List of Regiments of the Army of the Kingdom of Naples (Napoleonic)

Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Naples under Joachim Murat.

The Army of the Kingdom of Naples was, by the time's standards, a relatively sizeable force. At its height in 1815, it numbered close to 95,000 men. This large formation was modelled heavily on the French Grande Armée, and although the success of its service in the Peninsular War is questionable, the Neapolitan Army is still remembered as one of the better-organised examples of armies from Napoleon's client states.

Below is a mostly complete (with a few obscure exceptions) list of various units serving in the Murattian Neapolitan Army in the Napoleonic Wars. The units are listed by their respective army branches, i.e. Guard infantry and engineers. It must be noted that all of the regiments and units pertaining to the Guard had the phrase "della Guardia Reale" (Italian: 'of the Royal Guard') after their official name, to indicate their status as part of the Royal Household Guard.

Royal Guard

Regimental flag of the Neapolitan Guard Grenadiers.

Guard Infantry

In 1815, the Guard Infantry Division totalled 57 companies organised into 4 regiments (9 battalions) and totalled 8,135 men.

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Major Nationalities (other than Neapolitan) — if applicable	Notes
Regiment of Foot Grenadiers	Reggimento di Granatieri a Piedi	11 July 1806	20 May 1815	French, German and "other foreigners"	Personal Guard of the King of Naples. Modelled on the French Old Guard.
1st Regiment of Vélités of Foot	1° Reggimento di Veliti a Piedi	15 July 1811	May 1815		Originally formed as the Vélité Hunters converted 15 July 1811 as Foot Velites, thereby becoming the 1st Velites.
2nd Regiment of Vélités of Foot	2° Reggimento di Veliti a Piedi	15 July 1811	May 1815		Converted from the old Guard Voltigeurs in 1811.
Regiment of Vélité-Hunters	Reggimento Veliti Cacciatori	22 September 1808	15 July 1811		Originally formed as the Company of Chosen Civic Hunters in 1806, and expanded to a regiment in 1808 after their conversion. Became the 1st Regiment of Velites of Foot on 15 July 1811.
Voltigeur Battalion	Battaglione Volteggiatori	30 May 1806	15 July 1811	French	Disbanded in 1811 following the reorganisation of the guard. Re-raised in 1814, but the lineage wasn't transferred (see 12th Line below under Infantry and Voltigeur Regiment)
Regiment of Voltigeurs	Reggimento di Volteggiatori	29 September 1814	May 1815		Formed as the 12th Infantry Regiment, later converted to the Guard Voltigeurs. See 12th Infantry under "Line Infantry" for more information.
Company of Chosen Civilian Hunters	Compagnia Caccciatori Civici Scelti	1806	22 September 1808		Formed as a civilian unit, then transferred to the Guard, and finally expanded in 1808 into the Regiment of Velite Hunters.

Guard Cavalry

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Major Nationalities (other than Neapolitan) — if applicable	Notes
Regiment of Honour Guards	Reggimento delle Guardie d'Onore	5 August 1809	10 March 1813		Redesignated as the Regiment of Life Guards in 1813.
Regiment of Life Guards	Reggimento Guardie del Corpo	10 March 1813	28 July 1814		Redesignated back as the Honour Guards, soon reduced to a company and the remainder of the companies sent to the Guard Lancers Regiment.
Regiment of Lancers	Reggimento dei Lancieri	1 October 1814	May 1815		Formed from the three squadrons initially intended for the Honour Guards Regiment.
Regiment of Cuirassiers	Reggimento Corazzieri	18 March 1813	May 1815
Regiment of Chevaulegers	Reggimento Cavalleggeri	30 July 1806	10 July 1808	French	Raised as an early, impromptu cavalry regiment in Joseph's army in 1806 from French cavalrymen. Eventually disbanded in 1808.
Regiment of Chevaulegers	Reggimento Cavallegeri	6 September 1808	May 1815	Berg (German)	Raised as the Regiment of Berg Lancers, later transferred to the Neapolitan Guard. Not to be confused with the other Chevauleger regiment mentioned above; although these two bore the same name, they did not exist during the same time at once.
Regiment of Hussars	Reggimento Ussari	11 April 1813	May 1815		Raised from the Mounted Velites.
Regiment of Mounted Velites	Reggimento Veliti a Cavallo	22 September 1808	11 April 1813		Originally designated as a Corps rather than a regiment.
Company of Mounted Velites of Clary	Compagnia Veliti a Cavallo Clary	22 November 1806	September 1808		Raised as an independent bodyguard for Marie Julie Clary, King Joseph Bonaparte's wife. Later merged with the Tascher Cavalry to form the Corps of Mounted Velites.
Selected Squadron of Gendarmerie	Squadrone Gendarmeria Scelta	30 September 1806	18 March 1813		Initially raised as a Corps of Elite Gendarmerie. Only used for military police duty.

Supporting Arms

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
Royal Halderbiers of Naples	Alabardieri Reali di Napoli			Formed as palace guards for King Joseph Bonaparte.
Battalion of Veterans	Battaglione dei Veterani	21 April 1809	May 1815	Originally a company; created for invalids and old soldiers unfit for active service.
Royal Guard Sailors Battalion	Battaglione Marinai	30 September 1806	10 July 1808
Horse Artillery of the Royal Guard	Artiglieria a Cavallo della Guardia	22 September 1809	May 1815	Regiment sized
Foot Artillery of the Royal Guard	Artiglieria a piedi della Guardia Reale	30 September 1806	10 July 1809	Later expanded into two separate artillery regiments.
Artillery Train of the Royal Guard	Treno di Artiglieria (della Guardia Reale)	30 September 1806	May 1815

Cavalry of the Line

During the 1813 reorganisation of the Neapolitan Army, the light cavalry were converted to line cavalry.

Light Cavalry

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
1st Regiment of Horse Hunters	1° Cacciatori a Cavallo	18 February 1806	10 March 1813	Reorganised into the 1st Regiment of Chevaulegers
2nd Regiment of Horse Hunters	2° Cacciatori a Cavallo	4 June 1806	10 March 1813	Reorganised into the 2nd Regiment of Chevaulegers

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
1st Regiment of Chevaulegers	1° Reggimento Cavallegeri	25 December 1810	10 March 1813	Transferred to become the 3rd, and remade from the men of the old 1st Horse Hunters
2nd Regiment of Chevaulegers	2° Reggimento Cavallegeri	10 March 1813	May 1815	Formed from the old 2nd Horse Hunters
3rd Regiment of Chevaulegers	3° Reggimento Cavallegeri	10 March 1813	May 1815	Formed from the old 1st Cavalry Regiment
4th Regiment of Chevaulegers	4° Reggimento Cavallegeri	7 July 1814	10 March 1813
Municipal Guard Squadron of Naples	Squadrone Guardia Municipale di Napoli	26 September 1809	25 December 1810

Infantry of the Line

Line Infantry

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Title (if any)	Notes
1st Regiment of the Line	1° Reggimento di Linea	13 June 1806	1811	"del Re"	Formed during Joseph's reign.
2nd Regiment of the Line	2° Reggimento di Linea	13 June 1806	1811	"della Regina"	Formed during Joseph's reign.
3rd Regiment of the Line	3° Reggimento di Linea	10 March 1809	May 1815	"del Principe Real"	Raised by decree of Murat in 1809.
4th Regiment of the Line	4° Reggimento di Linea	27 August 1809	May 1815	"Real Sannita"	Raised by decree of Murat in 1809.
5th Regiment of the Line	5° Reggimento di Linea	12 September 1809	May 1815	"Real Calabria"	First regiment to receive a title.
6th Regiment of the Line	6° Reggimento di Linea	10 December 1810	May 1815	"di Napoli"
7th Regiment of the Line	7° Reggimento di Linea	17 December 1810	1812	"Real Africano"	Formed from the "Corpo Reale Africano", a Negro unit from Saint-Domingue in French service
8th Regiment of the Line	8° Reggimento di Linea	14 October 1811	1814	"Principe Luciano"	Made up from the two Neapolitan battalions serving in Spain and the remnants of the 2nd Light Regiment at Saragossa
9th Regiment of the Line	9° Reggimento di Linea	28 June 1813	May 1815		Raised from the "Reggimento Provvisorio".
10th Regiment of the Line	10° Reggimento di Linea	8 March 1814	May 1815
11th Regiment of the Line	11° Reggimento di Linea	3 May 1814	May 1815
12th Regiment of the Line	12° Reggimento di Linea	29 June 1814	29 September 1814	"della Marca"	Brought into the Royal Guard in September 1814 as the Regiment of Voltiegeurs, later reformed out of Italian veterans.
Neuchatel Battalion	Battaglione Neuchatel	4 October 1808	19 May 1815		Formed in 4 October of Swiss Mercenaries who enlisted in Neapolitan Service.
MacDonald's Elite Regiment	Reggimento scelto MacDonald	12 January 1813	10 June 1813		Formed through the remnants of the Neapolitan troops in the Grande Armée for service in Germany under command of General Macdonald. It was formed from all of the elite companies of the Neapolitan regiments (5th, 6th and 7th line) serving in Germany and the Marines of the Guard.

Light Infantry

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Major Nationality (other than Neapolitan) — if applicable	Notes
Royal Corsican Legion	Legione Real Corso	30 June 1806 (transferred from French service)	16 February 1813	Corsican	Formed from the French "Legion Corse".
1st Light Infantry Regiment	1° Reggimento Leggero	16 February 1813	May 1815	Corsican	Formed from the old Corsican regiment, designated as a formal light infantry regiment.
2nd Light Infantry Regiment	2° Reggimento Leggero	16 February 1806	May 1815		Originally the 1st Light Regiment - during the reorganisation of 1813, it was redesignated as the 2nd.
3rd Light Infantry Regiment	3° Reggimento Leggero	16 February 1806	May 1815		Originally the 2nd Light Regiment - during the reorganisation of 1813, it was redesignated as the 3rd.
4th Light Infantry Regiment	4° Reggimento Leggero	20 February 1812	May 1815		Originally a provisional light infantry regiment, reorganised into the 4th Light Regiment in 1813.

Reserve Units

In 1815, the Army of the Reserve numbered 91 companies split into various gendarmerie and police legions and units.

Provincial Infantry

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
Provincial (District) Chosen Companies	Compagnie Scelte Provinciali (Distrettuali)	12 June 1812
Provincial Battalions	Battaglioni Provinciali	10 January 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War
1st Provincial Regiment of the Line	1° Reggimento Provvisori di Linea	March 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War
2nd Provincial Regiment of the Line	2° Reggimento Provvisori di Linea	March 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War
3rd Provincial Regiment of the Line	3° Reggimento Provvisori di Linea	March 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War
4th Provincial Regiment of the Line	4° Reggimento Provvisori di Linea	March 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War
5th Provincial Regiment of the Line	5° Reggimento Provvisori di Linea	March 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War

Royal Gendarmerie

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
1st Legion (of Naples)	1° Legione di Napoli	3 March 1809	13 September 1816	Formed through the expansion of the old Legion of Naples
2nd Legion (of Bari)	2° Legione di Bari	3 March 1809	13 September 1816	Formed through the expansion of the old Legion of Naples and the Legion of Foggia.
3rd Legion (of Salerno)	3° Legione di Salerno	3 March 1809	13 September 1816	Formed through the expansion of the old Legion of Naples
Legion of Naples	Legione di Napoli	5 January 1808	3 March 1809	Formed through the merger of the old 1st and 2nd Legions
Calabrian Armiger Hunters	Armigeri Cacciatori Calabresi	16 April 1807		Formed to combat brigands and rebels in Calabria
Auxiliary Gendarmerie	Gendarmeria Ausiliaria	23 November 1807		Originally formed as the Royal Armigers to combat brigands.
Provincial Infantry Companies	Compagnie Provinciali di Fanteria	4 May 1810
Gendarmerie of the Royal Navy	Gendarmeria Reale di Marina	30 March 1810

Provincial Legions

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded
Provincial Legion of Central Calabria	Legione Provinciale Calabria Citra	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Upper Calabria	Legione Provinciale Calabria Ultra	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Central Abruzzo	Legione Provinciale Abruzzo Citra	15 May 1806	May 1815
1st Provincial Legion of Upper Abruzzo	Legione Provinciale Abruzzo Ultra I	15 May 1806	May 1815
2nd Provincial Legion of Upper Abruzzo	Legione Provinciale Abruzzo Ultra II	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Molise	Legione Provinciale Molise	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Casilicata	Legione Provinciale Basilicata	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Capitanata	Legione Provinciale Capitanata	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Bari	Legione Provinciale di Bari	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Otranto	Legione Provinciale d'Otranto	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Naples	Legione Provinciale Napoli	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Lavoro	Legione Provinciale di Lavoro	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of the Upper Principality	Legione Provinciale Principato Ultra	15 May 1806	May 1815
Provincial Legion of Central Principality	Legione Provinciale Principato Citra	15 May 1806	May 1815
Civic Regiment of Circeo	Reggimento Civico del Circeo	1809	May 1815
National Guard of Benevento	Guardia Nazionale di Benevento	1813	1814
Departmental Legion of the Tronto	Legione Dipartimentale del Tronto	1814	May 1815
Departmental Legion of the Musone	Legione Dipartimentale del Musone	1814	May 1815
Departmental Legion of the Metauro	Legione Dipartimentale del Metauro	1814	May 1815
National Guard of the King	Guardia Nazionale del Re	1814 & 1815	May 1815

Provisional Units

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
Italian Volunteers Brigade	Brigata Volontari Italiani	April 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War.
Calabrian Free Corps	Corpo Francho Calabrese	September 1806	April 1808	Formed as a counter-brigand/insurgency unit in Calabria.
Regiment of Veterans	Reggimento Veterani	22 December 1806	May 1815	Originally designated as a Corps.
Mountain Hunters Battalion of the Principality of Citra	Battaglione Cacciatori di Montagna del Principato Citra	4 October 1806	25 August 1809
Selected Battalion of Italian Officers	Battaglione Scelto degli Ufficiali Italiani	April 1815	May 1815	Formed for service in the Neapolitan War from officers of the defunct Kingdom of Italy.
Franca Guides of Abruzzi	Compagnia Franca Guide degli Abruzzi	5 September 1806	26 March 1808
Franche Voltigeurs of Abruzzi	Compagnie Franche Volteggiatori Abruzzesi	18 December 1806	1807

Supporting Arms

Artillery

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
1st Regiment of Foot Artillery	1° Reggimento di Artiglieria a Piedi	December 1810	May 1815	Formed from the old Foot Artillery Regiment
2nd Regiment of Foot Artillery	2° Reggimento di Artiglieria a Piedi	5 January 1814	May 1815	Formed through the expansion of the old 1st Foot Artillery
Regiment of Foot Artillery	Reggimento Artiglieria a Piedi	31 July 1806	December 1810	Formed from the expansion of the old Artillery Companies.
Companies of Artillery	Compagnie d'Artiglieri	March 1806	July 1806	Expanded to form the new Regiment of Artillery in 1806

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded
Artillery Companies of Castelnuovo
1st Artillery Company	1° Compagnia Artiglieri	11 March 1806	May 1815
2nd Artillery Company	2° Compagnia Artiglieri	14 July 1813	May 1815
1st Company of Gunsmiths	1a Compagnia di Armaioli	16 December 1808	May 1815
Artillery Companies of Castelnuovo
2nd Company of Gunsmiths	2a Compagnia di Armaioli	30 October 1809	May 1815
3rd Company of Gunsmiths	3a Compagnia di Armaioli	30 October 1809	May 1815
Coastal Artillery Companies
Gaeta Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Gaeta	18 August 1807	May 1815
Baia Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Baia	18 August 1807	May 1815
Pozzuoli Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Pozzuoli	18 August 1807	May 1815
Castellammare Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Castellammare	18 August 1807	May 1815
Sorrento Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Sorrento	18 August 1807	May 1815
Salerno Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Salerno	18 August 1807	May 1815
Calabrian Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Calabria	18 August 1807	May 1815
Taranto Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Taranto	18 August 1807	May 1815
Otranto Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Otranto	18 August 1807	May 1815
Bari Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Bari	18 August 1807	May 1815
Manfredonia Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria di Manfredonia	18 August 1807	May 1815
Pescara Company	Compagnia di Artiglieria diP escara	18 August 1807	May 1815

Artillery Train & Supply

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
Artillery Train Regiment	Reggimento del Treno d'Artiglieria	26 May 1814	May 1815	Formed through the merger of the 1st and 2nd Artillery Train battalions
1st Battalion of the Artillery Train	1° Battaglione del Treno d'Artiglieria	30 July 1807	26 May 1814	Formed through the expansion and merger of the Compagnies of the Artillery Train
2nd Battalion of the Artillery Train	2° Battaglione del Treno d'Artiglieria	2 December 1813	26 May 1814
Companies of the Artillery Train	Compagnia del Treno d'Artiglieria	7 October 1806	30 July 1807	Expanded to form the 1st Artillery Train Battalion
Company of Military Equipment	Compagnia di Equipaggi Militari	21 May 1813	2 December 1813

Engineers & Miners

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded	Notes
Regiment of Sappers and Miners	Reggimento Zappatori e Minatori	26 May 1814	May 1815	Formed through the merger of the 1st and 2nd battalions of sappers and miners
1st Battalion of Sappers and Miners	1° Battaglione Zappatori e Minatori	21 April 1809	26 May 1814	Formed through the expansion of the old Sappers and Miners Companies
2nd Battalion of Sappers and Miners	2° Battaglione Zappatori e Minatori	2 April 1814	26 May 1814
Sappers and Miners Companies (6 coys)	Compagnia Minatori e Zappatori	25 July 1806	21 April 1809	Expanded and grouped together to form the 1st Battalion of Sappers and Miners
7th Company of Sappers	7° Compagnia Zappatori	25 December 1810	1814	Formed for service in Corfu, French Ionian Islands

Internal Security Guard

English Name	Italian Name	Formation Date	Disbanded
Civic Guard of Naples	Guardia Civica di Napoli	15 July 1806	8 November 1808
Selected Volunteers of the City of Naples	Volontari Scelti della Città di Napoli	16 June 1809	31 July 1809
Home Security Guard	Guardia d'Interna Sicurezza	18 March 1813	May 1815

References

• Colletta, Pietro (1847). Storia della campagna d'Italia del 1815 (in Italian). Napoli: Gianini e Fiore.
• Crociani, Piero (1987). L'Esercito Napoletano 1806/1815: Fanteria di Linea (in Italian). Milano: Editrice Militare Italiana.
• Elting, John R. (2000). Napoleonic Uniforms: Volume III. Rosemont, Ill: Emperor's Press. ISBN 978-1-88-347622-9.
• Smith, Digby (2018). Murat's Army: The Army of the Kingdom of Naples 1806-1815. Solihull: Helion Limited. ISBN 978-1-912-39009-0.

• Crociani, Pietro (2016), L'Esercito del Regno Napoletano: The Army of the Kingdom of Naples, 1806-1815, Soldiershop

• V. Ilari, P. Crociani, G. Boeri, Storia Militare del Regno Murattiano 1806-15, Widerholdt Frères, Invorio, 2007, vol. I (Comando e Amministrazione), II (Armi e Corpi dell'Esercito), III (Gendarmeria, Legioni Provinciali, Marina, Indice biografico).
• Virgilio Ilari, Piero Crociani e Ciro Paoletti, Storia militare dell'Italia giacobina (1796-1801), Roma, USSME, 2000, II ("La guerra Peninsulare": «Il nuovo esercito napoletano, 1799-1802», pp. 1131–1153; «I francesi sulle coste italiane, 1800-02», pp. 1155–1173).
• Smith, Digby (1998). The Greenhill Napoleonic wars data book. London Mechanicsburg, PA: Greenhill Books Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-1-85367-276-7. OCLC 37616149.
• Smith, Digby (2006). An illustrated encyclopedia of uniforms of the Napoleonic wars : an expert, in-depth reference to the officers and soldiers of the revolutionary and Napoleonic period, 1792-1815. London Lanham, Md: Lorenz North American agent/distributor, National Book Network. ISBN 978-0-7548-1571-6. OCLC 60320422.