'First Look' at the new League of Augsburg range!

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Techno - yes - Revolutionary and Napolionic Wars....French shrank by about 3 cm in average height.

IanS

[Hertsblue]

As I recall, the minimum height for recruitment into Napoleon's Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard was 5' 3"! Anyone smaller went into the Chasseurs. Gives some idea of the average height at the time, I would think.

[FierceKitty]

Bear in mind that an inch has not remained a constant length through its history.

[Techno]

Hmmm.

That's an interesting fact...Though thinking about it, it seems totally logical.
Have we got any idea of the range of difference ?
Cheers - Phil.

[clibinarium]

For anyone who wants an academic look at the subject;

http://epub.ub.uni-muenchen.de/572/1/european_heights_in_the_early_18th_century.pdf

Of course these men were shorter on average, so there'll still have been tall men knocking about (cuirassiers and grenadiers have to come from somewhere). Interestingly Frederick the Great's hussars stipulated a maximum height of 5'5''

One of the tallest men of the period was born not far from where I'm from, Charles Byrne, 7'7'' (though there's nothing in the water; I'm not tall. Actually thinking about it it was poor Charles' pituitary gland that was responsible.)

[Jagger]

and presumably dependent on the populations' diet/nutrition.

The French population went through 20-25 years of famine and starvation before they started lopping off heads in the French Revolution.   I assume that is why the average height of French soldiers was so small during the Napoleonic wars.

Were any wars/battles fought between sides that would have been noticeably taller/shorter (on average) than each other

IIRC, Scotty Bowden mades some references to the giant Russian Guard Grenadiers chopped down by the short French at the battle of Austerlitz.   It seems the Russians really went overboard with height when they created the Guard Grenadiers. 

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

 ;DMy grandad served on HMS Duke of York during WWII, one of his fellow officers was asked to sort the height for new pompom guns, so he took an average of the crew height and set at the guns at 5'4."

He was hauled in front of the Admiral a few hours later and told that if the guns remained at that height the crew average would drop dramatically!! 

[Hertsblue]

IIRC, Scotty Bowden mades some references to the giant Russian Guard Grenadiers chopped down by the short French at the battle of Austerlitz.   It seems the Russians really went overboard with height when they created the Guard Grenadiers. 

When Napoleon and Alexander II met at Tilsit it was generally remarked how the Russian Guard Grenadiers towered over the French Imperial Guardsmen. What the observation failed to recognise is that smaller men tend to be more aggressive and have more to prove than their more placid taller fellows. 

Ray (5' 7" and shrinking)

[FierceKitty]

As in the habit of Glaswegian men under 5' 6" (about half the population) to pick fights with any taller man on Friday night. Michael Green remarks that the most realistic solution to the problem is to go up to the shortest man in the pub and say "Hit me now, Jock, and get it over with."

[William]

Cavalry...Artillery in a few days?  Don't tease, be kind.

William

[Nosher]

As in the habit of Glaswegian men under 5' 6" (about half the population) to pick fights with any taller man on Friday night. Michael Green remarks that the most realistic solution to the problem is to go up to the shortest man in the pub and say "Hit me now, Jock, and get it over with."

Reminds me of an old Sergenat Major we had...

He didn't have a chip on his shoulder about being short, he had a scaffolding plank. He got his come-uppance in a PT session though when someone called his bluff and they elected to 'sort out their differences' behind the NAAFI later on. With rank removed a young private knocked seven bells of the proverbial out of him in about 15 seconds.

Oddly enough that particular Sergenat Major didn't remain with us for very long once the CO found out.

[FierceKitty]

Indded, even the rank was abolished!

[Chad]

The first post on this topic was in March 2011!! We are approaching 21 months and still the range is incomplete.

Isn't it time for some priority?

Chad
(Frustrated of Stoke)

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

It's hardley a first look anymore. Probably an effect of the small but very load headgear minority.....

IanS 

[Wkeyser]

Hi Chad my feelings exactly, I would even go so far as to say the range was useless at the moment. Cavarly was such a large part of the armies of the period.

I do hope we get the range complete some time soon, say withing the next decade

William