CLOTH SHOULDER MARKINGS

[Guest Ian Topham]

Does anyone within their private collections have examples of the cloth badges of the following units, that could be photographed with some kind of easily recognised scale device and posted as an attachment to me:

1) 32nd Division ( circa 1918 )

2) 7th Corps ( circa 1916 )

Many thanks

Ian

[armourersergeant]

I may be wrong but i would have thought that the only insignia worn by Corps personell would have been Brassards and as such these would have been of a typical size depicting the Polar bear on the ice. I have searched but have no pics of anything other than Cigarettte cards that do not give much in the way of dimensions but if they are any good let me know and i will e-mail them.

I have checked all the osprey and like books i have and none show 7th corps or 32nd div as examples.

Good luck.

Arm.

[Staffsyeoman]

Sorry, no scale.. but here's 32 Div's badge (from a cigarette card)

[Guest Ian Topham]

ArmSgt

MMMMM! Cigarette Cards: Are the units I require pictured on those cards? Is there a WWW site were they may be found, perhaps they may indicate the size of the device. ?

Thanks

Ian

[armourersergeant]

here is the one of 7th coprs i already have on data base as i am researching its commander Snow whom obviously it is taken after. Sorry no dimensions but i could let you have the other if you want it and all the info of the back though there isnt much

Arm.

[Joe Sweeney]

Ian T.

Since your title is Cloth Shoulder badges you may want to know that the signs posted here might never have been cloth battle patches.

These are Divisional Signs that were painted on vehicles. In the case of 7th Corps it was probably only ever seen painted on a vehicle.

The Sign for the 32nd may have been a patch or not. I know the Infantry Battalions used a series of battle pathes denoting Battalions and companies, but cannot recall having seen the actual Division sign in use on uniforms. Hopefully, someone may have come across a photo or reference for its use as a patch.

Joe Sweeney

[Mike_H]

Ian

The IWM has a 32nd Div staff brassard in its insignia collection. The red brassard is embroidered in gilt wire with the Div. sign, the design is about 1 1/4" square. I have never come across the sign used on uniform in any other circumstances. As Joe says this and the VII Corps sign are likely to have only been used as vehiclel signs.

Mike_H

[Paul Reed]

As Joe says, neither of these flashes were ever made into a cloth flash, and the 32nd Div symbol was never even painted on helmets - it was only used for transport and vehicles. The division used a series of coloured shapes with bars below to denote battalion and brigade. These are described in the Men at Arms book on the subject.

I doubt if the Corps' sign was ever worn on any uniform; maybe painted on vehicles?

[Staffsyeoman]

I agree that neither would have appeared (especially VII Corps) on sleeves in the WW2 fashion, but I have a dim recollection of a 32 Div badge on a staff brassard in a collection, where the four '8's were made of gold wire.

Possibly completely unofficial!

And I've only ever seen evidence of the VII Corps badge - elaborate as it is - on cigarette cards!

There's a copy of a book on WW1 signs from the 20s in a library near me where addenda were written in by a knowledgable source... must go back and check..

[Joe Sweeney]

Phil,

I have Wheeler-Hoolahans book from the twenties. It does have the VII Corps sign.

Joe Sweeney