Admirals had three silver stars on each epaulette and three rows of lace on the coat sleeve, vice-admirals two and rear-admirals one, worn with both dress and undress uniform. In practice, as opposed to the regulations, the sleeve lace seems to have been sewn on the cuff.

We sometimes buy lots or complete collections. Our speciality is to share these items with you when the occasion appears, in the form of PROMOTIONS, of sale of ANTIQUITIES or OCCASIONS. Do not stay away from this pleasure!

What happened to Napoleon’s clothes?

White cloth lapels and cuffs were added to the flag officer's full dress uniform. A crown was added to the buttons. White lapels and cuffs and gold lace were introduced on admiral of the fleet's undress uniform, the same as in full dress except that buttonholes were unlaced. The undress uniforms of other flag officers remained the same except for the addition of the new button. Admirals of the fleet had five rows of lace round the cuffs, admirals four, vice-admirals three and rear-admirals one. Following his second abdication after the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, Napoleon was exiled to the remote South Atlantic island of St. Helena. He wore his chasseur uniform on the British ships that conveyed him first to Plymouth Harbour (the Bellerophon) and then to St. Helena (the Northumberland). Napoleon continued to wear this uniform during his first six weeks on the island, when he was staying with the Balcombe family while his residence of Longwood was being prepared. He then abandoned it for a green hunting uniform and other garb, as described by his second valet, Louis-Étienne Saint-Denis. Every regiment had a squad of Sappers who were generally dressed as grenadiers with red epaulettes and a cross axes badge on the upper sleeves, a bearskin cap with red cords and feather but no plate. They were equipped with a long leather apron, white gauntlet gloves, and an axe with a brass mounted handle. It was customary for sappers to grow beards. Although the format may sound familiar to Osprey fans, this book is so much more than a king-sized Men-at-Arms. It is a work of art unto itself. In France, it has always been complex, with a debate in recent years over whether he should be put forward under a positive light, in terms of political advances, or whether the focus should be on the other side – aspects such as rules on slavery or Jewish people. It’s for historians to shed light on that complexity.”

Captains' dress uniform was similar to that of flag officers but without laced buttonholes and with two rows of lace on cuffs. Epaulettes were plain. Boisselier, Henry & Martin, Yves. La Garde Imperiale et ses Uniformes. Le Livre chez vous, 2008. (623p. Color uniform plates by Boisselier. Based on the Anne S. K. Brown uniform print collection at Brown University. Very Oversize.) Jean Arida, of the Napoleonic society of Compiègne, who will be part of a group of men and women dressed in Napoleonic costume at a special film screening with a historians’ debate, exhibition of historic artefacts and imperial throne for selfies, said he thought the film would boost the work of Napoleonic re-enactment groups. I would recommend getting hold of anything on the uniforms of the period, though some are more accurate/reliable than others. There is a wealth of material available. Adjudant: the left epaulette with thin fringes and the right epaulette without fringes + red shoulder straps with two gold (or silver) stripes along each strap Sergent-major (infantry) or Maréchal des logis (cavalry): two gold (or silver) stripes (or chevrons) Sergent (infantry) or Maréchal des logis (cavalry): one gold (or silver) stripe (or chevron) Caporal-fourrier (infantry) or brigadier-fourrier (cavalry): two yellow stripes (or chevrons) + one gold (or siler) stripe on the upper left sleeve Caporal (infantry) or brigadier (cavalry): two yellow stripes (or chevrons) Soldat (infantry) or cavalier (cavalry): No insignia Galons d'ancienneté [ edit ] Grenadier of the Old Guard wearing on his left shoulders two veteran chevrons representing 15 to 20 years of serviceColombe Samoyalt-Verlet, “The Emperor’s Wardrobe,” in Katell Le Bourhis, ed., The Age of Napoleon: Costume from Revolution to Empire, 1789-1815 (New York, 1989), p. 204.

Like battle and campaign accounts it all depends on the research and source material used by those producing the illustration. Elting, John; Knotel, Herbert (illus.). Napoleonic Uniforms. Volumes I, II, III & IV. Macmillan, 1993 & Emperor's Press, 2000. Trumpeters wore reversed colors, facing sometimes edged with white lace, a coat often single-breasted with white buttonholes in front, no cuff flaps, white epaulettes, and a white of red mane on the helmet. The same dress was used for the Foot Dragoons but with brass drums with blue hoops instead of trumpets. They rode white and grey horses. Joaquin Phoenix, Ridley Scott and Vanessa Kirby attend the UK premiere of Napoleon. Photograph: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Fancy dress

The first two volumes of the series cover the Grande Armée, its antecedents, the foreign units who fought with it, and its worthless Bourbon successor. Volume I includes sections on the Royal Army, the Armies of the French Revolution, l'Armée d'Egypte, command and staff, line and light infantry, special infantry units, and the line cavalry, both heavy and light, and the dragoons. Volume II covers the foreign troops, the artillery, the Imperial Navy, engineers and the incomparable Imperial Guard. Both of these volumes were published in 1993. Frédéric Masson, Napoleon at Home: The Daily Life of the Emperor at the Tuileries, translated by James E. Matthew, Vol. 1 (London, 1894), p. 116. The Otto von Pivkas book "Uniforms of the Napoleonic Wars" is one of the best all round books I have used. The only quibble I have is that Russia post 1812 is not covered for some strange reason. Bucquoy, E. L. Les Uniformes de Premier Empire. (Complete 10 Volume set). Paris: Grancher, 1977–1985. Vol. 1. La Garde Imperiale, Troupes a Pied. (Tome I); Vol. 2. La Garde Imperiale, Troupes a Cheval. (Tome II); Vol. 3. Les Cuirassiers; Vol. 4. L'Infanterie; Vol. 5. La Cavalerie Legere; Vol. 6. Dragons et Guides; Vol. 7. Etat-major et Service de Sante; Vol. 8. Gardes d'Honneur et Troupes Etrangeres; Vol. 9. La Maison de l'Empereur; Vol. 10. Fanfares et Musiques des troupes a Cheval 1640–1940. (Color illustrations of uniforms by Benigni, Boisselier, Feirst, Giffard, Hilpert, Huen, Job, Lapeyre, Laroux, Rene Louis, Rousseltot, Toussaint.) Undress: Blue cloth coat, blue lappels and round cuffs, fall down blue collar; waistcoat and breeches of white or blue cloth as may be convenient. The buttons worn by the masters to bear the arms of the Navy Office, and by the pursers those of the Victualling Office... Warrant officers

Napoléon was a master in propaganda: his simple uniform + the great coat + the little hat were just a genius idea! Everybody could recognize him, even the lowest soldiers, and, he seemed very “modest” compared to his officers with their shining uniforms and feathered hats… The two volumes of John R Elting\'s Napoleonic Uniforms crashed onto my desk with an impact that tumbled my 28mm Romans and shook the battleship Iowa from the top of my monitor. Since Napoleon’s son was living with his grandfather, Emperor Francis I of Austria (an enemy of Napoleon), it was not possible for him to receive the clothes before his death in 1832, at the age of 21. Instead the clothes were given to Napoleon’s mother, Letizia Bonaparte, who distributed them among Napoleon’s siblings. Most of Napoleon’s clothes that were preserved by the imperial family are in the Napoleon I Museum at the Château de Fontainebleau, including Napoleon’s only surviving grenadier uniform.

Osprey Blog

The uniform of the soldiers of the train was made of a light blue-grey coat and buff breeches. The facings were dark blue for the artillery train or brown for the baggage train. Soldiers of the train wore a shako with a light blue-grey or red plume (or pompons). Their buttons and other metallic elements were silver. In November 1799, Napoleon became the First Consul of France through a coup d’état. The position was considered a civil, not a military one. One of the early decrees of the consulate mandated the creation of uniforms for consuls and ministers. English visitor John Lemaistre, admitted to an audience at the Tuileries Palace in March 1802, wrote: Hussar insignia was represented with elaborate curved embroidered chevrons in gold lace on the lower sleeve of the wearer's coat and pelisse extending from the cuff to the elbow of the wearer. Officer's chevrons had the point facing up. Warrant officers and NCOs were the same, but less elaborate. Captains and commanders both wore two epaulettes: captains over three years' seniority with a silver crown and anchor, captains under three years with a silver anchor, commanders plain. Lieutenants' dress uniform was the same as captains but without any lace and with one plain epaulette on the right shoulder. Undress uniform for captains, commanders and lieutenants was the same as the 1795 captains' undress uniform but with the same buttons and epaulettes as in full dress. Masters and midshipmen's uniform was unaltered apart from the buttons, which were the same as captains'. The midshipmen's uniform remained officially the same from 1787 to 1891 but in practice, changed in cut. Items in the collection Main articles: Fusilier, Grenadier, Voltigeur, Chasseur, and Carabinier Grenadier (left) and voltigeur (right) of the line infantry