The Thin Red Line

On June 18^th 1815, exactly 200 years to the day;  a sea of red soldiers lined up, ready to fight in the Battle of Waterloo - a battle which saw the conquest of Napoleon and brought nearly 50 years of peace to Western Europe. One of the oldest mills in Great Britain, Hainsworth in West Yorkshire, was founded in 1783 and was a key textile manufacturer during the early Industrial Revolution. The mill is historically renowned for specialising in tailored uniform; in particular the scarlet cloth worn by the 'Redcoat' soldiers in the Battle of Waterloo. The colour red was chosen to hide the blood and disguise the wounds of the soldiers so they would not be at a disadvantage to the enemy. By the late 1800's the British Military had commissioned a new, less showy uniform from Hainsworth, and Khaki Serge replaced dashing crimson for troops on duty. Khaki, meaning 'dust coloured' in Hindi became the official colour of the British Army uniform and was worn by soldiers throughout World War 1 and is still in use today. [caption id="attachment_12358" align="alignnone" width="600"] Hainsworth[/caption] The historic red cloth  has, however, stood the test of time and is nowadays worn by the Queen's Guard and Royalty when in full military dress. To commemorate bicentenary of Waterloo, Hainsworth has woven 175 metres of cloth (using an  identical process to 200 years ago) to be used in a series of portraits recreated by photographer Sam Faulkner of imaginary soldiers who served at Waterloo. Showing at Somerset House 'Unseen Waterloo: The Conflict Revisited' explores 'how we remember the fallen from a time before photography was invented' - when only portraiture could attempt to capture the 200,000 serving soldiers and the 54,000 who died. [caption id="attachment_12363" align="alignnone" width="600"] Sam Faulkner[/caption] Every year since 2009 Faulkner has been back to Belgium, to the battle site's annual re-enactment to photograph those who take part and their uniforms. 80 life size images will be on display against a backdrop of Hainsworth fabric - celebrating the iconic garment of the British Empire and commemorating those who lost their lives wearing it. [caption id="attachment_12359" align="alignnone" width="600"] Sam Faulkner[/caption] Unseen Waterloo: The Conflict Revisited will be showing at the Terrace Rooms, Somerset House, London WC2R 1LA from 12th June - 31st August 2015, www.unseenwaterloo.co.uk