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What is the Sous Gorge used for?

Discussion in 'General Figure Talk' started by Steve Edwards, Jun 21, 2020.

  1. Steve Edwards Active Member

    Help! Lockdown is turning me into a button-counter. Does anyone know what the sous gorge (under the throat) was used for?

    sous-gorge.png

    It's part of the French Napoleonic light cavalry Hungarian bridle, a strap which decends from the bridle and is weighted with a brass half moon. I'm sure that if you've painted any MM or Historex models then you will have seen your fair share of sous gorges.

    It must have a practical purpose. But what? Holding the horse? Is it just decorative? Is there any significance to the half moon shape?
  2. Blind Pew A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Steve, you couldn't be any more right! Lockdown has got to you. As you say, I've painted a hundred of these and you know, I've never questioned it. Probably says more about me. :facepalm:

    To answer you, if it's not simple decoration, perhaps inspired by the Egyptian campaign, maybe it was to keep flies from the horse's face. If anybody does know, I too look forward to an answer.
  3. theBaron A Fixture

    Country:
    United-States
    I don't know what it's for, either, but I'm fairly certain it pre-dates use during the Napoleonic period. There are illustrations of Ziethen, for example, and other Prussian hussar officers in the Seven Years War, with that same strap and crescent moon decoration.

    Prost!
    Brad
    DaddyO likes this.
  4. akaryu Moderator

    Country:
    Belgium
    As far as I know, and I'm not a horseman, the sous-gorge's function is to prevent the filet or bridle to ride up over the horse's ears, in the same way as the frontal keeps the whole thing in front of the horse's ears. But this is my infantryman's understanding of the question.
    Surely there have to be some cavalrymen amidst our members here. So, stand up, you knights in shining armour!

    Pierre
    Nap and theBaron like this.
  5. Steve Edwards Active Member

    Thank you for your helpful replies. Before bothering you guys I asked a horse riding friend of mine and she did'nt know either. It's not part of modern horse tack. She suggested that it might be used to hold or lead the horse when the rider was on foot. Usually you rig a lead rope but that's when you're in stables and have access to all your kit. When you're out in the field you won't have a handy lead rope.

    But I like the stop the bridle riding up explanation as well...

    The mystery continues.
    theBaron likes this.
  6. Helm A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    Mrs Helm doesn't know either, but did say she didn't think it would be stop the bridle riding up. She suspects decoration. She's got 40 years of horse knowledge, me I know they have a leg at each corner and a tail one end, head the other
    Steve
    Nap, theBaron and akaryu like this.
  7. Blind Pew A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    And believe me, through experience, you don't stand at the other end. It gets messy.
    Helm likes this.
  8. Helm A Fixture

    Country:
    England
  9. Steve Edwards Active Member

    My vote goes to the decoration theory. A bit more Googling got me the only meaningful reference to the sous gorge that I could find namely that it is "a beautiful decorative element that hangs on the horses chest". Same idea as horse brasses for shire horses and ancient Roman phalerea. Something to protect you from the evil eye, the historic equivalent of the modern surgical face mask.

    And, as you say, it's a crescent, not a half moon. Un croissant de sous gorge. I shall have to get one and wear it with my mask. Unclean...
    croissant.png
    Blind Pew, Nap and theBaron like this.
  10. arj A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Blind Pew likes this.
  11. Steve Edwards Active Member

    Thanks for the link. A mine of useful info.

    Steve
    Nap likes this.
  12. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Hi folks

    Again a good question ...lots of great answers ...luckily busts won't have the sous gorge ....lol

    We all learn things here

    Happy benchtime

    Nap
    Blind Pew likes this.
  13. Steve Edwards Active Member

    Here's what I've got from the link kindly provided by arj. It's an extract from the forum of Armchair General:





    That would explain it's being pre-Napoleonic.

    And, finally, an extract from the French cavalry training book, 1805 in a Q&A form:


    akaryu likes this.
  14. cinimod Active Member

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Steve Edwards and Nap like this.

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