Large army (First Empire)

See also: Large army

The Large army was the nickname given to the imperial armed with Napoleon I {{er}} between 1805 and 1807 then between 1811 and 1814.

Actually, there were two distinct “Large armies” under the First Empire.

First First Large army

The first Large army was created with the Camp of Boulogne-sur-Mer the August 29th 1805. It succeeded the Armée with the coasts of the Ocean.

It comprised at the beginning seven Army corps (famous “seven torrents” ordered by the marshals Bernadotte, Marmont, Davout, Soult, Lannes, Ney and Augereau) which illustrated at the time of the campaigns of 1805, 1806 and 1807 (they are joined on October 1st 1806 by the 8th body under Mortier and 9th - composed of the Bavarian allies, badois and wurtembourgeois of France - under the prince Jerome Bonaparte, in 1807 by the 10th body under Lefebvre ).

The Large army is dissolved with the Entrevue of Erfurt between Napoleon and the Tsar, from September 27th to October 12th 1807.

Second Second Large army

The second Large army was created semi-officially with the end of the year 1811 (note of Berthier) in preamble with the countryside of Russia.

Its composition is however much less homogeneous than First with in particular the integration of very broad foreign quotas (in particular Austrian, Prussian, Polish, Italian, Batavian, Belgian, Swiss, etc) and the increasingly regular recourse to the conscription to compensate for the French losses.

In 1813 - 1814, one thus attends the considerable swelling of manpower of the Guard (approximately: 50000 men in 1812: 90000 in 1813: 110000 in 1814). This inflation is explained by creation, beside the units setting-up in the infantry of line or light by the incorporation of the Marie-Louise, the young conscripts who fight at the sides of the old men grognards, of new regiments, in particular 19 regiments of acrobats and 19 regiments of Tirailleur S, and by the rise taken by the Jeune Guard, decisive at the time of the campaigns of Germany in 1813 and France in 1814.

It almost continuously fought since the beginning of the countryside of Russia in June 1812 until the end of the countryside of France in April 1814.

It reached a maximum of: 600000 men in 1812, at the beginning of the invasion of the Russia. This army was truly “European” because it included/understood:

  • : 300000 French, Belgian and Dutch

  • : 95000 Polish
  • : 35000 Austrian
  • : 25000 Italy NS
  • : 24000 Bavarian
  • : 20000 Saxon
  • : 20000 Prussian
  • : 17000 Westphalia NS
  • : 15000 Swiss S
  • : 3500 Croatian

Except for the Poles, the various quotas was under command of general French.

See too

Related articles

External bonds

  • Gallery of flags of the Large army
  • Test on the relationship between the Large army and the cabins freemasons

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