| Fizzypickles | 06 Jun 2014 2:59 a.m. PST |
I've read that whilst on campaign, Regiments with Bearskin headdress were given covers or bags for them? Does anyone have any details as to what they were made from or looked like? |
| SJDonovan | 06 Jun 2014 3:49 a.m. PST |
In 'Napoleon's Army 1790-1815' Lucien Rousselot includes an illustration of a foot grenadier of the guard in marching order who has his bearskin in a bag on top of his backpack. The bag is of a blue and white striped material and appears to be of the same cloth from which the soldiers trousers are made (he appears to be wearing the trousers over his white gaiters). Elsewhere in the text he mentions that on the march the fur bonnets of the Chasseurs of the Guard were carried in a striped ticking bag. This is a different picture to the one I was referring to but the chap on the left has got his bearskin in the same kind of bag:
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| dibble | 06 Jun 2014 7:55 a.m. PST |
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le Grande Quartier General  | 06 Jun 2014 9:50 a.m. PST |
Just so. And if your Guard Figures are in Bicorn, that bag on the pack is a tricky paint. |
| SJDonovan | 06 Jun 2014 10:09 a.m. PST |
What I can't work out is how anyone would have carried a bearskin and a greatcoat at the same time. Come to that a bicorn would be a really awkward item to pack. I have no idea where they kept them when they were wearing the bearskin. |
| Garde de Paris | 06 Jun 2014 11:34 a.m. PST |
I seem to remember Rousselot showing a Drummer and Sapeur in bearskins, with a french-bread-shaped object on top of the blanket or overcoat roll, inside the white straps. They were covered in the white/blue ticken. Might these have been the bicorns? My "stuff" has been packed away for 2 years, so working from feeble memory. Anyone have access to the Guard head of the column plate? GdeP |
| Fizzypickles | 06 Jun 2014 11:59 a.m. PST |
Thx Guys, I was really hoping it wouldn't be the narrow blue and white stripped one lol. Are you all completely sure it wasn't a nondescript black brown bag? Please…… Whilst we're in this neck of the woods, what say each of you so far as colour of grenade on top back patch of bearskin? Aurore or white? |
 deadhead | 06 Jun 2014 1:35 p.m. PST |
Must say I thought the Q was about wearing a cover over the thing on your head. We all accept the Scots G's did it. Haythornthwaite et al show a waterproof cover over the Grenadiers' bearskin in Unis of Retreat from Moscow…but I have never seen it again (which is odd frankly) |
| dibble | 06 Jun 2014 2:21 p.m. PST |
These will answer some of the questions asked above. Grenade patch.
Bicorn in the blue Ticked bag
Paul :) |
| Fizzypickles | 06 Jun 2014 3:07 p.m. PST |
I'm a little confused to Liam tbh. The reason I came here to ask was after reading this. " Soldiers liked the comfortable headwear. It gave better protection against saber blow than the bicorn hat. The bearskin was more difficult to cut through than shako and had better padding than the helmet. But it was quite expensive and a black waxed cloth was used as protection for bearskin against bad weather. One of the innovations introduced in 1792 was the replacement of bearskin by the bicorn hat during campaign, march etc. while the bearskin was carried in a bag. It suppose to last for 6 years. " From here: link Regards the Grenade colour, I have found one example of an Aurore coloured one, but then maybe it could have been gold? It was suggested that they were Aurore on another thread ages ago but most of the references I see are always white. I love Nappies  |
| dibble | 06 Jun 2014 6:25 p.m. PST |
The Yellow grenade on the red bearskin patch, is from the Guard Foot Artillery.
Paul |
| von Winterfeldt | 06 Jun 2014 11:25 p.m. PST |
"" Soldiers liked the comfortable headwear. It gave better protection against saber blow than the bicorn hat. The bearskin was more difficult to cut through than shako and had better padding than the helmet. But it was quite expensive and a black waxed cloth was used as protection for bearskin against bad weather."
I did handle some orginal ones – they were quite lighter than I thought of.
The bearskin cap was a headress of status, for elite units, to create a higher silhouette and worn for prestige and not for protection. |
| deadhead | 06 Jun 2014 11:55 p.m. PST |
Dibble, that yellow patch is meant to be gold for an NCO. Gunners of La Garde I always favoured Aurore personally. |
| SJDonovan | 07 Jun 2014 2:35 a.m. PST |
Must say I thought the Q was about wearing a cover over the thing on your head. We all accept the Scots G's did it. Haythornthwaite et al show a waterproof cover over the Grenadiers' bearskin in Unis of Retreat from Moscow…but I have never seen it again (which is odd frankly) Hi deadhead, That was my fault. I misunderstood the question and took things off on a tangent. You are right about the oilskin cover for a bearskin. I have seen it depicted in Haythornthwaite's Uniforms of the Retreat from Moscow but can't find anything about it elsewhere. |
| Esquire | 07 Jun 2014 3:10 a.m. PST |
For a guy who has painted Napoleonic figures for years, this was a helpful thread. |
| dibble | 07 Jun 2014 1:27 p.m. PST |
deadhead Dibble, that yellow patch is meant to be gold for an NCO. Gunners of La Garde I always favoured Aurore personally. You are quite right, I can't understand why I posted such guff. I did this type of gaff in the past on another site with the 104th New Brunswick Regiment of foot, by stating that they were the 27th Inniskillings, even though the breast plate clearly showed 104 and loops were square pairs….duh! Paul :D |
