CRIMEAN WAR 1854 - 56 & FRANCO-PRUSSIAN WAR 1870 - 71 - FRENCH INFANTRY

The French army, on the eve of the clash with Prussia and their German allies, was on the one hand famous for victories during the Crimean War (1853-1856) and the war with Austria of 1859, and on the other hand - it underwent profound reforms that were initiated at the end of 1866. , thus shortly after Austria's defeat in the war with Prussia. The reforms were primarily aimed at increasing the mobilization capacity of the state, which - as it was assumed - in 1875 was to be able to field about 800,000 people. At the same time, the infantry units were rearmed with the new Chassepot Mle 1866 rifles with great range. By 1870, as many as 1.2 million of these successful rifles had been produced. Attempts were made to put more emphasis in infantry training on shooting skills than, for example, on drill. However, when the war with Prussia began in 1870, many of these reforms had not yet been completed, and the French infantry - although well trained, well-armed and often fighting with great dedication - was giving way to the Prussian infantry in terms of tactics and command. This was indirectly proved by the Battle of Sedan in 1870.Napoleon III Bonaparte, first after assuming the presidency (still as Louis Napoleon), and later after proclaiming himself emperor of the French, he sought to raise the prestige of his country on the international arena. At the same time, he guarded French economic interests - including in the Mediterranean basin. These two elements, combined with the expansionist policy of Russia during the reign of Nicholas I, were instrumental in contributing to France's involvement in the Crimean War (1853-1856). It is assumed that France involved around 310,000 people in this war, of which around 135,000 were killed, wounded or died of disease. Of course, the main component of this army was the infantry. The first French commander in the Crimea was Marshal St. Arnaud. Another important French commander was General F. Canrobert and P. Bosquet. Initially, he headed an army composed of four divisions, each of which had two brigades - each with three regiments. In the first phase of the war, the French army numbered 25,000 infantry soldiers. It is worth adding that in the course of the Crimean War, the basic armament of the French infantryman was the model 1851 rifle, which already used the Minie (P1851 Minie) ammunition. As a result, the French infantryman fired much farther and more accurately than his Russian counterpart. The French infantry performed very well during the Crimean War, contributing significantly to more than one Allied victories in the course of this conflict.