Did Wounded Soldiers wear Black/Dark Pocket/Patch?

[Guest KevinR]

My daughter is studying WW1 at school. They came across a photograph in which all of the severely wounded soldiers appeared to be wearing a black pocket on their clothes/uniform. This was pretty strong stuff for year 9 as the 5 soldiers appeared to have only one leg left between them! So they did not require a badge to show that they were wounded.

I have not seen the picture but allowing for it being an old photo presumably this could have been a black or dark coloured pocket, patch or badge.

The class have been asked to identify when and why this was worn. We've done a bit of book research and some "googling" without success.

I just found this site and hoped someone here might be able to help.

Thanks in advance.

Kevin

[Joe Sweeney]

Kevin,

I have not heard of a special patch or colored pocket being worn by wounded soldiers.

When in Hospital they were issed special clothing. Most prominent was the Hospital suite. Usually made up of blue or grey wool and worn with a red tie.

Joe Sweeney

[Derek Robertson]

Some wounded are known to have dressed in red ties and blue arm bands above their khaki tunics.

Possibly the arm bands were sometimes worn on the chest pocket instead?

[Guest KevinR]

Thanks for the information.

Apparently the dark area was on the their right hand side of their chest. I am inclined to think it was a variation on the arm band - as suggested above.

The other thought I has had - was is they were actually POW's then they might have had some sort of recognisable symbol too.

KevinR

[Jim Maclean]

This is a pic of Hospital Blues

[Derek Robertson]

Kevin,

You may find this of interest with regard to your POW theory:

In many respects Stobs was in the ideal position for the location of a Prisoner of War camp. It was surrounded on all sides by the bleak hills and the large training garrison and there were very few ways out of the area. But these facts did not stop a succession of escape attempts from 1915 onwards. The first breakout was also perhaps the most audacious for the four escapees left Hawick on the afternoon train for Edinburgh! Two of the men were quickly recaptured, one at Granton and the other at Leith Docks. One of the men had been a boatswains mate on the 'Blucher'. The eventual fate of the other two escapees is not recorded. Two months later, another former sailor on the 'Blucher' escaped, this time in a southerly direction, Carl Michalski being recaptured near Newcastleton. He had discarded his POW camp coat with its distinctive blue patch in the centre, which all the prisoners at Stobs had to wear, but the trousers, with their distinguishing patch on the hips, could not be disguised and he was recaptured.