2nd Novo Corte Infantry
Hierarchical Path: Seven Years War (Main Page) >> Armies >> Portuguese Army >> 2nd Novo Corte Infantry
Origin and History
The unit was raised in 1659 as the “Terço Novo da Guarnição da Corte”. On November 24 1707, it became the regiment of colonel count do Prado.
In September 1762, the regiment was divided into two distinct units: the 1st and 2nd Novo Corte regiments. The 2nd regiment was also known as the “2nd Lisboa”.
During the Seven Years' War, this 2nd regiment was under the command of:
- 1762: count da Ponte
On May 10 1763, the two unit were reunited into a single regiment under the name of “Regimento do Conde do Prado”.
Service during the War
At the beginning of the campaign of 1762, the regiment was assigned to the main Anglo-Portuguese army where it was deployed in the second line of the infantry centre. In October, the regiment reinforced the detachment of brigadier Fraser. On October 21, the regiment was still part of Fraser's detachment who was occupying the heights between Mação and Val da Velha.
Uniform
Traditionally, since about 1660, the Portuguese infantry wore dark blue uniforms. During the War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) almost all infantry units wore alvadia (light gray uniforms). These new uniforms were introduced for economic reasons, this type of fabric being much cheaper.
It is now believed that, from 1750, there was a progressive abandon of alvadia uniforms and a return to more traditional Portuguese uniforms. However, it seems that most of the changeover took part sometime after 1759 since, till this date, cloth orders indicated white as the most common colour.
At the outbreak of the war in 1762, there was neither enough uniforms nor cloth for recruits in military warehouses, so it was necessary to use all cloth available. Besides, as there was no central warehouse, every colonel was responsible for the ordering of uniforms. Therefore the fabric was bought from contractors who would cut and turned it into uniforms "more or less" along the official lines.
It must also be noted that the use of gaiters was introduced into the Portuguese infantry only in 1762.
Privates
The following reconstruction is based on very few information. We only know that this regiment wore light blue uniform with light blue as distinctive colour. The colour of buttons is assumed to be white. We do not mention buttonholes but there might have been some.
| Headgear |
| ||||||||||||
| Neckstock | white | ||||||||||||
| Coat | light blue lined light blue with one white button on each side in the small of the back
| ||||||||||||
| Waistcoat | light blue with white buttons and horizontal pockets (also with white buttons) | ||||||||||||
| Breeches | light blue | ||||||||||||
| Gaiters | white | ||||||||||||
| Leather Equipment |
|
Armaments consisted of a musket and a bayonet.
Officers
no information available
Musicians
no information available
Colours
The exact pattern of the Portuguese colonel colours during the Seven Years' War is unknown.
The ordonnance colours were chosen by the colonel of the regiment. For the moment, we have found no source depicting specific colours for this regiment.
Please refer to our article on the Portuguese Line Infantry Colours for more information.
References
Amaral, Manuel, O Exértico Português em finais do Antiguo Regime
Ribeiro Rodrigues, Manuel A.; 300 Anos de Uniformes Militares do Exército de Portugal 1660-1960, Exército Portugués and Sociedade Historica da Independéncia de Portugal, 1998
Acknowledgment
Manuel Ribeiro Rodrigues and Joseph O'Neill for the information and counselling provided for this article.
