Royal Wessex Yeomanry Cap Badge
 

We have discussed the new cap badge of the RWY on a number of occasions and the decision to incorporate a Dragon rather than the Wyvern. The second of these is what most people would probably associate with Wessex, and which the army has worn for many years in both war and peace to represent the region.

The attached is the Regiments basis for selecting the Dragon over the Wyvern but if you do any research on the web you will come back with contradictory evidence both conflicting and supporting this. Do we have any heraldry experts here who are better qualified to comment either way. Did the 43rd Wessex Division really get it so wrong when they adopted the Wyvern during the 1930's?

Hello REME 245, welcome to the Forum. Your account is now active and open for posts.
By "we" do you mean the Forum or the Regiment?

The golden wyvern on a red field is believed to be the banner of the medieval Kingdom of Wessex.

The Wyvern is a two legged dragon.

The Wyvern is also seen in the crest of Leicester over the Arms of Simon De Monfort.

The Dragon seen in the modern Wessex Yeomanry cap badge looks like the West Somerset Yeomanry cap badge..... certainly appears to take after their old cap badge?

The County Arms of Somerset dose have a red dragon on the shield.

Bill I am not new but I forgot my Pass Word and however many times I go through the reset process I never get an e-mail to my computer even though the site has my correct e-mail address. There is nothing in my SPAM Folder either. I was REME245 previously.

As my attachment has come out so small I will type it below.

"At the centre - and the focal point - of the badge stands the a rampant silver Dragon which was the emblem of Wessex, the territory of the West Saxons. It was the banner under which King Alfred the Great defeated the Danish Army at the Battle of Edington in 878 and it was the banner carried by King Athelstan when he beat the combined armies of the Scots, Welsh, Norse and Irish at the Battle of Brananburgh in 937. The Dragon was flown by Harold 11 King of England (Earl of Wessex) when he destroyed the Norse army at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 and it was the banner under which he and his warriors fought to the death, three weeks later defending England from invasion. So its provenance is absolutely sound and the Regiment believes that it will give us the simple and striking badge which rightly we should have"

The Wessex Wyvern...

Flag of Wessex
http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/g/gb-e-wsx!.gif

The Monarchy of Wessex Coat of Arms does have a Dragon & Wyvern supporter..... as well as a gold "Wyvern" in the crest.

https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net...ondVersion.png

So it appears that the heraldry of the modern Wessex Yeomanry badge is correct albeit I think a Wyvern would be more appropriate and not the Dragon?

The old Wessex Brigade badge is right...
http://militaria-sales.com.au/images/AM01840.jpg

The Wessex Yeomanry dragon is indeed the Somerset Dragon rather than a Wessex Region wyvern. The irony is that the RWxY do not have any sub-units in Somerset.

I have mocked up something that maybe would be more in keeping...

Very good!!

Looks like a seahorse Griff .

:D ....... It is a Wyvern, "Or", "Rampant".

"Rampant " rabbit ?

It does seem hard to avoid the conclusion that the badge was influence by the West Somerset Yeomanry Badge. Hopefully when the ordnance issue version comes out it will be made on more tradition materials and voided like the WSY badge.