Some
options for adding colour to a White army without having to paint the
elite "coloured" infantry (or pretend that they actually wore those
flash looking uniforms into combat).
Don Cossack 1st Horse Division
This is from Brigadier Williamson's "Farewell to the Don":
This
was my first view of an organised body of the celebrated Kalmuck
Cavalry, who, though Don Cossacks by naturalisation, were actually
members of the nomadic tribes who lived on the steppes near the river
Sal and the river Manytch. They were of Mongol appearance and Buddhists
by religion and they went in for horse breeding. Several of the
best-known horse-breeding stations in South Russia were in their
country and they fed their children a great deal on mares' milk, so
that when the Bolsheviks took away almost their entire horse stock from
them, they became very anti-Bolshevik in their sympathies. They were
excellent fighters and well-disciplined, but once they got out of hand
they were as cruel as any savage. The regiment was only about 400
strong, and their colonel, a youngish man with one of the most
extraordinary fierce and self-confident faces I have ever seen, was a
European type, though Kalmuck blood showed its presence in his
complexion and his narrow slanting eyes.
The Kalmuck Cossacks could always be
distinguished by the yellow band that they wore round their dark
blue-topped caps instead of the red band of the ordinary Don Cossacks,
while the Siberian Cossacks wore a pink band and those from the Urals a
mauve one. In the 1st Division, the two Guard regiments also had
distinctive caps, the Life Guard Cossacks having a red-topped on, and
the Ataman's bodyguard royal blue. All Cossacks wore wide stripes down
their riding breeches corresponding in colour to the cap band instead
of the narrow red piping of the rest of the Russian Army.
Owing to the shortage of horses, the
organisation of regiments was on the principle of three infantry
companies and one mounted sotnia with lances as well as swords, as the
Don Cossack is a lancer in contrast to the Caucasian who is a swordsman
only. Machine guns were run on the regimental system, each unit having
its own section, and this brigade had several rather useful-looking
limbers on which they were carried with special mountings on the seats,
so that they could be fired over standing corn or hay during the summer
fighting on the steppes. They had received no British uniform
whatsoever from the latest supply, and I saw a dozen or so old khaki
drill jackets in the entire company. Lewis guns had been issued to
them, however, though with only six spare drums to each weapon and no
tools, but they were never a popular weapon with the Russians, who
always clamoured for the Vickers.
Williamson is speaking from first hand experience, so is talking about
them wearing the coloured caps because he actually saw them doing so.
On 18 October the structure of the 3rd Don Corps included the
1st Don Horse Division:
Division Commander – Lt-Gen. Abramov
Chief of Staff – Col. Nikitin
Life Guard Brigade
Life Guard Cossack Regiment
–194 bayonets, 66 sabres, 8 MGs
Life Guard Ataman Regiment – 240 bayonets, 131 sabres, 9 MGs
2nd Brigade
3rd Kalmuck Horse Regiment
– 211 bayonets, 120 sabres, 6 MGs
4th Don Cossack Regiment – 298 bayonets, 180 sabres, 8 MGs
Horse Sapper Sotnia – 203 men
1st Don Horse Artillery Divizion
1st Don Horse Battery –
about 4 guns
2nd Don Horse Battery – about 4 guns
Checking uniform details against Williamson's description I find it entirely credible:
The
uniform of the Imperial Life Guard Cossacks
did indeed have red caps with blue bands and piping. Trousers in blue,
presumably with thick red stripes. Red shoulder-boards and furry hat
cloth.
I believe this is the
uniform of the Ataman Regiment,
which is indeed royal blue crown cap, with darker blue band and piping.
Trousers are blue, and with a thick royal blue stripe judging by the
parade uniform version. Royal blue shoulder-boards and furry hat cloth.
This is the
uniform for the Imperial 4th Don Cossacks,
standard dark blue caps with red bands and piping. Blue trousers with a
red stripe. Blue shoulder-boards with red piping and number. Red furry
hat cloth.
I presume the Kalmucks wore the
uniform of the Astrakhan Host,
since where the facing colour was yellow. So dark-blue cap with yellow
band and piping. Yellow trouser stripes, shoulder-boards and hat cloth.
For completeness in painting this division, we can also see the
Imperial Don Horse Artillery dress uniform. Standard artillery cap-band and shoulder-boards colours of black piped red. Otherwise as a normal Don cavalryman.
(These uniform pictures are taken from the 1910 list of Colonel Shenk and show, of course, the dress version, whereas
the field uniform was much more plain. The field shoulder-boards are at the bottom of each previous picture.)
It seems that during the RCW that the
Don Cossacks often wore coloured caps, trousers and shoulder-boards
with the standard khaki gimnastërka blouse, especially
officers. That is what the Osprey on the Whites shows its Don Cossack
as doing (although, given the mistakes in that book, perhaps it isn't
the greatest proof).
This would then seem to offer quite a lot of possibility to a gamer: a
nice mix of infantry, cavalry, tachankas and horse guns
– even engineers – in units that each have distinctly
different colours and which were mostly of good quality.
Attached
to the 3rd Don Corps there were armoured cars, armoured trains and heavy
artillery, and probably some aviation as well, so there is no problem
adding these into the mix. The Don even had some Whippet tanks, though
they didn't see a great deal of action.
Terek-Astrakhan Cossack Brigade
This is one of the units I have painted, because I wanted a mix of Cossack types, but that actually fought alongside each other.
On 4 September the
Separate Terek-Astrakhan Cossack Brigade is recorded in Volkov's Encyclopedia as operating independently:
Major-General K. K. Agoev
1st Terek Cossack Regiment
1st Astrakhan Cossack Regiment – Col. Illarionov
2nd Astrakhan Cossack Regiment
Reserve Astrakhan Cossack Divizion (probably two Sotnias)
Reserve Terek Cossack Sotnia
1st Terek-Astrakhan Cossack Horse-Artillery Divizion
I know that this unit was one of the few to be properly horsed at the
time of the breakout. It also operated with the famous "Wolves" of
Shkuro during the campaign.
Because it mixes the Caucasian uniform Terek Cossacks with the
khaki-clad Astrakhan units, it is quite a nice unit for a gamer –
all the more so since it is quite small.
For a while it was grouped with the
Combined Division,
which grouped a load of cadet units, which would potentially provide an
interesting infantry component to go with the Cossacks. Although the
soldiers were most unlikely to have been in anything other than khaki
(or British kit, perhaps) their officers might have some Alekseev or
Kornilov uniforms.
1st Alekseev Partisan Regiment
Kuban Military School Detachment
Kornilov Junker Brigade
Kuban Plastoon Regiment
Alekseev Artillery Divizion
I have another have another order of battle, from Slashchev-Krimskiy's
book "Crimea 1920, which includes the Terek-Astrakhan brigade. For 1
October 1920 it gives some numbers for the
2nd Kuban Cavalry Division:
Major-General A. M. Shifner-Markevich
1st Brigade – Major-General Agoev
1st Terek Horse Regiment – 600 sabres, 20 MGs
1st Astrakhan Horse Regiment – 600 sabres, 20 MGs
2nd Brigade – Colonel Petrov
2nd Combined Kuban Regiment – 200 bayonets, 200 sabres, 20 MGs
Wolves Horse Regiment – 400 sabres, 20 MGs
Separate [Terek-Astrakhan] Artillery Divizion – 3 batteries, 6 light guns
Agaiman Cavalry Unit [?] – 300 bayonets, 100 sabres – recruiting in Perekop
This gives the same nice mix of Terek, Astrakhan and Wolves, and even
throws in a few infantry. I'm not sure how reliable this last orbat is
though!
Composite Guard Divisions
Remnants of the former Imperial Guards formed an "composite" infantry
regiment and a "composite" cavalry regiment very early on in the
Volunteer Army. Each former guard regiment provided one
company/squadron to the regiment and zealously kept their history.
These soon grew until they were both large formations. This is the two units pretty much at their peak, September 1919.
2nd Cavalry Division
Division Commander – Col. I.M. Miklashevskiy
Chief of Staff – Col. B.M. Iordan
1st Brigade – Col. Danilov
1st Composite Guards Cuirassier Regiment – Col. Kossikovskiy
2nd Composite Guards Cavalry Regiment – Col. Gryaznov
2nd Brigade – Col. Baron Pritvits
2nd General Drozdovskiy Horse Regiment – Col. A.G. Chapron du Lare
3rd Horse Regiment – Col. Samsonov
3rd Brigade –
Composite Regiment of the Caucasus Cavalry Division – Col. Popov
Composite Dragoon Regiment – Col. Lermontov
Independent Divizion of Guards Horse Artillery – Col. Perfil'ev
I painted six squadrons for the 2nd Guards regiment –
with each being based on the uniform of a regiment in the second
brigade of the Imperial army Guard cavalry. This meant two units have
red caps, two dark blue and two dark green (I only piped the officers'
caps).
To go with them I painted the 2nd Drozdovskiy Regiment, which wore
British uniforms at the time (a bit of nice variety) and had red
breeches.
After the disastrous winter of 1919 the Guard Cavalry was once again reduced to regiment size.
Composite Guard Infantry Division (also sometimes called the 5th Infantry Division)
Division Commander – Maj-Gen. P.S. Ossovskiy
Chief of Staff – Col. Akhatkin
1st Brigade – Maj-Gen. Baron N.I. Shtackleberg
Composite Regiment of the 1st Guard Division – Maj-Gen. Moller
Composite Regiment of the 2nd Guard Division – Col. Stessel
Composite Regiment of the Guard Rifle Division
2nd Brigade
Composite Regiment of the 19th Infantry Division
Composite Regiment of the 20th Infantry Division
80th Kabardino Infantry Regiment
Reserve Battalion of the Composite Guard Division
Composite Guard Artillery Brigade – Maj-Gen. M. Bez-Kornilovich
1st Battery –
2nd Battery – Col. Plyushchinskiy
3rd Battery – Col. Abramovskiy
4th Battery –Col. Sax
Independent Artillery Battery – Col. Shpigel
Independent Guard Heavy Howitzer Battery – Col. Kazachinskiy
Guard Independent Engineer Company – Col. Beliy
The Composite Guard Infantry are less colourful, since all the caps are
dark green varied only by piping, but at least you get to have a full
name for each company/battalion! You also get pretty cool flags if you
assume that they kept their Imperial ones.
After Orel and the retreat of 1919 the Guards infantry were cut off in the Ukraine and forced into Poland (as part
of Bredov's March). They never really recovered.
The only annoying thing for me is that these two composite Guard units did not fight side-by-side.