Side Hat - what do you think?

[jamest8]

Gentlemen

I came across this side hat recently. What do you think of it?

It is of very poor/cheap manufacture with threads coming loose along all of the hems. There is no stamp or mark inside except the size - 6 7/8. Also, as you can see the badge is on the side. The bottom prong is broken so the badge has been sewn on as indicated by the arrows. The buttons are white metal and made in Paris. They have a makers name Perfect??????? (can't make out the rest) in a belt and buckle design.

Any ideas as to the authenticity of this cap and units that wore it? All comments gratefully received and appreciated.

Many thanks for your help

James

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi James, I can comment on the Field Service cap: it looks fine to me. Worn by all Free Polish Forces in the Uk from 1940 onwards until gradually replaced by berets and General Service caps from 1943.

Cheers, Ade.

[jamest8]

Thanks for your reply Ade. The other question I failed to include is about the placement of the badge. Almost all pictures I have seen show the badge being worn on the front rather than on the side. The side seemingly reserved for unit flashes and rank badges. Was this a matter of preference or did the placement evolve as the war progressed? Most of my reference material is 2 Korpus so later in the war.
Thanks
James

[Gary J]

I would have preferred to see a full size .. either cast or stamped eagle on the side cap, as the eagle shown was commonly available to various Polish veteran associations post war...

Gary J.

[jamest8]

I would have preferred to see a full size .. either cast or stamped eagle on the side cap, as the eagle shown was commonly available to various Polish veteran associations post war...

Hi Gary, Thanks for the information.

Can I extend the question to seek clarification about the location of the badge. Most pics I have seen have the badge worn on the front of the cap and the side reserved for rank and unit badges. was there any rule about where the eagle should be worn on a Field Service cap?

Many thanks

James

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi James, I must admit that the front of the cap is where I would expect to see the cap badge. But others are far more expert than I in Polish matters.

Cheers, Ade.

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Can I extend the question to seek clarification about the location of the badge. Most pics I have seen have the badge worn on the front of the cap and the side reserved for rank and unit badges. was there any rule about where the eagle should be worn on a Field Service cap?

Hi James,
The regulation location of the eagle for land forces was at the front, with the side reserved for the rank as you correctly observed. See below for the official regs. Curiously, FS caps for the air force displayed the standard ground forces wz.39 army eagle on the side. Pictured below is an FS cap that belonged to Fl. Lt. Michal Michniewicz, VM, KWx2. Also some period pics showing this as well. Hope that clears it up!

Regards,
Tony

[jamest8]

Hi Tony,

Thank you so much for taking such trouble and time to post all of this information. I love the picture of Capt Eugeniusz Horbaczewski with his hat and eagle all askew. Perhaps he had been celebrating his V2 kill before he started painting.

Back to my hat. From all of the replies I deduce that the hat is OK, the badge is probably made post war for a veteran and is in the wrong place. So I think I will replace it with a full sized eagle on the front. I have a nicely rounded one that should do the job perfectly.

Many thanks for your comments and advice on this hat

Happy new year

James

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Thanks and Happy New Year to you also James.

Your FS cap does otherwise look OK. Both full size and the smaller 'furazerka type' eagles are suitable for these caps.

I'll close of with a final picture, showing a wz.39 eagle adorned FS cap worn by a young Polish woman - a rather attractive pairing I'd say

Cheers,
Tony

[jamest8]

Thanks Tony

Here is my hat now restored. Not as good looking as your lady though.

Many thanks for all of your help

James