Russian Jägers – Borodino 1812

Russian Jägers 1812.

Minis by Perry.

After plenty of additions made to my World War One projects, I thought it was time to sneak in a unit for my ever growing Borodino 1812 collection.

At the battle of Borodino, fought on September 7th 1812, Russian commander Mikhail Kutuzov made extensive use of elite Jäger battalions to cover his left, around the city of Borodino and the river crossing there, situated to the north-west when looking out from the Great Redoubt in the centre.

Jägers. Note the different trousers and boots.

The Perry minis offer the version to the left.

With no less that 50 Jäger regiments in the Russian army at the time of this great battle, one would have to include a few of these iconic units into the collection for variety.

Another view at the Jägers as they skirmish forward.

Like most of my 1812 Borodino collection, I’ve opted for the excellent Perry Miniatures for this unit. Basing consists of 3 x 40/40mm bases per battalion, my standard for large battalion games in 28mm.

Guard Jägers.

The Russian infantry had undergone some renovation since the somewhat unsuccessful track record of the Wars of the Third and Fourth Coalition. In addition to incredible efforts made to refine grenadier battalions into elite troops, the number of Jäger regiments in the army had also been upgraded from 22 in 1805 to numbering more than the said 50 regiments in 1812. 

The Russian uniform of 1812 is one of my favorites.

The white trousers and the dark green jacket is very a pleasing color-scheme. 

With Kutuzov’s guidance, the training emphasized physique and marksmanship, resulting in a new breed of quality in the Russian ranks. Something the French would note from 1812 and forward.

Russian Infantry putting up a fight at Borodino.

During Borodino, the Russian infantry was credited for fighting like lions. A compliment they had enjoyed before, but again there was something new stirring under the surface. In previous battles, it had been normal practice to bring out the booze before a big fight, to “strengthen moral”. At Borodino this was not allowed. Instead the holy icon of The Black Virgin of Smolensk was paraded through the ranks, transmitting a sobering feeling that the fight was for nothing less than the fate of Holy Mother Russia.

Kutuzov kissing the icon of the Black Virgin.

A scene from Soviet film director, Sergei Bondarchuk's 1966 7hrs opus "War and Peace".

An absolute "Must see" for any Borodino enthusiast.  

Confidence in the Russian ranks had indeed grown since they were thrown off the Pratzen heights in 1805. I’ll end this account by a quote from the marching song by the 26th Jägers: “We are not afraid of Marshal Oudinot, he is nothing but a piece of shi…” 

Thank you very much for reading!