Insignia of the Regiment has develop through time and has predominantly been associated with the City of Edinburgh where we were raised in 1689 and Scotland at large. However, insignia in the early part of the Regiment’s existence can be traced to flags and cross belt plates, with an early motto and Scottish symbols on a headdress of a bandsman in mid-1700’s, as cap badges were not introduced to the Army as a whole until 1800 with the introduction of the first Shako.
Above is a crucial example of our earliest Regimental insignia, (illustrated on a Captains Flag), this dates from 1745 and was carried at the Battle of Fontenoy. There are three historically distinct insignia elements on display on it, confirming it belongs to the 25th Regiment of Foot or ‘The Old Edinburgh’ Regiment as we were known at this period in time; the motto ‘Nisi Dominus Frustra’ the Castle on Rocks and the Thistles. (This Captains flag belonged to the Officer Commanding a Company, throughout this period there were, as muster records show, 12 companies in the Regiment).
The earliest headdress insignia used across the whole Army was the running White Horse of Hanover, with its motto ‘Nec Aspera Terrent’ surmounted above King’s Cypher GR and above a Crown, this form of headdress the Mitre Cap worn by regiments grenadier company solders, it materialised out of operational necessity. It was worn from 1720’s until 1800, but officially sanctioned in 1742, as it was paramount that grenadiers had both hands free to light and throw his grenade overarm in battle. To be able to accomplish this, he had to sling his weapon over his back, the wide brim, or tricone hat was cumbersome to say the least, hence the wide use and popularity of the Mitre Cap.
The 1751 Royal Warrant, apart from expressly forbidding Colonels’ arm being used in anyway as insignia, was the first time the warrant use the term ‘badge’ when it went into detail regarding regiments’ emblems, this warrant was the legitimate birth and regulatory start of British Army Badges and Insignia.
Insignia first appeared on the regimental headdress of bandsmen in the 1770s during the colonelcy of Lord Lennox (1762-1805) presumably to preserve a link to its Scottish roots, on account of the Regiment having the title ‘the Sussex Regiment’, imposed on it. Illustrated above is a Drummer of the 25th Regiment of Foot wearing a white bearskin fur cap, the ornamentation on the plate in the centre is of a Thistle surmounted by a King’s Crown and flanked by the monarch’s initials GR. Above this a scroll helm bearing the motto, ‘Nemo me Impune Lacessit’, the motto of the Order of the Thistle, at the base of the badge ‘XXV Regt’ evidence of the Regiment’s Scottish origin. A Royal Warrant dated 21st September 1767, ordered by the King’s command, that all regiments’ of foot should have buttons engraved with their foot number.
A Regimental badge was first introduced in 1805 when the Regiment was given its Royal status with the title ‘King’s Own Borderers’ at the command of King George III. The new badge was first used on cross belt plates, incorporating the new motto ‘In Veritate Religionis Confido’ (I trust in the truth of religion), surmounted the White Horse of Hanover in an oval circlet, and the King’s Royal Cypher in a Garter oval, surmounted by a Crown, above which a scrolled Battle Honour ‘Minden’ in relief. The two ovals are linked by a scroll bearing the Regiment’s title, above is the Battle Honour Sphinx on a plinth bearing ‘Egypt’ and below XXV the Regiment’s foot number in roman numerals.
Although the first headdress, the Stove-Pipe Shako, introduced in 1800–1812, to bear a purposefully designed badge plate, was of a general pattern to all regiments’ with no specific regimental insignia.
However, the next Shako 1812-1816, known as the ‘Waterloo Shako’, had a much simpler OR’s design plate in brass bearing the King’s Royal Cypher ‘GR’ interlocked. On the contrary, officer’s versions in copper gilt bore specific regimental insignia, illustrated below, which incorporated all the elements of the shoulder belt plate.
The next two Shako’s The Regency 1816-1829 and the Bell-Topped 1829-1844, both had elaborate shako badge plates. However, all the regimental insignia elements were the same as those on the Waterloo shako and the cross belt plate.
However, with the introduction of the Albert Shako in 1844-1855, we saw two new elements introduced to this new Gilt Star Shako plate, see above, which would be fundamental and remain pivotal in shaping the overall design of our much loved Regimental Cap badge in the future. These were the Castle of Edinburgh on Rocks, and the Royal Crest, affectionately known in the Regiment as the ‘Dog and Bonnet’.
There would be three further Shako’s, the French-Pattern 1855, the Quilted Pattern 1862 and the Last Shako1869-1878, none of these shako’s would see any new elements added, in fact they were rather plain in design, with a star plate bearing the Regiments foot number in the centre. However, this all changed in 1884 when a new OR’s centre piece badge was introduced for wear onto the Home Service ‘Prussian Style’ Blue Cloth Helmet Pattern Plate (see below) which came into service in 1878. This centre piece design originated first in 1871 when it was worn on the undress Glengarry headdress and also on the undress peaked dices forage cap and was now the new centre piece for the helmet plate.
Stepping back in time a bit there were questions being asked by the authorities at Horse Guards (modern MOD in London) about the source and authority for some of our insignia devices, this arose when:
In 1828 the Regiment was about to receive new colours, but there was no authority in existence for inscribing upon them anything whatever save the words ‘King’s Own Borderers’. This, however, was taken up by the Colonel of the Regiment. On the 9th of May 1828, in a letter by General the Hon. Charles Fitzroy Colonel of the Regiment to the Adjutant-General of the Forces, he stated the circumstances in which His late Majesty King George III had directed that The Regiment should take the name of ‘King’s Own Borderers’, commanding also that it should adopt the motto: ‘In Veritate Religionis Confido’. It was desirable that this omission should be rectified and “placed on record with the true meaning of it should be made manifest.”
Accordingly, in 1832, after a four year correspondence with Horse Guards, which fully explain how the devices that were proposed, with an explanation as to why. The letters held in our archive, show, after deliberating the evidence and proof submitted, authorisation was granted for the mottos, also including the badges and devices, and where they should be positioned on the new colours of the King’s Own Borderers. We are now privileged that we can visually see the evidence trail of our insignia across our history in this article.
Development of the Regimental Badge thereafter.
The 1871 Glengarry and peaked diced forage cap badges of course was missing the word ‘Scottish’ as the Regiment was at that date the King’s Own Borderers. It also bore the regimental number twenty-five in roman numerals (XXV), (see below left) which was discontinued with the Army reforms of 1881. A new design was introduced (see below right) however, there was a manufacturers error, the crown, is missing from the lion, making this a rare badge indeed, the next badge striking would rectified this.
The Regimental badge as we know it, is considered one of the best designed, if not the finest, in the British Army. The only difference from the badge we love, was the absence of ‘Scottish’; the Regiment’s number, 25th of Foot, was represented on the badge in the form of ‘XXV’, the Roman numeral equivalent of 25. With the Cardwell/Childers reorganization of the army in 1881, it was ordered that numerals were to be discontinued, even though they did hang around in sentimental terms for quite some time. A regimental cap badge to ‘The King’s Own Borderers’ without the ‘XXV’ is extremely rare, but they do exist. The aftermath of these reforms left the Regiment with a proposed depot in England and a suggested name which was quite abhorrent, considering the Regiment’s illustrious history, loyalty, and affiliation to Scotland; battle lines were drawn.
However, after a considerable amount of lobbying and representation, and most importantly, a fortuitous proposal in a memorandum of considerable forethought from Colonel Charles Errol Hope, Commanding Officer of the 2nd Battalion, which should be recognized for and credited with the impetus that swung the pendulum in the Regiment’s favour, By General Order, in 1887, it was ordered that a new title should take effect. The Scottish Borderers Militia and The King’s Own Borderers would now merge as one and be known as, ‘the King’s Own Scottish Borderers’.
In 1887, the Regiment is retitled ‘The King’s Own Scottish Borderers’. A new cap badge is introduced bearing the new Regimental title. Illustrated is an Officers Silver Pattern Home Service Helmet Plate centre, also worn on the undress Glengarry and the undress Forage cap; notable is that the top motto and Regimental title in the circlet, are both fully fretted.
The Regimental badge is described as such:
The Regimental Badge: ‘In silver, a thistle wreath; within the wreath a circlet pierced with designation “King’s Own Scottish Borderers” Above the circlet a scroll surmounted by the Royal Crest [Dog and Bonnet] the scroll pierced with the motto, ‘In Veritate Religionis Confido’. Over the circlet, the Cross of St Andrew in burnished silver. On the cross, the Castle of Edinburgh. On the wreath at the bottom of the circlet a scroll with the motto in relief, ‘Nisi Dominus Frustra.’
From 1887 until 1901 the badge was worn on the Home Service ‘Prussian style’ Blue Cloth Helmet, the Officers’ Pattern plate (illustrated above) was of gilded metal, with a solid silver centre piece badge.
This centre piece cap badge which would last the Regiment until its merger in 2006. The only alteration across the decades would be the monarchs Crown on the Royal Crest; 1878 the Victorian Crown illustrated, 1901 to 1952 the Imperial Crown, and from 1952 to 2006 The St Edwards Crown.
In 1961 the badge was examined by the Lord Lyon King of Arms of Scotland, who advised that the royal crest of England should be changed to the sovereign’s crest of Scotland – a lion sejant affronté erect that is, seated looking to the front and holding the sword and sceptre. The Colonel of the Regiment, Major-General J. Scott Elliot CB, CBE, DSO, took soundings out on the subject within Regimental circles opinion, and was left in no doubt, that the Regiment wished to retain its English crest. Thus, the crown of St Edward remained and was, until our merger. The Royal Crest remains popularly within the Association and still to this day affectionately referred to as the ‘Dog and Bonnet’.
