The King's German Legion (KGL; ) was a formation of the British Army during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Consisting primarily of expatriate

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

, it existed from 1803 to 1816 and achieved the distinction of being the only German military force to fight without interruption against the French and their allies during the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. Formed within months of the French dissolution of the

Electorate of Hanover The Electorate of Hanover ( or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an Prince-elector, electorate of the Holy Roman Empire located in northwestern Germany that arose from the Principality of Calenberg. Although formally known as the Electorate of Brun ...

in 1803, the KGL was constituted as a

combined arms Combined arms is an approach to warfare that seeks to integrate different combat arms of a military to achieve mutually complementary effects—for example, using infantry and armoured warfare, armour in an Urban warfare, urban environment in ...

corps by the end of the year. Although it never fought autonomously and remained a part of the British army for the duration of the Napoleonic Wars, the KGL played a vital role in several campaigns, most notably the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...

Walcheren Campaign The Walcheren Campaign () was an unsuccessful United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, British expedition to the Kingdom of Holland in 1809 intended to open another front in the Austrian Empire's struggle with First French Empire, France ...

and

Hundred Days The Hundred Days ( ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition (), marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII o ...

. The KGL was disbanded in 1816, and many of its units were incorporated into the

Hanoverian Army The Hanoverian Army (German: ''Hannoversche Armee'') was the standing army of the Electorate of Hanover from the seventeenth century onwards. From 1692 to 1803 it acted in defence of the electorate. Following the Hanoverian Succession of 1714, thi ...

, which later became part of the

Imperial German Army The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the leadership of Kingdom o ...

after the

unification of Germany The unification of Germany (, ) was a process of building the first nation-state for Germans with federalism, federal features based on the concept of Lesser Germany (one without Habsburgs' multi-ethnic Austria or its German-speaking part). I ...

into the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

1871. The

British German Legion The British German Legion (or Anglo-German Legion) was a group of German soldiers recruited to fight for Britain in the Crimean War. It is not to be confused with the King's German Legion, which was active during the Napoleonic Wars. Great Britain ...

, raised during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

, has sometimes been erroneously referred to as the "King's German Legion".

History

After the occupation of Hanover by Napoleonic troops the

Convention of Artlenburg The Convention of Artlenburg or Elbkonvention was the surrender of the Electorate of Hanover to Napoleon's army, signed at Artlenburg on 5 July 1803 by ''Oberbefehlshaber'' Johann Ludwig von Wallmoden-Gimborn. It disbanded the Electorate of Hano ...

, also called the Convention of the Elbe, was signed on 5 July 1803 and formally dissolved the

. Consequently, the Elector's army was disbanded. Many former Hanoverian officers and soldiers fled the French occupation of Hanover to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

;

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

, the deposed

Elector of Hanover The Electorate of Hanover ( or simply ''Kurhannover'') was an electorate of the Holy Roman Empire located in northwestern Germany that arose from the Principality of Calenberg. Although formally known as the Electorate of Brunswick-Lünebur ...

, was also

King of the United Kingdom The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with their powers Constitutional monarchy, regula ...

. The same year, Major

Colin Halkett General Sir Colin Halkett (7 September 1774 – 24 September 1856) was a British Army officer who became Lieutenant Governor of Jersey. Family Halkett came from a military family. His father was Major General Frederick Godar Halkett and his ...

and Colonel Johann Friedrich von der Decken were issued warrants to raise a corps of

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

, to be named ''The King's German Regiment''. On 19 December 1803, Halkett's and von der Decken's levies were combined as a basis of a mixed corps (includes all arms: mounted, infantry, artillery) renamed the King's German Legion. The KGL infantry were quartered in

Bexhill-on-Sea Bexhill-on-Sea (often shortened to Bexhill) is a seaside town and civil parish in the Rother District in the county of East Sussex in South East England. It is located along the Sussex Coast and between the towns of Hastings, England, Hastings ...

and the cavalry in

Weymouth, Dorset Weymouth ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the Dorset (district), Dorset district, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, Dorset, River Wey, south of the county town of ...

. Some units were involved in a street fight in

Tullamore Tullamore (; ) is the county town of County Offaly in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is on the Grand Canal (Ireland), Grand Canal, in the middle of the county, and is the fourth most populous town in the Midland Region, Ireland, Midlands Reg ...

, Ireland with a British Light infantry unit in the so-called ''Battle of Tullamore.'' The number of

officers An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

and other ranks grew over time to approximately 14,000, but during the 13 years of its existence, close to 28,000 men served in the legion at one time or another. Initially, most of the officers were appointed with temporary rank, but in 1812 all the officers of the legion were given permanent rank in the British Army for "having so frequently distinguished themselves against the enemy". It saw active service as an integral part of the British Army from 1805 to 1816, after which its units were disbanded. In November 1813 Hanover was liberated from French rule and the Hanoverian Army revived. At the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...

in 1815 two distinct Hanoverian forcesthe KGL and the Hanoverian Armyserved under the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

Organisation

Cavalry

* 1st Regiment of Dragoons (1804–1812, red jacket) ** ''changed into:'' 1st Regiment of Light Dragoons (1812–1816, blue jacket) * 2nd Regiment of Dragoons (1805–1812, red jacket) ** ''changed into:'' 2nd Regiment of Light Dragoons (1812–1816, blue jacket) * 1st Regiment of Hussars * 2nd Regiment of Hussars * 3rd Regiment of Hussars

Infantry

* 1st Light Infantry Battalion * 2nd Light Infantry Battalion * 1st Line Battalion * 2nd Line Battalion * 3rd Line Battalion * 4th Line Battalion * 5th Line Battalion * 6th Line Battalion * 7th Line Battalion * 8th Line Battalion

Artillery and engineers

* King's German Artillery ** 2 horse batteries ** 4 foot batteries * King's German Engineers

Campaigns

Although the legion never fought autonomously or as a single unit, its units participated in campaigns in Hanover,

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

and

Walcheren Walcheren () is a region and former island in the Dutch province of Zeeland at the mouth of the Scheldt estuary. It lies between the Eastern Scheldt in the north and the Western Scheldt in the south and is roughly the shape of a rhombus. The two ...

, the

under General Sir John Moore; and the retreat to Corunna; the

Peninsular Campaign The Peninsula campaign (also known as the Peninsular campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March to July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The oper ...

under the

, including the battles of Bussaco, Barrosa, Fuentes de Onoro,

Albuera La Albuera is a village southeast of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain. it had a population of c. 2,000 inhabitants. History It was scene of the Battle of Albuera (16 May 1811) between Spanish, Portuguese and British troops under William Carr Beresf ...

Ciudad Rodrigo Ciudad Rodrigo () is a small cathedral city in the province of Salamanca (province), Salamanca, in western Spain, with a population in 2016 of 12,896. It is also the seat of a judicial district. The site of Ciudad Rodrigo, perched atop a rocky r ...

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

, Garcia Hernandez,

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populous municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of th ...

, Venta del Pozo, Vittoria, San Sebastian,

Nivelle Nivelle () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 647 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic. The communes cooperate ...

Orthez Orthez (; ; , ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the small village of Sai ...

, Sicily, and the eastern parts of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, Northern

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Göhrde Göhrde is a municipality in the district of Lüchow-Dannenberg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The municipality was named after the Göhrde State Forest, which has an area of about , famous for its oaks, beeches and game preserves. The Göhrde Hunt ...

In the Peninsular Campaign, the Germans enhanced the veteran core of the British army. At Sabugal, in April 1811, several hundred German hussars augmented the Light Division, and the Hussars found the proper ford of the Coa River. At the Battle of Garcia Hernandez, the Dragoons performed the unusual feat of smashing two French square formations in a matter of minutes. At the

, the 2nd Light Battalion – with members of the 1st Light Battalion and the 5th Line Battalion – defended the farmhouse and road at

La Haye Sainte La Haye Sainte (, , named either after Jesus' crown of thorns or a nearby bramble hedge) is a walled farmhouse compound at the foot of an escarpment near Waterloo, Belgium, on the N5 road connecting Brussels and Charleroi. It has changed very ...

. As the 5th Line Battalion under

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German language, German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the Army, ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, a ...

Ompteda was on its way to reinforce the defenders of Haye Sainte, the French cavalry attached to

Jean-Baptiste Drouet, Comte d'Erlon Jean-Baptiste Drouet, Comte d'Erlon (; 29 July 176525 January 1844) was a Marshal of France and a soldier in the Grande Armée during the Napoleonic Wars. He notably commanded the I Corps of the '' Army of the North'' at the Battle of Waterloo. ...

's Corp I rode them down; only a few of the intended relievers survived. After a six-hour defence, without ammunition, or reinforcements, the Germans were forced to abandon the farm, leaving the buildings in shambles and their dead behind.

Legacy

The legion was known for its excellent discipline and fighting ability. The cavalry was reputed to be among the best in the British army. According to the historian Alessandro Barbero, the King's German Legion "had such a high degree of professionalism that it was considered equal in every way to the best British units." After the victory at Waterloo, the Electorate of Hanover was re-founded as the

Kingdom of Hanover The Kingdom of Hanover () was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic Wars, Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Hanover, and j ...

. However, the Army of Hanover had been reconstituted even before the final battle, so that there were two Hanoverian armies in existence including at the

. In 1816 the legion was dissolved and some officers and men were integrated into the new Hanoverian army.

Battle honours

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...

Battle of Venta del Pozo The Battle of Venta del Pozo, also known as the Battle of Villodrigo by the French and Spanish, was a rear-guard action fought as part of the Peninsular War on 23 October 1812 between an Anglo-German force led by Major-General Stapleton Cott ...

(1st and 2nd Light Infantry Battalion) * García Hernández (near Salamanca) (1st Regiment of Dragoons ) * El Bodón (1st Regiment of Hussars) * Barrosa, near Cádiz, Spain (2nd Regiment of Hussars) *

(3rd Regiment of Hussars)

Regimental colonels

The following officers served as colonels of the regiment or colonels commandant to KGL units: ;The King's German Legion * 1803–1816:

Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge (Adolphus Frederick; 24 February 1774 – 8 July 1850) was the tenth child and seventh son of King George III of the United Kingdom and Queen Charlotte. He held the title of Duke of Cambridge from 1801 until ...

;1st Light Dragoons * 1804–1813: Eberhardt Otto George von Bock * 1813–1815: John, Count Walmoden Gimborn * 1815–1816:

Wilhelm von Dörnberg Wilhelm Caspar Ferdinand Freiherr von Dörnberg (14 April 1768 – 19 March 1850) was a German army officer who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Life Family The family of Freiherrs of Dörnberg derived from the Protestant ...

;2nd Light Dragoons * 1806–1810: Otto, Baron Schutte * 1810–1814: Claus, Baron Decken * 1814–1816: Adolphus, Baron Veltheim ;1st Hussars * 1804–1816: Charles, Baron Linsingen ;2nd Hussars * 1804–1816: Victor, Baron Alten ;3rd Hussars * 1804–1810: John, Baron Reden * 1810–1814: Adolphus, Baron Veltheim * 1814–1816: Frederick de Arentsschildt ;1st Light Battalion * 1804–1816:

Charles, Count Alten Sir Charles August von Alten (21 October 1764 – 20 April 1840), better known as Charles, Count Alten, was a German army officer and politician who led the Light Division during the last two years of the Peninsular War. At the Battle of Wate ...

;2nd Light Battalion * 1803–1816:

;1st Line Battalion * 1803–1816:

;2nd Line Battalion * 1804–1816: Adolphus, Baron Barsse ;3rd Line Battalion * 1805–1816: Henry de Hinuber ;4th Line Battalion * 1804–1809: Ernest, Baron Langwerth * 1809–1816: Sigismund von Löw ;5th Line Battalion * 1804–1810: George de Drieberg * 1810–1813: George Klingsohr * 1813–1815:

Christian Friedrich Wilhelm von Ompteda Christian Friedrich Wilhelm von Ompteda (26 November 1765 – 18 June 1815) was a German army officer who served in the Hanoverian and British armies and fought in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Life In 1771, aged six, he was ...

* 1815–1816: Louis, Baron Bussche ;6th Line Battalion * 1804–1816: Augustus Honstedt ;7th Line Battalion * 1806–1816: Frederick, Baron Dreschel ;8th Line Battalion * 1804–1816: Peter du Plat ;Foreign Veteran Battalion * 1814–1816: Claus, Baron Decken ;King's German Artillery * 1803–1816: Friedrich von der Decken

Memorials

* Plaques on the outside wall of * Monument opposite commemorating the dead of the KGL *

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

– the

Waterloo Column The Waterloo Column () is a victory column commemorating the Battle of Waterloo. It is situated in Hanover, the capital of the German state of Lower Saxony. Built from 1825 to 1832, it was designed by Georg Ludwig Friedrich Laves who had been th ...

* Hanover – a statue of Carl von Alten stands in front of the archives near the Waterloo Plaza that surrounds the Waterloo Column * Hanover – also near the archives is a plaque commemorating Major Georg Baring * Hanover – the () crossing the river

Ihme The Ihme (Wennigser Mühlbach in its upper course) is a river of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is a left tributary of the Leine. The Ihme is long. Its source is in the village a district of Wennigsen. After about , the Ihme reaches the city of ...

was originally named (), but was renamed for the KGL in 1945 *

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; ; archaic English: ''Osnaburg'') is a city in Lower Saxony in western Germany. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population of 168 ...

– the , formally called () commemorating the officers and soldiers of the KGL * Commemorative stone at

Wittingen Wittingen () is a town in the district of Gifhorn, Lower Saxony, Germany. It is about northeast of Gifhorn, and southeast of Uelzen. Division of the town Wittingen consists of 27 districts: History The earliest identified record of Wittin ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

with inscription * On the Gehrdener mountain is a stone commemorating Carl Ludewig von Holle, fallen in Waterloo * On the monument for the Battle of Vittoria is a plaque for the KGL

German army

After the

, some of the old KGL units that had served in the Hanoverian Army were perpetuated in the

, which eventually led to their serving in the

Reichswehr ''Reichswehr'' (; ) was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first two years of Nazi Germany. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...

and the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. These were: * Kavallerie-Regiment 13–1st Regiment of Light Dragoons * Kavallerie-Regiment 13–2nd Regiment of Light Dragoons * Kavallerie-Regiment 14–1st Regiment of Hussars * Infanterie-Regiment 16–1st Line Battalion * Infanterie-Regiment 17–1st Light Battalion

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * *

External links

King's German Legion
(in German) 2nd light battalion and 5th line battalion re-enactment society
King's German Legion
(in German) 5th line battalion re-enactment group
King´s German Legion
(in German) 5th line battalion (grenadier company) re-enactment group
King's German Legion
(in German & English)
King's German Legion
(English) Memoirs of Baron von Ompteda (download)
King's German Legion
(English)"Journal of an officer in the King's German Legion" {{Authority control Military units and formations disestablished in 1816 19th-century military history of the United Kingdom German military units and formations of the Napoleonic Wars British military units and formations of the Napoleonic Wars Military units and formations established in 1803 German regiments in British Service Foreign regiments in British Service