Leib-Grenadiers à Cheval

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Origin and History

Leib-Grenadiers à Cheval circa 1760 - Source: Becher, circa 1760

A regiment counting a single squadron was raised on October 11 1758. Soon, three other squadrons were raised and the regiment took the name of Leibgrenadiere à Cheval.

The regiment counted 4 squadrons, for a total of 512 men.

During the Seven Years' War, the regiment was owned by:

• from 1758: Duke of Württemberg
• from 1765: Major-general Wolfgang Heinrich von Rothkirch

During the Seven Years' War, the regiment was under the command of:

• from 1758: Major Hartmann von Chumb-Neuburg
• from 1759: Colonel Johann Friedrich Duke von Schönfeld
• from 1765: Colonel Karl Ludwig Friedrich von Holle

In 1775, the regiment was amalgamated with the Prinz Friedrich Wilhelm Dragoons regiments.

Service during the War

In 1759, a squadron of the regiment served in Hessen under French subsidies. On November 3, the Duke of Württemberg was instructed by the Duc de Broglie to march to Gemünden with his contingent. On November 11, the Württemberger Contingent arrived at Gemünden. The duke then sent his hussars on the Kinzig River. On November 19 and 20, the Württemberger Contingent (about 10,000 men), led personally by the duke, arrived at Fulda and took up its winter-quarters to assist the French army. The duke sent a detachment, including 1 squadron of the regiment, to Hersfeld. This detachment took post along the Fulda River where it created a cordon to the Württemberg Army's quarters with each patrol in close touch to one another. On Friday November 30, an Allied force under the Hereditary Prince of Brunswick launched a surprise attack on Fulda, forcing the Würtemberger Contingent to retreat precipitously southwards on Bruckenau in the general direction of Frankenland and Württemberg. From December 19 to 23, the Württemberg Contingent (now only 7 bns) was at Steinberg. On December 25, the Duke of Württemberg marched to Schotten.

In 1760, the entire regiment took part in the campaign of Saxony against the Prussians.

To do: details of the campaigns from 1760 to 1762

Uniform

Privates

Uniform in 1760 - Source: Frédéric Aubert

Uniform in 1760
as per Becher's Bilderhandschrift circa 1760 completed with other sources where necessary

Headgear	Austrian style black bearskin with a red flame laced yellow (as per Knötel)
Neckstock	black
Coat	red with 2 yellow buttons below the lapel on the right side Collar black Shoulder Straps black with a yellow button; yellow aiguillette on the right shoulder (as per Knötel) Lapels black with 8 yellow buttons Pockets horizontal pockets with 3 yellow buttons (as per Knötel) Cuffs black with 3 yellow buttons Turnbacks black fastened with a small yellow button
Waistcoat	white
Breeches	white
Leather Equipment	Crossbelt natural leather Waistbelt white Cartridge Box natural leather Gloves straw (as per Knötel) Scabbard black with white metal decorations Footgear black boots
Horse Furniture	Saddlecloth red bordered with a red lace edged by two black lines and with a white wavy line in the middle, carrying a mirrored C (for Carl Eugen) in gold in the rear corner Housing red bordered with a red lace edged by two black lines and with a white wavy line in the middle; a mirrored C (for Carl Eugen) in gold

Troopers were armed with a sword, a musket and a blackened cuirass (worn under the coat).

Officers

Until 1750, the officer’s sash was in the imperial colours: gold/black. At the beginning of the 1750´s, probably in 1752, when the Württemberg Army received the new dark blue uniforms, the sash was changed to the new Württemberg Knüpfmuster (knotted pattern): white (silver for staff officers and generals), yellow and red. Gold and red were the original Württemberg colours since 1593. So, during the Seven Years’ War, the Württemberg sash was white (resp. silver), yellow and red.

no more information available yet

Musicians

no information available yet

Colours

According to the Militaerplan of 1758: there was 1 Cornet (in 1758 the regiment had only one squadron) in this regiment.

No detail about the standard has been found in our sources.

During 19th century, we know some Württemberger "Leib" cavalry regiments had standards in the model of a vexillum.

References

• Becher, Johann Christian, Wahrhaftige Nachricht derer Begebenheiten, so sich in dem Herzogthum Weimar by dem gewaltigen Kriege Friedrichs II., Königs von Preußen, mit der Königin von Ungarn, Marien Theresen, samt ihren Bundesgenossen zugetragen, Weimar, ca. 1760
  • Original (Stiftung Weimarer Klassik)
  • Copy (Deutsches Historisches Museum)
• Frederic, Jacques André, Etat des Trouppes de S.A.S. Monseigneur le Duc de Virtemberg et Theck sur pié en 1759, Augsburg, 1759
• Knötel, Herbert d. J. and Martin Letzius, Deutsche Uniformen, Vol. 1, Das Zeitalter Friedrich des Großen, Sturm-Zigaretten GmbH, Dresden, 1932
• Knötel, Herbert d. J., Uniformkunde, Neue Folge I: Bildbeiträge zur Heereskunde und zur Entwicklungsgeschichte der militärischen Tracht, published by Herbert Knötel d. J., Hamburg 1936-38, plate 36, Württemberg. Grenadier à cheval 1757-1785 (Deutsches Historisches Museum)
• Koch, Ulrich, Der modische Wandel der Uniform im 18. Jahrhundert. Reich und Württemberg (Offiziersportraits 1730 bis 1790) ( Teil IV.), in: Zeitschrift für Heereskunde, No. 334, Nov./Dez., LI. Jg. (1987), page 152-159
• Military Miniatures Magazin, Die Armee von Carl Eugen Herzog von Württemberg, Herzogtum Württemberg 1756 – 1763
• Stadlinger, L., J. von, Geschichte des Württembergischen Kriegswesens – von der frühesten bis zur neuesten Zeit, Stuttgart, 1856
• Zahn, Michael, Die Herzoglich Württembergische Armee im Siebenjährigen Krieg, Manuskript, Stuttgart: January 2008
• Zenetti, F., Herzoglich Württembergisches Militär unter Karl Eugen, in: Die Zinnfigur, Number 1 (1985), page 2-10

N.B.: the section Service during the War is mostly derived from our articles depicting the various campaigns, battles and sieges.

Acknowledgement

Volker Scholz for the information on the sash of the officers