This flag is the national flag, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the “Union Jack.” Technically, it should be called the “Sofreign’s Color,’ but most historians refer to this color by the gender of the monarch at the time of this specific version of the flag. So, since we’re talking about the 16th Foot in 1779, it would be the King’s Color, the king being George III. While the modern version of the Union Jack includes the Cross of St. Patrick (a red cross in saltire on a white field), that addition was not made until 1801. So, we have the national flag with the Roman numeral XIV (16) in the center. The XIV is surrounded by a wreath of intertwined roses and thistles.
The Regimental Color
Each regiment in the British Army carries two colors, their Regimental Color and the King’s Color. The Regimental color’s primary field was the same color of the facings. So, for the 16th, the field color is yellow, with the Union Jack in the upper left corner. The Roman numeral XVI (16) is in the center, surrounded by a wreath of intertwined roses and thistles, same as the King’s Color
The purpose of this flag was to serve as a rallying point for members of the regiment that may get separated from the unit formation during the heat of battle.
16th Foot Soldier
This photo (by the author) shows a section of the Galvez in Louisiana exhibit at the Cabildo. These flags hang in front of a soldier of the regiment in the 1779 uniform.
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Two officers of Napoleon’s guard Chasseurs a Chavel, his personal light cavalry guard regiment, on parade. They wear grande tenue de service, their full-dress service uniform. This regiment dresses in hussar style, wearing the dolman jacket, then a second jacket, the pelisse, over it. Unless it’s cold, Chasseurs usually wore the pelisse hung over the shoulder.
Most hussar regiments wore a dolman, pelisse, and trousers of the same color. The Chasseurs de la Garde wore green for the dolman and trousers, with a red pelisse. This combination made them stand out, both on parade and campaign. Mind you, “monocolor” hussars, like Napoleon’s 3rd Hussars and their beautiful grey uniforms, stand out wonderfully. The Chasseurs, however, were more than just Bonaparte’s favorite regiment. They were his Guides, his bodyguards. They accompanied him everywhere.
Captain and Major
Here we see a Chasseur Captain on the left, shaking hands with a Major on the right. The Captain is a likely a Company commander (Troop/Company/Squadron). He respectfully greets the Major, who is possibly his chef d’escadron, the squadron commander. There would be two or three companies in the squadron. Notice the plume in the Major’s colback (the big hat) is white, while the Captain’s plume is the green/red that matches the troopers in the background.
We see the rich gold lace and chevrons of rank on the Major’s pelisse, along with his elaborately-embroidered sabertache attached to his sword belt. Both officers wear their formal parade swords. On campaign, they would likely switch these out for more serviceable weapons.
The saddle blankets of the officers are leopard skins, much more elaborate than the basic saddles and tack of the troopers.
Writing Ideas
The first thing that struck me here was, this is the opening scene of a parade/review story. There are so many incredible stories of Bonaparte’s reviews at the Tuileries Palace in Paris. They were huge, and easy to write from the perspective of a chef d’escardon of the Guard Chasseurs. Filling in the backstory could be a story in itself.
Get to it, writers!
Things you can do RIGHT NOW to help us out!
Buy my books! Edward Branley is the author of six books on New Orleans history. They’re available from local booksellers and all the usual online suspects.
Buy me a Coffee on Ko-fi dot com. I just love this concept as a way to say thank you/tip creators you enjoy. Our idea of monetization is buying books and having us come to speak. If you see me at a coffee shop, stop and say hi. Otherwise, I’ll raise coffee cup to you if you treat me.
Become a patron. Yes, we’re on Patreon. A lot of creators use the platform for direct monetization, and that’s great for them. We don’t have “exclusive content” for patrons. Still, if you think our history stuff is worth a dollar a month, go join!
We feature the work of Boyd Cruise, Artist, Teacher, Curator, in Podcast 65.
936 St. Peter Street
Podcast 65 – Boyd Cruise
Alvik Boyd Cruise (1908-1988) was an artist, art teacher, and the first director and curator of the Historic New Orleans Collection. We presented a number of his paintings in August’s edition of the Third Thursday Lecture Series at the Jefferson Parish Library. While JPL records the talks for their YouTube channel, we like to present the talks as a podcast.
LaPrete Mansion, Dauphine Street side, by Boyd Cruise
Louisiana State Arsenal
Zoom in of Cruise’s painting of the Arsenal
The “Three Sisters” on N. Rampart Street
Girod House
Historic BK House, 1962 painting based on 1934 HABS
How You Can Help NOLA History Guy
Things you can do RIGHT NOW to help us out!
Buy my books! Edward Branley is the author of six books on New Orleans history. They’re available from local booksellers and all the usual online suspects.
Buy me a Coffee on Ko-fi dot com. I just love this concept as a way to say thank you/tip creators you enjoy. Our idea of monetization is buying books and having us come to speak. If you see me at a coffee shop, stop and say hi. Otherwise, I’ll raise coffee cup to you if you treat me.
Become a patron. Yes, we’re on Patreon. A lot of creators use the platform for direct monetization, and that’s great for them. We don’t have “exclusive content” for patrons. Still, if you think our history stuff is worth a dollar a month, go join!
Portrait of Bernado de Gálvez, Viceroy of New Spain. This copy is part of the Cabildo’s Galvez exhibit. (author’s photo)
Portrait of the First Count of Gálvez
The equestrian portrait of Bernardo de Gálvez, Viceroy of New Spain, painted by Fray Pablo de Jesús y Jerónimo in 1796 CE. Now housed at the National Museum of History in Mexico City.
Upon entering the Gálvez exhibit at the Cabildo, guests are presented with this portrait of Bernardo de Galvez. While the focus of the exhibit is on Galvez’s time in New Orleans and on campaign against the British. This portrait presents him at the pinnacle of his career, as Viceroy of New Spain.
Spain to Louisiana to Mexico City
Gálvez was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Spanish army when he accompanied O’Reilly on his expedition to Algiers, where he was seriously wounded. He recovered, and was promoted to full Colonel. When it became clear that Spain would formally support the United States of America in their rebellion, Spain ordered Gálvez to New Orleans, to replace Unzaga. (As we’ve mentioned before, this was a logical move, as Unzaga was more of a diplomat and administrator.)
After his successes against the British, the Spanish Crown ennobled him, as Conde de Gálvez. This form of raising someone to the peerage is common in any countries. For example, Arthur Wellesley became Lord (later Duke of) Wellington during the Napoleonic Wars.
So, Galvez also received promotion to Lieutenant-General. King Carlos III appointed him Captain-General of Cuba on 20-May-1783. His father, Matías de Gálvez y Gallardo, was Viceroy of New Spain at the time. Matías died in October of 1784. The king appointed Bernardo to his father’s position. He arrived in Vera Cruz, Mexico, in May of 1785, and formally assumed the position in Mexico City in June of that year.
Of course, we Americans pretty much end Gálvez’s story at the end of the American Revolution. We move on to other things. Even our exhibit at the Cabildo closes before the 250th anniversary of his governorship!
Bernardo de Galvez Cabildo exhibit takes guests through his governorship of Louisiana.
Bernado Galvez, his wife Félicité, and their daughter Mathilda.
Galvez Cabildo exhibit
Bernardo Vicente de Gálvez y Madrid, his wife, and their daughter, greet guests at the Cabildo at the entrance of the exhibit, Gálvez and Louisiana in the American Revolution. The exhibit opened in March, and runs through May 15, 2027. The exhibit is part of the Louisiana State Museum’s efforts to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, along with the Lafayette exhibit, also at the Cabildo.
Galvez wears the uniform of a Colonel of the Fixed Louisiana Regiment. That was his first appointment in Louisiana. He arrived in New Orleans in December of 1776. The Spanish crown ordered him to Louisiana to succeed Luis de Unzaga y Amézaga.
Transition to wartime
When the Thirteen Colonies declared their independence from the United Kingdom in 1776, Spain adopted a wait-and-see attitude. By the end of the year, they decided to readiness was the best option. Unzaga was a solid administrator and governor, but not a strong military commander. His efforts in support of the Americans paved the way for Galvez to launch the campaign that reclaimed West Florida from the British.
Unzaga relinquished the governorship to Galvez on 1-January-1777. He inherited not only a well-running colonial administration, but also Unzaga’s network of American contacts, most notably Oliver Pollack. Galvez implemented Unzaga’s plans to supply the Americans, sending gunpower up the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, into Pennsylvania. He also worked with Pollack to ship supplies to Philadelphia. So, even though Spain did not formally enter the American Revolution on the side of the colonists until 1779, the clandestine efforts began almost immediately.
New Orleans society
Galvez understood the need to engage the mostly-French population of New Orleans. He courted Marie-Félicité de Saint-Maxent, a young widow. They married on 2-November-1777. Félicité gave birth to their first child, Mathilda, the following year.
Clothing
While most portraits of Galvez show him in the uniform of a Spanish General, the curators of this exhibit chose to present him in the uniform of his arrival rank. Galvez is depicted by artists wearing both this uniform and the blue and red general’s uniform during the Pensacola campaign.
Félicité wears a dress of a Creole woman of a wealthy Louisiana family. Mathilda appears to be two or three years old here.
Spanish contributions
We will discuss various parts of the exhibit in the coming weeks.
We’re making changes to NOLA History Guy Substack and Patreon
The original Church of St. Louis in New Orleans. It was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1788.
Changes to our Substack and Patreon
Comus costume sketch, 1909
We’ve been sharing NOLA History Guy content to other platforms for some time. Going on Patreon was a fun exercise in WordPress configuration, because there’s a plugin that connects the sites. One of the features of the plugin I particularly like is that it allows access to the “paid” portion of a post to a level it calls “any patron.” That means someone can sign up for NHG on Patreon, pay a dollar for one month, drop the payments, and still be listed as a “patron.” I just love that! It means teachers in particular can get easy access to all the content. (I’ve also said that, if you’re a teacher and you’ve ponied up a dollar or more, come buy the coffee shop and I’ll buy you a beverage.)
As for Substack, it’s always been free. I started with mirroring the weekly newsletter there. Now, we’re adding a $1/month paid tier.
With both platforms now having a paid tier, We’re going to have content exclusively for subscribers. We’ll be introducing our series on the Napoleonic-period of Lucien Rousselot this afternoon. The first post will drop on Tuesday. Additionally, we’ll have New Orleans history stuff, seriously geeky fun stuff, for subscribers.
The Podcast
Boyd Cruise painting of The Louisiana State Armory, on St. Peter Street, behind the Cabildo. It was the subject of Podcast 45.
We tried a more-exclusive podcast tier a while back, and it flopped. The re-boot will be a bit different. Instead of a higher-level tier subscription required for bonus pod episodes, we’re going to offer those eps via Patreon and Substack to subscribers at the $1 level. If you want to donate more, you can subscribe at the $5/month level. Once we get a dozen or so higher-tier subscribers, we’ll add content for those folks. The rationale here is simple. I’m pretty lazy as a rule, but if y’all are putting fifty bucks or more a month in my pocket, I’ll get off my butt.
We’ll start exclusive podcast content with deep-dives into topics from the free, long-form pods. For example, we did the August “Third Thursday” talk at the Jefferson Parish Library on the art of Boyd Cruise. There were a bunch of his paintings in the talk, which we’ll expand on in, say, 20-minute talks. We’ll also go back to the content in the books and go deeper on specific people, places, and topics that maybe only got a hundred or so words for the caption.
Let’s go!
St. Aloysius College, Barracks and Chartres, 1869
I’m confident that this model, based on $1/month, will work. As I’ve said in the past, I’ve seen what y’all pay five bucks or more a month for, and what we offer here clears that bar. If you have any questions about all this, give me a shout via email, edward@nolahistoryguy.com, or stop by when I’m staffing the Information Desk at the Cabildo.
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