British Home Guard insignia confusion

[HermanTheTank]

Hi - I need help regarding area shoulder insignia/patches on the Home Guard.

The area I am enquiring about is on the East coast of Yorkshire and in particular the 'North Riding Battalion Green Howards HG' region.

I have seen 2 differing patches "supposedly" from this area that are:

1/ NR = North Riding
2/ NRY = North Riding Yorkshire

Which of these is correct?

I am 95% sure that the NRY is correct - but - what about the NR? - if both are for the same area what's the reasoning behind having 2 different ones?

Thanks

[Watchdog]

Hi - I need help regarding area shoulder insignia/patches on the Home Guard.

The area I am enquiring about is on the East coast of Yorkshire and in particular the 'North Riding Battalion Green Howards HG' region.

I have seen 2 differing patches "supposedly" from this area that are:

1/ NR = North Riding
2/ NRY = North Riding Yorkshire

Which of these is correct?

I am 95% sure that the NRY is correct - but - what about the NR? - if both are for the same area what's the reasoning behind having 2 different ones?

Thanks

Yes NRY is correct for North Riding Yorkshire HG but I don't think the NR is correct at all though there could be a connection to the North Riding Division who wore a very different formation sign later carried by ACF in that area so maybe that has something to do with it too?

The trouble with wartime formation signs you can never say never I suppose?

Regards

Mark
PS Pictures front and back of the patch in question could go a long way to establishing originality

[Jerry B]

According to the list on the link below, there is no NR, and NRY is correct. perhaps NR is a cut down example, or broken....

Structure of the Home Guard

[Watchdog]

According to the list on the link below, there is no NR, and NRY is correct. perhaps NR is a cut down example, or broken....

Structure of the Home Guard

Thanks Jerry, I thought so!

Regards

Mark

[Terry Webb]

Yes, the NRY is he correct one. Jon Mills in his excellent book on the Home Guard does not list an NR as a unit designator.

Terry

[HermanTheTank]

Terry thank you for the reply, after doing some digging as well myself, it seems like the 'NRY' like everyone and yourself says, is the correct lettering and there is no such lettering as 'NR'

What is the title of the book you refer to?

[Adrian Stevenson]

"The Insignia and Uniforms of the LDV and the Home Guard 1940-1944" by Jon Mills and Terry Carney,

Cheers, Ade.

[Kohima]

As already alluded to by the chaps above, many badges were assembled from individual printed letters stitched together (produced early in the war, I believe, prior to the specific multiple letter examples).
Perhaps the Y has simply become detached over time.. and could (with a little luck) be replaced..

[Terry Webb]

Herman, Ade has already given the title of the book. I did not find it available on Amazon, but did find it on Abe Books.

Insignia Uniforms Ldv Home - AbeBooks

Understand that in the reprint the pictures are pretty washed out. Still works fine in my opinion, and the wealth of information is excellent if you are going to collect Home Guard. You'll be amazed at what all is there to collect. There are a lot of fakes in this genre too, so it pays to learn about it. I find Home Guard a wonderful area to collect, although I think I am more of a Home Front collector, but only insignia. Hope this helps, Terry

[HermanTheTank]

Thank you for that chaps - I will endeavour to get that book to add to my collection!

I may as well ask - but its a long shot: I am after an original Home Guard 'NRY' shoulder insignia, the one that has the green background and black letters, I have one already but obviously I am needing one for each shoulder, hence requiring 1 more.

Anybody know of one? - obviously I have tried the usual on line auction sites but to no avail, I have been looking for a year now and unbelievably not found one! - there must be lots out there as 'North Riding Yorkshire' covered a large area with many companies, I just obviously haven't been in the right place at the right time - any info or help would be appreciated.

Reason for the want - I am a reenactor with connections to Pickering/Malton /Helmsley area and decided it would be nice to portray a Home Guardsman of the Green Howards in that area - hence 'NRY'

Many thanks.

Ps. Would be good to get one for VE day sewn on my Battledress tunic as me and the missus are putting on our own little (street) garden party on the 8th - on the lawn - just for us two of course.