Officer in Mounted Drill Order c1828


This naive painting depicts an officer on a bay horse wearing the dress helmet which has a black glazed skull and peak with gilt ornaments and fittings, and a high bearskin crest. This was worn from c1820 to 1834 when it was changed to an all-gilt helmet with similar crest. The jacket he wears is a waist-length shell, scarlet with black facings, worn as a stable jacket, but also worn open as a mess jacket. The Dress Regulations of 1822 mention 'shoulder straps of gold gymp' (actually silver for the 2DG). A Heath print of 1828 shows an officer in drill order, like this, but with solid metal shoulder scales.

In dismounted stable dress the blue and silver forage cap would be worn, and a white undress pouch-belt. Here the silver-laced dress pouch-belt is worn. But the sabretache is the undress plain black leather type, usually slung with white straps but there are three silver laced dress straps suspending it presumably from a dress waist-belt. The trousers are grey-blue cossacks with a silver stripe, normally worn in dress. The Dress Regulations state that undress trousers should have a cloth stripe (probably a black stripe, following the facings colour), one and a half inches wide, while the dress trousers have a lace stripe one and three quarter inches wide. In 1828 the cossacks were changed to tighter-fitting dark blue trousers. The sword is an undress version, almost straight and with a steel scabbard.


Regimental details | Uniforms


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by Stephen Luscombe