"hesse-darnstadt infantry" Topic

I intend to paint several Hesse-Darmstadt regiments for the Spanish campaign. What figures would be the most appropriate, if any
Thank you very much

Piano Games just finished a kickstarter with Hesse-Darmstadt figures made specifically for both the earlier part of the Napoleonic era, and the war in Spain. The figures can be obtained wearing bi-cornes or shakos.

He has infantry, artillery, and cavalry in production. Probably by September time frame. I have his Wurtemburgers which are excellent, and bought into these as well.

thank you Gamespoet

Several regiments? I thought there were only a few or one?

Piano Wargames:

link

He also has a facebook site. I can't figure out how you order miniatures from either one.

Several regiments? I thought there were only a few or one?

I think there were three total, but only one (Erbprinz) went to Spain.

The Piano Games website only has the Wurtemburg figures available currently. The Hesse-Darmstadt figures are not because producing the figures for the kickstarter is currently in progress.

There were 6 line battalions, two to a regiment, and three light battalions. They were organized into "brigades" consisting of a line regiment and a light battalion. Their battalions had 4 companies rather than the 6 the French used and there were no grenadiers or lights in the line regiments. When the Erbprinz "brigade" was sent to Spain, the French reorganized the battalions to 6 companies and provided the grenadiers and lights by breaking up the associated light battalion and placing the men into the two line battalions. What I don't have clear is whether or not the battalions sent to Spain were initially given French uniforms with shakos or continued to wear the earlier Hesse-Darmstadt uniforms with the bicorne. The remaining units served in the 1809 Danube Campaign in their old uniforms and then went to more modern uniforms with shakos for the 1812-3 campaigns.

Gamertom: This may help answer your question- It's an exerpt from Rawkins CB13: "In 1808 Grand Duke Ludwig agreed to supply a brigade of infantry, cavalry
and artillery to the French army in Spain and on 18th August the ‘mustered at
Gross-Gerau under the command of the French General Pierre-FrançoisJoseph Boyer, Chief of Staff to Marshal Kellermann, who arrived with specific
instructions from Bonaparte to re-organise the regiment to conform to service
with the French army.
The regiment was completely dissolved and reformed in the French model
with two battalions each with six companies, four musketeer, centre
companies and tow elite companies, grenadiers and voltigeurs. The LeibFüsilier-Bataillon was disbanded and the fusiliers used to form the new elite
companies, and addition soldiers were drafted into the grenadier company
from the tallest men in the regiment. The schützen sections from the Grossund Erbprinz Regiment and Leib-Füsilier-Bataillon were transferred to the
Garde-Füsilier-Bataillon and Leib-Füsilier-Bataillon. The soldiers retained their
old uniforms initially, despite protests by the Grand Duke Ludwig, who
objected to Napoleon that his perfectly uniformed regiment now had
grenadiers and voltigeurs wearing a mixture of blue and green uniforms. The
issue was not resolved until new uniforms were finally provided from French
stores at Bayonne and delivered to the regiment in late December 1809 at
Segovia.
‘Gross- und Erbprinz Regiment' Ober-stabs 1808-1813
1 Oberst 1 Oberstleutnant
2 Major (Battalion commanders) 1 Regiments-adjutant
1 Regiments-quartier-meister 1 Auditeur
1 Oberchirurg 2 Chirurg-major
4 Standartenträger 1 Profost
1 Büschenmacher 4 Meister-Handwerker
‘Gross- und Erbprinz Regiment' Company Establishment 1808-1813
1 Kapitän or Kapitän Leutnant 1 Oberleutnant
1 Unterleutnant 1 Feldwebel
4 Sergeants 8 Korporals
1 Korporal-quartier-meister 2 Tambour / Hornists
121 Grenadiers/Musketeers/Fusiliers [5] 2 Zimmerman (Grenadier Companies)
NOTE: [5] The light company of the Gross- und Erbprinz Regiment in French
service is referred to both as ‘voltigeurs' in French records and ‘füsiliers' in the
Hessian returns. Given the strong traditionalist sentiments of the Hessians it is
likely that they continued to call their light infantry companies fusiliers. "

Thank you very much to everyone for your help

On uniforms on Spain ….
PDF link

Boisellier (said to be based on contemporary sketches from Spain) ….

Thank you for that information, Tom Dye. It tells me the regiment was most likely wearing what was left of its old uniform at the Battle of Talavera.

Excellent information (in German), from the excellent website of Mr. Markus Stein, by Mr. Markus Gärtner, Mr. Edmund Wagner and Dr. Peter Bunde.

Organization
link

Combat History
link

Uniforms
link

Notes on Orders of Battle
link

Note extensive, excellent Bibliography.

Images based on contemporary isketches

Summary uniform "chart" by Dr. Peter Bunde.

Very informative.