Drum Major, Coldstream Guards, State Dress, 1895 (c)

Glass negative, W Gregory and Company, 51 Strand, London, 1895 (c).

Drum majors commanded drummers, buglers and bandsmen. They also played an important ceremonial role within the regiment, leading marching bands and concerts.

This drum major is seen wearing State Dress. This type of dress dates back to the state musicians of the sovereign as far back as the seventeenth century. The intricate gold lace design on the coat, for example, dates back to this era. The type of velvet skull cap the Drum Major is pictured wearing is said to have been inspired by the caps of horse racers, and encouraged by King Charles II. The drum major carries a drum-major's staff or mace.