Zouaves: The Civil War in Four Minutes 

My great grandfather was in the 5th NY zouaves regiment known as the Duryee's Zouaves. I am researching my family history and found this to be amazing news.

I've always wondered what Zouaves were and what those uniforms were all about. Thank you for this.

Great job Mr. Taub. I don't think a more brief explanation of what zouaves were can be given.

"...the french army was the elite army of the 19th century..." In the portuguese language, the sniper are known as franco-atirador (francoatirador) for elite shooter while the literal translation would mean french-shooter. It solves a long lasting question that I had since I was a kid: Why do we have "french" for "elite"?

this is great loves the style of the zouaves thanks for uploading

Beautiful. Romantic. Outstanding presentation!

Awesome - thanks so much for this. My great grandfather x3 was the Chaplain for the 62nd NY Volunteers, Anderson's Zouaves

In the 1860s there were also Papal Zouaves who defended the Pope against Victor Emmanuel's unification of Italy. They were recruited from all over, including more than 100 Canadians and 14 Americans.

Very well done. Thanks for the info on this unit and its history.

I remember reading about Zouaves, but I never quite understood their popularity. Thanks for clarifying.

That was a great tutorial!

Very informative.

You guys should do a video about the 1st and 2nd U.S Sharpshooters

If you would like another video on zouaves, check out mine: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-JlxYiwWlYYU.html

Good report, young man...

Thank you for sharing this (and all the videos in this series). I'd really like to see more videos about the uniforms. I'd like to hear about how they dealt with the heat of the mid-Atlantic region while wearing (wool?) coats and pants. I'd have to either pass out or ditch the coat in the heat and humidity of Gettysburg in July. I've never been able to understand how they dealt with that.

It's hard for people to think that the French army was one of the best in the world? Uh? For non-European people that don't study European History maybe..

Studying the louisiana 1st zouaves I was always off put by the title of light infantry. seems like they get mentioned a lot when a bayonet charge goes down

This maybe a silly question, but were there brigades made up of just Zouaves regiments, or were they mixed in with normal infantry regiments?

Zouaves is a tribe from Algeria ...the real name is zouawawa....french use them to help them to occupy Algeria ....they always put them in the front lines . They also use them against Russian , also in Asia.

THANKS THANKS THANKS!!

Read the book "Henry and Clara" by Thomas Mallon. Wondered what "Zouaves" were- great video to explain.

That is very interesting. I know the name from the 1863 Zouave musket. They were contracted out by Remington.It appears that the Zouave 1863 muskets were not used in the Civil War. 12,000+ were made and put in storage until after the war. There is no documentation on them being used in the Civil War. They would be calles the Harper Ferry Patterson rifle. Do you have any idea why those rifles would be called Zouave?

19th century army uniform is super drippy, no joke.

The top of those red pants made a great aim point.

First time I can remember hearing about this.

I was under the impression that due to supply chains being what they were and attrition that the Zouave uniforms were in the direction of being phased out as the standard Union infantry uniforms were being mass produced and issued. I also thought that despite the loss of the uniforms the style of fighting continued. ( Zouave units unusual style of combat did probably contribute to a higher survival rate then other civil war units )

Badasses

There were about 70 regiments of union zouave soldiers. There were about 25 companies of confederate zouave soldiers. That's the difference between tens upon thousands upon tens of thousands and perhaps a thousand or two. The Zouave uniform is a union uniform.

I wonder if the baggy zouave trousers were also more comfortable? I dunno

I only saw Zouaves depicted in one civil war film… I thought to myself- what the heck is that?

BTW compare Zouave with suave 😉

It doesn't look weird to me I've always liked that uniform style, but then again I'm also fond of the Serapis Flag 🤪😁🤗 Union 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

I can't think of anything I'd less like to do on a civil war battlefield then stick out. I'd rather not turn myself into target practice.

I want a Zouave .58 cal. black powder rifle.

My email has been zoaves10 for Rhode Island since 1996!!

Flashy lol yea right look like Santa hats

Actually, the Zouave corps predates the French colonial war of conquest which started in 1830. It was a military corps in charge of the protection of head Algerian state, the Dey, who was in fear of his army's misbehavior. They were about 3000 soldiers recruited from a Berber tribe or clan named Zwawa in the Djurdjura mountains east of Algiers. When the French invaded Algeria in 1830 - for not wanting to pay the enormous debt owed to the Algerian government - and following the battle of Staoueli on the 5th July of 1830, Algiers fell into French hands. Subsequently, the French army incorporated the Zouave corps into their military infrastructure. Because of their knowledge of the land, the Zouave will lead all French military assaults against Algerian cities and other targets and their compatriots who were resisting French aggression led mainly by the Emir Abdelkader for 17 years. For this reason their name lives in INFAMY and it is today a synonym for TREASON. A Zouave is synonym of traitor in Algeria.

That voice

American-French Boxer-Gypsies??

That doesn't explain what they actually do in battle though. Are they more than just people with fancy pants?

the zouaves was an algerian militia on the ottoman empire after the frensh occupation they keep this militia

The ZUAVOS are the special forces or green beret of the French army, in times when a tall men was about 165cms, to be accepted in the ZUAVO agrupation, must have a minimum height of 180cms, this man fight and learn the cruelty of the psicological war in Sudan, Egypt, Argel and are extraordinary to create terror on the enemy's, the error was put them in the army of the union into formal lines of batteries, their function wasn't that the guerilla was their speciality. The real distinction uniform was the mameluco trousers of red drill and white polaines, they use leopard and lion real leathers over the shoulders, and their medals in the chest of the uniform, use the hair regularly blonde in braids, as a symbol of being a not regular troops and an another reminiscing of their Arabic/African origins, and a symbol of belong to this elite forces the lion and leopard leather are obtained killing the animal...by hand. Experts in the knife and sable combat hand to hand, fearless, and repeat absolutely cruelty. But...the Mexican army at the command of General Porfirio Diaz, with the Oaxaca batallón, defeat them in Puebla in the battle of 5 of may 1862. In that battle they learn nobody can defeat the Mexican army at the command of a brave not corrupt General like Porfirio Diaz and Ignacio Zaragoza. After that battle the ZUAVO agrupation never be the same again, their commander begging general Zaragoza his intervention to recover the medals of the death ZUAVO, but the Mexican soldiers refuse too return it because are the consecutive action of won the battle and a compensation of the way in that the ZUAVO was raped and killed many, many innocent victims. The final inform of the battle said: "...THE ARMS OF THE MEXICO ARMS WAS COVERED TODAY WITH GLORY" with that battle the French army began their final defeat and at the end return to France completely destroyed

If I die I shall die well dressed

Rico…. Zuave…

I love these Battlefield Trust videos. They are exceptional. But I am puzzled why 99 % of them are presented by white males. Wasn’t 10% of the union army black? And weren’t women involved and impacted in a multitude of ways?

And then Prussia regains it's dominance in 1870

The zouave are berber algerian East of algeria place call kabyle they been fighting with French army against algerian from 1830 most of theme are not Muslim French army eus theme as a slave to fight Russian

The Confederates were more camouflaged in the gray.

Are americans still grateful ?

The French wore pretty uniforms but they got stuffed by the Prussians.

I dispute that the French Army was "the elite of Europe" in the 19th Century. Napoleon was finished in 1814. After that it was either the British or the Prussians. See: The Franco-Prussian War 1870-1871.

A bit of a quibble. The French may have been an elite military in the 1800's, up to 1870. The Prussians put a decisive end to that.

The Prussian's and British had the best armies in the 19th Century. However, I think the Prussians and British would have met their match if they fought the combined armies of the United States and the Confederacy.

Irony is Caucasian is the one in African zouaves regiments. not afro-american.

Zouaves they also participated in Algerians pepole genocide during 19 centry