White Elephants riding Unicorns - Glam Yeo

[Luke H]

This arrived this morning, a badge I didn’t think existed and had never seen or even heard of until now.

An all GM Glamorgan Yeomanry. Note the little nipple on the underside of the left plum seen on many BM badges.

Speaking to Keith Hook he is very adamant and has a clear recollection that he once owned a Sealed Pattern card dated 1916 with the ‘diamond dot’ type in BM.

He also had an all GM Glam Yeo but sold it after his friend Bryn Owen (curator I believe of the Welsh Regiment museum) convinced him no such badge existed.

Julian’s fantastic research into the WO records and B&P tenders does also support the existence of such a badge. A tender dated 17th April 1916 records an order of 3,000 Glamorgan Yeomanry badges in GM (pattern 530A/1916).

The date of the pattern no. ties in potentially with Keith recollection. Additionally the letter suffix is a common denominator for the infantry economy badges.

Therefore I suggest pattern 530/1916 is a BM ‘diamond dot’ Glam Yeo.

This may well explain why the BM badges with the circular braze holes often have poor detailing on the middle feather do appear of not great quality if they (some) are a product of wartime manufacture.

I look forward to the debate this badge stimulates and the date of the ‘diamond dot’ pattern.

[Alan O]

As the Glamorgan Yeomanry were re-titled as a Welsh Regiment battalion in Feb 17 this may have been a very short lived badge. I seriously doubt that that number of badges were ever needed in that volume so either the order was cancelled or greatly reduced. Hopefully KLR's research may one day provide the answer.

[Luke H]

I suspect your right Alan, it cannot have been a long lived badge. Hopefully further research will shed more light on the topic.

It would be great if a clear photo of the pattern in wear during WW1 did come to light. Sadly good photographs of Glam Yeo troopers are in short supply online.

I’m surprised none of the Welsh or Yeo collectors haven’t offered any thoughts on the badge or date of change for the Glam Yeo design. Perhaps the introduction date for the ‘diamond dot’ type is widely accepted as 1916 and I’d missed this?

[fonmon]

Glam Yeo diamond C/B
I have well over 200 photographic cards of the Glam yeo, unfortunately I do not have any that I can positively say, yes that's a diamond cap badge. But I do have 2 cards with a floral display of said badge, cards are from East Anglia circa 1917/18

[Luke H]

Thanks fonmon.

Re the photograph it would be a very tall ask I realise to be able to clearly see a diamond on a scroll from a 1915-18 picture.

However, I hope it may be a little easier than this. To date every genuine example of the earlier BM Glamorgan Yeomanry (and I.Y.) badges I’ve seen does not have the the erased ‘Ich Dein’ scroll ends in contact with the main GM scroll.

Whereas the exact opposite is true of the diamond dot type.