Japanese command badge

[jeeplover]

thought i would share

[ghp95134]

Nice badge -- is that company-level?

-- Guy

[jeeplover]

I honestly am not sure. thank you

[ghp95134]

Here you go, Rich Catalano's site with a good explanation.

Here are the three Commander Badges.

These were instituted on October 12, 1943.
The three badges, from left to right:
1. The General Officer's badge (将官 shoukan): awarded to those at or higher
than the Brigadier General rank. (5.5 cm long, 4.2 cm wide)

2. The Field Officer's badge (左官 sakan): awarded to those ranked from
Major to Brigadier. (4.5 cm long, 3.5 cm wide)

3. The Company Grade Officer's badge (尉官 ikan): awarded to those ranked
from Second Lieutenant to Captain. (4.5 cm long, 3.5 cm wide)

The differences are fairly easy to discern from the photo. The General
Officer's badge is larger and has more petals (32). The other two badges are
the same size, but the Field Officer's badge has gold gilt cherry

-- Guy

[jeeplover]

thank you very much for finding that. it is a very light badge I know why now.

[Nick Komiya]

Launched as part of the Type 3 Uniform Series, involving new collar tabs, etc.

[delibes]

This General Officer's badge belonged to Lieutenant-General Ōga, Shigeru.

Regards Delibes

[Nick Komiya]

Though commonly thought to be worn by rank, it actually was not the rank, but the type of unit/responsibility they shouldered that mattered. After all, collar tabs were sufficient to denote rank.

Thus the so-called general's badge was also worn by field grade officers commanding what was usually a general's post.

Similarly, the company grade badge was also worn by field grade and company grade officers alike, commanding battalions and companies.

The so-called field grade badge was only for those commanding a regiment or a squadron.

All that is spelled out in the regulations I posted above.

If one was not in such a unit commander role, you did not wear any of these badges regardless of rank.

Also, the regulation specified Almite as the alloy material.