Collection Militaria
Officer's coat, Inf.-Reg. No.15
(58 Kbytes)
- Title: Officer's coat (15th Infantry Regiment, I. Battalion Life Guard)
- Origin: Prussia
- Date: ca. 1785
This coat is a copy from the second half of the 19th century. However, all of the embroideries including the cloth under them -- the breast, the pocket flaps, the outsides of the cuffs, the waist and the back -- originate from the 18th century. Also dating from this period are the embroidered breast star of the "Hohe Orden zum Schwarzen Adler" (High Order of the Black Eagle) and the aiguilette (braided cord). Only the two embroidered ribbons in the plaits are missing.
The use of tin and silver for the buttons and embroidery corresponds with the fashion of the Rococo era. The outer decorations (at least since 1753) of the I. Battalion Life Guard uniforms were especially expensive and regarded very impressive. (Friedrich II. was still crown prince when he assumed command of this regiment in 1732.) The style and decorations of the coat were copied by armies of smaller and less powerful states like Hessen.
