Zvezda 1:72 French Foot Artillery (1812 - 1814)

The word "artillery" originated in the Middle Ages from the Old French atellier meaning "to arrange", and attillement meaning "equipment". Artillery continued to gain prominence and in the 18th century Jean-Baptiste de Gribeauval, a French artillery engineer introduced the standardization of cannon design. The standardized interchangeable parts of these guns made their production and repair much easier. Artillery became the most lethal form of land-based armament; in the Napoleonic Wars and World War I the majority of combat deaths were caused by artillery.

Artillery officers had greater responsibility than did an officer of cavalry or infantry. An infantry officer had to care for about 150 men. A cavalry officer had to watch over 100 men, but he was also responsible for 100 horses. By comparison, an artillery officer in a battery had responsibility for about 100-200 men, 200-300 horses, 6-8 guns, numerous limbers, caissons, a traveling forge, a battery wagon and supply wagons.

According to some military experts "The French artillery has always ranked very high. Almost all improvements made in gunnery, during the last three or four centuries, have originated with the French. The theoretical branch of artillery has also been constantly a favorite science with the French; their mathematical turn of mind favors this; and the precision of language, the scientific method, the soundness of views, which characterize their artilleristic literature, show how much this branch of science is adapted to the national genius." ("The Armies of Europe" in Putnam's Monthly, No. XXXII, published in 1855)