Cap, grenadier cap

Grenadiers were elite soldiers who enjoyed better pay and special privileges in the British Army. Their role in battle was to throw hand grenades at the front of an infantry attack. The distinctive grenadier's cap, similar to a bishop's mitre, was introduced in the early eighteenth century. Traditionally the front of the cap was embroidered with the coat of arms of the regimental colonel.

During the reign of George II efforts were made to standardise the uniform of the British Army. In 1751 a Clothing Warrant was issued which forbade the display of colonels' arms on grenadiers' caps. This cap predates the warrant and has been embroidered with the white horse of the House of Hanover below a coat of arms and coronet. The back of the cap is blue with a red turn-up featuring an embroidered emblem of a grenade.

The cap was acquired at an auction following the death of the painter Ernest Crofts in 1911. Crofts specialised in military and historical subjects.