Waterloo 1815 AP017 Infanteria Austriaca 1859

The War of 1859 (also known as the Italian War of 1859) is an armed conflict that took place between the Austrian Empire and Piedmont, and France ruled by Napoleon III, the latter two countries remaining in alliance since the signing of the Plombieres Agreement in 1858. Austria put around 220,000 men in the war. Obviously, the infantry was the most important and numerous member of the Austrian army that set off for this war. This infantry was divided into three main types: line infantry, light infantry (Jägers in German) and border troops (i.e. Grenz Infanterie). At the outbreak of the war, the Austrian line infantry consisted of about 60 regiments, which after mobilization consisted of 5 battalions - 4 line battalions and 1 company battalions, which was responsible for training recruits. The uniform of a line infantry soldier consisted of a shak (a model introduced in 1850), a white uniform jacket and blue trousers. Each soldier also wore a satchel, canteen and pouch. One of the main infantry rifles of the Austrian army was the Lorenz rifle with a rifled barrel, but front-loading, designed in 1854.