Uniforms of Napoleon

Common card · No. 362692

At the beginning of his career, Napoleon Bonaparte was a soldier and wore the uniform of the French Revolutionary Army. In 1793 he was promoted to Général de brigade, in 1795 Général de division, and in 1796 he became commander in chief of the Army of Italy. In those capacities, he wore the uniform of a French Army general as promulgated by the regulations of January 1796. This was (as shown in the pictures below), a double breasted blue (woollen) coat with red collar, red cuffs with white flaps, gold oak-leaf embroidery on the collar, cuffs, pickets and front and rear openings, and a red and white sash with gold trim. There does not seem at this point to be any differentiation between grades of general. Napoleon wore this in Italy, Egypt, and at the Battle of Marengo in 1800 (see the portrait below "Napoleon Crossing the Alps"). When Napoleon became First Consul through a military coup d'etat on the 18 Brumaire, he aceded to the primary military and civil authority. The position was considered...

Read on Wikipedia · Image Jacques-Louis David, Public domain