Battalion and Company markings on the uniform of the unmounted junior ranks was developed in the Russian Army at the beginning of the 19th Century. At that time, the color and detail of the main uniform items showed the characteristics of the Regiment. The distinct markings of the internal elements were designated, as a rule (for each Regiment), but the color of the auxiliary elements - sword knots and cover brushes were now standardized so that exact details showed concretely not only which battalion and company a soldier was in, but even sometimes described down to the platoon. Pg48 (pic2) - Burdocks of Field and Garrison Regiments, 3 Dec 1809 (generally accepted version). Battalions of Garrison Regiments (actual variants). Pg48 (pic4) - Musketeer from an Infantry Regiment (1812-1815), water color, I.A. Cline, 1815. The burdock on the cover indicates he is one of the Musketeer Companies of the 1st Battalion, however, his sword knot is from a Grenadier Company of the 2nd Bn. His sword knot should be white and not green. This indicates a non-standard uniform showing a variation (or he obtained his sword knot from somewhere else or the artist painted the colors incorrectly). Pg48 (pic3)- Notes on the colors of Unter Officer sword knots in Army Infantry Regiments (as ordered for the Army Supply 1814). Prepare the following colors: For Grenadiers of 12 Battalions: Screw-red, large ball-orange with light blue specks 913 For Infantry and Jaegers, 127 Battalions: 1st Companies: Red Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks 1030 2nd Companies: Yellow Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Black leg 1030 3rd Companies: Red Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Lt Blue leg 1030 4th Companies: White Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Black leg 1030 5th Companies: Lt Blue Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Black leg 1030 6th Companies: Orange Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Black leg 1030 7th Companies: White Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Lt Blue leg 1030 8th Companies: Lt Blue Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Lt Blue leg 1030 9th Companies: Orange Screw, Orange Ball with blue specks, Lt Blue leg 1030 In all, 139 Battalions (including Reserve) 10183 Pg48 (pic5) - Battalion and Company distinctions for field Infantry from 1811 (demonstrates highlights from the chart below). Bttn Company Brush Sword Knot Background Lower Part Central Circle Screw & Band Neck 1st 1st Grenadiers: Grenadier Platoon Red - - Red Red Rifle Platoon Yellow - - Yellow Yellow 1st White - Green White White 2nd - - - Sky Blue - 3rd - - - Orange - 2nd 2nd Grenadiers: Grenadier Platoon Red Green - Green Red Rifle Platoon Yellow Green - Green Yellow 4th Green - White White Green 5th - - - Sky Blue - 6th - - - Orange - 3rd 3rd Grenadiers: Grenadier Platoon Red Sky Blue - Sky Blue Red Rifle Platoon Yellow Sky Blue - Sky Blue Yellow 7th Sky Blue - White White Sky Blue 8th - - - Sky Blue - 9th - - - Orange - Battalion and Company Distinctions, Russian Army 1802-1814 Color Illustration 1 (106K) Color Illustration 2 (156K) Back to The Gauntlet No. 18 Table of Contents Back to The Gauntlet List of Issues Back to Master Magazine List © Copyright 2000 by Craig Martelle Publications This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com