Italeri 6007 Prussian Cuirassiers

At the time of the outbreak of wars with revolutionary France (1792-1799), the Prussian army was still radiant with the fame of great successes during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763), and the memory of such victories as the Battle of Rossbach (1757) or Lutynia (1757) was still alive. It was also widely regarded as probably the best in Europe. However, already in the 1770s, it began to undergo a kind of erosion and ossification. Its combat value was becoming more and more debatable. The Prussian army was still able to wage a campaign against France with some success in 1792-1795, but already in the course of the 1806 campaign it suffered a devastating defeat. It is not surprising that the battles of Jena and Auerstädt became synonymous with defeat in the Prussian army, and at the same time launched a process of far-reaching changes. These reforms also affected - not surprisingly - the Prussian cavalry, including cuirassiers, who were perceived as a kind of Prussian cavalry elite. In 1805, there were 13 cuirassier regiments in the Prussian army, each of them consisting of 5 squadrons. However, after the 1806 campaign, this number dropped drastically - to 4 regiments, each of which additionally consisted of only four squadrons. During the 1815 campaign, the number of cuirassier regiments in the Prussian army slightly increased (to 5), with 4 squadrons in the regiment. It is worth adding that after 1806 a single cuirassier squadron was theoretically divided into 4 platoons (German Zuge), but during the 1812-1815 campaign a single squadron often consisted of only 2-3 platoons. Simplifying a lot, it can be assumed that from 1813 the cuirassier squadron had 155 full-time staff. The main armament of Prussian cuirassiers was a single-edged broadsword, and non-commissioned officers sometimes carried cavalry rifles. Cuirassier units were seen as classic heavy cavalry formations intended for use on the battlefield for cavalry charges.