Army of Condé
Encyclopedia
The Army of Condé was a French field army during the French Revolutionary Wars
. One of several émigré field armies
, it was the only one to survive the War of the First Coalition; others had been formed by the Comte d'Artois
(brother of King Louis XVI
) and Mirabeau-Tonneau. The émigré armies were formed by aristocrats and nobles who had fled from the violence in France after the August Decrees
. The army was commanded by Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé
, the cousin of Louis XVI of France
. Among its members were Condé's grandson, the Duc d'Enghien and the two sons of Louis XVI's younger brother, the Comte d'Artois
, and so the army was sometimes also called the Princes' Army.
Financial difficulties forced Condé to appeal to foreign courts for support. Although the Army fought in conjunction with the Austrian army, many of the generals in Habsburg service distrusted Louis Joseph and policy makers in Vienna considered the army and its officers unreliable. Furthermore, conflicting goals of the French royalists and the Habsburgs frequently placed Louis Joseph at odds with the Habsburg military leadership.
, the Duc de Blacas
and Chateaubriand
, the Duc de Choiseul
, the Comte de Langéron
, the Comte de Damas
, the Comte de Montlosier
and the Vicomte de Bonald
. The insistence of the officers on the same pay to which they were entitled in France created problems for their funders, which included Spain, Portugal, and Naples, and Britain, and finally, Russia. The British funded the army the longest, from 1795 to 1797, and again, in 1799 until its dissolution in 1801.
Originally about 25,000 men, the size of the prince's army varied, depending in great part upon the demands placed upon it, but also on the funding available. By the end of 1792, the force had 5,000 men. After recruiting in 1796, in the cities of Mainz
and Mannheim
, and in the Swiss cantons, it could call on 10,000 men, under the pay of Britain.
. At Metz, 3-4000 French republicans faced an Austrian-Émigré siege force of 20,000. Expecting the fortress to surrender without a fight, the Austrians and émigrés under command of the Prince of Bourbon, did not bring any siege cannon. Although losses were slight (about 10 killed or wounded), the failure to take Thionville from 2 battalions of Infantry and some National Guardsmen rankled. In the previous 3 weeks, Austrians and Prussian forces had successfully forced the capitulation of Longwy and Verdun. Two weeks later, after the cannonade at Valmy, the émigré army and the Austrians, did not get to the battlefield until most of the fighting was over and the Prussians were withdrawing.
By 1795, the Army of Condé fought in conjunction with the Austrian army, under command of Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
. In 1794, through the negotiations of William Wickham, the British agreed to pay the Corps' expenses. In June 1796, the Condé's army and the Swabian Circle contingent guarded the Rhine river crossing at Kehl, but were pushed out when the French crossed the river in force on June 26. Afterward, the Condé's corps and the Contingent fought in Swabia
, as part of the division of Karl Aloys von Fürstenberg. After the contingent was disbanded, the Corps remained in Swabia, participating in the summer fighting Swabia. In October 1796, at the Battle of Schliengen
, the Corps made a spirited attack on the village of Steinstadt, which they took with a bayonet charge and remained there under severe artillery and musket fire for the rest of the daylight hours. Charles was so pleased with the performance of the Corps that he sent a formal congratulatory note to the Prince.
After the interim cease fire, the Corps garrisoned in the region of Lake Constance
. The agreement negotiated between Conde and Wickham expired and the Corps entered the pay of the Tsar of Russia. In October, the entire Corps, numbering about 10,000, left the Bodensee region and marched toward Russia. In October 1797, Austria signed the Treaty of Campo Formio
with the First French Republic, formally ending its hostilities against the French.
With the end of the First Coalition
, the army marched to Poland
, returning in 1799 to Switzerland under command of Alexander Suvorov
. In 1800, when Russia
left the Second Coalition, the English agreed once again to pay the Conde's army and it fought in Bavaria until 1801, when the Corps was disbanded.
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
. One of several émigré field armies
Émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars
The émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars were armies raised outside of France by and out of Royalist émigrés, with the aim of overthrowing the French Revolution, reconquering France and restoring the monarchy. These were aided by royalist armies within France itself, such as the Chouans,...
, it was the only one to survive the War of the First Coalition; others had been formed by the Comte d'Artois
Charles X of France
Charles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...
(brother of King Louis XVI
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
) and Mirabeau-Tonneau. The émigré armies were formed by aristocrats and nobles who had fled from the violence in France after the August Decrees
August Decrees
The August Decrees were nineteen decrees made in August 1789 by the National Constituent Assembly during the French Revolution.-Background:The fall of the Bastille on 14 July 1789 was followed by a mass uproar spreading from Paris to the countryside. Noble families were attacked and the...
. The army was commanded by Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé
Louis Joseph de Bourbon, prince de Condé
Louis Joseph de Bourbon was Prince of Condé from 1740 to his death. A member of the House of Bourbon, he held the prestigious rank of Prince du Sang.-Biography:...
, the cousin of Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI of France
Louis XVI was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792, before being executed in 1793....
. Among its members were Condé's grandson, the Duc d'Enghien and the two sons of Louis XVI's younger brother, the Comte d'Artois
Charles X of France
Charles X was known for most of his life as the Comte d'Artois before he reigned as King of France and of Navarre from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. A younger brother to Kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile and eventually succeeded him...
, and so the army was sometimes also called the Princes' Army.
Financial difficulties forced Condé to appeal to foreign courts for support. Although the Army fought in conjunction with the Austrian army, many of the generals in Habsburg service distrusted Louis Joseph and policy makers in Vienna considered the army and its officers unreliable. Furthermore, conflicting goals of the French royalists and the Habsburgs frequently placed Louis Joseph at odds with the Habsburg military leadership.
Composition of the army
Other than the princes, it also included many young aristocrats such as the Duc de RichelieuArmand-Emmanuel du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu
Armand Emmanuel Sophie Septimanie de Vignerot du Plessis, 5th Duke of Richelieu was a prominent French statesman during the Bourbon Restoration...
, the Duc de Blacas
Pierre Louis Jean Casimir de Blacas
Pierre Louis Jean Casimir de Blacas d'Aulps, first comte, then duc, and finally prince de Blacas d'Aulps was a French antiquarian, nobleman and diplomat during the Bourbon Restoration.-Youth:He was baptized at Avignon on 11 January 1771...
and Chateaubriand
François-René de Chateaubriand
François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian. He is considered the founder of Romanticism in French literature.-Early life and exile:...
, the Duc de Choiseul
Claude Antoine Gabriel, duc de Choiseul-Stainville
Claude Antoine Gabriel, duc de Choiseul-Stainville was a French soldier and émigré Royalist.-Biography:...
, the Comte de Langéron
Louis Alexandre Andrault de Langeron
Count Louis Alexandre Andrault de Langéron , born in Paris, was a French general in the service of the Imperial Russian Army during the Napoleonic Wars.-Early life:...
, the Comte de Damas
Joseph-François-Louis-Charles de Damas
Duke Joseph François Louis Charles de Damas was a French general.As a colonel, took part in the American Revolution from 1780 to 1781...
, the Comte de Montlosier
François Dominique de Reynaud, Comte de Montlosier
Francois Dominique de Reynaud, Comte de Montlosier , was a notable French politician and political writer during the First French Empire, Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy...
and the Vicomte de Bonald
Louis Gabriel Ambroise de Bonald
Louis Gabriel Ambroise, Vicomte de Bonald , was a French counter-revolutionary philosopher and politician.-Life:...
. The insistence of the officers on the same pay to which they were entitled in France created problems for their funders, which included Spain, Portugal, and Naples, and Britain, and finally, Russia. The British funded the army the longest, from 1795 to 1797, and again, in 1799 until its dissolution in 1801.
Originally about 25,000 men, the size of the prince's army varied, depending in great part upon the demands placed upon it, but also on the funding available. By the end of 1792, the force had 5,000 men. After recruiting in 1796, in the cities of Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
and Mannheim
Mannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
, and in the Swiss cantons, it could call on 10,000 men, under the pay of Britain.
Structure
The composition of the army varied: the regiments of Mirabeau, Rohan and Salms, for example, were almost independent corps.Conflicting goals
At one point the Emperor put the Condé himself under arrest for insubordination. The early armies of the émigrés were so incompetent, so unrealistic, and so mismanaged that in 1792, the new emperor, Francis II, ordered the dissolution of the brothers’ armies in Flanders.Action
This army participated in the War of the First Coalition from 1792 to 1797 alongside Austria, initially sharing in the unsuccessful invasion of France by the Allies under Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of BrunswickCharles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick
Charles William Ferdinand , Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, was a sovereign prince of the Holy Roman Empire, and a professional soldier who served as a Generalfeldmarschall of the Kingdom of Prussia...
. At Metz, 3-4000 French republicans faced an Austrian-Émigré siege force of 20,000. Expecting the fortress to surrender without a fight, the Austrians and émigrés under command of the Prince of Bourbon, did not bring any siege cannon. Although losses were slight (about 10 killed or wounded), the failure to take Thionville from 2 battalions of Infantry and some National Guardsmen rankled. In the previous 3 weeks, Austrians and Prussian forces had successfully forced the capitulation of Longwy and Verdun. Two weeks later, after the cannonade at Valmy, the émigré army and the Austrians, did not get to the battlefield until most of the fighting was over and the Prussians were withdrawing.
By 1795, the Army of Condé fought in conjunction with the Austrian army, under command of Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
Archduke Charles of Austria, Duke of Teschen was an Austrian field-marshal, the third son of emperor Leopold II and his wife Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain...
. In 1794, through the negotiations of William Wickham, the British agreed to pay the Corps' expenses. In June 1796, the Condé's army and the Swabian Circle contingent guarded the Rhine river crossing at Kehl, but were pushed out when the French crossed the river in force on June 26. Afterward, the Condé's corps and the Contingent fought in Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
, as part of the division of Karl Aloys von Fürstenberg. After the contingent was disbanded, the Corps remained in Swabia, participating in the summer fighting Swabia. In October 1796, at the Battle of Schliengen
Battle of Schliengen
At the Battle of Schliengen , both the French Republican Army commanded by Jean-Victor Moreau and the Austrian army under the command of Archduke Charles of Austria claimed victories...
, the Corps made a spirited attack on the village of Steinstadt, which they took with a bayonet charge and remained there under severe artillery and musket fire for the rest of the daylight hours. Charles was so pleased with the performance of the Corps that he sent a formal congratulatory note to the Prince.
After the interim cease fire, the Corps garrisoned in the region of Lake Constance
Lake Constance
Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
. The agreement negotiated between Conde and Wickham expired and the Corps entered the pay of the Tsar of Russia. In October, the entire Corps, numbering about 10,000, left the Bodensee region and marched toward Russia. In October 1797, Austria signed the Treaty of Campo Formio
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on 18 October 1797 by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of revolutionary France and the Austrian monarchy...
with the First French Republic, formally ending its hostilities against the French.
With the end of the First Coalition
First Coalition
The War of the First Coalition was the first major effort of multiple European monarchies to contain Revolutionary France. France declared war on the Habsburg monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792, and the Kingdom of Prussia joined the Austrian side a few weeks later.These powers initiated a series...
, the army marched to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, returning in 1799 to Switzerland under command of Alexander Suvorov
Alexander Suvorov
Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov , Count Suvorov of Rymnik, Prince in Italy, Count of the Holy Roman Empire , was the fourth and last generalissimo of the Russian Empire.One of the few great generals in history who never lost a battle along with the likes of Alexander...
. In 1800, when Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
left the Second Coalition, the English agreed once again to pay the Conde's army and it fought in Bavaria until 1801, when the Corps was disbanded.