French Royal Army

French Royal Army
Active1652–1792
1814–1815
1815–1830
Country Kingdom of France
 Kingdom of France (1791–1792)
 Bourbon Restoration (1815–1830)
TypeArmy
Colours
EngagementsFranco-Spanish War
War of Devolution
Franco-Dutch War
War of the Reunions
Nine Years' War
War of the Spanish Succession
War of the Polish Succession
War of the Austrian Succession
Seven Years' War
American Revolutionary War
French Revolutionary Wars
French invasion of Spain
Commanders
Commander-in-chiefConstable (1043–1626)
Marshal General (de facto; 1626–1830)
Notable
commanders
Louis XIV of France
Turenne
The Great Condé
Luxembourg
Vauban
Villars
Vendôme
Maurice de Saxe
Berwick
Nicolas Catinat
Lafayette
Rochambeau
Jean-de-Dieu Soult
Nicolas Oudinot
Insignia
UniformGray-white/white for regular infantry
Blue for royal or guards infantry
Red for Swiss and Irish mercenaries
Blue for all units after 1814

The French Royal Army (French: Armée Royale Française) was the principal land force of the Kingdom of France. It served the Bourbon dynasty from the reign of Louis XIV in the mid-17th century to that of Charles X in the 19th, with an interlude from 1792 to 1814 and another during the Hundred Days in 1815. It was permanently dissolved following the July Revolution in 1830. The French Royal Army became a model for the new regimental system that was to be imitated throughout Europe from the mid-17th century onward.[1] It was regarded as Europe's greatest military force for much of its existence.[2]

  1. ^ Chartrand, Rene. Louis XIV's Army. pp. 8–10. ISBN 0-85045-850-1.
  2. ^ R.R. Palmer; Joel Colton (1978). A History of the Modern World (5th ed.). p. 161.