Osprey Men-at-Arms 187 : British Battle Insignia (2) 1939-1945

With the introduction of Battledress the British military authorities had every reason to believe they had at last triumphed in a long and arduous struggle to achieve uniformity of dress in the British Army. All soldiers - officers and other ranks, Scots, dismounted cavalrymen, Riflemen, Guardsmen, etc. - would, in Battledress, merge into shapeless anonymity on the battlefield, with nothing but the odd badge or rank to mar authority's dream. As early as October 1939, however, the Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force was in communication with the War Office to recommend that officers' ranking be made more readily distinguishable on Battledress, and pointing out that infantry ésprit de corps would suffer if units were not allowed to wear titles or distinguishing marks. By the New Year of 1940 the War Office had conceded these points to Lord Gort and had agreed in principle to (a) the enhancement of officers' badges of rank with cloth in the colour of the arm-of-service; (b) strips of cloth in the same colours to be worn at the top of the sleeves by all ranks; and (c) the wearing of regimental flashes on Battledress. And so, in late 1940, the rules for the wearing of battle insignia throughout the British Army were established. Text by Mike Chappell and illustrated throughout by numerous photographs and eight full page colour plates by the author himself.

Contents

• Introduction
• British Battle Insignia 1939-45
• British Army Divisions 1939-45
• British Army Uniforms 1939-45
• Colour Plate Commentary