Motto on black beret

[Tigerlily]

Evening all, picked this beret with motto today for £12 from an antique shop, didn't know if it was alright or not but figured for £12 I'd grab it and find out.
I understand the beret should be dark blue, so the question is who might have had a black beret with a burgundy/darker red diamond. Might the beret be RDG? I have no idea, but I know I'm in the right place to find out.

Many thanks
Alli

[Belfin]

Looks like a Royal Dragoon Guards beret with Queens Royal Lancers motto.

Cheers, Paul.

[GriffMJ]

1970s Motto.... so 17/21 Lancers

[Drmiggy]

Originally Posted by Tigerlily

Evening all, picked this beret with motto today for £12 from an antique shop, didn't know if it was alright or not but figured for £12 I'd grab it and find out.
I understand the beret should be dark blue, so the question is who might have had a black beret with a burgundy/darker red diamond. Might the beret be RDG? I have no idea, but I know I'm in the right place to find out.

Many thanks
Alli

Was the RDG beret not navy blue rather than black. RTR was always black?

[mac mcconnell]

Like most in the Cav if you offered us a Black Beret from the Peoples Cav we would decline to wear it.
However we would normally clean our Berets with the black Off polish Brush so they would tend to go much darker if the nap of the cloth is untouched and black then its a RTR job .

If a lancer was attached to the 4th/7th he may well have worn the patch but I have never known anyone to do this in my time as 17th/21st. 1980 - 1993

Best Mac

[oc14]

Just because the badge is with the beret now doesn't mean that they have always been together - I suspect that the Motto has been added to the beret to make it more saleable.

Only "The People's Cavalry" (The RTR) wear a black beret, although I've lost count of the number of ex soldiers that I have spoken to who claim that they definitely wore a BLACK beret in the Royal Signals, Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers, WFR etc etc and just won't be told that they wore a navy blue beret.


Having said that, in Worksop College CCF , until last year there was an officer who wore the cap badge of the Royal Signals in his late father's 1945 dated Black beret (his father had served in the Royal Artillery and had worn the RA badge on the black beret).

PL

[Tigerlily]

Originally Posted by oc14

Just because the badge is with the beret now doesn't mean that they have always been together - I suspect that the Motto has been added to the beret to make it more saleable.

Only "The People's Cavalry" (The RTR) wear a black beret, although I've lost count of the number of ex soldiers that I have spoken to who claim that they definitely wore a BLACK beret in the Royal Signals, Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers, WFR etc etc and just won't be told that they wore a navy blue beret.


Having said that, in Worksop College CCF , until last year there was an officer who wore the cap badge of the Royal Signals in his late father's 1945 dated Black beret (his father had served in the Royal Artillery and had worn the RA badge on the black beret).

PL

No we'd concluded the beret was not meant to be with the badge, was more interested in where the beret came from. The dealer got the beret with the badge on it from a collection, but that is neither here nor there as anyone at any point could have put the motto on it.

Interesting, well to me anyway!

Thanks all for the help as always.

Alli

[leigh kitchen]

Originally Posted by oc14

Just because the badge is with the beret now doesn't mean that they have always been together - I suspect that the Motto has been added to the beret to make it more saleable.

Only "The People's Cavalry" (The RTR) wear a black beret, although I've lost count of the number of ex soldiers that I have spoken to who claim that they definitely wore a BLACK beret in the Royal Signals, Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers, WFR etc etc and just won't be told that they wore a navy blue beret.


Having said that, in Worksop College CCF , until last year there was an officer who wore the cap badge of the Royal Signals in his late father's 1945 dated Black beret (his father had served in the Royal Artillery and had worn the RA badge on the black beret).

PL

Back in the 70's I knew a Fusilier who wore the "Chav Cav's" black beret instead of infantry dark blue.
The OC spotted it while the company was on the ranges in NI the result being that the beret (sans Fusilier) got tossed in the air a few times while the OC emptied a few mags of 9 mil through it.

[Tigerlily]

Originally Posted by leigh kitchen

Back in the 70's I knew a Fusilier who wore the "Chav Cav's" black beret instead of infantry dark blue.
The OC spotted it while the company was on the ranges in NI the result being that the beret (sans Fusilier) got tossed in the air a few times while the OC emptied a few mags of 9 mil through it.

That wasnt very nice was it..🤣

[leigh kitchen]

That was the Major OC "X" - vicious but fair, he didn't do a William Tell while the bloke was still wearing it.

[Tigerlily]

Originally Posted by leigh kitchen

That was the Major OC "X" - vicious but fair, he didn't do a William Tell while the bloke was still wearing it.

Sounds like a top fellow.

[Belfin]

Originally Posted by leigh kitchen

Back in the 70's I knew a Fusilier who wore the "Chav Cav's" black beret instead of infantry dark blue.
The OC spotted it while the company was on the ranges in NI the result being that the beret (sans Fusilier) got tossed in the air a few times while the OC emptied a few mags of 9 mil through it.

Disrespectful and offensive don't we think? I know of no other 'tale' of such disregard for another regiment. Yes, we banter and prank, but to allegedly take delight in shooting at an item which is worn with such pride by fellow soldiers? And you say this occurred in NI? Disgusting.

I may nip out later and pick up some dog's mess with a couple of hackles from my collection. Or maybe that's just as disrespectful and childish?

[Belfin]

Originally Posted by leigh kitchen

That was the Major OC "X" - vicious but fair, he didn't do a William Tell while the bloke was still wearing it.

Hilarious. Well done.

[leigh kitchen]

Get over it.

[Frank Kelley]

It is certainly a little sad given that members of the Royal Tank Regiment were ordered to form composite rifle squadrons to conduct emergency tours of Ulster at the beginning of the 1970's when the situation was at it's very worst.
Those particular Troopers undertook the same dangerous work that their infantry counterparts were doing with exactly same degree of skill.

Originally Posted by Belfin

Disrespectful and offensive don't we think? I know of no other 'tale' of such disregard for another regiment. Yes, we banter and prank, but to allegedly take delight in shooting at an item which is worn with such pride by fellow soldiers? And you say this occurred in NI? Disgusting.

I may nip out later and pick up some dog's mess with a couple of hackles from my collection. Or maybe that's just as disrespectful and childish?