No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
}} | }} | ||
==Background== | |||
Only since King Christian IV's Kalmar War (1611-1613) has Denmark had a peace time army. Prior to this, the King relied upon the nobility to furnish from the peasantry the necessary troops for the various wars. In 1614, from his own royal estates, Christian IV raised the first permanent troops, from which some of the present Danish Army Regiments trace their beginnings. | Only since King Christian IV's Kalmar War (1611-1613) has Denmark had a peace time army. Prior to this, the King relied upon the nobility to furnish from the peasantry the necessary troops for the various wars. In 1614, from his own royal estates, Christian IV raised the first permanent troops, from which some of the present Danish Army Regiments trace their beginnings. | ||
| Line 62: | Line 62: | ||
For additional details, and specific locations of units, see the annexes covering the specific units as well as the historical supplement on "Garrisons" in the 1925 "Haandbog for Hæren" (FHL call no. 948.9 M23k). | For additional details, and specific locations of units, see the annexes covering the specific units as well as the historical supplement on "Garrisons" in the 1925 "Haandbog for Hæren" (FHL call no. 948.9 M23k). | ||
==The Regimental Records== | |||
Essentially, the regimental records of all branches of the army were the same. Only in minor details will the other services differ from the infantry, which records we will use as an example. | |||
The most important records are the '''regimental muster rolls (stambøger)'''. While in the earlier periods the whole regiment is often included in one book, in the 1800s the tendency was to have a separate book for each company. Commonly, there may be found periods in which both types were maintained. The keeping of these records became compulsory with the army regulations of 1746. However, they have only been preserved, as a rule, from 1765 or later. Although the 1746 regulations required an index to be kept for the muster roll, it was very seldom done. | |||
Each man was listed with information pertaining to his name, birthplace, age, religion, marital and family status, previous military service, and re-enlistments. His record also carried several purely military items, such as his company identification number, punishment record, etc. Because the birthplace was usually given only as a county or region such as "Fyen", "Saxony", "Holstein", etc., one should investigate ''all'' references to a person in ''all'' records of that particular regiment. Often at other times, additional information was given including actual birthplaces, such as "Berlin", "Haderslev", "Odense", etc. The age given in most cases was that of the individual when he joined that particular regiment. | |||
When the muster rolls are missing, several other regimental records can supplement them, who of which are the '''enlistment and discharge books (Til-og af Bøger)''' and the '''commission books (Kommission Bøger)'''. (The latter were made when the regiment received a new chief.) Both show essentially the same information as the muster rolls. The enlistment records of the 1800s refer to the levied men, and show the references to the levying rolls from which they were called up. Those in the earlier 1700s, of course, are nearly all recruits, and often indicate where the enlistment took place. In the 1780s to 1800s, often both types of records will be found. | |||
Further, the '''report and company catalogs (Rapport Bøger and Listebøger)''' give some of the previously mentioned essentials. Other records have fewer items of genealogical material. (See Haandbog i Slaegtsforskning pp 258-261) (1942 Edition); (FHL Ref. 929.1 F115h 1933 Edition pp 261 following). | |||
Regrettably, many of the title pages to the regimental records were not photographed, and one must guess many times as to what type of record he is searching. | |||
One of the most confusing problems encountered is the proper identification of the regiment to which a man belonged. The designation at FamilySearch is the name used in 1842 or when the unit was disbanded. A list of the various names and their changes has been worked out by the Danish Army Archive. A somewhat comparable list has been partially worked out (see annexes of specific units and above reference). | |||
Most of the cavalry regiments had a relatively stable identification name after 1763. While the types of cavalry designation would change, the identification name rarely did. Prior to that year, the designations are much more complicated as many regiments had both a number (which sometimes changed) as well as a name (which may also have changed). Many regiments in their earlier periods were known by their commander or chief, and this would change with a new appointment. This characteristic is true also of the infantry. | |||
The infantry regiments are even more difficult to keep track of. Various naming systems were used. Two regiments essentially kept their names, viz. the "Life Guards" and the "Queen's Regiment." Some had royal designations which would change in a specific pattern. | |||
An example of this is the change in name of the then-designated "Fyenish Regiment" in 1749 to the "Crown Prince Regiment" when Crown Prince Christian became its chief. When Christian became king in 1766, the name was changed to the "King's Regiment." When he died in 1808, it changed to the "Crown Regiment." When his successor, King Frederick VI died in 1839, the name became the "Third Life Regiment." | |||
Most of the other regiments carried names of parts of the Danish territories, but often changed their names whenever a change in garrison was made. Fortunately, the name changes of these regiments was made in groups, so that no duplication of names occurred. All these units, except the "Life Guards", lost both their names and regimental designations in 1842, when they were all changed into numbered battalions or rifle corps (which later became numbered battalions). These designations were kept until 1951 when named regiments again appeared for the old units. | |||
The artillery and the engineers have had relatively simple designations, carrying the names of the area in which they were garrisoned. Only the titles of "Danish" for those in Copenhagen, etc., "Holstein" for those in Rendsburg, etc., and "Norwegian" for all those in Norway (all of which were lost in 1814), were used at all. | |||
[[Category:Denmark Military Records]] | [[Category:Denmark Military Records]] | ||
edits