Thursday, 27 October 2011

Drivers' Uniforms - any ideas?

True to my word, I am busily assembling and painting carts and caissons and suchlike - not very many of them, it is true, but by my normal standards 2 or 3 is a rush. This morning's effort is a French pontoon wagon, and I find that I am unsure how to paint the driver. This driver is on foot, so he could even be an actual pontonnier or engineering chap helping out by steering the horses.


I think class distinction would insist that the driver is, in fact, a specialist driver, so I am down to a shortlist of 3 possibilities, thus:

(1) pontoons are Engineering, which comes under the Artillery, so he can be an artillery driver, with grey-blue coat, faced dark blue.

(2) no they aren't - Engineering is a distinct department, and I believe that Engineering drivers wore pale grey faced black.

(3) or he could just be a general transport driver - grey-blue faced chestnut brown - this is my least favoured option, since I think these fellows really drove supply wagons and similar, and would not be allowed to go near anything as technical as a pontoon.

One of these? - something else? I'd welcome some guidance on this - left to myself, I think I'd go for (2) above, but I really don't know.
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2 comments:

  1. Ray Rousell27 October 2011 at 20:29

    I'd go for No 2 as well, the driver was probably from the engineers who drove and maintained the wagon and constructed the pontoons. So it makes sense to be pale grey, faced black...well it does to me anyway???

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  2. MSFoy28 October 2011 at 09:16

    Thanks Ray - that's helpful - I appreciate your taking the trouble to comment. I also got an email in support of No.2, so I'll do a No.2 (so to speak). He'll be a scruffy guy with brown overalls.

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