The 6th Hussar Regiment, 1792-1815

D. H. Hagger illustrates and describes two French Napoleonic Hussar Regiments.

By D. H. Hagger

Line Co. Officer, 6th Hussar Regt., c. 1808-12.

ORIGINALLY formed on the 2nd September, 1792 by Gabriel Boyer, with the resounding title of Hussards Defenseurs de la Liberté et de L′Egalité, the corps took rank as the 7th Hussars on the 23rd November, 1792, and became the 6th Hussars on the 4th June, 1793, following the en masse desertion of the 4th Hussars (Regiment de Saxe), which the French always seem to refer to, with Gallic delicacy, as an ″emigration″!
    At this period, Hoffmann depicts the regiment with a white pelisse, which is confirmed by Fallou for 1796, and also by a contemporary German engraving. This latter source shows the trumpeters wearing the reversed colours, i.e. white dolman and breeches, red pelisse. These colours were retained until the Year X of the Revolution (1801) but by 1803 the regiment had adopted the more familiar dark blue pelisse.
    During the 1805 campaign the 6th were part of Marmont′s 2nd Corps and were present at the Battle of Ulm. They then moved towards Vienna, thus missing the Battle of Austerlitz, and shortly after left for Italy as a result of which they also took no part in the victorious 1806 campaign against Prussia. The regiment in fact remained on the sunny plains of Lombardy for a considerable time.
    In 1809, then under the command of Colonel Vallin, they were still in Italy, save for a squadron of 135 men who were in Illyria with General Marmont. Upon the declaration of war against Austria, the regiment was attached to the 1st Corps of the Army of Italy, commanded by General Macdonald, in the Dugommier Brigade of the Sahuc Division (6th Hussars and 8th Chasseurs).
    In April, 1809, the Army of Italy advanced towards Austria via Venice and joined Broussier′s Division before Gratz, in Marmont′s Corps, which pursued the Austro-Croatian army under General Giulay. Prince Eugene having won a decisive victory at Raab on the 14th June, the Emperor gave the order which initiated the Battle of Wagram and on the 6th July Macdonald′s corps stormed through the Austrian lines and played a notable part in the victory, during which the 6th Hussars greatly distinguished themselves.
    At the beginning of 1810, or thereabouts according to Martinet, the 6th had mixed braid, inspired by the Austrians. In 1812, however, they had an entirely red dolman, including collar and cuffs, as worn prior to 1803.
    The 6th took part in the Russian campaign of 1812 in the 3rd Corps of Reserve Cavalry (Grouchy) and were at Minsk, Smolensk, and Borodino. Shortly before the campaign the regiment adopted a scarlet cylindrical shako. Also prior to the campaign the regiment received their new tri-colour standard upon which was emblazoned the names of the battles at which the Emperor Napoleon had commanded in person. In the case of the 6th, thanks to their long and comparatively inactive sojourn in Italy, they had only two battle honours thus inscribed — Ulm and Wagram.
    During the fighting in Germany in 1814 they were present at the battles of Lutzen, Bautzen, Dresden, and Leipzig, fought many small actions during the Campaign of France, and in 1815 were at Ligny and Rocquencourt where the last shots were fired.
    Our illustration depicts an officer of one of the line companies of the regiment between 1808 and 1812, in parade uniform. He wears the scarlet shako adopted by the 6th about 1808 and which was retained until it was exchanged for the scarlet cylindrical head-dress shortly before the Russian campaign of 1812. It bears the annular rings around the upper edge commonly affected by officers and a gold bullion rosette connected to the large National cockade by a gold lace strap. The gilt chinscales are affixed to bosses in the form of ornamental lions′ heads.
    There is nothing especial to remark about the scarlet dolman, which is heavily laced in gold and bears the rank badges of a captain on the sleeves; these are finished on the upper edge by ornamental figuring. The pelisse is also heavily decorated with gold lace and is edged with brown fur as opposed to the black lambswool of the other ranks.
    The dark blue breeches are likewise ornamented with gold lace seam stripes and the rank badges are repeated on the thighs. Some sources quote scarlet breeches as being worn by officers for parade purposes. It must be remembered that officers were often permitted a remarkable degree of latitude in their dress and it is difficult to be adamant as to what was actually worn as opposed to what should have been worn according to dress regulations.
    The sabretache of the 6th was unchanged until 1812 when a plain black leather version, bearing a brass shield, seems to have been adopted by the other ranks. Until then the face of the sabretache was covered in dark blue cloth ornamented around the edge, in the case of the officers, with a broad band of gold lace and bearing the crowned Napoleonic eagle in gold in the centre.
    Boots are depicted as black although, as was commonly the case with hussar officers, it is probable that scarlet boots were worn for gala occasions.
    According to General Valmont, a contemporary source, the 6th took the uniform of the 4th Hussars in 1814, save only for having mixed braid. lt seems very strange that the regiment should have forsaken the uniform which they had worn with honour for so many years. It would be interesting to know the reason for this change.
    The 6th Hussars was commanded from September, 1803 to March, 1807 by the noted cavalry general, Pajol, who had a distinguished career during the Napoleonic wars.

Source: p. 170, Military Modelling, March 1977.

Also from the same month: French 10th Hussar Regiment, 1792-1815 by D. H. Hagger
Other 19th Century Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers