"Prussian Batteries with British Guns" Topic

I have been looking at every reference I have (only a few have the info I'm looking for) for which batteries have British guns. Some books say 3 or 4 foot batteries and 1 horse battery. As numbers I have only #24 foot, and Horse #11 & #12. I often see conflicting facts and I guess some things are just going to stay that way. As for other non conforming units I have 12pdr batteries #3, #4,#5 with French guns and #8, #10, #19, #21 with 6pdr siege guns. Any other references or thoughts?

According to MAA 496 during the Waterloo campaign the Horse Artillery Batteries 18 (6PDR) and 19(1 X 6PDR, 2 X Howitzers) of the Prussian army was from the former Russo-Prussian Legion and had Russian uniforms and guns.

Oops, sorry, just an update… the 18th and 19th horse batteries each had 6 X 6pdrs and 2 X Unicorn gun/howitzers of Russian make.

I pasted and copied this from previous discussions

Oliver Schmidt
09 Jan 2012 5:42 a.m. PST

The 12pfündige Batterie Nr. 19, formed in May 1815, had 6 French 12pounder guns and 2 Prussian 10pounder howitzers. They were assigned to VI army corps and didn't se action in 1815, though.
The Reitende Batterie Nr. 20 had French guns (for lack of other sources probably including the two howitzers) and waggons:
link

Verfasst am: So, 23. April 2006 19:16 Beitrag speichern Titel: Geschützmaterial im General-Gouvernement Berg ?
________________________________________
1813/14 wurden im früheren Großherzogtum, jetzt unter alliierter Verwaltung stehenden General-Gouvernement Berg, eine halbe reitende und eine Fuß-Batterie aufgestellt.

Erstere wurde im April 1815 zu einer ganzen Batterie komplettiert und als "Reitende Batterie No. 20" in die preußische Armee übernommen. Im Feldzug 1815 im III. Armee-Korps (Thielmann).

Die Fußbatterie wurde als "6pfündige Fuß-Batterie No. 37" ebenfalls in die preußische Armee übernommen. Im Feldzug 1815 im II. Armee-Korps (Pirch 1ste).

Beide Batterien hatten 1814 ihre Geschütze und Wagen aus einem (preußischen?) Depot in Giessen bekommen (der Ort selbst gehörte zum Großherzogtum Darmstadt = Hessen-Darmstadt).

Strotha schreibt, daß die Geschütze und Fahrzeuge der Reitenden Batterie No. 20 französische waren. Beide Batterien scheinen 1815 ganz regulär jeweils aus sechs 6pfündigen Kanonen und zwei Haubitzen bestanden zu haben. Nach einer Übersicht im 3. Band von Malinowski & Bonin wären die Haubitzen 7pfündige gewesen, aber das kann ein Irrtum sein.

Weiß jemand mehr über das Geschützmaterial dieser beiden Batterien oder hat eine Idee, wo sich noch etwas finden ließe ?

Durchsucht habe ich bisher das dreibändige Generalstabswerk über das preußische Heer der Befreiungskriege und das über die preußische Artillerie 1809 bis 1815, Schöning, Malinowski/Bonin, Strotha über die reitende Artillerie, sowie Zwenger's Geschichte des 7. Feldartillerie-Regiments. Göring's Geschichte des Landwehr-Bezirks Düsseldorf bringt ausnahmsweise auch nichts brauchbares.
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Oliver Schmidt
09 Jan 2012 7:21 a.m. PST

The 6pfündige Batterie Nr. 32, formed in "late summer" 1813, was reorganised as Reitende Batterie Nr. 17 in April 1815.
In December 1813 and on 7 June 1815 it is reported they were equipped with Erobertes Geschütz (conquered guns and howitzers). This battery was assigned to VI army corps.
summerfield
09 Jan 2012 7:36 a.m. PST

The following I wrote in DDS (2007) Napoleonic Artillery, Crowood Press.
The following were probably on British block trails.
11th HA – 8x British 6-pdrs (no howitzers) – British uniforms
14th HA (formed from Fritz HA in Mar 1815) – 6 x British 6-pdrs
15th HA – Probably British HA
16th HA (formed from the 27th 6-pdr FA) – 6x British 6-pdrs and 2x 5.5in How
17th HA – British 6-pdrs.
Russian Guns
18th and 19th HA were still armed with Russian 6-pdrs and 10-pdr HA Unicorns.
French 12-pdrs Equipment (AnXI)
4th 12-pdr Battery – 6x French 12-pdrs and 2x Prussian 10-pdr Howitzers
5th 12-pdr Battery – French AnXI 12-pdrs and AnXI 24-pdr Howitzers
7th 12-pdr Battery – 3x AnXI 12-pdrs and 1 AnXI 24-pdrs howitzers
19th 12-pdr Battery – 6 French 12-pdrs and 2x Prussian 10-pdr howitzers
The problem with the French AnXI 6-pdrs (95.8mm) were that they were a larger calibre than the Prussian (94mm) or British 6-pdrs (93.2mm). The 6-pdr shot was
French = 94mm
British = 89mm
Prussian = 90.4mm
There was no problem with the French 12-pdrs. The French 6.4in Long Port howitzers could not be used as the ammunition of the Prussian 10-pdr was not compatible.
HA with French AnXI 6-pdrs
20th HA – AnXI 6-pdrs (probably lacked howitzers}
There is still much more needs to be discovered in this area.
Stephen
Oliver Schmidt
09 Jan 2012 8:08 a.m. PST

According to Vogel, Theilname …, pp. 73, 75, the 12pfündige Batterie Nr. 4 received, when it was formed in July 1813, two Prussian 10pounder howitzers and 6 guns, which had been taken by Czerniczew on 30 May 1813 at Halberstadt from the Westphalian general Ochs.
The guns had prussian barrels on French gun-carriages with limbers which were made to sit on. For the howitzers Prussian ammunition waggons, for the guns British ammunition waggons.
Strotha, Geschichte der dritten Artillerie-Brigade, pp. 121, 124, gives for the 12pfündige Batterie Nr. 7, when it was formed in January 1814, one Prussian 10pounder howitzer and seven 12pounder French guns. All ammunition waggons were French. In July 1814, the Prussian howitzer and one French gun were exchanged with two (probably Prussian ?) 10pounder howitzers on French gun-carriages.
Oliver Schmidt
10 Jan 2012 5:52 a.m. PST

Some additional info on the "Landwehr" batteries:
link
A compilation from strength returns of the Prussian batteries in June 1815 gives the following as equipped with "English guns" (this info is not necessarily complete):
6 pfündige Fuß-Batterie: 20, 24, 25, 26, 34
Reitende ["riding" = horse] Batterie: 11, 16
1814 Berg Artillery
By:Oliver Schmidt
Date: 1145813998
On the turn of 1813/14, new troops were raised in the liberated / occupied / conquered / suppressed former duchy of Berg, now provisionally named and administrated as "General-Gouvernement Berg".
Amongst them a "Halbe reitende Batterie" was formed. According to Strotha, the 3 guns and 1 howitzer were finally received from a (Prussian?) depot in Giessen (a town belonging to the grand duchy of Hessen = Hessen-Darmstadt), together with the ammuniton.
In April 1815 it was taken into the Prussian army and augmented to a full battery in order to become the "Reitende Batterie No. 20". After it had been completed, according to Strotha, it had French guns and waggons. Two of the guns were howitzers, the other six most probably 6pounder guns. Mightbe the 3 guns and 1 howitzer obtained in 1814 had already been of French origin.
The Berg "Fuß-Batterie" became "6pfündige Fuß-Batterie No. 37" in spring 1815, but I was unable to locate any information about their guns, which came from the Giessen depot as well. I suppose they were six 6pounder guns and two 7pounder howitzers.
horse batteries 14, 18 & 19
By:Oliver Schmidt
Date: 1145659705
According to an order by the king dated 30th April 1814, the horse battery of Lützow's Freikorps was to become a regular battery and was to receive guns and wagons like any other horse battery. The nine guns it possessed were to be "given back" which probably means handed over to a depot. However, it seems, in June 1814 it still kept the old guns.
In early 1815, batteries 18 & 19 were reorganised to Prussian standards. The Russian 6pounder guns and 10pounder unicorns were kept. The ammunition boxes on the limbers were enlarged. The ammunition wagons were replaced by French ones. The old and used Russian harness was completely replaced by British harness. New uniforms were distributed following Prussian patterns (probably with yellow shoulder-straps, as they both now belonged to the Silesian – =3rd – artillery brigade), but the black leather belts were kept (as well as the Russian shakos I believe). All this was completed by the end of April 1815.
These two batteries had a "Park-Kolonne" of their own, with Russian ammunition: "Park-Kolonne No. 19" of 12 ammunition waggons.
Re: Prussian Landwehr Artillery
By:Oliver Schmidt
Date: 1145641638
As far as I know, these batteries were normal batteries, formed FOR the Landwehr, not FROM the Landwehr. They contined to exist until 1816, and became parts of the new artilelry brigades (i.e. artillery regiments).
Their uniforms should have been the regular artillery uniforms, but what they actually wore might have differed.
Definitely they had no Landwehr cross on their headgear.
Are you interested in a particular battery for details ?
summerfield
10 Jan 2012 8:01 a.m. PST

To add to the list of Foreign guns used by the Prussians are the 6-pdr Foot Batteries
6x British 6-pdr and 2x 5.5in howitzers
24th 6-pdr FA
26th 6-pdr FA
27th 6-pdr FA
31st 6-pdr FA
32nd 6-pdr FA
33nd 6-pdr FA [became 13th HA in March 1813]
8x British 6-pdrs
25th 6-pdr FA
3x British 6-pdr + 1 5,5in Howitzer
30th 6-pdr FA (formed in Colberg)
30th 6-pdr FA
4x British Iron 6-pdrs and 2x 5.5in Howitzers [Probably not block trail – Iron 6-pdrs were Naval pieces]
20th 6-pdr FA
Stephen

vW many thanks for this consolidated info. The Prussians are slated for 2016 so I had better get some British and French kit on order.

I have inquired about the siege guns in FA #8,10,19,and 21 and have yet to hear anyone else do anything about them. But right or wrong I have larger 6pdrs models (more so than my Minifig 6pdrs) for them and use them as 6pdrs but moving as 12pdrs. Most of these posted as above are out of my scope as I've gone with I,II, and the III Corp in fall or 1813.