Army of the Kingdom of Naples
Persons of Interest within the Kingdom of Naples
The French decade in Naples brought rise to many fascinating and influential figures.
Both Joseph Bonaparte and Joachim Murat's courts bristled with colourful personas, many of which would go on to play a major role in Italian & European politics later that century.
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The Army of the Kingdom of Naples was the most active component of the Kingdom’s Armed Forces. Organised along French lines, it was founded in February 1806 from volunteers and the wreckage of the army of the Bourbon Kingdom of Naples. As a modern force, it was compromised of various regiments of infantry, cavalry, artillery, and engineers, quite literally organised as replicas of their French counterparts within the Grande Armée. At its peak size in 1815, the Neapolitan army had a total (on-paper) strength of 94,463 men split into 35 regiments and numerous smaller units. The army consisted of four main “branches”: the Royal Guard, the troops of the Line, the technical troops, and the troops of the interior. It was almost completely shaped and modelled to mirror the French armed forces, save for the interior troops. Under the terms of the Treaty of Bayonne, Naples was obliged to supply the Grande Armée with 16,000 infantry, 2,500 light cavalry, and twenty pieces of field artillery; these goals were never met in full, although the Army itself far exceeded this number by 1810. In 1815, over 70% of the regular army was composed of infantry, three fifths of which were from the line regiments. The cavalry composed around 11%, the split between Guard and Line being relatively even; the remainder of the army was composed of the technical troops (artillery, engineers, and train). This meant that the overall ratio of infantry to cavalry within the army was 6:1, almost double that of the French Army at Waterloo. Neapolitan troops would serve for many years across various theatres, including in home territory against insurgents and British landings, and in foreign lands such as Spain, Russia, and Germany, albeit with a minor role. In Calabria, the Neapolitans played a crucial role in maintaining the Napoleonic Empire’s southern border in the face of continuous naval landings. Upon Murat’s change of allegiance, the Army fought with little distinction against their old allies in Northern Italy; Neapolitan honour would fortunately be redeemed a year later in the brave but ultimately disastrous Neapolitan War. |
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The Neapolitan troops excelled in rapid, irregular combat, as opposed to their frequent failures in formed masses. Unsurprisingly, the first four regiments to be raised were the 1st Light(16th February 1806) and the 1st Horse Chasseurs (18th February), followed by the 2nd Light (27th May) and 2nd Horse Chasseurs (4th June). These were ostensibly raised to support the Armée de Naples’s efforts in fighting the Bourbon guerillas in the Kingdom’s rugged southern provinces. On June 13th the first two line infantry regiments were raised, followed by a third, fourth and fifth in 1809. By 1811, there would be seven line regiments. By its final expansion the Army had twelve Line Infantry Regiments, four Light Infantry Regiments, and four regiments of Cavalleggieri (Chevaulegers) armed with lances. The Royal Guard was founded on 30th September 1806 as a corps consisting of a regiment each of Grenadiers and of Voltigeurs, a regiment of Chevaulegers, a squadron of Gendarmerie d’élite, and a company each of foot and horse artillery (in addition to an artillery train company). These would be composed almost entirely of French troops (elite companies taken from each regiment), and when Joseph Bonaparte took most of the Guard to Spain, only a few men were left behind, most of them Neapolitan nationals. When Joachim Murat was given the throne of Naples, the task of rebuilding his guard would prove to be daunting: Napoleon had barred him from taking any more troops from the French units stationed in the Kingdom, and most of his elite Berg troops were also transferred out of his reach. The only experienced men at his disposal were the officers of his entourage, and a small squadron of Berg Chevaulegers. Hence, the new Royal Guard under Murat found itself initially led by competent French officers, but generally filled with volunteers and picked recruits. Distinguished rankers from the regiments serving in Spain were also transferred into the Guard as NCOs. By 1809, a huge ceremony was held in Naples to honour the founding of the Corps of Velites. This elite force was initially formed from a regiment of Foot Velites (two battalions) and one of Mounted Velites (two squadrons) and would consist of men recruited exclusively from the nobility and landed gentry. The foot Velites would later be increased to two regiments, and in 1813 the Mounted Velites would be renamed Hussars.
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File:GrenadeOne.png Joseph Souham's veteran French division breached the Spanish defenses. In 1806, each infantry battalion consisted of 9 companies, split into 7 companies of Fusiliers (fucilieri), 1 company of Grenadiers (granatieri), and 1 of Voltigeurs (volteggiatori). In Light Infantry regiments, the former two were known as Chasseurs (cacciatori) and Carabiniers (carabinieri) respectively. In 1808, by Napoleon’s decree of 18th February, the regimental organisation was augmented: each battalion was reduced to six (stronger) companies of 140 men each, the fusiliers now numbering 4 companies and the rest keeping their previous establishments. This was introduced into the Neapolitan Army as well as within the armies of all French-aligned client states in 1808 and onwards. Fusiliers or Chasseurs were the main rank-and-file of the regiment, forming around 80% of its total strength. They constituted the hardened core of each unit, and all new recruits from the depot were transferred to serve as them. Only later in their careers would they be allowed to transfer to one of the élite companies, having met the necessary requirements. As basic fusiliers or chasseurs, they experienced much less prestige and privileges than their counterparts within the grenadier and voltigeur companies, although their performance was of paramount importance to the outcome of battles.6 Grenadiers or Carabiniers were the flower the regiment’s soldiers; tall, skilled, and experienced, these veterans formed each battalion’s elite reserve. A minimum height of 173.5cm and 2-4 years’ of exemplary service was required to be accepted into the grenadier company.7 While not actually equipped with grenades, they would wear bearskins and “flaming grenade” insignia on their uniforms to show their status; apparently, the expensive headgear was kept on even in the trying conditions of the Russian campaign, in contrast to their French counterparts (who had discarded the use of bearskins in line regiments earlier that year).
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As stated in the above-named decrees, every Neapolitan regiment was organised “in the same way, with the same pay, as the French regiments of the same arm”.
File:GrenadeOne.png Joseph Souham's veteran French division breached the Spanish defenses. In 1806, each infantry battalion consisted of 9 companies, split into 7 companies of Fusiliers (fucilieri), 1 company of Grenadiers (granatieri), and 1 of Voltigeurs (volteggiatori). In Light Infantry regiments, the former two were known as Chasseurs (cacciatori) and Carabiniers (carabinieri) respectively. In 1808, by Napoleon’s decree of 18th February, the regimental organisation was augmented: each battalion was reduced to six (stronger) companies of 140 men each, the fusiliers now numbering 4 companies and the rest keeping their previous establishments. This was introduced into the Neapolitan Army as well as within the armies of all French-aligned client states in 1808 and onwards. Fusiliers or Chasseurs were the main rank-and-file of the regiment, forming around 80% of its total strength. They constituted the hardened core of each unit, and all new recruits from the depot were transferred to serve as them. Only later in their careers would they be allowed to transfer to one of the élite companies, having met the necessary requirements. As basic fusiliers or chasseurs, they experienced much less prestige and privileges than their counterparts within the grenadier and voltigeur companies, although their performance was of paramount importance to the outcome of battles.6 Grenadiers or Carabiniers were the flower the regiment’s soldiers; tall, skilled, and experienced, these veterans formed each battalion’s elite reserve. A minimum height of 173.5cm and 2-4 years’ of exemplary service was required to be accepted into the grenadier company.7 While not actually equipped with grenades, they would wear bearskins and “flaming grenade” insignia on their uniforms to show their status; apparently, the expensive headgear was kept on even in the trying conditions of the Russian campaign, in contrast to their French counterparts (who had discarded the use of bearskins in line regiments earlier that year).
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