WW1 anciliary buttonhole/badges
I can provide some information about the "On War Service 1914" and the "On War Service 1916" badges.
"On War Service 1914": The Admiralty Badge
The first official move to recognise and "badge" essential war workers was made in by the Admiralty on 26th December 1914 when this badge was first issued to "workmen whose services are indispensable for the rapid completion of H.M. Ships and Armaments". Some 500,000 were issued. The Admiralty badges were initially un-numbered and this resulted in them being worn by men who were able to enlist and were not required for essential war work. This was later rectified with the issue of numbered badges in early 1916. The unauthorised transfer of a badge to another man was also forbidden at this time.
"On War Service 1916": The Women's Badge
In May 1916 a triangular brooch was introduced as an identifying insignia for the increasing number of women employed on war work. It was available for women "engaged in the manufacture of munitions of war or other urgent war work", which included women employed full-time in canteens "etc" of such establishments, skilled and unskilled workers, clerical staff in the approved companies, charladies and cloakroom attendants. Over 270,000 of these badges were issued to women between May and December 1916. The badges were numbered but, since women were not subject to conscription, they appear to have been handed out rather randomly and little attempt seems to have been made to record which badge was issued to which worker.
And on the subject of white feathers. The retired Vice-Admiral Charles Penrose-Fitzgerald announced on 30th August 1914 that he was forming a band of 30 women who would present a white feather to "young men of public school and university education ... found idling and loafing instead of setting an example to working men". After that white feathers were handed out all over the country, although they were often mistakenly given to men who had been invalided from the trenches or who were otherwise unqualified for military duty.
Pete
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