Mounted Band 1904

Simkin's illustration of the mounted band of the 7th DG shows the bandsmen on black horses performing the seemingly impossible feat of controlling a horse and playing a musical instrument at the same time. They are all wearing white horsehair plumes on their helmets which confirms that this is pre-1906 in which year they changed to black plumes. The black facings on their tunics certainly identify them as 7th DG and the badge on their collars tells us that it is definitely post-1899.
The drumhorse is the skewbald Mick and his rider is a private who wears the black faced tunic with yellow cord aiguillettes and brass shoulder scales. The drum banners look as if they are black in this illustration. They match the drummer's cuffs and collar and do not compare with the blue cloth of the bandsmen's trousers. The design on the banner is the Royal Arms which is supposed to have a coronet on top but Simkin has made it look like a Victorian crown. The regimental title on a scroll below is shown as gold on red in other illustrations, but here and in another Simkin print it is gold on black.

Regimental Band | Regimental details