Amazing Mounted Cavalry Image

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Unfortunately this gent is unidentified.
http://confederatesaddles.com/photo-gallery/mounted-confederates-rare/

*edited copyrighted photo

 

[DixieRifles]

Great!
What is the white item attached to the side of his forage cap?? Is that light reflecting off of leather or a badge?

 

[DixieRifles]

What is that near or behind the horse's ear?? It appears to be attached to his halter. Or it kinda looks like something on the ground behind him---like a lawn chair.

He is armed with a pistol without a holster!! What type of pistol is that?

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

What is that near or behind the horse's ear?? It appears to be attached to his halter. Or it kinda looks like something on the ground behind him---like a lawn chair.

He is armed with a pistol without a holster!! What type of pistol is that?
View attachment 350092

The pistol looks like it's probably a Starr model.

 

[Paul Yancey]

Just a guess. But I believe the object behind the horse's ear may be a whip. Similar to that used by jockeys. The loop would go around the wrist of the user.

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Just a guess. But I believe the object behind the horse's ear may be a whip. Similar to that used by jockeys. The loop would go around the wrist of the user.

Could it also be a carbine?

 

[Paul Yancey]

Could it also be a carbine?

Hard to say. I wonder if some of the sword experts here on CWT could provide information on the type of sword.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

It's not a halter, its a bridle on the horse. It's a fantastic picture. I don't think it's a whip because it is very short and the loop is so tiny in proportion to even the horse's ear that it would never go around a man's wrist. I can't imagine what he stuck into the corner of the browband and throat latch.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

The more I look at this picture, I don't think anything is tucked into the bridle. I think it is an optical illusion of how it something behind the man and horse lines up. I keep putting my thumb over the top curved white thing and see it is attached to a board or metal piece. I think it appears to make a straight line down, but what we are seeing is light somehow reflected in the photo of the edge of the leather as the straps come together from the cheek pieces, the headstall, and the throat latch. Our brains/eyes want to see this as a straight line and join it with the white curved thing behind the horse's ear.

 

[James N.]

Hard to say. I wonder if some of the sword experts here on CWT could provide information on the type of sword.

It's a M.1840 Saber for Mounted Artillery; and considering the other recent threads, I don't think this is truly a period photo. (Unless by period you mean the modern period.) How did the photographer get the bulky camera of Civil War vintage above the subject? At least this one doesn't look overfed like the infantry!

 

[James N.]

I submit that this belongs in the same category as another series of "historical" photos:

The Monitor at Westover Landing | The Naval War

Newly discovered photos showing the Monitor and her crew in the James River at Westover Landing, probably taken after the assault on Drewry's Bluff, including a rare view inside the turret:

civilwartalk.com

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

The bit isn't impossible - it's a loose ring snaffle but the typical bit wanted (at least) would have been a cavalry bit. I keep going back to look at the bridle and the reins and I don't quite know why. What my first thought was, I can't get over how there isn't any blurring, anywhere.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

I will say this about the browband - it is rounded. I have never, ever seen a Civil War era rounded browband. They are always flat, whether CSA or Federal. Rounded browbands are a modern and I mean very modern invention.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

Nitpickers are us!

 

[privateflemming]

This is indeed an amazing picture if genuine since I've never really seen a clear picture of mounted Confederate cavalry in the field. It does almost seem too good to be true but something about it strikes me as real. This guy would have to be about the most dedicated reenactor I've seen to have all that equipment including the horse and look so grizzled and gaunt while still appearing young. He really looks the part and I don't see anything "reenactorismy" about it. He has a 1840 artillery saber instead of something more intended for cavalry for example. Typical reenactors would tend to go for actual cavalry sabers. He also has an atypical dark, possibly Union forage cap instead of a broad-brimmed hat you would think reenactors would also go for.

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

I don't understand the horn on the saddle his hand is resting on. There were several types of saddles in use - artillery saddles, cavalry saddles, etc. Artillery saddles had a white webbing girth with a surcingle for safety over the top of the saddle, that he might be sitting on.

Cavalry or McClellan saddles had a wool girth up through 1908 usually in indigo blue.

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Here's where I got it from. I meant to include the website but I lost it until I found it again just now.

There's also a few other gems there as well!

From the website:

Mounted Confederates RARE!

←Back to Photo Gallery …

confederatesaddles.com

"This photograph comes through the courtesy and generosity of John Walsh of Ft. Donelson Relics. John picked this beauty up at the 2008 C.W. show im Marietta Ga. Apparently, it walked in the door having come from an old collection. The story goes that the owner rec'd it second or third hand back many years ago. Sadly, without any identification. John participates on this forum so perhaps he can shed more light on its story. John was kind enough to allow me to examine it. I humbly submit the following observations for discussion: 1. SADDLE: He is most certainly riding a "Half Spanish" saddle with black quilted leather seat and skirt (or at least a roll on the skirt). These saddles were built on the English tree (Thus called half Spanish the other half being English) with a tapered horn similar but not identical to the (Full) Spanish saddle. Stirrups are common period civilian iron stirrups with a "French" style strap slot. Stirrup straps utilize a common roller buckle. Girth appears to be cotton web with a woven stripe (or stripes) common to these saddles. 2. SADDLE BLANKET: The above saddles were heavily padded underneath (I can see the padding on the bars) so typically did not require a saddle blanket. Nevertheless, our fella appears to be employing a dark color wool saddle blanket. 3. BRIDLE: Typical "civilian" bridle of the English pattern. Includes a simple bridle with snaffle bit, wide headstall, rolled leather brow band and wide leather reins. The "single" reins (not split) are leather, quite wide likely one and 1/4 or one and ½ inches. On top of the left side of the horses head and attached to the bridle headstall is some kind of unclear flag, steamer or plume. I do not know what that is. Any ideas? 4. CARBINE SLING: It appears to me that our guy is a cavalryman or artillery "cadre" armed with a carbine (slung to his right side) and thus a carbine sling of likely brown leather about two inches wide. I note the billet keeper a the top of his shoulder. A shame we cannot see the type hardware used with it! I am not a very good uniform or weapons guy so of course, leave that to others. Discussion? In my "opinion"....our trooper is either a cavalryman or an artilleryman "cadre" (or mounted artillery) but most likely a cavalry trooper given his carbine sling. This image is "probably" early war given his civilian saddlery equipments but this is not necessarily true."

 

[RobertP]

I submit that this belongs in the same category as another series of "historical" photos:

The Monitor at Westover Landing | The Naval War

Newly discovered photos showing the Monitor and her crew in the James River at Westover Landing, probably taken after the assault on Drewry's Bluff, including a rare view inside the turret:

civilwartalk.com

Agree. There is something about the sharpness and contrast of the foreground that doesn't look right to be a period photograph. But I'm learning more than I ever imagined about saddles and bridles from @NH Civil War Gal !

 

[NH Civil War Gal]

Go to the website for a US Federal Ranger Saddle that looks very similar:

https://www.militaryhorse.org/civil-war-federal-ranger-saddle/

The photo is copyrighted so I give the website and let them show you their picture. The only other saddle I can think of but it's wrong in two ways is the Jenifer saddle. It's wide and deep but doesn't have a horn and doesn't have the iron stirrups we see (or English stirrups as we think of them today). The Jenifer or even the Spanish saddle would have had stirrups that were covered like the McClellans. However, depending on how long the War was going on, I expect things were patched together and didn't stay as "pure" packages. Stirrups and their leathers could have been switched out as needed or wanted.

Interestingly, the horse doesn't wear a breastplate of any kind to help keep it from possibly slipping back. Of course a perfectly fit saddle doesn't slip back, but in War, you don't have perfect horses with perfect saddles unless you are of the Lee and Grant caliber.

 

[rebracer]

This is incredible, thank you for sharing. At first glance I agree with what many of you are saying "this cant be authentic" but I am attributing this to the shock of seeing something like this for the first time, much like the way I felt when I first saw saw the photo of the CS soldiers on the march in Maryland.

That website you shared has multiple incredible photos, none of which I have ever seen before.

What do yall think about the condition of the horse?