Why did Longstreet's men wear blue?

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Grant mentions Longstreet's men wore blue at Chattanooga
Did he find a cache of old uniforms and gave them to his men, did he like the color?
It is my understanding that the confederates couldn't get uniforms for most of the soldiers, most of the men wore clothes died from a variety sources from home.
Did his men get new uniforms by may of 64?
 
I remember reading an article on an old site I have been struggling to find, about where Longstreet's men got their blue-ish uniforms. If I remember correctly, they were issued by the state of North Carolina when the troops passed through that state to join Bragg's army. But the article i remember said that the general held view of how they got them was incorrect, and i forget if this was the original view or the alternative.
May be the former; North Carolina under Zebulon Vance was rather protective of its products being given to the government. Tarheel regiments were prioritized when they did send stuffs, but Longstreet's Corps had no Tarheels.
 
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Here is a jacket worn by Sandie Pendleton, made with imported cloth from Peter Tait, in Limerick, Ireland.


Kevin Dally
pendleton_jacket.jpg
 
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Those issued to Longstreet's Corps prior to their trip West weren't Peter Tait jackets (not issued til 1864) but from the Richmond Depot, manufactured from cadet gray "English army cloth" brought through the blockade. It was not the first time Confederate troops had worn such uniforms and not the last. The entire ANV was largely supplied with cadet gray uniforms in 1864-65, from the Richmond Depot and Peter Tait & Co.

This is a good article by Fred Adolphus:
http://www.adolphusconfederateuniforms.com/virginia-army-uniform-a-conjecture.html

Also an excellent analysis of Richmond Depot jackets here, with many cadet gray examples:
https://www.libertyrifles.org/research/uniforms-equipment/richmond-jackets

They would have looked like these very authentic reenactors, portraying Longstreet's men at Chickamauga:
https://www.libertyrifles.org/photos/2013/150th-chickamauga
 
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I remember reading an article on an old site I have been struggling to find, about where Longstreet's men got their blue-ish uniforms. If I remember correctly, they were issued by the state of North Carolina when the troops passed through that state to join Bragg's army. But the article i remember said that the general held view of how they got them was incorrect, and i forget if this was the original view or the alternative.
May be the former; North Carolina under Zebulon Vance was rather protective of its products being given to the government. Tarheel regiments were prioritized when they did send stuffs, but Longstreet's Corps had no Tarheels.
Longstreet's Corps did receive an issue of uniforms from the North Carolina quartermaster after they returned back East in spring of 1864. Whether they were of cadet gray English army cloth, I'm not sure.
 
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