Belloc

I suspect it's myth, since the Republic had already adopted blue uniforms by the time Napoleon came to power.

clement

No, but Napoleon wanted (at least it has been said) to reintroduce the white uniform. I don't have any source on this I must say so you should take this with a grain of salt, but it has also been said that he renounced this idea when he saw the blood on the white uniforms of some regiment in which it had been reintroduced at Eylau. Which is unlikely since the weather was so cold that the soldiers would have been wearing long coats at this battle.

Kevinmeath

"With no examples surviving to the present day, the colour of the legionary tunic has always been hotly debated. Many historians believe that it was red berry in colour and that this was common to legion and guard units. Some arthors argue that the legionary tunics were white. Vitruvius, Rome's chief architect during the early decades of the Empire,wrote that, of all the natural colours used in the dying of fabrics and for painting, red and yellow were by far the easiest and cheapinst to obtain. [Vitr.,OA VII, 1-2] Second century Roman general Arrian described the tunics worn by the cavalry during exercises as predominantly red berry colour ,or, an orange-brown-- a product of red. He also described multicoloured cavalry exercise tunic.[Arrian, TH, 34] But no tunic described by Arrian was white or natural in colour."

'Legions of Rome' by Stephen Dando-Collins pg 29-30

Belloc

Really? Why was blue adopted in the first place by the French Revolutionary army? Any particular reason - maybe to copy the American Continental uniform?

clement

Firstly to get rid of ancien regime symbolism I guess. Though they were some French units who already wore the blue coat, the units of the royal guard (except for the Swiss guards which, like every Swiss regiments, were in red), most notably the "gardes françaises" :



By the way, the Swiss regiments of the French army really looked like the British, i don't know how people would have amde the difference :



The Irish had red coats too, but with green instead of dark blue, and green was not used by the British army i think.

Nemowork

It was used briefly by the British Legion, Tarletons cavalry force in the American revolution, the Brunswick Dragoons and other foreign units and during the Napoleonic period by the two rifle regiments.

clement

These were "green" units. The French Irish regiments were red, but with Green decorations, collar, sleeves etc. Like these" :

caldrail

The research featured individual combat which does not include the various factors we see on a larger national scale. Exchanges of gunfire for instance wouldn't apply whereas melee would, or should do if the information is correct, but the problem here is isloating the incidents in which this psychology can be applied to in a rational and instructive way, since in the normal scheme of things commentators of battles tend to describe the results in certain set ways.