Badges
 

I'm wondering if anyone can help me. Amongst my recently deceased Mother's personal effects is what I believe to be a Canadian cap? badge. It is a brass maple leaf on which there is a crown with the word "Canada" underneath. On the reverse on the pin part is "F N B'HAM".

Is this likely to be a geniune cap badge and if so what type of serviceman would have worn it.? I'm assuming it is WWII.

Many thanks for any help.
Mary

Re: Badges
 

Hi Mary;

It sounds like the Canadian General Service Cap Badge. I'll post a picture of it shortly and you can tell me if that is it or not. The "F N B'HAM", on the reverse, is probably the manufactures stamp.

Cheers :)

Re: Badges - Follow-up
 

Hi Mary;

Sorry, not a very clear picture, I can't find the other picture I have of it. Is this the cap badge in question:

Cheers :)

Hi Mark,
Thank you for replying to my query. The badge I have is very similar. Thanks to my technically minded son I now have an image attached (I hope) for you to see. There are slight differences but as you can see they are very much alike.

Forgive my ignorance :o but what is "General Service"? My husband seems to think it may have been something like a purchaser of ammunition or something similar. I'm also wondering whether such personnel would have been in England during WWII? I know we had Canadian Soldiers and the RCAF here during that time.

Mary

Re: Badge
 

Hi Mary;

The Cap Badge is The Canadian Army - General Service Cap Badge - from the Second World War (39-45). An example of personnel who would have worn this cap badge are: personnel of General Employment Companies, Platoons, etc, who were employed on general duties within the Canadian Base areas in the UK during the war years, ie: at railheads - unloading/loading, supply depots etc - generally or simply doing the '1001' little jobs that needed to be done in the base/administration areas of the Canadian Army in the UK during the war years. It would have been worn by Army personnel only, not R.C.A.F.

Also, if I'm not mistaken, reinforcement personnel of the Canadian Army Infantry Reinforcement Units in the UK, wore this badge (until early 1943/after which the Canadian Infantry Corps cap badge) until such time as they were drafted to an Infantry Battalion in the field.

No sorry, these personnel had nothing to do with the purchasing of ammunition or anything similar.

Hope this helps.

Cheers :)

GS Cap
 

Hello Mary / Mark,
Mark has covered the essentials about the GS badge. There are a couple of further points. First, many WWII recruits were issued with the GS badge, especially early in the war. The shortage of all military stores, extending even to cap badges, led regiments/units to use what was available. There were considerable stores of the WWI GS cap and it was used when available. Lots of photographic evidence of this practice. Both patterns of GS badges that have been illustrated in this string were used. (There are many different patterns of the GS badge, the type Mark illustrates is associated with the CEF, while the pattern Mary shows is usually associated, as Mark indicates with WWII.)
Secondly, later in the war (especially after 1942, I think), recruiting was done more "generically". Eg in 1939, 1940, 1941, mobilization took place on a regimental basis. In other words, the local militia battalion became "Canadian Active Service Force", and used its regimental identity as a recruiting draw. After the initial recruiting, the CASF battalion moved to training areas out of the regimental area and / or overseas. However recruiting still continued. In this situation the local unit may have used a second (or even 3rd or 4th Bn), but they were often not CASF. The recruit for the CASF, in the mid-war period, roughly 1942 onwards, came in as an "army" recruit, not a QOR, FMR, Northshore man etc. To show his enrolement, he was uniformed and badged, but with the GS badge, as he did not yet have a corps or regiment. Many soldiers started their career with a GS badge and then received the regimental badge or corps badge when posted to a unit. To some degree the soldier didn't attach much significance to the GS badges. There was much more pride and attachment to the regimental or corps family, often embodied in the regimental badge that was worn.

Re: Badges
 

Bill;

Thanks Bill, I posted the WWI pic since I couldn't find the WWII one, just wanted to see if maybe that was the one Mary had, as a start.

Thanks for filling in the details.

Cheers :)

Thanks for your help. I may come back with more questions later but am digesting the information you have given me so far. I've been looking at archives too which have proved very interesting.

One point, not connected with history at all,.........are your boys taking part in the present conflict in Iraq?

Don't need an answer for that question. I just found the answer on another post.

Hi Mark & Bill,
Wouldn't these badges have been handed in when the recruits were assigned to their units? I would have thought they would have so they could be used by the next batch of recruits!

Re: General Service Badge
 

Hi Mary;

In answer to your question: "Wouldn't these badges have been handed in when the recruits were assigned to their units?" - no, not really, the soldiers kept them or gave them away or threw them away. They didn't receive a Corps or Regimental Cap Badge until after arriving at the unit they were posted to.

Hope this answers your question.

Cheers

Cost Effective
 

The logistics involved in taking in, checking, tossing some, keeping others, storage and all the paper work associated with the same, made badges a "write off" type of item. It just wasn't cost effective to re-cycle. Once issued they were regarded as the soldier's personal items.

OK. Many thanks for your help.