3rd Volunteer Batt. Leicestershire Regt. cap badge

[Hussey]

I am trying to finalise items for our book on Hallaton in the Great War. One small query we have is the correct cap badge for the 3^rd Volunteer Battalion, Leicestershire Regiment. I have attached a copy of the equivalent for the 1^st Volunteer Battalion, with "1st Vol. Batt." in the flag above the tiger, but do you know if the 3^rd Volunteer Battalion had its own particular cap badge?  I wonder if you can help me on this point?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Hussey

[Guest]

The Leicestershire Militia was a originally a conscript unit which was redesignated the 3rd (Militia) Battalion of the Leicestershire Regiment when the two regular battalions of the 17th Foot were redesignated as the Leicestershire Regiment in 1881. The Militia, and the later 3rd (Militia) Battalion, were mainly deployed in Ireland and consequently had the Irish Harp as a badge device.

 

The 1st Volunteer Battalion was a double strength unit formed in 1883 by merging the rifle volunteer companies that were established at various Leicestershire towns during 1859-1860. The original badge of this unit was the arms of John O'Gaunt (see: https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/candt-auctioneers/catalogue-id-srct10021/lot-24161130-22e5-4696-9e03-a539015bf9c4). The photo in your post is a fake of the badge worn by the 1st VB from 1902 to 1905. By this time the two regular battalions were wearing the tiger with a "Leicestershire" scroll below and "Hindoostan" above.

 

The 3rd (Militia) and 1st VB of the Leicestershire Regiment volunteered for service in the Boer War. This gave the 1st VB their first and only battle honour, and the scroll above the tiger on their badge then has "South Africa 1900-02" during 1905-1908. However, there has never been a 3rd (or even 2nd) VB of the Leicesters.

 

In 1908 1st VB was split to form the 4th (city) and 5th (county) territorial battalions of the Leicestershire Regiment. The 4th and 5th battalions used the same badge as the regular battalions but with no scroll above the tiger (see: https://www.heartsanddaggers.co.uk/british-cap-badges/1422-british-army-leicestershire-regiment-cap-badge.html). In 1936 the 4th became 44th (The Leicestershire Regiment) Anti-Aircraft Battalion of the Royal Engineers. The 5th continued as a territorial infantry battalion, seeing action in Norway in WW2, until the Leicesters were amalgamated into the Anglian Regiment in the 1960s.

By the time of the Great War conscription into the 3rd Battalion was a thing of the past and my understanding is that it was used as a temporary holding unit for volunteers before posting to fighting units. I suspect that this may not even have been specifically for volunteers for the Leicester battalions, but perhaps just for volunteers from the county, but this is a bit of speculation based on the few related records that I have come across. By 1921 the 3rd was in suspended animation, before eventual formal disbandment in 1953. As to any badges for the 3rd during WW1, I do not even know whether a "paper" unit of this type would have had one.

 

However, during WW1 there was a Leicestershire Volunteer Regiment, with a badge showing a fox running to the left above "LVR" within a broken laurel wreath (see: https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/bosleys-military-auctioneers/catalogue-id-srbos10013/lot-b2affccb-1ef7-42c4-9a01-a60100a7d18c). This unit was more akin to the Home Guard of WW2, and had 3 battalions by 1917: 1st (Leciester), 2nd (Loughborough, Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Hinckley), and 3rd (Syston, Narborough, Melton Mowbray and Market Harborough).