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Auction: 18003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 719

An Officer's Scarlet Serge Undress Jacket, The Highland Light Infantry

the body in scarlet serge with rounded front skirts and two vents at the rear, the collar in yellow 'superfine' or 'Melton' woollen cloth, the jacket and cuffs lined in scarlet twill, quilted over the chest but not the spine, and the collar lined with scarlet 'superfine' or 'Melton' woollen cloth; the jacket edged all round, including the collar, shoulder straps, cuffs, skirt-vents and pocket flaps, with gold gimp, with a gold gimp trefoil at the rear centre of the collar and gold gimp Austrian knots terminating the rear vents; the gauntlet cuffs each with three gold gimp loops terminating in gilt regimental buttons; two front skirt pockets, each with a scallop-cut flap bearing three gold gimp loops terminating in gilt regimental buttons; six gilt regimental buttons at centre front; major's rank insignia in gilt metal and velvet on each shoulder strap; one internal pocket inside the left breast, all pockets part-lined with glazed white linen, the sleeves lined with striped cotton; the upright collar closing with two hooks-and-eyes with a black cotton stock patch at the front; all buttons half-domed, 17mm diameter by J. R. Gaunt & Son, Birmingham; some stitching at fault, some staining in the armpits, the buttons tarnished, slight moth and staining to the exterior but generally in good condition; height from top of collar to bottom of rear skirts 78cm.

This extremely rare officer's jacket is apparently of the style worn by 2nd Bn. The Highland Light Infantry in Egypt in 1882 according to Mackay, J. B. and Anderson, D. N., The Highland Light Infantry: the uniforms of the Regiment 1881-1914 (Glasgow, 1977), p. 15. The authors mention the existence of a similar jacket 'of the period 1886-1889' which appears to conform in its decoration to the example catalogued here. It would appear that the above jacket was introduced in the early 1870s, being described in Dress Regulations for Officers of the Army of both 1874 (p. 53) and 1883 (p. 68) as a 'Second tunic … of light cloth or serge; in all respects the same as the dress tunic. It is at the option of officers to provide themselves with this article or not'. Reid, S., in Queen Victoria's Highlanders (Oxford, 2007), states (p.34 and plate G1) that this jacket was intoduced in 1873 and 'formed the basis of the khaki service dress adopted in the 1900s'.

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Sold for
£280