Rogue and deserters regiments?

Thread: Rogue and deserters regiments?

  1. broccoliano said:

    Default Rogue and deserters regiments?

    Hello to all,I've got curios recently about Western rogue or deserters regiments from 1700 to half 1800,have given a look in the web but except for an incredible amount of Ottoman and Indian troops deserting or joining the enemy,I have mostly found isolated cases of a couple of men leaving their platoons,while i was looking for something bigger like a regiment or at least a couple hundred men lead away by some officiers.
    Thanks in advance for any answer should eventually come.
     
  2. Prince of Essling's Avatar

    Prince of Essling said:

    Default Re: Rogue and deserters regiments?

    The only instances I can think of in the Napoleonic wars relate to units of various German States who went over to the Allies in Germany & the Peninsular in 1813.

    On 13 April 1813 a battalion comprising 13 officers and 429 men (made up of troops from the Saxon Duchies) surrendered to 20 Prussian Hussars! The battalion passed into the service of the Allies.

    In the Peninsular the Nassau troops were brigaded with Baden & Frankfurt troops. Colonel Kruse of the 2nd Nassau Regiment received instructions from his monarch to defect to the British at the first safe opportunity. He consulted in secret with the commanders of the other German contingents & established contact with the KGL. The opportunity came during the combat on the Nive on 10 December. Leaving some 340 men behind (190 men in Bayonne & the rest in hospital) Kruse marched into the British lines, the Frankfurters had no instructions but did the same. The Badeners without instructions remained with the French; they were disarmed the following day.

    There is also the defection of the Saxons at Leipzig on 18 October 1813. The Saxon 24th Division accompanied by 12 pdr foot battery & Hussar Regiment marched into the Allied camp, though parts of the Anton & Friederich August infantry regiments & part of a horse battery were unable to defect with their colleagues as they were in too close contact with Durrutte's French Division.
    Last edited by Prince of Essling; March 01, 2011 at 04:32 PM. Reason: Expansion of Leipzig entry.
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  3. EmperorBatman999's Avatar

    EmperorBatman999 said:

    Default Re: Rogue and deserters regiments?

    De La Romana's division was a Spanish force that originally fought for Napoleon. But in Denmark in 1808, the French invaded Spain. Their commander, General De La Romana, arranged for most of the men to leave Denmark with the help of the British Royal Navy so they could go to Spain to fight alongside their brothers.
     
  4. Prince of Essling's Avatar

    Prince of Essling said:

    Default Re: Rogue and deserters regiments?

    To the above incidents I would also add the defection of the Wurttemberg cavalry post Leipzig.

    General Graf Norman wrote to his King Friederich saying that his Brigade had been cut off & he was only able to save his brigade by going over to the allies, as he wanted to preserve the troops to act as a bargaining chip. Unfortunately for Norman & his troops, the King was not a generous or forgiving man. He ordered the arrest of Norman & von Moltke, the Colonel of Jagerregiment zu Pferde Konig as soon as they re-entered the Kingdom, and that the Konig regiment & Leib regiments be disbanded, and all of the officers and men were to lose all of their Wurttemberg medals & awards. Fortunately Norman & Moltke were warned of their fate, so escaped. Moltke eventually became a Feldmarschall-Leutenant in Austrian service. Norman wasn't so lucky, he had to wait for the King's death on 30 October 1816, before he could return to his fatherland, but he was banned from entering Stuggart, eventually dying of typhus on 15 November 1822 while fighting in the Greek War of Independence.
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  5. Didz said:

    Default Re: Rogue and deserters regiments?

    As well as De La Romana's division its probably worth noting that large numbers of Spanish regular troops and units joined the insurrection in Spain itself. Some of these units defected with their officers, but the majority simply overthrew their officers and joined the local Junta en-masse, sometimes continuing to fight as their former unit and occassionally being absorbed into one of the new volunteer regiments.

    On 15th June 1815, General Bourmont commanding the French 14th Division together with his staff including Colonels Clouet and Villoutreys defected to the allies leaving his division in chaos until Gerard managed to restore order. Whilst, mass desertions and defections were avoided loyalties amongst the French Army of 1815 were divided and some regiments only remained with the army out of loyalty to France and their comrades rather than loyalty to the empire and Napoleon.

    On the 2nd May 1815 all French citisens including the soldiers had been required to vote on the 'Acte additionnel', a new French constitution that Napoleon had drafted for France. The 1ere Legere Regiment voted en-masse against the constitution on the grounds that it gave Napoleon far too much power and could not be the foundation of a genuinely liberal France. They were encouraged to do so by their Colonel 'Baron de Cubieres', the only eception being a captain who voted in favour beleiving that Napoleon knew more about consitutions than he did. Napoleon was annoyed by this show of defiance from Colonel Cuberieres and his men, but nevertheless the 1ere Legere, which was an elite regiment fought bravely at Waterloo and was the unit that stormed the gates of Hougoumont, where Cubieres was killed.

    Other regiments had recently been fighting for a Royalist insurrection in the south of France and had only rejoined to colours in order to defend their country. The 10eme Ligne Regiment for example had been fighting for the Duke d'Angouleme a few weeks earlier, and refused to shout 'Vive l'Empereur' or remove the white cockades from their hats, nevertheless they held their line and fought alongside the Bonapartists in the defence of Placenoit against the Prussians.
    Last edited by Didz; March 05, 2011 at 06:38 AM.