"The Union of Salvation" Topic

After a long hunt, I have finally watched 'The Union of Salvation' the film about the Decembrists, the Russian officers who tried to force a constitutional monarchy on Russia in 1825/26. The climax is the standoff between the forces loyal to the new Nicholas I and the rebels in St Petersburg in December 1825.

I recommend this film if you can obtain a view of it. The history is well represented and the various uniforms from hussars to artillery to gendarmes seems spot on. The differences between Guard and line are very clear. The representation of combat seems very realistic with steady infantry advances instead of wild charges etc. Especially noteworthy is the representation of cannister against squares in the St Petersburg 'battle'. It makes you appreciate the mistake the French made at Waterloo in not bringing up their horse artillery to batter Wellington's squares.

The DVD I managed to obtain had some drawbacks. It missed out an initial scenes with Napoleon and the English subtitles seemingly done with Google Translate and no editing or true interpretation. Nonetheless, I recommend this film very strongly especially in the aftermath of Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' debacle as a contrast. (There's even a 'breaking the ice' scene.) This is how Napoleonic warfare can be done on film.

link

Wow! That was intense.

Jim

I have watched the 2 hour version twice and last week watched the 8 50some minute episodes though still not a word understood. Only information I got was reading comments and getting those in English.
One common complaint was everyone is in full dress uniform, but to me seems appropriate, Russians seem to love wearing every decoration received and the coat is already done up.
Would love to watch the long version again if I had dubbing ot subtitles

Also a continuation of this is a Soviet movie Star of Captivating Happiness from 1974. Again costumes are amazing.
Seems to be 3 episodes 1 1/2 each, watched 2 but still not a word understood. It starts where Union of Salvation ends, slight overlap, but a matching event in the hanging so guessing that really happened.

Regarding the uniform, it must be taken into account that the events take place in the capital, during the coronation of the new emperor. The troops were withdrawn from the barracks to participate in the ceremony, but went to participate in the mutiny… Hence the ceremonial uniforms.

I almost hesitate to say this at this time, but the Russians do these things well.

Outline of events:
link

I have been watching the trailer for quite a while, but I don't have any idea how to see the actual movie.

Watched a lot of it on youtube – Enjoyed it thanks

Konstantine and constitution!

Both memories and long 8 part version are on YouTube, finally figured out how to get a caption, if not perfect, but doesn't work on Union of Salvation.
A suggestion I did after 1st viewing was at leat read a bit om it, and didn't until after recent view look at IMDB foe who characters are

I managed to get a Blu-Ray disc from Canada on Ebay. It is worth a search there in case there are anymore out there. Just be aware, as I said, if you get the same one as I did, the subtitles in English are a challenge, and some of the titles in Russian identifying people and places are not translated.

Here's the disc:

auction

As noted the full dress uniform is not entirely unexpected – during the Napoleonic Wars the Russians were probably the only major power whose troops, for example, almost habitually wore their shakos without covers and with full plumes/cords/etc. – plus as noted they were in a garrison in the capital city

One of my Russian history professors once told me that when the surviving Decembrists were interrogated, it turned out that many of the enlisted men thought Constitution was Konstantine's wife. The army's like that sometimes.

Frederick, the Russian army was not much different from other armies in uniform during the fighting. As they joke in the Russian army (it rhymes in Russian): uniform "number eight" – whatever we find, we wear)))

But at the same time, soldiers often wore, as a marching uniform, items of uniform that had already served their useful life. While preserving new uniform items.
But at the same time, in Russia there was an ancient tradition before a battle (if the situation allowed, of course), to pray, wash and put on clean clothes (and for a soldier this is, of course, a dress uniform). Tradition said that one must go into battle with a clean body and soul in order to appear clean before the Lord in heaven. This also had a practical meaning: a washed person in clean clothes is less likely to get blood poisoning if injured.

From an article on army uniforms in the War of 1812:

The wardrobe of a Russian soldier was more modest than that of a French soldier. After all, although the private's uniform was built by the regimental schvalny (sewing workshop), its cost was deducted from the soldier's salary, which was already small (and it was also spent on food). Accordingly, the Russian soldier's "wardrobe" consisted of one uniform for both the parade and the campaign. Often, for everyday life and for campaigns, a "second term" uniform was used, which had already served its purpose, but if it was still fully preserved; in this case, the "new" was saved only for parades and shows. Also, if there was such an opportunity, during the campaign, the soldier put very easily soiled white trousers in his backpack (for damage to which he could receive a rod), putting on long baggy trousers (usually cheap canvas ones) "bought for the occasion" at his own expense. In everyday life outside the formation and when marching in the formation, soldiers were allowed to replace the shako with a light peakless cap, introduced into the Russian army on the eve of 1812.
But even the marching uniform I described above, which was more modest than the "ceremonial uniform," in war among soldiers of all armies quickly lost its authorized appearance, often turning its owners into real ragamuffins. The reason for this was the difficulties of supply and the rapid wear and tear of clothing in the conditions of constant campaigns and battles, the loss of items of clothing and equipment in battles, and the lack of items to replace them.
Of course, when going on a campaign, commanders and soldiers took measures to preserve their uniforms. By order of the command and on their own initiative, the soldiers covered their shakos, cartridge pouches and saber sheaths with covers. The sultans were also covered, and often completely removed from their shakos. The covers were usually made from wax wax – a thick wax-impregnated fabric, which was usually black in color (although yellowish-white covers were also found). Often, regimental commanders ordered their soldiers to sew up all the colored cloth on their uniforms with canvas so that it would not fade in the sun. During the campaigns, due to a lack of cloth, the shelves began to be full of all kinds of colors of uniforms and greatcoats. After all, torn or burnt clothes had to be repaired with the fabric that was at hand, or even completely replaced with a uniform taken from a killed or captured enemy. In these cases, many commanders gave the order to simply paint the entire uniform black, or whatever color was available. An example of this is the testimony of an eyewitness who saw, before the Russians entered Paris in 1814, how guards soldiers, using green dye they had obtained somewhere, renewed their uniforms that had faded to brown, painting them with a brush directly on the body of a comrade…
During the war it was very difficult, and often impossible, to restore lost parts of uniforms, especially if they did not have a rational purpose and were simply elements of decoration. This primarily concerned etishkets and sultans, which were simply not needed in combat conditions, and therefore were easily lost or even thrown away. As a result, at inspections during the war, the sight of combat soldiers made the hearts of the command bleed – it absolutely did not comply with the regulations. So, for example, when reviewing Russian troops in Vilna in December 1812, in the grenadier company of the Life Guards of the Finnish Regiment, only one soldier was with the Sultan on his shako. And if you consider that due to the difficulties of life on the march, almost all the soldiers acquired long hair and beards – it's terrible if you look through the eyes of a general or field marshal…
In conditions of campaigns and battles, a huge number of lower ranks on both sides of the front sported captured repainted uniforms and shakos, with multi-colored patches covering scuffs and holes. And instead of the regular boots, many soldiers had wooden shoes on their feet, or even bast shoes; after all, supplying troops with quickly worn-out shoes for both the Russians and the French was simply an insoluble problem. But the situation worsened even more with the onset of winter. Then any warm clothes that came across were used. And if in the Russian army, which existed in the harsh climate of Russia, soldiers' overcoats were quite thick and warm, then the French thin overcoats, designed for the mild climate of Europe, did not warm Napoleonic soldiers at all. Therefore, the French grabbed everything in Russian huts that could keep them warm – from sheepskin coats to blankets and women's shawls, in which the soldiers wrapped themselves, without even thinking about how they looked…

Watched pt 1 and 2 of YouTube videos on the Decembrists, says the hanging debacle did happen but they quickly re-did itto finish the execution

"It makes you appreciate the mistake the French made at Waterloo in not bringing up their horse artillery to batter Wellington's squares. "

Did they not do that?

Well they brought a battery up after the fall of La Haye Sainte and it did massive damage to the battalions on the ridge there (especially the 27th Foot). However, the great cavalry charges were over by then and I have not seen any further accounts of horse artillery being brought up in support during them.

Thank you Cuprum2, very interesting.

I have watched the file a number of times now and enjoy the way that Russians do historical films. I wonder how much CGI was used? I watched the film for the first time with no English subtitles and was able to follow, except for the scenes where the conspirators were discussing the original plan. The only criticism I have is in regard to the elevating mechanism for the cannon, they seem to be made of stamped thin metal. Would there not have been a screw for elevating the guns or just a block?

All in all, a good watch.

I found it quite confusing since both sides- unsurprisingly- wore a similar range of uniforms and seemed to have an architecturally similar range of buildings behind tham.

Obviously the units getting minced by caseshot were the rebels but the rapid intercutting blurred that narrative somewhat.

No doubt understanding what individual characters were saying might mitigate that, ditto seeing the events running up to the confrontation.

As said, look into a video or written account of the Decembrists revolt.
The guard unit is the newer Moscow guard, though got backed by the Guard Equipage ( not sure exact name) and the Finnish Jagers didn't jump in but were on the Decembrists side. The rest of the guards had sworn allegiance to Czar Nicholas. The Horse Guards did charge but seems the movie puts more causality than they did have. The guard artillery did the firing.

Thanks for your insights Cuprum2.

"I wonder how much CGI was used?"

Massive amounts by the looks of this VFX breakdown. But the good kind of CGI where it's fairly subtle and well blended in. Of the clips I've seen I can usually still tell what's CGI, but I don't get the "that looks fake" vibe I get from most CGI in say, Marvel movies.

link

Just saw there is a version on YouTube with English subtitles, tablet needs to be charged so will watch it later. for the 3rd time but at least have a better grasp what's going on.

link

It has minor computer graphics occasionally interfering but at least now get what's happening.