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Dazzled by brass and scarlet: The role of the redcoat in nineteenth-century British literature
- Source: Clothing Cultures, Volume 10, Issue The Uniform: Symbols of Power, Propaganda and Organization in Popular Culture, Sep 2023, p. 81 - 92
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- 23 Jul 2023
- 02 Mar 2024
- 31 Oct 2024
Abstract
Sexual promiscuity was common in men of all classes and occupations throughout the nineteenth century. In spite of this, however, only middle-to-upper-class men or members of the military are associated with pre-marital sex within the mid-Victorian novel. The gentleman figure is used as a moral lesson about ‘proper’ conduct and remaining within the rigid confines of class boundaries, with the fallen woman embodying the worst case scenario of overstepping social norms. As the common soldier could provide neither social advancement nor a more financially beneficial arrangement, their positioning as the nineteenth century’s ‘other’ literary seducer seems initially perplexing. The key to their allure lay in their bright-red uniforms, items of clothing so known to induce ‘scarlet fever’ in women that the British Army used this as a recruitment tactic. This article will examine the dangerous sex appeal associated with the nineteenth-century soldier and the myriad reasons why this negative portrayal endured throughout the era. From the scandalous tales of Napoleonic camp wives to the geographical and social mobility offered by adopting the uniform, contemporary anxieties surrounding martial sexuality and its interplay with colonial power led to a range of negative portrayals of redcoats in British literature of the period.