Wherever possible I
have included an authority or reference approving the design,
manufacture, or wear of a colour patch. In many cases this is ~the
initial approval and not the generally accepted form of authority which
appeared as a General Routine Order, etc, or as an amendment to Standing
Orders for Dress or Clothing, simply because a period of up to two years
could elapse between the initial approval vide an LHQ or AHQ memo, and
its appearance as a GRO or similar authority.
Fortunately the records of colour patches used during the 1915 to 1919
period are reasonably complete and this is due almost entirely to the
efforts of Dr C.E.W. Bean, (Dr Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean,
1879-1968: Official War Correspondent, AIF, 1914-1919; General editor of
the Official War History, and author of six of its volumes, 1919-1942.) the
Official Historian, and Lieutenant-Colonel J.L. Treloar,
( Lt.-Col. J.L. Treloar, OBE: Oi/c Aust. War Records Section,
1917-1920; OC Military History and Information Section AIF(ME),
1941-1942; OC Military History Section, DSD LHQ, 1942-1945; Director,
Australian War Memorial, 1920-1952.) the Director
of the Australian War Memorial. A similar situation exists regarding the
colour patches in use with the Home Forces between 1921 and 1939 as
issue and approval of designs was strictly controlled by the Military
Board who had a policy of allocating wherever possible those designs
which had been in use with the original AIF, even to the point of the
ridiculous, as in the case of the 24th Light Horse Regiment.
The period 1939 to 1943 is a different story, complicated by a number of
factors. The first of these concerned the fairly limited promulgation of
approvals for new designs for both the Home Forces and the 2nd AIF.
Security was a consideration, particularly in the case of the latter, it
being considered that it was unwise to allow details of the patches of
that force to become general knowledge until its units had deployed
overseas.
A second contributory factor was
the failure of the Military Board to exercise complete control over the
GOC 2nd AIF, Lieutenant-General T.A. Blamey, in regard to questions of
dress, with the result that numerous colour patches were approved for
AIF units in the Middle East and the United Kingdom without reference to
the Military Board in Australia, for which no complete record now
exists. From early 1943 stricter control was exercised over the approval
and supply of new colour patch designs, the time lag between approval
and actual promulgation in Orders was significantly reduced, and
approvals were widely circulated through General Routine Orders and Unit
Routine Orders Part I.
Where it has not been possible to locate the appropriate AIF Order, GRO,
or similar authority, recourse has had to be made to a number of other
references. For the Great War period, in addition to the numerous
correspondence files held by the Australian War Memorial, there exists
two attempts by HQ AIF to consolidate all approved AIF colour patches
into a single reference. The first of these is "Distinguishing
Marks and Badges AIF', (AWM 13, item 6521/1/15.)showing
in colour all patches approved in Egypt in early 1916. Although undated
it was originally submitted for drafting on 14.3.1916 and on 2.5.1916
was held by the Map Section, Intelligence, Cairo.
It is understood that the
intention was for initial drafting to be carried out in Egypt, printing
of which was then to be undertaken in Australia. The second reference
comprises line drawings compiled by the AIF Administrative Headquarters
for the information of GHQ BEF, dated 31.10.1916. (AWM 13,
item 6503/1/8.) In 1919 this was to be expanded to
form a record of all colour patches used by the AIF, however this was
never undertaken to completion. The first consolidated reference to AIF
colour patches was actually undertaken in Australia in 1918 and was
compiled by Warrant Officer R.K. Peacock, a Military Staff Clerk at AHQ,
as a private project in his own time from AIF Orders received at AHQ.
Unfortunately it contains a number of
inaccuracies, however at the time it was the only official reference in
existence and initially appeared in two forms; with unit designations
added for use by District Commandants and military storekeepers, and
without unit designations for issue to military outfitters and patriotic
organizations.
The colour chart appearing in Volume III of the Official War History was
commenced in 1921 with the intention that it would appear in Volume II,
however it was not completed in time for the publication of that volume
in 1924. Volume III was published in 1929 but in spite of Bean's
insistence that only those patches for which an authority could be
located were to be shown, it contains a number of inaccuracies, some of
which can be directly attributed to printing errors, or undue reliance
on information supplied by the Department of Defence, despite cautions
to the contrary by the Director, AWM.
Standing Orders for Clothing Part 111, Standing Orders for Dress, and
amendments to any of these have provided the sole authorities for the
1921 to 1939 period, although some correspondence files for this period
held in the Australian Archives, Victorian Office, have provided some
useful information on the development of the system and other details.
It has not been possible to locate the original authorities and much of
the correspondence relating to the introduction of colour patches to the
2nd AIF during 1939 to 1941. A roneoed sheet of line drawings showing
patches allotted to the 6th Division, attached Corps Troops, and the
Overseas Base Sub-Area, undated but apparently circa February-May 1940,
was located amongst miscellaneous papers relating to Australforce held
in AWM 54, item 497/2/23.
Despite the presentation of 'assumed
authorities' in the Army Colour Patch Register there is in fact no
evidence that authorities for patches for any of the 2nd AIF divisions,
including 1st Aust. Armoured Division, were ever promulgated, and as
late as November 1940 correspondence between Command headquarters and
AHQ makes it quite clear that no such information had been received at
formation headquarters level. It seems likely that the expansion of the
AIF from February 1940, a perceived need for security, and the constant
changes in the divisional organizations and the colour patch scheme
prior to May 1941 delayed any proposed promulgation.
Correspondence originating from
AHQ in relation to the approved design of AIF patches during this period
was generally undertaken directly with the headquarters of the AIF
formation concerned. It was not until after January 1941 that
correspondence between AHQ and Command headquarters in relation to the
designs of colour patches for AIF formations and units still raising and
training in Australia commenced, and it appears to have been restricted
primarily to notification of MGO demands placed on the Commonwealth
Clothing Factory for production.
In August 1940 the 2/1st Aust. Corps Field Survey Company RAE undertook
preparation of colour plates showing the colour patches approved for
corps, base and line of communication units of the 2nd AIF. Almost six
hundred copies of this chart were distributed under cover of AHQ(DOS)
Memo No. 70030, dated 21.10.1940. It was also stated that plates for the
divisional troops would be prepared and distributed as soon as possible
however there is no evidence that this was effected for the reasons
listed in the previous paragraph. A restored example of the Corps
Troops, etc, chart appears in the Army Colour Patch Register 1915-1949.
Numerous correspondence files, primarily from the 1943 period onwards,
are held by the Australian Archives, Victorian Office. Much of the
correspondence prior to this period, comprising approvals and orders for
supply placed with manufacturers, no longer exists, having been culled
and destroyed, apparently indiscriminately, over the years.
Many of the records relating to the allocation of colour patches in the
Middle East by HQ AIF(ME) were either lost at sea during transit to
Australia, or were amongst those culled and destroyed in 1955.
There appears to have been little attempt to maintain a record of colour
patches in use during the Second World War until at least 1943. In
October 1943 the DOS refers to the "..Album of Colour Patches
.." held at MGO Branch and acknowledges that it was incomplete.
( AHQ(DOS) memo No. 175681, 10.10.1943. AA(Vic.): MP742/ 1, item
61/13/178.)
This is probably the basis of
the MGO Branch line drawings referred to in the following paragraph. A
more comprehensive record entitled " Distinguishing Colour Patches
A.M.F - A.I.F Units" was maintained by the Directorate of Staff
Duties, and is currently held by the AWM. It was undertaken at the
instigation of the Adjutant-General, Major-General C.E.M. Lloyd,
in early 1943, the circumstances of which he refers to in a letter to
Lieutenant-General Sir Leslie Morsehead dated 17.5.1943. (AA: MP
742/1, item 61/13/54.)
- It does not however contain the
3,000 colour patches he states as having been approved for the AMF
at that point.
In 1946 the Director of the
Australian War Memorial, seeking a record of colour patches used during
the 1939-1945 period, was advised that colour patches were to be covered
by a set of line drawings then in the course of preparation. (
MGO memo B20379,14.6.1946. AWM 113, item 15/3/1. Drawings are referred
to as 'line drawings prepared by M.G.O. Branch (Army 61/03/281,
14.6.1946; AWM File 449/9/23)'.
These were forwarded to the AWM
on 10. 10. 1947. This reference comprises twenty three pages arranged by
arm of service, totalling 648 line drawings of colour patches. It does
not include colour patches superseded prior to March 1943, those
approved for units and formations disbanded prior to March 1943, those
approved after November 1945, nor those approved in the Middle East and
the United Kingdom. In addition a further thirteen pages are dedicated
to colour patches worn by armoured and motor formations of the AMF
between 1941 and 1946, depicted as per the order of battle of each
formation. A number of inaccuracies appear in this section and it is
believed that some of the colour patches depicted actually have no basis
in fact.
One of the most useful sources for this period has
been the correspondence registers maintained at AHQ and various District
headquarters. Not only do they in some cases provide a description of
the colour patch approved but, amongst a wealth of other information,
advised of the placement of an MGO Order with a manufacturer, generally
the CCF, for the supply of the initial batch of the colour patch in
question. Another reference currently available is the Army Colour Patch
Register 1915-1949, issued as an in-service publication on 30.7.1993 in
a belated attempt by the Australian Army to provide a consolidated
reference source to colour patches for which an official authority or
reference could still be located.
Finally, where confusion exists between the official authority and other
photographic or documentary evidence as to what was actually worn, the
unit association, if it existed, was consulted as the final arbitrator.
Details relating to units have been extracted from the various unit and
Corps histories, dates of formation and/or disbandment have primarily
been taken from the Army List or the publication of the unit's first
Routine Order Part II by 2nd Echelon. In the former case the date on
which the first Commanding Officer, Adjutant, or Quartermaster was
posted to the unit has been accepted as the date of formation. Actual
dates of disbandment vary for the same unit, as the procedure could take
months from the date of the instruction notifying disbandment, with the
winding down of unit affairs, posting of personnel from the 'X' List and
Supernumerary List, return of stores, etc.
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