Ken Todd Newark, Del.

This letter is rather late in tackling its subject. However, I have only recently returned from a stay in Europe and have required a bit of time to catch up oil back issues of all my various subscriptions.

In starting your series of French uniforms, you comment on the difficulty of translating the relevant section of Knotel on the heavy cavalry. I don't know if my German is any better and by this time you may well have heard from others better able to render into English, but this, for what it is worth, is my reading:

IV. Cuirassiers and heavy horse.

In contract to the Gendarmerie, the collected cavalry, with the exception of the dragoons and hussars, was designated "light cavalry."

Immediately after the Regulations of 1690, the regiments were clothed in blue, red, or grey white coats. These colors were retained until 1762 in which year they all received the blue base color. Due to the continual alteration of the distinctions (1740, 1757, 1762, 1767, 1776, and 1786) we can present only a chart, and that specifically for the Seven Years' War.

1761 (ACCORDING TO THE ZEUGHAUSMANUSCRIPT)

Regiment	Coat	Cuffs	Tails	Lapels	Vests	Buttons
Colonel General	red	black	red	black	br. yellow	yellow
Mestre de Camp Gen.	grey	black	grey	black	red	yellow
Commissaire Gen.	br. grey	black	br. grey	black	br. yellow	yellow
Royal 1	blue	red	blue	red	red	white
Du Roy 2	bIue	red	red	red	red	white
Royal Allemand	blue	red,ptd.	red	-	br. yellow	white
La Reine	red	blue	blue	blue	red	yellow
Noailles	red	red	red	red	br. yellow*	white
Fitz James	red	blue	blue	blue	br. yellow*	white

Regiment Notes
Royal Allernand white lace
La Reine * woven yellow - violet braid
Noailles * woven white - green braid

1) Identical: Royal Etranger, Curassiers du Roi, Royal Cravattes, Royal Roussillon, Royal Piemont, Royal Bologne, Dauphin, Bourgogne (red collars), Carab. de Province (white piping on lapels, tails and cuffs), Artois.

2) Identical: Berry.

The following regiments: white coats, red lapels, cuffs, and tails. Bright yellow jerkin vests with the following braid: Royal Lorraine - red with black chain pattern. Royal Picardie - red with yellow chain pattern. Royal Champagne - yellow with black chain pattern. Royal Navarre - crimson with white chain pattern. Royal Normandie - woven white - red. Conde-rose pink. Bourbon - bourbon braid. Clermont - crimson. Pentievre - woven yellow-blue (red collars).

The same uniform with white tails: Orleans-blue braid. Chartres - violet with white chain pattern. Conty the same uniform with red tails but without lapels: braid - white with red-blue chain pattern.

It is noteworthy that among the heavy cavalry regiments there was only a single cuirassier regiment, which was created in 1665 (Cuirassiers du Roil. The uniform of this troop (III. 63,a) was blue with red distinctions and small clothes. A tricorn served as headgear. In 1733 a determined effort to introduce the cuirass among all the heavy cavalry was made, although the equipping was to prove of long duration. The uniforms were described as follows in 1762, covering the effects on the mentioned cuirassier regiments: blue coat with red revers, felt hat with white wool trim, chamois leather and pants, white buttons. In 1776 the distinctions were yellow instead of red. During the reconstruction of the army in 1791, the regiment received the designation Nr. 8 in the heavy regiments.

And then the century changes. The information contained doesn't seem to affect any of your article. I am afraid the translation is a little rough. All I did was sit down with Knoetel and the typewriter, but maybe between the two renderings you can find the meaning.

Ed.: Thank you.