A military history of the 17th century and the 18th century
Thursday, 11 April 2019
French drummer
Tambour des Cent-Suisses de la Maison du roi. École française. Milieu du XVIIIe siècle. Huile sur toile. Château de Versailles. OK since posting I am not sure what this represents - here are matching paintings in situ
6 comments:
Anonymous
said...
Interesting. My source says: "Tambour du régiment des Gardes-Françaises de la Maison du Roi"
Well. The Réunion des Musées Nationaux is an official institution while the "Visiteurs de Versailles" are....what? I dare say they don't know too much. Actually, the 18th c. costume of the Cent-Suisses was of pseudo-Renaissance style such as seen here:
The uniform is looking Prussian with that mitre cap. I know one unit with such a cap: Compagnie Franche Kleinholtz. This unit existed during the War of the Polish Succession and had Grenadiers with mitre caps, but their dragoons were looking more French.
Mitre caps were known in France, c. 1730. A few elite units wore similar caps (e.g. the bombardiers d'artillerie de terre) and - to judge from the paintings in the lower picture (left and centre) - among them the grenadiers of the Gardes Françaises. However: definitely, the style is very un-French. Perhaps, what we look at was just a project emulating the Prussian/Russian model (I think Russian grenadiers of the time wore the same sort of mitre cap)...? If those uniforms and, especially, mitre caps were actually worn, it would have been for a short time only, I presume (the painting at the right may indicate that the more popular fur cap soon replaced the mitre cap?). Too bad one cannot read the labeling of these paintings ...
BTW, this plate by Herbert Knötel represents a grenadier of the Gardes Françaises based on the painting at the left:
6 comments:
Interesting. My source says: "Tambour du régiment des Gardes-Françaises de la Maison du Roi"
https://www.photo.rmn.fr/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&IID=2C6NU040XFRA
I got it from here http://www.spectacles-selection.com/archives/expositions/fiche_expo_V/visiteurs-de-versailles-V/visiteurs-de-versailles-P.html
Well. The Réunion des Musées Nationaux is an official institution while the "Visiteurs de Versailles" are....what? I dare say they don't know too much. Actually, the 18th c. costume of the Cent-Suisses was of pseudo-Renaissance style such as seen here:
http://www.flickriver.com/photos/12167448@N05/19787730641/
or here:
https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8409316r.item
Same uniform style for the drummers of that very small unit:
https://www.notrehistoire.ch/medias/55531
Thanks for that. There are two other paintings in situ at the palace of Versailles
The uniform is looking Prussian with that mitre cap. I know one unit with such a cap: Compagnie Franche Kleinholtz. This unit existed during the War of the Polish Succession and had Grenadiers with mitre caps, but their dragoons were looking more French.
Cheers!
Mitre caps were known in France, c. 1730. A few elite units wore similar caps (e.g. the bombardiers d'artillerie de terre) and - to judge from the paintings in the lower picture (left and centre) - among them the grenadiers of the Gardes Françaises. However: definitely, the style is very un-French. Perhaps, what we look at was just a project emulating the Prussian/Russian model (I think Russian grenadiers of the time wore the same sort of mitre cap)...? If those uniforms and, especially, mitre caps were actually worn, it would have been for a short time only, I presume (the painting at the right may indicate that the more popular fur cap soon replaced the mitre cap?). Too bad one cannot read the labeling of these paintings ...
BTW, this plate by Herbert Knötel represents a grenadier of the Gardes Françaises based on the painting at the left:
http://regiment-index.de/img/knoe_00/knoe_18/18_27.jpg
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