The Russian–German Legion was a military formation of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

raised in August 1812 in

Reval Tallinn is the capital and most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and administratively lies in the Harju ''maakond'' (co ...

Peter I, Grand Duke of Oldenburg Peter I or Peter Frederick Louis of Holstein-Gottorp () (17 January 1755 – 21 May 1829) was the Regent of the Duchy of Oldenburg for his incapacitated cousin Wilhelm, Duke of Oldenburg, William I from 1785 to 1823, and then served himself as Du ...

after being instigated by

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (, ; – ), nicknamed "the Blessed", was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first king of Congress Poland from 1815, and the grand duke of Finland from 1809 to his death in 1825. He ruled Russian Empire, Russia during the chaotic perio ...

Formation

Its first commander was

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 ...

von Arentsschild, and it was formed from non-French prisoners and deserters left behind in Russia during and after the French invasion earlier that year. Although called the "Russo-German Legion", the legion included Dutchmen and Belgians, who were also called up to join. Those prisoners of war wanting to join, were enlisted in the rank they had held in the French army. It was formed to fight against

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

as part of the

Imperial Russian army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

but was paid by Russia's ally,

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Ernst Moritz Arndt Ernst Moritz Arndt (26 December 1769 – 29 January 1860) was a German nationalist historian, writer and poet. Early in his life, he fought for the abolition of serfdom, later against Napoleonic dominance over Germany. Arndt had to flee to Swed ...

, the private secretary to the pro-Russian

Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein (25 October 1757 – 29 June 1831), commonly known as Baron vom Stein, was a Prussian statesman who introduced the Prussian reforms, which paved the way for the unification of Germany. He promoted the ...

, acted as head propagandist to entrants to the Legion. He stayed in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

from 1812 onwards and attracted entrants by winning them over to fight to liberate Germany from its French occupying forces.

Structure

Originally of one infantry battalion, one hussar regiment, one jager company and one horse battery by the end if 1813 the Russian–German Legion was 9,379 strong in total and consisted of seven infantry battalions, one company of Jägers, two regiments of hussars, two batteries of horse artillery and one foot battery and park company. An eighth battalion was planned but not formed. The legion was originally equipped by the Russians (see images) and the Hussar regiment was recorded as still dressed as such during the Hundred Days Campaign. Richard Knotel presumed the other arms were still wearing the old uniforms but cloth was supplied to the infantry regiments.

Carl von Clausewitz Carl Philipp Gottlieb von Clausewitz ( , ; born Carl Philipp Gottlieb Clauswitz; 1 July 1780 – 16 November 1831) was a Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian general and Military theory, military theorist who stressed the "moral" (in modern terms meani ...

was among notable soldiers of the Legion.

Campaigns

On 6 July 1813, after the Treaty of Peterswaldau, Great Britain received the task of providing for the Russian–German Legion and thus acquired the right to determine how and where it was to be deployed. At first, the Legion was directed southwards, where it became clear it was to be united with a Russian Corps and be deployed against the Prussians, with whom the Russians were still at war. A staff officer, Major Lager van Koch, then rode off to the Russian headquarters in Konigsberg, where he had an audience with the Czar. He soon returned with the order to march to Germany. Ludwig von Wallmoden-Gimborn was now put in command, and the Legion ventured to the lower

Elbe The Elbe ( ; ; or ''Elv''; Upper Sorbian, Upper and , ) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Republic), then Ge ...

, fought at the

Battle of the Göhrde The Battle of the Göhrde took place during the War of the Sixth Coalition on 16 September 1813 between French and Coalition troops at Göhrde, Germany. The French troops were defeated and withdrew to Hamburg. Site The battle occurred near ...

and at Schestedt, attacked Harburg and marched far as the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. In mid March 1814 it crossed the Rhine and fought in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

in order to blockade

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. After returning from France in 1814, the Legion was received by Prussia, where collaborators were viewed critically, and any non-German personnel were discharged, and so on 2 June 1814 it was renamed the German Legion. The Legion moved to

Kurhessen The Electorate of Hesse (), also known as Hesse-Kassel or Kurhessen, was the title used for the former Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel after an 1803 reform where the Holy Roman Emperor elevated its ruler to the rank of Elector, thus giving him ...

for exercises in 1814 and from then until 1815 took up quarters in the

Bergischen Berg () was a state—originally a county, later a duchy—in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed as a distinct political entity from the early 12th to the 19th centuries. It was a member state of the Holy Roman Empi ...

. After Napoleon's return from Elba on 26 February 1815, the soldiers of this unit were merged into the 30th and 31st infantry regiment, 8th (Russisch-Deutsche Legion) Ulanenregiment and 18th and 19th horse-artillery batteries of the Prussian army. These units took part in the Waterloo campaign, known as the

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 ...

, as part of the III Corps of the Prussian Army. Order of Battle of Waterloo campaign Several Dutch members of the Russo-German Legion had been decorated for valour. Already in 1814, several of them were given permission to wear their medals. In 1821, the members of the Legion were awarded the Russian Service Medal for the wars of 1813–1814, and also given permission to wear this decoration.

References

Sources

* Karl Schröder: Eitorf unter den Preußen, Heimatverein Eitorf 2002, * Helmert/Usczek: Europäische Befreiungskriege 1808 bis 1814/15, Berlin 1986 {{DEFAULTSORT:Russian-German Legion Units and formations of the Prussian Army Military units and formations of the Russian Empire Military units and formations of Germany German military units and formations of the Napoleonic Wars Russian military units and formations of the Napoleonic Wars Military units and formations established in 1812