1756 Wildenstein, 1757 Gudenus, 1758 v. Brencken
Unit History
The regiment was formed by the Elector Johann Friedrich Carl v. Mainz who was, as Primate of the Empire, an enemy of the King of Prussia and the evangelical church. One battalion was taken into Austrian service in November 1756. The troops with Austria were badly mauled at Prague (May 6 1757) but still rated as good at Hochkirch and Rossbach. At Rossbach, the battalions were detached near Kosen on the river Saale. The unit was considered to be of fair quality by the French general Soubise. From 1758, the unit was in Prinz von Zweibrücken's corps. It spent 1760 to 1762 in Saxony consolidating the Austrian control of the region.
At Freiburg, October 1762, the unit, brigaded under Rosenfeld with Kurtrier, was on the right centre. The brigade collapsed under the concentrated Prussian attack, even though the Reichsarmee was protected by temporary field works.
After Maxen and Torgau, the unit had a poor reputation as raw Catholic recruits had replaced the original experienced Haustruppen. At best a regular unit prior to 1758 but later at par with Militia. Unit dissolved in the late 18th century.
Comments
I enjoyed creating the speculative flags for the unit. The eagle is an imperial (Hapsburg) eagle which the coat of arms of the city. The colours themselves are based on the coat and lapel colours of the uniform and follow the pattern of other Reichsarmee units from the Kurrheinisches Kreis. I painted the unit after being inspired by a visit to Mainz-Kastel (a small garrison located across the river from Mainz). A very interesting garrison that suffered from its location in a swamp – very high mortality rates due to mosquito bourn illnesses. Unit painted in 2003.
Sources
Pengel & Hurt, The Reichsarmee: Organization, Flags & Uniforms 1756 to 1762, Imperial Press
Speculative Regimental
Speculative Leib
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