sash

[civilwarcaptain]

What color sash would a cavalry officer wear? My friend is a 1st LT Cav officer, and he says that he needs a yellow sash. Is this true?

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: sash

Hallo!

For which army? ;)
Skirting the discussion on the historical presence or absence of the sash, and Period personal druthers...

The U.S. 1861 regulations state:

1505. For Officers of the Adjutant-General's, Inspector-General's, Quartermaster's and Subsistence Departments, Corps of Engineers, Topographical Engineers, Ordnance, Artillery, Infantry, Cavalry, and the Judge Advocate of the Army- crimson silk net; for Officers of the Medical Department-medium or emerald green silk net, with silk bullion fringe ends; to go around the waist and tie as for General Officers.

Just a suggestion... there are a number of on-line versions of the 1861 "Revised Regulations For the Army of the United States"

Curt

1505

[Silas]

Re: sash

You'd be surprised how many folks on this forum who regularly portray officers and who do not own sashes. There is certainly a time and place for sashes - officer of the day, for example - but the mere portraying of an officer does not automatically necessitate the purchase of a sash.

In the field, the best use I had for my old sash was as a scarf to keep my balding head warm while sleeping.

[D F Smith Historic]

Re: sash

Hi All,

Silas, man that has got to be the most ersatz use of a sash! Might be a good idea for me as well as I am a little thin on top ;)

Personally I think anyone who portrays an officer should have a sash , as officers did then. Even thougn in some instances sashes may not be appropriate. There are times when they are. A good officer should be prepared for the impression, wether in the field or in camp and garrison.

All the best

Don S

[Tom Ezell]

Re: sash

What Don said...

One of the basic principles of leadership for officers and NCOs in the armed forces is to Set the Example.

Many years ago when I was an aspiring kay-det, one of my instructors was advising me of the necessity and advisability of using edge dressing on my otherwise spit-shined combat boots -- a thought that i had not yet thoroughly grasped. "Why do we care here what your boots look like? Why do we care how you take care of your uniform? Because if you ever get out of here and into the Army, your soldiers will care. Because they will follow the example you set for them. And if you think you can get by looking like Joe the Rag-picker, you are seriously mistaken."

Yeah, this is just a hobby, and finding the "good stuff" for an officer's impression is getting increasingly difficult over the past year or two. But if your intent is to portray one of these leaders, you need to be serious about both the material and personal aspect of the impression. Don't step out in front of your troops looking like a rag-picker, or like the Cap'n described in the ditty, Kingdom Coming. You should put your first efforts into acquiring the presecribed service uniform for the appropriate rank. If a commissioned officer, that includes a sash, crimson silk for officers of the line. Confederate regulations called for a yellow sash for cavalry officers, but yellow was a difficult color to find in the south during the war years, and I have little empirical data to show how closely this regulation was followed.

[D F Smith Historic]

Re: sash

Hi All,

Thats a great point Tom & a good example of Why one should have a sash in ones officer kit. The years may go by , but the basic comportment of an officer and the attention to dress is the same ...to look as a soldier should

A good historical examople of a well and properly dressed officer I think would be Gen Winfield Scott Hancock, who was known to be a exceptionaly well uniformed and dressed officer, even in battle.

Yeah, I know I am using a General as an example and not a line officer, but Who sets the example for an Army or Corps, or Div., or Brigade? The commanding General does.

Conversly, there were some known Officers who wern't so well kitted out and didn't really care about their apperance, or were excessivly plain dressers......More than likely the soldiers in their commands followed suit as well by the example.

As always , one should find these things out about the unit officers being portrayed

When portraying an officer either in the filed or in garrison. I do my best to have my sash on hand in my baggage or pack, & wear it when appropriate...Point is I have with me, as it as it is a symbol of rank, and appropriate for the officers impression I portray out here in the Soutgh West.

All the best

Don S

[Kevin O'Beirne]

Re: sash

"It all varied" during the war years--in some commands, on-duty officers were required to wear sashes and I suspect that, in others, it wasn't such a big deal if an on-duty officer did not wear a sash. One example that comes to mind was General Whipple--a division commander in the Army of the Potomac's Third Corps (until being killed at Chancellorsville). Whipple had the reputation of being perhaps the most filthy, unkempt general officer in the army, and I can't imagine that he wore a sash!... particularly when he coulnd't even be bothered to get his clothes de-caked and comb his hair or remove the "leftovers" from his uncombed beard. :)

When potraying an officer I usually stash my sash in my leather haversack. For most "on-campaign" situations I don't wear it, but now and then it comes in handy, even for "on-campaign" portrayals. For example, for most of Payne's Farm 2005 I didn't wear the sash, but on Sunday morning when our Federal battalion was to meet with the Confederate battalion on the battlefield for a joint commemorative ceremony, I decided to "dandy up" and wear the sash (and even a pair of white goatskin gauntlets). For that occasion I thought the sash appropriate.

Personally, I tend to wear my sash when "on-duty" during garrison-style events, and I even wore it as the battalion Officer of the Day throughout 140th Antietam in 2002 (an on-campaign portrayal)--it one does not have a sash, I'm not sure how it is one appears as the Officer of the Day when detailed to that duty.

[Tom Ezell]

Re: sash

There's one very nice photograph of a Federal officer-of-the-day in the trenches in front of Atlanta... wearing his sash over the shoulder as he should.

Back when Nicky Hughes was still running CCG, he ran a series of articles by Michael Cunningham concerning collection of artifacts belonging to a Captain Kellogg of Co. C, 33rd Illinois, that included the good captain's sash and diary/letter entries where he wrote about it. Kellogg was killed at Vicksburg, probably not wearing the sash since it's survived to his day. But then again the collection contains Kellogg's cap, complete with the fragment hole and bloodstains from his fatal wound. Go figure...

The series ran between the summer of 2002 and the fall of 2003, in 5 or 6 installments, if anyone's interested in a look at what a line officer actually carried...

[D F Smith Historic]

Re: sash

Hi All,

Tom, that is a great article & very informative! I totally forgot about it. Thank you for mentioning it.

If I remember correctly . I belive Kellog's hat was a light colloured civilian type with military trimmings applyed.

It is good to see a original officers kit. On another note I am facinated with the differing quality and types of sword that officers used & interested in the different examples of mess chests that were used, but that is a post for another day

All the best

Don S

[Tom Ezell]

Re: sash

There were actually two hats in the collection... The first one featured was a light tan beehive hat, where Kellogg had swapped his hat cord, regimental/branch patch, eagle hat patch, and plume from his dress hat when that one apparently wore out. This hat was a battlefield pickup from an engagement here in Arkansas in the spring of '62, and was apparently taken from a Confederate captain from the 12th Texas Cavalry who was killed in said engagement.

Kellogg was apparently wearing his cap at Vicksburg, and this is what has the hole and bloodstains in it. It's a private-purchase, McDowell-style forage cap if I remember rightly...

An awesome collection, started with the captain's trunk, and Cunningham added to it as he found various items scattered among the family.

[Sharpshooter1]

Re: sash

I checked with a few sutlers, and they all are different- as to who wore what color sash..

Could anyone clarify this for me?

Thank you in advance:

[LtCol0802]

Re: sash

This is from a previous post I answered:

1509. For officers of the General Staff and Engineers, and of the Artillery and Infantry – red silk
net. For Officers of the Cavalry – yellow silk net. All with silk bullion fringe ends; to go around
the waist, and to tie as for General Officers.

From the REGULATIONS FOR THE ARMY OF THE CONFEDERATE STATES
1863

Notice that it says RED for Infantry and Artillery not Wine or crimson or maroon or anything else being sold out there today as CS.

Here is what the Federal Regs said:
1505. For Officers of the Adjutant-General's, Inspector-General's, Quartermaster's and Subsistence Departments, Corps of Engineers, Topographical Engineers, Ordnance, Artillery, Infantry and the Judge Advocate of the Army- crimson silk net; for Officers of the Medical Department-medium or emerald green silk net, with silk bullion fringe ends; to go around the waist and tie as for General Officers.

1861 U.S. Army Regulations: Uniforms & Equipage

Notice that there is no yellow sash mentioned. I believe Federal Cavalry also wore the crimson sash.

Sinc,
LtCol John Owens USMC (ret)

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: sash

Hallo!

"I checked with a few sutlers, and they all are different- as to who wore what color sash.. "

There a vendors that "know their history," and then there are vendors that.. well... are clueless.

Seriously, IMHO, it is always better to be an informed customer and educated consumer- and ot rely on "sutlers."

1505. For Officers of the Adjutant-General's, Inspector-General's, Quartermaster's and Subsistence Departments, Corps of Engineers, Topographical Engineers, Ordnance, Artillery, Infantry, Cavalry, and the Judge Advocate of the Army- crimson silk net; for Officers of the Medical Department-medium or emerald green silk net, with silk bullion fringe ends; to go around the waist and tie as for General Officers.

There is a discussion that some of the versions have a "type setter's/printer's" ommission " in the missing word "Cavalry."

My version above is from the 1861 J. G. L. Brown, Philadelphia, version.

Curt

[Kevin O'Beirne]

Re: sash

Gold sashes were worn by general officers.

[Silas]

Re: sash

I noticed the below text about the use of sashes by a field officer of the day who had been making the rounds.

A disagreeable duty I had to perform occurred one morning just at break of day. I had just returned from my trip over the line and was about entering the Lacey House, when I noticed a man running down towards the water's edge on the other side of the river. On these night tours of duty I wore a large cavalry overcoat with a long cape, which thoroughly concealed my rank and sword. I stepped out to the top of the bank to see what this man was doing, and he hailed me with: "Hello, Yank. I am going to send ye over a nice boat, with tobacco and newspapers. Look out and get her, and send her back with coffee and newspapers, and don't let any of your d—d officers get hold of it. If they catch ye they'll raise h—l with you, and swipe the whole business." I did not say a word, but quietly walked down to where I saw the boat would touch the shore and waited for it. In the mean time he kept up a running fire of admonitions like the above, chiefly directed to the need [187] of watching against the vigilance of our d—d officers. I picked up the boat, took it up the bank, and then threw my coat open, disclosing my sword and my sash as officer of the day. Oh! the profanity and billingsgate that followed beggars description. I thought I had heard swearing before, but never anything to touch this fellow, and I really could not blame him very much. He had simply hailed the wrong man. The man he thought he was hailing, seeing my presence, kept out of the way. The boat was a little beauty, one of the handsomest I ever saw. It contained five or six pounds of the best Virginia plug tobacco and several newspapers from Richmond. I would have been glad to have kept the boat as a souvenir, but had to despatch it to head-quarters with all its contents at once. Of course I never saw it again.

pp. 186-87, War from the Inside: The Story of the 132nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry by Maj. Frederick Hitchcock.