Royal Signals post 1946 on blue cloth backing

[Chris Walker]

Dear Friends.

As this is my sphere of collecting so to speak I have recently been asked to identify the Royal Corps of Signals cap/beret badge post 1946 design and pre 1954 design which has a Kings Crown on a blue Melton-Cloth backing that is glued to a brass back plate. The request was for the unit and who would have worn it. Photos are attached at the bottom of the page.

My current reply is I do not actually know!

It is most definitely not a beret badge for 94 Berkshire Yeomanry Signal Squadron. This unit did not appear until 1969 an therefore would have been a Queens Crown. Officer's of the Squadron wear a bullion beret badge and the OR's wear a Jimmy on a blue cloth backing which is lighter than the attachments below.

It is not a badge that would have been worn by No 6 Boys Training Regiment
who were stationed in Beverley in Yorkshire. No backing was worn by them.

It is most definitely not a blue backing as worn for Term Identification by the Junior Leaders Regiment Royal Corps of Signals. Blue designated the third Term for a soldier and their backing plates of which there were six different colours were made of plastic. Dating from 1960 until closure in 1967.

It is not for 1 Training Regiment Royal Corps of Signals. Again they did not wear backing colours.

There is a theory that it may have been worn by a Signaller attached to a unit who wore a different cap badge and wore the backing colour and the soldier may have been allowed to wear the Signals badge on the backing cloth. As this has a Kings Crown and must have ended by 1954 I do not really subscribe to this theory.

I must point out before going any further the Jimmy as shown in the photos below seems to have been on the blue Milton-Cloth for quite some time as shown by the outline of the badge once it is removed from the cloth.

I have discounted the idea of the badge being worn by any ACF/CCF unit. Cadet forces were re-established in 1942. These units continue today. There are a number of these Signal Units today that do actually wear a cloth badge which is sewn onto their berets. I do not think the Kings Crown version in question is or was used by any of these units.

I accept that a number of Signallers wore their pre 1954 Kings Crown Jimmy badge for quite some time after the design change. In many cases this was to run down old stock and most certainly in Scotland the Kings Crown Glengarry badge was worn by Signallers for several years after the change over. Mostly in Bands. Again I know of none with the blue Melton-Cloth backing.

As stated above I really do not know who may have used this badge and what unit. If any member of the Forum can come up with any other ideas over and above the ones I have stated above I should be most interested to learn of them.

With my very best wishes

Chris Walker
www.signalsbadges.co.uk