Dutch Curiasseurs during WSS

[pabblo41]

Hi Mats

Interesting about the Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf Dragoon unit Baudisson, as it is in the OOB's of Ramallies I have, including the one with Bauditz and Bonnart.

Perhaps they had commanders with the same name, (at Blenheim there were 3 commanders called Rantzou... very confusing).

Ah well.... another mystery?

If you like mysteries look at the Colgne Guard Cavalry, supposed to be 3 squadrons strong (1 squ Gd Hatschere, 2 squ Karabiner Gd), but all the info indicates that there was only one 80 man company of Guard Hatschere, and the Karabiner Guard sound like they were the Colgne Arco cavalry unit, whose 2 senior companies had guard status.


Thanks

[huevans07]

Hi Barry,

Yes, they were Danish subsidy troops (dragoons) in the pay of Zeeland, forming half of dragoon regiment #1. (Source: "Die Vereinigte Niederlande - Nationaltruppen der Provinzen Holland un Seeland im Spanischen Erbfolgekrieg 1701-1714" by Belaubre, De Wilde & Kolberg)

Cheers

Mats

Helmets for dragoons? Wouldn't these "helmets" be more likely to be fur caps or other caps. Is that a possible translation?

[barr7430]

Possible Huevans but not a certainty.

About twenty or so years before James Graham of Claverhouse (later to be known as 'Bonnie Dundee') was in command of a troop of Scottish dragoons at Drumclog who are reputed to have been dressed in lobster pots.

The fascination about this particular period is that troops were clothed and armed at the expense of their colonel's. They then 'hired' their regiments out to armies. Corruption was rampant. A flick through

The Succession of Colonels of the British Army 1660 to the present day by NB Leslie Society for Army Historical Research. Special publication No11 1974.

Demonstrates how colonel's were cashiered for 'misappropriation' type offences. They'd be:
1. Buying old. faulty or second rate equipment
2. Entering 'ghost' names in the muster to collect extra subsidies
3. Not reporting desertions, death in combat etc to continue getting extra wage cash for retention or extra pay for the officers etc.

Example;

FERDINANDO HASTINGS (Colonel of Hastings Regt 13th Foot): cashiered for dressing his regiment in cast off clothing. "One of the most unscrupulous scoundrels ever in those days of universal robbery, that ever robbed a regiment" (Fortescue).

Now that is what I call an indictment! Imagine that on a European wide scale. The British were one of the smaller armies.. Imperial,Dutch and French all being much larger.

Great stuff!

So, perhaps a reference to dragoons in helmets may not be as bizarre as first it seems

[pabblo41]

Hi huevans07

As Barry says it is possible that Dragoons were so dressed. I have often seen text and drawing of Austruan Dragroons so dressed almost up to 1800. But the Austrians did dress their cavalry differently depending on who they were fighting i.e. a European enemy or the Turks (where they would wear pot helms and curiasses etc). As time progressed and the Turkish threat receded, they would be dressed all the time in the European fashon.

Also in the early 1700's the "Holy Roman Empire" (described as being neither holy, roman or an empire ) still had infulence, and was primarilay there to raise troops to defend Christendom againt the Turks in that time period, and so such equipment would have been available and could have been issued (dependon on how honest or rich the commender was, many of the smaller German states were supposed to supply curiasseurs etc, which they got paid for but somehow the curisses, and the full compliment of men etc never got delivered. ).

Hope this helps.

[Anonymous]

The top post mentioned an osprey for the armies of marlborough, yet their website does not seem to have one.

anyone know the number?

[Bluebear]

General K,

"MARLBOROUGH'S ARMY, 1702 -11"

By Michael Barthorp and Angus McBride
Osprey's "Men at Arms" Series no. 97
An illustrated guide to Marlborough's Army and the War of the Spanish Succession. Illustrated with
colour plates, B&W photographs and contemporary illustrations.
Soft back. 40 pages.

I'm not sure if this is still "in print", but you should be able to find lots of used copies.


-- Jeff

[huevans07]

There's 1 at my local library. Good colour illustrations of basic British troop types and a couple of choices from some of the other allied armies. Some odd choices like a Hungarian hussar.

The British army aside, the coverage is disorganized and random and does not attempt to provide a full list of regts and facings or organizational tables. So the book is a bit of a failure when it comes to Danes, Prussians, Dutch etc.

[Mats]

Helmets for dragoons? Wouldn't these "helmets" be more likely to be fur caps or other caps. Is that a possible translation?

Or they could have been metal skull caps, worn under their hats.