The Army of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in Splendor: The Uniform Albums of Teupken and Madou

By the end of the first quarter of the 17th century at the latest, uniformization had become widely established in armies. Dark blue was to be considered the base color of Protestant Prussia, while light gray or white was used for the Catholic Empire and France. However, the rare contemporary depictions were initially limited to portraits of noble officers in uniform; common soldiers appeared only in genre scenes or battle depictions. In contrast, during the 19th century, interest in the representation of uniforms increased significantly, including those of non-commissioned officers and rank-and-file soldiers. One of the reasons is undoubtedly due to the new French-style uniforms, as well as their standardization and codification since the era of the Napoleonic Wars: combined with the headgear, they made even the most modest soldier an impressive figure. Short, narrow uniform jackets, high standing collars, and high-waisted, tight-fitting trousers contributed to this effect. Epaulettes helped distinguish ranks.

The young Dutch state, founded in 1815, was particularly proud of its army; thus, in 1823, the Ministry of War commissioned Bartholomeus-Johannes van Hove of The Hague to produce uniform drawings, which were subsequently turned into lithographs by various artists. The result was the luxurious two-volume work, printed on vellum paper and hand-signed by Jan Fredrik Teupken: Beschryving hoedanig de Koninklijke Nederlandsche Troepen […] (1823) and Vervolg van de Beschryving der Kleding en Wapenrusting […] (1826), published by the van Cleef brothers in The Hague and Amsterdam.

With its 68 large-format plates (25.5 × 35 cm) depicting officers and soldiers of all branches in full dress and complete armament, Teupken set new standards. Intended for representational purposes, the work could be acquired either in individual plate deliveries or as a complete set. The drawings, enhanced with hand-painted gouache, show soldiers sometimes alone, sometimes in pairs or trios, and occasionally on horseback. The bewildering diversity of uniforms gives the impression that, for a relatively small army, there were never enough of them. They are always marked by a detached, timeless stillness. Unusual rear views and side profiles aimed to present every aspect of the uniforms.

From 1815 to 1830, Luxembourgers had to perform their military service in the national militia of the Dutch army. Between 400 and 800 men were inducted each year and had to complete two years of active service in the barracks of Arlon, Bouillon, Leuven, Liège, Namur, or Maastricht, depending on their assigned branch. Subsequently, they had to gather every summer for 5 or 6 years for joint maneuvers before having definitively fulfilled their military obligations. Just over 10,000 Luxembourgers were conscripted during this period, most within the depot company of the 12th Infantry Division, which was stationed in Bouillon.

Compared to these classical depictions, the Belgian lithography pioneer Jean-Baptiste Madou, true to his genre painting style, could not help but slip in a certain humorous note in Militaire Costumen van het Koninkryk der Nederlanden opgedragen aan Zyne Excellentie Willem Grave van Bylandt, Generaal-Majoor, Provintiaal Commandant van Zuid-Brabant […] (Schouten & Carpentier, Brussels, 1825). This publication, also considered a classic of uniform representation, can undoubtedly be seen as a Belgian competitor to the Dutch Teupken.

A small selection from these vast uniform collections can be seen in the exhibition "Luxemburger Bundeskontingent. Militär und Gesellschaft im 19. Jahrhundert" at the Musée Dräi Eechelen: it offers a glimpse of the brilliance of what is preserved as a jewel in the archives.

Text | CC BY-NC | Simone Feis, Ralph Lange, François Reinert | 02/2026

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Bibliography:

• Feis Simone, Lange Ralph, Reinert François, Luxemburger Bundeskontingent. Militär und Gesellschaft im 19. Jahrhundert, Luxembourg 2025.
• Kolnberger, Thomas, Die Luxemburger Miliz im Militär des Königreichs der Vereinigten Niederlande (1815-1830/39), in: Ders./Niederkorn, B. (Hgg.), Militärgeschichte Luxemburgs. Grundzüge einer transnationalen Entwicklung von Militär, Krieg und Gesellschaft, Luxemburg 2022.
• Reinert, François, Wettstreit der Uniformen im Zeitalter der Romantik, in: Id. (éd.), Et wor emol e Kanonéier. L’artillerie au Luxembourg, Luxembourg 2019, pp. 212-217
• Reinert, François, Martin Baudouin à fière allure, in : Id. (éd.), Collect10ns. 2012-2022, Luxembourg 2022, p. 122-125