Les Adieux des Chasseurs à Cheval aux Lanciers polonais, French song in praise of the Polish Lancers

1st of October 1815: The last remnant of the 1st Polish Light Cavalry Regiment of the Imperial Guard is expelled from the French army.

This song was written in 1814, after Napoleon's first abdication. It was written by members of the Chasseurs à Cheval of the Imperial Guard, who had fought alongside the famous 1st Chevaux-Légers Lanciers of the Imperial Guard, who were Napoleon's Polish lancers. The 1st Chevaux-Légers Lanciers were formed in April 1807, and proved to be one of the best (if not the best) cavalry regiments under Napoleon's command. They first saw action at Medina de Rioseco in Spain in 1808, and on the 30th of November of that year, they won their greatest victory. In the Battle of Somosierra, one charge by 450 Polish lancers easily took four separate Spanish gun batteries, which were all defended to the death by their gunners, and routed nearly 20,000 Spanish guerillas in a panic. This was partly due to the thick smoke from the Spanish cannons, through which the guerillas couldn't see how many lancers there actually were, but is an astounding feat nonetheless. The regiment later distinguished itself at Wagram and Berezina, and was one of only a tiny handful of units that remained capable of battle at the end of Napoleon's disastrous Russian campaign in 1812. In Napoleon's last-ditch defensive campaign of 1814, the Polish lancers again fought in nearly every battle and proved its mettle. The regiment was disbanded in 1814, after which veterans of the unit returned to Poland. They were mistreated on their way through Prussia, but when they returned to Poland, they received a hero's welcome. When Napoleon was exiled to Elba after his first abdication, the only unit that followed him into exile was Paweł Jerzmanowski's squadron from the regiment. When Napoleon returned to France to seize back the throne in 1815, this squadron led the procession to Paris. They then joined up with the Red Lancers (from Holland) and fought with them in the Waterloo campaign. On the 1st of October 1815, the regiment was finally disbanded for good.

Audio from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poB1WpUbOeg
Picture from https://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/armyunits/britishcavalry/7thhussarspolish.htm

Видео Les Adieux des Chasseurs à Cheval aux Lanciers polonais, French song in praise of the Polish Lancers канала sir nori