In the modern British army, scarlet is still worn by the Foot Guards, the Life Guards, and by some regimental bands or drummers for ceremonial purposes. Beyond its military significance, the red coat has etched itself into the cultural fabric of Britain. They formed part of an expeditionary force sent from Britain to participate in the Nile Campaign of 1884–85, wearing the home service uniform of the period. A Protectorate army had been landed at Calais the previous year and "every man had a new red coat and a new pair of shoes. Members of the City of Toronto Honour Guard, a group of veterans that are employed in the local civil service, wear a scarlet tunic based on Governor General's Foot Guards.

owing to the fact that a boiled American lobster is always bright red and near perfect match to the colour of the late 18th century uniform. It is one of three coloured tunics used by the British Army; alongside dark green tunics (used by The Rifles and Royal Gurkha Rifles), and dark blue tunics (used by several units, such as the Royal Artillery).The ready availability of red pigment made it popular for military clothing, and the dying process required for red involved only one stage. Though, by the 20th century, the red coat was abandoned for practical duties in favour of khaki by all British Empire military units, it continues to be used for ceremonial full dress and mess dress uniforms in many countries of the Commonwealth of Nations. The value of drab clothing was quickly recognised by the British Army, who introduced khaki drill for Indian and colonial warfare from the mid-19th century on. In some cases, it was the bright colours and flamboyant nature of the uniform that attracted men to the army.

Officers' coats were made from superfine broadcloth; manufactured from much finer imported Spanish wool, spun finer and with more warps and wefts per inch. There were many complaints about the presence of women and children in camp who distracted the men from their duties or made a general nuisance of themselves with one such protest made to Whitehall on 23 January 1720: "Complaint having been made, that you permit women and children to lye in the barracks . As early as 1561 the Irish named a victory over these troops as Cath na gCasóga Dearga, literally meaning 'The Battle of the Red Cassocks' but usually translated as the Battle of the Red Sagums – sagum being a cloak.A contemporary comment on the New Model Army dated 7 May 1645 stated: "the men are Redcoats all, the whole army only are distinguished by the several facings of their coats. However none of these examples constituted the national uniform that the red coat was later to become.