"British Heavy Dragoons - Blanket Colour?" Topic

For post 1812 british heavy dragoons, the few pics of painted figures, eg the front rank website show them with a cream/brown colour. Is that correct? All the references i have only show figures on foot.

Would Scots Greys have the same blanket?

For some reason i thought a light blue blanket was used, or was that just artistic license on my part as the brown blanket looks so dull.

My sources give different colours for the blanket.

Plate "Heavy Cavalry – Dragoons" by Courcelle shows one blanket as light tan, another as grey. The plate description says: "Of coarse, beige-grey wool with two blue stipes which show on the left side."

Historex colour guide for the 2nd Scots Greys says:
"White blanket cloth with two blue stripes at the edge"

Historex colour guide for the 6th Iniskillings says:
"light grey saddle blanket which had two narrow blue lines near the left lower edge."

The Mont Ste. Jean site shows them all as grey:
link

Cliff

My plates give a variety of colours

All the following with two parallel lines going around border of the blanket unless otherwise stated.

1810:
2nd KGL in spain pale sand blanket no edging

1812:
2nd Life Guards Red edged gold black gold (sandwich of lines)

1814:
2nd (Scotts Grays) blue (blanket) with two white lines bordering (i.e. the lace colour as the border)
3rd Blue edged yellow

1815:1st Royal Dragoons grey edged red
2nd – stone gray blanket edged blue (two lines again)
5th DGs grey blanket edged green
Royal Horse guards off white cream blanket edged with one red stripe
(another plate) Life Guards off white cream edged blue, Horse Guards blue edged gold red gold (sandwich of lines)

Hope this helps :)

Neil
reinforcementsbypost.com

I wouldn't get too hung up on this. Apart from full dress shabraques, and if my own army experience is anything to go by, blankets will be in all shades of cream/grey/brown – but normally with two blue lines running down the middle. When folded in four for use as a saddle blanket, the stripes will show on the lower edge of the near side. That is, if the blankets have been folded correctly – "rough edges rear and near, single fold to the front."