Je pense avoir trouvé encore mieux !
(toujours sur le forum de « Napoleon Series » mais en 2008)
-----------------------------
KGL Rifle units At Waterloo
JeffF. 26 June 2008
I recently obtained the Waterloo Companion. In the section on infantry, rifle equipped units, the author states that only 3 of the 6 KGL Line battalions had a rifle armed light company aside from the two KGL light battalions which were completely armed with rifles. In other sources describing the KGL in the peninsula campaigns they are described as having rifle armed light companies but warmed initially ith a mixture of rifle types (due to the lack of sufficient Baker rifles) though these were replaced as supplies allowed.
Can anyone confirm or deny Mark Adkin's information? Could he possibly mistakenly referring to only units equipped with Baker Rifles?
-------------------------------------------
Rod MacArthur 28 June 2008
Jeff,
As many will know I have researched all authorised establishments of the British Army from 1802 to 1815. This clearly shows that all KGL battalions originally had 8 companies and were increased to 10 on 25 December 1811.
Many secondary sources state that during the time that the KGL battalions had 8 companies they formed their skirmish screens by the Hanoverian system whereby each of their companies had some rifle armed sharpshooters. The Hanoverian Army in 1803 had had only 4 large companies per battalion and each produced 12 sharpshooters. The KGL produced 6 sharpshooters from each of their 8 standard British sized companies, so the number of sharpshooters for a KGL battalion was identical to that previously found from a Hanoverian battalion. In each case the sharpshooter "platoon" was augmented by officers, NCOs and buglers.
Oddly the establishments show the structure of the two additional companies authorised in December 1811 as standard centre companies (ie they had ensigns, which British flank companies did not, and also there were no fifers which would have been normal for a Grenadier company). However there is evidence in memoirs to clearly indicate that the KGL battalions did organise these as flank companies.
As far as light companies are concerned the best source is "Adventures of a Young Rifleman, in the French and English Armies, during the War in Spain and Portugal, from 1806 to 1816" by Johann Christian Maempel (available as a free Google download). He was originally in one of the German Regiments raised by the French, taken prisoner of war in Spain and allowed to enlist in the KGL, shipped to Bexhill Depot in UK, then to Sicily to join 7th KGL.
In July 1812 he recounts (Pages 255-256):
"In each company of the battalion there were at that time six riflemen, but an order arrived from England, that in future each battalion should have a rifle and a grenadier company. Upon putting this order into execution, the company to which I belonged was dissolved, and the rifle company formed out of it".
Edmund Wheatley, who served in 5th KGL also states that he was in their Grenadier company so the normal British battalion structure (8 centre companies, 1 grenadier and 1 light company) seems to have been in use from 1812 onwards.
As you may be aware the 8 KGL battalions in the Netherlands (ie all except 6th and 7th KGL) were reduced to 10 companies of 60 in Dec 1814. When Napoleon returned, British Government wanted to draft Hanoverian Militia into KGL to raise KGL Battalion’s strength but Hanoverian Government would not agree to this. The decision was therefore taken to restructure these 8 x KGL Battalions as 6 companies of 100 and detach 91 KGL Officers and 104 KGL Sergeants to the Hanoverian Militia with the Field Army. As a result, Hanoverian Militia Bns at Waterloo had average of 6 KGL Officers and 7 KGL Sergeants each, which helped their steady performance.
Edmund Wheatley refers to being in the Grenadier Company 5th KGL at Waterloo and there are also several accounts of the Light Company 5th KGL being sent as reinforcements to La Haye Sainte. It would therefore seem that the KGL Waterloo battalions had 4 centre, 1 Grenadier and 1 Light Company.
The KGL Light Battalions had exactly the same organisation as the line battalions. I do have a note that the originally had 30% rifles but this was later increased to 50% (unfortunately no source). I do have a copy of a return produced by 2nd Light Battalion KGL on their disbandment in February 1816. This shows that at that date they had 406 weapons, comprising 240 rifles (59%) and 166 muskets (41%).
It seems to me therefore that there is no reason why all of the KGL Line battalions would not have had a rifle armed light company at Waterloo. I also believe that the KGL Light Battalions were at least 50%, but no more than 60%, rifle armed.
Rod
------------------------------
JeffF. 28 June 2008
Thanks Rod,
All the books I've read state the 1st & end KGL Light Bns were armed completely with Baker Rifles by Waterloo (Armies At Waterloo, Osprey King's German Legion vol 2, Wellington's Army). Whey do you think they had only 50% armed with Baker Rifles? The account of MAJ Baring's 2nd KGL Lt Bn defense of La Haye Saint and its loss due to lack of rifle ammunition is much written about. No mention of half his troops or half his companies being musket armed is mentioned, if they were the lack of rifle ammo resupply would perhaps not have resulted in the loss of the position.
Jeff
----------------------
Rod MacArthur 28 June 2008
Jeff,
The sources you quote are secondary at best. They are useful but I would not rely on them.
Poten in his "Des Konigs Deutiche Legion" says [my rough translation from Page 39] "The light battalions had one third armed with rifles", although he does not give a date for this.
The return of weapons held by 2nd Light Battalion KGL on their disbandment in February 1816 clearly shows 41% muskets and 59% rifles.
The story that Baring ran out of ammunition because an ammunition cart was overturned may be true, but some historians dispute this, and suggest it was just bad resupply management. If the battalion did have a mixture of muskets and rifles then their ammunition cart would have reflected this same mixture. The 200 Nassau troops who were sent to re-inforce La Haye Sainte were musket armed, although possibly with a different calibre to the KGL.
Baring says (Glover's "Letters from Waterloo" No 163) he asked for ammunition several times but it was not sent. It was certainly the responsibilty of his Brigade or Division to re-suppply him and if one cart was overturned then the responsible officer should have found another. Other units in the Brigade and Division had rifles so the "overturned cart" may just be an excuse for incompetence. The Divisional Assistant Quartermaster General, Shaw-Kennedy, wrote very self important memoirs "Notes on the Battle of Waterloo" in which he implies (Page 123) the blame lay partly with Baring and partly with the Brigade staff, not of course with himself as the senior Divisional staff officer responsible for such matters
Rod
----------------------------
JeffF. 30 June 2008
Rod,
You mentioned you had researched all the British infantry unit establishments from 1802-1815. Would you also know the organization or authorization (on paper) of a battalion of the 95th Rifle Regiment? The staff, number of companies; officers, SGTs, CPLs, Buglers, and Riflemen etc., in the company?. Did the 5/60th Royal American Rifles have the same establishment? All the 'authorizations' information I've found is from the American Revolution era.
I recognize that the authorized strengths are much different from the strengths achieved in the field but I would like to know the organization.
thanks,
Jeff
) que dans les light bat. Il y est eu jusqu'à 50% de rifles.
c'est avec un grand plaisir
