THEFRENCH CAMPAIGN IN EGYPT 1798-1801 PartI - HtstorlcalIntrodsctlon

by StephenEde-Borrett

The reasonsbehind the Frenchattack on Egypt in 1798are sun.Many discarded their coats only to Iind themselvesfreezing various,complex, and not all of a mililary nature. at night. The Army wasunused to the exlremesof a desert Bonapafte,hero of thevictorious Italian campaigns, was seen climate. by the Directorsin Parisas a rivaland thus to gethim out of the On July 13th at Shebreketthe Frenchhad their first real way (andEgypt was pretty far out of the way!) seemedlike a encounterwiththe Mamelukes'.The Frenchdeployed into six goodidea. Coupled with thiswas the hopethat if Turkeycould great squares,six men deep with gunsat the comers.The beDersuaded to enterthe waron the Frenchside then it would Mamelukeswere brave if not lacticallyadept and launcheda takepressure off the Frencharmies by divertingAust an and seriesof headlongcavalry charges straight at the French.The Russiantrcops to theTurkishfronl- Thesereasons alliedto the result was almost a foregoneconclusion, the attackswere French"dream" ofa MiddleEastem Empire, (which went back completely broken by disciplined musketry and eventually the to rhe Middle Ages- evenLouis XIV had contemplatedan Mamelukeswere forced toretire from the field. The Fren€h had invasion of Egypt) was sufficient to persuadethe Paris lost thirty men,Mameluke losses are unknown. Covemmentto giveits blessingto Bonaparte'splans. Bonapartepressed on towardsCairo and reached the Nile on Sincethe Treaty ofCampo-Formio the veteran Army ofltaly July 21st and here in the shadow of the Pyramidsthe had beenidle andit wasfrom thisArmy that the Army of the Mamelukeshad massedtheir army. Orientwas chosen'. The best estimatesput the Mamelukesat around 6-8000 The Commander-in-Chiefwas Bonaparte, with Berthieras cavalryand, perhaps,40,000 foot. Theselatter mostly the hisChief of Staffand his brother,Louis, and stepson, Eugene semi-feudalEgyptian fellaheen. de Beauhamais,as his Aides. The Generalsof Divisionwere Beforethe battlebegan Bonaparte is allegedto havegiven "Soldiels, Vaubois,D'Hilliers, Desaix, Kl6ber, Menou, Reynier and the speechwith its famous forty c€nturiesof hhtory Dugua.The Generalsof Brigadeincluded Lannes, Davout and look downon you" content.whether this is anecdotalor not it Murat and amongstthe Colonelswere Marmont, Junot, probably expressesBonaparte's feelings for there can have Bessidresand Lefebvre-Desnouettes.Truly this was a be€n fewer more spectacularbackdrops for a battle than the NapoleonicArmy in the making. Pyramidsof Giza. Bonapa(earrived in Toulonon May 9th andwhen the fleet Again Frenchtactics were simple - the Divisionsformed huge sailedon May 19th it comprised15 Shipsof the Line, 15 squaresand awaitedthe Mameluke ondaught. The Mamelukes Frigates,7 Corvettes,30 asso(edsmall lightly'armed vessels, obligedthe invadersand lalnched,as at Shebreket,a seriesof and some 400 transports carrying betweenthirty'six and forty massedcavalry charges straight at the Frenchsquares. The thousandmen. The greatestshortage, however, was in horses- infantry were left within their hastily thrown-up defencesand only 1230were embarked, and of these700 were reserved for ignored. the useof the Staff! Predictablythe experiencedFrench infantry kept their nerve On June9th the fleetanived off Malta.There was next to no and mo*ed down the Mamelukeattacks, iust as the British resistanceand in thrce daysthe French had occupiedthe whole wereto do to the Frenchcavalry al Waterloo17 years later. island. General Vaubois was aDDointedGovernor and a Eventually the Mamelukes were forced to break off their garrisonwas installed'. D'Hilliers_was sent back to Pariswith action - it seemsdoubtful if the Maneluke infantry had even the capturedtrophies. beenengaged. Murad Beyled halfofthe Mamelukearmy south Admiral Brueys, the Fren€h Naval Commander,then whilstIbrahim Bey, who had spentmuch of the battleon the skiltullyevaded the British squadrondespatched to intercept wrong(or at leastsaJest) bank of the Nile - the east,took his him (commandedby noneother than Horatio Nelson) and six forcessouth-west towards Sinai. weeks later on June 30th the fleet anchored safely off French casualtieswere less than five hundred (Mameluke casualtiesare again unknown) and by nightfall they were in On 2ndJuly the DivisionsofBon, Menou,andKleberled the possesionof Cairo.Bonaparte had haltedonly longenough to assaultashore and immediatelystormed the City'ssomewhat fight the battle and bury his few dead. out of datedefen€es. Within twenty-fourhours the entireCity ln Cairo Bonapa(e now set about organizing a form of wasunder French control. self-governmentfor the Egt?tian people- whetherthey wanted Bonapanespent a few days restinghis men after their undoubtablyuncomfortable voyage and it wasthus not until Meanwhile,but outsidethe scopeof thisarticle, Nelson had July 8th that the Army moved out towardsCairo. Kl6ber atlastfoundtheFrench fleet at anchorinAboukirBay,and, ina remainedas Governor of Alexandria,the French base for much daring attack, known as th€ Battle of the Nile, comPletely of the restof the campaign. destroyedit - and with it Bonaparte'scommunications with It now becameapparent that the Army wastotally unpre parcd for the Egypriansummer - they were still in their In mid-August the Turks declaredwar on France.The whole Europeanuniforms of heavywool with bearskinsand bicornes, French stmtegy was falling apart. There was a revolt in Cairo neitherof whichoffered any protectionagainst the Egyptian whichBonaDarte. no doubtwith memodesof the Padsmob, suppressedbtoodily. Menou'sposition was hopeless, but he heldout for aslong as Desaixhad beendespatched into UpperEgypt in punuit of hewasable until in September,with onlyAlexandria left under MuradBey. Following the courseofthe Nile, the mainarterial Frenchcontrol, the Army capitulatedwholesale- The terms routeof Egypt,Desaix pursued Murad Bey as far as the first w€reg€nerous (which may demonstrate how muchof a threat cataractsupported by a flotilla of gunboats.The Mameluke theFrench still represented) and, although all horseswere tobe commanderhad leamt from histwo battlesagainst the French handedover, the menand their weapons were to betransported howeverand retusedto fight a third, contentinghimself with back to France,along with the rno(al remainsof General hit-and-runtactics and a guerillawar. Kl6ber. Ibrahim Bey had by now reachedPalestine and, after (Althoughmilitarily for Francethe expeditionhad beena recruitinghis army from locallypurchased slaves, (who proved completefailure the great number of archaeologistsand to be goodsoldiers!) Bonaparte followed in January1799. By scientistswho accompanied Bonaparte contributed enormously now the French were also leaming and had water-bottles to the studyof Eglpt's ancientpast and gaveus the Rosetta "issued"and had adoptedcotton uniforms and a lightweight Stone.) helmetwith neckcoverr. The invasionwent well. By the endof Februarythe Turkish fon at El Arish hadfall€n to the French- all survivorsof the ORDERSOF BATTLE OF garrisonwere put to the sword,in an attemptto cow other THE FRENCH ARMY Turkishgarrisons into submisson.Gaz a fell threedays later and The Army of the Ori€nt, Jurc 3{hh 1798. on March4th the Frencharmy was before Jaffa. Three days of Commanderin Chief: GeneralNapoleon Bonapane bombardmentand an assault and this town too fell-BonaDarte's Chiefof Staff:General of DivisionBerthier communiquero rhe Direclory giv€s 1200of rhe garrironas Commandero{ Engineers:Ceneral Cafarelli-Dufalga executedafter the storm. Command€rot Anille'y.Ceneral Dommanil The next objectivewas Acre, but here a British squadron under Sir SidneySmith aided the defence.This stiffening, Headquners: coupledwith the lossofthe sieg€train, captured by the British Mounted Guides5(3 troops 120 men), commandedby fleet,was enough to keepout the French. Bessiares The SiegeofAcre lasted62 days and included 40 assaults and Foot Guides(3 coys- 300men?), commanded by Bessieres 26 salliesby the garrison.Eventually on l4th May with a Foot Artillery (888men) Turkish relief Army approachingit was abandonedand the HorseArtillery (485men) Army retreatedto Egypt. Sappers(776 men) ln Egypt neanwhilean Anglo-Russianfleet waslanding a Miners(192 men) TurkishArmy of 18,000nen underMustaphaPasha.The Turks Balloonists(25 men) stormedthe Fort at Aboukirand drove out Marmont\ sarrison. Ensineers(164 men) InexplicablvMusrapha rhen did nolhingbut warLfor rh; French NavalLesion'(3 bns c.3000men) counter-attack.He did not wait long-on July 25thBonaparte attackedwith 12,000men. Murat led a massedcavlary charge Adyaftedcurrd:General of Divhion Desaix whichsmashedthrough the Turkish defences and he personally Brigadiers:Belliard & Frianl capturedMustapha Pasha. The subsequentinfantry assault 6lst Deni-Bngadede Bataille( 3 bns- 1800men) threw rheTurks back into the seawith heavylosses. 88thDemi-Brigade de Bataille( 3 bns- 1500men) Seeingthe w tingon thewall Bonaparte decided at thispoint 2lst Demi'BrigadeL€gare (3 bns- 2000men) that therewas no moreGlory in Egyptand returned to France with his"Slaff'. Kl€berassumed command ofthe Armyofthe Right Wing: Generalof DivisionReynier Orient. On 9th O€tober1799 BonaDarte was back in France. Brigadie^:Damas & Verdier The Army ofthe Orientwas now in an unenviableposition, 9th Derni-Brigadede Bataille(3 bns- 1509men) althoughsome supplieswere being shipped in (whentheycould 85thDemFBrigade de Baraille(J bns- 1720men) runthe RoyalNavy blockade of France)by directorder of Fint Mahesetrgron' (2 bns- 1500men) ConsulBonaparte. On March 7th 1800Kl€ber, with 12,000men, defeated Cenlre:General of DivisionKtdber anotherMameluke/Turkish Arny of 70.000men ar Heliopolis; Brigadiers:Lann€s & Lanusse but Kl€ber hinself was assassinatedin Cairo shorrly after- 25thDemiBrigade de Bataille(3 bns- 1530m€n) Command of the army devolved onto Menou, a good 75thDemiBrigade de Bataille(3bns - 1700men) admjnistratorbut an incompetentfield commander. 2nd Demi-BrigadeL€gare (3 bns- 1368men) On March 4th, however,a British army under Sir Ralph Abercrombyhad stormed ashore at AboukirBay,albeit against Left Wing: Generalof DivisionMenou stiff oppositionfrom the Frenchgarlison there, and wasnow Brigadiers:Vial & Mireur firmlyemplaced in Eglprand in KIeber

14thDragoons (3 sqns 600nen) have servedmainly as police, ganisons,and lines of com_ 15thDragoons (2 sqns 200nen) municationguards, rather than as part of the Field Arny 18thDragoons (4 sqns 400nen) Foper. Amongstthese auxiliaries were: 20thDragoons (2 sqns- 350men) The Grcek Legion Formed in April 1799 as two battalions. 7th bis Hussan(3 sqns 600men) Reacheda peak of 1200nen, but by March 1800had been 22ndChasseuree-Cheval (3 sqns - 250men) reducedto only 850 men as a combinedbattalion with the Thisorganisation changed as casualties occurred and garrisons CoDticLeeion. fti copci rrgion formed in September1799 at a strength of two battalions,each of five companies,plus one companyof The Army of the Orient, lSth August 1798, grenadierswhich in March1800was, at a strengthofl00men,in lst DivisiorrGeneral Dagau a combinedGrenadier Brigade of the FieldArmy. Brigadiers:Damas, Verdier & Destaing The SJrian CavarryFonned early in 1799(?), reacheda strength 25thDemi-Brigade de Bataille(3 bns- 1296men) of two companiesand seemsto havebeen merged into the 75thDeni-Brigade de Bataille(3 bns 1692men) Mamelukessometime after March 1800. 2nd Demi-BrigadeL6gCre (3 bns- 1194nen) The Turkish GuardsFormed 1799or 1800and usedas a form of Artillery (51 men) CampPolice. Sappers(41 men) The Janirsary CompanyFomed in 1799or 1800and comman' 2nd Division:General Bon ded by one CaptainOmar, usedmainly as guides. Brigadiers: Rampon & Marmont The Comprny ofMameluk€softhe RepublicFormed in 1799and 18thDemiBrigade de Bataille(3 bns 1271nen) laterto becomethe famousMamelukes of the ImperialGuard. 32ndDemi-Brigade de Bataille(3 bns- 1450rnen) 4th Demi-BrigadeL6scre (3 bns- 973men) Nonetheless the strength of the French Army declined 6th Coy, 4th Foot Artillery (59 men) inexorablydespite, as mentionedabove, some recruits from Part of 8th Horse Artillery (27 men) France and the wholesale recruitment of Egyptians and Pan of 5th Sappers(44 men) The Arlny of the Orient, lsr March 1800 3rd Division: Genenl Reynier (Note: figures for inJantry are fit for seFice/men in depots, Brigadier:Lagrange garrisons,sick, etc. Figuresfor cavalryare men/horses). 9th Demi-Brigadede Bataille(3 bns- 1430men) Commanderin Chief: General Kl€ber 85thDeni-Bdgade de Bataille(3 bns- 2627men) Part of 4th Foot Artilery (22 nen) Division: Gercml Reynier Part of 4th Horse Anillery (42 nen) Bdsade:General Robin 4 coysof 5th Sappers(249 men) 9th-Demi-Brigadede Bataille(794155), + 2 x 4 P&s 21st Demi-Brisade L6gare (800/102), + 2 x 4 pdrs 4th Divkion General Desaix Brigade:General Baudot Bdgadiers:Friant & Belliard 13thDemi-Brigade de Bataille(841/66), + 2 x 4 pdls 61stDemi-Brigade de Bataine(3 bns 1690men) 85rhDemi-Bdgade de Bataille(890/86), + 2 x 4 pdrs 88th Demi-Brigade de Bataile (3 bns 11f'4 men) Artillery: 21stDemi-Brigade Llgere (3 bns- 1629men) 1 coy of 4 x 8 pdrs and 2 howitzen llth coy, lst Foot Artillery (65 men) 5th coy, 1st Hone Anillery (67 men) Division: Gen€ral Friana Sappen (49 rnen) Brigade: General zayonszeck 25thDeni-Brigade de Bataille(910/50), + 2 x 4 pdrs 5th Divisionr General Lannes 22nd Demi-Brigade Legare (?8'4183) Brigadier: Veaux Bdgade: General Delegorgue 13thDemi-Brigade de Bataille(3 bns- 1580men) 61stDeniBdgade de Bataille(950/130), + 2 x 4 pdrs 21stDemi-Brigade de Bataille(3 bns- 1123rnen) 75thDemi-Brigade de Bataille(930/50), t 2 x 4 pdls 3rd coy, 4th Holse Artillery (73 nen) Artilery: 5th coy, 6th Sappers(49 men) 1 €oy of 4 x 8 pdls and 2 howitzerc

C.vrliy Division: General Dumas Division: G€neralLenusse Brigadiers: Davout, Leclerc, Mumt and Zayonszeck Brigade: General Silly 3rd Dragoons (2 sqns 239 men) 18th Demi-Brigade de Bataille (794155),+ 2 x 4 P&s 14thDragoons (3 sqns- 436men) 4th Demi-BrigadeLfgere (790,44),+ 2x4pdls 15th Dragoons (2 sqns- 205 men) Brisade: Genenl Valentin 18th Dmgoons (4 sqns- 197 men) 69th Demi-Bdgade de Bataile (895/30), + 2 x 4 pdrs 20thDragoons (2 sqns- 225men) 88th DemiBrigade d€ Bataille (843/45), + 2 x 4 pdrs 7th bis Hussars(3 sqns- 222nen) Anillery: 22nd Chasseurs-d-Cheval(3 sqns- 179 men) I company

Gaffison of Alex.n&ia: General Kleber Divisiotr: Gener.l Rampon 69th Demi-Brigade de Bataille (3 bns 1497men) Bdsade: General Morand Anilery (126 nen) 32nd Deni-Brigade de Bataille (773160),plus artillery 2nd Demi-Brigade kgire (771150),plus adllery The lack of reliable communicationswith Franceas a source Anilery: for recruiis and replacementsplus continuing lossesforced the 1 company French to rarsea number of "Forcign l-egions"8which seemto Cavalry Division: Gen€ralRoize GRTATCOCK-UPS lN HISTORY,No.2 Brigade:General Bon ISANDHTWANA1879 ?th bis Hussars(2701240) "THISLOOKS IIKE A 22ndChasseurs-a-Cheval (2791230) COOD PTACETO CAMP" Marnelukes& SyrianCavalry (2s3lr38) Brigade:General Boussart 3rd Drasoons(255225) TH]E NROND[J[

Whenthe Frencharmy landed in Egyptin July 1798it wasstill CAVALRY wearingthe European uniform notjust in colourand style but. moreimpodantly,incloth andheadwear and this was to prove Dragoorls; Dark greencoat with the variousunits differing inlapel, a greatproblem for the Frenchcommand (see Part I in last collar, (see mo h's Warsanes luustnted\. cuffcolour Tablel for the regimentsin Egypt).White, or moreusually buFI. $ai\rcoat and breeches. Again. on campaign trousersor overallsof anyof a numberof grey/brownhu€s could INFANTRY be worn. Brasshelmet with a blackpeak and horsehair mane. The Horse fumiture was dark green with edging in the (EachDerni-Brigade comprised nine €ompanies- eight 'cen, regimentalfacing colorr GeeTable 1). tre , fusiliersfor de Batailleand chasseursfor de L€gare,and '6lite one . grenadiersor carabiniersrespectively.) Cbass€urs: Dark green coat with regimentalfacings (see Table 1). Demi-B.igadesde Bataill€: Netherwearshould have been dark green, but becaus€of All rankswore a darkblue coat with redcollarand cuffs. DiDed shortages,Iike that of thedragoons, could have been almost any inu hile.while lapeh and turnbackr. piped in red. blue shouldel dull colour insteador as well within the same company. strapspiped in red for the fusiliersand red epauleuesfor the Headwearwas the blackshako. usually cylindrical and in some grenadiers.Most deni-brigadeshad the simple 1791cuff regimentsof the mirletontype (regretablyI don't know what 'cut' -but opening- essentiallya straight pipedred somemay the 22ndwere wearing). havehad dark blue piped red cuffflaps, as would become usual duing the Empire.All buttonswere brass. Hussars: Headwearwas. officially an).xay, the 'Tarleton helmetof Only the 7lh biswere in Egyptand, as usual with Hussars,their blackleather with blackcrest and nationalcockade on the left unitbrmwas quite unique. side it ishighly unlikely that anyof theunits in Egyptwore this The7th bh', ex Hussarsde la Liberte,uniformwas a mid-blue however.In its Dlacewas worn the almostuniversal black pelisseand red dolnan with mid,bluecollar and cuffs. All bicornewith nationalcockade and, possibly,company porn- braidingon both was yellow. The breecheswere nid-blue, pom above it. Although the beankin had proved to be pip€din yellow.The mirletonshako had a redwing and plume prohibitivelyexpensivefor the Republicnany unitsdid manage (if and whenwom in the lattercase). All buttonswere brass- to retaintheir old issueswithbrass plates on thefront andat the Hors€furniiure was a whitesheepskin edged in blue;rhevalise backpatch ofa white€ross on a redfield. (Although some units areknown to haveused alternate red/blue grounds.) Officerswore generally the sameuniform as th€ir men but Legwearshould have been breeches and blackgaiters - in with goldor silverin placeofthe mens'yellowor whitebuttons practicetrousers were more usually worn, in white.grey, dark and lace.Dragoon and Chasseurofficers wore epaulettes like blue or eventricolour stripes." the Infantry, Hussarofficers had a complexsystem of ever Grenadiersofficially carried the sabrebr?uer overthe right increasingamounts of gold laceon the breechesand cuffs. shoulder,but many units did not have sabresand some grenadiersmay thereforehave carried their bayonetson rhe cartridgebox strapin the nanner of fusiliers. CHANGES The first changeswhich took place were to replacerhe Demi-Brigadesl,€gare: impracticalheadwear of the infantrywith a newleather helmet The coatwas of a similarstyle to the de Balaillebut with dark which had a cover lor the neck. Each demi-brisadehad a blueturnbacks and lapels piped white. The collarand cuffsare drfferenrcolour crer( on ils helmer.tsee Table ll.) alsosometimes shown as blue, piped white. Shoulderstraps About the sametime new uniformswere issuedto all the wereblue piped white for the Chasseurs;theCarabiniers wore intantryto replacethose which had becomeragged since the redepaulettes.The deBataille white waistcoat was usually (but invasion.The newuniformswereto beofthe samedarkblueas not always)replaced by blue and officiallythe breecheswere the usualpattern,but wereofa slightlydifferent cut and,more alsoblue, but againtrousers were more normallyworn. importantly,were to be in €oiton. (Ordersdated 6th August Headwearwas sometimesthe bicorne but often. when 1798.confirmed 14th October 1798.) available,one of a numberoftypes ofshako. These were most Thenew uniforms were. obviously, made locally and this may oltenof oneofthe cylindricalforms and I haveseen notes that accountfor thedifferencein style that is sometimes commented some units in Italy had even worn a form of the Hussars' on basicallythe newstyle ofcoat seems to havebeen similarto mirleton.Carabiniers wore the bearskinwithout front plate. the later turtouf, that is singlebreasted, withour lapels and Officen woreessentially the sameuniform as their menbut with simple,shorl tails.'' with gold rank epaulettesand, of course,with differeflt Offic€rs and some units, however, managedto retain equipment.Boots shouldhave been worn in lhe field, but uniformsof the old stylealthough in rh€new cut. Whetherthis shortagesforced many officers to weargaitersand/or trousers. changeaffected the cavalryI havenot beenable to discover. 3I

The newcotton uniforms were not a greatsuccess and in the Autumn of 1799General Bonaparte, before his departurefor France,gave order for a moredrastic solution - the resultis usuallyknown as the 'Kl6berOrdinan€e'. WARGAMES The basicproblen facingthe Frenchwas that not enough clothwas available ofsuitable quality toclothe the wholearmy RESEARCHGROUP in thecorectcolour(which,afterall, wasmainly dark blue not Coming Soon a popularcolour in a semi-tropicalclinate). Thereforeit was decidedto clothethe army in the colour that wasavailable. 1815 _ THE WATERLOOCAMPAIGN Dark blue was r€servedfor the Artillery, Sapperc,etc. The by Geoff Wootten Dragoonsstill managedto hangon to their traditionaldark green- A fi61 volume o' ,cendnosto accompanylhp aurhors Corps The new uni{ormwas made without lapelsand with short D Amep Rulp\.The book qivesthe h:sroiicalbacksround to th€ tumbacks(looking camoaianIoo,rh"r ulh acc;u"B of the battle,ol Iionu. Ou"Ee rather like the Austrian coat of c1805), Bras, Wawe and Waerloo, comprehensve Orden oi 6atrli: and exceptfor the Dragoons,Horse Artillery, and Officerswho five sugg6led gamp {€nafios (ApproximalelylJO pagpc retainedthe samecur as the old coat.if not the colour. Incruorngmaps and dEqrams, The resultwas a veritablerainbow of uniformcolours with Price f,9.95 every DemiBrigade dresseddiff€rently (see Table III). Also Available Officersdressed in the samecolour as their men and seem CorpsD'Armee NapoleonicRules f3.75 almostto havevied with each orher in sarrorialsplendour. Each given 'aunes' Postag€ officerhad been two of his unit's cloth to dress UnitedKnsdom - Add 10%,Minimum 50p himsellanda profusionof laceand braid appearsto have been Ov€lseas Add 15% Sudacei50% Aimail. Minimum50p VISA & ACCESS(Eurcard, ldaslercard)ACCEPIED The Dragoo.s,as mentionedabove, managed to retainthe traditionaldark green.apparendy with facingsas in Table I. For details of our oth€r publications The Chasseurswere re-equipped in a Hussartype uniformof pleasesent an s.a.e. or 2 IRC'Sto: light gr€endolman and dark greenpelisse (and br€eches?), presumablywith white lacingsand steelbulrons. The Hussan Wargames Research Group, retainedtheir previous uniform since such colours of clothwere The Keep, Le Marchant Barracks, London Road, not in shortsupply." Devizes, Wiltshir€. SN10 2ER Tel (0380)724558 I don't haveany noteson the uniformsofthe moreooscure unitsexcept lhat the MountedGuides wore dark green and the ott'quoted DromedaryUnit whoseunifom was a sky blue hussar-typ€dolman with a scarletkaftan worn over it.r2 All of this is very neat, but there are a great numberof variationsrecorded for all demi-brigades.These variaiions. however,are usuallyin facingcolour ratherthan actualcoat colour,so TableIII is a goodguide, since to attemptto cover evena smallnumber of theserecorded variations wouldrake all ofthis issu€of IyI andnost ofthe nextone as well - somethins that I don't think the Editor will allowl TABLtrI Facingsof the CavalryRegiments in Egypt Rect. Lapels & no. Turnback Piping" 3 scadet green 14 pink green prnk pink'" 15 pink pink grcen pink 18 pink pnK green pink 20 yellow grcen yellow 22 Ereer, orange orange orange Note: In dragoonregiments facing colour collar, cuffs, etc. werepiped dark green and vice versa, the shoulderstraps were alwaysin dark greenand piped.The 22ndChasseurs had dark greenshoulder straps piped orange,and greenpiping to the collaror1y, the lapeh may havebeen green piped orange.

G.J.M.FIGURINES Wa4amesFigu.es painied to colledoG standard. '90 smm to 30mm.5mn samplelrcewilh SAEor 5lRCs \c Forsampla rSmm liqure6nd lisrs send fl.95or f2.95 tor 25mmsampl€ figur€ payableio Gerard Cronin, 24ChelslleldMerc, StanlonClos€, Oeingion, Examplesof the lT98patternhelmet-Black leatherwith leather 5mmasp.ci.lily. T.lcphone:06392011512"ht orcottonneck cover and colouredwoollen crest (see Table II). After Marrion & Fosten. 32

TABLE II AreYOU Crestsof the Demi-Brigades using S€ptemb€r1798 stMoN'ssotDtERs? DemnBrigade Cr€st 9th de Bataill€ l3 blue Thepointing seryice for worgomeGby o worgomer 18 black All 19 scolescotered fof but lsmm o speciolily. 32 blue & white Send9l.50 for lsmm sompleor contoctl 6l black& white SimonChoreswodh on 0656768556 for detoils. 69 yellow& white 75 blue & red 85 yellow& red 14 Co9 Ffynnon,Brqcklq, Brldgend 88 yellow& blue Mld Glqmorgon,CF3l 2HO 2meL6gere green 4 green& while 21 green& yellow 22 green& red GuideeA-Pied lricoloured Notei Bi colouredcrests could be dividedequally one colour abovethe other,or in altematebands along the length.

TABLE III The KldberOrdinance of October1799 Demi- Brigad€ Coat Collar Cuffs Turnback Piping green green whrte 9 Bataille Creen blue white white red 13 dk.blue puce puce green yellow yellow yellow 18 white scarlet blue blue blue 25 blue blue blu€ white 32 scarlet lt.orangelt.orange white dk.blue dk.blue dk.blue yellow 61 dk.blue lt.green ll-green white yellow lt.green ll.green 1 69 scarlet white whiie white sky blue sky blue sky blue white IllDstration II 85 scarlet yellow yellow white Exampleof the Kl6berOrdinance patiern coat. The 1798issue 88 blue green green white cottoncoat was probably often similar.After Rigo. 2 Leqare rr.green dk.blue dk.blue dk.blue white 4 rr.green crimson crimson crimson white NOTES: zl sky blue It.orangelt.orange red white 9. Stripedtrousers are often shown in contemporarypdnts, in 22 sky blue crirnson crimson crimson white a numberof hues.I haveeven seen one print of an Officerin Italy wearingtrousers with altematered and blueioops on a Io{t whiteground. Artillery blue red red red red 10. The buttonson thesecoals (and on thosemade {or the yellow yellow yellow v. ^r KldberOrdinance) $ere clorh co\ered lor all e\ceprOlfice$ Miners blue black black blue red brttons, but ;s brassbuttons were in useiocally as a form of Balloonists blue green red blue red curren€yit seemsunlikely that suchwould have stayed on th€ Engineers blue recl green green white coatfor long. 11. Althoughone sourceafter the KleberOrdinance gives the 'dark Note: Pipingwas on the collar,cuffs, turnbacks and, for some blue as blue'. demi-brigades,down the front openingof the coat. 12. Thisunit's uniforms have been the sourceof manyarticles Wheretwosetsof€oloursaregiven(gth,18th)orthree(61st) by manyauthorities, most of whomdo not agreein detail.lt thenauthorities differ andI haveno firm evidencein favourof seem,lhara number of,lighrly diffenng unitonn, were in u.e ar one or the other.Possibly both uniformsexisted side by side, thesame time, likewise the headwearwas ofa numberof forms but it is alsoworth consideringhow colourschange in bright from czapskato rurbanto shako. sunlight for exampleir the 6lst, crimsoncan appear as brown 13. Whenuniforms were issued in Egyptin October1798 the if grubbyor badlydyed, and blue fades to greenafter prolonged pipingmay not havebeen present. exDosureto sunlisht. 14. Rigo (seeSourcet showsthis as a very dark pink. 22 THEFRENCH CAMPAIGN INEGY?T I798.I8OI PARTlll - TheStondords & Coloursof ihe FrenchArmy by StephenEde-Borrett

Th€ regin€ntswhich General Bonapane took with him to Egjpt in The squadroncolours are lst - red (necessitatingthe Phrygian 1798were all ftom the 17ql "Amy of Italy", exceptfor th€ 14th cap to be gold); 2nd sky blue; 3rd light geen; 4th - yelow. Dmgoons.Thus, except for this lastrcgiment, all werecarrying the 1797pattem Army of Italy standardsand colous. REPUBUQUEfRANc,{s E TIIE CAVALRYSTANDARDS t4-R,"..0"^-."1i" Eachsqua&on in a rcgiinent 17caried a standard.Thes€ were aI identicalexcept for two points: / /.u^-*, l3{a*-*A^6 1. The revers€canied the squadronnumber. (s€e L m) 0 ",."rd$ ,.25rl!,{.6 2. The field of the standarddjffercd ftom squadronto squadron, b-. P,,*"- - 3r'A^t -t viz: B; Az**" 7 --"* A" rst Squadrcn- rcd 2nd Squadron- blue &d Squadron- gr€en 4lh Squadrcn- ye ow All embroidery,ftinge, etc wasgold exceptfor the Phrygiancap and the straF around the fasceswhich were red. The staff was mid-bluewith a gold stapleand point. The s.3d wastricoloured. For som€reason the squadroncoloun ofthe Army of the Orient pattemissued to the 14ihDragoons in 1799and to the Reeinent of Dromedariesin the sameyear were different, vi: 1st Squadron- tricolour 2nd Squadron- r€d 3rd Squadron- sky blue 4th Squa&on - green Sadly, unlike the information availablefor the inJanuy (see below)dlat for d|e cavaLyis remarkableonly for ils paucity,lhe THE INFANIRY COLOURS following howeveris what I have to date. Ill.IV shors the basic1797 Army of Italy pattem which had been All Regin€nts caded standards(the aclual 17ql orde$ often issuedto all tbe demi-bdgaderpres€nt in Eglpt. There were, refer to "Guidons" which nay, or may not, be significant)of a however,some variations, but they were only slight. similar design. Probably lhis was little different to the actual The obv€rs€of this pattem carried the namesof the battl€sat pattem of lhe "Army of lhe Orienf' (se€in.Itr). The sizeof ihe which the demi-brigadeshad been presentin Italy and, as time standadswEs 5G55cm by 52-53c:trl,exduding ftinge. Th€ revers€ pass€d,the namesof the Eglptian victorieswerc addedwhile the caried, like ih€ infantry colous, the nanes of the batd€sin which colous were still in use. lhe regimenthad distinguisheditsefi, sadlyev€n Piere charie has Eachbanalion carried one colour, only the sleevebeuaying the ftiled to discoverexactly what lhes€honoun werefor ihe cavalry. battalion: The mountedGuid€s however, who c€rriedihe Army of Italy 1st battalion- white pattem, had the following on the reve$e of their standards: 2nd battalion- red REPIJBUQUE FRANC{SE 3rd battalion - blue COMP' DES GIJIDES. . . ESCADRON The revers€of some coloun did, however, c,Iry "p" B"", B. DE LODI the top dght ad bottom leftmmers, B. DE BORGIfiITO with the demi-bigade numberin the other two comels, but this C. DE INNATO wasNOT univ€Isal. B. DE CASTIGLIONE The gen€rald€sign of the reversewas essentially the sameas the B. DE BASSANO obveNe(iI.9, excrpt that the centralsquare bore the lascesand B. DE SA]NT.GEORGE Pbrygian cap and the legend "REPIJBLIQIJE FRANCAIS" B. D'ARCOLE abovethe squareand "DISSPLINE ET SOUMISSION AIlx B. DE RIVOLI LOIS MILITAIRES" below. PAS DE I,{ PIAVA The Demi-brigadesEgere carried the samepattem of colour, PAS: DU TAGLIAMENTO but with a hom in the centre of the laurelson the obverse. IANCASHIREGAMES 20 PI.ATIIITG ROAD, LYI'GAE, OLI'HAItfi OII 4DL Dueio populardemand r€garding our Napoleonicrange rve havebeen aslcd to relist lhe fgurcs so far. 15mmCASTTNGS I{APOLEOI{ICPENINSULAR NPPI- Une inlaltv RUSS|A|{|{ABOLEON|C {18121 NPF1 Une inlanlry advancino- NPP2 Cad.b€ RN1 MusN€t*r NPF2 Grenadie//ollioEr NPP6 Dragoodheavycavatry RN2 c€nadier NPF3 Voniouers&mishrm RN3 Jao€r Au3dan l|Dolsonlc NPFs cha*eur/Gren. chilino- - FN4 lnLnty command NFF10 Cha.seu 6 Cheal ANI Gernan inl. advandnain shako FN5 Fool anilbry c'e$ (4 fios) ANz Gsman kf. advandnd-(shatotin hethet BN10 Uhld NPFI2 Dragoon AN3 Gema ht, charlho ANa Geman ml. cna.i nd lh€treil RN12 Uaooon SD€nish AN6 hlanlrv mmmanafii h€lmet RN13 Co*ack NPS1 Une inlant AN7 Tvroleaniaeoer RN14 Cuilassi€r ANg c'€nadie. a&€nqno RN15 Ho|so adill€rvcres {4 fo€t AN10 Grenzerint advancino FN16 Hussarwitr tene Brllbh ANl4 Hussar FNiT Muskele€/Gr€n.in foraoe-€gls)' c€D NPBI Une inrarw cenlre Co. ANi5 Chsvaul€qer/Daooon BN18 Disntld. Dragooi (Foot NPBz Une Intanw nank Co. AN16Curlai€i NPB3 Hiohlands' AN17 Mllery c'ew (4 ligs) NPB6 Fu-silid PBUSSIAI{NAP,OLEOI{|C IiSlEis) NPBT Uohl in|anwFiff€md PAINTING SERVICE PN1 Muskois€radancino NPA10 Udtll Draooon OURUSUAL HIGH OUALTTY PAII{flI{G SEBVICE PN2 Grenadier NPB11 H6avy O6sioon IS AVAILABLEAS OUB POPULAADESIGIIER PN3 Inlanw cornmand AR Y (200pc& lqDc) BAFGAIIS 200poD€3ign€rrnrl6 $0Ix) + C5prp(ov€l3es) PN5 F6€ryist inlantv 3.€ P&Prile3l or i(Xlpc 4 annlo!t/4.00 + Cl plp PN6 Bes€rvis(bnds6hr command {owrss leG ptD 6la3) PN7 LEndwehrintanw @El SE D SAEOR 3 lRCe FOROUB USIS PNg Foot artlt€ry c€iv {4 fosl P(EIAL CHARGES PN10Hus6 U( & BFPoonlv 10% d ord€lvalue. Mn.3Oo. Pad( Ptlc€e PN11Uhlan &eEeas Annaf 30%ol oder vajue Min.[i.00 Slandardpack (,lO loot 5 csvl €1.00 PNlz DEooon $dae Mat 15%or oder vau6 Min.t1.00 Commandt5 toor) m.60 PNls tlorae anitbry c€w (4 figs) Ph€senote rc insu€all pdrelsol v€lueols eso Anilbrycw(4bot) m.trc

the FrenchArmy in ESpt,l1 -1N1" i\TtudnionN6A,43 &47;L don r97?. Nafiiger, George The Frcnch Amt: Royd, Repubtban & o Inpeial, Palts I, ll & m; keds 1987& 1988. Nafriger, Georg€Various itens ftom the Col.l"crlo,material. Rigofl, Plumet Unifom platesNos 201, 209, & 216. @ T Rigob Plumet"J'Etais EtrltalieEtEnErypte" in Tradition No.11;Paris 1987; pplc21. "The Rigonaud, Albert 88th Demi-Brigadeof the French Army In Eglpt, S€ptember1801" id Trrdrto, No.57;London To give a full list of battle honours here would serve little 196?,pp2-8. purposeand I doubt that many wargamerswould aclually paint Plusvarious notes on the FrenchRepublican Armies collected them onto their Regiments'mlours any\rvay,If you are interested ftom numeroussources ovef many years. in any particllar deni-bigade then I can thoroughlyrecommend the works cited und€r "sources". SPENCERSMITH MINIATURES (Metal 17. How mariysquadrons of eachregiment were in E$T't isset out andPlastic 2sl3omm s€ale) in Part Il (sEeWaryame: I t rrar€dNr.lt, althoughwhich 3i',fiilYl3;u *- "r*,^'ar b€q,nne^oacrase. in.lud'nB'ule! and d€mo s,;e t270 loot, 66 c.vati, squadronswere presentI do not know - can anyonehelp? 113,45UK o' 135.45oreF.s pon paid. 4 cunt a Ancic.n War ol Ind@nds@sft. Y.a6 War

Pdes M.r.l daric 21p 6o SOURCES Cavalry 45p 2op fl.l5 65p Clw]?tr'ie,Pie,Je Dtupeaux et EEndatA de la rcyolaion et de Samplerpack(mel or plani.) 4t.95 L'Enpirct Paft 198r''. Pleaseend sAEfo. detailsto: "lnfantry Perer,ohnnoN, s Br@3,l. no.d, ctirricl, Ede-Borrett,S.L. Coloun of tbe Army of Iialy'' in London,W4 4QX, Uniled Kqdd Mililtry Modc ing for No.enber 1983;p.848. PA|NI|NG SttVtCt AVAIA81I Marrion, R. & Fosten,D. "The Uniforms and equipmentof