Active 1636–1791 Branch Swedish Army Size Regiment | Country Sweden Type Infantry Colours White | |
The Östergötland Infantry Regiment (Swedish: Östgöta infanteriregemente) was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was merged with another unit to form a new regiment, the Life Grenadier Regiment, in 1791. The regiment's soldiers were recruited from the province of Östergötland.
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History
The regiment has its origins in fänikor (companies) raised in Östergötland in the 16th century. In 1619, these units—along with fänikor from the nearby Jönköping County—were organised by Gustav II Adolf into the grand regiment [[Östergötlands storregemente]], of which nine of the total 24 companies were recruited in Östergötland. Östergötlands storregemente consisted of three field regiments, of which Östgöta infanteriregemente was one. Sometime between 1623 and 1628, the grand regiment was permanently split into three smaller regiments, of which the Östergötland Infantry Regiment was one.
The regiment was officially raised in 1636 although it had existed since the 1620s. The Östergötland Infantry Regiment was one of the original 20 Swedish infantry regiments mentioned in the Swedish constitution of 1634. The regiment's first commander was Johan Banér. It was allotted in 1685.
In 1791, Östergötland Infantry Regiment was merged with the Östergötland Cavalry Regiment in 1791 to form the Life Grenadier Regiment. The reorganisation and renaming to a "life grenadier" title of honour was conducted in regard to the regiment's achievements during Gustav III's Russian War. Within the new regiment, the Östergötland Infantry Regiment was renamed to Livgrenadjärregementets rotehållsdivision and retained some form of independence.