Breechloaders & Muzzleloaders, the Difference. Legislation.

DuPlessis 1690-1725. 1700ad Painting shows Capot.

DuPlessis 1700ad.

"My drawings of their bodies and clothes are true to life."
DuPlessis journal, 1690-1725.

More on the French Capot

This reproduction capot, a hooded coat, is representative of those worn circa 1690-1720 in French Canada.

An ample coat with hood and sleeves, the capot was derived from the coat used by French sailors in inclement weather. The French inhabitants of Quebec modified the design by giving them a slightly more tailored look. These alterations were meant to imitate the justaucorps, the fashionable coat of the day. This reproduction example has mariner's cuffs. Some sleeves were plain and others had long "boot cuffs" like those on justaucorps. Capots were fastened around the waist with a sash. A single button on the right shoulder allowed the left flap to cross over the breast. These coats were typically made of serge, a woolen cloth that is pliable and drapable but durable. Blue was the favored color. Like most textiles, capots rapidly became highly sought-after trade goods in New France. Native North Americans soon adopted the design to make their own garments from square-cut blankets, creating a kind of knee-length hooded cloak held together at the waist by a sash and closed at the chest with a clasp or pin.

http://www.1704.deerfield.history.museum/popups/artifacts.do?shortName=capot&anchorName=2

This is supposed to be dated 1730, but I have no provenance as yet.

Capots were originally a kind of a hooded coat or gown worn by French sailors in wet or bad weather. Capots were first used in Canada by Natives ; as early as 1606, French sailors were trading their capots to the Micmac on the Atlantic coast. They seem to have become popular trade goods ; by 1620, a French captain found it necessary to order his sailors not to trade away their capots until all the other trade goods had been used up [1].

http://www.northwestjournal.ca/XIII3.htm

"the native people wear French capots, and in the winter, bed-blankets."

Father Baird in Acadia in 1616.

http://web.viu.ca/firstnations/doris/coats.htm

Blanket Coats, Blankets and Matchcoats.

Blanket Coats and Matchcoats.

Finding a pattern for an authentic blanket coat or French capot is not easy. Information on the 17^th century to early 18^th century capot has been contaminated with western patterns showing blanket coats of many stripes and fringes. The original capot was as far as I am able to discern a simple plain coat made out of blanket material, wrap around with a sash or belt to hold it together. As I have read that French sailors originally wore these coats, I would imagine that using a button at the neck would not be beyond the realm of authenticity.

A late 17th to early 18th century sketch of a capot. This has been redrawn from an original.

Of course the French military are also reputed to have worn the capot, but they also had the use of their knapsack bag, which was designed so they could put their feet into it at night when sleeping.

 

However, the more common use of the blanket seems to have been for the matchcoat.

 

"The Indians fasten their blankets below with their belts, and make them pass over the head like a monk's hood, arranging them so well that they only expose their nose and hands" (Pierre Pouchot, Memoir upon the Late War in North America, Between the French and English, 1755-60).

http://www.oldetoolshop.com/trekking/library/matchcoats.html

To me, the matchcoat seems like a much better garment to wear. It appears to have traditionally been made out of either a length of woollen material, or from a blanket. The original matchcoat was an Indian garment and it was made of feathers.

The matchcoat can simply be wrapped around the body, or it can also go over the head. A belt or sash can be used to secure it around the waist and by making a few folds; it can resemble a great coat.

I found that wearing a capot I got too hot on the trail and it was not easy to remove. I had to take off my packs and accoutrements to do so. Also the capot did not keep all of me warm at night, and carrying a blanket as well as a capot just meant I was carrying more weight. Now I simply use a half blanket round my shoulders cape fashion. If it is very cold then I can wear my blanket as a matchcoat. These two items keep me relatively warm at night and are more versatile than the capot.

Wearing the half-blanket.

Here I have simply taken the half-blanket off, and passed it over my head to sit at my back over my pack.

soldiers-on-the-march_watteau-jean-antoine-1684-1721.

Detail from above painting. man on a horse wrapped in a blanket.

 

 

Please watch this short video and act upon it.

http://www.survivalinternational.org/awa?fb_action_ids=504868676211732&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

Off Topic. Advice for off the grid solar power users.

Most people who follow this blog have realised by now the connection between 18th century living history/historical trekking and survival. So the other posts I make on here are not so far off the track in that respect. My wife and I have been living off the grid for over 30 years now, and we were living up in Elm Cottage without any electricity for at least 20 years. Hence once in a while I like to share some of my learnt knowledge with you, in the hope that it may improve your standard of living, or at least help prepare you for hard times.

Many people when going off the grid think that only the power source changes, not their lives. This is NOT the case. When living off the grid you need to change the way you used to think back in town, your lifestyle needs to change. You do not have to live without comforts, but you do need to adapt to your new way of living.
You can't use an electric stove, it will drain and kill your batteries. You can not leave the television turned on all day when not actually watching something and you may need to limit your viewing hours depending on the solar system you have, and the weather conditions.
If you have any questions or suggestions I have missed, please contact me.

For Solar Power Users Off The Grid.

·         Really hot weather here in Australia, so check the water/acid level on your batteries frequently. Hot weather and high charging rates will deplete the level of distilled water in your battery cells.

·         Only use distilled water in your batteries.

·         Do not overload your batteries regardless of weather conditions; only use items that your solar system was built to handle.

Items Not To Use.

·         Electric stoves and ovens.

·         Electric grills.

·         Electric irons.

·         Electric hot water systems.

·         Electric toasters.

·         Electric lawn mowers (other than those with self battery power).

·         Electric jugs.

·         Electric kettles.

·         Clothes dryers.

·         Electric heating appliances.

·         Air conditioners.

·         Flood lights.

·         Electric welders.

·         Compressors.

·         240 Volt water pumps.

·         Anything that uses a lot of power.

Do Use.

·         The highest star rating appliances you can get in Television monitors, washing machines and fridges.

·         LED lighting.

·         Wood burning stoves and heaters.

·         Outdoor washing lines and indoor washing racks.

·         Large windows and fly screens.

·         Curtains to shut out the sun on very hot days and keep the heat in on cold days.

·         Security screen doors so you can leave the doors open on a hot day.

·         Solar powered battery operated security lights that run on their own separate solar panels.

·         A back-up generator that will charge your batteries and power the house at the same time.

 

Do Not:

·         Leave lights on.

·         Leave appliances tuned on when not in use.

·         Leave the fridge door open for any longer than necessary.

·         Use the washing machine or any other high power usage appliances on overcast days.

·         Run your batteries down below the recommended levels. If you do, use your generator to charge the batteries until they are back up to the recommended specific gravity and voltage levels.

·         Use power tools for any longer than necessary. Consider alternatives for these electric tools, such as foot powered or hand powered.

·         Allow trades people to use your power. Inform them before hand that you run your house on solar power and they need to supply their own power generator for power tools and other electric appliances.

 

Do.

·         Check your batteries specific gravity, amps input, and volts frequently in winter. Record these levels along with the date, weather conditions, and what type of appliances you were using the day before.

·         Keep your batteries up off the cold ground. Batteries work more efficiently when hot, solar panels work more efficiently when cold.

·         Clear the snow off your solar panels as soon as possible in winter.

·         Place your solar panels so you can reach them without going onto your roof if you live in snow country.

·         Make sure trees and bushes are not shading your solar panels at any time of the day.

·         If you need to, use high power usage appliances during sunny days whilst the sun is shining, e.g. washing machine, electric drills etc.

·         Close your wood burning stove down when not in use. This will save you wood and will not add to the heat in summer.

Its good news week, someone dropped a bomb somewhere Etc Etc !

The good news is I managed to track down the gunsmith. I feared he had gone out of business as I was unable to contact him. But this afternoon we took a trip & tracked him down. Lovely chap, very helpful. Knows his stuff. He was able to identify two of the guns on the spot, and by the time we got home he had confirmed that the Belgium barrel was also an antique & pre 1900ad.
Thank you Tony, you are a champion.

Now for the paperwork and the cost! All because a police officer was ignorant of the firearms legislation and had no general knowledge of firearms and was unable to perform his duties in regards to firearms checks correctly. If this had been about moderm breechloaders I could understand it, but all this over two incomplete muzzle-loading guns and one percussion muzzleloader that is quite obviously not of modern make? What a farce.