SUMMARY OF SOME POINTS OF INTEREST FROM THE RENE' CHARTRAND SEMINAR
JULY 1, 1989
By Bill Protz and Jim Marsala
Edited by René Chartrand
René Chartrand is the world premier authority concerning clothing and equipment worn by the French and Canadians whether military, civilian or fur trader of 18th century North America. He is author of The French Soldier In Colonial America (1), co-author of Military Uniforms In Canada 1665-1970 and a contributing writer to Military Uniforms In America The Era of The American Revolution 1755-1795. He is also a member of the prestigious Company of Military Historians. It was therefore a great pleasure to learn he was a guest speaker at the 10th Annual French and Indian War Encampment at Old Fort Niagara on July 1, 1989 through the efforts of Executive Director Brian Leigh Dunnigan and George A. Bray III.
Mr. Chartrand showed slides and spoke to an assemblage of about fifty attendees on the gundeck of the French Castle for a little over an hour, and afterwards to a much. smaller group in a less structured environment for another three hours. The following text paraphrases some of the many interesting points Mr. Chartrand mentioned.
Additionally, he has seen this article prior to its printing in The Journal of the.-Forces-of Montcalm & Wolfe to correct errors of memory and to receive his approbation. Therefore, this piece was prepared with checks and balances for which we wish to express our sincere appreciation. We also thank Brian Leigh Dunnigan for reviewing and adding further information to this article as well.
The following pertains mostly to the era of the French and Indian War 1755-1763, the time frame of our "Forces of Montcalm & Wolfe", and principally to the Compagnies Franches de la Marine. However, there are some comments about Troupes de Terre, the militia and fur trader/voyageurs.
THE COMPAGNIES FRANCHES DE LA MARINE IN NORTH AMERICA IN THE MID 1750'S
Headgear:
Tricorns (soldiers and officers) should not have plumes, feathers and jewelry decorations. A slide of an actual tricorn displayed in the Musee de l'Armee in Paris for our period indicates the shape is not bicornish. There are no sharp angles and it appears very similar to the French and Indian War replica models sold by Godwin of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. 1757-1760 manuscript illustrations done in Europe show the front "corn" higher. See artwork of the American Revolution for the bicorns and the cover of René Chartrand's The French Soldier In Colonial America for the 1750's tricorn.
There is evidence to suggest several models of bonnets. No "pirate" bandanas covering hair.
Facial Hair:
Grenadiers, sergeants and artillerymen of the Canonniers-Bombardiers were permitted to wear mustaches as a distinguishing mark of their elite status.
Neckstocks:
White only for Marines. Black was worn by shipboard Cfdl Marines and the Troupes de Terre (Montclam's French Army regular battalions).
Justaucorps:
Cream-white or grey-white. A colored slide was shown of several 18th century wool swatches from the Bibliotheque National (BN) in Paris. There was a whitish swatch on the slide. (2) Lighting in the BN was poor.
Buttons do not go all the way to the hem. They stop at the waist commencing at about 1750 for Cfdl Marines; about 1736 for Troupes de Terre.
The wool serge inside lining was full top to bottom. Capots were worn in winter, (3)
Capot:
The thigh length capot (always with a hood), shown on page 13 in The French Soldier In Colonial America, was worn in the spring and autumn. A longer version could he worn in winter. The back does not have an overlapping sheet of cloth below the shoulder. The capot should not have fringe.
Ammunition Box:
From about 1757 a larger capacity giberne worn over the right hip replaced the belly box. A strap atop the shoulder of the justaucorps keeps the leather belt, to which the giberne was attached, in place. The giberne has the King's coat of arms. The anchor etc. is gone on the belly box by the late 1740's, replaced by the King's arms.
Lace:
From 1750: one inch wide for sergeants edging on justaucorps cuffs and pockets. For officers the lace was also one inch wide on waistcoats. However, the French inch is larger than our inch by almost 1/12th. (4) Sergeant Majors would wear two strips of lace, one above and one below justaucorps cuff buttons. Sergeant Majors were only in major towns such as Louisbourg, Quebec, Montreal, Detroit and New Orleans. (5)
Sashes:
"Not worn since the reign of Louis XIV (died in 1715) by officers in Bourbon armies. If you must have one make it white, but it is hard to see why one should wear this representing 1750's French forces."
Breeches:
The usual blue. Officers could wear other colors off duty but were expected to wear regulation dress and weapons on duty.
Gaiters:
Ample evidence for military gaiters being worn from the late 1740'.s
"Going Indian":
It was a French principle of colonization and trade to wear European clothing in towns and in the wilderness. They were bringing "civilization" to the wilderness and the Indians. In the latter the purpose was to impress the Indians with resplendent clothing. The wearing of Indian and civilian attire was not useful in this regard. Foppish attire of the late 18th century was not evident.
Marine soldiers were from France and shipped to Canada annually. Only marine officers were Canadian born. It is hard to imagine a native born Frenchman, no
matter his frontier post, casting aside European born customs, mode of dress and behavior. Fur traders could go Indian in terms of dress but not marines.
For fur trader reenactors it is recommended that one dresses as a European above the waist and that below the waist some Indian attire can be worn. The emphasis is on the word some. There is a tendency to overdo the wearing of "romanticized" fur trader garb of the next century.
"Travelers to mid-18th century Canada usually noted in their journals the attention given to the latest available fashions in France not only in dress, but also in food, etc."
Supply of Military Clothing/Equipment In Western Posts:
Evidence suggests that even in western outposts such as those-in Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin that marines there were amply supplied with marine military clothing. The idea that supplies of such items were low or non-existant is false. There is even evidence suggesting that marines sent to fur trading posts north of present day Minnesota and North Dakota dressed well. There is sufficient evidence (from Mackinac and Montreal) supporting the idea that there were enormous quantities of European cloth on hand. There was not a shortage of cloth especially when its importance in trading is considered. (6)
Rank:
The highest rank was captain. There were no colonels or majors.
Flag:
Cfdl Marines in Canada and Louisiana had no unit colours (flags). White flags (the colour of France) were sometimes taken on campaign. The best guess at present is a flag of four white cantons sewn with white thread on the outside of a white cross. No other colors or devices. (7)
MILITIA UNIFORMS:
Outside of Montreal and Quebec, no uniforms.
Drill:
New manuals and ordonnances were received in North America on a timely basis. The marines were well-drilled regulars and were not "Daniel Boones." (8) This is not to say that the Frenchmen who became marine privates did not learn some woods-wise tactics. Militia was well-drilled too. (9)
Footnotes:
(1) Write to the Old Fort Niagara Trading Post to obtain a copy of this inexpensive and handy reference booklet at P.O. BOX 169, Youngstown, New York 14174. Every marine and Troupes de Terre reenactor should have this booklet. Cost is $4.95 USD plus $1.00 USD per order for postage and handling.
(2) The Doerr Mills light grey wool is darker than the whitish swatch on the slide.
(3) It is interesting to note that there were 200 new marine recruits of German extraction at the 1759 siege of Fort Niagara per Brian Leigh Dunnigan, Executive Director of Fort Niagara and author of SIEGE – 1759 THE. CAMPAIGN AGAINST NIAGARA, in spite of the British blockade. Perhaps they wore the new 1757 justaucorps.
Marines did not always remain at the same post. Rotation occurred.
(4) Twelve french inches equals 12.789 English measure. The same ratio should be used when considering the average height of an 18th Century Frenchman. Often they are depicted as short in stature. However, the difference between the English. and French inch changes this impression.
(5) These are Cfdl Marine rank badges. The Cannonniers-Bombardiers and the Troupes de Terre had somewhat different rank badges.
(6) Consider two examples of French deserters from Fort Sandosket (Sandusky) at their trial in January 1752:
'Interrogation of Henri Davout…deserter…asked if he had brought his regulation uniform with him … replied no, that he left his coat, a pair of breeches and a few shirts at a soldier-tailor named Lacouture at-Detroit and his hat with the Sieur Chapoton, surgeon, and that he had on him only a capot made with an old uniform coat…'
'Interrogation of Francois Boisson (?)…asked if he had his regulation uniform… replied that he wore it under his capot to protect him from the cold having neither a waistcoat or a jacket.'
Rene Chartrand comments, "From this we learn that there was a military tailor at Detroit and that the men in question seemed to have had regulation uniforms in addition to other clothing. It would make sense to wear capots for woods running and other informal duties, and keep the uniforms for parades, guard duty, processions and other ceremonies. I cannot say if uniforms were 'issued' in Detroit but that they were worn, there can be little doubt."
(7) Cfdl Marines at Louisbourg had a stand of colours, design unknown, and this resulted in conflicts between Canadian and Louisbourg officers in the late 1740's. The only documented Canadian unit Cfdl Marine colour is in 1757 when a Cfdl Marine battalion was formed to serve with the Troupes de Terre; no information on its design.
The flags the English captured at Louisbourg in 1758 were taken to St. Paul's Cathedral in London that year per Guy Fregault's Canada: The War of the Conquest (p.255). Rene Chartrand kindly advised of a letter he received about these flags in 1978. The writer., W. Y. Carman, stated, "As to the eleven French colours of 1758, I fear that all evidence is lost. In 1835 the Canon of St. Paul's wrote, 'As damp destroys cloth and religion has little to do with war, the worst depository for flags of triumph is a church---in 1820--- the trophies were found to have utterly perished – not a rag remained.'"
(8) Brian Leigh Dunnigan expressed a similar point that British units such as Rogers' Rangers were regular units and the concept of them being woodswise in the sense of "Davey Crockett" as legend and myth tell us is unsubstantiated.
(9) For an outstanding analysis of the Canadian militia see "A Different Kind of Courage. The French Military and the Canadian Irregular Soldier During the Seven Years' War" by Martin L. Nicolai in The Canadian Historical Review; Volume LXX #1, 1989.
