The button on the left, an officer’s gilt example, was short-lived, only lasting a year. It was worn on the doublet that replaced the tailed jacket in 1855 which was double breasted with two rows of these diamond-shaped buttons. The buttons were also on the slash flaps of the cuffs, the Inverness flaps and two at waist level at the back.
The button on the right was worn on the re-designed doublet from 1856, by all ranks, gilt for officer, brass for other ranks. This was a return to the pattern worn on officers’ jackets in the early part of the 19th century. The design altered very little apart from the monarch’s initial.
