"Naples - Guard Horse Battery" Topic

Here is a good one for you all…

At which year was the Neapolitan Horse battery given Guard status and is it true they most probably had 4pndrs, not 6pndrs ?

Regards,
Shane

Hi Shane,

At the earliest, the horse artillery was given Guard status in 1807. The company was organized in 1806 and the only reference to time of designation is 'soon' after being organized. There was initially only one company. By 1811 there were two companies and two companies of train troops.

However, I can't find any information on the caliber of their field pieces. Seems to me that 4-pounders might be the initial issue, though with 6-pounders later. That, however, is merely a(n) (un)educated guess.

Do you need details of the uniform? I have the trumpeter also.

Sincerely,
K

Thx Kevin,

I did read somewhere that the Guard Horse battery was armed with French 4pndrs but cannot remember where I read this. However, on page 9 (tope left) in First Empire issue 14 it states that the Horse battery was elevated to Guard Horse status in 1811 and that in 1815 they were re-equipped with 6pndrs which kind of backs up the initial 4pndr organization up until then.

But….on this website : link They clearly state that the Guard Horse battery was acknowledged as Guard way back on Sept 30 1806 and that a Guard Foot battery was also organized but then joined to the Guard Horse battery as a single Guard Horse battery…so I am a little confused as to what is the true story.

Shane

Unfortunately there is a lack of specific information concerning the Neapolitan Army in general. A lot of archive material has been lost and with the myriad changes of uniforms, regiments etc it is impossible to be certain about much. It may well have been slated as a guard unit originally but only achieved that status 6 years later. In 1812 the Veliti a Cavallo della Guardia Reale were wearing a uniform that had been replaced officially in 1809 so I wouldnt get too hung up about it. I use the lack of information to allow myself a little licence and make the uniforms more exciting. My Volteggiatore della Guardia Reale will be in dark sky blue coats with amaranth facings and a colpack as the missing link between the original ones created in 1809 (who became the 2nd Veliti) and the final regiment created in 1814.

thx mate,

I am not too worried about the uniforms as such, its more about composition, historical dated changes, unit size, status, morale levels, equipment and proposed role etc…

I am doing this for my own rules set for every nation so I can have a complete data bank of information on just about every unit in every nation of the period, the more accurate I can make it the better. I have already had players from other groups request the information I have gathered for their own groups which is one of the reasons I wish to pursue this as far as possible.

Shane

by 1815 it had been changed to two batteries of 6 guns (4x6pdr 2xhowitzer)each. Most of Murat's Guardia Reale was made up of members of the elite companies of the french Armee de Naples, but after his ambiguity in 1814 a lot of the french (especially the officers)left Neapolitan service so probably its quality would have suffered along with the rest of the Guardia.In 1815 (mid march)there were 132 men and 145 horses for the artillery and 142 men and 225 horses for the train, of the Horse Artillery