"Dutch-Belgian Artillery at Waterloo" Topic

Does anyone know whether the Dutch-Belgians were using French limbers and caissons in the Waterloo campaign?

Also are there any links to uniforms info. for the artillery train.

Dear Bravox
The Dutch Belgians were using French AnXI Guns on M1808 carriages, French Limbers (probably a version of the Gribeauval Limber) and Gribeauval Limber.

Each Battery had 6x M1808 6-pdrs and 2x M1808 24-pdr Howitzers. This is affirmed by John Franklin (2010) Netherlands Correspondance, 1815 Ltd. through interpretation of the returns that he has given.

See my comments in my review.
PDF link

Stephen

Thanks for that information Stephen,

I have just received my copy of the "Netherlands Correspondence", haven't had a chance to read it yet, but looking forward to it.

Dear Bravox
I had written this in DDS (2007) Napoleonic Artillery, Crowood Press but this was a supposition. It was the first time that the organisation confirmed this which was very pleasing. Previously it had been assumed that they were British Guns.

It should be noted that the AnXI gun tubes were clean cones and much lighter than the Gribeauval equivalent. Excellent designs that influenced the design for the next 50 years.
Stephen

See also: link

Dear Suchet
Thank you for that. Just to clarify the nomenclature

Referred to there are

M1794 DUTCH or GRIBEAUVAL
72 short bronze 12-pdr cannon;

M1794 DUTCH
83 3-pdr cannon – Regimental Artillery
124 16-pdr (stone) howitzers (20 cm) [These are stone weight so cannot be French] – Part of the siege train or garrison. Unlikely to have had carriages. Confirmed by the 12-pdr battery without howitzers

French AnXI on M1808 Carriage
114 6-pdr cannon
87 24-pdr (iron) howitzer (15 cm); [French AnXI using iron weight to define calibre of the howitzer]

315 gun-carriages for 480 pieces and only 238 limbers with ammunition chests to pull them. Interesting that the limbers had ammunition chests suggesting either Dutch and/or the original AnXI design rather than the Gribeauval limber. No 4-pdrs or 8-pdrs are shown here so very little Gribeauval equipment except for a number of 12-pdrs that likely did not have carriages.

Probably GRIBEAUVAL TYPE [unclear]
144 caissons

There is still much to clarify.

Thank you
Stephen

Any information on the colour of the limbers?

VD – My sources indicate some vehicles might have been repainted in light blue-grey. Most were probably mobilized in their olive-green French colors.

Dear Van Damme
I would expect that they were French Artillery Green for the campaign before they adopted grey after the British in c1826.

Stephen

Thank you for the information. I noticed at the re-enactement at waterloo that the limbers and gun carriages for the dutch/belgian artillery where painted grey and some brown.
Maybe they serve for different time periods and don`t get repainted for specific battles. I remember reading somewhere that some equipment was brittish?

Dear Van Damme
The Netherlands Army receieved British Equipment in 1826. These may have been from the 1830 period when Belgian broke away from the Netherlands.

Stephen