Home Guard Cap Badges: Up The Thames Without A Paddle & Other Obscure Insignia

[Rick Research]

Leigh & Jim tell me in another thread (I am starting an "all Home Guard" thread here) that this is-- or rather should be the cap badge of the

"Upper Thames Patrol"

BUT apparently it SHOULD be gilt-- and this one is very much white alloy. Can any of you Arcane British Badges fellows consult your references and see what the story may be?

A general review of what Home Guard badges there were and other examples would be nice too!

What we see over here tend to be single odd random items in antiques shops, brought home by GIs as souvenirs-- and I have NO reference books on British badges beyond a couple of general militaria "coffee table" type books with a few random samples pages of illustrations!

[Rick Research]

Reverse

[leigh kitchen]

.......the cap badge of the "Upper Thames Patrol"
BUT apparently it SHOULD be gilt--

Ah, bit of a difference between "gilt" & "gilding metal". Gilding metal is the proper term for the yellow metal used to make British cap badges, people tend to refer to it as "brass". Brass however is a different metal, used for WWI all brass economy Brit army cap badges & for one or two cap badges worn by certain units (eg a weird & wonderful WWII Royal Army Pay Corps variation which was produced of brass & gilding metal instead of the usual & proper gilding metal & white metal. "Old" British helmet & glengary badges of about 150 yrs or so ago & before were of brass, a noticably yellow brass. Personally I could'nt tell you which was a brass badge & which was a gilding metal badge if they were put in front of me. It sounds pedantic, but there's a point in differentiating between the two metals as noted above, brass badges are specific variations. There will for example be WWI brass economy versions of a badge that was produced of gilding metal, like that of the Northumberland Fusiliers - but a pleb like me could'nt tell which is WWI economy brass & which is the "normal" gilding metal one - but some people out there can. Gilt of course, is a completely different kettle of fish to gilding metal, which is the ungilded gilding metal that has'nt yet be gilded so it isn't gilt. Or something like that. Anyway, the short version is that Jim McLean's quoting K&K as stating that the UTP badges were of gilding metal (as distinct from gilt). Sorry about that. Took the long way 'round as usual.

[Jim Maclean]

My one and only Home Guard cap badge, Rutland, England's smallest county.

[leigh kitchen]

My one and only Home Guard cap badge, Rutland, England's smallest county.

Yep, & now they don't even brew Ruddle's there anymore. God knows who own Ruddles now, but I think production was moved while Grolsch had ownership? Brewed now in Bury or wherever in Suffolk isn't it? Interesting that a few years ago the owners came clean & coughed that the product that they'd been maintaining was "original" was adulterated sh*te & promised to improve it. An excellent little brewery & some damned good beers totally buggered by greedy grasping big business, but then we're talking about a small county being totally buggered by the big is beautiful '60s concept applied late by uncaring bloody bureaucrats who'd rather give the counties & shires regional sodding serial numbers anyway, nowadays in line no doubt with the latest diktat from the European non-federation. Huntingdonshire has'nt managed to achieve county status again, but at least they've permission to call themselves Huntingdonshire again, 'tho just a region of Cambrideshire (just 'cos they've got a few tons of "Huntingdonshire" headed notepaper to use up). When are we going to get a "Free Peterborough" movement so that P'boro can find its way back from Cambs. to N'hants?
Sorry, it's been a bad day - were we talking about badges?
Nice badge, one I have'nt got, am I right in thinking that the horseshoe on the old N'hants Regt collar dog represents Rutland? Would'nt Rutland have been more closely allied to Lincs or Leics or whatever they became part of?

[Jim Maclean]

According to John Gaylor the horseshoe is taken from the Arms of Oakham, the county town. When the Home Guard was re-raised in 1951 the wore the Royal Leicestershire Regt. badge.

The Northamptonshire Regiment was an amalgamation of the 48th (Northamptonshire) Regt of Foot and the 58th (Rutlandshire) Regt of Foot, so I suppose that would explain the horseshoe nicely.

[MH184]

Here's an odd one this was with two Home Guard shoulder titles and area flash's 'NN 15' which is my post code today (first part of it)

This also is my home town Kettering, thankfully I wasn't born here or talk like the natives 'me duck', as they say around here !

Any ideas on this ? Home Guard, Civi or.....???? Has anyone seen anything similar at all.

Kind regards,

Marcus

[MH184]

The reverse

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi Marcus, I do not recognise the badge, but with it being an Officers bronze I wonder if it might be WW1 in origin???

Perhaps Jim or Leigh will know

Cheers, Ade.

[leigh kitchen]

Negative over - presumably WWI & not necessarily officers? Need the books for this one.

Obviously not the badge of the Corby & Kettering Commandoes, the 3rd generation half yank ladies who used to invade the messes of USAF Alconbury on a Friday & Saturday night then - "Corse I'm American Darlin'. Wotcha mean I sahnd like a cockney. So 'as yer gran got any good badges then? Was yer mum the only souvenir the yanks left behind then?"

[Jim Maclean]

Kettering Volunteer Corps, K&K ref 1671. Only listed in bronze.

Dates between 1914 and 1919, some wore military uniform but a lot wore civilian clothes with a buttonhole badge.

A pretty scarce badge I would think, nice too.

Jim

[Jim Maclean]

Negative over - presumably WWI & not necessarily officers? Need the books for this one.

Obviously not the badge of the Corby & Kettering Commandoes, the 3rd generation half yank ladies who used to invade the messes of USAF Alconbury on a Friday & Saturday night then - "Corse I'm American Darlin'. Wotcha mean I sahnd like a cockney. So 'as yer gran got any good badges then? Was yer mum the only souvenir the yanks left behind then?"

Must be a sister unit of the 'Bradford on Avon Commandos' who would spread joy and other more exotic things amongst the members of the leadership courses at HMS Royal Arthur. Their martial arts prowess was amazing, they could trip you up and be under you before you hit the ground .

[MH184]

Thankyou very much Jim I've always wondered about this thing and it hardly ever see's the light of day, thanks


Corby always reminds me of certain parts of Belfast , in fact I don't know which is more rough ?

Kind regards,

Marcus

[Jim Maclean]

I lived in Corby for four long years as a nipper in the 60s was I glad when the folks decided to move back down south

[leigh kitchen]

Brian Leigh Davis's book on Britisha army uniforms & Insignia WWII has a photo of a UTP member wearing an embroidered version of the badge.

My only suggestion for a white metal UTP badge is that it's a restrike in the wrong metal.