Confederate Kepis
The Confederate Government preferred the French “chasseur” kepi over the forage cap worn by the U.S. enlisted man. Although many were produced and worn, the kepi offered very little protection from the elements as it did nothing to protect the neck and ears. There were several firms just prior to the Civil War in the south producing the kepi. Before the war, these firms produced for almost every state north or south. Many kepis were imported for Confederate service from Ireland and France. French kepi makers were imported by some firms for their mastery of manufacturing techniques. After all, the kepi was invented by the French Army. The enlisted man in the Confederate Army would usually go through an evolution of headgear over his term of duty. Each state, having been part of the militia system since our country founded its constitution, had its own military tradition. For officers, the Confederate central government held some influence, but it often had states thumb their noses at any attempt to get a confederate “uniform” regulation enforced or followed. When in doubt go mid-war and very generic. Colors, materials, and construction vary greatly.
Officers wore the “Austrian” knot or braid on the kepi to show rank. However, at certain ranks, the number of braids differs. Usually one = lieutenant, two = captain, three = major or colonel, four = lower ranking generals, and five = major generals. There is some weird personalization in details.
Visors were mostly leather with lacquer glossing, and can either have binding over the edge or not. The very distinctive alternative is the oil cloth or oil painted visor which consisted of layers of paper compacted into a thin board with cloth glued and bound to its exterior surface.
When ordering a kepi make sure what period of the war your impression exhibits and what state, regiment, and company you’re portraying. One size does not fit all and what was produced later during the war cannot do for early war in all cases. There are so many variations of the C.S. kepi that I could fill my shop with only C.S. kepis.
Homespun Kepi with Oilcloth Visor	Officer's Jean Cloth Kepi	Officer's Wool Kepi with Leather Bound Visor	Washington Artillery Enlisted Man's Kepi
Infantry Lieutenant's Kepi	North Carolina Infantry Major's Kepi	Yaller Dog Jean Cloth Kepi with Bound Leather Visor	Surgeon Kepi (Captain)
Enlisted Man's Cavalry Kepi	Homespun Jean Cloth Kepi	Louisiana Infantry Enlisted Man's Kepi	Yaller Dog Jean Cloth Infantry Kepi with Oilcloth Visor
1st Maryland Cap with Oilcloth Visor	Yaller Dog Jean Cloth Kepi with Oilcloth Visor	Alabama Militia Kepi with Black Band and Unbound Leather Visor	Enlisted Man's Jean Cloth Kepi
C.S. Artillery Kepi (Tait Wool Top with Red Band)	2nd Maryland Cap with Oilcloth Visor	Artillery Enlisted Man's Kepi	C.S. Regulation Artillery Kepi
C.S. Varigated (tiger striped) Enlisted Man's Kepi	Jean cloth kepi with Walnut Dye and Oilcloth Visor.	Tan Jean cloth Kepi with Oilcloth Visor
Ordering Information