Tony Barton
Company Commander
58th Regiment in Egypt.
Bonaparte’s adventure in The Orient in 1799, invading Egypt , beating the ruling Mamelukes, then getting bogged down trying to maintain his grip on the country, was glamourised at the time by the European press, and by later French painters. The British saw it as a real threat to their Indian possessions , and mobilised an Expeditionary Force from Britain and India to counter it.
By the time they arrived, Boney had left , leaving his sickly army to rot, something that became a bit of a habit...
The French army were not finished yet, and staged a very tough resistance to the landing at Aboukir Bay, and thereafter in three more battles, before admitting defeat and capitulating on terms .They were repatriated by the Royal Navy, who under Nelson had earlier destroyed their own fleet.
The 58th ( Rutland) Regiment had an active role during the Battle of Alexandria, which took place in the pre-dawn amongst the ruins of Heliopolis, on a narrow spit of land with the sea on one side and a lake on the other. The 58th were the right flank unit, on the seashore next to the 28th ( who famously won their back badge when attacked in front by infantry and behind by cavalry ) , and were heavily engaged in repulsing the French attacks, which came on in deep columns which were defeated by the massed firepower of the British two-deep Line .
The figure shows the new style that had arrived with the new century. Gone is the long coat, replaced by a jacket, and out goes the cocked hat in favour of a “ Shakoe Cap “. Both items were essentially Austrian fashions. The jacket had been used earlier as a Light infantry style, but was now issued to the whole Infantry, and remained largely the same until 1820.
The shako was made from lacquered felt ( not leather as sometimes described ) ,with a very thin stamped brass plate on the front, cockade and worsted tuft. There’s a ”fall” or neck protector hooked up on the back.
The regulation hairstyle was long, tied into the 11” pigtail, to last only a few years as the new short haircuts became fashionable .
The men landed without knapsacks, just a blanket rolled and slung across the back, into which a few necessaries were stowed. Haversack and canteen, with biscuits and diluted rum. The Navy were present in force, and this Army was well victualled.
The musket is the India Pattern, with the shorter 39” barrel, issued as a subsitute after a massive fire at the Tower destroyed stocks of the Short Land Pattern. It was cheaper and quicker to make , so became standard issue thereafter
It was also a spirited Army, with many names amongst the officers who would later gain fame, and seems to have been pleased to have an opportunity to take on the French on a level field .Their victories , after the endless dismal defeats of the 1790s , showed that perhaps the Army was not completely useless, despite the widespread opinion at home.
Sir Ralph Abercromby, who was killed in the battle , seems to have been a very well-regarded general, who might have done greater things had he lived.
It was March , so the weather would be cool or mild, making the uniforms reasonably comfortable.
That would change once the summer heat started. During the long sea voyage, uniforms were stored, the men wearing “slop” clothing on the transports, so they would be pretty well-dressed on landing if the rats hadn’t got at the clothes. . The action was in the lush Delta rather than the desert, so there were plenty of local supplies, including things very rare to Thomas Atkins, like dates and spiced bread .It must have been quite a culture shock for most of the men, who had rarely served overseas before.
**********************************************************************************************
The figure is all home-made, using brushed cotton cloth, goatskin, linen, etc. He's a DML body underneath, lightly modified.
*****************************************************************************
Bonaparte’s adventure in The Orient in 1799, invading Egypt , beating the ruling Mamelukes, then getting bogged down trying to maintain his grip on the country, was glamourised at the time by the European press, and by later French painters. The British saw it as a real threat to their Indian possessions , and mobilised an Expeditionary Force from Britain and India to counter it.
By the time they arrived, Boney had left , leaving his sickly army to rot, something that became a bit of a habit...
The French army were not finished yet, and staged a very tough resistance to the landing at Aboukir Bay, and thereafter in three more battles, before admitting defeat and capitulating on terms .They were repatriated by the Royal Navy, who under Nelson had earlier destroyed their own fleet.
The 58th ( Rutland) Regiment had an active role during the Battle of Alexandria, which took place in the pre-dawn amongst the ruins of Heliopolis, on a narrow spit of land with the sea on one side and a lake on the other. The 58th were the right flank unit, on the seashore next to the 28th ( who famously won their back badge when attacked in front by infantry and behind by cavalry ) , and were heavily engaged in repulsing the French attacks, which came on in deep columns which were defeated by the massed firepower of the British two-deep Line .
The figure shows the new style that had arrived with the new century. Gone is the long coat, replaced by a jacket, and out goes the cocked hat in favour of a “ Shakoe Cap “. Both items were essentially Austrian fashions. The jacket had been used earlier as a Light infantry style, but was now issued to the whole Infantry, and remained largely the same until 1820.
The shako was made from lacquered felt ( not leather as sometimes described ) ,with a very thin stamped brass plate on the front, cockade and worsted tuft. There’s a ”fall” or neck protector hooked up on the back.
The regulation hairstyle was long, tied into the 11” pigtail, to last only a few years as the new short haircuts became fashionable .
The men landed without knapsacks, just a blanket rolled and slung across the back, into which a few necessaries were stowed. Haversack and canteen, with biscuits and diluted rum. The Navy were present in force, and this Army was well victualled.
The musket is the India Pattern, with the shorter 39” barrel, issued as a subsitute after a massive fire at the Tower destroyed stocks of the Short Land Pattern. It was cheaper and quicker to make , so became standard issue thereafter
It was also a spirited Army, with many names amongst the officers who would later gain fame, and seems to have been pleased to have an opportunity to take on the French on a level field .Their victories , after the endless dismal defeats of the 1790s , showed that perhaps the Army was not completely useless, despite the widespread opinion at home.
Sir Ralph Abercromby, who was killed in the battle , seems to have been a very well-regarded general, who might have done greater things had he lived.
It was March , so the weather would be cool or mild, making the uniforms reasonably comfortable.
That would change once the summer heat started. During the long sea voyage, uniforms were stored, the men wearing “slop” clothing on the transports, so they would be pretty well-dressed on landing if the rats hadn’t got at the clothes. . The action was in the lush Delta rather than the desert, so there were plenty of local supplies, including things very rare to Thomas Atkins, like dates and spiced bread .It must have been quite a culture shock for most of the men, who had rarely served overseas before.
**********************************************************************************************
The figure is all home-made, using brushed cotton cloth, goatskin, linen, etc. He's a DML body underneath, lightly modified.
*****************************************************************************
