There were lots of foreign military forces in French service. A special place among them belongs to the Battalion of Neuchatel. This foreign formation actually represented all the armed forces of the Principality of Neuchâtel (Switzerland).
This Principality was created and donated to Marshal Alexander Berthie for his merits to the French Empire in March 1807. The Marshal also received the title of Prince of Neuchâtel and Vallengen.
The Battalion of the Neuchatel Principality was formed on May 11th, 1807, by Napoleon's decree. In May 1808 it consisted of 25 officers and 762 other ranks. Battalion's servicemen came from Neuchatel, Valais and other regions of Switzerland. One artillery company of two six-pound guns was added to the Battalion tpgether with engineers and train. The battalion wore uniforms of the colors of Marshal Berthie's coat of arms: yellow and blue. Because of this the battalion got a nickname of "the canaries”.
The battalion received its baptism of fire at the Battle of Wagram in 1809. In 1810-1811 "the canaries" fought in the Iberian Peninsula in Spain.
On June 15, 1812 the battalion arrived at the depot located in the town of Besancon. There they received new uniforms and replenished their ranks after Spain. Then the Battalion joined the Russian campaign.
On August 31, 1812, at the time when the Neuchatel battalion crossed the borders of the Russian Empire it had 16 officers and 484 other ranks. The battalion was under the command of Jean Frederic de Bossey. The headquarters of the Grand Armee, to which the battalion had been attributed, was already located in Moscow, and the battalion arrived there on October 8th. For the first time in Russia the soldiers took part in the battle at Vyazma on November 3rd.
To reinforce the Battalion, 7 enlisted men joined the first marching battalion of the 9th Army Corps that left Berlin on August 20th, 1812. After they had arrived in Smolensk the formation now had 16 officers and 467 other ranks.
Despite the fact that the battalion was assigned to the Army’s Headquarters, it practically ceased to exist after the winter of 1812. Only 23 men, including officers, managed to survive the Russian campaign.
Buttons of the Neuchatel battalion of the French army.
Buttons were produced by casting in metal molds. On the front side in the center there is the inscription:"BATALION DE NEUCHATEL". On top of the circle there is another inscription: "EMPIRE FRANCAIS". At the bottom the desine is completed by two branches separated by a dot.
The most common findings on the former camp sites are tunic buttons with numbers of the regiments of the Grand Army. It is also a fact that buttons and other metal parts can be found on trees and in remains of houses where thay stood in 1812. Only a few of such finfings are known. They were found in Stakhovsky woods, in Vitebsk region and near Oshmyany.
Regimental buttons of "BATALION DE NEUCHATEL" can be very rarely found on former battlefields and along the route of the retreat, so I think that on a scale of rarity 0 - 5 they can really get 5 point. The buttons of a smaller diameter were never found. All the items made of tin are "sick" with the so-called "tin pest". Tin buttons and other items of uniforms made of tin just desintegrate and become completely inaccessible for historians and collectors. Not even one officer’s button have been found in Russia, and one can evaluate their rarity only theoretically.
Metall Tin Alloy
Size 19 mm - Small and 25 mm Large
Here is the uniform of an officer of the battalion Neuchâtel. These buttons are made of several parts. Silver lining with a picture and the inscription in the center: "BATALION DE NEUSHATEL". Top in a circle is written: "EMPIRE FRANCAIS". Bottom completes the composition two branches separated by a dot. Base 5 - th holes for fixing to his uniform made of wood or bone.
Metall silver plate on wood or bone
Size 19 mm
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