The Sun.
London, England, 1857-04-09 00:00:00

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THE YEW ORGANISATT,
RUSSIAN ARN

INLE W S PAPE R
„
BE
A well-known military anther h • ;:"'.?-
recurs in military matters so inevit, • "'
of uniforms on the commencement of o Yileigrlg
and the re-organisation of the army at the end of
long war." The correctness of thn remark has
lately been evidenced in Russia.
Almost immediately after the death of the Em-
peror Nicholas there ensued, although in the mid-
dle of a war, a thorough change in the Russian uni-
forms. 'The palukaftan (a tunic such as our own
military now wears, in imitation of the Prussian
waffenrock) was introduced ; - the helmet was for
the most part got rid of; the uniforms of the officers .
was simplified, almost to unbecomingness, by the
abolition of epaulettes and of sashes and tassels,
besides a variety of other changes made. It was
no secret that the present Emperor, even during
his father's lifetime, had, as Grand Duke, devoted
a considerable amount of attention to the subject
of uniforms. An album containing drawings of
uniforms for each separate arm of the service was
spoken of as being in existence, and as having been
from time to time shown to foreign officers who
happened to be at St. Petersburg. That even the
Emperor Nicholas himself had at one time the in-
tention of introducing the plaschtsch, or Russian
paletot, after the. cut o the French caban, as a sort
of half-cloak or surtout, may be inferred from a
well-known statuette which represents the Emperor
in this costume. In his lifetime, however, the in-
troduction of the tunic probably was prevented by
financial considerations, inasmuch as in a matter cf
nearly a million of uniforms it would have re-
quired several millions of ells of cloth. With
the accession of the Emperor 11., however,
this reason seems to have lost its force ;
orders were given for tht introduction of
the polukaftan througbont the army, and
those orders were executed even without waiting
for the return of peace. And thus the Russian
army presents at present a totally different appear-
ance from what it did during the late-war.
More im pm taut than this mere alteration of ex-
ternals is the very thorough change in the orraniqt-
tkm of the whole army, which, by the breaking-up
of the special or separate Dragoon corps and the at-
tachment of its component regimeuts to the light
divisions of the various armee corps, has resumed
almost the same form of constitution as it possessed
at the death of Alexander 1., with this difference,
however, that at that time there still existed
regiments of mounted Jagers, which have since then
been entirely done away with in the Russian army.
The alterations that have been effected in the
Russian army are of two kinds—first, those which
have simply abolished organisations introduced by
the Emperor Nicholas ; and secondly, those which
were called for by the progress of experience and
development of science in modern warfare, two
classes that may be characterised respectively as
repeal and reform. To the latter class belongs the
great increase and improved distribution of the
Rifles (sharpshooters) ; to the first the reduction,
we may almost say the abolition, of the "Reserve
Cavalry Corps." This body, in its present form,
consists only of the eight regiments of the Cuiras-
siers of the Line, with the Mounted Artillery and
the Mounted Pioneers, which remain attached to
them ; but up to the commencement of the late
war the entire "Reserve Cavalry Corps" consisted
of—

1. A Light Division of the Reserve Cavalry, con-
sisting of two regiments of Lancers, two of Hussars,
and three of Dragoons.
2. Two Divisions of Cuirassiers, consisting of
eight regiments.
3. One Division of Lancers, consisting of four
regiments.
4. Two Divisions of Dragoons, consisting of eight
regiments.
A ninth regiment of Dragoons was then and is
st'll ststioned in the Caucasus.
To the above were attached 12 mounted batteries
composed of three divisions of mounted art Eery.
Of this Reserve Cavalry Corps, consisting, as it
formerly did, of 27 regiments, there remain, as
mentioned above, only eight regiments of Cuiras-
siers, with four batteries and a division of Mounted
Pioneers.
Under the Emperor Nicholas this corps of cavalry
was cantoned to the south of Moscow in Orel,
Wassnessemor, Tschugujeff, &0., and was an object
of special interest and admiration to the military
world. The rsrand field days and manoeuvres which
it performed in 1837 revealed a splendid and unique
creation—one that seems to be possible only in
Russia. What on that occasion more particularly
rivetted the attention was the special, or separate,
Dragoon Corps, consisting of eight regiments, of 12
squadrons each ; in this creation of the Emperor
Nicholas strategists believed they detected an in-
tention on his part to introduce on to the battle
field in any future war a new, or, at any rate, a
fresh application of an old elem,ent. The original
destination of dragoons to serve both as cavalry
and infantry, or, in other words, to be a mounted
infantry, was intended by him to be revived in this
special corps of Dragoons. The regiments that
composed it—the regiments of the Dragoons of the
Guard and of the Mounted Grenadiers of the Guard
—were so organised that on dismounting they each
of them formed a complete battili,,n (or, as we say,
regiment) of infantry. Of the 12 squadrons that
composed a regiment 10 were distinguished from
rile rest as "active," one as reserve, and one as
supplementary. Among the 10 "active" squadron's
there were two of pikemen, that always remained
mounted, and thus the eight regiments of
Dragoons in their partially dismounted orga-
nisation formed eight bat aliens (regiments) of
infantry, of eight companies each, together with 16
squadrons of mounted pikemen. By a further sub-
division of every squadron into elismounters and
horse-holders tbeee eight battalions were always
provided with eight detachments of troops, that
remained mounted and held the horses of those
that dismounted ; and to the whole body was at-
tached a battery of flying artillery. The armament
of the dragoons consisted of an infantry musket
with a bayonet and a cavalry sabre • and side by
side with the trumpeters there marched also a pro-
per complement of drummers, so that the 'dra-
goons, once dismounted, could operate in every
way like infantry. • Everything that the most care-
ful drilling and training could effect had been at-
tained by this corps of dragoons, and there were
fair grounds f r expecting very remarkable results
from the application of such an unusual force—
which could not do otherwise than take the enemy
by surprise.
Nevertheless, throughout the whole of the cam.-
paign in Hungary in 1849, this corps of dragoons
was in no way employed by the Emperor, although
there were not wanting opportunities of putting
this hobby force that he bad cherished and culti-
vated for 15 years to the test of the batde-field ;
nor even when the Russian forces entered Moldavia,
in .1853 were there any of these dragoons among
them. It was not till the Oriental war had attained
its subsequent large dimensions that the corps of
dragoons was called out for active service, and that,
too, not excepting the 11th and 12th squadrons
(reserve and supplementary) of every regiment.
But even on this occasion it was 'not called out to
act as an entire body, but was split up into parts.
The 4th and Bth Regiments (New Russia and Twer)
were detached from the corps, and despatched to the
theatre of war in Lesser Asia, for the purpose of re-
inforcing the only regiment of regular cavalry (the
9th Dragoons) that was attached to the separate
Caucasian troops; and of the six regiments that re-
mained behind for the protection of the coasts of
the Black Sea and the Crimea none of them came
into contact with the enemy. The question, there-
fore, of whether the peculiar hybrid organigation of
this corps of Dragoons would have ever realised the
expectations 'entertained of it must now for ever re-
main unanswered by any practical test, inasmuch
ema spmo
Reservene en nt itorneegcclu
naavbeaonl
rvtyse ,
Chhoaarvspebs
be:nne
dubroken
up, its nine component regiments have been sepa-
as in the recent organisation of the army this peen-
liruapat,recdi tosfrrpnosimneastchwo
been converted into 18 regiments, which have been
formed, again into nine brigades. Of these nine
brigades the seven first have been attached to the
six:VT/nee corps, and Grenadier corps. The two
last (Regiments 15 to 18) have been attached to
the separate Caucasian corps, in which each of the
divisions has been reinforced by a dragoon regi-
ment. There always were attached to every armee
corps a brigade of lancers, and another of hussars,
forming the light division of the cavalry ; and now,
also, in consequence of the late changes, a brigade
of dragoons has been added. The original organi-
sation of the special dragoon corps is thus entirely
at an end. It remains to be seen whether, in the
new attachment of its brigades to the different
armee corps, it is intended that it shall merge alto-.
gether in the light cavalry, or retain its original
hybrid constitution as mounted infantry.

ROYAL COLLEGE or SUEGICONS.—The folio wing gen
tlemen, having undergone the necessary examinations
for the diploma, were admitted,members of the College
at the meeting of the Court of Examiners -en the 3d
inst.,: —Messrs. A. Carter, St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica r
It. Cockerton, Girton, Cambridgeshire; J.. •Wilson,
Whitby, Yorkshire; J. Neal, Birmingham; T. Hawkins,
Spaldwick, Huntingdonshire; IL 0. Thomas, Seacotnbe,
Cheshire
Glasgow ; G. D. Ker.
man,hes ; W. Litster, Bridgton,
Liverpool ; H.
~. C. Peppin, Martock, Somerset;
J. L. Thomas, carmarthen ; H. P. Blackmore, Selig-
C
bury; L. Harris, Broadhempstone, Tones, Devon ; and
J. J. Foxwell, Bristol. At the same meetirg of the
Court Mr. W. J. Baird, of her Majesty's ship Wellesley,
passed his examination for naval surgeon. ,' This gentle.
man had previously been admitted a member of the
Edinburgh College of Surgeons, his diploma bearing date'
April 10,1852. , .