By Koen De Smedt
In this article I will try and describe the various bits of
clothing equipment that were issued to a French fusilier, what they were
used for, and where he would keep them. This article is based on the list
of issued items in the fusilier's pay book, and a posting by George
Nafziger on the Napoleon Series' discussion forum.
At enrolment (ideally) the fusilier would be issued with
the following bits of clothing. I won't go into great details about this,
as you can find more information in the first article of this series.
Headdress
1 shako, 1 couvre-shako (shako cover), 1 pompon, 1
pokalem or bonnet de police.
Small items of clothing and underwear
3 chemises (shirts), 3 pairs de demi-bas (socks, usually cotton, but I guess that soldiers
would have been quick to add woollen pairs, especially in cold weather), 1
caleçons de toile (long drawers), 1 cols noirs and 2 cols blanc.
Large items of clothing
1 capote (greatcoat), 1 habit-veste and 1
gilet à manches;
1 pantolons de tricot (dress breeches) and 1 pantalon de toile (overalls).
Furthermore 3 pairs of shoes, 1 pair each of demi-guêtres gris and demi-guêtres
noirs (marching and black gaiters).
Weapons
1 fusil avec baïonette, the musket with the bayonet.
The bayonet would be in a leather scabbard (fourreau), inserted into a frog that was
attached to the cartridge box strap. Corporals, musicians and NCOs would
also be issued with a sabre and sabre belt. Also the musket strap (bretelle
de fusil)
Large Equipment
1 giberne (cartridge box), with couvre-giberne
(cover) and strap (porte-giberne), and 1 havresac (calfskin back pack).
Small equipment and kit
In the giberne would be found (besides 35 cartouches,
and more cartouches would be in the havresac): 3 silex et plomb (flints
with lead covers - these serve to hold the flint in the cock), 1 silex en
bois ou corne (flint in wood or horn, used for firing practice, to avoid
using up real flints, that were always in short supply), 1 pièce de
graisse (piece of lard), 1 bouteille à huile (oil bottle - olive oil
would be used), 1 tourne-vis (screwdriver), 1 epinglette (small pin to
clear the touch hole) and sometimes the tire-balle (the worm or ball
puller, to extract balls from the barrel. At least every corporal would
have one for his escouade, but many veterans also carried
one).
Cleaning kit for the gun would be in the backpack, and consist of a box of
brick dust (to scrounge or sand bits of the gun) and some linen rags.
Veteran soldiers would always have a bit of rag handy in battle (in the
shako, in the cuff flap, between two buttons of the habit, ...), to clean
the pan and the frizzen.
The epinglette or pin would often be in a set with a small horse hair
brush, attached to a looped chain and fixed to the buttons of the coat, to
have quick and easy access in battle. You'd be surprised how often
you need these bits to clean the pan, the frizzen and the touch hole.
Other cleaning kit and tools would comprise a trousse
garnie (a tool kit, with various tools for various chores), a vergette (
clothes wisk), an alène (an awl to pierce leather, for leather repairs),
a martinet (a little hammer or mallet), the astique for cleaning brass and
a polissoir or polishing brush.
For personal hygiene, the soldier would have some soap,
and a linen towel, a comb (peigne), and a curette (for shaving). And he would also get a
tire-bouton (a button
puller - to help him fasten the buttons on his gaiters, that would
sometimes be pretty tight).
And of course, he would always have his livre de solde
(pay book), in which would be note details about service, pay, wounds,
unit transfers, promotions, issued kit, and a shortlist of offences and
their punishment.
Personal items.
Of course, next to these issued items, most (if not all)
soldiers would also carry personal items (and a money purse!!). Small
mementoes from home, perhaps some writing stuff (if he could read and
write), some cutlery (a spoon, a fork, an eating knife), maybe a larger
(folding) knife, glasses, if he needed them, a candle, a tinder box (with
a flint, a striker and some tinder) to light fires, a pipe, some tobacco
or a cleaning stick for the buttons. Clogs (sabots), because they are
pretty warm, always dry and actually rather comfortable would also be a
popular item.
Putting it all somewhere
Of course, all this kit needed to be put somewhere. And
the only place where a fusilier could put is, was his backpack and
his uniform itself. The clothes he wasn't wearing would go in the backpack
(apart from the capote or the habit which would be rolled up and strapped
on top), and so would most of the small and the personal items. Cartouches
and gun tools would mostly go into the giberne. Some stuff would also go
into other places, there was a bit of space in the shako (enough for the
shako cover, and some small personal items, the pipe and tobacco perhaps),
and there were a few pockets on the uniform pieces that would keep a
handkerchief, the knife perhaps. Or bits would be hung from the uniform
(the knife attached to the giberne perhaps).
Other items, like food, the bidon or the marmite, clogs
and shoes, and firewood would be strapped or attached to the backpack. Or
perhaps food was put into the bread bag - that is, if the French ever used
one...
Issue
In short, the French fusilier would be issued with the
following:
| Item in French |
Issued
|
English translation |
| Schako |
1 |
Shako |
| Pompon |
1 |
Pompon |
| Pokalem ou bonnet de police |
1 |
Pokalem or bonnet de police |
| Cocardes |
2 |
Cockades |
|
|
|
| Capote |
1 |
Greatcoat |
| Habit-veste |
1 |
Habit |
| Gilet à manches |
1 |
Gilet |
|
|
|
| Pantalons de
tricot |
1 |
Breeches |
| Pantalons de toile |
1 |
Overalls |
|
|
|
| Chemise |
3 |
Shirt |
| Caleçon de
toile |
2 |
Underpants |
| Col noir |
1 |
Black stock |
| Col blanc |
2 |
White stock |
| Paires de demi-bas
de fil |
3 |
1 pair of cotton stockings |
|
|
|
| Guêtres gris |
1 |
Grey (campaign) gaiters |
| Guêtres noirs |
1 |
Black (parade) gaiters |
| Paires de Souliers |
3 |
Shoes |
|
|
|
| Fusil & baïonette |
1 |
Musket and bayonet |
| Bretelle de
fusil |
1 |
Musket strap |
| Giberne |
1 |
Cartridge box |
| Porte-Giberne |
1 |
Cartridge box strap |
| Havresac |
1 |
Backpack |
|
|
|
| Silex et plomb |
3 |
Flints and lead reloads |
| Silex en bois ou corne |
1 |
Wooden or horn flint |
| Piece de graisse |
1 |
Piece of grease |
| Bouteille à huile |
1 |
Oil bottle |
| Tourne vis |
1 |
Screwdriver |
| Epinglette |
1 |
Small pin (to clear the touchhole) |
| Tire-balle |
some |
Ball puller |
|
|
|
| Peigne |
1 |
Comb |
| Trousse garnie |
1 |
Tool kit |
| Alène |
1 |
Awl - to pierce leather (for leather repairs) |
| Tire-bouton |
1 |
Button Puller |
| Vergette |
1 |
Clothes wisk |
| Martinet |
1 |
Small mallet |
| Curette |
1 |
Scraper |
| Astique |
1 |
Brass polisher |
| Polissoir |
1 |
Polishing brush (for leather) |
|
|
|
| Livre de solde |
1 |
Pay Book |
