1:72nd scale Flags

1740-1806 period,
Seven Years War 1756 - 1763

and

French and Indian War 1754 - 1760

The Seven Years War 1756 - 1763

The Seven Years War was a conflict between the Prussian King Frederik II. - "The Great" - and the alliied states Austria, France, Saxony, Sweden and Russia. Prussia was associated with Hanover and Graet Britain. The British Government in the first rate supported the Prussian King with money, british troops appeared in minor numbers.

The fighting not only took place on the European theatre, but also on the oceans where Britain and France seeked for domination in the North American colonies, in parts of India and Africa.
Reason for the beginning of the war was the Habsburg monarchy claiming the rich Saxon province Prussia had taken away during the Austrian war of succession 1740-48.

The war began in August 1756 when the Prussian army fell into Saxony which was alliied with Austria. Saxony had to capitulate. In spring of 1757 Prussian troops invaded Bohemia and defeated the Austrian army at Prag on May 6th. After beeing heavily defeated at Kolin on June 18th, 1757, the Prussians withdrew from Bohemia.

In the West, the Hanovrian Army under Cumberland was beaten by the French who afterwards marched towards the Prussian frontier. After Sweden had joined the Austrian Coalition in March 1757, Swedish troops attacked Prussian Pommeria. Meanwhile a Russian army had accomplished a decisive victory on East Prussian territory and Austrian troops entered Silesia.
On November 5th, 1757 at Rossbach in Thuringia Frederik the Great defeated a superior French-German army and thereafter the Austrian forces in Silesia at Leuthen on December 5th.

1758 French troops were defeated by an English-Hanovrian army in the battle of Krefeld on June 23rd. On August 25th the Prussian army defeated Russian forces at Zorndorf, but lost parts of Saxony to the Austrian Coalition and had to withdraw into Silesia.
When attacking the united Russian-Austrian army on August 12th at Kunersdorf, the Prussians became severely defeated - Frederik lost about 18000 men within a few hours fighting.

1760 brought decisive victories against the Austrians at Liegnitz and Torgau, but at the end of 1761 Prussia was nearly exhausted. The death of Tsaress Elisabeth changed the Prussian position, as Tsar Peter III., sucessor on the Russian Throne, alliied with Frederik and also provoked a peace between Sweden and Prussia. After the Tsar had been murdered, the succeeding Tsaress Katharina the Great continued the coalition with Frederik II and Austrian Troops were forced to leave Silesia.

Prussian Ally Ferdinand of Brunswick 1762 defeated the French at Wilhelmsthal and the Saxon army at Lutterberg.
In Februar 1763 the Seven Years war between England and France was ended with the contract of Paris. Silesia was adjudged to Prussia which by now had to be recognized as one of Europe´s great powers .

France
1/72-143: Seven Years War 1756 - 1763. French Infantry (1).

Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.

Regiment Royal Roussillon white flag and ordnance flag / Regiment La Couronne, white flag and ordnance flag.
1/72-144: Seven Years War 1756 - 1763. French Infantry (2).

Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.

Regiment La Marine, ordnance flag / Regiment Diesbach, white flag and ordnance flag / Regiment Piemont, ordnance flag.

Prussia 1740-1806
Cavalry standards
M ost of the cavalry regiments had 5 squadrons (2 companies each) with one regimental standard each, Gardes du Corps had 10. Each 1st Squadron flew the "Life"standard.
Nr. 1/72-182: Prussian cavalry standards 1743-1807

1 standard per Regt. unless otherwise stated:

Guard cavalry: Regiment Gardes du Corps, 1798-1815. Life standard, regimental standard.

Cuirassiers of the line: Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 1, 1753-1806 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 2, 1753-1806 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 4, 1753-1807 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 5 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 7, 1753-1806 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 8, 1753-1806 / Cuirassiers Regt. Nr. 12, life standard and regimental standard 1753-1807 /

Dragoons: Dragoons Regt. Nr. 1, 1753-1806 / Dragoons Regt. Nr. 2, 1753-1806 / Queen´s Dragoons Nr. 5, 1753-1807 / Dragoons Regt. Nr. 9, 1753-1806 / Dragoons Regt. 11, 1753-1806.

Hussars: Hussars Regt. Nr. 1 / Hussars Regt. Nr. 2 / Hussars Regt. Nr. 3 / Hussars Regt. Nr. 4 / Hussars Regt. Nr. 5 / Hussars Regt. Nr. 6.

Infantry flags 

Each Regiment of Infantry fhad 10 companies of Musketeers (= 2 Bataillons) and 1 Grenadier Company. Each Company flew a regimental flag, the 1st (Life)company flew the "Life" flag.
1/72- 82: Prussian Infantry 1753-1786 (1). Regt. Nr. 1-3.

1 life company flag und 2 regimental flags per regt. Were used until 1806.
1/72- 83: Prussian Infantry 1753-1786 (2). Regt. Nr. 4-6.

1 life company flag and 2 regimental flags per regt. Were used until 1806.
1/72- 84: Prussian Infantry 1753-1786 (3). Regt. Nr. 7-9.

1 life company flag and 2 regimental flags per regt. Were used until 1806.
1/72- 85: Prussian Infantry 1753-1786 (4). Regt. Nr. 10-12.

1 life company flag and 2 regimental flags per regt. Were used until 1806.
1/72- 86: Prussian Infantry 1753-1786 (5). Regt. Nr. 13-15.

1 life company flag and 2 regimental flags per regt. Were used until 1806.
1/72-53a: Prussian infantry 1756-1806.

1 life company flag und 2 regimental flags each: Infantry Regt. Nr. 36 (1806 v.Putkamer) / Infantry Regt. Nr. 34 (1806 Prinz Ferdinand) / Infantry Regt. Nr. 28 (1806 Malschitzki) / Infantry Regt. Nr. 35 (1806 Prinz Heinrich).
Austria 1743-1781
Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.
1/72- 87: Austria 1741-1756

Infantry: 1 white flag and 2 ordnance flags / Hungarian Infanterie: white flag and ordnance flag / Cavalry: 1 white flag and 2 ordnance flags.
1/72- 88: Austria 1756-1781/92

Infantry: 1756-1781. 1 white flag and 3 ordnance flags / Cavalry: 1 white flag and 3 ordnance flags.

 


French and Indian War 1754 - 1760

Colonial War between England and France in North America and Canada
during the Seven Years War


The French and Indian War reflected the Seven Years conflict which at that time was fought in Europe, but also in the Caribean and the West Indies.
Already befor the 1740s there hab been some problems between the French and the English in North America. Economical interests collided among settlers and fur-traders in the area which today is depicted by the big towns of the east coast- New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Williamsburg - up to the Canadian frontier along the Hudson and St. Lawrence rivers.
Mainly concentrating at the Virginian and Pennsylvanian frontier regions, the reason for the start of fighting was Fort Duquesne which had been erected in the Ohio valley 1753/1754 by French troops.

An English military command under the young Lieutenant-General George Washington - composed of allied Indians and English trappers - failed to drive out the French, but built the British fortification Fort Necessity. The British crown was not prepared for a war in the colonies and the opinions of the New-England provincial governers differed whether to fight or not. Especially the Pennsylvanian German settlers before 1754 refused to enter a war, as many of them belonged to non-violent religious communities.

Whereas in autumn 1754 England shipped the first detachment of 700 men of the 44th Infantry, France sent 3000 into the crisis area. The developing war was predominantly fought in the wilderness. 55000 French living in North America/Canada faced half a million of British settlers. As the French mainly saved their lives with trapping and furtrading with the native population, they seemed a lesser threatening to the local Indian tribes compared to the English settlers who grasped for their land. Because of their professional living in the woods and on the rivers, the French were used to the requirements of a frontier war far from civilisation. The mass of the Indians allied with them.

The war was a cruel one. Terrorizing bands of French trappers and Indians under French command ambushed the lonely and unprotected settlements. Premiums were payed for scalps taken from "hostile" men, women and children. On the English side, local militia dominated the fighting. Fortifications and Forts were built and destroyed. During the war, British troops got used to frontier fighting and some very effective Ranger-detachments, were raised. The most famous were Roger´s Rangers, wearing a distictive green "Uniform".
The campaign of 1757 saw the defeat of the British at Louisbourg and Halifax, they lost Fort Wiliam Henry. 1758 they conquered the French fortifications Fort Fontenac, Louisbourg and Fort Carillon, the year after Fort Duquesne and Quebec, 1760 Montreal. In September 1760 New-France capitulated and the whole region fell to the British Crown.

The victory of Admiral Hawkes over the French Fleet at Quiberon 1759 and the fact that Spain entered the war on England´s side 1761 lead to the end of the conflict with the contract of Paris 1763. With the same contract, the Seven Years war was ended. Great Britain got the North American territory east of the Mississippi including Spanish-Florida. Spain in turn got the former French West Mississippi valley.
1/72-138: French and Indian War 1754-1760. British Infantry (1)

1st and 2nd flag, 47th Foot. Louisbourg 1758, Quebec 1759 / 1st and 2nd flag, 45th Foot, Louisbourg 1758 / 1st and 2nd flag, 35th Foot. (1757 Fort William Henry, 1758 Louisbourg, 1759 Quebec).
1/72-139: French and Indian War 1754-1760. British Infantry (2)

1st and 2nd flag, 27th Foot (Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers) 1758 Fort Carillon / 1st and 2nd flag, 1st Foot (Royals). Louisbourg 1758 / 1st and 2nd flag, 44th Foot. Fort Carillon 1758.
1/72-140: French and Indian War 1754-1760. French Infantry (1)

Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.

Regiment Royal Roussillon, white flag and ordnance flag. (1757 Fort William Henry, 1758 Carillon, 1759 Quebec, 1760 Montreal) / Regiment Artois, ordnance flag. Louisburg 1758 / Regiment Béarn, ordnance flag. Oswego 1756, Fort Carillon 1758, Quebec 1759, Montreal 1760.
1/72-141: French and Indian War 1754-1760. French Infantry (2)

Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.

Regiment La Reine, white flag and ordnance flag. 1755 Lake George, 1757 Fort William Henry, 1758 Fort Carillon, 1759 Quebec, 1760 Montreal / Regiment Languedoc, ordnance flag. 1755 Lake George, 1757 Fort William Henry, 1758 Fort Carillon, 1759 Quebec, 1760 Montreal / Regiment Bourgogne. Ordnance flag, Louisburg 1758.
1/72-142: French and Indian War 1754-1760. French Infantry (3)

Each Regiment had one white flag and several "ordnance flags" of identical design.

Canadian Militia, ordnance flag, Fort Carillon 1758 / Regiment Royal La Marine, white flag and ordnance flag. 1758 Fort Carillon / Regiment La Sarre, ordnance flag. 1756 Oswego, 1757 Fort W. Henry, 1758 Fort Carillon, 1759 Quebec, 1760 Montreal.
French and Indian War. Literature.

Philipp Katcher: The Armies of the American Wars 1753 - 1815. Osprey Publishing 1975.
R.May/G.Embleton: Wolfe´s Army, Osprey Men At Arms 1989.