrendous casuahies had been sustaill(:d at
Borodino there was an immedialC change to longer
and thinner formations.
Ostensibly light infamr}'. the Jagers comprised
almost a third of the infantry, blll in practice seem
to have differed lillie from Linc units, though
trained to a greater degree at marksmanship and
traditionally possessing higher morale. The extent
to which they were able to act as skirmishers is
undear; certainly prior to 1807 their skills were
extremely limited, much probably depending upon
regimental practice, as no light infamry manual
existed until 1818 except the Guard's own Principles
for the OjJtra/io1/s of Tiraifleurs. As late as t833 the
manuaJs in usc werc so vague that full scope was
permitted for the ceccmricitics of regimcntal
commandcrs, so that tactics u.st."d during the
Napoleonic era must have been e\'en more une\'en.
Each platoon had an NCO and 12 marksmen
'80s..,. Most obv;o..s is Ihe enormou",
plun:lt:, .....owa hy il" Germ.... term iHtJc"A; hut nOte also the
g..e...de badge, the ...t;o...1 eockade (with a loop behind it, or
lhe IWIme maleria!, almOin hidden by Lbe pompo<l), and thesKle
buckle On the chintMllp. (Engntving afler Vi.ko''''Ov)
originally armed with rifles, who could be detached
as skirmishers. Initially skinnishformatiollS were in
two lincs, though later a reserve was provided, and
when required apparently whole regiments cOllld
be deployed in sllch a role, the carabiniers forming
the reserve. The ability to skirmish was n,r below
that of the French, and many oflhcJiigel's deployed
as skirmishers al Borodino performed remarkably
badly. Whereas Line units formcd square when
threatened by c.walry, skirmishcrs engaged the
enemy with musketry at 150 yards and then
gathered in small knots to hold off the ca"alry.
Apparently Line regiments also received some
training in skirmishing, with the tiraillellr sections
of grenadier eompanic.;s filling the primary role.
The Guard
The Czar's Lifeguard was the ornament of the
Russian army; foreign obscn'ers were unanimous
about their excellence. Wilson noted that' ... there
'3
cannOI be a nobler corps, or one of more warlike
description, and lhe simplicily of lhe dress 10
lhe man the full character of his figure and miell'.
Londonderry reponed " , , a wide diflcrcnce
between the staple of lhe Russian Army and lhe
Emperor's guards, The laller arc very select ..
nOlhing, indeed, can be superior. The grenadiers of
lhe guard are generally very mll men . lhe
discipline and well-dn.. "Ssed stalC of these men arc
vcry imposing, ..J Lady Burgersh thought them
'. , , a sigh I too lllagnificelll to be described! The
exlreme care and cleanliness of their dress is quile
beallliful ... the Emperor's lootguard are all picked
mcn, lhe handsomest of the empire ... all gigantic;
thcy arc Will posed of the taJJesllllell in Russia; their
lats an' all padc!t.d to stun' out their chests and
Grenadier drununer (ten) and NCO musician (righl), wearing
the original shako (,80507)' NOle thai the NCO has the usuat
distincdons of rank: cufT_ .. nd coll......lace, gtoves and can.,; he
.. Iso has a roo plun,e with white lip, ..n exira ehevron on each
and laced se'''nS on the eoalee, Bolh .....ear the winler
bools. Note the point.,d lace loops on Ihe right breast of the
eoalee, and similar loops on each cufT nap. (Engraving afler
Viskovatov)
widen their shouldcn;, and therefore the)' really look
like statues. . Don't think I exaggcrate, for
everyone raves of them'. Even Napoleon remarked
lhat 'I was surprised at lbe precision and assurance
of this infantry ... an army so well disciplined and of
such extraordinary firmness would be the firsl in the
world if, 1.0 these qualities, it unitcd a little of lhe
cleco'ic enlhusiasm of the French'.
Officcrs were drawn Ii'om thc nobility and were
probably no more proficient than those oftbe Line;
von Schubert nOled that they were 'the local poim
of the balls and evcry othc,' kind of sociclY. They
were nOlable lor their education and good manners,
if not for their morals, and the general ellcct was
probably enhanced by lhc presence of large
Humbcrs ofemigres of the lcading families of France
who werc serving lhnc. 1111prcssi\"c thouJ4h t1wy
Grenadi.,rs, ,808 09t show;ng Ihe s.,eoDd pall.,rn of knapsack.
The shako is as re-slyled ,...ith leather reinforcing in '1lo7, wilh
the triple-f1an,ed grenade hadge of ,808; Ihe pre-
dales the introduction of II breasl Slrap conne.,t.ing Ihe
knapsllck straps, ordered in April .Bog. (Engraving after
Viskovatov)
'4
and Preobrajenski
Sel11l'l1o\'Ski
being offour companies. A Sl.."'Cond Jager battalion
was raised III 1806, and the unit thus becamc a
In April 1808 an Imperial i\lilitia
Battalion was raised from peasants on the Czar's
estates; a second battalion was raised in ISo;. and
the regiment was l'c-n;lIncc! the Finland Guard
Regiment.
In Febmary 181 t tht, Guard was reorganised
similarly to lhe Line: all had Ix'ell grcnadit.,r.; before,
but now the Preobrajenski, Scmeno\'ski and
Izmailo\'ski changed the names ofthcir companies
so that cach battalion comprised olle gn:nadier and
three fustricr companit:s, the grenadier companies
being di\'ided into platootls of' grenadiers (car-
abiniers in the Jiiger Reg!.) and tiraillcurs. In
November tSt I a Lithuaninn (LilO\'ski) Guard !In.
was raised as light like the Jiigers, and
became a rcgiment at the end 01" the year when a
second battalion was raised; at lhe samc time the
4th Bn. of the Prcob.-.Uellski was transfcrrcd to the
Finland Regt. to make il a thrt'ebaltalioll corps,
Also in t811, the Guard was organised into a
Division of' three bl'igadcs, the tSt lkle. being tbe
Preobrajcnski and ScmcIlovski, the2l1d Izmailo\'ski
and Lito\'ski, and the 3rd Finland and Jiigers. In
April t813 the Life Grenadiers and Pavlov
Grenadiers wcre raiSI.:d to Guard status, and re-
titled the Lifeguard Grenadiers and P"vlm' Guard
Grenadiers, and the Cuard was then split into t\\"o
Di\isions:
IS/ Div.: 1st Ikle,:
appeared, howcver, their habits wcrc disconcening:
whcn they were givcn a banquet by Napoleon's
Guard at Tilsit, Coignet was appalled to see them
tcal" the meat with their hands, swallow goblets of
wine at a gulp, and finding thcmselves unable to
clear the tahle. making themselves vomit so as to
begin again: 'thus they made three meals at olle
dinller', Sueh behaviour (like that ofthosc Russians
temporarily quartered in the Isle of Wight, who
drank the oil out of the public lamps) was the cause
ofother nations reg-arding the Russians as but scmi-
civili...cd.
The Guard infantry OIiginally consisted of three
f."lmOliS regiments: Ihe Prt..'Obrajenski (four bat-
talions in IBoo). Scmenovski and 1zl11ailo\'Ski (three
batlalions), and a baualion ofJii1{ers, all hatlalions
/4i
Subahcrn (1"",) and firld olli"", .. of r;rcnadic'l"S, .Bog II. The
,808 shako with ,riple-O..... ed S"raIadc bad".. (panl)' ..ed
hn-e by,"'" cords) has .he cord. adoplC!d u. .8og, ..';Ib th" nUl"
_lell plume rtpl.. ,,1NI ....8". 111.. field offiu.r Wr.II", fringed
rpaul"n-,; aoll! ..1_ the officers' cockade, bean_" the
Imperial cypher. The ....bah..m'hako has .. foldi..!: oeclo:-
protector, wkic" wali .boliliihed in .8.'L (En5raviar; an"..
Viskowa.o
y
)
en"....
Officers i .. Undrtli uniforn,. wr.oriog singlc-bne-_.ed coalees
aad ridial!: boot... The uadr.. 't1 ooatee i. devoid of ...... usual
... nk iasill:nia, bu. the figure :1.1 ler. wr.ou lac" loops on .b"
rolla.. and ClifT... the dis.i.."t;"" insignia of only 00"' line
r,"!"imrn" '.he Lir.. Grtnadicrs (whkh became pan of .he
Guard in April (Enllra..in8 .fter Viskon,oYj
Hi!:11l
Gr..nadierli, Ekal .. rinosl... G.."nadj"r Rest., '4. This
illustra ...... h.. "hapo: of .h.. .8'2.pallu'fI
willi ils I.riple-Oamed grC:Dad.. badg." bras!' cbillscal.,. and
cords; Ih., IDw.,r, closed collar; and Ih.. r"/lim.,nlal should.,r
sirap b.,aring Ih.. id.,nlifying inili ... 1 'E'. (EnJraving arlu
V;SI<OV1'lo"')
Officers in win'er field uniform, ... ,80S' The grelllC:oal (left) is a
longer w,,.,,ion of ,h... usual frock...,.,al; Ihal al righl is a larger
garment wi,h cal,e. (Engraving .. fler Viskovuo,')
2nd Bde.: Izmailovski, J5gers and
Guard Equipage Un.
(marines, formed :\'1arch
181 '2)
:md Dil!.: 1St Bde: Lito\"ski and Lifeguard
Grenadiers
2nd Ikle: Pnvlov, Finland and Guard
Sapper Bn. (formed 1812)
Establishment ofa Ihree-battalion rcgiment was
as follows: a eolonel-in-chief (the Czar), a
regimental commandcr, three battalion com-
manders, six colonels (as majors in the Line, bUI
ranking higher in the Guard), thrce captains, nine
2nd captains; 12 each of Iieulenants, 2nd-
lieUlell<mts, sergeant-majors, cadets, standard-
bcnrcrs and caplains-nl-arms; 7'2 NCOs, 1,692
nine slall'officers (quartermasters, ADCs,
etc,), II musicians, three drum-majors, 36 drum-
mers, '24 flIers, n priest and two altarboys, 20
I11cdicnl smff. t2 barbers, 45 crnftsmcn and 57 train
personnel, Establishments wcre proponionally
higher for the Preobrajcnski when it had foul'
battalions. and lower for the J5gers alld Finland
rq,>iments, whose batlalions had '20 i'\COs and 400
.lagers, Unlike some reinforcements sent to the line,
those despatched 10 Ihe three field battalions ofeach
,6
Guard regimellt \vcre nOi hastily-assembled 01' halr-
traincd: Cathcart notcd inJanllar), 1814th<ll 'Th(,
reinforcements which havc joined the Russian
guards arc very fine, nnd J ha\'e never seen these
regiments appear in so great rorce, or in better
condition, at any period or the campaign'.
Ullif0171ZS: Patti J
(179
6
-
180
1)
Prince Potemkin'S rc!orms during the last dccade of
the reign of' Calherine the Great produced one or
the mOSI rllllctional uniforms in E.urope, abolishing
the typical features of the 18th century, The cocked
hat was replaced by a peaked helmel, the tail-coat
by a Polish-style shonjackct (kuflka), and breeches
and gnilers by reinforced, loose trOllsers: hail'
powder and queues wcre abolished. 'fhe 'Potemkin
uniform' was itsclf'abolished by Pallll's regression
Grenadier ofic.. r (/,j,) and sergeant, .8'<l. No,e ,h.. s .. rgeanl's
insignia: plume, pompon ..nd .... nk_t.." ... th.. 1..".. On ,h.. "ollar
of ,h.. second pa" ..rn, on ,h.. upper inSl ..ad oflow"r ",dg.., Th..
s",rg.... n' wearS the winl .. r dummy boo,s. (Engr.. ving after
Viskovatov)
,
to 111(.' styles of FI'edcrick the Great: back camc
pipt.'clay. 1>O\\'dered hair and outdated costullle, a
retrograde Stl'P viewed with by
military theorists in other countries, To Sir Henry
Hunbury, who served alonb"Side the Russians in thc
Netherlands in 1799. the)' appeared to havc stepped
from the pages of history: '. , . exactly the hard,
WOOdCIl machincs which we ha\'e reason to figure to
ourselvcs as thc Russians of the Se\'cn Years' \\ar.
Their dress and ccluipmcl\ls scemed to ha\'e
rcmaincd unaltered: lhey waddled slowly forward
to thC' tap-tap of tht'ir monotonous drums: and if
they werc beatcn thc) \\ addlt:d slowl} back again,
\\'ithout appearing in cither casc to fL'C1 a scnse of
danger, or Ihe expediency of taking ultra tap-tap
su'ps to bellcr their condition'.
Thc re-introduced 18th-cclltul)' st)'lc included a
co.lt in the traditional Russian dark green, wilh
facings co10llred according to the system of
"Inspections' which grouped regiments upon a
gL"Ographical basis. The double-breasted coal had a
falling collar and was closed to the waist. though
could hOI\'(' coloured, lumed-back lapels; turnbacks
and skirt-lining were scarlet. wore the
bicorn, grcnadiers wearing metal-frOIllt..'d mitre
caps in Prussian style, and fusiliers lower mitre caps.
Guard regiments wore an open-fronted !,'Teen coal
dosed at the top by hooks, and lace loops 011 the
collar and sleevcs; all had red cuffs, with rcd collar
for the Prcobrajenski, dark green for the Izmail-
o\'ski and blue for the Semellovski. White breeches
and long gaiters were re-illlrodueed, the gaiters
usually black (white for Guard regiments in
summer), Officers' rank was indicated by metallic
lace on the hat and cum, lind tht' uni\'<Tsal sash and
gorget as described (or later years.
Despile this return to outdated uniform, com-
manders lik(' SllVMOV allowed thc use of more
functional dress; von Kobell painted a typical
'campaign drL'SS' (Pbte AS) including pantaloons
and calf-length boots, with plain coats and hats,
unpowdered hair and a workmanlike appearance.
Less enlightened commanders insiSIl... -d on the
maintenance of the Czar's regulations, however,
e\'ell if uniforms were in rags; a rCl>ort on
Korsakov's Corps in Switzerland in '799 notes
. one canllot help laughing becausc of the
quilt work ofp<ltchcs of varied colourcd green cloth
that they have used to mend their uniforms. Their
R..ssian pri_n,,", .. ad".. .8.1l. Am;d ,b", c_d... aad
a aumb<P... or ......_ri... o.lo" .8.2 1.;;'0'.
Th., d m ..."r (('...,... fr-'l .pp""-,"" 10 woO' 'Ii";'" bi,.
..""rs, doub.I,....,.2o civilian 8,.rno"n. worn .....d"r bi5
jac"", for ,.ddi.ianat ...,. ..mo.lo--cammon prael;ct on cam_
pa;p. .fle.. Chrililian C. F.b<P... d.. Fallr)
hats arc bordered "it 101 Saint-Germain", The
grenadier caps arc in the form of sugar loafS, while
others arc like the papal tiara. The infiumy officers
are dressed in a morc uniform colour than the
soldiers ... All the Russian soldiers arc obliged to
powder themselvt.'S daily, e\"Cll while on campaign.
The grenadiers have good muskets and long

Ulliforms, Alexander1:
Linehtjt'lttIJ'
The accc.:ssion of Alexander I in LBoI saw the
beginning of a lllodcmisatioll or the infantry
uniform, though as throughoullhe period there
were usually considerable delays between the
aUlhorisation and implementation of a change in
unifonn.
The infantry jacket was dark green, closed to the
waist, with collar and cllirsofthc 'I nspcction' colour
as before, and shouldcrstrapscolourcd according to
the seniority of lhe regiment; all had rL'd turnbacks
, 7
Lithuania Inspection (collar and culTs light green):
Table 2: 1805
St. Petersburg Inspection (collar and cuffs red):
Hfgilllmi SllOlildu l'Olllfl')lI I1l1lbmb{
"rapJ
rmlr. dflllll.rlirh
Lit;.. Gr('lwdiers rl'd red yellow
I'al'lo\' Gn;nadil'rll white white )'ellow
.Jdelz yellow turquoise blaek
Kl':'<holm r:ospllc;rry yellow colle,-
Hiclnst'rk tur(llJoisc light green black
Tcngllinsk pink pink colle,'
Lithu;miil li,ll"ht grecn light g-rccn COlTl'<:
I'crno\'
ydlow

ydlnw
(:oOct'
coHix
white
hlnck
hlack
whilt'
yellow
colle....
red
light greell
whil<'
light grl'l'll
yellow
pink
turquoise
Ekaterinoslav GrcnaditTS red
Tub whilC
Pskov yellow
11'Iurma"sk nlSphCl'ry
Rostov turquoise
Nisov pink
Archangel lighl gt't'ClI
Volhynia grey
'\'Iohilcv (formed Iflo6) grey
Kos1l'oma (formed 1Boo) lilaC'
Livonia Inspection (collar and culTs turquois.,):
I'etcr.lhurg GrelH.dicrs red rt11 )'.:lIow
Tauridl' Grcn"dier.l white whitc >'cllnw
Sicvsk ycllow 11Irqllois" hlack
Sofin raspberry grt')' colli'e
Revel lurr]lloise light gTl'cn while
Tobolsk pink light green I"hile
Dnieper lighl grten pink >'cllow
Tchernigol' grey yellow black
Kopol"sk turquoise
Kalu,l:"a l!i.mnl11 IB06) lilac
replaced with a shako like thai of muskcteers, but
bearing a brass grenade badge below lhe cockade, a
white pompon, and a 20-inch-high, very bushy
black plume. The queue was retained, bound with
black ribbon, bUI was powdered only on speeial
occasions; it was discontinued for other ranks in
1806 and made optional for officers, who aban-
doned it completely in 180g,
Table 2 lists the regiments existing in 1805, in
their Inspcctions, with their distinguishing colours.
Ukraine Inspection (collar and culTs pink):
Little Russia Crcnadicl"li red white
Kiev Crenadier.l white white
Smolcnsk yellow yellow
Bri;tllsk raspbcrry light grcen
GaJitz lunllJoiSt"
Estnni,t (fnt'llIed If\tJii\ 1111'(IIHlist
Infanlry ( .8.2: ....rfs p_sanl clothing
inspecled by two bulh of whom frock coal.
The central officer wears the peaked c10m forage cap; Ihe
olhcr relains the undress bioorn. In mc backgrOllDd al
exlreme righl is a grenadier Ilergeant wearing Ihe .8111 ki"'('r
shako, (Engraving arter liorace Vern.,l)
and lining, Two rows ofsix brass buttons (usually of
a copper shade) were on the breast, with three
buttons on each dark green culTftap, one button on
each shoulder strap, and one to each pair or
turnbacks. The collar was now upright, very high
and cut opcn to expose Ihe blaek stock. White
breeches were worn with black shoes and white or
blaek gaiters in summer, and with high black boots
in wimer, the laller below knee-length, unlike the
cumbersome boots observed by tbe British soldier
Surtees in tile Netherlands in 1799:', . ,shod with
boots very much resembling those of our fishermen,
coming up considerably higher than the knee; thus
rendering thelll. incapable or celerity of
movement',
The bicorn bat worn by musketeers was replaced
in 1805 by a black fell cylindrical shako, widening
slightly towards the lOp, with a black leather
chinslrap buckling by the right car. On the front it
bore a black cockade with orange edge, fastened by
a brass button; alld on the upper edge a woollcn
pompon whieh was white for a regiment'S 1st Bn.,
yellow for tbe 2nd and red for the 3rd, wilh a
regimelllally-coloured centre. Above the pompon
was a small tuft or the same battalion colour,
sometimes shown with a regimemally-coloured
centre to tbe tip, Prior to 1805 grenadiers retained
their mitre caps, the back in the Inspection colour
and the hcadband in the shoulder strap colour; but
lJl February 1805 the mitrcs werc ordered to be
,8
Caucasus Inspection (collar and cuffs mediwn blue):
Moscow inspection (coUar and culTs orange):
Inspection (collar and cuffs dark green; before
180j., lilac; laler, red cuffs):
lnfantry in campaisa uniform, .8.2 .+Tbi" dqoiets
conunOftesl .ppe.......CClI of RUllIiall soldier, including
Srnolcoal .Dd fo..,.S" ClIP. Th.. CIIrt.ridS" box.....ppear 10 be
ouldalftl il ...ms sliIl ill UH, wit" I.... pr.... ,808 circular plaque,
which oth..r _ure..... llbow ,Hill in UIIC at< Ial .. u .8....
(EroS""""'S afJ... r G...ors Adam)
... hile
ycllo\l
black
while
)'dlow
"" rell(1\\
liRhl grL'C1I

\lhile
"" ... hilt"
)'ello...
r:osphc1T}
tIIrt:luotse
lil::hl
Colucasus Grelladicn
Sou..dal
Tilli.
Kahardinsk
Ka7.an
\'oIosda
Uq,il/lfnl SllQufdrl'
l'oltllllJU
lIufbml,
,1"'1"
rnll" dm11lJlirtJ
Khnwll Grcn:l(lirni

nd l1I,u:k
Siheria Cl1,'n:.diCni II hile' whilt
"hile
l..adoga )'e11011 pink b1:lck
\"I;ldimir
'I hile light gt"":11 \\hilt
:\C"\\ Ingcnnanland pink lilac
Alexopol raspbclT) lighl grttn black
Ko;I.lo...
turt:luolsc
"",
black
Jarosla, )'e110\l IUn:lllOisc }"l"lIo\l
...d rellow coliC<-
CrimrOl dark blm."
raiSl"d ,806
.""
Srnoleask Inspection (collar and culTs while):
.\h..scml Grclladicn rn:l red }dlo...
F:magoria Grcnadien \I hilt" \lhitc \lhile
l'ololSk )dlo\l light grn-Il black
I'enn rasplJcl1) rello\l while
Omrlitz 11lrt:ltloi5C 11ln:IUolSC ydlo\l
Kursk pink pink black
\'unmczh lil;llIl{rcen li'lhl grn-" \lhilc
BreSI Inspection (coUar and culTs straw yellow)l
Finland Inspection (collar and cuffs yellow)l
Veliki-Loul7.k red red black
NCI'.1 "hile )t"Ilo" blaek
Ri:r7.<1n yellow "hile while
Kiev Inspection (collar and cufTs raspberry),
Crimea Inspection (collar and cuffs light ochre):
coner
blark

whilr
\lhit(

black

lighl gnclI
rt"(t
II'hilC

whill'
)"el1o\\

i\loscol\' rld
nod Wllill.'
Boulirsk
" hilr
11ll"(1 uoisc bla...:k
Kolyvan yellow pink while
:\'ovgol'od r'<ISplwrTy \I'hilt whilr
Vi"zma lurqllUis. wllill" or coni...:
yclln\l ?
Nan:a pink light gr(...11 \I hilf'
I'oha\"a lighl/l:ll"('U lighl gn...11 \I hile
Orenburg Inspection (collar and culTs buIT-'camel'}l
Riga 11"(1 rl."(1 ro!f{'C'
Dura \lhile "hile blaek
Ekalcrillburg )'ello'\ ....ofli:t-
Siberia lnspec1.ion (collar a.Dd cuffs grey):
Shir... n rrd rnl
Tomsk \lhite "hite
"'I"\:lIim],; ydlm, ydlo....

SrhaslOpol
TroiLsk
\'ilcbsk
whitc
yellow
black
while
black
COlTL'"

whil{'
while
white
while
bla<:k
oolfL"C
black
rello\l
yellow
Hlnluuisc
while
lighl green
'<d
ml
lighl gn'o'n
lighl grL'en
grt)
Ilhile
)"c1lrm
lurquoise
lilac
pink
dark blue

... hile
)'ello\\
r:lsph.:rl')
lurquoiso
pink
liglll green
grey
lilac
dark blue

\lhile
)"dlo\l
r ...
lunluoisc
pink
light grccn
"""
.\Slrakh:m GrcnadicN
X:llajinsk
T:Ullbov
L'kr:line

:\aeheburg
OrlU\
Sal',\lo\,
Swnoskol
O)ilIl!'l7.
Old I ngcrm'l1llalld
Riask
\il ....1")l
\Il(:hl.Tllll
.\1.01
Pooulsk
\'iln,l Ifonlloo 1!kJ61
fonlloo 1806
'9
(nfantry, .8.2 '4; an engraving afler Georg Adam. The officer
""cond I"fl w"ar/l the frock coat and undr""" cap. In th" Cfl>tr"
is a Pavlov Gnnadi"r, and third righl a grenadier wilh the ,8,2
A'jwt'r, lik" the officer extreme lefl, At exlr"m" right is a figur"
in gr""n with sky blue facings and black bell..-if nol a
colouri"t'.. error, conceivably a Jager in all old unif.,rm?_nd
appar"ntly a "ak.... fur cap, probably a captur.... item.
t806 regiments, Col/fIf CIIJJ5 & S!wll!dfl'

j(mp;
1'('1"110," red n'd, whil\' hltH'
flaps
Kallwh:llka whitt' Ilhile red
I.ihau him' rcd red
:'Ilillf{Tciia yellow ydluw. !'Id
!'I,d
lh'lll;
\\"ilmanstr.lnd
!'I,d
rcd tlhile,
piped red
Brt';;t whitt
r"d yellow
Kremcllchllg rellt)w yellow
:'II insk $k}' blue I"t"{l whilt"
gr, ...n

while
Okhotsk sky hlue sk} blue. red
rnl
n"ps
Infantry equipment included a black leather
cartridge box suspended at the right hip from a
wide white leather belt over the left shoulder; the
box bore a brass circular plate embossed with a
double eagle, with a separatc grenade badge at each
corner for grenadiers, the flames pointing inwards.
A whitC' leather belt with rectangular brass bucklc
was worn around the waist, supporting at the left
20
side a short, sliglllly curved, sabre with brass hilt, in
a black (or dark brown) leatherscabbard with brass
throat and chape; the white fabricsword knot had a
'bell' in the Inspection colour and fringe in
company colour (white, red, sky-blue or orange).
The knapsack was a black leather or canvas
cylindrical valise, worn at an angle on the wearer's
back, on a white leaLher belt worn over the right or
left shoulder (both methods are depicted), wiLh a
white-metal mess tin attached to the back by white
or black leather straps, The greatcoat (or sflinc!),
being looser and more comfonablc, was popular for
wear instead of the jacket; single-breastcd, it was
made of brownish-grey cloth of differing shades,
usually with collar and shoulder straps coloured like
those on tbejackel. The undress cap resemblcd the
French bOlI1le/ de policc, a dark green doth stocking-
cap with headband in the Inspection colour, piped
in the shoulder-strap colour, and a tassel of the
company colour with a fringe of mixed dark green
and the Inspection colour.
NCOs' rank distinctions comprised gold lace on
the front and lower edges of the collar, around the
tOp of the cuff, down the forward-facing edge of the
cufl"flap, and on the upper edge of the shako. Their
shako pompon was quartered, the sides white and
the upper and lower quarters mixed black and
orange; for grenadier NCOs the LOp or the plume
was white with a venical orange stripe which
extended over the tOp. Acane was carried as a rod of
office, which could be suspended from a button 011
the breast. Most NCOs carried a 'halberd', a pole-
arm wilil a partizan-style blade and a staff in the
regimental colour.
Officers
Officers' uniforms resembled those of the rank-and-
file, though their coatees had longer tails, buttons
were gilt, and shoulder straps were edged all round
with gold lace, The bottom bulton hole of the cuff
flap was usually a dummy, the button unfastened
and half concealed by the flap. They retained the
black bicorn with a black and gold cockade, secured
by a gold lace loop and gilt button, silver and
orange tassels and a black cock-feather plume. A
silver gorget was worn at the neck (gilt for field
officers), bearing a gilt centre ofa crowned trophy of
arms with a white-enamelled central disc bearing a
black and gold double cagle. White breeches were
worll with black boots which extended to the knee,
grey overalls (somctimes reinforced with black
leather) being used by mounted ofTicers on
campaign. Shabraqucs and holster caps were dark
green with red external piping, with an edging of
two gold stripes with a red line between; harnessing
was black leather with steel fittings.
Officers were armed with a straight-bladed
sword with gilded hilt, a single knucklebow and
shell guards, urn pommel and a grip bound with
silver wire, in a black leather scabbard gilt
fittings, and with a silver lace knot with black and
orange interwoven. The sword belt was concealed
by the lower edge of the jacket and the sash: the
universal sign ofcommissioned rank, this laller was
of silver lace or fabric, with three interwoven
horizomallincs of mixed black and orange; it was
frequently wrapped around the waist (so that
more than thrcc black and orange lines might be
visible). and knotted at the left side, from which two
heavy silver tassels were suspended. Junior officers
still carried a spontoon, with shafts coloured like the
sergeants' halberds; and officers also carried a cane,
though both werediseontinued in 1807. In the same
year officers were given the shako. though the
aClllal date of its adoption is in doubt (there is some
evidence that officers of the Caucasus Inspection
adopted it as early as 1805, whilst others may not
have received it until IBog). It resembled that of the
rank and file. with a gold lace upper band, and
chains hung around it from silver or gilt cagle
badges 011 the sides; the pompon was silver. Some
sources show the shako at this period without a
cockade. The bicom was retained for some orders of
dress.
Reforms of 1807-ISog
In November 1807 diffcrent Cacing colours were
eliminated, all regiments adopting red collar and
Cliffs, with shoulder straps coloured according to the
seniority of the regiment within the Division: 1st
regiment red, 2nd white, 3rd yellow, 4th dark green
piped red, sth light blue. In December 1807 it was
ordered that the divisional number should be borne
upon the shoulder strap, in yellow on red straps and
in red on thc othcrs. For officers shoulder straps
were replaced by epauleltcs, oC the shouJder strap
colour with gilt numbers and crescents. gold lace
edging and a gold Cringe Cor field ranks. In
Det:a.il (rom .n by (;.,..1".. o( th" BanI. o( kip:uS:
R......iaa illf...1:r')' .d......ce. ted by ... office.. wbo ;5 d;lItia_
s;uisbed by hill r....c.. .,...1 and 0'"'''1'1111.. wo.... "'ilb Ib" (uJJ dress
..ballo. As ...u.aJ, all w Ih,,; .. IIhako on......"nl.. willa DO
CODCtlIlI;On 10 lb. riSo o( .cti"" ..,.....;ce.
December 1807 the shako was restyled by the
addition of a black leather top, upper and lower
bands and V-shaped side reinCorcements.
The other ranks' waist bell was replaced by a
white leather belt Cor the sabre, worn over the right
shoulder; and a new pattern oC sabre was
introduced, a straight-bladed, German-style
with a hilt as beCore, and a brown leather scabbard
with bras... fittings. Bayonet scabbards seem to have
become common at this time. bayonets ha\;ng
previously always been carried fixed on the musket.
Later in December 1807 new leg.vear was
authorised: in summer, white one-piece 'gaiter
trousers' extending over the tOp or the Coot, and in
winter looser whitc cloth trousers with leather
'booting' which extended part way up the calr. One
variety apparently combined the two, with loose
'booting' which could be buttoned ovcr thc gaitcr-
trousers, the 'booting' carried atop or within the
knapsack when not WOI'tl.
InJuJy 1808 lhe shako cockade was replaced lot'
musketeers by a grenade badge with single name (as
worn by grenadiers Irom 180S); grenadiers now
received badges of three-flamed grenades, thc same
badges replacing the circular plaques on the
cartridge boxes. The cylindrical knapsack was
replaced by a rectangular, black leather case worn
upon the back and supported by white leather
shoulder straps. The rolled greatcoat was usually
slung over the left shoulder, atop the knapsack
straps and shoulder belt; Crom April IBog the
knapsack straps were connected by a horizOlltal
# I
r,,1

--
- 1iiliiio-
, ~ , ...... N.,J."
Russian troops 510r...i"g a d..f....dM poliition at Monl... aru"
in .8'1' Thil> conl ..... porary C..rman prinl illustral.... a f..alUN'
of Russian uniform ... issing i .. th.. c::a... paign dr..ss of oth.. r
nalionli' Ih.. us.. ofall shako ornan,enU, .. v.... on c::a... paign. All
.....ar the concave-IOppM ,8". ki"'l'r, with Hile compa.. y
plumu m th.. background; t.h.. figu..e wilh upraisM "wo..d
(....n".. rillhl) hal the disti"clive white pl .. me-tip of Ihe NCOI'.
The carl..idg" box.... all Ma.. Ihe nume::ral'47'."" p...... umably
Ih.. unil rc::p..e::se::nls the:: 47th Jiaige::rs. All we::ar full field
e::quipme"l a..d while 'gaile::r_.rnUll.,rli'.
breast-strap, and the lell knapsaek strap was
ordered to be worn over the rolled greatcoat.
For officers, a new gorget was introduced in
November 1808, smaller lhan the previous huge
pattern and bearing a crowned double cagle with
the shield ofSt. George still upon the eagle's breast,
but no longer cnamelled; the gorgets were silver for
2nd lieutenants, silver wilh gilt edge for lieutenants,
silver with gill edge and eagle lor 2nd captains, gilt
with silver cagle ror captains, and entirely gill ror
field officers. Al this time the colours of the halberd-
shafts and drumsticks changed, the 1st regiment of
each Division having yellow; 2nd, 4th and 5th,
black; and 3rd, white. Halberds were withdrawn in
18og, all NCOs carrying muskclS instcad.
In June 180g shako cords were adopted,
sllspended around lhe cap from the upper sides,
with a small tassel hanging at the left and two long
cords and 'raquettes' at thc right, hanging to the
level of the breast; on campaign they might be
looped up around the pompon, or secured by
passing under the shoulder strap or tied to a button
on the jackel. The cords were white for privates;
mixed white, black and orange ror NCOs; and
mixed silver, black and orange for officers. New
pompons were introduced: white with a green
centre 1'01' a regiment's Isl Bn., green with white
centre for the 2nd, and red with yellow centre for
the 3rd. Officers' pompons were silver with an
orange centre bearing an embroidered impcrial
cypher. In 1809 the NCO lace was translCrn.'d to
the top and front edges or the collar, inSlead of the
rront and lower edge as berore.
Refonns of 1810-1812
In 1810 all grcnadiers were ordered to wear red
shoulder straps. In February 1811 the huge
grenadier plume was replaced by a thinner variety
(as worn by the Guard since 1808), coloured as
before. In thc samc ycar NCOs adoptcd whitc
shako cords, and ofTiccl's' cords became silver
throughout. New pompons were decreed for the
shako, dincrentiating a regimcnt's battalions:
lSI 811.: grenadiers, rcd; tirailleurs, yellow; mus-
keH.'ers, whitc with grccn centrc
2'1/d 8n.: grenadiers, rcd ovcr grcen; tirailleurs,
yellow O\'cr grccll; muskctccrs, grecn with white
centre
3'd 8n.: as 2nd, but light bluc instcad of green
The s\\'ord knot now had a white strap and
fringc, with thc 'bell' and its upper and 10\\'cr rings
as follows:
1St 811.: grenadicrs, red bell and rings; tiraillcurs,
yellow bell and rings; lSI musketeer company,
whilC bell and rings; 2nd, white bell, blue rings:
3rd, white bcll, orange rings.
:md B".: grcnadiers, red bell, green rings; tiraillcurs,
yellow bell. green rings; 1St company grccn bell,
whitc rings; 2nd, green bell, blue rings; 3rd grcen
bell, orange rings.
3'd 811.: as 2nd, with sky blue replacing green
Also in lSI I, the greatcoat currs bccame coloured
(which do nO( appear to havc been uni\'crsal); and
in September a new foragc cap was introduced, a
dark green round c10lh cap with a widcr tOp and red
headband. Piping around the lOp was red for
grcnadicrs, whitc for muskcteers of the 1st Bn., lighl
green for Ihe 2nd and sky blue for the 3rd; piping on
the head-band was similar, except that tirailleurs
had yellow piping. A glazed leather peak was worn
only by officers.
The final major changc in uniform occurred in
1812, with the adoption ofa ncw shako, a scuttle-
shaped cap with concave top and sloping sides, with
leather top surface and reinforcing as before, (This
is coillmonly tcrmcd the kiwer, though this is
actually merely the Russian word for shako'.)
Ornaments, cords and plumes remained as before,
though all shakos now had hrass chinscales ,,'ith
circular brass bosses. Though authorised on I
January, the usual delays in adoption, exaccrbated
by the French invasion. resulted in some units
wearing Ihe previous pattcrn as late as 1814. Also in
1812, thc jackct collar was lowered and closed,
concealing the stock; and in the intcrcsts of
economy, officers were allowed to replace aU their
silver lace (sash, shako cords, pompon, CIC.) with
worsted. The black dummy boots worn in winter
G..... rds campai!" drKS, ('.18'4' nis shows a common
campais- wlifo....., dark flrer-o (rock coal wilh searlel collar.
cuff" and liniDll> flold collar loops .nd subahcrn!l'
WOrD wilh hicor...nd flr..y ov......lls wilh red Black
knapsack and cavatry"lyte waist belt with lIilt fininll'" The
G rdsm.... in thehackllrou.. ... S." Ihako with cords
r o ...ed. and beill" lI aleolllll wilh lcart.. 1 collar, culT.. aod
shoulder st.... ps. (CO mpo.... ry prinl)
were now cxtended 10 the knee.
Uniform changes instigated in 1814 again
suffered long delays before their implementation;
most notably, a single-breasted jacket with nine
buttons 011 the breast was authorised, but was nOt
actually adopted berol'c thc cnd of the Napoleonic.
Wars. Grenadier regiments were ot'dered to adopt
yellow shoulder straps instead of rcd (grenadier
regimcnts having a red initial all thcir straps), those
infantry regimcnts with yellow straps adopting blue
instead.
Weapons
Russian muskcts included a varict)' of patterns;
cven in .812 there existed 28 dillcrcnt calibres of
musket, plus I I varicties of shoTt rifle and carbine
(issued to t6 men Ixcr squadron of cuirassiers and
dragoons, and 12 10 the NCOs and best shots of
'3
RUS$ian c:ourtesy, .8'4' print Ad""u
d'lm Hu,<s.. 1i luI<' Pur;lli..nn(" illuslrau,s a which is shown in
many piC:lureIO of this period, il bf,ing almOSI dl' 'we'" for
liubalterns IQ wear Ihe bicorn with Lbe frock coat, with lIash
and d"coralions as would be wOrn in full dr"ss,
Campaign dress was vcry similar to full dress,
plumes and shako cords apparenlly being worn
even in aClion. Officers frequently worc a fi'ock coat,
with eithcr the undress cap, the shako or evcn a
bicorn, the laller being retained officially for wear
with undress uniform, which consisted of the dress
coatcc and oftcn dark grcen breeches and knee
each Jager company). Factories at Tula and
Sestrovetsk produced between 150,000 and 17,000
weapons a year, though they wcre clumsy and or
inrerior quality. Some 60,000 good English muskets
wcre issucd as rewards to deserving soldiers, adding
to the diversity. The 1798 pattern musket was
somewhat unusual in the position of its sling, thc
lower swivel positioned on thc butt bchind, instead
or forward, of the trigger guard; later illustrations,
however, show more convcntional positioning. The
17g8 muskct had no barrel bands and was 141cm
overall (barrel lcngth I03,scm).
boots. The sword \'Ias worn in undress, but the
gorget and sash were usually omitted. The wear and
tcar of active service usually rcsulted in a ragged
appearance, and lattcrly little attempt was made by
the more enlightcncd commanders to maintain
regulation uniform. KUtllZOV once stopped a unil
from polishing its buttons and pipec1aying its belts
during the 1812 campaign, saying: 'I don't wal1l
anyorthat , .. Asoldier has no time forsmannesson
campaign. He must rcst after his tiring cfforts and
prepare for victory'; and to Denis Davidov, who
apologised for wearing peasant dress in KUluzov's
presence: 'Act ... with your head and your heart. It
doesn't matter to me that one is covered with a cap
and not a shako, and the other bealS under a)'QlIwj;
lsmockJ and not under a uniform'.
Alexopol 13W/12Y; Apcheron lIC/gW; Ar-
changel 8Y/gW; Azov 6R/6R.
Bieloserk 17'1'/1 oC; Bielostock (formcd 1808
from 3 odd batlns. at Danzig) gB/17\'\'; Bielov
IgW/lgY; Borodino (rormed 1813: 23rd Div.);
Boulirsk 13G/24W; Brcst qW/qY; Briansk
<oW/6G.
Crimea (formed 1806) loB/lOY; Dnieper
18'1'/18'1'; Ekatcrinburg -/23W; Estonia (formed
1806-07) 12th Div,/14G; GalilZ 9G/13Y;Jaroslav
lOY/lOR; Je1ctz 2W/I IW.
Kabardinsk 20B/20Y; Kaluga 5G/SG; Kam-
chatka 16G/16Y; Kazan IgR/lgR; Kolyvan
ISW/ISY; Koporsk 3G/3G; Kostroma 18W/18C;
Kozlov 15Y/lSW; Krcmenchug 4G/4Y; Kurin
ISG/ISG; Kursk lOG/lOW.
INFANTRY REGIMENTS, 1807-14
There was considerable re-allocation of regimenLS
to different Divisions during this period; regiments
are listed here alphabctically with twO sets or
symbols, the first for 1807-11 and the second
1812-14, Shoulder strap colours were red for lhe 1st
regiment or each division, 2nd white, 3rd yellow,
4th dark green piped red, and 5th light blue; letters
indicate the colours, and numbers the divisional
numeral carried on the strap. (E,g, Alexopol Regt.:
1807-11, white Straps, numeral '13', as second
regiment of 13th Div.; J81JrJ4, yclJow straps,
numeral '12' as third regiment of 121h Div.) Bold
lcttcring is purely to aid quick reference:

4
1: Grenadier, Preobrajenski Lifeguard, 1799-1801
2: Officer, Malorossiiski Grenadiers, full dress, 1799-1801
3: Infantry private, campaign dress, 1799
4: Grenadier NCO, Duke of Bourbon's Grenadiers, Armee de Conde
1
A
B
4
1: Musketeer officer, Lithuania.Regt., 1805
2: Private, SemenovskiLifeguard, 1805
3: Musketeer, Rostov Regt., 1805
4: Musketeer Sgt., Ukraine Regt., 1805
2
1: Grenadier, Smolensk Regt., 1805
2: Drummer, Azov Regt., 1805
3: Private, Pavlov Grenadiers, 1806
4: Sgt., St. Petersburg Grenadiers, 1806
c
o
1; Private, 5th Jiigers, 1805
2; Private IstJiigers 1809
3: Capt., SchlusselburgRegt., field dr ,1 09
4: Private, SmolenskRegt., 1808
3
1: Grenadier, ummerdre ,1 0
2: fusketeer,' inter dre ,I 09
3: Grenadier, 1812
4: Carabinier CO Jager 1 12
E
1: Fliigel-Adjutant oflnfantry, campaign dress, 1812
2: Field officer, Infantry, summer dress, 1812
3: Capt., Izmailovski Lifeguard, summer dress, 1812
F
1: Mu k teer, field dress, summer 1812
2: Grenadier, field dress, winter 1812
3: Private, MoscowOpolchenie
4: Private, St. Petersburg Opolchenie
G
H
1: Private, Pavlov Lifeguard, summer dre ,1813-14
2: Private, Litovski Lifeguard, summer dre s
3: Infantry NCO, campaign dress, 1814
4: Jiiger, Russo-German Legion, 1814
Ladoga r:IY!'.111\\": I.ibau :lIG/7\': Lithuania
rB!:.!IY,
Mingrelia rGBjIGG: IB/I(;:
s\\"f;jY: ...co" ]\\'/7\\': .\Iurlllallsk 3\\'/3\\"
Nacheburg 11\\"9R: X:lIYa 1:1\\': .'\a\'a-
jillSk r 1(; r IY: :\'luS(.'hlnt 16Y ltiR: :\'l'\'a
:.! 1 rR: .'\1'\\ I ngcnnanland 12B'I :.!C: ."I"ijenonxl
I:IR c!GR: G\\' (iY: :\'U\goriKI IGR/-.
Odessa I rH/'2]R: Okhotsk 16\\" 16\\": Old
fiB 8\': Clonetz I.1G Orc!
126G: 0111:1 2SY :.qY: Ouglil7. (iY/G\\'.
Pensac!'lB 13G:IJc'l'll1jR,jR:Penlo\ '..!IB IIG:
Illtronk .!l \\' :.!l \ \': I>O(lolsk 7Bit Y: PololSk
c!C .!IG; Poha\'a 138 :.16Y: ]Y/7R.
Revel fiG 3Y: Ri:u,an 17R 17R: Riask 9Y/9Y:
Riga 23Y '.!3R.
Saralov '..!u hun' shOllldl'" :.trapsI I3\,': SchluSSl'l-
hun\" 8\\'fH\,: Seh:l:.tolX)1 IgG 19G: Selt.guinsk
:qR .!3Y: Shinall c!SR 2-1R: Sic\'Sk 5Y 5"': Silll-
bir:sk '..!]C: Smokll:.k I'..!Y l.lR: Solin 613 7C:
lusdal 19\' 19"': Slaro:.kol nY.
Tambov Elm Iff\\": Tarnopol .!7Y: Tarutino
1813, '.!3nl Di\'.: Tdwrnigm' 3Y'3R:
1.1\\' q\\': Tim:. .10\\': Toho!!:k
-IR: Tom... k Troitsk 20'"''2uR: Tula
14
R
.
Ukraine 9\\" 8G: \'diki-!'olltzk '..!I R 13R:
\'iazma '.!'.!Y'.!c!\\'; Viborg '12K ''2'2K: \'ilna
.I\\'/'..!]\\': \'Iadimir 7(;118R: Vite:bsk 15R/ISR:
\'olhynia IY/,,\\'; \'ologda 19B/1gB: \'ol'One:zh
8e '25R: \\'ilrnanstrand 17G/I ]G: YakulSk

For tBr'.!, the Cl'cnadier regimellts were: with-
drawll 10 forlll Ill'W lSI ilnd 'lnd (Grenadier)
Di\'isions; tht, regiments comprising: thesc were as
lollo\l's. with their carliel' divisional wlours in
parcl1tlH'ses:
IJI (,'r/?//fldia DiI,,: Al'ilkchccv (formerly RoslOv.
14R1, Ekaterinosla\' (7R), Life 11K). Pavlov
(2Y), SL P('lcrsburg ('2R), Tauridc (3R).
2//d G,.('//(/(Ii" DirT.: Aslrakhan IgR). Fanagoria
(I2R), Kil'\' ( roR), Little Russia (I IY). J\loscow
(8R), Siberia (1IR).
(CallC;L"uS Grt.nadiers !':wYlrc-nam("d Gcorgin
181 r; r:.();holm Grenadiers, 20K .
III 181'1 the 1St 4th J\lanne:s. who wore: inrantl''Y
uniform with dark gree:n facil1&rs piped while.
occupil-d 2S\\'. 2SY, 25G and 28R respecti\'e1y.
Russi..... '.-oops nn",";nJ: V....,.;s in ,8.". pri...... ril) ...
carlooo "";licisioS lh.. ... n "'rn')"' habil or pluad"riag,
uni(ornu. "r", porU'a)''''' ,.""unu"ly. Cos""ca..s nd .......... so r
in "hilia.. an: ia Ih", b;o"k&round. and a Gu rd.ll officer .
..h.. riShl (aole Ihe 'Guard OiIar' On hi" hols.er-cap); Ih", "nnnr.1
6JUrO!S an: sn:nadirr in a lypi.,...lI)'.lons &n:.,,,......, .nd
(oraS'" cap; the olh"r ........ ..,. a j,i........ Both w"ar orrotia.IIl"
in .. h..ir h..... d-dffS5 (a "rlJ:.ric"lw" or 'r.",ld."isn'). and .. h"
'lilH:ntlion hras"",rd' .round Che I"rl arm. NOI'" alS<> Ih"
sn:n::o.di.,r's .-arlridse box with l";pl.,.na..,NIn:nad."
Jitger Ulliforllls
Following til(" ahandnnmellt ur till' 'POlcmkin'
uniform. thcJitgcr:. re-adoptl-tllhe: bic"ru and light
green coat ,,'ilh colollnxl cllns and falling collar;
Iheir lealhcrwol'k was black. and the:ircanndgc box
was carried at the: frOllt or the \\ aist belt, In lBe) 1-02
the uniform rescmbled Ih:.tt of till' Line:. with
sianding collar but no shoulder straps. and
remained ligl\( gree:n with collar
and cuffs (some SOIlI'Cl'S indicate light grecn
turnhacks inSlead of the usual red); breeches wcre
whitc in summer and lighl gn'l'll with facing-
coloured piping in wimer. Mosl othn delails
resembll:d tIl(' Line: JiigcI"S carrit'd thl' inliulIr'y
musket, except NCOs and l:l sharpshootlT'; pCI'
company, who had rifled muskets; a sword-bayonet
was also carried. In rUO'2 tIle bil'Or'l1 was replact:d by
a fC'1t 'round hat' r('sembling a shako but with a
large peak extending around the side:s or 1I1l cap,
including the reM, with iI cockadc and pompon likl:
l.he infantry shako. Rank distillctions wC'n' as for the
Line, C);ce:pt that 110 poleanns \\t'n' carril-tl. and
officers had gret'll-pIUllll-t\ l,it;ol'Tls.
dislinctions were lik(' those or the Line. with black.
drum hoops and Slicks. Le;\tlu:f\\ork n:main('<!
black, Omcers' shahracpws WI'I'I' light gt't'clI. with a
facillg-coloured slri,x' bctWITll two gold laClos
around til(' (:dgl'.
1n 1806 Iht (artlidf.\"l 1>0); at till" Ii-mIt ortlw waist
I'Olllj}l)1I Ullin' DiI,.
tw.
ballaliOIl
"
pink
"
red G

4
IW'quoisl'
liglll grecn
white II
dark hilI(' >0
yellow 20
b!:l("k
'I
lig-hl gnTIl
7
straw yellow
pink
red
grey
IlIrquoisc
dark orangt:
whilC
medium bluc
yellow
black
"prieot
,

4
5
6
7
8
9
10
"
In 1808 shouldcr Sl raps were introd Llccd iII red
rOJ" Ihe senior regiment in cach Division, and lighL
blue for ,hejunioJ", bearing Lhe divisional number:
these changed in 180g, the red becoming yellow.
and changed again in Sword-bayonets
and rifled mllskets were withdrawn in JlIlW 1808.
the inrantry muskc' becoming Ihe standard
weapon; in November it was ordered that the
bayonet should always be carried fixed, as for the
Line, Ihough (II a laler dalc at least it that
scabbards were used.
In 1809 Lhe shako's evolution fottowcd Ihal orthe
infantry. and collar and cuffs became dark green
piped red for all, like the tumbacks. In 181 I the
grenade shako badge of the Line was adOpLI.:d. and
in February it was ordered Lhat the carabinier
companies would wear lhe black plume or Lim
grenadiers, bUl laLcr in Ihe month it was
discontinued for tirailleur platoons. The 1812 shako
was adopted as by the Line, with the plullle again
restricted to carabinier platoons.
The newly-named Grenadicr-Jiigers of April
1814 adopled yellow shoulder straps; Ihose pre-
viously wearing yellow took light bIlle, and those
wilh light blue lOok green piped with rccl. In Augusl
1814 lhe were rc-desigll<lLed (he
1st-6th Carabiniers
l
becoming the light infanLry or
Ihe Grenadicr Divisions, and took red shoulder
straps.
Jager Regiments
Facing colollrs below refer 10 the period hclore
1807-08, when the light green uniform was worn.
Divisional tluml>crs givcn arc lhosc for 1812.
"Ballalion' under Lhe indicales lhaL
regimental colouring was llsed: 1st Bn., white; 2nd,
yellow; 3rd, red.
Rr,!!.I, ColfnrlclIJfs
replaCf'd hy an inr,lI11ry pill(Crn on a shoulder
bdt. ,hI' flap Of,1l1' box lwarillg it brass regimenlal
numher li'olll 180g. III Septcmber 1807 IheJager
eap was rcplaced by an inHlIItry shako: and in
Nowrnbcr 18, I] a dark green Lim'-pat tel'tl unirorm
was imrodLlced, with red cuffs and wllite collar
piped rl'd for all. wilh while brecches in summcr
alld dark green piped 1'I.:d in winter. Olliccrs'
shabraqucs heoul1c dark green, wilh red stripes
hCI\\'{TIl tht: gold bCl'S.
Th" i"'l.r."."i," Russian gr"n,..li"r uniform was a popular
subj"ec with "","I"l1lporar)' "rli"cs, e"l.c"i"lI)' during ch"
occupation of "rane., in ,8'1 '5' Th" ecncral figur., h"r" i" "
G",.rdSIll:on-n,," ,hI' ""glc 1'1"1,, on th" shako, th" searlec
1"....,1" .. ndp,.,'it;;-w;th:o P:ovto... G""rd"m,,n III righI, wearing
lit... "Id j .. ekct wilhout la,,"''' but wich lh.. 'Guard' loops. H..
"'ellrS """, ..... r 'g:oiu,,,-Irouscrs', while his companion has
"int,,r lcg...c:or. The fig"r" at left " "r"""ian.
raspbary light !{1'1'{'11 13
13 lighl uchrt, light J.:n;ell 1:1
q dll'SlllUl ('hC'SUllll I';
15 iron grey Iron grc} .w
t6 dlalllois chamois 19
I; \'iokt violet 19
IH bmwn IJrO\l1I
19 lilae lilac
dark gn,Tll I\hite 3
I red pip(..1:1 whitt" II hitl" :3
'1:! \I hitl' piped red (('(I 13
13 pipnl \Ihilt hlack ;)
I liglll grn"lI l)iIM...1 liL:hl hlue hluc ;)
15 }dloll pil)(:d 1"'-'(1 1'..11 14
dark bllli' pipc.-d n:d rt.-d q
:!; n...i baualiOIl 16
:!8 }dIH\I hallalioll 18
19 IIlrquoisc ballalion 12
3(' II hill' batlalioll 17
31 Ioallalion 17
3'1 black !>.111.Jlion 18
Colla'" \\t"f(' Ih;lu I>iped ill the cull' ('olour for
'!-; 3:! ,
Shoulder lolHllIing ch:IIIW-d ","\('ral
bl'lwenl 18n; ;Ind IRI-l. For 181 J. IIIl' "'oluur I\;b }dlO\1
for RI"gb, I 13, III J.O. .13 .15. 17 31. and "9, ;llId light
hlul' flll'lhe rt'nl.tilldeT. ll11mlM'rs ill 18u for
lht bit... rcgillwlIts \lTre: 33nl. I 1111 Di\.; :Hlh i. 3:)lh 6.
36th;. 38th 9. 391h 10, IlIlh :,q. l'l. plld .16,
nrd 16, ,I ph J.I. '16th J:\. 171h J5. 181h I;.
l!Jth :')oth J.;.
CLlrml UNiforms,
1801-14
Guard unilorllls resl'mhled thost, or lhe Line, Wilh
the addition of Gllard distinClions; two Gcrlllan-
style yellol1' 1:lcc loops (fJrlli/:::.i) \\'orn on each side of"
\h(.'collar and tllrc(' 011 ('ach culfflap, <Llld thc star or
Sl. Andrcw upon thl'ir :I(TOlltn'lllcnts, Tlwir
original shako was like that or Litle grcn<ldicrs, with
a bl'as."grt'n<l(!l' lx'low tllC cockade and a yellow lace
uppcr band, a similar plumc, and pompons green
with whitc cl'ntre for 1St BIIS., green with
yellow Cel1tfe, 3rd, rcd with yellow centre, and ,ph.
blue with whitc ccl1trc, Culls wIn' I'ed ror all thrc('
and collars and shoulder straps red
I PR'Obr<ucllski), ultramarinc piped with red tSCIll-
('no\1iki) til' dark gn.'t'n piped with red (Izmail-
O\'Skil. Cal"tridgl' hOXN 1)1 In' til(' ofSt. Andre\\.
,
Th.. rO '5n...-''' ,'i"w o( R..ui .. ", di......... li,,,
offie..r " nl Siool 10 .....ch fficicntl) hi5h 10 !>Inke a
G...rcbm:o.n, Th Ah Ihis contemporary "ri"l is encv.. nlered
coloured 10 rep",""'nl Ih.. Pr.. s",i.a...r".y. il i" .h" R.. ssi.n
m ..tho<! "(discipline which is lampoonftl. The loops on collars
and e.. ff.. ;de.. tify Ihi.. "s .. G.... rd ....5; .......1. and ;1 .. I....
iII.. "lral...,; Ibe "u.gl....br""'..t...l eoale<o ;ntrocl.. e...l in t8.'4 bUI
n"l ;"".. ...1 Ixf"..... th.. nod of Ihe NapolM>nic: W.. r ...
with 10\1r grenade'S in tilt' tlf lhl' flap.
had cOIl\'clltional rank in"ignia; offic('rs had gold
loops 011 thc collar and ('ulrnaps [or ;Ioops' orloliau'
cmbroidcl)'), a gold aiguikHc 0l1111l' righl shouldcl'
and a gold shoulder strap on lht' Ieli. (;org-fts bore
regimelltal battl('11otlOll"S; tide! ollicf'l's' shahraCjues
II'crc red, hearing two gold lac(' bands with n
or lhe collar colour bl't\\Cl'll (bllt whitt' Ii).. lhe
Izmailovski), and bon' a SIal' nrst. :\ndt'I'11 Oil the
rear('orncI"S and holsltTCapS, Shaft.s ol"h:.lIh(rds and
drumsticks wer<' colli:e for lht' !>n'olll'lj\'nski. hlack
lor Scnlt:llo\,ski and while lor Il.lllailovski.
The changes ill Guard ll11ililrlll Il.'>ll:lll) lollowed
those of lhl' Line, In IRc.J7 quem'S and officers'
spontoons \\crc aholishnl; from KC:Os
receivcd cartridge boxes and hal herds
being retained onl) b) lIujUl"'\. In 1BoH thl'
shako plume Ixcanll' thilllwr nlTin'l'-'( rl'l:.lillill\\" tI\l'
35
/
'n-------------if
A
v '"
_8


I.efr
Grenadier abre, lal" .8th "nfUry: 8.1cm 0 eraJJ. ouJd"d
brass hilt with grooved bra grip' slightly curved bl de with
black I alh I' cabb I'd with b.... d throa., belt-hook and chape,
most of the Ian I' covered with black leather.
(""/If""
Infantry officer word a used throughoul the reign of
Alexander I. Gill hilt Wilh single knuckle bow, shell guards and
urn pOlTU1Jel' rip bound witb silver wi,e. L ather scabbard
with gilt chape and locket filted with a hook for suspension
from the b -It-frog.

'Gua.rd loop : the di linctiv in ignia ofGuard regiDlenls lwo
loop' being worn on each id of the eoUar. From top to
bollom: (A) design of ordinary pc/lid' (8) embroidered loop
\ orn by offic I' of IbePreobraj n ki R gt.; ( ) rnbroidered
loop worn b)' officer of the c.menovski RegJ.. ; (D) em-
broidered loop worn by officer of the lzmailo ski Regiment.
Cuff-flap loops w re of t.h same design but muc.h sborter.
larg I' version until 180g), and a s double agle
hako pial Wel.'; ad pled b I uard r gjm nl . In
1 0. officl'1 . abandoned lh aiguilclt nd I' civcd
paul He. for both hould I all thre regim Ilts
ad red houlder lraps. In 181 the. hako
rc iv d 01 hin cal" 1 Q. shako cords
Ie 'ame whit \ iLh Ila k rang and whi la" J
and mrs' I'd I "am sil I' in pia f th ir
previolls . ilv I' bla k and orange,
The uniform in 1812 slill I' mbled that of th
Linc, the t 812 kil er ha\ ing a large brass doul le-
agle pIal(" p I11p ns and \ I'd Knots w r like th
Lil c; and < II \ re gn-nadier plum (I' d for
'2 )
.1
mu. i ian. wh w I' rclinar' uniform Wilh y 'lIow
1 v.riLh in! rw \'en I' d .trip ). Th w r'
I' y II w \"rilh a I' d Lrip I .iLi n d as b forc
(n collar I op fc I' whos rank-lace
upi d th pa' f Ih 'ncl 10 pl. nIcel'
'habraque W redark<Trecnwithla easb r I' .an I
Lhe Slar badge in silver. The Lito ski rcc,imcnl wa'
riginall uniqu in w arin arl l lap Is, copied
fr m lh unjf I'm f th Guard Dra oon'; lal r lh .
u f u h lap I xl'nd d t Lh r gim I l. )1' lhe
_nd Guard Dhji n. 'a inD's 1'01' tI c uard' in
1812-13 weI'
Regt. Collar/cuff'. Lapels
PI' obrajen ki r cI n nc
'em n vskj blu piped r d lion>
lzmailovski dark green piped red none
ito\ ki r d I'd
Lifc' renadier' Iluc piped red reel
Pa I v dark gr n pi p d r d red
h uld I' trap. r malO d I' d. Whit jJellit-i
(gold for offi rs) had b n worn by th Life
Grnaruel pri rl a hj ving uard.lalLl inl8lS'
th Pavlo I' gim nl like..vi lev t d, Iso wor
whit> lac (gold 1'01' oln rs) and ontinued Lo car
th i.. bras' mit.. al '. Th ir m rs ,habraqucs
had a whit strip b tw I lh ir t\ 0 Ja bands.
h Guard Jagcrs originally I' th light gr II
rth Lin Jager' ilh ran ollar and ull:' nd
yello\\' la : lhcir I 'alh n\ ark was black, the 1'1' maJ
cartrid J'e: b x bcin . repla 'd b . lhe . houlder-bell
tyle in 18n, nlike lbe LineJacrcr" th y \ 1" th
infanlry . hako 01' lh oth r uard, ",iLh a \ hil
pompon inslead or tJJe grenadi r plum . and n
badg '. I n I 07 lh 'Y adopl d lark green ullir I'm
\ lth eI, rk r 11 011 1', uffs and 'h uldcr :trap'
piped orangC', white summer br eche wiLh gait rs
and . rk grc n" il1l T br h 5, piped orange, wiLh
lcaLh I' ral e boots, \\' apon er lik Lho e or lh
Lin Ja 1'.. In 1807 lhe hak recei cd lealher
I' in r 'ing and th lull -'a I bad e a 'I' lher
uards reQ"imenl.: ",hen the carabinier' w're
ronnd in 1811 lhe)' had bla k plume. Red plum.
were worn by musicians, and in 181'1 lh n av -
topped kiwf'r wa. adopled. The Finland regim I1l
\ or' th . am' un if" I'm hUl with rd pipin
o
',
The Guard Militia battalion wore d rk green
\ ilh red piping on lhe brea'l and hould r ,lrap.'
lhir sir ko bra opp I' gr nad , with a I' d
pompon lor crrenadi l' ellm ror Lirailleur and
0'1' ('n r I' Jag'r.
.., .
Opelc/Ie/zie (Militia)
O('SpiLc e labli hmcm fear' l'armin lh p 'anlr
(caus lb m mori . or Puga hey's err Revoll)
Ihe IJ/Joldll'1/ie or militia was I' al d in Novemb l'
180 lo lrain . I'D I I ngin t privat
landowners: Ihe rew unit rc I'm d were di 'banded in
IU07.Th organi.ali n w p n d I all III I' in
1812, nd 223,361 III n w re enr lied in lhal year
thl'1' I' (' leming one f lh principaJ xpr sin
nf"nationaJ cmhusia m. Training" a rudim ntar.
lhnugh KUl IZOV (ommandin Lbe l. P lersbur
mililia in 1812) mad it a: ' mpr h nsive a im
allow d, empha i b 'ing pi 'd up n Lh abilit 'to
hop and 10 hOOl' rather than to mana U\T ,
I' ani, ali n \\'a in' h 11'1. " probabl imilar
1 a pI' p 'cd 'NationaJ u rei' or 1811 in \ hjch
l\ 0 pik ballaJi ns weI' to b mbined wilh a
Ji er ballali n I'm d with mu. k t, plu. one
grenadier company per cohort; pike companics
W rc Lo be '1 tr ng, Jager 1'20 and grenadicrs
100. The follO\ ing inli:Ultr 'ohor were rc I'm 'd by
lhe M em T\" I' and Jarosla five
c ell' Kalliga and ladimir. ix ach' imbir'k,
Guard shako plate, ,807 '7' At Lhis period the shako plates of
Guard infantry were generall ofLhis p It rn, witb on 1-
head lower than the oth r. larger "a 1 \Va' authorised i,n
.8'7, though reta'niDg the ame ba ic con.figuration.
1 iazan and lila, fI ur each: Sl. Petersburg 1-:
N "gar cI 1_; K Slr m' f( ur and a hall'. Jag I'
I' gimenls v ere formed in a lclition b:
(lbJ'ee regl .). Tula (1\ ) al d Kaluga l ne) plus
t a addiLional pike I' gim n: I y Riazan,
The opolcheni \\'a used a a resen' (or lhc
regular ome appal' ntly bing Ii lril lit 'd mung
the r gular I' 'g-imclll', bOlh to perft m m nialla ki;
uch evacuaLin ea ualtie or w rking
pioneer, and in anion La ex ul Lhc h rp.;
irtually Ihe only lactj in \ hi h Lhey w r lrain d.
\ 'ilson nOled thaI The very mililia who hnd.iu L
join d (and wh , I in arm d 0111 Wilh pikes.
lormed a third rank to Ih' ballaUon ) not onl L od
a Lead und I' lh cann nad as Ih ir \' t ran
comrade, blll harg d Lh salJ ing 'n 'm . \ iLh
ardent 1'0 'ity'. \\'illgCll t in rCj )rt'd Ihal the. l.
P t I' bur rp Ii Lril uled am( ng lhe
regular in October 181_, whclI 'La Lh dclighl of"
v I' b dy Ihs ward I' have f" uO'hl \ ilh . u h
good will and courag' thai Ihey ould nIb
exceeded by lheir comrades the old soldier:, t n I
lh hay distingui.h dth m.c1ve in I articular
manner in columns wiLh the ba OIlCt'. B Ol1Lra:1.
n' habb -I oking miL' " ho wore 'I' ugh gr y
c alS wiLhout a collar and c1in loth p, at
Leipzig fired a v lIey in the air nel iml11 'dialcJy
lu.rnd on lheir h el., de.pil C'ul'.e)ii and kn L11-
blow Ii'om Lh i r fli 'CI ..
Equipmenl was ruclimentary: il iLiall' only
Jag rs and gr nadi rs I ad fir 'arms lh remaindcr
pik sorcrlaiv -lik w'apon .. th P'LT:burg orp'al
I a thad a;o,. nel.h v I., i:u'd at Kutuzov's
re'lu l. Mo I \- or a p a, am kC!j(fl/l and eiLh r a rc II
:n
hal or peakcd doth cap. with a haversack or
knapsack: later, grey or beige greatcoats wcre used.
5uhr l>hows militiamen wearing peaked caps
C{lv(:n:d \\ilh blad oilskin, and the Elbl'rli:'ld \IS, a
round fur bal. Their universal insignia was a cross
worn on tIl(" cap, inscribed 'Fur Faith and the Czar',
latel' copit'd by the PrussiaIt LO/ldwl'hr. Officers wore
illl;ll1t 1') LIlli IOrm. Examplcs of" regimcntal 51yles arc
shown in Plate 1-1: others included the 'l\'cr corps.
\\ hich wt)rt' Illedi um-grc) kajiol/s likc \ loscow, \\ i t h
Jiigers, frnm a contemporary print of 1' Son, Onl" wl"ars Ihe
lighl gr""n coal with I"p"h,. lInolh"r ....ith Ih., 1"p"ls do.. "d,
NOle . h., ""rtridg" box on Ih" fronl of . h.. w"isl !>cit, . h.. shorl
gail"rs (wnrn also h)' ab.. offic.,r "lief iden.ified by his
gorg.. I), and .h.. "hor! nn.. or carbin...
red. blue. brown or olT-whi Ie bellS and grey caps like
St. Petershurg, bearing a cross badge over the
Imperial cypher, and black t'C]uipmeIlL N"ovgorod
corps wore a grey Ii'ock coal with grey belt, grey
trousers with red stripe, and a grey pcakless C?..flpka
Wilh black fur headband and the cross-and-cypher
badge.
Partisan bands werc formcd during the r812
campaign, often mobs of disord(Tcd pC:lsants who
were reponsiblc for the \\'OI'St atrocities against lhe
invaders. Some were armed Wilh captured weap-
ons, bUIl1'1any h:ld only agl'iulllUral implclllellls; <IS
Rostophchin exhorted the citizens of the i\loscow
region: 'Arm yourselves, it mailers not with what
arms: but pal'licularly pitChforks, which art' so
much morc suitable <lgainst tire French, bccamt: in
weighl they resemble trusses of straw',
Further units of 'irregulars' were those formed
f"rom Greck and SuliO! refugees in the Ionian islands
and elsewhere, Basically wild tribesmen, they W('IT
ill-equipped, and caused as much terror among
their allies as 10 their cnemies: "the wildest or the
mountain dans 0(' Albania. Thdr very gail \Old
their talc: il was the lloisekss creeping of it cat in
search of prey; their eyes, though lighted b)' no
passion. wcre incl'SSamly llluving ... A SOrt ol'<:mu'S\'
shirt belted round their waist, with a capole uf the
skins ofshccp or goats formed their dress: and a long
gUll and a stout knife their arms, They would ha\'c
dOlle liltle barm 10 the Fretlt:h, but they would have
been mosl deadly proteclors to lhc Italians.
Curiously, it that some womcn ill
the ranks, olle being a Suliot heroine named
i\loskho,
Colours
Russian infantry Cololll'S followed a most complex
scheme and existed in se\'eral patterns, with old
examples continuing in usc in mall)' cases. Tht: basic
design was in Prussian style. wilh a cenlral disc
bearing the double-cagle set UpOIl a
consisting ora cross !)(IlIft: ulXln a coloured hacking.
In r797 Paul I authorised each regimenl to carry
one 'white' Colour (corresponding to thc Prussian
Ll'ihJaJmt: or British King's Colour), plus onc
'coloured' nag pCI' company. In 1800 a lIew pall('l"ll
authorised, the main colour bcing' Ihat of" thc
Illspection; but apparently few were issued Ix:lore
Alexander I reduced the numocr tosix per regiment
in 1802, the 1St BIl. carrying one whilC and onc
'coloured" flag. and Ihe Olher baualions two
'coloured' flags each. III 1803 another pattenl was
introduced. incorporating Alexander's cypher. In
1806 the first 'Colour of 5t. CL'Orgc' was issuLxI,
being the 1803 pattern with inscriptions to reward
some exploit, plus a 'cravat' of or.lIlge with thrcc
black stripes, the colours of the Order of St. George.
.\!lather p.. '1ttel'l1 was illlroduccd in 1813, but as
many of the old p..'1ttenlS COlllinuLxI in usc.
The Guard rccci\'ed their own pattern in 1800. new
rq.,rimcnts n..-cci\'ing the 1803 p..1ttern until 1813.
when two new is... ucs were made, Colours of 51.
George in April and in O(:cembcr a further issue of
'coloured' flags. probably one per battalion only. So
many and varied werc the designs that there is
insufficielll space to rcoount them here; the)' arc
described ill detail in another tille of lhe prcsclll
series. 78 Flags rif Ilu -,"apollO/lie War.s (2).
Terence Wise. 1978.
Tlte Plates
A,: Grel/adier. Prrobmjl'1lski Liftgllard, 17S1.rJ&,
The grenadier WC'lrs the Guard version of thc
inf.11l1ry coal, the so-called ktiflllli il1lroduccd in
1797, worn open and without lapels; the fringed
lace loops indicate Guard status. The brass-front<..'((
C<lp was dislinguished b)' having the cagle
enamelled black, with the shield ulXln the cagle's
breast (bearing SI. George and the dragon)
cll;llllclled in red, The long white gailers were worn
in summer, and black in winter,
112: OjJim. A/alfmlJ'siiski Gmmdim. full dress.
17!J9-Ilk) J
Though the rank aud file of grenadier corps wore
the meial-frollll.'d Prussian-style mitre, officers
retained the cocked hal like the remainder of the
inf..lltry, lrimmed wilh metallic lace and loop, wilh
the black and orange cockade favoured by Czar
Paul. The infanlry coal shown here has facing-
co10ul'(.'(( lapels (officers' eoats had 110 turnbacks),
til(' principal rank markings being the sil\'CT sash
Jag..rll, .806 07, ...... "; ..g ,h"ir or;g;n.. 1 l;,;h. ';1''"''"'' uniform
..";,h coloured f.. c;n,;,;, .. nd Ih.. di"lincth'" ' ....und ha.'. Th"
NCO (/rft) i,. di,..in,; .. i"hed by 'he lau- on cull.. r and c.. ffs,
q .... n"rfl'! pompon .. nd ..; h.. a ....t ...i.h
quillon ..ard. Th... c..n,nl fI,; ....., rli ,I,,, undr..s" stockins
cap ..sed by ;nfantry " ..Iii ,8, <: .1 ,isibl.. is .b.. "ingl" h"l.on
a. Ihe bonom of the b...,as ,,"u.. l1y obscured by Ih.. heh. Th..
Ji,;cr al righ. carn...... sock..t 1"')"On"l ...i.h . h.. car,ndg.. bo"
"'Orn a, 'he rear in".,... d of ... ,h.. fron. of Ih....... is. hell.
(ED,;n...iD'; af' .. r Vi"ko... 'o,")
with inlerwoven black and orange Ihreads and the
huge gorget. CZ;lr Paul inlroduced a standard
gorgcl far the clIlin:' arlll)' in 17g8. hearing an
enamelled centre featuring lhe blaek double eaglc;
onl)' during the cllrl'(:ncy of Ihis pa Ilern did Iht, Iwo
scnior Gllard regimcllis Ins(' Iht dis!illctian of
bearing the bailie honuur Na'....a UpOli the gorg(1.
AI this dale, aniccl's still can'i(:d Iht' SlxIIlloon or
half-pike.
"3: Pril:ot,. "!lantry. mmJ)(Iil!fI drm. 17M}
From a piclure by Ihl' Gcrman ani!'1 \\'ilhdm \'on
KaocH, this muskele('r wears what appears to havc
1)(:('11 t)'pical campaign dress ill SwitZtTland, Von
Koocll shO\.'S figures carrying both hidc knapsa('ks
on the back. and canvas haversacks OWl' tht' ri!{ht
Jager o f f i " " r ~ in undres" uniforn., ,806 07. Similar in ",)'Ie '0
,he I.in.. uniform, bu' in JaS"r "oluuring, ,he sash and gorg",
are OlllillM for undr".... , (Engraving afl"r Vi"ko.alOv)
shuulder, with l'artridge boxes without badgcs; the
lapels arc opened at the neck and a marc
comlortahle' llcck-doth replaces the Hock, Though
praetiCill, such uniforms did nOI find li'lyour: Czar
Paul r('fused 10 allow a reception lor homecoming
t!'Oops frolll Switzerland because Suvarov had
allowed them to cut oll'thcirqul:ues on campaign! It
is likely, though, that units furthest from the Czar's
gaze generally appeared in modified costume like
that illustrated.
ILr (,'rmadier ACO, Duke oj 80Ilrholl-'s G'rtJ/adifrs,
Anuee de COl/de
An tmigri eorps of French royalists, the i\rmce de
Conde passed Iiom British to Russian service in
September 1797; arter serving with Korsakov, it
rcycrled to British sen'icc in March 1800. It
included two cavalry and three infi:uHry units: the
Duke of BOllroon's Grenadiers, the Reg!. Noble de
Comic and the German Mllsketecr Regt.
HohenloheDuriln{', All wore grcen Russian
4"
infillltry uniform; the Regt. Noble de Conde with
scarlet lining, black lacinbrs (including lapels),
yellow buttons and blltlOn-loops, straw ydlow
waistcoat and breecbes (\\'hit(, bn:l'(;bcs ill summer)
and yellow-laced bicorns, The Rq{t. I-Iohcnluhe-
Durant had similar uniform wilh white waiSlcoat
and breeches, white billions and white loops 011 the
cull' flaps: grenadiers of these regilllelltS wore \\'hite
metal mitr<..'S with dark grel:11 rear bearing bla('k
atld yellow braid, and white grenack-s upon tbe
headband. The Duke of Bourbun's Grenadiers
dressed similarly, with brass!iontl'd ('aps with
straw yellow back and raspberry h"adband: ydlO\\'
buttons, and )'ellow lace with a red stripe on theCt&
flaps. The NCO illustrated wears this uniform, the
lapels dosed to tbe waisl in the later style, with the
usual Russian rank marking: laCl' in Ihe bulton-
colour on lhe collar and cuns, a cane, and a
quanered pompon in white alld mixed hlaek and
01'angl', The bbd-enamclled cagle on tht, mitre
was a diSlinClion oflew regiments: llloStjuSI had the
device stamped in relief,
The emigrant corps were not popular in Russia:
as the British "'!(lIning C!lrrlllirJ, remarked on 9
October r798, " , , they are looked upon as ](/fobiuJ
merely because they arc FrfllrJmu'II, The Arm)' of
Conde has besidl'S, betrayed Ito small ckgrc(' of
aversion for the Russian Rrgilllr, which is known to
be, lhat of lhe (lIlie , , , Th is dillcl'enc(' oropinion has
produced great coolness between his Imperial
i"'lajesty and the ci-devalll PRINCE urCONDE.
81.' .\!lIskelerr oJ/ifer, l.illul(Iliia Rrgimtlll, /80..:;
'fhis depicts the appeal'llncc or a typical infamr)'
officcr or the t805 period, wilh the reel collar and
culls of the 51. Petersburg Illspecliull, and the light
green shoulder straps worn by the Lithuania
Regiment. The grey breeches arc typical of field
dress; grey overalls with buttolls on the outer scams
were another allernative,
82: Prival,., Sl'lIlrllOl'Ski I,ifeguard, f105
The Lifeguard uniform illustrated is like lhat orthe
Line infantry, but with the yellow lace collar- and
culT-loops (pointedcllded at this period) and ydlow
shako edging, the blue collar and shoulder straps
piped red identifying the 5ell1ellovski Regiment.
The green pompon witb white cenlrc indicates lhe
regiment's ISl Battalion. Equipmellt was like that of
the Line grenadiers, with the star OrSl, Andrew in
the cenlre or Ihe cartridge box.
RQS(OlI Regimrll(. 1&5
This illustrates the lil'sl patteI'll of knapsack, the
black c)'linckr which could be slung over either the
right or left shoulder lthe right seems to have been
most common). and a cartridge box IlC;:lring the
rircubr plale 011 the flap, He wears the light gn..-cll
facings 01" the Lithuania Inspection, the colour also
being present 011 the 'belr of the sword knot.
Dr .\/usktlur s"gnll/(, (.'kraint Rtgin/ml, ,805
This sergeant has the i'\CO distinctions ofgold lace
on collar and culls. quartered pompon, laced shako,
halberd and e:IIlC, The jackct bears thc orange
racings of the Inspt'Ction, with the
raspberry shoulder straps of the Ukraine Regiment.
Kot being anll(,'d with a musket. he wears no
shoulder bell or cartridge box, The wlth
shari culls were the usual Style at this period, the
culls so low as 10 revcal the edge of the jacket cuff,
Thcsc;lrh:t tuft al)()\'e the !)()Illpon indicatcs the 31"(1
Un,; some sourccs show the uplX'r (:dge orthe tuft as
well as the cellll'C of the pompon as being in the
regimental colour, which for the unit depictt..'d was
,rn'v.
o .
(;1: Grmadirr, SmoJew;k Rtgillletli. dkJj
Grenadicr uniform resembled thaI of the mus-
with thc addition ofa grenade badge on the
shako, the huge black bl/sell plume, and grenade
badges at the comers of the cartridge box. The man
illustrated wears the pink facings of the Ukraine
Inspection, with the yellow shoulder straps and
pompon centre of the Smo1cnsk Regiment.
G'2.' Dml!ll/ll'r, A<;OII Rt!gimtlll, 1&6
Drummers wore basic inHtnlr), uniform with the
addition or dark green swallows'-nesl wings with
while lace lower edge and rour whitc vertical
slripcs; six while chevrons on cach slccve; six whitc
lace loops on lhe breast, and three on each cull' flap.
NCO pompons werc quartered in red and white,
and grenadier drummers wore the busch plume in
red. Drums were copper with while cords, and
hoops painted in white and dark green Iriangles.
(Some sources indicate that drummers wore a
shoulder strap only on the right, and lifers only on

Jag"r horni"l, ..,,806. ..ing ,h" .....ord.bayon"t and th"

".rg" horn carried by 'he Jag"r regi"'''n's. (Engra"ing af'<:r
V;skova'ov)
the lefl, bUI other iIlusl ra tiOlIS show the usual Sl yle.)
Fifers WOrt: the same dn:ss, cal'l'yi ng: Ihei r I\\"0 fifes in
a copper case upon a while belt. Kate the drum
apron (usually oflight brown hide) wom upon the
leg. Drum majors and regimclltal musicians wore
sc\'en chevrollS on each slccvc, had scams and
turnbacks ornamen\(.-d with lace, and worc :'\CO
lace and a white-aver-red plume. \\"hitc shako
Russian office..... ,8.... This con.e po... ry Freach pria. ;s
ehi",ny or ao'e ;n dep'C'-;as .he 'Ii ,;oa brassard' worn by
the offir a, r;shl, whose> ugl., shako-pia." and ,.nlir;;] show
hin. 10 a Guard".... an. Th., oriJiaal iIIustradon shows blu.,
racing which ir no, a colouri".'" errOr would indicate <h.,
Mmtllov"ki R"'!:imenl. Both offie., .... h",., radng-eolouncl
"triP"'" on th",ir o,",ran... whkh "eems .0 h.a,.", been a rasbion
adop.rd dur;nS thO'I""t month" orth", Napol"",ni", Wa.rs.
cords wcrc adopted in 181 t. Here the straw yellow
facinb'"S of the Brest Inspection arc combined with
the lurquoisesholllder straps orthe Azov Regiment,
the yellow pompon indicating the regiment's 2nd
Battalion.
C3.' Prh'llit'. Pm,lov Grt'lladius, JlJo(j
Duc to the usual delay in the adoption of new
uniforms, the Pavlov Grcnadiers had not received
t/wir shakos by 1807, the mitre remaining in usc
dUling the campaign oflhat year. For their gallant
conduct at Frit:dland Alexander I ordered that.
alone of the infanu)', the Pavlov should henceforth
rctain its mitres 'in the statc in which they left the
I>.'lttldield as visible mark of its bravery and Our
gracc'; thlls the same caps were retained to the
beginning of the 'loth cel1tury, some still bearing the
scar.; alld bullet holes or Fricdland! In othcr
respects, thc grenadier illustratcd wears ordinary
uniform, with the red collar and cuns of the 5t.
Pctersburg Inspcction, with the I'cgimelllal white
shouldcr straps and pompon and corresponding red
rear and whitc headband on the cap.
CF S"gtant, St. Ptl"sbllrg Gmuuli"s. IlJdj
This sergeant wears the distinctions of a grenadicr
regiment, the huge plume and grenade badge on
lhe shako; rank markings are prcscnt as the lac(: on
collar, cuffs and upper edge of the shako, lhe
coloured lip of the plume. and qllarte!"Lx! pompon.
The cartridge box (worn by those KeOs armL'd
with muskcLS) is carried on the frolll of the waist
belt; the badges on lhe flap include the ordinary
circular plaque, plus Iht' cornergremuk-s used by all
grenadiers until 1808. The tur<luoise facings arc
indicative of the Livonia Inspeetorntc. with Ihe
regimcntaJ n.od shouldcr straps.
DI.' Prjl'll/t, jt1l ]iigm. l&Jj
The initial light green Jager uniform with facing-
coloured collar and cuffs is shown here with the
green winter breeches with facillg-eoloured piping.
The frontal cartridge box was traditionally carrilod
by riflemen and light infantry; it is sometimes shown
carried at the rca.' instead. The curious felt
headdress. halfway between a shako and a 'round
hat', was peculinr to Jagers. Though some '20.000
1'ula rines were issued between t803 and 181'2,only
designated marksmen and :"ICOs carried Ihem: the
remainder had the infantry musket.
D2: /'ri!:att', 1St Jagers, I&>:;
ThisJiiger weal's the restyled shako with cords, lhl'
later pattei'll of knapsack, ami till' black leather
equipment of theJiigers, illStead of thc white of" the
Line. The wintcr legwear iii shown here; white
brecches wcre uscd in iiumlllt'r. 'fhe Iilcings \\orn
arc those of I Bog, dark green piped wilh red.
rcplacing the red cuffs and white collar which
inilially supplanted the old regimenliJl facing-
colours.
D3: Captain. SeMI/sst/burg Rtgimrnl,jitld Juss. lOoy
This depicts the officers' uniform after the
introduction of the first shako, before the revised
pallern with its leather reinforcing bands; it carries
a gill chain suspended rrom eagle badges at the
sides. The COol tee now has the universal red racings,
wilh tht.: epault.:tlt.:s ha,'ing a ground or the
reginwntal colour (white), !.>caring the Divisional
numher (8) in gilt. Also shown is thc 1808-pattern
gorget. silver ,,'ith brill edge and cagle, indicative or
captain's rank.
DF SmolmJk Rl'giml'lll, flkJ8
This musketeer ,\'eal'S the rcstykd shako with
Ic..'l.lher reinforcing bands, and the grenade badge
which replaced the cockade in 1808. Hc wears a
typically voluminous greatco.'l.t with collar and
shoulder siraps coloured as ror the jackel-no
longer the InSIX1:tion colour as on prcvious
greatco<lIs. but 1I0W Ihe uni"crsal red collar and
Di\;sional shoulder straps, here yellow wilh a red
'12'. The greatcoal was so large Ihal in the action at
Umc:r-Loibell in XO\'embcr 180,; it was rcponed
that 'The Russians \\'crc superior in number but
they were encumbcn...d by the size or their
greatco.'l.ls, Their slow movements gave us a great
advantage. and we owed our initial success 10 the
clumsiness of the cnemy .. .' The man illuslraled
weal'S the ncw knapsack, but lacking the breasl
strap ordcred in April 1809.
'1: Grl'tlQditr. j-Wlll1ltr duss. IlJoO
This grenadier weal'S Ihe shako with its changed
orname!llS, the triplenamed grenade badge, prior
to the adoption or cords; the large husch plume is
retained. He wears the ollcpiecc 'gaiter-trousers' or
slimmer uniform, and carries the rolled greatcoat
011 lOp or the knapsack siraps.
'2: NII/skt/ea, willIeI' drrsj', /809
Though he wears the same shako as Plate El, the
musketeer illustrated has the cords ordered inJulIe
1809; and the gre('n cockade witb white centre
which distinguished 2nd Battalions. The legwear is
the looser winter trOuser wilh the first pallem or
black leather 'booting'. rcsembling dummy boots.
The rolled gre;.lIcoat is now wom underneath the
knapsack straps. in accordance with the order or
April I Bog which introduced the horizontal breast
strap.
'3: 1012
Thc 1812 regulation uniform illustrated here
includes the cOllcave-toppt.:d l.iwfI" sllako with brass
chinscalcs. white corels and the ncw, thin plume
(worn from J 81 1upon the previous shako) in place
of the hllsrlt. TIll' jacket has the new. lowt'"r and
closed collar, and Ihe equipmcllt includes the
rcrlangular knaps..ck which n:placc'd tilt' cylindri-
GU:II.rds .8'4; :II conlcn'po.... rr t-n-nch prin, dcpicl.inl
campaign uniform, indudi... ,h.. wc"ring of .. kn ck. Tbc
original show'" ..cd r.. dngs, ,;uggc,;lingchc Pr...,b jcnski Rcgc.
43
2 3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Design ofidentif),ing lellers born upon the shoulder straps of
Grenadier regiment .8., '3-basieaJJ)' initiaJ letters in
)'rillic 'cript. (.) Life Grenadiers; (2) Pavlov
Grenadiers (untiJ taken into Guard' thereafter Pernov); (3) St.
Petersburg' (V Tauride' (5) Ekaterinoslav; (6) Mo -co"'; (7)
Astrakhan.' (8) K "holm (to .8'4) Kiev; (9) Little Russia;
('0) iberia; (") Fanagoria' ('2) Gruzinski' ('3) Kher on; (It)
Ro lov (Arakcheev).
al pall rn. Th p, ion f the Ru. ian oldieI'
, r m a "': L:i une dt'seri bed carchi ng aban-
I n d knap. aeks afler lIsteditz finelin<Y them to
olllai, only 'jjtLlc bla k boxes of no-leaved
I' liq uaries wi L11 the image 0 l. j holas ['i' J
b 'aring the infant nri t abo the \ ,t l' , and
pi e or bla'k br ad made r traw and bran
rather than bad an I \Vh -at. 'u h w r Ul ir
. implc and pious pos:essi n. cveral acc UI1l' note
lint their ant 111 l't n I1lruned I ad brandy 'a
fi'ightful drink ... th 'p PP I' and vitriol burnt on '
mouth'. otc the triplc-lhm'd gr nade worn on
LI (' cartridg . box b ?;r -nadier.; and th I'd kn t
in th colours ora 2nd Bn. malching the reel-over-
grccn :hako pompon.
E.j.: Cflrabinier. "CO, Jauer-. 18/2
Thi N war. the final et ion of the Jager
lI1iform, \ ith Lh 1812 kit er and ajack t iLh til'
lnw'r lased collar in the unj" I' alJager colour 0
dark . en with dark QTeCn facin s piped I' d. Hi
rank is indicated b I the collar and cufTlac (now on
the upp I' edg or the ollar in:t ad or th - lo\' 1')
and the' loured top to the plum th latter only
worn b lh carabini']' s tion or the 'arabini r
{' mpan n l by th' liraiJl UI' plat 11. Th - \' int I'
I gw ar ha lh ond, long I' pall rn f dumm
boot. 'xl 'ndill t th kn '.
Ill: Fliiuel-iJdjulanl oj campaign drr S. 18/2
Th rank I' Flu el- djulant wa a taff appoin -
m f t in (h .zar. sen i e, equating in ome
I'espc('\s ilh French ojJiciers d ordo/lnance' it could be
h I I b b th fi lei and ubal tern rank', Their full
drcs I' . ml I'd Ihat of the njor om er of the
zar _uitc- eneraJ- djUt311l -bul with iJver
+
in t ad 0[' crold 1;:ICC: a bla k-plull1ccI bienrll, dark
gre>n stan' 'oat' with ariel ra ings ,nd loliate
mbr id I' paul II ., and the usu,t1 . ash nd
1 oar. nell"s uniform compri d a clark green
1'0 k oat ( I' gr at at) \ ith s rl>t ollar, 'ulli
nd linin . wilh silver paul tt f appropriat
rank baring a gilt Imp ri'\! yphrr, and a 'ilver
ruguiJlette on th ri ht 'hould r. With th doubl ,-
breast cI fro k oat was worll a I th r rag' ap
(aft I' 18rl), dark gr n wim,. al'l t land whil
piping and Iaz d lath r peak. Th shabra III ancl
h 1st r caps arc of the 'ame pall rn as thos> of
infant! of 1 ers but with ,'ih- ria c (in 'tee lorth
d ubk lace with 'oloured . ntr linc). and I 'aling
lhe Emperor's c}'Pher \' hich wa no usuaU
pre nLuponul'hou ing'of'inlantryolTt cr.. pari
li'om the ai<Yuill tle and lh . lourin or Ihe la .
this figure could r 'pre nt an Russian infantr
flIcer in ampai n dr sin th 1811-,+ period, the
frock coal (often worn with the shako) being
e tr mel popular on a tive sCl'vi ,C'.
F2: Field ojlicer, h!/allll)' Slimmer dress. /8/2
caring the r81 uniform Wilh kh 'er and coat"
wim 10 cI liar th olTt' I' f, Id rank i' if eli 'at d
b thc paul 'ttl' /'ring 'aud ild 'd gorgc\. The
ground r the p,uJ'lt- i' in th r'gim 11\a1
'houlder strap colour' the 0 tee had ni al
po k,ts with LIt I ipin
er
, each po k'l flap wilh thr t'
btl tt on'. I n 18 I 2 officer' were permiLl d I
conomise b sub Lituung wor'l d 1'01' tI eir sil er
la h offic I' shako pompon W'iS :ilv'r \ iUl an
oran celllr barin Lh Lmp rial )'ph r' I'.
hough o[fieers might wear overalls, th man
illustraLed ha. bre hand ri ling boot, .. b 'fitted
a m unt d o[fi r.
F3: Call/ain lzmailovski Lifeguard llmmu rires , Jf/J 2
Th ffi rillustratdw'ar'th larkcrr nfa'inO"
and: arl t pipin
a
of th Jzmrul v. ki R gim III
\' .ith Lh la I p 11 collar and cuff Rap lli h
indicat eI uard talus. Ithough o[ficers or th
tItrl.. 'C scniOl regiments had embroidered loops of
design (itS shown among our blackand-
\\'hite illustrations), the patlem used by the other
r.mks is also seen. The shako bears the largc gilt
double-cagk plate orthe Guard regiments. with the
cords in a COlllmon campaign configuration.
looped up behind the cockade. Russian oflicers
carried slllall knapsacks Ii ke those of the 01 her ranks;
Guards officcrs had blLlc-grey greatcoats In
addition 10 lht dtlrk green frock coat.
G',: tllfI.lkrlfl'r.jield drl.H. J"II/l1Illrl' /8'2
This is typical of the ordinary in[;\l1lryman at the
timc of tht, French invasion in 1812, though the
issue of the r812 uniform would nOI have been
univcrsal duc 10 lhe delays in implcmcnting
unilorm changcs. The sky blue pompon with while
cenlre identifies a 3rd BI1.: the sword knot wilh sky
bltll bell" identifies Ihe regimellts 8th Company of
mttskeH.. 'Crs (second company. 3rd Bn.); a dark
green shoulder strap with numeral '5' would
indiCille thc "'aluga Rcgimelll, 5th Didsion.
Shortages of equipment at the end of the 1812
cilmpaign !cft many rcgiments wearing summer
gaiter-trousers. and many of their owrcoats are so
F....nch ..... ,ulad,t!d by a b:o.nd .. rR,,ta... poeasa.. ,..,
.80:1:. Armed bu,!;.,ly ..ilh alri.,,,h,,rat loob or ""'pl"rt!d
....,apomr-or wuporn; ,;.old 10 Ih.,rn by Ih., ..
..sa"k---P"'as.anl bands ...,re ....spo..sibl.. for mOSI of Ihe
mass:aCrfll p"rpelnlt!d on Ihe' Gr"ndt' 1,"":'. NOI
pan or lh.. offi";"! and Ih"5 wi'ho"l conlrol nr
direc:l.ion, "e'rfs ,rsl>ond"d 10 app"at" or
'T..g..,h.. r w.. "hall .."lermina,.. Ih.. "ilia in. Glory
10 Iho..., who ,.,,,i"l. EI.,r.... t ....,..... r)' '0 who fall. \\'..... a'
,heLa.. , J"dge.......' '0 who .. "",d"lh"ir d".y'. (Prin, ar.,r
Ma"rice On..g.,)
Ihin thaI Ihey cannot prolt'ct t1H'mst'lvNl li'olll Ihe
damp and cold wealht:r'. Unable 10 rClned)' Ihese
sbol"wgcs, Kutuzov could only prndairn to his
troops, '. blizzards alld fl'Osts orrt' you afraid of"
tbem, children of tht North? Your iron breasts do
not feilr eilher the stvcrilY of the: \\'{"allwr or the
wickedness of the I'twrny ... r<'tnt'l1l bl'l' SU\'an 1\'. He
showed liS how 10 Ixar cold and hungtr
G2: GmU/dirl',jirM dm,s. uti"ll'I' 18/2
This grenadier wears the second pallCrll of forage
cap, which replact."C1 the Frr'nclHI) Ie bOlm" dl' poJia.
Unlike the practice in 1110,t European armies. tile
use of shako covers \\'as limited: even in action the
Russians usually wore the full cords and plullle.
though in b.. 'ld \\catht:r {'lIId perhaps "hen on
The Russian army waS perpelually encumbered by enormous
and slow_mo... ing bllggage-lr.. ins; Ihe single-horse wagon wilh
civilian driver and arched horse-collar is lypical oflhc Iype or
Iran"I,orl in usc Ihroughoul lhe period. (Engraving afler
H.. raee Vernel)
cktal.:hed dUl)') the b'1'cn<ldicrs' plumes sometimes
seem 10 ha\'e hecn ticd to the scabbard hy the cords,
leaving the shako undccorated. This man wears the
winter trous(:rs wilh black 'booting' of the later
pattern, now extending to the knee.
G3: PrivatI', ,lIo,feow OJ)()/rheuil'
The ojw/rhenil' included two ,Jager regi-
1ll('l1IS, eight foot and t\\"o mounted regiments, the
in[ill1try sometimes described as 'foot cossacks',
OITiccrs worc infanlry uniform: other ranks had
grey or beige knee-length kaftal/s fastening at the len
in peasalll style, and trouscrs with black boots; lhe
dOlh helt might be any COIOlir. The cap bears a
cross on:r the Imperial cypher. All carried a black
or CilH;'kin knapsack all black belts, with a fur-lined
grcalco:ll atop the knapsack; black or brown
leather gloves were worn in wintcr. Ordinary
companies carried an axe in the belt and a seven-
f(){)t pike;,Jiigcl"s carried a musket with black sling,
and :1 blnck cartridge box and belt, Companies
formed li'om merchants and townspeople wore the
same uniform but in dark b'1'een, with black
lambskin lrim al lhe bOltom of the cap,
G4o' Privati', St, Pr/rrsblllg OjJolc//{'lIie
The SI. Petersburg opolclif'/Iir wore a green kaftan; a
green loragc eap with black peak, I"(.. ,d band and the
aoss insignia; green trouscrs with red stripe; and
equipment as for Platc G3. Officers worc all
infantry frock coat and the same cap.
1-11: Private, Pavlov Lifeguard, ,wmml'r dress, 181:J-14
Thc Pavlov Regiment was elevated to Gllard status
in 18'3, when lhe)' adopted lhe appropJiate
insignia: Guard lace (white loops on collar <Ind cuff
flaps, gold for officers); the star ofSI. Andrew on the
enrtridge box; scarlet lapels; and dark green collar
and cuns piped scarlet. They rew..incd with pride
lheir old mitre caps (with scarlet back and white
headband); asJ. S. Stanhope recorded, 'I was more
particularly snuck with the Empcrors Guard; on
cnteJing that body, a soldier suecel.'ds, lIot only to
lhc rank, but to the cap of his predecessor, and the
marks made hy the musket balls in these enps arc
considered as so many decorations, and, therefore,
arc never repaired', Handed down over the years,
over 600 sllch caps were in usc at lhe lidl of lhe
Empire in 1917, Unlike the cap worn by Figure C3,
this hag chinscales added, as for the inlillltry shako:
extant examples have grenade-shapcd chinseale
bosses, but these arc probably eVCll later addilions.
Officers usually wore lhc shako; mitres may have
occn worn in flill dress, but their usc was not
universal at this period,
H2o' Privott, Lilo/Jski Lifeg/lard, .fummer dreJJ
The Litovski Regiment worc Guard uniform with
the addition of red lapels, a distinction latcr copied
by the Lifc Grenadier and Pavlov regimenu. The
shako bears the large dOllble-eagle plate ofCllards
regiments; note the design of lhe lace UJtflitd). a
later patterJllhan the pointed-ended version shown
in Plate 8'2. The regiment's greatest exploit \\'as at
Borodino, where they actually bayonetchargcd
French Col. Udom and his Lithuanians
being 'in no mood to give qllarter'; in the process
they lost 435 dead and g06 wounded.
/-/]." NCO, ilifallll)', campaign dress, 18/4
This figure is taken liolll an eye-witness sketch by
Georg Opitz showing the rardydcpieted shako
covcr, worn with the NCO pompon uncovered.
The long greatcoat is typical of the variation in
colour upon the usual brownish grey; the canvas
haversack was common on campaign, especially al
the later period, It also shows the lISC or the white
'liberation brassard', a cloth strip ordered to be lied
around an ann (usually lhe left) in February
1814-3 return to the 'field sign' of lhe 17th
ccntury--to distin.l:!uish all Al1i('d lroops, Thl'
unilorllis or difrl'I't'l11 llations caused confusion: lhe
bra!l".<Il'd \\';)S prompted by I hl' woul1ding ofa
officer a who mistook him for a
Frenchmall.
N.j: RUHoG,mlllJ/ /"'gioll. 1814
TIll' RussoGt'rman Legion was fanned at Revel in
.\ug:ust 1812, mainly from captured Prussians,
originally comprising all infantry battalion, .. Jager
company, a hussar regimellt and a horse anillery
balt<-r}'. I.atcr it expanded bl' lhe enlistment of
dcst:rten; .. nd prisoners to SC\'cn infantr)' bat talions.
IWO hussar rcgiments. a Jiiger tompany, two horse
and alit foot battery and a train company. In
1\larch 1815 il elllered Prussian service. The
infantry wore Rus...ian uniform, the 1St Brig-d.de
having r(;t! collars and the 2nd blue, with battalions
dirren:uliatL't1 b) coluurc::cl shouldcrstr.:lps (rcd. and
yellow pipL-d Wilh rL"(1 arc recorded); their grey
trouscn; had rcd stripes. and all equipment was
hlack. The Jiiger illustmtcd ([i'om the Elherfeld
dated 1814) wears an ordinary kiwa
,,'ith unusually short plume; note the aiguillctle and
horn badge ,,'ith chains on the bell. The Illan carries
tht' Russianmade Tula rifle. named from the
arsenal of its mallufacture.
Sources
Few of the major wurn'S all the Russian armyofthe
A'apoleonic \\'ars art' a\'ailablc in English. The
most significant work is I'/islaricol f)acriptioll oj tltr
enijol"ms and Ar1/la/1/"II.I" oj tltL Russian Am!}' (A. V.
ViskO"ato\', Sl. Petersburg 18-1-4-56), with superb
ellgravings. Olhel' major works include L'Al1nl,
Rum: SfIIIJ II' Tsar AI('\{lIItlI'1' Ir,. "f' ,i dflj (A.
Krijitsky & 1\1. Gayda, Paris 1955): and /.'Arm;,
Rllsst (\\I. Zweguintzow. Paris 1973). Tit, Russial/
;1m!}' l&xr-tllIS (C. Nafziger, Cambridg:e, Onlario
1983) is t,'specially useful 1'01' eslablishments and
manOCllVrts. Also of interest art' L"ifor1/l.l if fhr
Imp"ial Russian Am!}' (H. & J. Poole 1979\:
Tit, Russia1/ Am!)' 181:?-1813 C. \\'. Hansen.
Copenhagen 1977)- lhis author's colllp.mion Tit,
Runiall A,,'!), 1805 published in the Danish
periodical Cltnk(Jlm, 198s; Tltr /mlJtrial Ru.ssia" .Im!r
1&5-15 (\\'. H. :\"e\\ York 1965 : Russitll/
.\IilitarySu-'Ordr 1801 19'7 E. London 1969 :
L'nijomlS oj Ih, Rl'lrtal from .\IosI"ou' I). J.
Ha),thornthwaiw. I)ook 1976: C&rrrilo RlIs:lo
1&.5-'5: F(l1/1l'ria (I. Falzone & C. R.wa. Parma.
n.d. reproduces Viskovatov ('ngr.l\illh"S. Apart
from the source listed earlier, flab'S are t'Ovcrro by
Draptallx tf I:.lalll/ards d, (Armit RIIJ"Jt..\'1'1, Siid, a
'914 \\'. Zwcguinl;f.ow. Paris IgG..j . ;md tll( paper
by LI.Cdr. R. O. ,\Iorris ill issue 36 of TraditiOIl.
Among many useful cmnp;;lign histories, among the
most modem arc Auslrrlil;;, C. London
1977), Borodi"o (md fltt lI'ar oj 1812 C.
London 1972), JlJ,:! (t\. Bretl:JamC'S, London 19(6)
and Ellropt againsl \ '(Jpoll'Oll (A. BreltJanH'S. London
1970). ,,'ilsou's n:ports.<I re found in Brit}"RmmrksQlI
thr Chauull'l' (JJu! Coml)()silioll oj JIll' R/lSJi(11I
(London 181 0), '-(Jrmtht ofEL't1lls during lilt bli'luiol/
of Russia (London 18601 and in GNll'ml lI'ilso,,'j
Journal (cd. A, Ikelt:James, London The
background to the era is cO\'l'rcd ill RIWill ill 11'(Ir(JJuJ
PtaU (A, Palnwr, LOll<IC)ll 1972).
Ii