Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan O
Bess
To clarify the Gaunt Bham mark is found on pre 1960 Bde designs but these could be made as late as 1964. After 1964 some of the Bde badges were no longer used so this is the 'stop' date. This is the same dates as KLR's date for the move to Bham so I would say that the Bham mark is 1964 onwards.
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Alan,
We know that the Home Counties Bde went from 1958 to Dec 1966, when it became the Queens Regt. Unlikely to have been made after this date and I am unaware of any units wearing it from this date. Happy to be informed otherwise though.
The only possible explanation would be if Bde staff still wore the HCB cap badge until its formal merger with the Fusilier and East Anglian Bde. forming the Queens Div in 1968. I would doubt that, but I couldn't say for sure.
Whilst this badge is found made with makers marks bearing Gaunt Bham, Gaunt London, Smith & Wright, HW Timings and GS Tye etc, we cannot assume that the Gaunt Birmingham mark was the last. We simply do not know. If one had all of the sealed pattern cards together in one place and compared the entries on the rear indicating when it was sent out to a manufacturer, the batting order could probably be roughly worked out. I would agree that it is a general 'given' that the London mark is found on earlier Gaunt badges, but with this badge we don't know when either mark was used between 58 and 66.
Our earlier discussions have highlighted an unknown area - if one takes an amalgam of sealed pattern card dates and makers along with badges know to have a start and end year.
I understand about the move to Birmingham in 1964, but sealed pattern cards still show Gaunt London marks until 1969.
We realistically do not know if there was a cut off date or a general overlap. The latter is the most likely.