The red blanket roll across this Confederate soldier's chest is probably his mother's. Confederate soldiers, lacking the consistent regulation blanket supply Federal troops drew from quartermaster depots, often carried civilian blankets from home — wool quilts, woven coverlets, and trade blankets — rolled and slung across the body. The colors varied widely. Federal regulation blankets were standardized dark gray; Confederate "blankets" might be red, brown, plaid, or any pattern a soldier's family had on hand. By the second half of the war, Confederate soldiers also wore captured Federal blankets they had picked up after battles, sometimes dyed brown or gray to disguise their origin. The diversity of bedroll colors was one of the easiest ways to identify Confederate troops at distance.

This W. Britain figure depicts a Confederate infantryman in the act of reaching for a percussion cap from his cap pouch — the small leather pouch on his belt with the shield flap closed against rain and dust. He wears the regulation Confederate kit: gray shell jacket, light blue trousers, broad-brimmed slouch hat. The conspicuous red civilian blanket rolled across his chest catches the eye — a household textile that has become a soldier's bedroll. The rifle is held forward, ready for the cap to be placed on the nipple. Pair this figure with Confederate Infantry Kneeling Preparing to Fire for the firing companion; with Confederate Corporal Urging Men Forward as the NCO directing the line; or with Confederate Infantry at Rest for a regiment paused on the march.

Scale: 1/30 (60mm). Matte-painted metal. W. Britain model 31360. From the American Civil War range. Single foot figure, supplied painted and ready for display.