User:DonBeroni/sandbox
| Württemberg Cape Regiment | |
|---|---|
| Württembergisches Kapregiment | |
 A soldier of the Württemberg Cape Regiment | |
| Active | 1787–1808 |
| Country |  Duchy of Württemberg |
| Allegiance |  Dutch East India Company |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Line infantry Artillery |
| Role | Internal security |
| Size | 3,200 |
The Württemberg Cape Regiment was a regiment raised by the Duchy of Württemberg for service with the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
Background
[edit]On 1 October 1786, Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg signed a treaty with the Dutch East India Company (VOC). The treaty stipulated that Eugene would raise a regiment of line infantry (including an attached artillery company) in the Duchy of Württemberg for service with the VOC in the Dutch Cape Colony, which was under the VOC's control. It was common practise for smaller German states, including Württemberg, to rent out troops for service under larger European powers as auxiliaries. Negotiations for the treaty started in 1784 on the initiative of Ludwig Friedrich von Knecht, a German military officer and administrator from Württemberg in VOC service.
During the negotiations, the Württemberg negotiators ignored the VOC's declining financial situation. In the final treaty, it was stipulated that the regiment to be raised by Eugene was to consist of two infantry battalions, each battalion containing four fusilier companies and one grenadier or jäger company, along with one artillery company. The total number of personnel in the regiment was to be 58 officers, 170 non-commissioned officers and 1,751 enlisted personnel.