Cuirassier - Franco-Prussian War

Franco-Prussian War

The last occasion in which cuirassiers played a major tactical role as shock cavalry wearing traditional armour, was to be the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. The French cuirassiers numbered 11 regiments at the outbreak of war but had not seen active service since the Battle of Waterloo. A brigade comprising the 6th and 9th Regiments had served in the Crimean War but had not actually encountered the enemy. Accordingly the prospect of action against the Prussian Army, which included 10 cuirassier regiments of its own was seen as an opportunity for a strongly traditional branch of the French cavalry to prove its continuing relevance. In the event, in a series of massed charges against Prussian infantry and artillery at Froeschwiller and Rezonville, the French cuirassiers suffered very heavy losses for little return. ar