The French Stay in Rhode Island 

Rochambeau's biography

The FEF consisted of the naval excort squadron and the following land units:

• Régiment de Bourbonnais, commanded by the Marquis de Laval de Montmorency. The second in command was Rochambeau's son, Donatien.

• Régiment de Royal Deux Ponts (French for "Royal Regiment of Two Bridges"), commanded by the Comte Christian de Forbach.
  More about the Royal Deux Ponts Regiment

• Régiment de Saintonge, commanded by the Comte de Custine.

• Régiment de Soissonnais, commanded by the Comte de Saint Maisme. The second in command was Lafayette's brother-in-law.

• Volontaires-ètrangers de Lauzun, also known as Lauzun’s Legion -- a regiment of light infantry and hussar cavalry commanded by the duc de Lauzun.
  More about Lauzun's Legion

• Régiment d'artillerie d'Auxonne under Goullet de La Tour was not the entire regiment -- only the second battalion, the engineers, and the artillery park. D'Aboville was in charge of Rochambeau's artillery, and he later commanded all the artillery at Yorktown.

French regiments in the EP

The 33 transport ships were guarded by a naval escort squadron consisting of seven ships-of-the-line and four frigates under the command of Admiral Charles Ternay. Due to lack of troop transports one-third of the assigned troops and all of the horses were left behind to be shipped out later.

About 6.200 officers and men (see table below) disembarked along with some 400 servants. [Source: Private communication, Jacques de Trentinian, 2009]

Unit -----------Officers---Servants----Men&Ncos-----Total
Bourbonnais         63        70          842         975
R. Deux Ponts       76        66        1,016       1,158
Saintonge          103        79        1,147       1,329
Soissonnaise        61        67          919       1,047
Lauzun's Legion     61        40          648         749
---------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL Troops       364       322        4,572       5,258

Unit -----------Officers---Servants----Men&Ncos-----Total
Artillery           46         50         386         482
Sappers             18         17          71         106
Engineers           16         13         223         252
---------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL Auxiliaries   80         80         680         840 

Unit -----------Officers---Servants----Men&Ncos-----Total
Surgeons             2          7          --           9
Prevote&services    10          8          12          30
Vivriers            10          7          35          52
---------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL Support       22         22          47          91 
=========================================================
GRAND TOTAL        466        424       5,299       6,189

Unit -----------Officers---Servants----Men&Ncos-----Total
Garrison            21         --         781         802

The Rhode Island Continental Regiment (see flag at right) served as guards and local guides for the French as they established their camps and defensive battlements at Newport.

Upon disembarkation many of the men were quite ill and required hospitalization. As was usual in most wars until the 20th century illness was the main cause of death for soldiers. Deaths in the French Expeditionary Force (including later re-inforcements) during its thirty months in the U.S. are given in the table below.

[The following Interpretation and modern references are by Richard Sheryka, Chairman of the W3R-RI Military Committee.]

Reference: map in The American Campaigns of Rochambeau's Army, 1780-1783", by Howard Rice and Anne Brown (Brown University Press, Providence RI, 1972). The map was drawn by Henry Crublier D'Opterre, a captain in the Royal Corps of Engineers in the French Expeditionary Force

Lauzun's Legion was stationed near Castle Hill (South of Brenton's Point). The infantry units were camped east of Newport, roughly along the line of the current Bowery and East Bowery Streets. Several cannon were placed just south of this line and just north of the current Narragansett Avenue, forming a defensive line along the narrow waist of the island. There was also a northern defense line, based on older British defense works, part of which -- the earthworks of the Redoubt Saintonge -- can still be seen on Vernon Avenue in Middletown. Some say these works were originally constructed by the British before the Battle of Rhode Island and later improved by the Saintonge Regiment.

1780 Sep 20-22 -- Washington met with Rochambeau in Hartford CT. Washington did not speak French, and Rochambeau did not speak English, yet they worked together to coordinate a successful joint military operation that involved troops and ships from Boston to the Caribbean islands. Since it was now clear that the remaining French troops were not en route from France, and since no significant military operation was possible without the assistance of the French navy, the commanders agreed that Rochambeau's troops should settle in for the winter at Newport.

1780 November: Lauzun's hussars (who had now acquired horses) went to winter quarters at Lebanon CT, 5 miles south of Willamantic. They remained in Lebanon for seven months, until 1781 June. During this time the hussars delivered messages and guarded the French engineers as they mapped and improved the roads to the chain of campsites that would be used during the French troop movements from Newport RI to New York NY.

In 1780 Dec 13-15 Gen. Rochambeau visited Boston MA, lodging in Governor John Hancock's home.

1780 Dec 15 -- French Admiral Ternay died in Newport RI and is buried there. Chevalier Des Touches was placed temporarily in command of the French squadron at Newport.

1781 January -- The British sent a naval squadron to blockade Newport. In spite of bad weather the 64-gun Eville and two French frigates mauled the British ships.

1781 March -- Washington conferred with Rochambeau in Newport, stopping at Lebanon CT to review Lauzun's hussars.
==> Also in this month British Gen. Cornwallis suffered 500 dead or wounded (25% of his force) at Guilford Courthouse NC.

During the week of 1781 June 10–17 the French Army moved from Newport to Providence (22 miles) in small ships and large boats. They also established lines of communication and supply along Narragansett Bay’s eastern shore. Fifty men from each of the five regiments (supported by local militia, including the Kentish Guards) were retained in Newport to guard the French siege cannon, which later served as the decisive element in the siege of Yorktown. In Providence Chastellux lodged at Joseph Russel's residence on Main Street, not far from the Market House. [Ref. Chastellux] Troops recovering from scurvy in Boston added to the Newport garrison under Choisy, eventually numbering 430 French effectives. [Ref. 1781 June 10 letter Rocambeau to Choisy, per Trentinian]

The French Army established a camp on the western edge of Providence (perhaps where I-195 and I-95 intersect now) to prepare for the long march to New York. Some 3,800 troops and 450 officers were ready to start on the long march -- including 600 in Lauzun's Legion in Lebanon CT. [Ref. W3R Historical Survey for PA, by Robert Selig (2007), pp 81-83 and 88]

This dispersion of forces allowed the use of smaller campsites and spread out the impact on the environment (which provided water and forage forthe horses and oxen) and on the local communities (which provided food and drink for the soldiers and housing for the officers). The dates below overlap because they encompass the arrival of the first unit and the departure of the last unit.

The lead unit had several important roles:

• The assistant quartermaster general (M. de Beville) was responsible for seeing that the main column took the correct path.

• The first division setup the campsites, with places for tents, water, food, firewood, pasturage, artillery park, and quarters for the officers. The following divisions cleaned and re-used the same campsites.

• The first division was preceded by thirty woodsmen, whose job was to clear and repair the road and to repair or build bridges as needed. The following divisions had fewer woodsmen.

• The baggage train of the expedition's commander (the Comte de Rochambeau) and the military chest (money) marched at the head of the first division. The baggage wagons of each other general officer marched at the head of the that division.