Cavalry regts wearing brodricks.

[Alan O]

I have been looking into cavalry headdress circa 1902-10 and often only officers (and sometimes bandsman) wore peaked caps in the first decade of the C20th century as many cavalry regts continued to wear badgeless pill box caps even after they were supposed to have ceased wearing them c.1903.

However as ever there were some Cavalry regts who did adopt the Brodrick cap.

Can any one provide photographic evidence of cavalry regts wearing the Brodrick?

I will start with 13th and the 17th Lancers dating from 1903/4.

(courtesy of IBEW and GWF respectively)

The QDG website records the wearing of the cap by the KDG from 1903 and the 2 DG (The Bays) from 1908.

'In 1903 the KDG were issued with the much-disliked Broderick cap, and the much-prized Victorian pill-box forage cap was discontinued. The Broderick cap was of blue cloth, round in shape with a projecting rim, but with no peak; it was worn with a chinstrap, and the metal regimental badge of the Austrian double-headed eagle on a red background in the centre at the front. On their return to England in 1908 the Bays were issued with a blue Broderick cap, with the regimental badge on a white patch at the front - the patch later being changed to light buff.' http://www.qdg.org.uk/pages/Uniform-1843-Onwards-81.php

The wearing of Brodrick was by no means universal and generally confined to the UK (although I believe that it may have made it to some Infantry in South Africa from at least one set of photos). Officers, SNCOs and sometimes bandsmen wore peaked caps even before the change over by the rest of the ORs circa 1906. Also those regts in India etc wore the Indian pattern side cap.