The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-11-18

An INQUIRY INTO Irs msroRY-- IT'S INTRODUCE
T1ox rxfo ran ENoLmH ARMY.
s1ruAon feIeRrnph.1

TON INTO TIL kNobssu Ah"h'
fLopdon Tslenaph]
Even the derivation Of the word Is fierce
ly disputed. One authority ascrfbes IL 70
the French cocarde," corruption Oh
" coquarde.o tuft Of feathers, or SEQ
guard" O mongrel pheasant. Another
will have IL that ssc0ckade" comes dfrectiS
from the French "cocarde," but remotely
from co.," owing 10 the resemblance OF
the cockade to the comb OF the cock. But
the French for cockscomb Is "coq.,''
The most extravagant, perhaps, OF oil
the etymologies Of cockade" Is that II
means the "ald to the cock -; that
Is TO say, the thing that helps %
cock the military hat. subsequently"
adds the sage who made the curious dis
covery, "loops. laces, and ribbons were
used for the purpose as well as the hat
Directly the contrary Is the case. Hats
were looped, laced. and tied .p with rib
bons long before the preset military cock
ade heard Of. Another section OF philolo-
gers hold that the French cocarde can be
traced TO the Italian coccarda," but Far
FAM and Aria In their Lessico della Cor
rotta ltallanita," Indignantly hurI back
the word at the French photographers
heads, declaring that the proper Italian
equivalents for the French cocarde" are
"rosan and "fiocco." Then ii has been
sought to prove that "cocarde" comes
from the Spanish cncarda," but the
Dons sternly point out that the correct
Castilian for cockade Is "escarapela," a
dispute OF feud, which by metonymy came
to mean a knot Of ribbons Of particular
hue worn by one party or armed band to
distinguish its members from those OF the
opposite side, who adopted another badge.
The origin OF the English military cockade
NAV have been the "iavor" In the shape
of a glove which Harry the Fifth gave to
Fluellen to wear in his cap in order that
he might be challenged by the soldier
Williams, aud which, when the royal prac-
tical Joke was over, he bestowed. first fill
ing it with crowns, on the doughty SOL
diers, bidding him wear 1t as an
honor In his cap. Such q hypothesis
might be strengthened by the circum-
stance that the bars which radiate in semi.
circle from the disc OF the military cock
ade, and which are by some supposed to
represent the bursting OF shell, bear quite
as close a resemblance TO the fingers OF a
glove. We have, however, more definite
evidence as to the introduction OF the cock
ade into the British army. From the re-
storatlon to the revolution military officers
wore either ribbons or plumes, and some
times both, In their hats; hut, at the battle
OF the Boyne, every man in the army OF
William III. had "sprig" fastened to his
hat to distinguish him from the soldiers Of
James H., who wore bits Of white paper.
Here we have on the one side the begin
ming OF the Protestant succession" cock
ade, and on the other side Of the Jacobte
one. The "sprig" was very soon trans
formed into an arrangement" in rib
bons. and from contemporary engravingS
we learn that Queen Anne's soldiers
wore-privates as well as otficers--a four
fingered cockade in their hats. Again,
Colonel Lizard. in his /" History OF the
Dress Of the British Soldier" has, in a
series Of accurate diagrams, traced the
variations OF the military cockade from
the days OF Queen Anne TO the Waterloo
campaign. He has shown us the cockade-
always four-fngered, as worn in the "Ni-
vernois," the "Kwenhuiler," the "Rami-
lies" and, finally. the long. low cockaded
cooked hat worn for convenience sake by
the Iron Duke throughout the Peninsula
and Waterloo. The hue OF the English
military cockade hats, from the time OF the
accession Of the house OF Brunswick. has
been invariably black, sable being, accord
ing to some authorities, the Hanoveran
badge, although Others have coniectured
that black was fixed upon in order that
the very strongest distinction might be
drawn between the Protestant succession
symbol and the white or Stuart cockade.
In ballad on the battle Of Sherrifmuir OF
Sherramuir the soldiers of George /. are
alluded to as "the English lads with black
cockades." 1t must in no case be forgot
ten that until the substitution Of the shake
for the cocked-hat the common soldiers as
well as the officers wore cockades. Those
ornaments are in the headgear Of all the
private grenadiers In Gillray's famous carl
cature of "The March to the Bank" a
print produced late in the last century.