WW2 NWE Photo

[prcrab]

Dear all,
The forum has been suggested to me as a possible route to identifying the insignia and therefore the men in the attached photo.
The officer far left is Stuart Gardiner, who was an SOE agent in Belgium in 1944 before joining the Special Forces Mission to Holland. The photo was probably taken post-liberation in Belgium or Holland.
I've had discussion elsewhere about identifying the others. Suggestions for the guy second on the left have been a captain of RE or RA, but it was suggested that the bar at the bottom of the cap badge is too wide and regular to be the RA motto. Another suggestion was 15th Hussars, but the badge in the picture looks as if it has a horizontal bar, whereas the 15th Hussars apparently has a curved scroll.

Terrible quality of picture, I know, but any ideas would be welcome.

[Bill A]

Hello prcrab, welcome to the Forum. Your account is active and open for posts.
Members may be able to help with your request.

[Mike Jackson]

I think that Gardiner could be badged Intelligence Corps. The officer on the right is wearing the standard staff badge for a Colonel/Brigadier.

[Alex Rice]

Total stab in the dark but could the officer 2nd left be a Lothian & Borders Horse officer? Looks a bit like the wheat sheaf with the shaded area being the 'neck' of the sheaf?
Cheers,
Alex

[altcar73]

Forgive my asking, but what is an NWE photo?

Dave

[leigh kitchen]

Pure guess work - North Western Europe?

[Mike Jackson]

Originally Posted by leigh kitchen

Pure guess work - North Western Europe?

Correct.

[Frank Kelley]

I assume that you do not know their identities, because if you do, the London Gazette and published Army Lists would certainly be worth looking at.

Originally Posted by prcrab

Dear all,
The forum has been suggested to me as a possible route to identifying the insignia and therefore the men in the attached photo.
The officer far left is Stuart Gardiner, who was an SOE agent in Belgium in 1944 before joining the Special Forces Mission to Holland. The photo was probably taken post-liberation in Belgium or Holland.
I've had discussion elsewhere about identifying the others. Suggestions for the guy second on the left have been a captain of RE or RA, but it was suggested that the bar at the bottom of the cap badge is too wide and regular to be the RA motto. Another suggestion was 15th Hussars, but the badge in the picture looks as if it has a horizontal bar, whereas the 15th Hussars apparently has a curved scroll.

Terrible quality of picture, I know, but any ideas would be welcome.

[prcrab]

Thanks all for comments.

Apologies, altcar, for using the NWE abbreviation. Hurrying too much, I suppose. Yes, I meant the Northwest Europe campaign 1944-45.

Mike, Int Corps is right for the officer far left. Gardiner was an IC officer. And the staff officer far right is clear enough.

Frank, thanks for the Gazette/Army Lists suggestion. The only one whose identity I know is Frank Gardiner, far left, and it's the other identities I'm trying to track down.

Alex, thanks for the Lothian & Borders Horse suggestion. It's more helpful than anything I so far established.

All the best, Peter