54th Infantry Regiment (France)
Encyclopedia
The 54th Infantry Regiment (54e régiment d’infanterie or 54e RI) is a line infantry
regiment of the French Army
.
from 1756 to 1761 in Canada under the command of général Louis-Joseph de Saint-Veran
, marquis de Montcalm, with M. de Sennezergue as its colonel. It fought at the Battle of Fort William Henry
and at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham
- at the latter it was broken and forced to flee by steady fire from the British 35th Foot
, whose members are traditionally held to have picked up the 54th's plumes and placed them in their own headdress (the Roussillon Plume being formally incorporated into the badge of the 35th Foot in 1881). In 1756, the 54th Infantry Regiment's uniform was white with blue facings, five gilded buttons for the linings and 3 buttons on each pocket.
, it lost its royal title and first became the 54th Line Infantry Regiment, then in 1793 the
54e demi-brigade
de bataille (consisting of the 1st Puy-de-Dôme Volunteers’ Battalion and the 1st Indre Volunteers’ Battalion). From 1796 it was made up of the 43e demi-brigade de bataille (itself made up of 1st battalion of the 22nd Line Infantry Regiment, 4th Seine-et-Oise
Volunteers’ Battalion, and the 3rd Lot
Volunteers’ Battalion). In 1803 it reverted to its title of 54th Line Infantry Regiment. Between 1804 and 1815 it lost 23 officers killed, 89 wounded and 14 died of wounds. During this period it fought at:
supporting Greek independence, especially the siege of the fort at Morea.
as part of France's 23rd Infantry Brigade, itself part of 12th Infantry Division of 6th Army Corps, of which it formed part throughout the war. It took part in 3rd
and 4th
Armies' retreat, fighting from 5 to 13 September at Longwy
, Vaux-Marie, Sommaisne, Rembercourt-aux-Pots, Mouilly
and the First Battle of the Marne
. It then fought in the Calonne (les Hauts de Meuse- Ouest des Eparges) sector of the trenches from 22 September 1914 to 2 August 1915. Les Eparges
was a heavily-disputed sector, split between the regiments of France's 12th Infantry Division.
From January to May 1915 it fought in operations on the River Meuse and Argonne
, both in les Eparges
and the First Battle of Champagne
. On 24 April that year, the Regiment was brought together to campaign near Rupt-en-Woëvre
- before going, it performed a march past the general commanding 12th Infantry Division, who then decorated two of the Regiment's officers with the Légion d’Honneur. The Regiment was then mentioned in dispatches for its sustained fighting from 26 December onwards, when the Regiment was put on alert at lunchtime and went on to base itself on the edge of the Châtelaine forest opposite Mouilly
. On Sunday 25 April it linked up with France's 132nd Infantry Regiment on its left. Under German 105 and 150 bombardment, the 54th was ordered to make its trenches unwinnable. The 87th Infantry Regiment had to attack before the 54th but the attack failed and night arrived.
In 1916 the Regiment saw action at Verdun
and and the following year during the Chemin des Dames offensive
. 1918 saw it fighting once again in the Somme, this time at Grivesnes, le Plessier and the Saint-Aignan offensive on the Aisne, then finally in the Flanders offensive.
Its colours bear the battle honours:
(* ) Officer who then became général de brigade, (* * ) Officer who then became général de division
) The 72e RI, April 1915 The 58e RI- The Vauclusiens in WWI, les Eparges on 18/05/15 To the combatants at the crête des Eparges
Line infantry
Line infantry is a type of infantry which composed the basis of European land armies from the middle of the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century....
regiment of the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
.
Early service
It was formed in 1657 during the Ancien Régime as the régiment Mazarin-Catalans, being renamed the régiment Royal Catalan in 1661 then the régiment Royal Roussillon in 1667. Its first battalion fought in the French and Indian WarFrench and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
from 1756 to 1761 in Canada under the command of général Louis-Joseph de Saint-Veran
Louis-Joseph de Montcalm
Louis-Joseph de Montcalm-Gozon, Marquis de Saint-Veran was a French soldier best known as the commander of the forces in North America during the Seven Years' War .Montcalm was born near Nîmes in France to a noble family, and entered military service...
, marquis de Montcalm, with M. de Sennezergue as its colonel. It fought at the Battle of Fort William Henry
Battle of Fort William Henry
The Siege of Fort William Henry was conducted in August 1757 by French General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm against the British-held Fort William Henry...
and at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham
Battle of the Plains of Abraham
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec, was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War...
- at the latter it was broken and forced to flee by steady fire from the British 35th Foot
35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot
The 35th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment in the British Army. The regiment became The Royal Sussex Regiment.-History:The 35th Regiment changed its name many times during its history...
, whose members are traditionally held to have picked up the 54th's plumes and placed them in their own headdress (the Roussillon Plume being formally incorporated into the badge of the 35th Foot in 1881). In 1756, the 54th Infantry Regiment's uniform was white with blue facings, five gilded buttons for the linings and 3 buttons on each pocket.
Revolution and First Empire
In 1791, just before the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, it lost its royal title and first became the 54th Line Infantry Regiment, then in 1793 the
54e demi-brigade
Demi-brigade
Not to be confused with 13th Demi-Brigade of the Foreign LegionThe Demi-brigade was a military formation first used by the French Army during the French Revolutionary Wars. The Demi-brigade amalgamated the various infantry organizations of the French Revolutionary infantry into a single unit...
de bataille (consisting of the 1st Puy-de-Dôme Volunteers’ Battalion and the 1st Indre Volunteers’ Battalion). From 1796 it was made up of the 43e demi-brigade de bataille (itself made up of 1st battalion of the 22nd Line Infantry Regiment, 4th Seine-et-Oise
Seine-et-Oise
Seine-et-Oise was a département of France encompassing the western, northern, and southern parts of the metropolitan area of Paris. Its préfecture was Versailles and its official number was 78. Seine-et-Oise was abolished in 1968....
Volunteers’ Battalion, and the 3rd Lot
Lot (département)
Lot is a department in the southwest of France named after the Lot River.- History :Lot is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the province of Languedoc. In 1808, some of the original southeastern cantons were...
Volunteers’ Battalion). In 1803 it reverted to its title of 54th Line Infantry Regiment. Between 1804 and 1815 it lost 23 officers killed, 89 wounded and 14 died of wounds. During this period it fought at:
- 1792 : battle of ValmyBattle of ValmyThe Battle of Valmy was the first major victory by the army of France during the French Revolution. The action took place on 20 September 1792 as Prussian troops commanded by the Duke of Brunswick attempted to march on Paris...
and battle of Jemmapes. - 1793 : Kaiserlautern.
- 1794 : MainzMainzMainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
- Battle of MainzBattle of MainzThe Battle of Mainz was fought on 29 October 1795 during the French Revolutionary Wars, between France and Austria. The battle was fought near the city of Mainz now in western Germany and ended in an Austrian victory.-People involved:...
. - 1799 : battle of BergenBattle of Bergen (1799)The Battle of Bergen, also called the Battle of Bergen-Binnen, was fought on 19 September 1799, and resulted in a French-Dutch victory under General Brune and General Daendels against the Russians and British under the Duke of York who had landed in North Holland...
, battle of AlkmaarBattle of Alkmaar (1799)The Battle of Alkmaar was fought on 2 October 1799 between forces of the French Republic and her ally, the Batavian Republic under the command of general Guillaume Marie Anne Brune, and an expeditionary force from Great Britain and her ally Russia, commanded by Prince Frederick, Duke of York...
. - 1800 : battle of Hohenlinden.
- 1805 : battle of DürensteinBattle of DürensteinThe Battle of Dürenstein , on 11 November 1805, was an engagement in the Napoleonic Wars during the War of the Third Coalition...
and battle of AusterlitzBattle of AusterlitzThe Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition...
. - 1806 : Crewitz and Lubeck .
- 1807 : Battle of OstrołękaBattle of Ostrołęka (1807)The Battle of Ostrołęka was fought on 16 February 1807 between First French Empire troops under General of Division Anne Jean Marie René Savary and Russian soldiers under Lieutenant General Ivan Essen. The French defeated the Russians and forced them to retreat to the east...
and battle of FriedlandBattle of FriedlandThe Battle of Friedland saw Napoleon I's French army decisively defeat Count von Bennigsen's Russian army about twenty-seven miles southeast of Königsberg...
. - 1808 : Espinosa and Somo-Sierra .
- 1809 : battle of Essling, battle of WagramBattle of WagramThe Battle of Wagram was the decisive military engagement of the War of the Fifth Coalition. It took place on the Marchfeld plain, on the north bank of the Danube. An important site of the battle was the village of Deutsch-Wagram, 10 kilometres northeast of Vienna, which would give its name to the...
, and battle of Talevera-de-la-Reyna . - 1810 : Saint-Louis .
- 1811 : Barossa/Chiclana, battle of Fuentes de OñoroBattle of Fuentes de OnoroIn the Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro , the British-Portuguese Army under Viscount Wellington checked an attempt by the French Army of Portugal under Marshal André Masséna to relieve the besieged city of Almeida.-Background:...
, and Zujar. - 1812 : Tarifa and Cadiz.
- 1813 : Oignon, battle of VitoriaBattle of VitoriaAt the Battle of Vitoria an allied British, Portuguese, and Spanish army under General the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, leading to eventual victory in the Peninsular War.-Background:In July 1812, after...
, Col de Maya, battle of DresdenBattle of DresdenThe Battle of Dresden was fought on 26–27 August 1813 around Dresden, Germany, resulting in a French victory under Napoleon I against forces of the Sixth Coalition of Austrians, Russians and Prussians under Field Marshal Schwartzenberg. However, Napoleon's victory was not as complete as it could...
, battle of LeipzigBattle of LeipzigThe Battle of Leipzig or Battle of the Nations, on 16–19 October 1813, was fought by the coalition armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden against the French army of Napoleon. Napoleon's army also contained Polish and Italian troops as well as Germans from the Confederation of the Rhine...
, and Danzig. - 1814 : battle of Bar-sur-AubeBattle of Bar-sur-AubeThe Battle of Bar-sur-Aube was fought on February 27, 1814, between the First French Empire and the Austrian Empire. The French were led by Nicolas Oudinot, while the Austrians and their Bavarian allies, forming the Army of Bohemia, were led by Karl Philipp Fürst zu Schwarzenberg...
, Fère-Champenoise, and Maestricht. - 1815 : battle of WaterlooBattle of WaterlooThe Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
1815-1914
It became a ‘légion -Infanterie de ligne' from 1816 to 1820, reverting to 54th Line Infantry Regiment from 1820 to 1854 and finally taking its present name in 1854. From 1828 to 1833 it took part in the Morea expeditionMorea expedition
The Morea expedition is the name given in France to the land intervention of the French Army in the Peloponnese, between 1828 and 1833, at the time of the Greek War of Independence....
supporting Greek independence, especially the siege of the fort at Morea.
1914-1918
On the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 the Regiment was on garrison duties at CompiègneCompiègne
Compiègne is a city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise.The city is located along the Oise River...
as part of France's 23rd Infantry Brigade, itself part of 12th Infantry Division of 6th Army Corps, of which it formed part throughout the war. It took part in 3rd
Third Army (France)
The Third Army was a Field army of the French Army, which fought during World War I and World War II.-World War I:*General Ruffey *General Sarrail *General Humbert...
and 4th
Fourth Army (France)
The Fourth Army was a Field army of the French Army, which fought during World War I and World War II.-World War I:*General Fernand de Langle de Cary *General Henri Gouraud...
Armies' retreat, fighting from 5 to 13 September at Longwy
Longwy
Longwy is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France.The inhabitants are known as Longoviciens.-Economy:Longwy has historically been an industrial center of the Lorraine iron mining district. The town is known for its artistic glazed pottery.-History:Longwy initially...
, Vaux-Marie, Sommaisne, Rembercourt-aux-Pots, Mouilly
Mouilly
Mouilly is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.- See also :* Communes of the Meuse department*Parc naturel régional de Lorraine...
and the First Battle of the Marne
First Battle of the Marne
The Battle of the Marne was a First World War battle fought between 5 and 12 September 1914. It resulted in an Allied victory against the German Army under Chief of Staff Helmuth von Moltke the Younger. The battle effectively ended the month long German offensive that opened the war and had...
. It then fought in the Calonne (les Hauts de Meuse- Ouest des Eparges) sector of the trenches from 22 September 1914 to 2 August 1915. Les Eparges
Les Éparges
Les Éparges is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Meuse department*Parc naturel régional de Lorraine...
was a heavily-disputed sector, split between the regiments of France's 12th Infantry Division.
From January to May 1915 it fought in operations on the River Meuse and Argonne
Argonne
Argonne may refer to:*The Forest of Argonne in France*Argonne National Laboratory, a U.S. D.O.E. National Laboratory near Chicago, Illinois*Meuse-Argonne Offensive, also called the Battle of Argonne Forest, a World War I battle*Argonne, Wisconsin, a town, US...
, both in les Eparges
Les Éparges
Les Éparges is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Meuse department*Parc naturel régional de Lorraine...
and the First Battle of Champagne
First Battle of Champagne
The First Battle of Champagne was fought early in World War I in the Champagne region of France, between the French and German Empire armies. It was effectively the first significant attack by the Allies against the Germans since the construction of trenches following the so-called 'Race to the...
. On 24 April that year, the Regiment was brought together to campaign near Rupt-en-Woëvre
Rupt-en-Woëvre
Rupt-en-Woëvre is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Meuse department*Parc naturel régional de Lorraine...
- before going, it performed a march past the general commanding 12th Infantry Division, who then decorated two of the Regiment's officers with the Légion d’Honneur. The Regiment was then mentioned in dispatches for its sustained fighting from 26 December onwards, when the Regiment was put on alert at lunchtime and went on to base itself on the edge of the Châtelaine forest opposite Mouilly
Mouilly
Mouilly is a commune in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.- See also :* Communes of the Meuse department*Parc naturel régional de Lorraine...
. On Sunday 25 April it linked up with France's 132nd Infantry Regiment on its left. Under German 105 and 150 bombardment, the 54th was ordered to make its trenches unwinnable. The 87th Infantry Regiment had to attack before the 54th but the attack failed and night arrived.
In 1916 the Regiment saw action at Verdun
Battle of Verdun
The Battle of Verdun was one of the major battles during the First World War on the Western Front. It was fought between the German and French armies, from 21 February – 18 December 1916, on hilly terrain north of the city of Verdun-sur-Meuse in north-eastern France...
and and the following year during the Chemin des Dames offensive
Second Battle of the Aisne
The Second Battle of the Aisne , was the massive main assault of the French military's Nivelle Offensive or Chemin des Dames Offensive in 1917 during World War I....
. 1918 saw it fighting once again in the Somme, this time at Grivesnes, le Plessier and the Saint-Aignan offensive on the Aisne, then finally in the Flanders offensive.
Battle honours
The Regiment's tie is decorated with the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 with 3 citations in army orders, 1 citation in army corps orders and 1 citation in divisional orders. The Regiment has the right to wear the colours of the Croix on its forage cap.Its colours bear the battle honours:
Colonels/chefs de brigade
- 1756 : M. de Sennezergue - colonel
- 1792 : Pierre-Michel-Joseph-Salomon Dumesnil - colonel
- 1794 : Glinec - chef de brigade
- 1795 : Sauvat - chef de brigade
- 1796 : Louis-Prix Vare - chef de brigade (* )
- 1803 : Armand PhilipponArmand PhilipponArmand Philippon , sometimes called Phillipon, was a French soldier during the French Revolution and the subsequent First French Empire....
- colonel (* * ) – wounded 28 July 1809 - 1810 : Jacques Saint-Faust – colonel – wounded 27 February 1814
- 1814 : Claude Charlet - colonel
- 1829 : Félix-Louis de Narp
- 1830 : François NégrierFrançois-Marie-Casimir NégrierFrançois-Marie-Casimir Négrier was a French general who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and the 1848 Revolution. Aged 12 he accompanied Jean Lannes on his embassy to Portugal. From 1830 he was colonel of the 54th Infantry Regiment.-Source:...
(* ) Officer who then became général de brigade, (* * ) Officer who then became général de division
External links
Les Eparges February - April 1915 (account of Général MordacqJean Jules Henri Mordacq
Jean Jules Henri Mordacq was a French general. He was a close aide to Clemenceau during 1918 and later during the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. Prior to these political roles, general Mordacq had been a frontline divisional commander in 1916 and 1917 and was wounded twice on the battlefields...
) The 72e RI, April 1915 The 58e RI- The Vauclusiens in WWI, les Eparges on 18/05/15 To the combatants at the crête des Eparges