Prince of Wales feathers collar badges?

[DougSA]

A quick question - can anyone share information on which infantry regiments wore PoW feathers collar badges during WW1?

Any info appreciated!

[cbuehler]

The Leinster Regt. and West Yorkshire Regt. come to mind. Collar badges were generally not worn by infantry ORs in WW1 service dress however.

CB

[Toby Purcell]

As CB has said the wearing of collar badges was not authorised during WW1 and that was always observed by the regular battalions of the infantry who looked with a jaundiced eye at the irregularities of other units. Some war raised Service Battalions seeking to forge their own identity and some Territorial units too chose to eschew regulations and do their own thing. It cannot have been easy to source the badges, but they managed it somehow. There is no complete, accurately compiled list of units who ignored regulations so far as I know, although some years back now an attempt was made to collate them in a thread within the Great War Forum online.

As regards the Prince of Wales’s feathers, the following regiments wore that style of badge during WW1, but officially only on full dress and undress uniforms, other than khaki service dress:

a. 5th Battalion Devonshire Regt TF.
b. West Yorkshire Regt (POW’s Own).
c. South Lancashire Regiment* (POW’s Vols).
d. Welsh Regiment*.
e. Prince of Wales’s Leinster Regt (Royal Canadian’s)#.
f. 15th London Regt (Civil Service Rifles) TF.

NB. For a short time the 5th Battalion Cheshire Regt (Earl of Chester’s Own) TF, wore the badge after its formation in 1908, but had ceased to do so by 1914. The Earl of Chester is a secondary title of the POW.

* badge with title scroll beneath.
# badge identical to that worn by the West Yorkshire Regt.

[Todd_R]

15th London?

[Toby Purcell]

Originally Posted by Todd_R

15th London?

Yes sorry, I meant 15th, I will edit. Thank you.

[Todd_R]

No worries! Thank you! Great post!

[DougSA]

Originally Posted by Toby Purcell

As CB has said the wearing of collar badges was not authorised during WW1 and that was always observed by the regular battalions of the infantry who looked with a jaundiced eye at the irregularities of other units. Some war raised Service Battalions seeking to forge their own identity and some Territorial units too chose to eschew regulations and do their own thing. It cannot have been easy to source the badges, but they managed it somehow. There is no complete, accurately compiled list of units who ignored regulations so far as I know, although some years back now an attempt was made to collate them in a thread within the Great War Forum online.

As regards the Prince of Wales’s feathers, the following regiments wore that style of badge during WW1, but officially only on full dress and undress uniforms, other than khaki service dress:

a. 5th Battalion Devonshire Regt TF.
b. West Yorkshire Regt (POW’s Own).
c. South Lancashire Regiment* (POW’s Vols).
d. Welsh Regiment*.
e. Prince of Wales’s Leinster Regt (Royal Canadian’s)#.
f. 15th London Regt (Civil Service Rifles) TF.

NB. For a short time the 5th Battalion Cheshire Regt (Earl of Chester’s Own) wore the badge after its formation in 1908 but had ceased to do so by 1915. The Earl of Chester is a secondary title of the POW.

* badge with title scroll beneath.
# badge identical to that worn by the West Yorkshire Regt.

GREATLY appreciated! You are a star!