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"The Zouaves of Death in Poland's January..." Topic


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Tango01 Supporting Member of TMP10 Jul 2013 12:44 p.m. PST

… Uprising of 1863.

"The Zouaves of Death (in Polish ¯uawi Death) are perhaps one of the most ghoulishly named fighting units of the 19th century conflicts which were fought in the buildup of empires, republican states, and commonwealths in the wake of the previous Napoleonic Age (c.1803-1815). Created by a former French army officer, François Rochebrune (b.1830-1870), the Zouaves of Death fought in the January Uprising of 1863-1864 against the Russian Empire, who had dominated (along with Austria & Prussia) much of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth since the Partitions of 1772, 1793, and 1795.

Formed in Ojców in Febuary of 1863, Rochebrunes volunteer and free lance militia was styled in the debonair attire of the French Algerian Zouave, a popular style of dress for infantrymen from the 1850's until the end of World War I in 1918. They fought in many of the major battles of the Uprising in what was then known as the Congress of Poland, ruled by Tsar Alexander II of Russia (b.1818-1881). The Zouaves of Death fought attached to the peasant armies and cadres of Polish patriots led by a number of revolutionary leaders throughout the conflict…"
Full article here
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picture

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Hope you enjoy!.

Amicalement
Armand

79thPA Supporting Member of TMP10 Jul 2013 1:09 p.m. PST

Never heard of them … and that is some interesting uniform they've got on.

Frederick Supporting Member of TMP10 Jul 2013 1:35 p.m. PST

Bit of a morbid touch to that uniform!

79thPA Supporting Member of TMP10 Jul 2013 2:57 p.m. PST

I took it as a manifestation of their religion.

Personal logo 20thmaine Supporting Member of TMP10 Jul 2013 4:36 p.m. PST

Interesting stuff.

Although – if I were going to call myself a Zouve of Death I would NOT wear that hat. The red hat with the tassle is more acceptable!

Now, can I convert these from plastic ACW zouves ?

Glengarry510 Jul 2013 5:27 p.m. PST

"Death" battalions, including one for women, were a feature of the Russian army in WW1.

Tango01 Supporting Member of TMP11 Jul 2013 10:19 a.m. PST

Glad you consider them of interest boys!.

Amicalement
Armand

Altius11 Jul 2013 2:51 p.m. PST

"Death" battalions, including one for women, were a feature of the Russian army in WW1.

I believe the Poles also had other units which were called "death battalions". Maybe it's a slavic thing.

Does anybody know if that term actually signified anything of substance, or was it just a heroic-sounding name meant to inspire the troops and strike fear into the hearts of the enemy? I suspect the latter, but one never knows.

Dalai Lama13 Jul 2013 11:24 p.m. PST

Polish Army Museum in Warsaw has some of their gear and original uniform. Check out their page. They also feed data into Facebook, and I think the Death Zouaves were about recently.

CooperSteveOnTheLaptop19 Jul 2013 3:52 a.m. PST

the big white cross must have been handy for aiming

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