Danish Foot at Aughrim

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Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by barr7430 » Wed Sep 03, 2014 10:42 pm

I am trying to reconcile various differing orders of battle for Aughrim 12th July 1691. Although many units are named, named inaccurately the Danish contingent are often only referred to as 6 Danish battlaions or 6 battalions of Danes.
Using McNally who I think drew from several sources(Mike maybe you can confirm or rebut this please) it seems 5 infantry units are a definite:

Prince Christian
Prince Frederick
Prince George
Funen/Fynske/Fyn
Sjaellandske/Zealand

These are also cited by Sapherson. In addition he mentions Jylland (Jyske/Jutland) which Mike does not.

The other units present in the Boyne campaign of the previous year Garden til Fods(Foot Guards) and Drottingens/Oldenburg(Queen's) are not mentioned by either source. So, who were the 6th regiment??

There are another couple of anomalies but it would be good to hear from anyone on the subject of the the missing Danes.

thanks in advance

B
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by turrabear » Thu Sep 04, 2014 1:39 am

kjeld hald galster in his book Danish troops in the williamite army in Ireland mentions the Danish guard at aughrim page 192 and page 195.also mentioned in the book are prince Christian, prince George funen and zealand
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by turrabear » Thu Sep 04, 2014 1:45 am

Michael McNally also has the Danish foot guards at auhgrim so if your information is correct then that would give you 6 battalions
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Old John » Thu Sep 04, 2014 7:59 am

This is the the first time i've posted on this excellent forum, which i've followed for a couple of years, so bear with me if you already know of this book which maybe of use

The Danish Force in Ireland 1690-1691 by Danaher & Simms, published 1962, has a lot of correspondence relating to the Danish forces, mentions officer casualities at Aughrim

also see for more info on Danish forces in Ireland
http://www.limerickcity.ie/media/danish ... 201690.pdf

In passing i should mention that i only game using 20mm figures, yes I'm that old, with the Les Higgins Marlburian figures as the mainstay of my armies together with units from other old 20mm ranges inc Douglas Miniatures, Alberken, S range etc and figures from various 20mm plastic sets

over the years i've amassed a fair collection of source material, Hall, Kuhn, Condray, Sapherson et al

cheers Old John
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Old John » Thu Sep 04, 2014 7:59 am

This is the the first time i've posted on this excellent forum, which i've followed for a couple of years, so bear with me if you already know of this book which maybe of use

The Danish Force in Ireland 1690-1691 by Danaher & Simms, published 1962, has a lot of correspondence relating to the Danish forces, mentions officer casualities at Aughrim

also see for more info on Danish forces in Ireland
http://www.limerickcity.ie/media/danish ... 201690.pdf

In passing i should mention that i only game using 20mm figures, yes I'm that old, with the Les Higgins Marlburian figures as the mainstay of my armies together with units from other old 20mm ranges inc Douglas Miniatures, Alberken, S range etc and figures from various 20mm plastic sets

over the years i've amassed a fair collection of source material, Hall, Kuhn, Condray, Sapherson et al

cheers Old John
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Grenadier » Fri Sep 05, 2014 2:01 pm

Old John,

Thanks for that excellent link-downloaded for future reading!
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by barr7430 » Fri Sep 05, 2014 6:59 pm

Mark,

I am sitting with my copy of Mike's Aughrim book.. help me out please...

Where does he mention the Foot Guards? I can't find them in the index nor in the order of battle. Interestingly there is a reference in the index to Drottingen's(Queen's) for page 209 but p209 is in fact a reference to Jacobite garrisons. p219 is a notes page relating to Chapter 4 of the book and does mention the Queen's Regiment (Drottingen's) being detached. So I think 209 is a misprint for 219 but still no Guards...

cheers

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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by quindia » Fri Sep 05, 2014 7:55 pm

I don't have the Aughrim book with me, but I think one of the terms of the Danish service was that the brigade not be split up. One of the books on the campaign specifically mentions this when speaking of the withdrawal of King William and his Blue Guard... Not sure if it was one of McNally's or one of the other half dozen books I have on the campaign.
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Friedrich August I. » Fri Sep 05, 2014 8:32 pm

Eventually You can read the Informtions you are looking for out of this old Order of Battle at Aughrim?

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KPbnl4iqVow/S ... m1691.jpeg
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by barr7430 » Fri Sep 05, 2014 8:55 pm

thanks for this Gunter, very useful.I was actually trying to find this but couldn't. It does however prompt more questions than it answers as several of the regiments named don't correspond to either McNally or Sapherson... makes it all very interesting.
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Graf Bretlach » Fri Sep 05, 2014 9:27 pm

There were 8 Danish battalions in Ireland at this time.

Guards, the Queens, Princes Christian, George and Frederick, Zealand, Jutland and Funen.

initially at the start of the 1691 campaign 6 joined the field army and 2 in garrisons
letter Würtemberg to Christian V 13 May 1691

Prince George's remains in garrison at Waterford, Duncanon and Carrik, the Queens at Clommel
Würtemberg to Christian V 23 May 1691

Attack on Athlone June - mention of Guards, Prince Frederick's & Jutland (6 battalions present because ...50 men selected from all the [Danish] battalions 300 in total)

2nd siege of Limerick August - mention of the Queens and Prince George's.

The OOB on the Marburg archive site dated 12 July which lists the 3 princes regiments, Seeland, Finlanders (sic) (Funen) and Schar (Jutland)
no sign of the Guards or the Queens.

The Guards & Prince Frederick's were definitely present at Aughrim (mentioned by Würtemberg)

beware the colonels or Lt-colonels names are often used for the battalions and various Danish/English/mis-spelled names.
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by barr7430 » Fri Sep 05, 2014 10:22 pm

OK so I think some progress...

Schar are on the Orbat chart attached by Gunter... the Marburg Archive document.

If so, then it ID's the 6 Danish battalions - Christian(listed Cretien), George, Frederick (listed Friedric), Sjaellandske (listed Seeland), Funen (listed Finlandois) and Jutland (listed Schar).
No sign of Guards. If they were at Aughrim I couldn't find the mention in McNally. If so then that makes 7 Danish battalions at the battle not 6 UNLESS one of the other six listed was NOT there.
The Marburg sketch also identifies:

Treloani(Trelawney) who I cannot find on any other material
Pridehofe or Pridehose (possibly a colonel's name but not English) - A foot regiment
Wolstai (another foot regiment)
Lord..... (no name) a regiment of Horse
Nassau.. a regiment of Horse
Two separate regiments Babington & Darmstadt (who are in fact the same regiment)
It shows Regiment Ginkel as having 4 squadrons and Lauigni (Rouvigny?) as having 3 squadrons.
It also lists 3 battalions of Foot ALL called Hamilton. This could be Lord George, Gustavus Hamiton but who is the third as McNally suggests Gustavus's battlaion were in fact commanded by Creighton on the day. We have an extra Hamilton!

To me these are the anomalies as all of the rest of the regimental references tie up more or less although there is some confusion over:

Lloyd's Regiment who Sapherson has guarding the trayne and McNally has on the field.
Dutch Life Guards who appear neither in Marburg or Sapherson but do in McNally.
Brandenburg who do not appear in McNally's orbat but do feature in his battle narrative. They do also appear in Marburg but not Sapherson
Riedesel who appear in both Sapherson and Marburg but not mcNally. Steenbeck(van Reede) appear in McNally but neither of the other two.

It is definitely like a jigsaw puzzle :)
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by turrabear » Fri Sep 05, 2014 11:19 pm

quindia wrote:I don't have the Aughrim book with me, but I think one of the terms of the Danish service was that the brigade not be split up. One of the books on the campaign specifically mentions this when speaking of the withdrawal of King William and his Blue Guard... Not sure if it was one of McNally's or one of the other half dozen books I have on the campaign.
sorry it isn't my mistake. it was dutch life guards I was looking at.
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by turrabear » Fri Sep 05, 2014 11:25 pm

wurttemberg letter to harboe 17th july 1691 from loughreagh.
the letter mentions the bravery of the Danish guards at the battle aughrim
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Re: Danish Foot at Aughrim

Post by Graf Bretlach » Sat Sep 06, 2014 12:51 am

Portland on the Marburg OOB will be the Dutch horse Guards. 2 esc.
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