aaa i) OFFICERS and SOLDIERS of ‘Nils RENCE RIAN OAD 5. The Artillery Train, the Wagon Train, Administration, the Medical Service, Headquarters Staff AMBULANCE UO WAL UO HISTOIRE & COLLECTIONSOFFICERS and SOLDIERS of THE FRENCH IMPERIAL GUARD 1804-1815 Volume 5 The Artillery Train-The Wagon Train The Administration-The Medical Service The Headquarters Staff André JOUINEAU Alan McKAY HISTOIRE & COLLECTIONSTRAIN, ADMINISTRATION, MEDICAL SERVICE, HQ STAFF Volume 5 brings to an end our review of the Impe- rial Guard. We begin with the follow-up of the chap- ter on the Horse Artillery. We then look at the Arti lery Train (quite inseparable from the Artillery), and the Wagon Train, no less useful for the campaigning armies to function properly. We will also look at the non-combatant elements which though less prestigious, were absolutely vital for managing sup- plies and organising a campaigning army, thereby enabling it to be in full possession of its means. This is why the administration was a constant hea- dache for Napoleon—the military s are there to testify to this—even though his forecasts and orders did not actually always have the desired effect. Note that the Guard which at the end of the Empire had the strength of an army, was always well administered and was a model of organisa- tion. The Medical Service attached to the Guard whose two pillars, Larrey for the Guard and Percy for the Grand Amy, set the foundations of modern military medicine and its organisation. We end with the Headquarters Staff, an indispensable element for the conduct of all operations. The Horse Artillery This went back to the gunner companies in Bona- parte’s Guides during the Egyptian Campaign and, as a matter of course, entered the Consular Guard adopting a Hussar uniform, but blue for the Artil- lery. When it became the Artillery of the Guard, its uniform did not change, except for the orna- ments on the sabretache and later, on the sha- brack. The light artillery took part in all the Empire's campaigns, from Austria to Spain then Russia, Germany, France and finally, Waterloo. Although the Gribeauval equipment did not change very much during the Empire (except for the very par- tial reform applied in An XI), on the other hand more than twenty years’ experience and practice made artillery techniques progress enormously. The Artillery Train The Artillery Train, which had just been milita- 4 rised, entered the Consular Guard as the Light Attillery. Like the Artillery of the Guard its strength grew, particularly with the creation of the Foot Artillery and the great 1813 reorganisation. The Wagon Train ‘The Wagon Trains were officially created by Napo- leon during the Polish Campaign. Nevertheless, the Guard already had its own organisation: each regiment had its own wagons and drivers. The August 1811 Imperial Decree created the Wagon ‘Train, which centralised and reorganised all the Guard’s transport. It was also had to look after the supplies, the ambulances, the Engineers Corps’ tools and the transport of funds. Their numbers increased with the preparations for the invasi of Russia and were maintained until the Empire ended. The Administration ‘The Guard had its own administration organi- sed like the Grand Army's. It was divided into two main corps: the War Commissioners, whose job ‘was to supervise the Supply Corps and the Guard's hospital, and the Parade Inspectors, whose job was to watch over the organisation, the integra- tion and running of the men as a well as pay and accounting in each corps. Every year, the Guard was reviewed by the Inspector Generals who repor- ted on the strength and the movement of person- nel, clothing, equipment and weapons in order to find out what was going to be needed for the fol- lowing year. Lower down the under-inspectors reviewed each regiment quarterly. Guillaune Peyrusse, the Payer-General, received the funds from the Imperial Treasury to pay per- sonnel and war equipment-related expenses. He was assisted by Payer-Generals, Assistant-Payers and secretaries whose job was to keep a tally of the movement of funds and to supply the receipts needed for the expenses. The Administration Workers The Administration Workers were organised according to the decree dated 1 May 1806. There