‘the diehards’ by Don Troiani

flag of Louisiana (february 1861)

flags of the american civil war : Louisiana

source : ‘flags of the american civil war (3) state & volunteer’ men at arms 265, Osprey publishing

The earliest state flag, raised on receipt of the news of South Carolina’s secession in december 1860, featured a red field with a single five-pointed white star in its centre, with a pelican feeding its young in a nest painted within the star.

‘shoot and be damned’ by Keith Rocco

‘post of honor’ by Don Stivers

‘double canister’ by Dale Gallon

Washington artillery of New Orleans, army of northern Virginia cos, 1862 by Don Troiani

Washington artillery battalion : the early years

source : washingtonartillery.com

The official date of organization for the Washington Artillery of New Orleans is september 7, 1838.

in the beginning : origins of the Washington artillery

source : washingtonartillery.com

Frenchman Jean Baptiste le Moyne, sieur de Bienville founded New Orleans in 1718 as a settlement in the french territory known as Louisiana.

1st special battalion Louisiana infantry (Wheat’s tigers) 1862-62 – plate

source : ‘military uniforms in America (3) long endure – the civil war period 1852-67’, company of military historians

1st special battalion Louisiana infantry, company B, tiger rifles – plate D : Bull Run 1861

source : ‘american civil war zouaves’ elite 062, Osprey publishing

Wheat’s Tiger Rifles (1st Louisiana special battalion zouaves) 1861 by Don Troiani

1st Louisiana special battalion at the first battle of Manassas

source : ‘America’s civil war’ magazine, by Gary Schreckengost, may 1999

Of all the units that took the field at the first battle of Manassas in july 1861, none exceeded the flair and intensity of the 1st Louisiana special battalion, ‘Wheat’s Tigers’.

southern tigers

source : ‘american civil war zouaves’ elite 062, Osprey publishing

Standing six feet four and weighing a hefty 275 pounds, Roberdeau Wheat was an imposing figure.

Coppens wild zouaves

source : ‘american civil war zouaves’ elite 062, Osprey publishing

The men of the 1st battalion Louisiana zouaves were as infamous as their counterparts in Wheat’s tigers.

Coppens’ battalion by Mark Maritato

1st Lousiana special battalion by SP Smith

1st Louisiana special battalion by Mark Maritato

Louisiana zouaves & turcos

source : ‘the CSA 1861-65 (3) Louisiana & Texas’ men at arms 430, Osprey publishing

In New Orleans at least 16 percent of the foreign population was of french origin, so zouave-style uniforms were more popular among volunteers in Louisiana than in any other state in the Confederacy.

the confederate irish : Louisiana

source : ‘irish-american units in the civil war’ men at arms 448, Osprey publishing

The largest irish-american units in the southern army came from Louisiana.

state troops : Louisiana

source : ‘american civil war armies (4) state troops’ men at arms 190, Osprey publishing

‘The Louisiana troops were as , a general thing, better equipped and more regularly uniformed than any others in the motley throng’ wrote an observer in Richmond in 1861.

‘cemetery hill’ by Dan Nance