Based on conventional lines, the Army of Portugal consisted of line infantry and grenadiers, line cavalry and dragoons, light troops both foot and horse, field and garrison artillery and engineers. The Army could also rely upon the population to form guerrilla bands and militia in the event of an enemy invasion.
Due to the long term policy of running down the armed forces, and the siphoning off of funds by unit commanders, the army was totally unprepared to meet the Spanish in 1762. Some units were raised and paid for by the British, and many Portuguese regiments had British Officers attached.
The Infantry regiments were supposed to have 2 battalions each of 1000 men but the majority had battalions consisting of 300 men on average. Cavalry regiments mustered even fewer men, the total number of mounted troops available in early 1762 being just 1,300.
Infantry Uniforms
Generally, due to the lack of uniforms, the Portuguese infantry appeared as a very ragged bunch wearing a mixture of regulation and peasant dress. All regiments should have worn a black tricorne hat with lace edging, dark blue coat, generally off-white 'alvadia' vest and breeches, white belts and black gaiters. Regimental facing colours were (probably) as follows;
| Regiment | Cuffs | Lapels | Lace | Vest+Breeches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valencia | Y | Y | W | B |
| Porto | R | R | W | Y |
| Braganca | Y | Y | W | W |
| Chaves | W | R | Y | W |
| Olivenca | Orange | Orange | W | W |
| Campo Major | B | B | W | R |
| Viana | W | Y | Y | W |
| Penamacor | R? | R? | ? | ? |
| Peniche | W | B | Y | W |
| Cascais | B | B | Y | W |
| Lisboa | R | B | W | W |
| Corte | Lt Blue? | Lt Blue? | W? | W? |
| Moura | Y? | Y? | ? | ? |
| Castelo d'Vide | W | B | Y | W |
| Lagos | W | W | W | B |
| Faro | R | B | Y | W |
| Setubal | Y | B | W | W |
| Suizo | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| Armada | R | R | W | R |
| Vol. Regis | Black | Black | Y | B |
Cavalry Uniforms
The Portuguese cavalry wore a black tricorn hat with lace edging, a dark blue coat with cuffs and turnbacks in the facing colour, off-white vests and buff leather breeches. Horse leather was black and the saddlecloth was blue with a border in the facing colour. No regulations appear to have existed for units of light horse and irregular cavalry.
| Regiment | Facings | Lace |
|---|---|---|
| Penamacor | Red? | ? |
| Chaves | Carmine | ? |
| Almeida | Lt Blue | ? |
| Olivenca | Blue | ? |
| Evora | White | ? |
| Cones/Mecklenberg | Lt Blue | W |
| Ceta | Carmine | W |
| Alcantara | Pink | W |
| Moura | Yellow | ? |
| Braganca | Blue | ? |
Artillery Uniforms
The artillery wore a black tricorne with white lace edging, a dark blue coat with black facings, a dark blue vest and breeches, black gaiters and white leather belts. Officers wore silver shoulder epaulettes. Guns appear to have been natural wood however, some British guns would undoubtedly have been used by Portuguese batteries, in their original light grey finish.
Staff
General Officers were supposed to wear a dark blue coat with white cuffs and lapels.
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© Copyright 2001 by James J. Mitchell
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