[Editor: I received the following notice of a new exhibit at the National Army Museum in London courtesy of Julian Humphrys, Department of Public Relations. The NAM also has a new website at http://www.failte.com/narn/ ]

The Rise of the Redcoat is a new permanent exhibition which will open at the museum on Tuesday, 3 December l996. It will tell the story of the British Army from the archers of Agincourt to the redcoats of the American War of Independence. Exhibits will range from a 16-foot long Tudor cannon to the Duke of Cumberland's signet ring, as well as English Civil War arms and armour. There will also be displays of 15th century equipment and uniforms, including a remarkable collection of beautifully embroidered grenadier caps. Visitors will be able to try on a Civil War helmet, feel the weight of a 17th century cannonball, and listen to recordings of contemporary soldiers' songs.

A number of life-size reconstructions will depict soldiers from the period. These will include:

• An English archer, suffering from dysentry, at Agincourt 1415
• a Burgundian handgunner, fighting for the Yorkists at the battle of St. Albans 1461
• a Parliamentarian Foot Soldier based on the letters of Nehmiah Wharton, a Sergeant in the Army of the Earl of Essex 1642
• Captain Richard Atkins, a Royalist cavalryman, whose account of his part in the battle of Roundway Down 1643 is one of the most remarkable descriptions of hand-to-hand combat ever written
• and finally, a Queen's Ranger from the American War of Independence 1780. Raised as light infantry, the Queen's Rangers fought with considerable success on the British side.

The opening of this Gallery will mean that a visitor to the Museum will be able to trace the story of the British soldier from the 15th century to the end of the Second World War, as well as seeing displays on more recent conflicts, including the Falklands, the Gulf, and Bosnia.

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