Officer, 15th Regiment of Bengal Native Infantry (The Ludhiana Sikhs),Diamond Jubilee, 1897 (c)
Glass negative, W Gregory and Company, 51 Strand, London, 1897 (c).
This image comes from a collection of glass plate negatives associated with William Gregory and Company. The negatives depict the British Army, including some members of the colonial forces, 'at home' in Britain during the 1890s.
As well as being intimate portraits of soldiers from this era, the images provide detailed illustrations of uniforms worn during the high point of military tailoring.
Small contingents of soldiers representing Colonial Forces came to the United Kingdom for Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 1897, as well as participating in various Royal Tournaments during this period.
This negative shows an officer of the Indian Army in field service uniform, apparently standing on a ship. Others can be seen behind. He wears a turban made of khaki material, with a cap badge reading 'XV". He wears a khaki tunic and loose khaki pyjama trousers. These are tucked into khaki puttees - long pieces of cloth that are wound round the lower legs. He also wears a brown leather Sam Browne belt with two straps and sword sling. The officer holds onto his sword. He is possibly a subedar, and wears service ribbons on his left breast, indicating medals won.
One of a collection of 280 glass negatives, associated with W Gregory and Company, London, and F G O Stuart, 1892 (c)-1900.
NAM Accession Number
NAM. 1978-02-37-271
Copyright/Ownership
National Army Museum, Out of Copyright
Location
National Army Museum, Study Collection
Object URL
https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=1978-02-37-271