Émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars
Encyclopedia
The émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars
were armies raised outside of France by and out of Royalist émigré
s, 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 Chouan
s, and by allied countries such as Great Britain
. They fought, for example, at the sieges of Lyon and Toulon.
They were formed from:
Even Napoleon said of them "True, they are paid by our enemies, but they were or should have been bound to the cause of their King. France gave death to their action, and tears to their courage. All devotion is heroic."
, and commanded by marshals de Broglie and de Castries, under the aegis of Louis XVI's brothers, the comte de Provence and duc d'Artois
. 10,000 strong, it returned to France beside the army of Brunswick
and was dismissed on 24 November 1792, two months after the French victory at Valmy
.
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...
were armies raised outside of France by and out of Royalist émigré
Émigré
Émigré is a French term that literally refers to a person who has "migrated out", but often carries a connotation of politico-social self-exile....
s, with the aim of overthrowing the French Revolution
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...
, reconquering France and restoring the monarchy. These were aided by royalist armies within France itself, such as the Chouan
Chouan
Chouan is a French surname. It was used as a nom de guerre by the Chouan brothers, most notably Jean Cottereau, better known as Jean Chouan, who led a major revolt in Bas-Maine against the French Revolution...
s, and by allied countries such as Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
. They fought, for example, at the sieges of Lyon and Toulon.
They were formed from:
- noblemen volunteers, either descendents of the ancient royal family or not, who had fled France
- troops raised by these nobles through subsidies from other European monarchies, or through their own means
- units of the French army which had also emigrated, such as the 4th Hussar RegimentHussards de SaxeThe Régiment des Hussards de Saxe was a cavalry unit set up in France under the Ancien Régime in 1741 as the Chasseurs de Fischer. In 1761 it was renamed the Dragons-Chasseurs de Conflans, in 1763 the Légion de Conflans and in 1776 it finally became a hussar regiment, being renamed the...
Even Napoleon said of them "True, they are paid by our enemies, but they were or should have been bound to the cause of their King. France gave death to their action, and tears to their courage. All devotion is heroic."
Armée des Princes
Raised in Germany in 1792, at TrèvesTrèves
-France:Trèves is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Trèves, in the Rhône department* Trèves, in the Gard department* Trèves, former commune of the Maine-et-Loire department, now part of Chênehutte-Trèves-Cunault...
, and commanded by marshals de Broglie and de Castries, under the aegis of Louis XVI's brothers, the comte de Provence and duc 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...
. 10,000 strong, it returned to France beside the army of Brunswick
Charles 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...
and was dismissed on 24 November 1792, two months after the French victory at Valmy
Battle of Valmy
The Battle of Valmy was the first major victory by the army of France during the French Revolution. The action took place on 20 September 1792 as Prussian troops commanded by the Duke of Brunswick attempted to march on Paris...
.
Légion des Pyrénées
- Creation : 1794
- Also known as : in May, Légion royale des Pyrénées
- Founder : Marquis de Saint-Simon
- Commander : Marquis de Saint-Simon
- Size : 600 infantrymen and a squadron of hussarHussarHussar refers to a number of types of light cavalry which originated in Hungary in the 14th century, tracing its roots from Serbian medieval cavalry tradition, brought to Hungary in the course of the Serb migrations, which began in the late 14th century....
s - Theatre of operations : Pyrénées-Atlantiques
- Engagements : Saint-Étienne-de-Baïgorry (26 April 1794), heavy losses (17 prisoners guillotined) ; montagnes d’Arquinzun (10 July), heavy losses (30 to 50 % of its effective strength) ; Port-Bidassoa (24 July), heavy losses covering the Spanish retreat (50 captured) ; siege of Pampelune (November).
- Operated within the Spanish army of Navarre
- Sent to the front in 1795, then integrated into the le régiment de Bourbon
Légion de Panetier
- Creation : 1793
- Also known as : Légion de la Reine (d'Espagne) in June 1794
- Founder : comte de Panetier (died January 1794)
- Commander : comte de Panetier, then général de Santa-Clara
- Size : 400 ; brought up to strength in June 1794 by the companies du Royal-Provence escaping from the siege of ToulonSiege of ToulonThe Siege of Toulon was an early Republican victory over a Royalist rebellion in the Southern French city of Toulon. It is also often known as the Fall of Toulon.-Context:...
and the companies du Royal Roussillon ; - Theatre of operations : Pyrénées-Orientales
- Engagements : Defence of Port-VendresPort-VendresPort-Vendres is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.A typical Mediterranean fishing port, situated near the Spanish border on the cote Vermeille in south west France, Port-Vendres is renowned for its numerous fish and sea food restaurants. You can watch the fishing...
(May 1794), evacuated by sea (to avoid being captured and guillotined) ; Zamora 5 January 1796 - Operating within the Spanish army
- Amalgamated into the le régiment de Bourbon
Légion du Vallespir
- Creation : 1793
- Also known as : Bataillon de la frontière circa May 1793
- Founder : Spanish general Ricardos : Spanish soldiers under Émigré officers
- Commander :
- Size :
- Theatre of operations : defence of Vallespir, then Roussillon
- Engagements :
- Operating within the Spanish army
- Several desertions to the légion de Panetier - Amalgamated into the le régiment de Bourbon
Royal Roussillon
- Creation : January 1794 at BarcelonaBarcelonaBarcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
from émigrés, prisoners and deserters - Also known as :
- Founder : Général Ricardos
- Commander :
- Size : 200 in June 94 (of which 129 were massacred by a mob since they were amusing themselves in their barracks on a procession day) ;
- Theatre of operations :
- Engagements : None
- Subsumed into the légion de Panetier (becoming the légion de la Reine at that moment)
Régiment de Bourbon
- Creation : 1796 from the légion de la Reine (ex-légion de Panetier), the Bataillon de la frontière, and the légion royale des Pyrénées
- Also known as : Integrated into the Spanish army as number 47, then 37
- Founder : Marquis de Saint-Simon
- Commander : Marquis de Saint-Simon
- Size : 1600 (1808)
- Theatre of operations : garrisoning Ciudad RodrigoCiudad RodrigoCiudad Rodrigo is a small cathedral city in the province of Salamanca, in western Spain, with a population of about 14,000. It is the seat of a judicial district as well....
(1797) then Majorque - Engagements : Siege of Gérone (fell 9 December 1808, 300 captured) ; Rozas (1808)
- Operating within the Spanish army
- Still in existence 1814 ; formed of foreign soldiers and gardes WallonWalloonsWalloons are a French-speaking people who live in Belgium, principally in Wallonia. Walloons are a distinctive community within Belgium, important historical and anthropological criteria bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon...
nes, under number 41,then in 1860 became Spain's "53rd infantry regiment", known as El Emigrado.