Who wore the Royal Arms cap badge in WWI?
 

Hi all,

Can you help me compile a list of any departments, corps, units or random job titles who might have worn the Royal Arms as a cap badge between 4 Aug 1914 and 11 Nov 1918?

First of all, let's deal with the GSC. I am fairly confident this unit did not exist until 1942 and you'll note there are no GSC casualties in CWGC in the First War.

Where you see "GSC" on an attestation form it stands for General Service Cavalry (with GSI being the equivalent for the infantry). Ancestry, of course, has interpreted it as General Service Corps.

Officers on the General List (not quite the same thing) certainly wore the officers' version of the badge in gilt or bronze.

In WWI, the Intelligence Corps wore the insignia of the 10th Royal Fusiliers (some sources, including the IWM, say 20th but I'm fairly sure that's wrong). In WWII they are known occasionally to have worn the GSC badge for security purposes. I'm not sure whether they did in WWI as well. If so, the Int Corps was officers-only at the time.

So let's get the ball rolling...

OFFICERS' ROYAL ARMS CAP BADGE (KK1084)
- Officers on the General List (in WWI)
- General Service Corps officers (only from Feb 1942)
- Intelligence Corps officers (certainly in WWII, maybe in WWI)

OTHER RANKS' ROYAL ARMS CAP BADGE
- General Service Corps other ranks (only from Feb 1942)
- Intelligence Corps (maybe in WWII, not in WWI)

Any comment on the above or view on other things to include?

Thanks and best wishes,

Tom

Worn by Labour Corps, WWI.

.....and Volunteer Training Corps.......

Excellent

I think the badge was worn by LC until near the end of the war when the crown, wreath, etc badge was introduced.
Photos show the LC badge being worn alongside those of many different corps and regiments within the same LC Companies.

I remember a previous thread about a poster had some clues on this subject.

Rob

https://www.britishbadgeforum.com/fo...r+jones&page=2

Oh yes - I'd forgotten about that poster showing the Labour Corps badge - it never occurred to me that the badges shown were in all probability sweethearts.

There were no General Service Corps officers - they would be commissioned onto the General List.

Tim

Training Reserve........

If the list is extended to collar badges, namely OSD, then it was also worn by the officers in command of the SANLC (South African Native Labour Corps). These officers wore the SA general service (Springbok) cap badge though I have seen a picture of a SANLC officer wearing a Royal arms collar as a cap badge.

Have also seen a group photo of SANLC soldiers and at least two in the group are wearing a Royal Arms cap badge, but this was not the norm.

Thanks all!

Tom,

In October of 1916, the War Office announced that all ranks of the Volunteer Force (who were at that time still clothed in their individual VTC uniforms, cap badges, insignia etc.) were to wear the Royal Arms as their cap badge.

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JT