Fusilier is a name given to various kinds of soldiers; its meaning depends on the historical context. While fusilier is derived from the 17th-century French word – meaning a type of flintlock musket – the term has been used in contrasting ways in different countries and at different times, including soldiers guarding artillery, various elite units, ordinary line infantry and other uses.
Derivation of the word The word fusil, which was the name of the type of musket carried by a fusilier, is itself derived from the Old French and Latin , meaning a piece of flint.Godefroy, Frédéric, (foisil)
History
Flintlock small arms were first used militarily during the early 17th century. Flintlocks, at the time, were more reliable and safer to use than matchlock muskets, which required a match to be lit near the breech before the weapon could be triggered. By contrast, flintlocks were fired using a piece of flint. By the time of the English Civil War (1642–1652), one flintlock musket, the snaphance, was in common use in Britain.
The term fusiliers was first used officially by the French Army in 1670, when four fusiliers were distributed among each company of infantry.Cathal J. Nolan, 2008, Wars of the Age of Louis XIV, 1650–1715, Westport, Conn.; Greenwood Press, p168. The following year the ("King's Fusiliers"), the first regiment composed primarily of soldiers with flintlocks, was formed by Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban.
Guarding and escorting artillery pieces was the first task assigned to the : flintlocks were especially useful around field artillery, as they were less likely than matchlocks to accidentally ignite open barrels of gunpowder, required at the time to load cannon. At the time, artillery units also required guards to maintain discipline amongst civilian draymen. Hence the term fusilier became strongly associated with the role of guarding artillery in Britain and the English-speaking world, especially after the formation of the first official "Fusilier" units, during the 1680s. As late as the Seven Years' War of 1756–1763, the Austrian Army maintained an Artillery Fusilier Regiment for the exclusive roles of providing support for field batteries on the battlefield and of protecting the artillery when on the march and in camp.
During the 18th century, as flintlocks became the main weapon used by infantry, the term fusilier gradually ceased to have this meaning and was applied to various units.
Fusiliers by country Belgium The Belgian Army has no specific regiment called fusiliers, but the general denomination for infantry soldiers is storm fusilier (; ).
The Belgian Navy used to have a regiment of marine infantry composed of in charge of the protection of the naval bases. However this unit was disbanded in the 1990s reforms.
Brazil Adopting a number of practices from the Portuguese military in the 19th century, the Brazilian Army uses the term (fusiliers) to designate the regular line infantry, as opposed to the grenadiers () and the light infantry ( and ). In addition, the Brazilian Marine Corps is called (Naval Fusiliers).
Canada There are five fusilier regiments, patterned on the British tradition, in the Canadian Army. The Royal 22nd Regiment, although not fusiliers, wears fusilier ceremonial uniform with scarlet plumes, because of its alliance with the Royal Welch Fusiliers.
The five current Canadian fusilier regiments are: The Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada (which wears Highland uniform, but with white fusilier hackles on balmoral bonnets) , white plume , white plume The Princess Louise Fusiliers (which wear a grey hackle as a token of their alliance with the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, now part of the Royal Irish Regiment) , white plume
Former Canadian Army fusilier regiments include the following:
The Irish Fusiliers of Canada (The Vancouver Regiment) existed in Vancouver, British Columbia, and served in the Canadian Army from 1913 until 1965 when it was reduced to nil strength and placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle. In 2002, it was taken off the Supplementary Order of Battle and amalgamated with the British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own). The Canadian Grenadier Guards in Montreal were known as the 1st Regiment "Prince of Wales' Fusiliers" before 1911. The Canadian Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) existed in London, Ontario, from 1866 until 1954 when they were amalgamated with The Oxford Rifles and became the London and Oxford Fusiliers (3rd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment) – now the 4th Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment. The Essex Scottish Regiment of Windsor, Ontario were first known as the Essex Fusiliers from 1887 until 1927. In 1954, they were amalgamated with The Kent Regiment to form The Essex and Kent Scottish. The Northern Pioneers when first raised in Parry Sound, Ontario in 1903 were first known as the 23rd Regiment "Northern Fusiliers" until they were renamed a year later. They now form part of The Algonquin Regiment (Northern Pioneers). The Saint John Fusiliers existed in Saint John, New Brunswick, from 1872 until 1946 when they were amalgamated with The New Brunswick Rangers to become The New Brunswick Scottish. They now form part of The Royal New Brunswick Regiment. The 88th Regiment (Victoria Fusiliers) existed in Victoria, British Columbia, from 1912 until 1920 when they amalgamated with the 50th Regiment (Gordon Highlanders of Canada) to become The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's). The 105th Regiment (Saskatoon Fusiliers) existed in Saskatoon from 1912 until 1920 when they were amalgamated with the 52nd Regiment Prince Albert Volunteers to form The North Saskatchewan Regiment (1920–1924). In 1924, The North Saskatchewan Regiment was later reorganised into four separate regiments: The Yorkton Regiment (now the 64th Field Battery, RCA), The Saskatoon Light Infantry, The Prince Albert Volunteers and The Battleford Light Infantry. They now form part of The North Saskatchewan Regiment. The Scots Fusiliers of Canada existed in Kitchener, Ontario, from 1914 until 1965 when they amalgamated with the Highland Light Infantry of Canada to form The Highland Fusiliers of Canada – later renamed as the Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada (see above).
France
By the mid-18th century, the French Army used the term fusiliers to designate ordinary line infantry, as opposed to specialist or élite infantry, such as grenadiers, , or .
The modern French Army no longer uses the term fusiliers, although a number of its infantry regiments descend from fusilier regiments.
The term fusiliers is still used in the navy and air force. They provide protection detachments, performing security and policing duties on land bases and installations as well as on ships. The commandos are selected from their ranks. The commandos are special forces units. They are: French Navy: (FORFUSCO) French Air Force:
Germany
Prussia made early use of the title for various types of infantry. In 1705, the foot guards () were designated as fusilier guards.Richard Knotel, page 121 Uniforms of the World, By 1737, low-quality infantry raised from garrison companies also were named fusiliers. These latter units were dressed in blue with low mitre caps. Between 1740 and 1743 Frederick the Great raised 14 separate fusilier regiments (numbers 33–40, 41–43 and 45–48).Albert Seaton. Frederick the Great's Army. . pp. 9, 24. Except for the mitre caps, these new regiments were identical in appearance, training and role to the existing line infantry (musketeers).
Subsequently, Prussia and several other German states used the designation to denote a type of light infantry, usually dressed in green and acting as skirmishers. In the Prussian Army, they had been formed in 1787 as independent battalions, with many of the officers having had experience in the American Revolutionary War. The Prussian reforms of 1808 absorbed the fusiliers into the third battalion of each line infantry regiment. Now wearing the same Prussian blue uniforms as standard musketeers, they were distinguished by black leather belts, and a slightly different arrangement of cartridge pouches.
In the Prussian Army of 1870, Infantry Regiments 33 to 40 plus Regiments 73 (Hanover), 80 (Hesse-Kassel) and 86 (Schleswig-Holstein) were all designated as fusiliers, as was the Guard Fusilier Regiment. In addition, the third battalions of all guard, grenadier and line infantry regiments retained the designation fusilier battalion. They were armed with a slightly shorter version of the Dreyse rifle (), that took a sword bayonet () rather than the standard socket bayonet. Although still theoretically skirmishers, in practice they differed little from their compatriots, as all Prussian infantry fought in a style that formed a dense 'firing' or 'skirmish' line.
By the 1880s, the title was honorific and, while implying 'specialist' or 'elite', did not have any tactical significance. In a sense, all infantry were becoming fusiliers, as weapons, tactics and equipment took on the fusilier characteristics, that is: skirmish line, shorter rifles, sword bayonets, black leather equipment, and the use of bugles (rather than drums) to relay commands. Nonetheless, these titular units remained in existence until the end of the German Imperial Army in 1918, as follows:
Guard Fusilier Regiment Fusilier Regiment Count Roon (East Prussian) No. 33 Fusilier Regiment Queen Victoria of Sweden (Pomeranian) No. 34 Fusilier Regiment Prince Henry of Prussia (Brandenburg) No. 35 Fusilier Regiment General Field Marshal Count Blumenthal (Magdeburg) No. 36 Fusilier Regiment von Steinmetz (West Prussian) No. 37 Fusilier Regiment Field Marshal Count Moltke (Silesian) No. 38 Lower Rhineland Fusilier Regiment No. 39 Fusilier Regiment Prince Charles Anton of Hohenzollern No. 40 Fusilier Regiment Field Marshal Prince Albert of Prussia (Hanoverian) No. 73 Fusilier Regiment von Gerdsdorff (Electoral Hessian) No. 80 Fusilier Regiment Queen (Schleswig-Holstein) No. 86 Grand-Ducal Mecklenburg Fusilier Regiment No. 90 Fusilier Regiment Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria King of Hungary (4th Royal) Württemberg No. 122
In addition, there was the following regiment:
Royal Saxon (Fusilier) Regiment Prince George No. 108
This was a special case, as it was also classed as (sharpshooter): this designation originally signified a type of (rifleman, literally 'hunter'), and thus the regiment wore the -style dark green uniform.
The various fusilier regiments and battalions in the German Imperial Army of 1914 did not have any distinctive dress or equipment to distinguish them as fusiliers. Individual regiments did, however, have special features worn with the dark blue full dress. Some of these features were maintained on the field grey dress of the trenches right up to 1918. As examples in full dress, the Guard Fusiliers had nickel buttons and yellow shoulder straps, and the 80th Fusiliers special braiding on collars and cuffs (deriving from their origin as the Elector of Hesse's Guards). When a regiment was permitted the distinction of a horse-hair plume on the pickelhaube, for fusiliers it was always black. This included the third (fusilier) battalion of those regiments normally distinguished by a white horse-hair plume.
In World War II, the elite contained a regiment honorifically titled ('Armoured Fusiliers'), organised identically to its sister regiment within the division. Later in the war, a number of infantry divisions had a fusilier battalion or regiment attached to them, which was to act as a bicycle-mounted reconnaissance or reserve, but were otherwise equipped and used largely the same as regular infantry. Currently, the has no units bearing the 'fusilier' title.
Mexico On 1 January 1969, the Mexican Army created the Parachute Fusilier Brigade () with two infantry battalions and a training battalion. The brigade's role is that of a strategic reserve, based in Mexico City.
Netherlands