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Posts posted by francophile50
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The naval patch /or maybe cockade?/ is Bulgarian. But the "NCO patch" from the auction, I have never seen such thing before, I doubt it is Bulgarian.
Hey, Theodor. I think I remember you from years ago. Didn't your wife ask you why you bought such things? If you are the same person who was on the now defunt Military Collectors Forum , you had quite a collection and had been collecting Bulgarian stuff for years. It's nice to hear from you again. I hope all is well and you still have your amazing collection. Scott
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I saw this auction: http://cgi.ebay.com/International-Unknown-Badge-/350430217608?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item519744c588
and thought it was similar to the teardrop patches of the nany. Scott
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WOW Scott - that is a very nice uniform and I must say any man living in the 21st century that can still fit into an actual WWII uniform makes me jelous!
Thanks Hunyadi. I bought it on a whim not knowing what size it was from the son of the officer who owned it. It was his backup uniform. He was burried in his best uniform with all his medals and full ceremony. His son came acrossed this uniform when he was clearing out his fathers old clothes years later. I got the tunic breeches and belt for less than $100. The hat which is an enlisted soldiers hat dated 1944 was three times the price. When I got the uniform I was amazed to find that it fit me and I'm no small guy either. Of all the uniforms I own it is my favorite. I think it is the most beautiful design and everytime I wear it out I get complements. Scott
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Now this i REALLY like!!
I usually don't get so easily exited, but this really put a great smile on my face!
A real Hungarian captains uniform in wear, just like my grandfathers! WOW!
Congratulations to the really nice pieces!
Check out the one i have...
http://gmic.co.uk/in...rian-militaria/
Cheers!
Péter Orincsay
Wow! Peter if that was your Grandfather's uniform all I can say is what a great man he must have been. Thanks for sharing. Scott
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So Scott - does this mean we all have more competition for Hungarian Militaria!??
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Thanks Paul. I just wish I knew more about it. It is quite attractive.
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I already know of the Combatleadership award but not the other. Scott
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I asked my friend and he hold me: "The text on this badge is written in Slav (possibly in Czech language) and it referencing two Hungarian (until the end of WW1) cities, namely Szekelyudvarhely and Mihalyszallas.I think this badge was issued as some sort of an acknowledgement of participation in a Transylvania (Hungarians call it Erdely) campaign. It is possible that the Hungarian Government issued it to Czech officers who supported the Hungarian causes in that campaign."
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I haven't a clue as to what these were for. Does anyone here? Scott
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&rt=nc&nma=true&item=260746017599&si=OF6e2bIA%252BkTnApYFJL3s7DXRs7E%253D&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT
Hungarian WWII medal (helmet shield, riffle and sword)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&rt=nc&nma=true&item=270714188477&si=OF6e2bIA%252BkTnApYFJL3s7DXRs7E%253D&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT
WWII Hungarian medal Sword and shield
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Thanks Guys. It makes sense that these are dug up. In pretty good shape for being unearthed. I just thought they looked a little ruff and eMedals has a few negative posts so I was just wondering. Scott
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Not that I want to purchase these. I already own both versions but I wasn't sure if they made them in this low quality before or are they now getting around to faking these medals. Scott
http://cgi.ebay.com/Hungary-WWII-Two-Medals-/260642265441?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item3caf7d5961
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I want to put up a display for Hungary. I just met someone close to me that has a connection. I also am friends with an ex cold war Hungarian Airforce soldier. So the prices are fair? Good to know. Thank you for letting me know. I have all the campaign medals but would like some other differint ones too. I have an standing invitation to visit Budapest and a cabin close by. Maybe if I go you can let me know of some military places of interest to visit. Thanks again, Scott
On the open world wide market - what they are going for on Ebay is reasonable. Though I could never bring myself to paying that much for one ($375 on up on Ebay) The price within Hungary is cheaper, but WWII stuff has become very rare.
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Hunyadi, Thanks for the reply. Now I know. BTW what do you think is a fair price for these? Sincerely, Scott
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Thank you Uwe. I kinda thought it looked Belgian. BTW is there a place where one can ask to identify insignia when they don't know the nationality? Scott
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Sorry, Here is the front. Scott
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I have come acrossed this insignia in multiple auctions. Many think it is Belgian. If so can anyone tell from what branch and date? Scott
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Dear Sir, What is the distinction of the silver sword? Sincerely, Scott
Here?s my Boczan, Vit?z badge. Note that the sword on the Boczan badges is made of silver..
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If I may ask any of the well informed here that wish to reply, What is the difference between the Order of Vite’z
with a bronze/gold sword anf that of a silver sword? Is it a case of 2nd class and 1st class? I have also seem some without a sword. Is that a non-combat version? Scott
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This article was sent to me recently and translated from French:
Napoleon and telecommunications (Article of QUENNEVAT Jean-Claude)
Postal service under the Empire the air telegraph under the Empire
transmissions in the Large Army
The constant territorial expansion of the French Empire could only
make increasingly acute for Napoleon the problem of the transmission
as fast and as easy as possible of any written message of an end to
the other of Europe. Here, as in good of other fields, we will see
the Emperor making as well as possible with the still antiquated
means of the previous century, whereas the new inventions all of the
XIXe century remain unemployed by him, fault of time to develop them
and draw from them the practical applications necessary. To treat of
this problem of telecommunications under the Empire, we called upon
the particular competence of the conservation of the Postal Museum.
For this reason, Mr. R. Rolland, exposes us, in a first article, the
operation of the imperial post office, which it acts of the letter
post, of the system of the estafettes or the post office to the
horses. He reveals us how the requirements of transfers of funds to
the army gave birth to the first "mandates", and, in all
objectivity, evokes the "black cabinet" with the censure touching
mainly the letters coming from abroad. What, in my opinion, does not
deserve wrongly to be interpreted like a mark of political despotism
since France, under the Empire, was in a state of war in a permanent
way, would be this only against England. The same specialist treats
then air telegraph of the brothers Chappe, invention recent to which
the First Consul, then the Emperor, will pay a very detailed
attention and of which it will highly encourage the development on a
scale more than national, from Amsterdam in Venice and Brest in
Vienna. We will retain however that this telegraph will remain the
property of the government, never not being able to be used for
private telecommunications. Following the two articles of Mr. R.
Rolland, specialist in the postal history, we, tried ourselves to
analyze the various means of military telecommunications used with
the Large Army. He comes out from it the paramount importance of the
drums and the trumpets as regards transmission at short distance, of
the gun for the messages at long distance, and the capital role and
very personnel played by the aide-de-camps for the port of the
higher orders on the battle fields. Lastly, we made follow the
article on the post office of a series of extracts of the Imp?rial
almanac of 1809 in order to deliver to the curiosity of the reader
an equivalent of our current calendar of P and T, at one time when
the French Empire was going to reach its apogee.
Postal service under the Empire.
ROBERT ROLLAND
When, May 18, 1804, the Empire is proclaimed, the postal service is
directed by Antoine Marie Chamant de Lavalette, general manager of
the Stations. All devoted to the Emperor, Lavalette remains at this
station until 1814. To the time chief of an administration and
collaborator of the Emperor, Lavalette directs his service with all
the authority necessary to ensure the speed and the permanence of
the postal communications. And it post office is all the more
essential as the telegraph, in spite of the unquestionable
advantages that it comprises, is not yet, far is necessary some,
able to compete with the Post office. The TRANSFORMATIONS OF the
POST OFFICE SINCE 1789 Strongly disturbed by the Revolution, the
post office was completely transformed in its administrative and
legal structures. Considered since the 17th century a monopoly of
State, the post office was put in farm: i.e. the postal exploitation
was entrusted to a company of financial which paid with the Royal
Treasury a royalty fixed by a lease renewed every five years. The
Farmers general of the Stations, very as much as those of gabelles
and other taxes, benefitted vast from the postal exploitation. But
the Farm of the Post offices disputed is maintained however until
the 25 frimaire year VIII (December 16, 1799): it is then replaced
temporarily by an interested control before becoming a Directorate-
General of the ministry for Finances. The Post office is then
placed, and for nearly one century, under the authority of the
Minister for Finance (1). The postal regulation into force was
published in 1792 in the form of a general Instruction on the postal
service: the drafting of this important text was entrusted to the
secretary-general Legrand, old agent of the Farm of the Stations and
which remains secretary-general until 1816. It is him which at the
sides of Lavalette directs the postal service. The monopoly of the
transport of the letters was defined by the decree of the consuls of
the 27 meadow year IX (June 16, 1801). Lastly, the 14 flor?al year X
(May 4, 1802), a new tariff for the Letter post was published. Thus
the new general manager Lavalette is with the head of an
administration which rests on solid legal bases, with a qualified
personnel, using tested methods and techniques. Two great services
are subjected to the authority of Lavalette: the Letter post on the
one hand, service of the Relays on the other hand. The LETTER POST
It is the service of transport and distribution of the
correspondences. We are far then from the traffic which the Post
office knows today which conveys each day of the million letters. In
1789 approximately 30 million letters had circulated in France by
the intermediary of the mail service. In 1821 the traffic rose to 45
million letters. This progression also appears by the number of the
offices which passes from 1284 in 1791 to 1.630 in 1815. The
personnel counts only a few hundreds of agents: 3.588 in 1815. The
letter, to be also rare more only formerly, is yet widespread in the
layers of the population. Only easy people can receive letters.
Because the port is paid by the recipient and not by the shipper,
like that is done generally today. The tariff is following it for
the simple letter weighing less than 7 grams. Up to 100
km............... 2 ten-per-cent taxes 100 to 200 km...............
3 ten-per-cent taxes 200 to 300 km............... 4 ten-per-cent
taxes 400 to 500 km............... 5 ten-per-cent taxes 500 to 600
km............... 7 ten-per-cent taxes 600 to 800 km...............
8 ten-per-cent taxes 800 to 1.000 km............... 9 ten-per-cent
taxes above 1.000 km...... 1 frank This tariff, fixed by the law of
the 27 frimaire year VIII will be modified by the law of the 14
flor?al year X bringing back to 6 grams the weight of the simple
letter. Finally the law of April 24, 1806 previously establishes
eleven zones of taxation instead of eight. How to send letters?
Either by depositing them at the office nearest, or as in Paris by
throwing them in the boxes laid out in certain streets. Paris has
eight offices and, in 1810, 308 letter boxes were installed in the
streets. In winter, the boxes are raised 5 times per day and 5
distributions are assured. In summer, from March 30 at October 1,
the number is changed to ten. The inhabitants of the Parisian
suburbs are less privileged: only one lifting and only one
distribution per day. In province certain communes have a post
office and the departure of the mails is variable, but in general
one counts a departure every two days. The letters for the foreigner
must be freed at the beginning: the shipper goes then to the post
office where stamping will be calculated according to the country of
destination. Postal conventions which govern the tax on the foreign
letters are negotiated between the various postal offices. The
regulation in force also specified the price to be paid for the
registered letters, the samples, the books and also the articles of
money. For the port of the money or gold matters, the rule in force
since 1791 was to make pay a tax equivalent to 5 percent of the
value of the sending. But the administration of the Stations was
responsible, in the event of loss, of the totality of the sum. The
trunks of mail thus transport often of the important money sums.
However it is interesting to note the measurements taken in favour
of the soldiers. A payment, February 17, 1808, envisaged the
suppression of the material transport of the money sums addressed to
the soldiers in Shift. The accountant was to preserve the money in
case and to address to his colleague of the destination office a
payable mandate at sight. Only the sums lower than hundred franks
per sending could be addressed according to the system which,
initially held to the soldiers in Shift, 1812 was extended to all
the soldiers in garrison. These provisions which ended into 1815
were taken again in 1817 but, this time, were applied to all the
users and either only with the soldiers: this is why the generally
quoted date of creation of the mandate is 1817, whereas the system
created at the post office with the armies dates from the First
Empire.
ESTAFETTES
If the creation of the mandate under the Empire did not strike the
spirits, on the other hand the development of the service of the
estafettes is much more known. According to Lavalette, the Emperor
himself paid all his attention to the correct operation of this
service: "It is at the time of 1805 that I made use into large
system of the estafettes that the Emperor ordered me to organize and
whose bases belonged to him. He had felt the disadvantage of making
cross with only one man of enormous distances. It arrived several
times that exceeded of tiredness or badly been useful mails did not
arrive at the liking of its impatience. It was not advisable to him
either to put between the hands of only one man of the news whose
prompt reception could have a serious and sometimes decisive
influence on the most important events. I thus organized by his
order the service of estafettes which consisted in making pass
through the postilions of each station the dispatches of cabinet
wrapped in a wallet of which we had, him and me, each one a key.
Each postilion transmitted to the following station a booklet where
the name of each station was registered and where the hour of the
arrival and the departure was to be reported. A severe fine and
sorrows, according to the repetition, punished the loss of the
booklet and the negligence of the postmaster to register the hour of
the arrival and the departure. I have much sorrow to obtain the
execution of these formalities. But with an active and constant
monitoring I out of wines with end and this service was done during
eleven years with a complete success and extraordinary results. I
could return to me one day account of delay in the space of 400
miles. The estafette left and arrived tous.les.jours of Paris and at
the points most moved away, Naples, Milan, the Mouths of Cattaro,
Madrid, Lisbon and consequently Tilsitt, Vienna, Presbourg and
Amsterdam. It was a relative economy besides, the mails cost by item
7 F 50, the estafette did not cost 3 franks. The Emperor received
the eighth day the answers written to the letters in Milan and
fifteenth in Naples. This service was very useful for him. It was, I
then the statement without vanity, one of the elements of its
successes ".
The POST OFFICE AND the POLICY it is seen, the correct operation of
the Post office was essential for the Emperor. Sometimes the Post
office becomes for him an instrument of government. The continental
Blockade is declared in November 1806. Article 2 of the decree
suspended any correspondence with the British Isles: "Any trade and
any correspondence with British Isles are prohibited. Consequently,
the letters or packages addressed or in England or to an English, or
written in English language, will not have course at the Stations
and will be seized (article 2)". The correspondence of Napoleon
shows all the importance which the Emperor attached to the execution
of this article. It thus writes in Gaudin the Minister for Finance
on which the Post office depended: "Made a circular and take
measures so that, in the extent of the Empire, all letters coming
from England or written in English and by English are put at the
reject. All that is extremely important, because England should
absolutely be insulated ". Napoleon If the monitoring of the letters
for England were, starting from the 1806, official control of the
correspondence by the Black Cabinet was it less. The Black Cabinet,
old institution functioned under Ancien R?gime and of many
personalities had had to complain about the violation of their
correspondences. Also, July 27, 1789, Stanislas de Clermont Tonnerre
wrote in the name of the French National Assembly: "the French
nation rises with indignation against the violation of the secrecy
of the post office, one of absurdest and the most infamous
inventions of the despotism". However in spite of this proclamation,
the Black Cabinet continued its work in spite of many declarations
of intents. And the 27 pluviose year IV, the Minister for Finance
addresses to the administrators of the Letter post: "great reasons,
Citizens Administrators, urge the Executive Directory to temporarily
establish a secret office in the Administration of the Stations to
check the Letters there going and coming from abroad...". Under the
Empire, the office workers secret continued to treat the letters of
the foreign ministers and many personalities, without forgetting
certain members the imperial family. A report/ratio, called "foreign
Gazettes" arrived daily at the Emperor without this one attaching to
it more importance than one did not have because, said it, "seldom
the conspiracies are treated by this way...". Metternich, which him
also, used of the postal censure, was hardly made illusion on the
use that one made of the letters addressed by the Post office. It
wrote to the director Stations to communicate to him a print of its
new seal: "I have the honor to point out to you that my seal has, by
misfortune, receipt a blow of punch. Please thus make some as much
with yours so that I continue to see me nothing ".
The CONQUERED DEPARTMENTS the political and even diplomatic problems
thus did not fail to influence on the operation of the post office.
The territorial conquests oblige the administrators of the Stations
to adapt the organization of the mail service. The new territories
were divided in departments. The postal administration will thus
come to form part of these new administrative structures. The same
rules of operation will be of use on all the territory of the
Empire. For that, the regulation was represented to be able to be
better included/understood populations and of the personnel charged
to apply it. Thus the general instruction of 1808 was translated
into Dutch and a bilingual edition published in 1810. In general the
personnel of the Stations in the conquered departments was selected
among people of the country; generally the agents remained at their
station, which facilitated the correct operation of the Stations in
the annexed territories.
The POST OFFICE WITH the HORSES a second great service was placed
under the authority of the general manager of the Stations: service
of the Relays, i.e. administration of the Post office to the horses.
The relays of station were used initially for the mails of the
administration of the Letter post: they found there mountings fresh
that the postmaster was held to reserve to them. Under Ancien
R?gime, the ma1tres of station enjoyed many privileges, in
particular out of tax matter. The Revolution removed them, which
involved a reaction of the postmasters who threatened to give up
their service to launch out in the companies of private transport
become very remunerative. It was necessary to increase the pledges
of the postmasters, to raise the tariffs of hiring of the horses.
But competition with the transport remained sharp. Also measures
they were taken to improve the situation of the postmasters whose
maintenance was essential with the correct operation of the
communications. Contractors of public cars, even if they did not use
the horses of the postmasters were held to pay them for each one of
their cars 25 centimes per horse and station (i.e. approximately 4
books). In addition, the development of the service of estafettes
supported the postmasters who placed their postilions at the
disposal of the administration to assure the transmission of the
urgent folds of the government. All the regulation concerning the
postal service to the horses, the tariffs, the nomenclature of the
various relays were indicated on the books of station, called
officially "general State of the roads of station". These
directories which allowed the travellers item some (2) to establish
their route as well as the price to be paid for their voyage was
updated and published each year.
Post with the horses, Letter post, throughout all the imperial one,
the postal communications are maintained thanks to the efforts of
the administrators and the vigilant authority of the Emperor.
Napoleon said that it was necessary to judge the prosperity of a
country to the accounts of his diligences. From this point of view,
the accounts of the post office under the Empire offer the example
of a happy country.
The air telegraph under the Empire.
ROBERT ROLLAND
On November 9, 1799 a telegram was transmitted to announce that the
Bonaparte General was named ordering force armed in Paris. The
following day, the executive power was entrusted to three Consuls:
Bonaparte, Si?y?s and Roger-Ducos. Claude Chappe then submitted to
the three Consuls a project of dispatch to announce this nomination,
but the communication could not take place because of the bad
weather. Between these two dispatches, one transmitted, the other
remained to the state of project, there was all the ambiguity of the
air telegraph: this remarkable instrument of communication had a
great weakness, that to be tributary of the atmospheric conditions.
Concerned Napoleon of effectiveness in his strategy, always carried
a keen interest to the development of the telegraph collections,
without, however to grant an absolute and final confidence to this
system which could be abruptly lacking to him.
The BRILLIANT INVENTION OF CLAUDE CAP the first official telegram
was transmitted on August 16, 1794 to announce the resumption of the
city of Quesnoy by the French troops fights the Austrians so much.
Filled with enthusiasm by this invention, the Conventional ones
ordered in Claude Chappe the construction of a second line towards
the East, the first connecting Paris in Lille. The telegraph network
thus included/understood, with the day before of the proclamation of
the Empire three principal lines Paris-Lille, Paris-Strasbourg by
Metz, Paris-Brest, this last line belonging to the ministry for the
Navy, while the two others depended on the ministry for the War.
This telegraph which had been spread in a few years on the country
had been developed by Claude Chappe, young physicist born in the
Sarthe. Having initially thought of using electricity to transmit
communications, Claude Chappe presents a project of air telegraph at
the French National Assembly which authorizes it to try a first
experiment of communications between two established stations one in
M?nilmontant, the second with Saint Martin of the Hillock. The
Lakanal deputy attended the experiment and wrote a favorable
report/ratio: Cap was then charged, with the title of "engineer
th?l?graphe" (sic) to build a line between Paris and Lille. In spite
of many financial obstacles or techniques which they met Cl Cap and
its collaborators succeeded in concluding their mission and the
telegraph started to function in August 1794. Of what thus did
consist this telegraph whose invention was cordially greeted by
Bar?re in front of Convention? The Chappe telegraph was a system of
remote control of signals carried out by apparatuses located at
suitable distances along a line. Each apparatus was composed of
three mobile arms: the regulator and two indicators laid out on the
ends of this one. These mobile arms connected by cables to the
levers laid out inside the station could take 196 different
positions. It was then enough to establish by convention a
correspondence between each one of its signals and their
significance. The first dispatches were transmitted letter by
letter. But it very quickly appeared necessary to establish a code
in which each signal would represent a word or a group words. The
first code, established by Leon Delanoy was composed of 9.999 words.
Then the Chappe brothers used three codes: the vocabulary of the
words (8.464 words of everyday usage), the vocabulary of the
sentences (8.464 sentences or expressions used also in a usual way)
finally a geographical vocabulary of 8.464 geographical places. The
transmission of the dispatches was done in the following way: when
two stations in direct relation were in operating condition the
transmission started. The movement of the apparatuses was given by
an agent called stationary. This one was satisfied to transmit
signals without knowing the significance of it, only the translators
in possession of the code could carry out the transcription. The
rules of transmission laid down into 1795 were used until 1830. Each
indicator could take 7 different positions, multiplied by the 7
positions of the other indicator, 49 combinations were obtained when
the regulator was in driving position and 49 when it was in
horizontal position. That represented on the whole 98 signals of
which 6 were reserved for special indications. The transmissions
could thus be ensured thanks to 92 signals representing figures 1 to
92. The telegrams were thus quantified: each figure corresponded to
one of the 92 words laid out on each 92 page of the vocabulary. Let
us recall that there were three different vocabularies. The message
thus indicated as a preliminary which vocabulary was to be used to
decipher the dispatch. The transmission of the message started then:
each stationary took note of the signals and a little further
repeated then the dispatch for another station located. Gradually,
the message was transmitted: with the arrival it was deciphered by a
translator in possession of the code. Although enough complexes,
this system allowed, when the best conditions were met, a very fast
transmission: thus on the line Paris Lille it took 2 minutes to
transmit a short dispatch and 6 minutes and half on the line Paris
Strasbourg. Mr. Henri Gachot whose studies on the Chappe telegraph
in Alsace are very important gives the following example: "With the
Director of the Telegraph in Strasbourg: answer your last dispatch
the army beat the enemy completely ". "These 18 words, says Mr.
Gachot, could be conveyed by the air route by using the three
following groups 4/55 - 53/21 and 12/13, is six signals for 18
words". (the air Telegraph in Alsace - Strasbourg 1968). The
stationary ones ended up acquiring a great dexterity in the handling
of the apparatuses. However related to the atmospheric conditions,
with the length of the messages, the solidity of the apparatuses,
the transmission was in general longer. And especially, it could be
stopped abruptly by a technical hitch or the sudden rise of a layer
of fog. In addition, the night, no communication could be carried
out.
The FIRST CONSUL AND the TELEGRAPH These difficulties did not fail
to aggravate Napoleon who was eager, above all, to have a fast and
sure information system. Also the Emperor will always keep a certain
mistrust with respect to the air telegraph. However, as of the
Consulate, Bonaparte takes measures so that the air telegraph is
placed at its disposal. The First Consul even intends to have
exclusiveness in it. A decree of the 4 vend?miaire year IX
(September 26, 1800) stipulates that "the Citizen Cap, engineer
telegraph, will not be able under some pretext, even for the details
of its service to make any transmission by the telegraph according
to the order signed by the First Consul". At that time Claude Chappe
had proposed that the telegraph is placed at the disposal of the
public. This measurement which would undoubtedly have caused a great
development of the process is refused. It is only into 1851 that the
administration of the telegraphs will be authorized to transmit
private dispatches. However, Claude Chappe, who notes with
bitterness the reduction by the First Consul of the appropriations
of management assigned to the telegraph, makes accept the principle
of the weekly transmission of the results of the Lottery. The
telegraph thus remains exclusively with the service of the
government. Thus the First Consul gave the order to urgently install
a telegraph line between Paris and Metz so that it could communicate
with the plenipotentiary ones joined together in Lun?ville for the
diplomatic Congress which was to with it to be held. Thirteen days
after the beginning of work, the line was in operating condition.
What showed well that the team animated by Claude Chappe had
acquired a great effectiveness.
The EXTENSION OF the TELEGRAPH NETWORK UNDER the EMPIRE In spite of
the often provided evidence of its effectiveness and its utility,
the telegraph did not have, under the Empire, a development as large
as one could suppose it. On the one hand, Claude Chappe, his
inventor, disappeared. In spite of the success which its invention
had obtained, Claude Chappe suffered much to be able to give to his
work a larger extension. He had had in particular the project to
carry out a European network of telegraph collections connecting the
large ports: Cadiz, Amsterdam, London, Calais, etc. He would have
also liked to create a daily telegraphic bulletin giving each day in
the large cities of the Empire the principal news. He had also
continued his research to improve the telegraph collections.
Napoleon in addition had charged Abraham Chappe with seeking the
means of establishing a telegraph collection of day and night
between the coasts of France and those of England. Napoleon thought,
at that time, to proceed to an unloading of his armies in England.
One can think that if it is Abraham which was in charge of this
task, this one did not fail to require of his/her Claude brother to
take part in the research tasks which were not continued because of
the abandonment of the project of unloading. Claude Chappe was then
reached this nervous disease which was to lead it to the suicide.
After the death of Claude Chappe, his brothers who since the
beginning, had been associated to him, continued his work. Ignace
and Pierre Chappe were named administrators, while Abraham was, on
his request, attache with the general staff of the Large Army.
Abraham had presented itself to provide these functions near the
Emperor. The Director of the Telegraph in Boulogne with his Majesty
the Emperor and King, Lord, I have the honor to ask Your Majesty to
create a place of Director of the Telegraph, attache to your Staff,
the purpose of following you everywhere where DOUS would order it
and to translate the telegrams which you would like to transmit or
who would be addressed to you. In addition to the advantage, for
Your Majesty, to be able to communicate of all the places where
there are telegraphs, it will result that not to be obliged to
entrust to an unknown Director of Your Majesty, dispatches which can
require a great confidence in that which is charged to translate
them. If this project deserved the approval of Your Majesty, I will
dare to claim your kindness the occasion to convince you of my zeal
and my entirety devotion. I have the honor to be with the deepest
respect, Lord, of Your very humble, very obeying and very the
subjected Majesty prone one. A. Cap Its request having been
approved, Abraham Chappe was named, 30 August 1805, "directing of
the telegraphs" near the Large Army. For this reason, it was
charged "to translate the telegrams that the Emperor, his lieutenant
and his Major G?n?ral will want to transmit or who will be addressed
to him". Abraham will occupy these functions until 1814. It was, in
addition, charged to visit the installations of the Paris-Strasbourg
line to see whether they were in state. The telegraph took more and
more importance and Napoleon paid a very detailed attention to his
development. Thus, undoubtedly informed the creations carried out in
nearby countries as England where an air telegraphic system had been
set up, the Emperor requires of the minister Navy, the admiral
Decr?s of the precise details on the new systems used in
France "Make me a short report and well clearly, which makes known
me which are the new telegraphs which you have just established. Are
this combinations of letters of the alphabet, like the ground
telegraph or of the signals? Can one send by these telegraphs the
order to the squadron of Cadiz to make a mouvemen, or to prevent it
exit of a squadron of Toulon or Brest? "it is seen, Napoleon would
have agreed to have a network which enabled him to direct from Paris
of the strategic operations, putting moving its armies or its
squadrons of North at the South of Europe. Various measurements are
taken in this direction: the line of North is prolonged in 1808 to
Antwerp and with the entry of the mouths of the Scheldt to the port
of Flessingue. This line will reach Amsterdam in 1810. Towards
Italy, the Paris-Lyon line is prolonged to Turin in 1805, Milan in
1809 and finally Venice in 1810. Napoleon took care personally of
the development of the network as its correspondence testifies some.
March 16, 1809, he writes to the Minister of Interior Department: "I
wish that you make complete without delay the telegraph line from
here in Milan and that in fifteen days, one can communicate with
this capital". April 10 of the same year, he writes to Prince
Eugene, to viceroy of Italy, to specify to him that "the 15, the
telegraph must communicate with Milan, he delays me well to know
that this communication is open". In 1810, the telegraph network
reaches its greater development: from Amsterdam in Venice, from
Brest in Vienna, the telegraphic stations multiply and ensure the
fast communications increasingly necessary as the Empire increases.
In fact, the telegraph network is used in a way complementary to the
other means of information: the mails with horse, the estafettes
which the Emperor affectionnait continued to transport the urgent
messages, sometimes even on portions of temporarily stopped
telegraph lines. On the Vienna-Strasbourg line the telegraph system
Cap which could not have been installed, it was necessary to be
satisfied to transmit signals made up with flags of various colors.
With the return of the Countryside of Russia, the Emperor ordered
the prolongation of the Paris-Strasbourg line to Mainz. Work was
carried out in two months and on May 29 the 1813 first dispatches
were transmitted.
The TELEGRAPH DURING the HUNDRED DAYS the return of the Emperor and
his unloading to the Juan Gulf were announced to the government by a
telegram coming from Lyon. The progression of the Emperor was
followed, hour per hour, thanks to the dispatches which followed one
another. The baron de Vitrolles made telegraph with Sir, brother of
the king, a dispatch which shows the anxiety of the king well in
front of the striking down walk of the Emperor "His Majesty orders
that it leaves tous.les.jours two estafettes for Paris with all the
details which one will have been able to join together and which the
telegrams unceasingly follow one another the ones the others". March
21, the duke of Bassano dispatched with the prefects the following
telegraphic circular which was transmitted on all lines "S.M. the
Emperor entered to Paris yesterday, at eight hours of the evening,
with the head of the troops which, the morning, had been sent
against it, and with the acclamations of immense people". One half-
century later, the electric telegraph knew, under the reign of
Napoleon III, a spectacular development. The telegraph Cap, like
diligences, disappeared and the poet Gustave Nadaud looked with
nostalgia to stop the strange machines. Since the destiny gathers us
Since each mode has its Achevons turn to die together At the top of
your old woman L? tower as two old astronomers We will look at
Passer proudly the things and the men top of our monument. (the old
telegraph).
Transmissions in the Large Army
JEAN-CLAUDE QUENNEVAT
Napoleon was certainly one of the largest innovators of the mobile
warfare. The Campaigns and the operations "flashes" do not certainly
miss all with the length of In spite of the absence of motorized
means of transport, the battalions of the imperial army penetrated
on the backs of the adversary with a celerity comparable with that
of the "Panzers" of the last world war. Operate of Ulm: for each
army corps an average of 350 km traversed in 20 days, in contact
with the enemy! The Lassalle brigade sows panic through Prussia of
1806 by marking out 1.160 km in 25 days (either 46 km of average per
day). Then how a chief is asked for as Napoleon could, with safety
necessary, to also quickly move his pawns on the strategic chess-
board, whereas it had neither air exploration, nor of the telephone,
the telegraph or the radio? With first reflexion, the only
transmission resources of the Large Army proved to be the human way
and the port of a dispatch by a rider. We will see that in fact of
other means were used. Nevertheless these two first belonged to the
daily practice and it is them whom we will analyze initially.
VOICE, TRUMPET AND DRUM
Apart from the battle, it was enough to a quite assured voice to
easily transmit the orders of the captain to all the levels of its
company, because the distance from an officer to nearest to his sub-
orders never exceeded ten meters, whatever the adopted formation. It
went from there differently to the combat, because of the
considerably noisy environment in which the soldiers were plunged.
The deflagrations of the blasting powder, as well rifles than of the
guns maintained a terrible din as we have evil to imagine "I smelled
the ground permanently to tremble under me", writes a soldier
wounded on the battle field of Moskowa. In Boulogne, in 1804, it is
enough to some guns drawing with white in accompaniment from "Te
Deum" sung with the church Saint Nicolas, to make steal in glare all
the panes of the district. I could myself compare in 1969, at the
time of the turning of film televised "the Large Army", the shooting
in salvo of the "Arquebusiers de France" armed with rifles model
1777 with the shooting at will of a company of infantry of the
quota, and I noted how much the modern automatic weapons proved less
deafening that their elder. Under these conditions, one
includes/understands how much the verbal transmission orders, with
the combat, was compromised. It had been necessary to use, as in the
navy, of the speaking pipe. But we do not know any example of such a
use in the Armies; the instrument had been too cumbersome and
especially less effective than its substitutes, namely the trumpet
and the drum. Indeed, it is via these two musical instruments that
with the full fire of the action the officers were likely best to
pass an order and to immediately see it carrying out. The trumpet
was the speaking pipe of the cavalry. In the order of battle, the
colonel always had at his side a sergeant-trumpet ready to translate
his command by a sound sentence good known of all. This one was
taken again by eight grouped trumpets, placed under the command of
an adjudant, together sufficiently powerful so that all the regiment
can perceive the ringing. In this way, the colonel could order "the
load, the retirement, the rallying, with the fields, with horse,
moving"... More exactly, the trumpets did not replace the verbal
order, but preceded it or followed it immediately, the sound phase
amplifying in musical language what was stated in verbal language.
In the troops with foot, the same role failed the drums. Like the
trumpets, the latter chaired the functions day labourers of the
military life: "the alarm clock, the Diane, let us rigodons them
morning, for the flags, the honors with the Emperor, the extinction
of fires"... With the combat they evolved/moved grouped on two rows,
with fifteen steps behind of the first battalion of each regiment.
What did not prevent them from being sometimes mown by the
grapeshot, with all that that could have like repercussion in the
transmission of the orders. Thus, when with the battle of Dresden
the drums of the 3rd riflemen of the Young person-Guard are struck
by a flight of bisca?ens, one sees the men suspending one moment
their attack, each one wondering: "Which thus has just ordered:
halt? "In connection with the drums, let us recall that this
instrument was sometimes used as receiver accoustics: the case was
posed with ground, the higher membrane amplified a remote noise of
mousquetery or displacement of cavalry transmitted by the ground in
an unperceivable way; it was thus enough to stick its ear to it to
detect the proximity or the movements of the enemy. He comes out
from what we have just said that not only each regiment of infantry
or cavalry had, in addition to his brass band, his drums or his
trumpets, but that it was the same for all the companies for the
others weapons, that it is artillery, genius etc..., which proves
well that to these musicians was reserved very an other role to beat
or sound the load. According to the same principle, any staff of a
officer-General included/understood, in more of the aide-de-camps,
the permanent presence of a trumpet: the telephone of the General!
Thus, drums and trumpets constituted, within each combat unit, a
weapon with share: they were "the soldiers of the transmissions"
before the letter. Their role with the combat required much cold
blood, because the drums, only armed with a short sword, could
hardly but box the blows without being able to return them; as for
the trumpets, when they were confronted with the enemy, they acted
of the kind: they nimbly gathered trumpet and reins in the left hand
to release the right hand and to draw the sabre; in the event of
surprised they struck the adversary while striking to the head with
the held up instrument of the right hand. These "men of the
transmissions" thus enjoyed rightly a consideration at least equal
to that the other soldiers; many profited from a food and a housing
warrant officer and touched a double pay of that of a simple rider
or infantryman. Before the institution of "the cross", they had had
right to the particular honors of the trumpets or rods of honor
decreed by the First Consul. As would be a this as much error as an
affront to confuse them with the brass band of the regiment, made up
either musicians pledgers having contacted a military engagement, or
of civil without balance entirely as of the load of the officers,
therefore soldiers of occasion, such those of the infantry has
Essling, fleeing with the first blows of gun to go to take refuge in
the island of Lobau!
The AIDE-DE-CAMPS the transmission of an order or a particular
opinion could obviously be done only by estafette, i.e. by a light
rider duly informed of the identity of the recipient. In the
majority of the cases, the dispatch was written with the feather,
sometimes with the pencil, therefore not always perfectly readable
and quite interpretable for the recipient; however the omissions of
punctuation constituted the source of the most serious errors there.
Theoretically the sabretache (carried by all the light riders at the
beginning of the Empire) was the satchel punt intended for the
transport of the dispatch. In fact, adopted by the hussards of the
King in the middle of the 18th century, it could easily play this
part when originally it was suspended under the belt in contact with
the left thigh; but the fashion having reduced it to height from the
calf, its destination of letter-box became very badly convenient.
One can conclude from it that under the Empire the estafettes hardly
used it and placed the fold preferably to be carried in their belt
or hidden under their shirt. This assumption seems confirmed well by
the fact that the lawful uniform of the aide-de-camps of the officer-
Generals, designed in 1803, did not comprise a sabretache. The
principal function of the aide-de-camps was indeed to carry the
dispatches, so much on the battle field, where it was necessary to
face the worst dangers while threading between fires of battalion
and while slipping between two loads of cavalry, which at the time
of missions at long distance through an enemy territory. These aide-
de-camps, being all of the soldiers tested with at least the rank of
lieutenant, Napoleon preferred them with the professional mails that
it judged "unable" because they did not give any explanation on what
they had seen. The confidence of the Emperor was not likely besides
to be disappointed, because these young at the same time generous
and ambitious people, for the majority wire of family of the old
nobility rejoined with glory, endeavoured to achieve their mission
until the limit of their forces: Marbot connects Paris in Strasbourg
in forty eight hours, and spends only three days to traverse the
cinq-cent-vingt kilometers which separate Madrid from Bayonne;
without changing horse, an officer of Davout covers cent-soixante-
dix kilometers in nineteen hours in enemy country. With through
Spain, threatened unceasingly by the guerilleros, these insulated
mails risked much, and Marbot will write on this subject "I do not
believe to exaggerate while carrying to more than two hundreds the
number of the staff officers which were taken or killed during the
war of the Peninsula". Each marshal had with his service at least a
half-dozen of aide-de-camps (in 1809, for example, Lannes had eight
and Mass?na sixteen of it). But it was not rare that at the evening
of a great battle half of these courageous carriers of order were
put out of combat. A transmission of good quality was thus paid
extremely expensive at the time. As for the Emperor, it was not
limited to send on mission its own aide-de-camps. It had set up,
mainly for the dispatches of its cabinet, a service of estafettes
specialized equipped with a large bearing leather satchel on a broad
copper plate the mention "Dispatches of S.M. the Emperor and King".
These mails of which most famous were Moustache, Cl?rice and Vidal,
traversed the marked out imperial main roads of relay every eight
kilometers.
The POST OFFICE WITH the ARMIES As for the way in which the soldiers
could communicate by letter with their family, the "payment on the
Military postal service" specifies us that as from September 1809
there existed for them: -- inside the Empire, a correspondence by
the intermediary of the offices of the garrison towns; -- and in
Shift a service of transmission and handing-over ensured by mails
and helped postilions of employees, under the monitoring of the
police chiefs of war. The frankness is acquired for the mail from
the soldiers to the armies during the Programs only. Each weapon has
its paper with illustrated Iettre of a colored label, of naive
invoice, representing a soldier in the corresponding uniform. They
are the letters known as "cantini?res", because generally provided
and sold by these last; those intended for the Imperial Guard add
each side of the effigy of the combatant those of the Emperor and
the empress in medallions. Verbal orders, drum rolls, ringings of
trumpets, sendings of estafettes, such were thus the great means of
telecommunications of the Large Army. However there were complements
which one cannot cannot overlook.
The GUN Initially the gun. Tie "with white", it could double the
effect of the drum; it was the case in the camps like that of
Boulogne, when for example it punctuated each day the alarm clock
and the extinction of fires. In Shift, it announced the beginning of
a great battle: three characteristic blows drawn with equal
intervals by a company from the Guard. Another type of acoustic
connection by the intermediary of the gun, this order of Soult a few
days before Austerlitz: "In case where the adversary would make
movements with the outposts it will be drawn four blows from gun of
alarm by a battery established on the height of the Vault... and
with this signal Vandamne Division will join at once that of Legrand
to put itself in battle on the height located at...". And at long
distance, that is to say 35 kilometers with flight of birds in this
case, the connection envisaged between the Emperor and Davout on
April 22, 1809: "If you are ready to attack, written Napoleon, draw
at midday a salvo at the same time from twelve blows, similar to 1
a.m., another at 2 a.m." running Dans these conditions the large one
of the army of Landshut will be able to surprise the adversary with
Eckmuhl, at the precise moment where it will be strongly engaged
against Davout, therefore compromised in its freedom to manoeuvre.
The visual use of rockets of artifices seems to have existed under
the Empire only in the war of seat. It had been however realizable
without particular equipment and using specialized bomb disposal
experts, since we know that any infantryman could, without any
modification of his rifle, to send to several hundred meters in the
sky of luminous stars. The example us is given by it by the evening
from August 16, 1804 in Boulogne, during which were drawn, with the
night falling, 45.000 cartridges with stars, illuminant during a few
seconds the city and the roads of a light so intense that this
luminous play was seen English coast. To close this study of the
means of telecommunications of the Large Army, we will quote
obviously the Chappe telegraph, which by its originality and its
innovation was published to us to deserve an article with share in
this number of our Review. Let us specify nevertheless that its
military role very often supposed the complementary use of
estafettes: it was the case on April 10, 1809 when, of Tileries,
Napoleon wanting to communicate urgently with Berthier which was in
Donauwerth, sent a telegraphic message from Paris in Strasbourg
(disturbed in its transmission by the fog) and which the latter was
taken again by a rider of Strasbourg with Donauwertll. Assessment:
this missive of importance had spent five days full to cross 700
kilometers with flight of bird.
MAIL SERVICE A PARIS UNDER the EMPIRE (I) (1) Extracts of the
Imperial Almanac of 1809 - chapter of the Stations. JEAN-CLAUDE
QUENNEVAT This service represents the "distribution in Paris of the
letters of the departments, of those coming from abroad and the
letters of Paris for Paris..., the distribution of the newspapers
and the periodic works; the stamping from the letters for Paris,
departments and the foreigner; lifting of the boxes in Paris and the
subscription with the bulletin of the laws (our current Official
Journal) in all France ". "This service divides in Paris, between
ten offices whose functions and site will be indicated Ci
after...". "the central office of the post office building is open
tous.les.jours since 8 H of the morning up to 7 a.m. the evening.
One distributes the addressed letters to it "postmaster address";
those in charge of the departments for Paris and those of Paris for
Paris. One finds there for three months, as from the day of the
arrival in Paris, the letters under address come from the
departments. This office, one can free the periodic letters,
newspapers and works for Paris ". Offices of distributions
(which "divide the letters in authority of the Division of Paris,
H?tel of the commune of Paris in about equal portions") leave the
factors for the distribution the letters "the letters put in reject
remain in deposit for three months as from the day of the arrival in
Paris..., and it is, after this term only, which they are sent to
the office of the head of the Division of Paris, Post office
building, where they are classified alphabetically, and where the
public can claim them for three months, and, passed which term, the
general office of the rejects". "the unknown letters with the
destination which they carry" are daily sent to the office of the
letters in authority of the Division of Paris, Post office building,
where they are classified by name alphabetically and where the
public can claim them." The list of eight offices of the various
districts of Paris follows, with for each office 1' addresses letter-
boxes (about thirty per office), each box being numbered and this
number corresponding to the number of the stamp of the post office.
A table is posted on the door of all the offices of distribution
like on the 200 boxes of Paris. It specifies: -- the hour of the
liftings: October 1 at March 30: 5 liftings for Paris, the first of
6. 3/4 at 7 a.m. 3/4, the last of 7 H with 9 H of the evening, but
only one departure for the departments (about midday). April 1 at
September 30: 6 liftings for Paris, the first of 6 H with 6 a.m.
l/2, the last of 7 H with 8 H of the evening, and always only one
departure for the departments (around midday). -- the hour of the
distributions: October 1 at March 30: 5 distributions for Paris, the
first of 8 H with 9 l1 1/2, the last of 7 H with 9 H of the evening.
April 1 at September 30: 6 distributions for Paris, the first of 7 H
with 9 a.m., the last of 7 H at 8 a.m. 1/2. In small suburbs, four
liftings and distributions per day some is the season. In large
suburbs, only one lifting and distribution per day ("the factors
regularly leave each day the offices of distribution to 1 a.m.").
For the province, in general a lifting and a distribution each day
of the week, or only three days per week according to the importance
of the locality ("the public is prevented that it is very essential
to put on the address the name of the department in which the
commune is where one writes"). For the foreign countries the letters
will be freed either by the recipient but by the shipper "under
penalty of remaining with the reject". Stamping will be total until
destination for the kingdom of Italy, the principality of Piombino,
Rome, and of many German cities belonging to the Confederation of
the Rhine and all Hanover. It will be partial for the colonies, to
the seaport; England, to Dover; possessions of the House of Austria,
to Strasbourg; Istrie and Illyrie, until V?rone; isles of Italy,
until V?rone; the Mediterranean basin, to Marseilles; Switzerland,
until Huningue or Pontarlier... One cannot free for the kingdoms
from Spain and Portugal, for the kingdom of Holland. Stamping is
optional for Prussia, while remaining partial until Cl?ves, Erfurt'
Hamburg. Some examples of duration of the courses by relay of
station in 1809: Paris-Antwerp....................3 days 1/2 Paris-
Brussels............... 3 Paris-Lille days........................ 3
Paris-Lyon days........................ 4 Paris-Mainz
days.................5 Paris-Geneva days....................6 Paris-
Nantes days..................... 4 Paris-Strasbourg
days..............5 Paris-Toulouse days.................8 Paris-
Rouen days..................... 13 Paris-Caen
hours.......................1 jours1/2 Paris-Bordeaux...............
5 days N.D.L R. -- This information, drawn from the Imperial almanac
of 1809, leaves to dreamer the user of 1975. Indeed, on the one hand
the five or six daily distributions in Paris are for a long time
reduced to two. In addition, since the memorable strike of October-
November 1974, the routing time of the letters of Paris to the
province became strictly comparable when it is not lengthened.
Progress is not stopped.
(1) the ministry for the Stations and T?l?graphes will be creates in
1879. (2) To travel in station, to run the Post office, meant to use
the postal services to travel. One could profit thus from many
advantages: priority on the roads, reservation of horses in the
relays, certainty to achieve the voyage within a time allowed in
advance, possibility of circulating the night, postmasters having to
ensure a permanence.
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I am creating a Imperial couriers uniform.This would have been from around 1807.There was a badge created that is displayed on a line drawing from Herbert Knotel.The drawing doesn't show definition,just placement of the badge.Can anyone recommend how I can research this badge?I need a picture or even just a description of it.Any help would be appreciated.Thanks,Sincerely Scott
0
Is this collar insignia Belgian?
in Northern European & Baltic States
Posted
Thanks Belgoman for the difinitive answer. Scott