Connaught RANGERS / ROYAL IRISH REGIEMNT

[Stanley_C_Jenkins]

According to an article on collar badges 1874-1881 in the Journal of the Society of Army Historical Research, the collar badge of the 94th Foot was a brass elephant without howdah, the “same type as worn after 1881 by the Connaught Rangers”. The badge of the 88th Foot was, however a crowned harp (non-female). Confusingly, the 78th Foot collar badge was also described as an elephant without a howdah.

[John Mulcahy]

In the Connaught Rangers, only offciers wore silver collar badges, rank & file wore GM or brass elephants.

John

[John Mulcahy]

I had a read through the Seaforth's and Connaught's pages in Churchills book again this evening and noted the following.

The Seaforth's eephant that most closly resembles those of the CR is pattern 10189A sealed 3/8/1889 and worn until 1961. Its most distinctive feature is a raised forehead on the animal.

The Connaught Rangers O/R wore two patterns between 1881 and 1922. Pattern 9965 sealed 20/1/82 looking at Churchill's photos this is quite a distinctive design , GM badge, copper loops, no raised forehead, large ears and no bushy end to the tail. I am relatively certain this is the badge shown below.

Pattern 9965a was sealed 6/9/98 slightly smaller than the proceeding design , a smaller ear and a raised forehead (but not as much as Seaforths 10189A.)

HOWEVER HERE IS THE BIG BUT - Churchill does state that there were many variations of all of these patterns, , in overall size, size of ears, trunk and some with voiding between the tail and body some without.

I doubt we shall ever know with certainty how to tell the O/R badges apart for these two regiments.

The Connaught Rangers never wore an elephant with a howdah, but officers did wear an elephant with carparison, embroidered for full dress (mess dress were embroidered crowned harps) and in WM (found with and without a carparison)

John

[John Mulcahy]

as a foot note (for those who enjoy such things).

When I was last in Kew I looked through the manuscripts and notes that Jourdain left to the archive ?(WO 79/46) he was the last O/C of the 1st Bn and wrote the official history.

Button
The first button worn on amalgamation in 1881 was an elephant surmounted by an uncrowned harp, he notes that the regiment thought it "hideous and unsuitable". A petition to horse guards in 1894 succeeded in having it changed to the crowned harp.

Move to silver collar badges for Officers
In 1895 permission was sought and obtained to replace the embroidered officers full dress collar badge to the silver metal one.

FSC Badge
Finally in 1894 the regiment was wearing collar badge pattern 9965 in the field service cap (as oficially instructed) Jourdain says that this "annoyed the regiment", they sought permission to have it changed but failed.

[ard-ri]

Hi John,

This will always be a bit of a tough one I think. I would say you do have a variant of a Connaughts badge. The one you have however does not have the void between the tusks or the void between the tail and the back of the animal, but as stated, different variants for different manufacturers.

Michael