Austrian Grenzer

The Grenze was the permanent Frontier behind the Danube and Save Rivers, flanked by the Croatian and Carpathian Mountians, between the Austrian and Turk Empires. The most of 850,000 population of the Grenzer, hold their land direct from the Crown as free peasants but, in return, they supplied at least one soldier for guarding the frontier or, when required for the Army.
These soldiers formed the main light units of the Austrian army. All Grenzers were trained as marksmen and skirmishing, usually acting as advanced-guards. They could be deployed in open order but still were able to fight like the Line.
In 1813, one battalion of the Croatian Warasdiener-Kreuzer Grenz (899 men) and other of the Warasdiener-St. Georger Grenz (1,016 men) were assigned to the 1st (Light) Division of the Austrian 3rd Army Corps commanded by the Feldzeugmeister Graf I. Gyulai. This Corps fought during the Leipzig campaign and participated actively in the battle of Leipzig (october 16-18) in the Lindenau sector, conforming the only western way of retreat for the French Army. My next effort will be surely the battle of Lindenau, so I'll need some Grenzer infantry.

COLOR SCHEME
In 1813, the Grenzer wore the uniform of the 1809 regulations, i.e. a black-brown jacket of Hungarian cut with pointed cuffs and bear's claws; a white waiscoat; hungarian blue trousers of the looser Croatian cut; a trosuer belt; black gaiters; a calfskin backpack; black leather-work and a shako with peak, which from 1811 onwards had the bell-top wider than the base. The facings of both the Warasdiener Kreutzer and Warasdiener St-Georger were crab red in 1813 with, respectively, yellow and white buttons.

FIGURES
My old Grenzer were painting conversions from ESCI 227 or ITALERI 6002 French Line infantry. However, this time I'll use the new 8204 HäT Austrian Grenzer, kindly sent to me by some months ago by Harris (the HäT's owner). The sprue has 12 figures, i.e 12x120 = 1,440 men in terms of Napoleon's Battles.



Information taken from Osprey MAA 299