(Editor's Note: a significant proportion of this article is drawn from Red Shirts, Garibaldi's Campaign in Southern Italy - 1860 by Luigi Casale. The book was printed by Ulster Imports, a company no longer extant; we feel however, that the information is so significant that it should not remain lost to the new generation of 19th century war-gamer.)

Organisation of the Army of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies

CinC: King Francis II of Bourbon

The Army consisted of a Brigade of Royal Guards, The Line (including Infantry, Cavalry and Artillery), The Corps of Engineers, and the Gendarmery.

The Royal Guard: was made up of the 1st and 2nd Guard Regiments, The Guard Chasseurs (Cacciatori), The Sharpshooter Battalion (Tiragliatori), and the 1st and 2nd Guard Hussar Regiments. The Royal Navy Infantry Regiment was brigaded with the Guard Chasseurs, although it was officially from the Line.

All Guard regiments, with the exception of the Sharpshooter Battalion, were of two battalions each, with each battalion having six companies of 100 men per company. In the event of a war (as at Volturno), a third battalion would be raised and the company strength raised to 160. There were no flank companies. The Sharpshooter battalion had eight companies of 100 men; two of which were considered flank companies. In the event of war, the company strength was increased to 150 men, giving the battalion a wartime strength of 1200.

The Guard Hussar regiments were organised with four squadrons, with each squadron having 153 officers and men.

Infantry of the Line: were made up of the elite Royal Carabineers, seven brigades of infantry of two regiments each, except for the 6th Brigade, which had three regiments. There were also fifteen battalions of Cacciatori (Chasseurs) and three battalions of Foreign Carabineers.

Each infantry regiment had a wartime strength of three battalions, with each battalion having six companies with a total strength of 924. Two of the six companies were "elites".

The Cacciatori battalions each had a wartime strength of 1327 in eight companies. According to Casali, the battalions averages 1000 effectives during the 1860 campaign.

The Foreign Carabineer battalions were organised along lines identical to the Cacciatori battalions, and were made up primarily of Bavarian and Swiss volunteers.

The Cavalry: of the Line consisted of: The Horse Carabineers, 1st Regiment of Dragoons, 2nd Regiment of Dragoons, 3rd Regiment of Dragoons, 1st Lancer Regiment, 2nd Lancer Regiment and the Horse Chasseur Regiment. Each regiment was organised with four squadrons of 153 officers and men.

The Artillery: of the Line consisted of two regiments, one battery of horse guns, and a train battalion. The artillery regiments had eight field and eight siege/fortress batteries each.

Uniform Guide:

General Information: Only those units present at the Volturno will be covered here. Unless otherwise noted, all shakos have a black cover. Field dress consists of a gray-bluish greatcoat, with aquamarine trousers a shade darker than the coat. Gaiters are generally worn, of the same colour as the trousers. Cross belts are generally white.

Royal Guard Grenadiers and Cacciatori Regiments:

Grenadiers had red pompoms, while the Cacciatori had deep green ones. The greatcoat had deep blue, three-pointed patches on the stand collar. Grenadiers were issued with red fringed epaulettes, while the Cacciatori had green ones with red loops. Cartridge boxes were covered in white cloth. Knapsacks were of natural leather, while the blanket bag was white and blue striped cloth. The canteen was covered in brown leather. The haversack was of either cloth or leather, and white. Bayonet scabbards were black, with brass fittings.

Drummers of the Royal Guard wore the same uniform, with the following modifications: Grenadier drummers had white lace with red hexagons around their collars and cuffs. Shoulder belts, apron, and all other belting were white. Drumsticks were black, and carried in a brass plate with a red field fixed upon the shoulder belt. Drums had brass cases, with rims painted in white and red diagonal stripes from left to right; ropes were white.

Trumpets were brass with red cords for the Grenadiers, green ones for the Cacciatori.

Officers has a black pompom atop their shako, or else wore a deep blue kepi with gold rank distinctions, and with red piping for officers of the Grenadiers and yellow piping for officers of the Cacciatori.

The double-breasted frockcoat was deep blue with gold buttons and rank distinctions and a gorget. Late in the war a deep blue tunic was introduced to replace the frock coat: the collar was white with three pointed patches of red, while the cuffs were blue. Cacciatori officers wore light green cords on their breast.

White or buff gloves were worn by the officers. In the field, a gray-blue greatcoat was worn wrapped around the right shoulder. A tin canteen with a white or black sling was carried. Sword belt was black, and worn under the coat.

The Sharpshooters Battalion (Tiragliatori)

Their uniform was identical to that worn by the Royal Guard, with the following exceptions: The greatcoat had a white collar with black stripe patches and yellow piping. Belting was black leather and included a waistbelt. Trumpeters were used in place of drummers and wore the same uniform as the enlisted, without any lace.

Officers wore either the black shako, or a deep green kepi with gold rank descriptions. The frockcoat was deep green, collar as the enlisted with the addition three pointed deep green patches, while the buttons were gold. Belting was black, with all other equipment as for the Cacciatori officers.

Naples Part II

Bibliographical Credits:

Tavole dal Codice Cenni, Stato Maggiore Esercito e dell' Expo Cts
Second Italian War of Independence, by Luigi Casale