An inquiry into late 17th-century French military fashion, equipment, and tactics.

by StrategyResponsible3

Hello! Before I delve into specifics or, the specifics of the specific? I just want to say thank you for helping me on this subject because for some reason I can't seem to find any good books on the matter. All I ever find are colored illustrations of civilian fashion with no explanation on each piece of garment. I'm really interested in finding out because I'm currently writing a French officer in the backdrop of the Williamite war in Ireland and I wanted to be as accurate as possible. And also if you would be able to link some material or literature on the subject I'd appreciate it as I do have a passion for military history.

So some of the questions I have the first regard the attire of French soldiers, specifically the officer class.

  1. What would the typical attire of a dragoon officer be when he's on the field? (Since European cavalry tactics evolved greatly, and the full-suit of armor was dropped for chest pieces in most cases)
  2. What would the demeanor of a French officer be to his subordinates? Since the officer is from the gentry. (I would assume the same as in the 18th century where it was highly discouraged and often frowned upon for officers to socialize and fraternize with the enlisted)
  3. Where there any other roles that dragoons were assigned other than mounted infantry and conventional cavalry?
Iphikrates

Hi there - we're happy to approve your question related to your creative project, and we are happy for people to answer. However, we should warn you that many flairs have become reluctant to answer questions for aspiring novelists and the like, based on past experience: some people working on creative projects have a tendency to try to pump historians for trivia while ignoring the bigger points they were making, while others have a tendency to argue with historians when the historical reality does not line up with what's needed for a particular scene or characterization. Please respect the answers of people who have generously given you their time, even if it's not always what you want to hear.

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