IV on green patch

[matti467]

Any help appreciated. The green is faded to the front

[MH331]

WW1 9 th Bn Sherwood Foresters worn on the back of the collar. Should you ever decide to sell it please pm me.

Regards

Mark

[matti467]

Wow! That is unexpected. There was a reasonable of Foresters stuff with it. PM me

[Mike B]

Very strange as IV is Roman Numeral for '4' - 9th would be IX - goodness knows what the logic was? - A unit within the Battalion? or some other explanation?
Mike

[matti467]

I was wondering 4 Commando?

[grey_green_acorn]

Perhaps related to the King’s Own Royal Regiment Lancaster?

Tim

[matti467]

Thank you I will try that line of enquiry

[Mike B]

Originally Posted by matti467

I was wondering 4 Commando?

Not 4 Commando - colours before standardisation to red on black were pink and pale blue on black.

Colours are as Reconnaissance Corps perhaps - Yellow on Green

[MH331]

The IV relates to the 9th Battalions order of precedence in 33rd Brigade 11th Division it has nothing to do with the Battlions Regimental order of precedence number. The whole battle patch scheme in 11 Division was based on coloured rectangles with Roman numerals sewn to the back of the collar. This system introduced some time in 1916 after the Division returned from Gallipoli.

[leigh kitchen]

From pages 234/235 of "The Badges Of Kitchener's Army" by David Bilton,

"Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Regiment)":

Badges Worn

9th (Service) Battalion (33 Brigade, 11 Division) formed at Derby on 24 August 1914.

"On landing at Suvla on 6/7 August 1915, all ranks wore dark green horizontal rectangle with four equally spaced vertical white bars, on the left side of the pagri. This was changed to Roman IV in white on a dark green, 3" X 2" rectangle worn on the collar at the back. IWM photo Q13289 shows a unit identified as the 9th with a dark vertical bar on the left side of the pagri."

Two photos of badges are shown, one with the "IV" with serifs (possibly painted, I can't make out how it's manufactured), the other without serifs and of white cloth applied to green and very similar to the badge shown in this thread, perhaps identical.

"Conforming to the 11 Division scheme the 9th Battalion wore a green horizontal rectangle with a Roman IV in the centre. It exists in two styles".

[matti467]

Thank you so an even more interesting and rare beastie than I first thought!

[Mike B]

Thank you Mark and Leigh - interesting research
A useful thread Matti.
Mike

[matti467]

Thank you Mike et al. The forum at its best

[MH331]

Matti,

I have sent you a pm.

Regards

Mark