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PATTERN 1885
US ARMY GUIDON CARRIED BY F TROOP OF THE 3RD
REGIMENT OF CAVALRY – A RARE OFFERING IN EXCELLENT
CONDITION: This is a very rare offering of an
original Pattern 1885 U.S. Army Guidon identified to F
Troop, 3RD U.S. Cavalry Regiment.
The practice of displaying totems,
banners and flags to identify the leader of a unit on
the battlefield and mark his position certainly predates
written history. It was from those displays of military
heraldry that the guidon emerged in the U.S. Army and
went on to become such an integral part of the
individual unit’s identity and tradition.
In its familiar form the guidon first appeared in 1834,
when the newly formed 1ST Regiment of
Dragoons was authorized a silk red-over-white guidon,
with the letters "U.S." in white on the upper half and
the company letter in red on the lower half. The guidon
measured 27” high (“on the lance”) by 41” long (“on the
fly”), and had a 15” (measured on the diagonal) forked
swallow tail on the trailing edge. It is believed the
swallow tail design was incorporated so that the guidon
would better catch the breeze, extending it to its full
length on the fly, making the numerals and letters
easier to read. The guidon was carried on a 9’
staff by the mounted color bearer with the lower end of
the staff secured in a leather cup suspended by a
leather strap from the saddle or attached to the offside
stirrup.
In the years following the adoption of the
red-over-white swallow tail design, there were some
minor changes, but by 1841 the army had settled on the
original design adopted in 1834.
Early in the Civil War, on January 18, 1862, the U.S.
Army issued General Order No. 4 directing "Guidons and
camp colors will be made like the United States flag
with stars and stripes." The dimensions were the same as
prescribed in 1834, but the new design consisted of gold
stars in two concentric circles with one star in each
corner of the canton.
This pattern of “National Ensign” guidon remained in use
through the early Indian Wars era until the regulations
published in 1885 ordered that the design of the guidon
would revert back to the Pattern 1834, with the
regimental number on the upper half and the letter of
the company, troop, or battery on the lower half.
As detailed in the description of the Pattern 1885
Guidon published by S.B. Holabird, Quartermaster General
of the U.S. Army:
“Specifications for Cavalry
Guidons”
“Silk
– To be of the best quality of banner silk.
“Size
– To be three (3) feet five )5 inches fly from the lance
and two (2) feet three (3) inches on the lance; to be
cut swallow-tailed fifteen (15) inches on the fork.
“Design – Two (2) horizontal stripes, each one-half (½)
the width of the flag, the upper to be red and the lower
white. The upper stripe to have on both sides, in the
center, the number of the regiment in white silk, and
the lower the letter of the troop in red silk. The
letter and number to be block-shaped, four and three
fourths (4 ¾) inches high, and held in place by a border
of needle-work embroidery three-sixteenths of an inch
wide, of same color.
“Lance – To be one and one-fourth (1¼) inches in
diameter and nine (9) feet long, including spear and
ferrule.
“Case
or cover – To be of water-proof material, to protect the
guidon when furled.
“Workmanship – To conform to standard sample on file in
the Quartermaster General’s Office.”
In 1895, additional regulations were published –
"Each troop of Cavalry will have a silken guidon...to be
used only in battle, campaign, or on occasions of
ceremony” The same regulation provided that
“Each troop will also have a service guidon made of
bunting or other suitable material” for daily use.
In 1922, Army Regulation 129 abolished the requirement
for silk guidons, and they were withdrawn from service
while those made of bunting - a wool material with a
fine weave - continued to be issued. In 1931, Army
Regulation 260-10 reduced the size of the guidons to 20
inches on the “hoist” (vertical measurement) and 27 ¾”
on the “fly” (horizontal measurement). Therefore the
dimensions of this guidon adhering to the original
Pattern 1885 specifications and that it is made of wool
bunting, are a combination of characteristics which date
this guidon as having been made between 1895 and 1931.
The 3RD US Cavalry Regiment wrote an
impressive history of service from the mid 19TH
Century through the first four decades of the 20TH
Century. While the Pattern 1885 Cavalry Guidon was
introduced towards the end of the Indian Wars,
recognizing the 3RD’s participation in their
earlier engagements with the hostiles, and then their
service through the end of the horse cavalry, places the
regiment and F Troop’s guidon in a historical context.
The 3RD Cavalry was present on the Northern
Plains during the Great Sioux War in 1876, participating
in the Battle of Rosebud Creek. First Sergeant Michael
A. McGann of then Company F was awarded the
Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions in that
battle. Following the battle on the Little Big Horn the
3RD was with General Crook’s pursuing column
when some of the Sioux and Cheyenne who had defeated
Custer were located and engaged at the Battle of Slim
Buttes.
In the spring of 1882 the regiment returned to Arizona
Territory where they had served after the Civil War. In
1883 the companies of cavalry regiments were officially
redesignated as “Troops” and the use of the unit
designation “Company” was confined to units of foot
soldiers. “Troop” continued to be used through the
duration of the horse cavalry and survives today in the
modern army as a term unique to the Armored Cavalry. It
is interesting to note that in both speech and writing,
the sequence of the unit title and identifying letter
was transposed with the change from company to troop –
“Company F, 3RD Cavalry” became “F Troop, 3RD
Cavalry”.
The years which followed saw the 3RD Cavalry
committed to conflicts overseas as the United States
began to expand her sense of empire. Some highlights of
this service are as follows:
May, 1898 – 3RD Cav in Tampa, Florida staging
for the Spanish American War
June, 1898 – F Troop, 3RD Cav arrives in
Santiago, Cuba
June, 1898 – F Troop, 3RD Cav in the Battle
of San Juan Hill
Aug, 1898 – 3RD Cav departed Cuba for NY
Jul, 1899 – F Troop, 3RD Cav transferred to
Philippine Islands (PI)
Nov, 1899 – F Troop, 3RD Cav engaged with the
Insurgents
1902 – 3RD Cav returned to United
States
1905 – 3RD Cav returned to PI for
occupation duty until 1908
1908 – 3RD Cav returned to Texas,
next 9 years patrolling the border.
Mar, 1917 – 3RD Cav sent to Ft. Sam Houston
in San Antonio
With the entry into World War One, the 3RD
was one of the first US Army regiments to arrive in
France - one of the few US cavalry regiments to serve in
France as a mounted unit – operated three horse remount
depots, and returned to the US in 1919.
After the war, elements of the 3RD Cavalry
were assigned to Ft. Myers, Virginia and due to their
close proximity to Washington D.C., they served as honor
guards for dignitaries and ceremonies, coming to be
known as the “President’s Own”. The regiment provided
the cavalry escort for the internment of the Unknown
Soldier on November 11, 1921 and the regiment provided
the honor guard sentries for the Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier until 1941. A surviving photograph of a 3RD
Cavalry trooper walking his post in front of the tomb
captures him in his full dress uniform….to include his
spurs.
In 1932 then Major George Patton was assigned as the
regiment’s executive officer and he was ordered by Chief
of Staff General MacArthur to disburse the “Bonus Army”
– the veterans protesting for their veteran benefits –
who had occupied the mall in D.C.. Later describing the
duty as “most distasteful”, Patton led the regiment down
Pennsylvania Avenue to disburse the protest and destroy
the encampment.
In February of 1942 the 3RD Cavalry Regiment
was dismounted, underwent training for armored warfare
at Ft. Benning, Georgia, and was eventually redesignated
as the 3RD Mechanized Cavalry Group before
landing in Normandy in August of 1944.
This guidon has survived in excellent condition, showing
no significant damage or wear. The wool bunting is very
solid with one very small hole, no tattering or fraying,
and it is overall very clean, with only some very minor
isolated spots of soiling. The red field retains a
bright vivid color with no fading and the white field
shows only minor aging to a mellow ivory hue. The
letters and numerals are likewise in excellent
condition, all retaining their hem lines fully intact
and all having a bright, clean color.
The white numeral is bright
and clean. The red “F” has faded – a characteristic
commonly seen and unique only to the letters on these
surviving specimens. Apparently the letters were made
of a different red material more susceptible to fading
than the red cloth used on the flag proper. The fading
is interesting evidence that this guidon had significant
exposure sunlight, indicating it was carried for some
time in service and was not just a souvenir or wall
decoration.
Measuring 43 ¼” on the fly, 28” on
the hoist, and 19” on the angle of the swallow tail,
this guidon is well within the variances which would
have been allowed in the manufacture of cloth items.
The numeral “3” and the
letter “F” are the regulation 4 ½” tall, again well
within the allowable tolerances. The two “button-hole”
leather tabs for mounting the guidon on the lance are
present, however they have suffered from being mounted
on the lance and they have been stabilized by
reinforcing them with a layer of thin leather applied to
the reverse of the tabs. This restoration is not
noticeable on either tab except on close inspection –
simply more evidence that this guidon was carried. This
guidon is regulation in every way, and the workmanship
is indicative of having been made in the quartermaster
shops with the regimental numeral and battery letter
affixed as it presents here – certainly not something
made at the unit level or by an individual. There is no
sign that the numerals or letter were ever altered or
replaced, rather from all appearances, this is exactly
how the guidon was originally made and issued.
Any surviving original U.S. Army
guidon is a rare artifact, especially those guidons
which were issued to cavalry regiments during the era of
the horse. Those which can be attributed to a specific
unit and which were carried during the unit’s
participation in recognized historical events are almost
non-existent on the market. The offering of this
Pattern 1885 Guidon, identified to F Troop of the 3RD
Regiment of U.S. Cavalry, is a very rare offering and
one not likely to be seen again any time soon.
(0604) $2950
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