Please help. British Light Infantry Capt uniform. Issued. Dated 1949

[retrovintagelove]

Morning all !

I have recently acquired this uniform which I believe is Light Infantry ?

I was wondering if anyone was able to tell me a bit more about it, as I'm unable to find a reference online.

There is a name attached to the trousers also reading Capt FWC Huston. No .21929. Date 26.2.49 - Should anyone care to enter this information into a search. I would be very grateful.

The colour of the tunic green (not black as images suggest - poor lighting i'm afraid) and the trousers are navy with a single green stripe.

My initial thoughts were DLI Durham Light Infantry as it was collected locally (North East England) - Although I'm somewhat unsure as the buttons would have had DLI on them?

Sadly it looks as though the moths have taken hold in certain areas, like many items of this era. It's funny how these choose the finest of materials to chew down on. Not so cool for a trader of militaria.

I look forward to hearing back.


All the best. Gillan

[kradman]

Looks to be a Number 1 dress uniform and from the staybright buttons and pips looks like the uniform was used by someone else at a later date and the fact it has only 2 pips for rank of Lt and the label says Capt

[retrovintagelove]

Thanks for the reply.

How would you suggest selling it? Would adding a further pip to the epaulette make it into the Capt rank? Or is it the buttons that are of a later period?

Regards, Gillan

[MSlusa]

The buttons look like the badge of the Oxfordshire & Bucks LI to me.

[retrovintagelove]

The buttons look like the badge of the Oxfordshire & Bucks LI to me.

Interesting.

I guess a search on the name and service no. would give us all the information.

Hoping Ade comes to the rescue ! - If you are out there reading. ahem.....I owe you a beer or three !

[kradman]

One more pip would make it a Capt , but the buttons and pips are later , it would have had brass buttons and pips back in 1949 , Alot of the N01 dress uniform and mess dress get sold off and brought by another guy in the same unit and then reranked for themselfs

[Jerry B]

Interesting.

I guess a search on the name and service no. would give us all the information.

Hoping Ade comes to the rescue ! - If you are out there reading. ahem.....I owe you a beer or three !

The number on the label will almost certainly be the tailors stock/order number rather than the officers service number.

[Watchdog]

Looks to be a Number 1 dress uniform and from the staybright buttons and pips looks like the uniform was used by someone else at a later date and the fact it has only 2 pips for rank of Lt and the label says Capt

Yes it is a No1 dress.
As for the pips, correctly called Bath Stars (they represent the star of The Order of the Bath), they appear to be the clutch back type rather than lug and pin so they would leave less obvious holes that may even be invisible to the naked eye so there may have been three originally. They have surely been moved because they are incorrectly oriented on the epaulette.

It is virtually impossible to say which regiment is represented here without the collar badges. The marks left show the shape of a stringed bugle so that narrows it down to a couple but for instance the DLI and KSLI devices would leave a very similar mark.

The buttons seem to be the 1946 - 59 Light Infantry type worn by several regiments. The difference between this and the post '59 type is that here the bugle strings look like a twisted "rope" material whereas in the later pattern they look flat like ribbon.

So, I would think the uniform is as it always was but is now missing the collar badges and a "pip" from each shoulder.

This is not a rare piece but would be of interest to an LI or uniform collector. However, I doubt it would be economical to restore the missing insignia if you just want to sell it on.

I hope this helps.

Regards

Mark
PS The introduction of anodised badges etc began much earlier than many collectors believe and was certainly not an instant change over with some units taking far longer to convert than others. It was actually quite a piecemeal process as where the new badge was the same as the old but in a different material old stock wastage and new stock availability were relevant issues.

[Jerry B]

Mark
PS The introduction of anodised badges etc began much earlier than many collectors believe and was certainly not an instant change over with some units taking far longer to convert than others. It was actually quite a piecemeal process as where the new badge was the same as the old but in a different material old stock wastage and new stock availability were relevant issues.

As Mark has stated , AA or Staybright was introduced in the last quarter of the 1940's, though did not become ubiquitous until the mid 1950's so it is indeed possible if not likely that this uniform always had such buttons etc on it when it was newly made.