Officer 1807

Dighton's engraving is of an officer of one of the newly-converted Light Dragoon Regiments in undress uniform. The fur cap or busby was copied from the Hungarians who were the original Hussars. On fatigues and on service the grey "overalls" with leather cuffs and red and silver stripes were worn over the white buckskin breeches and Hessian boots with tassels of the dress wear. These boots, named after the Hessian troops from Hesse in Germany who first wore them, are short, cut to a "V" shape in front and low at the back. Note the chains under the foot, often worn of inordinate length and looped round the leg to a button.
For full dress the elegant. silver-braided jacket was duplicated in the form of a fur-edged pelisse worn over the left shoulder or, alternatively, in place of the jacket or dolman shown here. In dress wear the plain black sabretache or dispatch case was replaced by a most handsome embroidered confection

Regimental Details | Uniforms