by nolahistoryguy | Sep 9, 2026 | Napoleonic Period, Patreon, Patreon NHG, Writing Prompts
Continuing our Napoleonic Elite Cavalry series is of four Guard Chasseurs a Cheval at the depot.
Lucien Rousselot – Napoleon’s Elite Cavalry – Plate 11
Napoleon’s Elite Cavalry – Chasseurs a Cheval at the depot
Another painting of Napoleon’s Elite Cavalry by Lucien Rousselot. We see Chasseurs of the Imperial Guard, at their regimental depot. It’s typical morning. Rousselot presents four Chasseurs in the scene, two officers, a sous-officier, and a trooper in the background. One of the officers speaks to the sous-officier, a Maréchal des logis (sergeant), who takes down his commander’s orders in his notebook. The NCO will then carry on with the day’s routine. The men in the front (we’ll get to the trooper in the rear in a moment) wear the redingote, a long, double-breasted coat with a full skirt. It’s likely not a cold day, because they’re not wearing uniform coats under the redingotes. Since they work this morning in the depot, not “walking out,” all four wear the same headgear, the bonnet de police, the regiment’s fatigue cap.
The NCO’s displays more color. His aiguillettes have red woven in, and his sword belt is red leather. The chevron of his rank is on the sleeve of his redingote. Note that he wears his aiguillettes on the left shoulder. The officers both wear theirs on the right.
Legion d’Honneur
The officer on the left waits patiently. He wears the ribbon of the Legion d’Honneur on his left breast. Unlike the sous-officier, his sword hangs from a leather “frog” attached to his belt. It’s tighter on his side than the NCO, whose belt is designed to carry his sword while riding.
The chasseur in the rear wears “stable dress,” which consists of a short jacket and canvas duck trousers. While officers of the regiment employed civilian servants, this man is indeed a chasseur. It’s possible he is simply a regular trooper, tending to his horse. He may be an orderly, as the British would say, a “batman,” who is caring for an officer’s horse.
Writing Ideas
So, what happens from here? Once the day’s orders are communicated, where are the officers off to? Perhaps a staff meeting, or back to their offices. Clearly the officer on the left isn’t involved with either the NCO or the chasseur. There’s all sorts of possibilities here. They’re off to the same meeting. Maybe the officer needs a private word with his colleague, once the assignments are issued. Is it business-related? Personal? Is their relationship more involved than just members of the same regiment?
Go for it, writers!
by nolahistoryguy | Sep 2, 2026 | Napoleonic Period
The first in our Napoleonic Elite Cavalry series is of three Guard Chasseurs a Cheval.
Napoleon’s Elite Cavalry – Chasseurs a Cheval on a Sunday
Three Chasseur à Cheval de la Garde Imperiale, in Sunday “walking out” dress, Paris, between 1804 and 1814. They walk past a cafe called Au Tambour d’Arcole.
Napoleon’s Guard Chasseurs wore Hussar-style uniforms. They wear an under jacket called a dolman, and an outer jacket called a pelisse. Because it’s a Winter day, they wear the outer jackets buttoned up for the cold. In the Spring/Summer, the pelisse would be draped over the left shoulder. The troopers on the left and right wear green dolmans and breeches with tasseled Hussar boots. Their pelisses are red. The man in the center is a trumpeter. He wears different colors, to stand out in the line. That way, an officer giving orders knows here he is, so he can use his bugle to call out the commands. The trumpeter wears a blue dolman and breeches. His pelisse is rose colored.
The Chasseur on the left is a sous-officier, an NCO. The chevron on his pelisse indicate he is a maréchal des logis, a sergeant. His uniform has more gold lace and ornamentation.
The third Chasseur is a trooper. The lesser amount of gold lace and ornamentation of his uniform, and that of the trumpeter, indicates he is subordinate to the sous-officier.
So, the maréchal des logis is likely older than his companions. Napoleon’s army had two levels of sergeant. The maréchal des logis corresponds to the same rank in the modern French army (and US forces) as an E-5. The next rank was maréchal des logis chef, a modern E-8/E-9.
Headgear
All three men wear cocked hats rather than the big, cylindrical Colbacks worn on campaign. The colback offers protection from sabre cuts and bullets. Since they’re walking out in Paris, these men wear a lighter, simpler cocked hat, with plumes matching their uniforms.
All three men carry their sabres, as is required for walking-out dress, but not the ornate purse or sabretache that usually hangs from the sword belt.
Story Ideas
So, who are these men to each other? The sous-officier is several ranks higher than the trooper and trumpter. Are they related? Perhaps the senior man has been in Napoleon’s guides for years, and his younger brother, a musician, enlisted in the same regiment. Maybe the other trooper is a cousin, or perhaps just a friend in the same troop who came along on this lovely Paris afternoon.
Did they come to the regiment as skilled horsemen? Did they learn how to ride when they enlisted? The Chasseur à Cheval de la Garde were the Emperor’s personal bodyguards. A detail chasseurs and an officer accompanied him everywhere. The rest of the regiment stood in the line of battle, usually in reserve. Bonaparte would personally commit his Guard at tipping points in battles, to ensure victory.
While in Paris, the Chasseur à Cheval de la Garde participated in countless military parades and reviews, proud to serve their Emperor.
by nolahistoryguy | Aug 31, 2026 | Napoleonic Period
These wonderful paintings by Lucien Rousselot are great #writingprompts.
Napoleonic paintings by Lucien Rousselot
Beginning next month, we’re presenting the art of Lucien Rousselot. He was a brilliant artist and “uniformologist.” While he painted the French Army through many periods, much of his work focuses on the uniforms of Bonaparte’s army.
Rousselot was quite prolific. So, we’re starting with some of the most exciting uniforms of the period. This collection, Napoleon’s Elite Cavalry: Cavalry of the Imperial Guard, 1804-1815, contains ninety-one plates of Bonaparte’s bravest and best-dressed officers and troops.
#WritingPrompts
These illustrations offer so much inspiration for not only analysts and military historians, but writers as well. Rousselot presents these soldiers in active scenes. They’re not merely standing still, posing for the artist. The plates offer the writer context, from riding in the field to walking in the park with a young lady on the arm. We see not only campaign uniforms but court and evening wear. We see combinations of officers, NCOs, and troopers. Rousselot gives us nobles on down to the guys in the line.
NOLA Connection
So, these plates depict French soldiers. What’s the tie-in to New Orleans? Consider two possibilities. First, we know a number of members of Napoleon’s army made their way to America, particularly New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. C.S. Forester even included a story about an encounter (after the war) between Horatio Hornblower and soldiers of the Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard, in “Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies.”
The second possibility ties into the origin story of the Napoleon House Restaurant in the Vieux Carré. You may know the story, how Nicholas Girod, mayor of New Orleans in 1814, and his friends took Bonaparte’s defeat and exile to Elba badly. They always said that someone should rescue the Emperor from Elba and bring him to New Orleans. Girod promised to give Bonaparte the family home, located on Chartres and St. Louis Streets. Bonaparte is part of the city’s romantic past.
Our approach
We’ll present Rousselot to you once a week. Posts will appear on NOLA History Guy blog, Patreon, and Substack, Eloquent Profanity, and the Book of Zucker. Since we consider these writing ideas, that’s the angle you’ll read. If you find the plates appealing from a technical or historic perspective, comment or email us and let’s discuss!
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