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ca. 1790 OFFICER’S “COCKED” OR BICORNE HAT – EARLY
US ARMY AND EUROPEAN ARMY HEADGEAR – RARE SPECIMEN IN
VERY GOOD CONDITION: Evolved from the tricorne
hat in fashion during the 1700’s, the early bicorne hat
– also known as the “cocked hat” or “chapeau” - had a
rather broad brim, with the front and the rear halves
turned up and anchored to each other or the crown.
The bicorne hat was worn in North America by a number of
the troops engaged in the American Revolution including
the American, British, Germanic and French forces, and
was continued as part of military uniforms through much
of the 19TH Century.
While the French seem to have used the names “bicorne”
and “chapeau” interchangeably, and the Germans dubbed it
simply the “zwei spitz hut” (two-pointed hat), in the
English language the longer rear brim was referred to as
"the fan" and the shorter front brim as "the cock" —
hence the British, and eventually the Americans,
designated this style as the "cocked hat".
The cocked hat was typically worn in the American and
British armies with the points oriented side-to-side, or
athwart the wearer’s head during the 1790’s. From 1800
on, the British Army transitioned to wearing the cocked
hat fore-and-aft, but the U.S. Army appears to have
continued to wear the hat athwart the head.
According to US Army uniform regulations, by 1812 the
dimensions of the officer’s chapeau had increased,
requiring the fan to be not less than 9 ½”, and not more
than 11” high. In 1813 these dimensions had been
reduced to not less than 6 ½” and not more than 9”, with
a point to point measurement of not less than 15” and
not more than 17 ½”, and the plume had been done away
with – the pattern that remained the standard through
the 1820’s. These early regulations are somewhat
nebulous as they do not specify whether the hat was to
be worn with the points athwart the head or fore and
aft. Fortunately, the 1832 uniform regulations were far
more descriptive, as the text plainly states that the
dimensions of the hat for general officers were to be
“….fan or back part eleven inches; the front
or cock nine inches; each corner six inches….” (emphasis
added), leaving little doubt that during this early
period the hat was to be worn athwart the head.
An example of an identified US Army Cocked Hat of this
period is shown below. Pictured and described in
United States Army Headgear To 1854, Volume I
(Howell and Kloster of the Smithsonian Institution),
this fully dressed specimen was worn by Peter Gansevoort
while serving as a brigadier general from 1808 – 1812,
and based on the museum’s description, was worn with the
points of the hat athwart his head. Made of heavy
weight black beaver fur, Gansevoort’s hat measures 7 ¾”
high at the front, 8 ½” at the crest of the rear fan, 4”
from the sweat band to each corner, and 16 ¼” from point
to point across the hat. The hat is bound with black
silk ribbon, decorated with gold bullion cord
terminating with a New York State “Excelsior” button,
and features a black silk cockade with a gold metal
eagle insignia.
This Cocked Hat measures 9 ½” high at the front, 11 ¾”
at the crest of the rear fan, 6” from the sweat band to
each corner, and 18 ½” from point to point across the
hat.
The dimensions and depth of the drop of the “points” or
corners of this hat all argue for it being of a style
and pattern that would have been in fashion generally
between 1790 and the 1830’s. Unfortunately, there is no
maker’s tag or label on the sweat band that would
perhaps provide additional information for the purposes
of more closely dating this hat.
What is significant is that this hat was obtained from
the same estate where the Revolutionary War Musket
Cartridge Box listed in the Accoutrements Section of
this site and a Brown Bess Bayonet were also found –
further suggesting this hat dates from the earliest
years the style was in vogue.
This Cocked Hat has survived in very good condition,
retaining the full form of both the cock and the fan,
and the heavy black beaver fur felt still retains the
majority of the nap and color. The fur felt is intact
throughout both the cock and fan with no breaks or
cracks so commonly seen in these early hats, and only
minor points of minimal mothing. The black silk ribbon
binding is fully present on the edges of the cock and
fan, with the stitching intact and showing only minimal
wear to the extremities of the points. The fine gold
bullion loop is present on the face of the cock, full
form with no pulls, broken strands or missing sections
of the cords. Albeit darkened with the tarnish of the
passing years, the gilt finish of the cords is still
visible. The fine black cords which anchored the
interior surfaces of the cock and fan to the crown are
still present, with the majority still anchored in
place. The crown is all present, but has suffered from
being folded through the years and is separated along
the folds, but none of the material is broken away or
lost – the full form of the crown is still present. The
interior of the hat is surprisingly complete, though
shows signs of having been worn and the effects of age.
The fine black leather sweat band is fully complete with
no missing leather, but the stitching at the base of the
band missing approximately 50% of the stitches. The
leather is live and could be restitched in place should
that be desired. The polished black cotton lining is
likewise complete with no material missing, but along
one section – about ¼ of the distance – where the
circular crown portion of the liner is sewn to the side
wall portion, the stitches are missing. Again, this is
something that could be restored by a skilled artisan.
The cotton lining shows some white salt deposits,
remnants of the owner’s perspiration and evidence this
hat was worn. In spite of these condition issues to the
crown and lining which are fairly provided in this
description, this Cocked Hat displays quite well, and
due to the nature and design of the hat, the affects of
age to the exterior and interior of the crown are not
visible when the hat is either laid flat or displayed
upright on a stand.
It is difficult to determine if this Cocked Hat was worn
athwart or fore-and-aft
by the owner. Quite honestly, it fits a proper sized
head very well in either orientation, and the
conformation of the hat and the lining do not provide
any significant clues either way.
As this specimen illustrates, a version of cocked hats
were manufactured so that they would fold flat and could
be conveniently tucked under the officer’s arm when not
being worn, and they became known as a chapeau-de-bras,
or literally, an “arm hat”. This sort of variation is
the type of feature available to the officers as their
uniforms, hats and equipment were all purchased by the
individual and within certain, but fairly liberal
limits, the officer’s preferences were only confined by
his own ability to pay for such special features.
Examples of the Cocked Hat from the late 18TH
and early 19Th Centuries are not commonly
offered on the market, particularly those worn by army
officers – naval officer’s cocked hats being far more
common – and early specimens that have survived in very
nice condition such as this one has are quite rare.
This hat would be a remarkable addition to a collection
of US Army headgear or to display with a collection of
early arms and accoutrements.
(0745) $1975
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