Nap. Wurttemberg Infantry (shako)

At the beginning of the Napoleonic period, Württemberg was a duchy in south-western Germany. Duke Frederick II allied himself with Napoleon and joined the Confederation of the Rhine in 1806. In return for territorial gains and elevation to royal rank, he became King Frederick I of Württemberg. The enlarged kingdom was required to maintain a considerably expanded army in support of Napoleon’s campaigns.

Approximate location and extent of Württemberg, c. 1813–1815.

Although Württemberg was one of the smaller German states, its army was a substantial and active force. Württemberg troops campaigned against Prussia in 1806–07 and Austria in 1809, and formed an important contingent of Napoleon’s Grande Armée during the invasion of Russia in 1812. The Russian campaign virtually destroyed the field army, and the infantry regiments had to be rebuilt with new recruits in 1813. The reconstituted Württemberg division fought at Lützen and Bautzen, and later at Grossbeeren, Dennewitz and Wartenburg. During the Leipzig campaign Württemberg abandoned Napoleon’s cause and joined the Allies, subsequently fighting in France during the campaigns of 1814 and 1815.

A line infantry regiment normally contained two field battalions, each divided into four companies. The first company of the regiment was the grenadier company, while the remaining companies were composed principally of musketeers. Württemberg also maintained separate light infantry and Jäger formations, which provided skirmishers and troops suited to operating in broken country. Officers, NCOs, standard bearers and musicians completed the command structure of the battalions.

The most immediately recognisable feature of the earlier Württemberg infantry was the leather helmet with its large black woollen crest, usually known today as the Raupenhelm or “caterpillar helmet.” Grenadiers were distinguished principally by their tall bearskin headgear, while Jäger and some light troops adopted shakos earlier. During 1813 the shako began to replace the helmet throughout the line infantry, though the change was not necessarily completed everywhere at exactly the same time. The new headgear gave the late-war Württemberg infantry a noticeably more French-influenced appearance, while the distinctive short coat with its unusual plastron-like front remained substantially unchanged.

Once the helmet and bearskin had been replaced by the shako, the outward difference between the musketeer and grenadier became much less obvious. Surviving illustrations of shako-wearing Württemberg grenadiers are scarce, and the precise details are not always clear. For this set, the shako-wearing figures can therefore be used together as the line infantry of 1813–15, with regimental and company distinctions supplied through painting. The green-coated light infantry and Jäger can likewise be readily distinguished by their uniform colours and appropriate facing details.

The complete project now includes twenty-four poses: musketeers, grenadiers, command figures, Jäger and an additional marching figure. The command selection includes an officer, standard bearer, two NCOs, drummer and fifer, while the Jäger are represented by an NCO and four private soldiers. Here are scans of the first 12 figures.