Object in focus

Militia Jacket belonging to Sir John Le Couteur, 1830s

A significant part of the museum’s military collection is the Government of Jersey’s Public Works collection which was transferred into the management of Jersey Heritage in 1991. Within this collection are a number of Royal Jersey Militia uniforms dating from the late 18^th century to the 19^th century. This year, over 100 militia jackets have been catalogued and photographed, with these records now available to view on the Jersey Heritage Online Catalogue.

Image: Militia jacket worn by Sir John Le Couteur

Whilst completing this project, a jacket was uncovered belonging to an interesting and well-known figure in the Island’s military history, Sir John Le Couteur. Le Couteur was a British Army Officer, born in Jersey on 21 October 1794, who served as Aide-de-camp for Jersey to British monarchs King William IV and Queen Victoria. The son of Lieutenant General John Le Couteur (1761-1835), Le Couteur first served with the 96^th Regiment at the age of 16, but was soon promoted to Lieutenant in the 104^th Regiment of Foot. During the Anglo-American War, Le Couteur’s regiment was dispatched to New Brunswick in Canada, where they were tasked with defending Kingston, on the corner of Lake Ontario. The regiment had to march across 900 miles of difficult terrain, in temperatures as low as -32°C, and spent the next three years fighting the Americans to defend the frontier.

When the War ended, cuts were made to the British Army and the 104^th Regiment was disbanded. Le Couteur left his position in Canada and returned to Jersey in 1818 where he became a Captain. During this time, he also married Harriet Janvrin, with whom he had two sons and three daughters. In 1829, he was appointed Colonel of the West Regiment of the Island’s Militia, and it is during this time that he would have worn the jacket now in the museum collection.

As well as Colonel in the Island’s Militia, Le Couteur led an active life in other areas and became heavily involved in Island life. In 1826, he was elected Connétable of St Brelade, and he became a Jurat in 1835. Having served as Aide-de-camp whilst in Canada, his experience was recognized with his appointment in 1831 as Aide-de-camp to King William IV, which was subsequently renewed by Queen Victoria when she acceded to the throne in 1837. This service continued until 1872, at which time he was also rewarded with a knighthood. Le Couteur died in St Aubin on the 24 December 1875 at age 81.

Much of what we know about Le Couteur’s life comes from the extensive papers and diaries that he left behind. These are now held by the Société Jersiaise, some of which were published in 1969 by Joan Stevens in ‘Victorian Voices: An introduction to the papers of Sir John Le Couteur’. His war memoirs from his service as Lieutenant in the 104^th Regiment of Foot, along with some of his own sketches from this time, were published in 1993 under the title ‘Merry Hearts Make Light Days’. Both of these publications can be found in the Société Library.

Being able to connect individual stories to objects in the collection is an important aspect of managing a museum collection. In this particular instance, not only have we been able to identify Le Couteur’s jacket, but we also have a visual depiction of him wearing it in the art collection. This portrait of Le Couteur was painted by John Boaden in 1831 and is now part of the Société Jersiaise’s collection.

Image: Portrait of Sir John Le Couteur by John Boaden – Société Jersiaise

Le Couteur’s story is an example of how archives, art and social history objects can all be connected to put together a fascinating account of someone’s life and preserve this story for future generations.