La Legion Noire
Encyclopedia
La Légion Noire was a military unit of the French Revolution
ary Army
. The only action of any note that it took part in was the unsuccessful last invasion of Britain
in February 1797.
The Legion was created on the orders of General Hoche
to take part in a three pronged attack against Ireland and Britain. It was commanded by chef de brigade
William Tate.
said that 600 of them were French troops of the line "Grenadiers all over six foot and as fine a body of men as I have set eyes on"
The legion was equipped with British army material, arms and uniforms captured at the unsuccessful Franco-British Landings at Quiberon
. The red British uniforms were dyed, with various degrees of success, a brown/black colour from which the unit got its nickname. The unit's correct designation was: La Seconde Légion des Francs.
Tate did not speak French and had to rely on his French and Irish officers to communicate with his forces.
The main purpose of the Legions proposed invasion of Great Britain
was to act as a diversionry measure to draw resources away from the main thrust of the campaign: a landing at Bantry Bay
on the west coast of Ireland
. La Legion's original target of Liverpool
was changed to Bristol
, at that time the second city in the country. A second diversionary force, La légion des Francs, under General
Quantain was instructed to attack Newcastle upon Tyne
and destroy local shipping. This force set out from Dunkirk in November of 1796 but turned back at Flushing in the Netherlands
after bad weather caused the loss of several invasion barges. Once back in port many of the soldiers, who appear to also have been criminal conscripts, refused to re-embark and the project was abandoned.
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
ary Army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
. The only action of any note that it took part in was the unsuccessful last invasion of Britain
Last invasion of Britain
The Battle of Fishguard was a military invasion of Great Britain by Revolutionary France during the War of the First Coalition. The brief campaign, which took place between 22 February and 24 February 1797, was the most recent effort by a foreign force that was able to land on Britain, and thus is...
in February 1797.
The Legion was created on the orders of General Hoche
Lazare Hoche
Louis Lazare Hoche was a French soldier who rose to be general of the Revolutionary army.Born of poor parents near Versailles, he enlisted at sixteen as a private soldier in the Gardes Françaises...
to take part in a three pronged attack against Ireland and Britain. It was commanded by chef de brigade
Chef de brigade
Chef de brigade was a military rank, equivalent to colonel, in the French Revolutionary army, in command of a demi-brigade. Both that unit and that rank were created at the same time, in 1793. The two designations disappeared just before the institution of the French Empire, in 1803, with the...
William Tate.
Troop composition
According to the prisoner returns submitted by Lieutenant General James Rooke after the invasion, the legion numbered 46 officers and 1178 men. Tate stated that he had lost eight men in the landing and that four men had been lost to enemy action. Whilst many of the legion were prisoners and convicts drafted against their will (it seems some were British prisoners) the commander of the British forces Lord CawdorJohn Campbell, 1st Baron Cawdor
John Campbell of Cawdor, 1st Baron Cawdor of Castlemartin was the son of Pryse Campbell and Sarah Bacon.He married Lady Isabella Caroline Howard, daughter of Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle and Lady Margaret Caroline Leveson-Gower, on 28 July 1789...
said that 600 of them were French troops of the line "Grenadiers all over six foot and as fine a body of men as I have set eyes on"
The legion was equipped with British army material, arms and uniforms captured at the unsuccessful Franco-British Landings at Quiberon
Invasion of France (1795)
The invasion of France in 1795 or the Battle of Quiberon was a major landing on the Quiberon peninsula by émigré, counter-revolutionary troops in support of the Chouannerie and Vendée Revolt, beginning on 23 June and finally definitively repulsed on 21 July...
. The red British uniforms were dyed, with various degrees of success, a brown/black colour from which the unit got its nickname. The unit's correct designation was: La Seconde Légion des Francs.
Tate did not speak French and had to rely on his French and Irish officers to communicate with his forces.
The main purpose of the Legions proposed invasion of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
was to act as a diversionry measure to draw resources away from the main thrust of the campaign: a landing at Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay is a bay located in County Cork, southwest Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km wide at the head and wide at the entrance....
on the west coast of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. La Legion's original target of Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
was changed to Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, at that time the second city in the country. A second diversionary force, La légion des Francs, under General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Quantain was instructed to attack Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
and destroy local shipping. This force set out from Dunkirk in November of 1796 but turned back at Flushing in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
after bad weather caused the loss of several invasion barges. Once back in port many of the soldiers, who appear to also have been criminal conscripts, refused to re-embark and the project was abandoned.
Further reading
- Fishguard Fiasco: An account of the last invasion of Britain J.S. Kinross ISBN 978 1904396 68 0
- Britain's last Invasion, Fishguard 1797 J.E Thomas ISBN 0 7524 4010 1