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  #1  
Old 28-10-20, 07:57 PM
MH331 MH331 is offline
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Default Indian Army Badge Souvenir Belt

My latest souvenir belt adorned with Indian Army shoulder titles and one cap/pagri badge the majority if not all I think are of Great War vintage. The presence of the RMLl and RMA badges might suggest collected by a member of the Royal Naval Division.

Mark
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  #2  
Old 28-10-20, 09:06 PM
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Smile Indian Army Badge Souvenir Belt

A nice item, great titles.

Rob
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  #3  
Old 28-10-20, 09:35 PM
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Ooh, I am drooling now.... I collect Indian Army and there are some very desirable and scare titles there! Rare to find a hate belt with Indian badges.
All are pre 1922 badges and titles, so it is a WW1 belt. All the titles are self explanatory, but in case you did not know, the 3 J&KR is the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, a rare title.
Super find!

CB
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Old 28-10-20, 10:07 PM
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Indeed a beauty. These souvenir belts are snapshots in time. did these units serve in a specific theater where proximity made finding these badges normal. Or do you think it was more scattershot. Either way those are some great titles.
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Old 28-10-20, 10:37 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MH331 View Post
My latest souvenir belt adorned with Indian Army shoulder titles and one cap/pagri badge the majority if not all I think are of Great War vintage. The presence of the RMLl and RMA badges might suggest collected by a member of the Royal Naval Division.

Mark
A most interesting belt, Mark. Thanks for sharing. Perhaps the badges were collected in the Middle East, possibly Egypt.
Cheers, John
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Old 28-10-20, 10:42 PM
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Yes, those badges were not from units that served in France, but in various areas of the Middle East.

CB
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Old 28-10-20, 11:31 PM
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I have any knowledge at all in respect of Indian Army units, but from what I can see of the belt, it's a splendid item.

A great acquisition and hopefully to be kept intact.

Regards.

Brian.
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  #8  
Old 28-10-20, 11:48 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cbuehler View Post
Ooh, I am drooling now.... I collect Indian Army and there are some very desirable and scare titles there! Rare to find a hate belt with Indian badges.

CB
Can we please stop referring to these as hate belts? The badges were either swapped or given as a gift, there is nothing hateful about them.
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Old 29-10-20, 12:36 AM
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Can we please stop referring to these as hate belts? The badges were either swapped or given as a gift, there is nothing hateful about them.
I know that, but have been stuck using the awful term by habit. It is habitually used here in the States.

CB
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Old 29-10-20, 03:16 AM
Khyber Khyber is offline
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Can we please stop referring to these as hate belts? The badges were either swapped or given as a gift, there is nothing hateful about them.
Entirely agree Simon.
Can anyone tell me why these belts were made? was it by individual soldiers who wanted to have keepsakes for their time in the army? I know nothing about their history/usage if any..

A most interesting piece - and some very desirable badges.
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  #11  
Old 29-10-20, 09:31 AM
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Brian,

Rest assured no splitting off of the badges. The history is in the belt once broken up then that is lost.

Regards

Mark

QUOTE=Fatherofthree;526994]I have any knowledge at all in respect of Indian Army units, but from what I can see of the belt, it's a splendid item.

A great acquisition and hopefully to be kept intact.

Regards.

Brian.[/QUOTE]
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  #12  
Old 29-10-20, 09:35 AM
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Thanks CB, I am not an expert on the pre 1947 Indian Army so thank you for you insights and expertise. A quick research suggests that most of these units served at some time on the continent of Africa or may have passed through it en route to other theatres of war. Egypt possibly being the hub where they were collected.

Mark
Quote:
Originally Posted by cbuehler View Post
Ooh, I am drooling now.... I collect Indian Army and there are some very desirable and scare titles there! Rare to find a hate belt with Indian badges.
All are pre 1922 badges and titles, so it is a WW1 belt. All the titles are self explanatory, but in case you did not know, the 3 J&KR is the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles, a rare title.
Super find!

CB
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  #13  
Old 29-10-20, 10:23 AM
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Originally Posted by Khyber View Post
Entirely agree Simon.
Can anyone tell me why these belts were made? was it by individual soldiers who wanted to have keepsakes for their time in the army? I know nothing about their history/usage if any..

A most interesting piece - and some very desirable badges.
The belts are all unique and were made by the individual soldier who collected the badges from various sources. They were almost certainly souvenirs of the greatest experience in the lives of those young men that made and wore them and reflected the theatre in which they served. They are not trophy belts made with insignia taken from a fallen enemy, but rather a reflection of the comradeship found in soldiers fighting for a common cause.

The badges were almost certainly swapped between soldiers, or given as a gift, perhaps from a wounded soldier to those looking after him. Other badges might have been used as currency in exchange for cigarettes or food; some may have been pinched from an unsuspecting comrade.

The belts used to be very common but many have been broken up by dealers or collectors in order to get a rare badge or make a quick profit.

As a young lad who collected "army badges", I used to note with fascination, that many of the dust men who came weekly to empty the bins, wore them.

There are also fake belts out there offered for sale by the unscrupulous, they tend to have badges from different conflicts that normally would not be found together such as Great War and Post WW2 badges, where a scarce badge has been replaced with a filler. Even, the superb belt shown in the original post has spaces where badges have been removed.
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  #14  
Old 29-10-20, 11:51 AM
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Even 'Arold Steptoe had a few badges missing from his belt - probably nicked and flogged by his old man.
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  #15  
Old 29-10-20, 01:39 PM
Khyber Khyber is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by High Wood View Post
.

As a young lad who collected "army badges", I used to note with fascination, that many of the dust men who came weekly to empty the bins, wore them.
Ah, they would have had some stories to tell ..thanks for the info, Simon.
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