Commando trained?

[Irv]

Hi Guy's,

Can you tell me why this Royal Marine has 'Royal Marines Commando' and 'Dagger' patches but is wearing the blue with red flash beret?
I realise that not all Marines were commando trained back then but he seems to have the qualification but doesn't wear the Green beret??

Regards
Irv

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/POSTCARD-F...:SS:SS:US:3160

[54Bty]

I think you will find that at this time the badge is a Formation Badge, not a qualification.

Could be wrong.

Marc

[ebro]

Irv,
I believe at that time all Royal Marines wore the blue beret with the red badge backing whether commando trained or not.
Not all marines were commandos and most commandos were from army regiments.
It was later that the green beret was awarded as recognition of commando training qualification.
Eddie

[Irv]

Hi Marc,
Got the magnifying square on it and it looks like a RM commando flash?

Irv

[Irv]

Hi Eddie,
At the end of your commando training you were presented a Green beret. I have a number of WW2 RM Green berets showing this was the case.
I have also seen this in a photo before but I can't find a copy of that picture In that photo it had four NCO's and an officer. All had the commando flash insignia and all the NCO's had Green berets on but the officer had the blue with red flash beret???
Irv

[Mike Jackson]

This formation sign was introduced c Jan 45 specifically to differentiate the members - Army and RM - of the four SS (later Cdo) Bdes from the masses of others of all services wearing the Combined Operations sign, many of whom never got close to the sound of guns . So it was a generic formation sign for Commando Brigades - and worn as such by Army and RM personnel in 3 Cdo Bde until the demise of Battledress c 1964. But none of that explains why the subject of the photograph is wearing titles ROYAL MARINES/COMMANDO without the green beret. Did he borrow the BD blouse for the photo? Mike

[Mike Jackson]

Originally Posted by 54Bty

I think you will find that at this time the badge is a Formation Badge, not a qualification.

Could be wrong.

Marc

Marc,
You are correct. The idea of the FS knife as a qualification badge was an Army (actually RA) initiative c 1963 which was eventually authorised c 1975 for Army personnel who had passed the Cdo Course and served a tour of duty in 3 Cdo Bde. The aim being for those who had done these things to have something to show for it when they were required to discard their green beret on return to, say, a SP Field Regt RA in BAOR (same logic as those awarded parachute wings for wear in perpetuity).

[stonehouse boy]

I don't know where the picture was taken, but if he was serving at the RM Depot at Deal at that time the wearing of a Green beret was a big no.
My Dad arrived at Deal in 1947 to be a Parade Instructor, he was wearing a Green beret and was told you can get that bloody thing off. Deal at that time was the home of the Royal Marines. And so he had to go to the stores and buy a Blue beret with a Red patch.

[Irv]

Now that makes a lot of sense and the only thing I could think off. If you were somewhere where they mainly wore the blue beret it would look out of place to be the only one wearing the Green beret.
Cheers
Irv

[Chadthefrog]

There was a period when only RM Instructors wore the Green Beret, and all others the Blue Beret with the red flash behind the badge. Now only those in recruit training wear the blue beret and everyone who has successfully completed the Commando Course wears the Green Beret.

[paul w]

Up to quite a few years after the war (1950s\60s?) only marines in the commando brigade wore the green lid, marines serving as LCS or on ships detachments wore the blue beret, could be the marine in the photo had just been drafted out of the brigade.

[stonehouse boy]

This was taken from a Admiralty letter dated 7 November 1945, the decision to keep a Commando Brigade of 3,000 men as part of the Royal Marines peacetime strength.
But the Green Beret will not be worn by peacetime Royal Marine Commandos as there will be no difference between them and any other branch of the Corps.

John

[James K]

A Royal Marine only wore Commando Green beret if he was serving with a Commando unit. If Commando trained and employed on "GD Sea Service" he would wear the blue beret with red tombstone and Commando Dagger on his arm to show he was Commando Trained.

From 1955 the decision was made that ONLY Commando Trained Royal Marines would serve in Commando units, but some Commando trained ranks continued on GD Sea Service.

The Commando Dagger was never worn as a formation badge (until the introduction of 3 Cdo Bde square) it was a qualification badge, to be retained on the uniform even when the commando moved to a non commando unit. It was a WW2 badge, issued with the green beret, and was NOT introduced by the RA at a later date.

[James K]

Originally Posted by Chadthefrog

There was a period when only RM Instructors wore the Green Beret, and all others the Blue Beret with the red flash behind the badge. Now only those in recruit training wear the blue beret and everyone who has successfully completed the Commando Course wears the Green Beret.

The band have reverted to the blue beret and are now even more intergrated with the Corps now that they do their phase I training at Lympstone alongside everyone else.

[James K]

Originally Posted by Mike Jackson

Marc,
You are correct. The idea of the FS knife as a qualification badge was an Army (actually RA) initiative c 1963 which was eventually authorised c 1975 for Army personnel who had passed the Cdo Course and served a tour of duty in 3 Cdo Bde. The aim being for those who had done these things to have something to show for it when they were required to discard their green beret on return to, say, a SP Field Regt RA in BAOR (same logic as those awarded parachute wings for wear in perpetuity).

My father was a Commando Trained Royal Navy Signaller from 1953 and he wore the dagger badge. His father was also a RN Commando during the Second World War and he also wore the dagger badge. So you statement is either incorrect OR only applies to the Army.