Revell 02574 Austrian Infantry (7 Years War)

When Maria Theresa of the Habsburgs took the throne in 1740, she inherited from her father (Emperor Charles VI) an army of not the best quality. The infantry of that army was poorly trained, was characterized by numerous shortages, and in terms of discipline or equipment - more or less - it was inferior to its Prussian counterpart. Significant shortcomings of the Austrian infantry were clearly demonstrated by both Silesian wars (1740-1742 and 1744-1745), especially the battles at Małujowice (1741), Strzegom-Dobromierz (1745) and Soor (1745). It is not surprising that after a series of defeats in the Silesian wars, the Austrian army - especially its infantry - underwent a number of changes. First of all, from 1748, weapons with an iron stamp were introduced, and in 1754, the so-called Commisflinte wz.1754, which turned out to be the basic weapon of the Austrian infantry until the beginning of the 19th century. It is worth noting that the infantry also received new regulations in 1749, which provided for musketeers to continue firing in a four-row formation, but in the case of grenadiers, they ordered to fire in a three-row formation. The elite of the Austrian infantry were grenadiers, who constituted about 8-10% of the personnel of that same infantry. They were trained in the Prussian fashion with a similarly iron discipline. At the level of the war, the Austrian infantry company numbered 136 men, and the grenadiers - 100 men. The battalion in the strength of 6 companies consisted of 18 officers and 798 soldiers and non-commissioned officers. However, in the strength of 4 companies - 12 officers and 532 soldiers and non-commissioned officers. Although during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) the Austrian infantry continued to give way - especially at the beginning of the conflict - to their Prussian counterpart, they did well in the battles at Kolin (1757) and Kunersdorf (1759), victorious for the Austrians. It is worth adding that in the latter they fought side by side with the Russian troops.