1st Neva Infantry Regiment
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The 1st General Field Marshal Count Lacy's, His Majesty King of the Hellenes' Neva Infantry Regiment (russian: 1-й пехотный Невский генерал-фельдмаршала графа Ласси, ныне Его Величества Короля Эллинов полк) was an
infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
of the
Russian Imperial Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
. It was known by different names for much of its existence but most of its designations included "Neva Infantry Regiment." It served in several conflicts, including the
Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
,
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...
, the Russo-Swedish War of 1808–1809, the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, and the
Russo–Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
. By 1914, the 1st Neva Infantry Regiment was part of the 1st Infantry Division, and it fought in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
before being dissolved in 1918, after the events of
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
.


Organization

The unit was first formed in
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
on 21 July 1706 as the "Kulikov Infantry Regiment" by order of
Russian Emperor The emperor or empress of all the Russias or All Russia, ''Imperator Vserossiyskiy'', ''Imperatritsa Vserossiyskaya'' (often titled Tsar or Tsarina/Tsaritsa) was the monarch of the Russian Empire. The title originated in connection with Russia' ...
Peter the Great Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
. On 10 April 1708 it was renamed "Neva Regiment" and in 1711 it became the "Neva Infantry Regiment". On 16 August 1712 its surviving members were merged into another regiment after sustaining heavy losses during the
Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
(the regiment would later be disbanded in 1731). On 15 July 1713 a new Neva Regiment was created, named after the original. In 1727 it was briefly designated as the "2nd Vladimir Infantry Regiment" before being renamed "Neva" again. It was reformed in 1731 and a decade later its total strength was 1,557 men. By 1753 the regiment's
battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
s each consisted of one
grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word '' grenade'') was originally a specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in battle. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when grenadiers were recruited fr ...
and four
fusilier Fusilier is a name given to various kinds of soldiers; its meaning depends on the historical context. While fusilier is derived from the 17th-century French language, French word ''fusil'' – meaning a type of flintlock musket – the term has ...
companies, for a total strength of 2,859 men. In the mid-1750s two of its grenadier companies were reassigned to form other units. In 1762 the Neva Regiment was reformed and came to consist of 3 fusilier battalions, each of which included one grenadier and four fusilier companies. The following year it gained two new battalions, and its official strength was listed as 2,092 men during wartime and 1,880 during peacetime. On 29 November 1796 it was renamed "Neva Musketeer Regiment". On 31 October 1798 it was renamed "1st Lieutenant General Duke Volkonsky's Musketeer Regiment" and later "Lieutenant General Duke Gorchakov's" on 26 January 1800. In 1800 its numerical designation was changed to 2nd before being renamed "Neva Musketeer Regiment" on 31 March 1801. In 1811 it was renamed "Neva Infantry Regiment". In January 1833 the 1st naval battalion was added to the unit, and it was later renamed the "Neva Naval Regiment". In 1846 it became the "His Majesty
King of Naples The following is a list of rulers of the Kingdom of Naples, from its first separation from the Kingdom of Sicily to its merger with the same into the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Kingdom of Naples (1282–1501) House of Anjou In 1382, the ...
Regiment" before being changed back to "Neva Infantry Regiment" the following year. In April 1863 it lost three battalions which were reassigned to form the new "Neva Reserve Infantry Regiment". It was in 1867 that it first gained the name of "1st His Majesty
King of the Hellenes The Kingdom of Greece was ruled by the House of Wittelsbach between 1832 and 1862 and by the House of Glücksburg from 1863 to 1924, temporarily abolished during the Second Hellenic Republic, and from 1935 to 1973, when it was once more abolishe ...
' Infantry Regiment". In 1913 it was renamed "1st Neva Infantry Regiment". Part of the unit was transferred to form the new 221st Roslavl Infantry Regiment in August 1914, and the unit was disbanded in 1918.


Combat chronicle

The regiment saw its first action during the
Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
, fighting in the
Battle of Poltava The Battle of Poltava; russian: Полта́вская би́тва; uk, Полта́вська би́тва (8 July 1709) was the decisive and largest battle of the Great Northern War. A Russian army under the command of Tsar Peter I defeate ...
(1709), Battle of Vyborg Bay (1711), and during a
naval battle Naval warfare is combat in and on the sea, the ocean, or any other battlespace involving a major body of water such as a large lake or wide river. Mankind has fought battles on the sea for more than 3,000 years. Even in the interior of large lan ...
that resulted in the capture of four frigates (1719). From 1716 to 1717 it took part in a 20-month march through
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
to the shores of
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. The Neva Regiment took heavy losses during the conflict. In 1760, during the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...
, the regiment was decorated for taking part in the
raid on Berlin The Raid on Berlin took place in October 1760 during the Third Silesian War (part of the Seven Years' War) when Austrian and Russian forces occupied the Prussian capital of Berlin for several days. After raising money from the city, and with the ...
. It might also have taken part in the
Russo-Turkish War (1768–74) The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histor ...
and the
Russo-Swedish War (1788–90) Wars between Russia and Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> ...
. In 1812 it took part in fighting the
French invasion of Russia The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...
and until 1815 the regiment was fighting abroad, including at the
Battle of Leipzig The Battle of Leipzig (french: Bataille de Leipsick; german: Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ); sv, Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations (french: Bataille des Nations; russian: Битва народов, translit=Bitva ...
. The Neva Infantry Regiment later took part in crushing the
January Uprising The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...
in Russian
Congress Poland Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It w ...
. It later fought in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, during which the regiment's 1st battalion earned a decoration for distinguished service in battle. In 1905 the unit was deployed to
Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
to fight in the
Russo–Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
, but the conflict ended by the time they arrived in
Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ...
. Between 1907 and 1908 the regiment took part in putting down revolutionary unrest in
Voronezh Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the ...
. During that time all men of the unit received a marking which stated "For Accomplishment in the Turkish War of 1877 and 1878." During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
the 1st Neva Infantry Regiment participated in the East Prussian Operation, including the
Battle of Tannenberg The Battle of Tannenberg, also known as the Second Battle of Tannenberg, was fought between Russia and Germany between 26 and 30 August 1914, the first month of World War I. The battle resulted in the almost complete destruction of the Russi ...
, in 1914 and was part of the 1st Infantry Division. It saw action as part of 2nd Army, 10th Army, 5th Army, and 12th Army; on the
Northwestern Front The Northwestern Front (Russian: ''Северо-Западный фронт'') was a military formation of the Red Army during the Winter War and World War II. It was operational with the 7th and 13th Armies during the Winter War. It was re-cre ...
and the Northern Front. It was dissolved by the
Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
in 1918 and some of its members fought for the White movement in the
Russian Civil War , date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...
.Russian Army at the Battle of Tannenberg
/ref>


Rank insignia


Officers


NCOs and enlisted


See also

*
List of Imperial Russian Army formations and units This article lists Imperial Russian Army formations and units in 1914 prior to World War I mobilisation for the Russian invasion of Prussia and the liberation Austro-Hungarian province of Galicia. The prewar chain of command was: military distr ...


References

{{Infantry regiments of the Russian Empire Infantry regiments of the Russian Empire Smolensk Governorate Military units and formations established in 1706 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918