This painting by Richard Simkin (1851-1926)
gives us an opportunity to compare the uniforms
of officers and other ranks of a period when the
lancer uniform reached it's final form, give or take
a few minor changes. It is interesting to note that
when regiments of today parade in full dress as the bands
do at the Royal Tournament and other occasions, it is in
uniforms almost identical to these that they turn out in.
So this uniform has not changed in over 100 years,
whereas the previous century saw radical changes
every ten years or so. One of the reasons for this
was that this uniform was reserved for ceremonial
occasions more and more, the actual fighting was done
in khaki which was being introduced into the army
in the 1890s.
The officer on the right is distinguished by his flouncy
white cock feathers attached to his Czapka and his
lack of a lance an item never carried by officers.
Nevertheless, the stirrups of officers of the 17th
had lance buckets attached to them on both sides,
the same as the men. The officer's collar is white
with gold lace round the top edge and the edge where
it fastens in front with hooks and eyes. Senior officers,
ie. Major and above had an extra strip of lace on the bottom
edge of the collar so that the white was practically
obscured. Before 1881 badges of rank were sewn on
the collar of the tunic, after that date they were put
on the heavily plaited gold cord shoulder straps. On his
chest is a full white plastron which replaced the half
plastron in 1872. Around his chest, as before
are the gold and white pouch belt and the gold
cord caplines which attach to the rear of his Czapka.
Round his waist, over the tunic is a girdle of three gold
lace stripes with red in between. Under his tunic, he
wears a webbing belt with five straps suspended from it.
Two of these straps which are slimmer versions of the
pouch belt, ie. gold with a central white silk stripe,
support his sword scabbard, which is silver. The
other three straps, slimmer still than the sword slings,
support the plain black sabretache, which has a silver
'motto' in the middle.
On his legs are boots and breeches, called pantaloons
in dress regulations. These have double white cloth
stripes down the outside. Boots and breeches replaced
the rather ugly leathered overalls in 1872.
His charger is wearing a shabraque. It is of dark blue
cloth like the uniform with rounded corners and
edged with two strips of gold lace, broken bias pattern.
on the front corners are Victoria's royal cypher
surmounted by a geulphic crown, both embroidered in
gold, while the larger rear portions carry the motto
on crossed lances, the crown and 17L. On top of
the shabraque there was a black sheepskin edged
with white felt scallops.
The men wear a simplified version of the officer's
uniform. The quality of the cloth is courser and is
not so well tailored. There is no lace round the white
collar and the caplines are yellow wool. The pouch
belt is plain white leather with brass buckle, tip and
slide which could only be seen from the back, along
with the plain black polished leather pouch. This
pouch contained 20 rounds for the Martini-Henry
Carbine which was carried in a long brown leather
holster behind the soldier's right leg.
The men carry 9ft long bamboo lances, the bottom
point inserted in the stirrup bucket. The red over
white pennon was common to all the lancer regiments,
red and white being the Polish national colours.
