This group of illustrations is taken from The British Infantry Tunic 1855-1914 by Bryan Fosten (Military Historical Society Special Number 2023). The doublet is that of a colonel of the 79th Cameron Highlanders, made of scarlet cloth with green facings. The 1868 pattern doublet differed from the previous one because of the gauntlet style cuffs which replaced the round cuff with slash flap. This pattern lasted until 1881 when rank badges were removed from the collar and sewn onto twisted gold shoulder cords. However, the Cameron Highlanders became the Queen’s Own in 1873 so changed the facings from green to dark blue.
The differences of rank are illustrated with cuffs and collars of various Scottish regiments. All officer ranks had half-inch gold lace along the top of the collar and cuff. However, a General Order of 1 Mar 1872 commanded the infantry to remove the gold lace from sub-lieutenant’s tunics and doublets. The year before, in October 1871, the rank of ensign had been changed to sub-lieutenant. The collar and cuff at lower right are blue, without lace, worn by sub-lieutenants. But the braid button loops remained gold. Lieutenants had gold lace on the collar and cuff and captains were distinguished by gold braid tracing the inside of the lace as in the buff coloured cuff. The collars at lower left show a captain’s rank of star and crown, and a lieutenant’s buff collar with a crown.
Field officers had an extra line of gold lace on the top of the cuff and gold braid on the collar forming circlets. They also had gold lace following the edges of the Inverness skirts. Majors had two rows of lace on the top edge of the cuff as seen on the white cuff. On the collar they had a star badge. Lieutenant-colonels had a line of gold braid inside the gold lace as seen in the yellow cuff; their collar showed a crown badge. Full colonels had two lines of braid inside the lace, and a star and crown on the collar. This pattern of tunic had only a double line of gold cord on the shoulders; this changed in 1881 to the more impressive twisted gold cord on which the rank badges were shown.
