ABSTRACT
The early nineteenth-century British army embodied splendid images of disciplined, latent violence, with a resplendent display of brilliant trappings and precision drill, embellished by a preference for tall, handsome soldiers. As the state's primary means of coercion, the army was probably the most controversial of all British institutions; it was traditionally feared and hated for constitutional tyranny and internal repression. In the later 1820s and early 1830s, the tone of British society underwent a significant transformation, signified by a series of dramatic political reforms. The post-Waterloo occupation of France was a significant factor in the genesis of a new British style. British military shows continued to draw large crowds of spectators. The King fought back to regain public acclaim with the most expensive coronation in British history, which included many soldiers, and for this occasion the entire Household Cavalry were furnished with new cuirasses.
