535E

INCREDIBLE AND FANTASTIC CONFEDERATE RELIC CIVIL

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:5,000.00 USD Estimated At:10,000.00 - 20,000.00 USD
INCREDIBLE AND FANTASTIC CONFEDERATE RELIC CIVIL
INCREDIBLE AND FANTASTIC CONFEDERATE RELIC CIVIL WAR FEZ FROM WHEAT’S 1ST LOUISIANA BATTALION (WHEAT’S TIGERS). A framed relic fez from the famous 1st Battalion Louisiana Infantry commonly known as Wheat’s Louisiana Tigers recovered from the Battlefield of Manassas. One of the most important pieces of Confederate headgear to come to market in decades is this homemade spectacular fez from this famous Zouave unit. The fez is framed and made of a finely woven gray broadcloth and stands nearly 17” tall. The bottom edge is trimmed in a 3” wide band of light blue silk with a very large rosette in front almost 6” in diameter. An intertwined pattern of worsted wool braid, light blue and white, runs up the front of the fez forming a small circle at the top and having two tassels attached by the braided cord. Accompanying the fez is a note on a card in period ink reading “A Louisiana Tiger’s Cap found at Manassas”. The fez is framed inside a walnut and gilt wood edged frame (A detailed backside and interior inspection of the fez was prevented by the framing). The most famous Louisiana unit from the Civil War, this battalion took the nickname "Louisiana Tigers" from its Company B. Its reputation led in time to the nickname being applied to all the Louisiana units in Virginia. Though generally represented as being completely outfitted in Zouave uniforms, the battalion had only one such company-the Tiger Rifles. The battalion began organizing at Camp Walker in New Orleans. It moved to Camp Moore and completed its organization on June 6, 1861 with five companies and 416 men. Ordered to Virginia, the battalion was the first Louisiana unit to be engaged in the war when it fought a skirmish at Seneca Falls on the Potomac River on June 28. The men played an important role in the Battle of First Manassas, July 21 by helping to hold back the Union flank attack until more troops could come up and form a defensive line. In battle, 8 of the battalion's men were killed, 38 were wounded, and 2 were missing. The battalion was assigned to General Richard Taylor's Louisiana brigade along with the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Louisiana regiments later in the month. That winter, the men drilled and performed picket duty. They were quite peculiar and several accounts reveal that they sometimes fought with other Confederate units and among themselves. One of the internal fracases led to the December 9 execution by firing squad of two men of Company B, the first men executed in the Army of Northern Virginia. Taylor's brigade joined General Stonewall Jackson's army in the Shenandoah Valley in May, 1862. The battalion played the major role in the capture of Front Royal, May 23. On May 25, the battalion was detached on the left flank of the army and saw no fighting in the Battle of Winchester. The brigade distinguished itself again in the Battle of Port Republic, June 9. Rejoining the Army of Northern Virginia near Richmond, the brigade participated in the Battle of Gaines Mill, June 27. In that fight, Major Wheat and 5 other men were killed and 16 men were wounded. The battalion was so reduced in strength by the end of the Seven Days' Campaign, and the men were so hard to control following Wheat's death, that it was recommended that the battalion be disbanded. This occurred on August 15, 1862. During the war, 39 men of the battalion were killed, 15 died of disease, 2 were executed, and 1 died in an accident. The orig collector won “Best single object” award at the Gettysburg Civil War show in the 1970’s. An important period tag attesting to its origin accompanies this important piece. according to the previous owner excavation of graves at Manassas winter camp produced fragments of identical hats. NOTE: This was received too late for us to have a textile analysis done by Fonda Thomsen, but we guarantee this to be genuine and of the Civil War period. This hat is probably the only surviving example of its type. An extraordinary find!!!! 4-54116 (10,000-20,000)