The Army of the Rhine (; ) was formed in December 1791, for the purpose of bringing the French Revolution to the German states along the

Rhine River The Rhine ( ) is one of the major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Swiss-Austrian border. From Lake Cons ...

. During its first year in action (1792), under command of Adam Philippe Custine, the Army of the Rhine participated in several victories, including

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

, Frankfurt and Speyer. Subsequently, the army underwent several reorganizations and merged with the Army of the Moselle to form the Army of the Rhine and Moselle on 20 April 1795.

Revolutionary Wars

The Army of the Rhine (''Armée du Rhin'') was one of the main French Revolutionary armies operated in the Rhineland theater, principally in the

valley, from 1791 to 1795. At its creation, the Army of the Rhine had 88,390 men. It was formed on 14 December 1791, to defend France's eastern frontier in conjunction with two other armies, the

Army of the North The Army of the North (), contemporaneously called Army of Peru (), was one of the armies deployed by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata in the Spanish American wars of independence. Its objective was freeing the Argentine Northwest a ...

and the Army of the Center (name changed in October 1792 to Army of the Moselle). These armies were subdivided, fresh forces were raised and gradually grew until, by 30 April 1793, eleven armies encircled France on its coastal and the land frontiers. In October 1792, a portion of the army was used to form the

Army of the Vosges The Army of the Vosges () was a volunteer force placed under the command of Giuseppe Garibaldi, formed in order to ensure the defense of the road to Lyon from the Prussian Army during the Franco-Prussian war. Background Garibaldi had led volunt ...

but these units rejoined the Army of the Rhine on 15 March 1793.

Song of Glory

In the first months of fighting, victories for France were few. Although Custine had succeeded in driving the ecclesiastical authorities from the Swiss village of Porrentruy by 27 April 1792, this singular victory was accomplished largely through the enterprises of a local uprising assisted by some advanced guard and it was the last French victory for several weeks: subsequently, the borders of France had been assaulted by the Habsburgs and their allies. At Mons (18–29 April 1792), Tournay (29 April 1792), Bavay (17 May 1792), Rumegies (19 May 1792),

Florennes Florennes (; ) is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality of Wallonia located in the Namur Province, province of Namur, Belgium. As of 1 January 2006, Florennes has a total population of 10,754. The total area is 133.55 km2 which gives a pop ...

28 May 1792, and La Glisuelle, a village north of

Maubeuge Maubeuge (; historical or ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department in northern France. It is situated on both banks of the Sambre (here canalized), east of Valenciennes and ab ...

(11 June 1792), Austrian skirmishers repeatedly defeated French forces. Although much of the spring and summer of 1792 action continued throughout in the border regions with Belgium, the cities along the Upper Rhine, especially the city of

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, felt under threat of invasion by the Habsburg armies massing on the east side of the Rhine River. On 25 April 1792, Philippe Friedrich Dietrich, mayor of

, asked a guest, Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, to compose a song to rally against the Habsburg threat. That evening, Rouget de Lisle wrote "Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin" (English: "War Song for the Army of the Rhine"), and dedicated the song to

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used fo ...

Nicolas Luckner, a

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

n in French service. The melody soon became the rallying call to the Revolution: ''Allons enfants de la Patrie'' (Arise, children of the Fatherland)/''Le jour de gloire est arrivé!'' (The day of glory has arrived!). It was renamed "

La Marseillaise "La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France. It was written in 1792 by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in Strasbourg after the declaration of war by the First French Republic against Austria, and was originally titled "". The French Na ...

Successes under Custine's command

The French government ordered Luckner to take command of the Army of the North, and Custine replaced him as overall commander of the Army of the Rhine in Spring 1793. Under his experienced command, the Army took several important positions on the Rhine, including at Speyer, Mainz, Limburg and Frankfurt (see chart of battles below).

Final reorganization

On 29 December 1794, the left wing of the Army and the right wing of the Army of the Moselle combined to form the Army besieging Mainz. The rest of the Army of the Moselle united with the Army of the Rhine on 20 April, to form the Army of the Rhine and Moselle. This army united with the

Army of Sambre-et-Meuse The Army of Sambre and Meuse () was a field army of the French Revolutionary Army. It was formed on 29 June 1794 by combining the Army of the Ardennes, the left wing of the Army of the Moselle and the right wing of the Army of the North. I ...

to form the Army of Germany on 29 September 1797.Orders of Battle show the same troops, under the amalgamation, reformed into these armies .

Principal battles

1793 Order of Battle

In its five-year history, the Army had several Orders of Battle. This is the OOB at the beginning of the 1793 campaign.

Right wing

* Column Munnier :*

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

::*1st and 2nd Battalions Haute-Saône ::*2nd Battalion Nièvre ::*4th Battalion Vosges ::*4th Battalion Seine-et-Oise ::*3rd Battalion Bas-Rhin ::*2nd Battalion Puy-de-Dôme ::*1st, 3rd Battalions Ain ::*3rd Battalion

Grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word ''grenade'') was historically an assault-specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in siege operation battles. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when ...

s de l'Indre-et-Loire ::*2nd Battalion Rhône-et-Loire :Total 20 battalions

Center

* Column Custine, positioned at

. :*Grenadiers (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th battalions) :*57th

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

Regiment (two battalions) :*62nd Infantry Regiment (one battalion) :*82nd Infantry Regiment (one battalion) :*National Guard ::*2nd Battalion Ain ::*4th Battalion Haut-Rhin ::*9th and 10th Battalions Haute-Saône ::*4th Battalion Calvados ::*10th Battalion Meurthe ::*2nd Battalion Républicque ::*1st Battalion Chasseurs républicains ::*3rd, 7th, and 8th Battalions Vosges ::*5th and 6th Battalions Bas-Rhin ::*1st Battalion Fédérés Nationaux ::*2nd Battalion Seine-et-Oise :*14th Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons) :*2nd Chasseurs à Cheval (light cavalry) (1 squadron) :*7th Chasseurs à Cheval(4 squadrons) :*10th Chasseurs à Cheval (5 squadrons) :Total 26 battalions, 12 squadrons

Left wing

Positioned at Bingen. :*1st Infantry Brigade Neuwinger :Brigade Houchard ::*7th Light Infantry Regiment (1st Battalion) ::*36th Infantry Regiment (1 battalion) ::*37th Infantry Regiment (1 battalion) ::National Guard ::*4th and 6th Battalions Jura ::*2nd Battalion Haute-Rhin ::*1st Battalion Seine-et-Loire ::*1st and 2nd Battalions Vosges :*8th Chasseurs à Cheval (4 squadrons) :2nd Brigade Gilot :*13th Infantry Regiment :*48th Infantry Regiment :*National Guard ::*1st Battalion Haute-Rhin ::*1st Battalion Bas-Rhin ::*1st Battalion Correze ::*3rd Battalion Nievre

Cavalry

* Beaurevoir :*2nd Chasseurs à Cheval (3 squadrons) :*2nd Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons :*3rd Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons) :*9th Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons) :*11th Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons) :*12th Cavalry Regiment (3 squadrons) :Total 22 squadrons

Reserves

:*Grenadiers (12 companies) :* 6th Battalion of Chasseurs :*2nd Infantry Regiment :*2nd Carbine Regiment (3 Squadrons) :*16th Dragoon Regiment (3 squadrons) :*National Guard ::*6th, 10th and 13 Battalions Vosges ::*5th Battalion de l'Eure ::*6th Battalion Calvados ::*12h Battalion Haute-Saône ::*Hussards de la Liberté (unknown ) ::*National Gendarmarie :Reserve totals 8 battalions, 12 squadrons, 2 platoons

Commanders

Stability of command of the Army of the Rhine reflected the overall chaos of the French Revolutionary governments, especially in the years 1791–1794. Four of the generals serving in those years were guillotined (see chart below).

Other incarnations

An army of the Bourbon Restoration bore this name. In 1815 during the

Hundred Days The Hundred Days ( ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition (), marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII o ...

the V Corps – ''Armée du Rhin'' under the command of General Jean Rapp, was cantoned near

Strassburg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, and fought holding actions against contingents of Russians and Austrians, the largest of which was the Battle of La Suffel on fought on 28 June 1815. This name was also used for the French military forces posted to Germany during the

Occupation of the Rhineland The Occupation of the Rhineland placed the region of Germany west of the Rhine river and four bridgeheads to its east under the control of the victorious Allies of World War I from 1December 1918 until 30June 1930. The occupation was imposed a ...

(1919–1930), following the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Related people

People known to have served in this Armée include: * General Baraguey d'Hilliers * General Custine * Antoine Marie Chamans de Lavalette * The utopian socialist

Charles Fourier François Marie Charles Fourier (; ; 7 April 1772 – 10 October 1837) was a French philosopher, an influential early socialist thinker, and one of the founders of utopian socialism. Some of his views, held to be radical in his lifetime, have be ...

(1794–1795) * General Victor Claude Alexandre Fanneau de Lahorie * Jean Théophile Victor Leclerc * General Louis-Théobald Ihler * General François-Joseph Offenstein * Captain Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle writer of

* General Charles Pichegru * Balthazar Alexis Henri Schauenburg

Notes

Sources

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