French Army Regimental Names

[Prince of Essling]

One thing that I can't get my head around as far as the French Army organisation and tactic's are concerned is the apparent contradiction in Nafzigers description of how it worked. I don't know if you have any greater incite from your other books.

On page 25 Nafziger waxes on about the importance in understanding the difference between the administrative organisation of a battalion in terms of its company structure and the tactical organisation of the battlaion which was determined by its divisions and platoons. He makes the point quite forcefully that these were two completely independant structures and companies were not used as the basis for tactical maneouvre.

However, when it comes to the French Army of 1808 it is clear from Figures 17, 18 and 19 on pages 62 and 63 that he is showing the companies not the platoons as the maneouvring units of the battalion. More confusing still is the fact that according to these diagrams the presence of both flank companies is essential to completing the tactical formations depicted, even though we know that in practice these flank companies were frequently detached or massed into composite battalions.

If these diagrams are taken literally it would mean that French battalions were incapable of forming square once either of their flank companies were detached as these companies are shown as necessary to form the rear wall of the formation, which I find hard to believe.

Do you have any thoughts on this?

You have highlighted an interesting conundrum ! Certainly I would agree the peloton (or platoon) was the basic drill unit (as it or section is in the modern army). After 1809 it was rare for the French to form composite elite battalions.

Unfortunately I have not been able to track down a copy of

the 1814 "Evolutions Par Brigades Ou Instruction Servant De Développement Aux Manoeuvres De Ligne, Indiquées Dans Les Règlements ... Destine Principalement Aux Officiers Infanterie"
[ Meunier, Hugues-Alexandre-Joseph (Général Bon). Évolutions par brigades, ou Instruction servant de développement aux manoeuvres de ligne, indiquées par les réglements, par le baron Meunier,... Paris: Magimel, 1814. vi, 79 p., 16 pl.; 8vo. - I understand there is a microfilm copy located in the Archives in the First Corps of Cadets but cannot access.]

or the 1809 "Instruction Concernant Les Manoeuveres De L'Infantrie Donne Par L'Inspecteur General De L'Infanterie De L'Armee Du Rhin" - now found at http://66.196.80.202/babelfish/trans..._sect_id%3D105 but it relates to 1791

or the 1813 "Manual D'Infanterie Or Resume De Tous Les Reglements, Decrets, Usages, Et Rensignements Propres Aux Sous-Officiers De Cette Armee"
which would I think give us the whole answer.

But according to Colonel H C B Rogers "Napoleon's Army" page 70 "…battalion columns could be either by division (double companies) or by platoons (single companies)."
General Renard's 1857 book on "Infantry Tactics" shows French 6 company battalions with 4 company squares - this link should take you to the correct page
http://books.google.com/books?id=ry9...page&q&f=false
Looking at Bukhari "French Napoleonic Line Infantry" page 9 - he shows a regimental square with the fusilier companies in 4 company squares and voltigeurs & grenadiers linking them. So clearly there must have been a set of manouevres to enable them to get to the required square formation.