"Shako covers and pom-poms" Topic

Were pom-poms removed, shako covered, then pom-poms re-attached?

For that matter, how were pom-poms attached? Were they on a pin that went through the shako? Were they loose and attached with thread or something?

In regards to Brit Begic and stovepipes, pom-poms have a stem extending from the bottom. A hole in the top would take the stem and an interior leather sleeve would prevent the pom-pom from moving around. When the oil cloth cover was put on, the pom-pom was removed and stored in the interior of the crown. There's plenty of room in there and you don't feel it at all when worn.
The leather cockade stayed on the shako at all times.
To other shako designs I can't speak, sorry.

Sorry, I was asking about French shakos, but your information is just as helpful. Thanks!

I asked because I was looking at Perry French 1815 figs FN30 and FN31. A few figs in the pack have shako covers with pom-poms attached.

I am not sure on the details of attachment (I think cords were involved) but the coloured pom-poms on French shakos were worn outside the cover to identify the company. I have seen some illustrations of pom-poms covered, but I think that was an artist's mistake or a rare option.

On my repro shako the Pom pom has a metal handle, for lack of a better word, of wire int he shape of a U that slips behind the cockade to hold the pom pom in place. When the cover is put on, there is a small slit in the seam at the top that allows the pom pom to still slide in behind the cockade. You remove the pom pom to put on the cover, and replace the pom pom.

I do love when someone asks a question I have been dying to know, yet seem to forget to inquire about. Great question, Schogun, and similarly great input from Dutch and above.

To clarify, my Shako is a French 1812 model. The cockade is painted lether. The company pom poms at this time were rounded woolen tuffs like those on a winter wool hat. They varied in colour per company, green, light blue, orange, and wine dregs (violet-ish-esque). The cover could be of several materials but waxed linen is the one I have, in black.

Here's a photo of French shako pompoms sold by a dealer. It shows the pompom with a looped wire:

picture

A set of close-up photos of a French shako. Maybe assume the looped wire inserts into the middle section of the metal plate?

link

The shako in the last isn't a french patterned 1815 model.

picture

This shako from the 57th Line shows how the pom pom slides behind the cockade.

picture

You can see in the second that the cockade is attached ith two wires on the side. This shako is a line grenadier headgear, with cords attached. Again the pom pom slides behind the cockade.

link

Great site for information on shakos.

Great photos and site! Thanks.

In the first photograph posted by Schogun, there's one pompon which is mainly white but with a red base (not unlike the arrangement, if not the shape, of the familiar British plume worn both by infantry and some cavalry; this I've several times heard called "blood-in-the-snow", by the way). Is this for some French unit, such as one company, or a squadron, of a regiment of Hussards or Chasseurs a Cheval? I've a vague memory that combinations of colours were used in this way.

If I may expand on this post with a question re; the side-chevrons seen on shako's..

This seems to be a post-1812 addition, in some sources, yet I do also see illustrations and reproductions with a lozenge plate (pre-1812) and side-chevrons (typically black for fusiliers, red for grenadiers, yellow for volts).

Is this an anachronism for a pre-1812 / lozenge plated shako to have chevrons, or is it feasible?

Interesting point (and typically precise). In addition to the obvious question – whether an illustration is contemporary or later – I wonder could this form of reinforcement have been adopted in imitation of the leather reinforcement found in Austrian casquets, or Rusian Dragoon helmets?

That seems a plausible thought, Robert! After some cross-referencing, it seems that the side-chevrons were always a part of the shako, however they were black for every company, regardless of status. The elites got their colored chevrons in the 1812-variant (which also replaced the lozenge plate with the eagle plate), while the fusiliers maintained the black chevrons.