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By 1745 the cavalry was not exactly the "cutting edge" of the Dutch army- more like one of those blunt plastic spoons! It was the Dutch cavalry that let the infantry down at Lauffeldt by refusing to charge the French when it might have made all the world of difference.
While I would imagine that Holland with all it's dikes and canals would not have made for a very good cavalry tradition, it has to be said that the Prussians also started with wretched horse regiments- one need only look at Mollwitz in 1741.
And yet with proper training and care, Frederick the Great was able to turn the Prussian cavalry into the best in Europe. Who knows what the Dutch horse may have achieved given similar treatment and the leadership of such men as von Seydlitz?
I know of no source of information available for the Dutch cavalry standards of this time. The flags given for the regiments above are purely arbitrary- I got them from the "Warflag" site, and are Dutch standards for the earlier War of the Spanish Succession.
At least the green flag for the Hessen-Homburg regiment is from another regiment named Homburg!
4 comments:
Well you sorted out the problem of Dutch cavalry flags for me - thanks.
As for the infantry, I'm starting off with a brigade using Brian's flags from pack 11. Aylva, Lippe and Glinstra.
Nigel
Schlippenbach and Massou were Dragoon rather than Horse regiments, and would have carried swallow tailed guidons. I think that Schlippenbach's lost a guidon at Lauffeldt.
There is an illustration of a Dutch Dragoon guidon lost to the French at Lauffeldt (perhaps Schlippenbach's?) in Courier no 64 Hope thats of use.
Thanks for commenting- I have few resources on the Dutch cavalry outside of Manley's book, so any information is most welcome.
Manley has them as horse regiments, but I am inclined to think they are indeed dragoons. I've seen them listed as such in -some- orders of battle, but particularly because they are in the blue uniforms, which suggests a link to the infantry.
I would love to see that Courier article, but the magazine is long gone, alas. Any chance of being able to scan a copy for me? I'd love to see that guidon!
They're definitely Dragoons-'national' regiments (ie Dutch natives) as opposed to the Walloons of Mattha's Regt or Germans of Saxe-Gotha's. They were bigger than Horse Regts too, 5Sqns each by 1745, Schlippenbach's maybe 7 by the end of the War.
You're right about Blue coats being a characteristic of Dutch Dragoons, but until 1752 a few Horse Regts wore them too- including Hessen Homberg and Nassau Friesland.
Re the Courier article- I have it somewhere and if I find it will definitely scan it. Otherwise- someone on TMP might have access to it.
seneffe
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