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Officer, 49th Foot, 1775 by P H Smitherman This image is based on a coat in the National Army Museum at Sandhurst. It will be seen that the trends noted earlier have been continued, and the garment shown here is very neat and elegant. The turned-down collar is buttoned on to the lapels, which was the usual practice at this time. The shoulder cords noted in some previous images have now become a fringed strap and have begun to denote rank and function. Officers of grenadier companies, and field officers of all companies, wore an epaulette on each shoulder; officers of battalion companies wore one on the right shoulder only, as this officer is doing. The patterns of epaulettes varied with each regiment, and possibly even varied slightly within the regiment. A portrait exists of an officer of this regiment with a coat exactly like this, but with an epaulette of the same general shape but with its embroidery differing in some respects. The coat and the portrait must be contemporary, so it may be that officers were still allowed a small amount of latitude in their dress. The hat is shown still cocked in the old fashion, which was rapidly disappearing. The manner in which hats were cocked followed the civilian fashion, and we know that it was usual for officers to cock their hats as was fashionable, and that regulations eventually caught up with the fashion. The officer is in undress uniform, and so is wearing silk stockings and shoes. On duty he would have worn boots and black gaiters, a crimson sash round his waist once more but under the coat and over the waistcoat, and a shoulder belt to carry his sword over his right shoulder. He should also have worn a gilt gorget, according to the regulations, but this particular regulation was often ignored. The 49th were raised in 1743 and subsequently became the Royal Berkshire Regiment. Their green facings were changed to white in 1881 and afterwards to blue. |
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