"60th Royal American, Light Company Uniforms?" Topic

Was there any uniform distinction for Light Company soldiers in the 60th, official or unofficial?

Also, ditto that question for 42nd Highlanders' Light Company.

What do you mean by distinctions? Distinct from other lights or unique as a unit?

Did they wear the usual 60th lace-less jacket, but with a leather cap?
i.e. What the heck would be good figures to buy?
Would figures for Gage's Light Infantry work, just not painted brown?

This article suggests there may have been some unofficial use of green or blue jackets. Is that a plausible enough painting option for the 60th?
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Did the Highlanders wear any different headgear or anything else from line troops?

Oh my, just ugh about that write up. It is very old and outdated. Take it with a large grain of salt.

Here is perhaps a painting of a 60th Light Infantryman by Benjamin West as he might have appeared at the siege of Fort Niagara in 1759:

Yeah, the write-up looked sketchy, but not much else is turning up.

On a side note, did Lights' musicians use horns in the FIW? I haven't come across any references prior to the Rev War.

The cap is felted wool, his leggings are likely green wool. He carries a Light Infantry carbine, not the Long Land pattern musket carried by the hat and grenadier companies.

He wears a cut down regimental with a red waistcoat underneath. The waistcoat may feature welted button holes, as documented by at least the rest of the 1st Division/1st battalion of 60th with Stanwix (in the Bouquet papers). He wars blue wool breeches as all Royal regiments would.

Most Light carried a powder horn, cartridge box (though no hard and fast rules since these units were not covered under the then current Royal Clothing warrant as they were only created in 1759).

42nd Lights would likely follow their kilted brethren in the hat and grenadier companies. They already wore the highland regimental coat with short tails. Likely they were distinguished by carrying a carbine too, powder horn, tomahawk like other light troops. May have worn breeches at some point as well instead of kilts.

He is standing next to another Light Infantryman as well. I'd have to guess at the regiment.

No horns by infantry in this period. Maybe whistles, but nothing regulation. Drummers were on the rolls, fifes were unofficial during this period, unlike the Rev War period (grenadier companies in the Rev War had fifers). Pipers were paid by the colonel, so likely wore a regular uniform, not musician's reverse colors – though it depends on what period you are doing 42nd (buff facings prior to 1759, blue after when Royal – and of course the 60th was Royal, so their musicians would be in red coats faced blue)

There is an outstanding portrait of Sir Jeffery Amherst, Colonel Commandant of the 60th in 1758 on wards – in a 60th officer's coat. You rarely see it in books as the owner charges more than the cheaper one of Sir Jeffery in that stupid suit of armor. I'll see if I can post it or a link.

Here it is with an excellent article by CW on germ warfare.

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I thought the 42nd was Royal in '58 at Ticonderoga?

Would the 42nd Light Coy still wear the blue bonnet?

I've seen some reference that Pipers could be on the rolls as a Drummer and collect that pay.

I'll probably go with an unofficial fifer for the 60th Light.

Note his 60th uniform – short standing collar, no lace, cuffs appear to be too big, but likely an artist glitch. No lace on any of his clothing, Facings unbuttoned, which is common on portraits of this period. He wears no view-able epaulet, but there was no standard at this time for officer epaulets or aguillets.

His hat is laced with silver, which is standard for the period. He sports a black cockade, which rides above the hat brim, which is standard for all British cocked hats of the period.

He does not wear any gorget or sash. Officer's sashes of the period are worn over the right shoulder. I have been told there is no known silver gorget from the time period. I have not seen any in period portraits either, though gold ones are sometimes worn by officers in units of that metal. Gorgets were not covered under this Royal Clothing Warrant, if I recall correctly.

Fifers nor drummers would likely be found in period Light companies, as it does not jive with their expected service in the field. Fifers were rare in this period, just starting to come back into vogue. Pipers were not drummers playing the bagpipes, as far as I know. Perhaps 42nd can add to this.

The 42nd wore buff facings at Fort Ti and earned the Royal title for their service there. The wore blue facings the following year, though I am not sure if that was issued or they had to find the blue wool in country. I have read there was a shortage of blue wool in 1759 in North America, so maybe due to that. Not sure. Blue leggings were popular in 1759 with British army units, as documented in Knox's Journal (43rd with Wolfe). They replace the standard black linen or perhaps leather high gaiters of the period. White was for dress, largely used in garrison duty, though I doubt on the frontier when they built or occupied captured French forts.

Likely the green wool leggings the 60th wore in 1759 were due to the shortage of blue wool.

I have no idea (well, maybe I do) where the oft quoted nonsense about the 60th wearing green coats in this time period comes from, but it has been copied by writers from time to time and does not seem to have any basis in fact.

So you have three options for your 42nd Lights. You could go with kilts and hose, or kilts and gaiters (black or brown), or breeches and gaiters.

Kronoskaf lists the Royal designation being granted July 22nd 1758 when the 2nd battalion was authorised. Hmm, I'm painting up a small skirmish force primarily set in October of '58, could still be buff, might be blue….

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1759. :-) Uniforms were only issued once a year. :-)

Well that makes it easy then! ^,^

More pondering, a whistle would be an easy conversion for a 60th figure.

I came across a reference in one of the Funken books about the second battalion being designated Royal. Per Brunwell's excellent book, "Redcoats," I do not believe the 2nd battalion of the 42nd served in North America either, as Brumwell references them being at Guadalupe in 1759 and later in Havana.

I got part of my history right and wrong on them – "… before the news of that disaster (Fort Ti attack in 1758) had crossed the Atlantic, it was decided to honour the corps with the title "Royal Highland Regiment", and to order the raising of seven new companies to provide it with a second battalion." So indeed the 2nd battalion would have been issued in the new blue faced coats, though it likely took a year to raise and train. The 42nd troops already in North America would have had to wait the issuance of their new uniforms sometime in 1759. News of the 42nd being made Royal was given out by Major General Abercromby in NY on 24 November 1758.

Whether they reworked their existing uniforms that fall or awaited new issuance I do not know. Brumwell has an entire chapter on Highland regiments.

Of course the point of all this is since the designation came so late in the year (months after the assault on Fort Ti), they obviously wore their buff faced coats during that assault. Also, no regiments had Lights in 1758 as those companies were established in 1759.

I'm also not sure what year Light companies were done away with either, only to reappear shortly again before the Rev War.

No Lights in '58, oh well, Grenadiers it will be then.

Thanks for all the help sorting that out. Grenadiers for each are on order now; 42nd from Perry, and 60th from Front Rank.

Good luck with them. :-)

One last thing on grens in the 60th, unlike the movie Last of the Mohicans, they did not wear bearskin caps. Other than the 42nd, those did not appear till later, and were made official with the 1768 Royal Clothing Warrant. If the 60th grens even wore the mitre cap it was cloth. I say if as there is a rather famous inventory and accounting of weight done by a junior gren officer and he lists the cocked hat but not the mitre cap. Still, if it was me, I'd have them in mitre caps. :-)

Front Rank has both mitre options.

I pondered going bearskins. Kronoskaf mentions that they may have used them unofficially. We do have easy access to bearskins over here, they are in the woods!

But the cloth won out. Tipping point was more visual variety from the furry Highlanders.

The info on that site is very limited and dated.

I had recently place an order with GAJO for some of their painted Wasatch minis, musketeers for both the 42nd and 60th. They arrived today and I am very happy with them.

I had not specified facing colour for the 42nd, but fortuitously they came in buff. Nice green leggings on the 60th, makes for a very colourful unit!

Bit of a philosophical question:
Are the musketeers of the 42nd called 'Hat' Companies even though they don't have cocked hats? Center Companies? Just Musketeers?
Curious linguists are curious.

To be honest, I am not sure when that term came in use, as when the war started, up till 1759 there were only hat companies and grenadiers. I guess that the term center company only came about after the creation of the Lights since the hat companies were now, theoretically, between the two flank companies (lights, grens) – though as standard practice, the flank companies were generally converged into their own battalions. I have never her the term bonnet company for highlanders LOL :-)

And since they didn't speak English it would have beeen "Bhonaid companaidh"?

They're bonny companies alright.
=^,^=

"Hat" was an unofficial term, IIRC. You had flank and Centre companies "officially."

And all sorts of nicknames--Light Bobs, "To Ro", etc.

Not sure when doctrine of converging lights fell out of practice--perhaps the 1790s? It was not in common use by the Napoleonic era, which s not to say it never happened. There was a converged battalion at the Battle of Barossa in 1811, for example.

One of the questions at hand is: were they called 'Centre' companies in the time when there was only 1 'Flank' company (Grenadiers). If not, how long after the introduction of the Light Companies did it take before Center & Flank became terminology?

With only 1 Flank Company, they would be more sort of Off-Center Companies.
=^,^=

It might be too that the gren company was supposed to be on both flanks. I seem to recall seeing a diagram where they were to half wheel in towards the center of the opponent, not that I am aware they ever did that – thus making the rest centre companies.

Remember, the original firing arrangements found in Blands (1727) were not based on companies, but evenly distributed firing platoons – later discarded (starting with Braddock in North America).

Coming to this discussion a little late- surely, at this date, the men were simply divided into their ‘companies', named after their captain (etc), or they were ‘Grenadiers' distinguished by name and uniform distinctions. Why would there be any need for a special term to describe the undifferentiated body of the regiment?

{Light companies were still detached for service by Wellington but only within the brigade and prior to contact with the enemy. Ordinarily they remained with their parent battalions after action}.

The painting of the newly raised 2nd Bn., 42nd Regiment parading on Glagow Green in 1758 (BW Museum) shows them with buff facings and distinctions, despite the warrant for their formation and the addition of 'Royal' to the regimental title being coterminous, so when the 2nd Bn contingents sailed for the Caribbean in late 1758, we must assume they were wearing buff facings.

It seems that one piper each was authorised to be entered as a drummer on the strength of the Black Watch grenadier coys in 1758 (1st & 2nd Bn), but they were not uniformed as such – although, IIRC, the ‘Minorca' paintings of the 25th circa 1769 do show a piper in reversed coat in the facing colour of yellow. Then again, the 25th weren't a Highland regiment…

With regard to the nether parts of the 42nd in North America during the F&IW, Regimental Standing orders record that, rather than wear marching gaiters with the ‘small kilt,' they wore mitasses- ‘Indian-style' leggings of wool cloth, typically blue (Reid, Osprey MAA 261). These would have been more convenient and of proven efficacy in the woods (cloth shortages aside). As I recall, Mollo/McGregor also show a soldier of the 60th in Indian leggings at Quebec.

Although the 42nd only adopted pantaloons or breeches on a regular basis during the AWI, a journal entry from the 1758 campaign records that "The Highlanders have put on breeches and Lord How's Filabegs" (Reid). As I write, I am not sure if that referred to a range of field clothing being worn within the 42nd or a misunderstanding of the Highlanders' arrangements under their 'Filabegs.'

Although LI caps were ordered and issued to Highland regiments after 1771, there seems to be little indication they were worn in the field. This may well also be the case with the grenadier cap, either mitre or bearskin (which first appeared in the 1740s).

In 1759 it was noted: " As soon as the Regiments arrive in Winter Qtrs the new clothing is to be fitted and waistcoats made as fast as possible that the men may be warmly clad during the severity of the Winter, and it is recommended to the Commanding Officers that every man has a warm cloth cap made. The Light Infantry company of each battalion when ordered to join their corps is to remain as a company of the battalion. The men are to keep their carbines, powder boxes and are to wear their new clothing but not to cut it into the Light Infantry dress until further orders,"(Orderly Book of Capt. Stewart, 42nd Regt, Nov 1759).

Back to the 42nd's Grenadiers — when they had buff facings, were the front and back cloths on the bearskins buff?

My google-fu has completely failed at finding any images of the backs. Gah, I wish there were real painting guides published for this period!

As for breeches, I'm sure that winter encampment in Albany would quite rapidly have the mightiest Highlanders changing the arrangements under their filabegs.

I did find an image of a 42nd Grenadier with Buff facings and red cloth on the front of the bearskin, so presumably red on the back too?

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and if you look at the back of these gren caps you can do a bit of speculating…

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Great, thanks!