Insignia

“ All these various distinctions in uniform, badges, and insignia which we have briefly noted, and others, such as the Sphinx of Egypt, the Tiger of India, the Lion of Nassau, the Dragon of China, the Eagle of France, the Elephant of Assaye,* the Castle and Key of Gibraltar (Montis insignia Calpe) , and all the other noble emblems borne on the colours of our various regiments, are the historical HERALDRY of the service, and are worthy of the highest consideration. ”

“ The almost universal desire to possess some kind of armorial insignia, implies a corresponding recognition of the necessity to obtain them from some Institution or Personage, supposed to be competent and authorised both to determine what they should be, and to impart a right to accept and to assume and bear them. ”

“ MILITARY INSIGNIA, devices in the form of badges, epaulets, straps, chevrons, buttons, braid, mottoes, and the like, worn to differentiate the ranks and divisions of the military and naval forces. Insignia for these purposes are to-day in use in the forces of all nations, though differing according to the country to which the army and navy belong. In all countries the insignia are identical for officers or non-commissioned men of the same rank, though they differ according to the branch of the service. ”

“ The world-wide existence and remote antiquity of heraldic insignia—before heraldry emerged from its infancy, and developed into a science—is an established fact. To enter exhaustively into this branch of my subject, its historic and artistic interest, and valuable practical uses; its institution by Divine ordinance; together with its various accessories—comprising war-cries, badges, mottoes, seals, and devices—would demand far more space than could be allocated in a weekly magazine. ”

“ The rank of an officer of the Army is indicated in two ways, first, by insignia of rank placed upon the epaulets and shoulder knots worn with full dress uniform, upon the shoulder straps worn with dress uniform, upon the cloth shoulder straps of the service coats and white coats and upon the collar of the olive-drab flannel shirt when it is worn without the coat ”

“ CHAPTER X. Distinctions of Rank and Honour.
Any treatise on Heraldry, whatever its scope or its design, would certainly be deemed defective if it did not embrace this subject. Heraldry consists of two distinct parts, namely, first, the knowledge of titles and dignities, the proper sphere of each, and the ceremonials connected with them; and, secondly, the science of blazon, or the rules by which armorial insignia are composed and borne. One treats of honours; the other of the symbols of those honours. The first, though some will refuse to concede it that distinction, is a science ”

“ While officers retained insignia of their arm or branch on their hats, enlisted personnel, with the exception of those of engineers and ordnance, had only the letter of their company, their particular arm being designated by the color of collars, cuffs, bands on hats, pompons, epaulets, chevrons, and the like. A newly designed sword or waist-belt plate was prescribed for all personnel. ”

“ The taking of the insignia by the king himself, and his investing the queen with her insignia, of which usages there are signs in some of the early Frankish rites, all are reminiscent of the old Eastern rite, as are the private prayers of the king himself, which have their parallel in the living form of the Eastern Imperial rite, that which exists in Russia at the present day. ”

“ Shoulder Marks.—The shoulder marks worn on the shoulders of the white service coat and also upon the shoulders of the overcoat to indicate the rank and corps of the wearer are five inches long and two and a quarter inches wide, covered with dark blue cloth, and decorated with gold stripes and corps insignia to indicate the rank and corps of the wearer, these stripes and insignia being the same for the various ranks and corps as those worn on the sleeves of the full dress coat as previously described. ”

“ The Naval Reserve Force Device or insignia is of the same design as the device worn on the front of the cap by commissioned officers of the Navy. It is one inch in height, made of metal, the shield and eagle being of silver and the crossed anchors of gold. ”

“ Much real good would certainly result from the rude shock that would be given to many a complacent display of armorial insignia, by showing the proud blazonry 315 to be abated with the baton sinister of heraldic untruth and unwarrantable assumption. And better still it would be to show to all who possess, or who desire to possess and to bear “Arms,” that the “Pride of Heraldry” is a worthy and a noble pride, because it is the Pride of Truth and Right.
9. I leave this sentence as it has hitherto stood in the book. Badges are now granted and recorded, but a prior right to arms is required. ”

“ Hence it is, that even the lace, the buttons, and other insignia of a corps are so carefully shorn from the uniform of the unhappy soldier who is disgraced, and rendered incapable of bearing arms again ”

“ Black shoes are worn with all except white uniforms, with which white shoes are worn.
[Pg 242] The rank of commissioned officers is shown by means of insignia on the tops of the epaulets, with uniforms of which epaulets form a part, and by decorations on the cuffs of the sleeves of the frock coat and service sack coat. These sleeve decorations are as shown by the illustrations:—
The officers of the Line or Command branch wear the rank insignia on the dark blue cloth of the coat sleeve ”

“ The peace time uniforms of the various corps and arms of the German Army present a great variety, the traditions of the services of the former separate kingdoms and political divisions that are now united to form the German Empire being preserved in many instances in the color and design of the uniform or in the bright metal decorations and insignia. ”

“ The personages thus typified in stone, marble, or bronze, are always represented with their insignia; kings and sovereign princes with a crown and a mantle; knights bareheaded, with their armour, sword, and spurs of knighthood, and, in many cases, their coat of mail and armorial bearings (Fig. 357) ; nobles, not knights, with their armorial shield, one or two hounds couched at their feet, a falcon upon the wrist or the glove with which the bird was held in their hand,—that is to say, with emblems signifying their right to take part in the chase, which was the special privilege of the nobility. ”

“ A Grand Cross of the Bath wears a robe of red silk with the badge of the Order embroidered on the left side, and the collar of the Order. He also alone wears the broad riband across his chest with 204the badge at the tie, and a special Star. A Knight Commander wears a smaller star on the left side of his coat, and the insignia of the Order round his neck. A Companion wears only the insignia, of a smaller size, round his neck. ”

“ One thing, however, every man and woman in the country wore as the national insignia, and that was the thick band of gold round the right arm above the elbow, and the left leg beneath the knee. People of high rank also wore a torque of gold round the neck, and I observed that our guide had one on. ”

“ From the earliest time at which men fought in organized bodies of troops, the latter have possessed some sort of insignia visible over all the field of battle, and serving as a rallying-point for the men of the corps and an indication of position for the higher leaders and the men of other formed bodies. ”

“ Any person in this country holding a Royal Licence to wear the insignia of any foreign order is permitted to adopt any heraldic form, decoration, or display which that order confers in the country of origin. ”

“ The insignia of the Royal Army Medical Corps consist of the rod of Esculapius with a single serpent entwined about it surrounded by a wreath and surmounted by a crown with the scroll beneath bearing the inscription “Royal Army Medical Corps,” all in gold. ”

“ For any person to make use of and display weapons or articles similar to the insignia of a Chief or State officer, as such insignia.
5. To recite the form of prayer called Hothbah, except at the Istana, Penghulu's or Lembaga's Court-house, Mosque, or at any other place specially set apart by the Raja or Penghulu.
6. For any person to wear weapons having gold or silver ornaments covering either the end of the handle or of the sheath, except by permission or rank. ”

“ In the army of the United States the rank of officers is determined by the insignia on the epaulettes and shoulder-straps, and is as follows:
“For the general commanding the army, two gold-embroidered stars of five rays, one on each side equidistant between the centre and the outer edge of the strap, and a gold-embroidered shield in the centre. For the lieutenant-general, three silver-embroidered stars of five rays, one star on the centre of the strap, and one on each side equidistant between the centre and outer edge of the strap; the centre star to be the largest. ”

“ The term flag is a generic one, and covers all the specific kinds. It is suggested that the word is derived from the Anglo-Saxon verb fleogan, to fly or float in the wind, or from the old German flackern, to flutter. Ensign is an alternative word formed on the idea of the display of insignia, badges, or devices, and was formerly much used where we should now employ the word colours. The company officers in a regiment who were until late years termed ensigns were at a still earlier period more correctly termed ensign-bearers. ”

“ In the accompanying sketch of a scholar, the gold91 square worn on the chest and a corresponding one on the back are equivalent to the hoods granted by our universities, and the different designs on them indicate the kind of degree. Wives of scholars have also the right to wear the same insignia as their husbands. ”

“ The enlisted men of the British Navy wear uniforms very similar in general design to those worn in the United States Navy with minor differences in the dimensions and cut of the various garments. The Chief Petty Officers wear uniforms of blue or white consisting of a bell-crowned cap with a black mohair band, a black patent leather visor and insignia consisting of two concentric circles surrounding a vertical foul anchor surmounted by a British crown ”

“ The medals and badges, or the ribbons worn in their stead with undress and service uniforms, show the special military honors which have been conferred upon the wearer and the wars and campaigns in which he has seen active service, and a knowledge of the designs of these bits of metal and of the bright colored strips of silk will often give a fair idea of the services and honors of the man who wears them. ”

“ While the National Flag is being hoisted and lowered all officers and enlisted men stand at attention facing the flag, if in uniform and covered they stand at the salute during the hoisting or lowering of the flag and if in civilian dress covered, they uncover and hold the headdress opposite the left shoulder. The latter form of salute is the correct one for all civilians who desire to so honor the flag of their country. ”

“ Ours is a grand fraternity of men-at-arms, banded together for national defense, for the maintenance of law and order—we are bound together by the love and respect we bear the flag—we are pledged to loyalty, to one God, one country—our lives are dedicated to the defense of our country's flag—the officer and the private belong to a brotherhood whose regalia is the uniform of the American soldier, and they are known to one another and to all men, by an honored sign and symbol of knighthood that has come down to us from the ages—THE MILITARY SALUTE! ”

“ This song was followed by the “Battle Cry of 311 Freedom,” and then the soldier, saluting the Goddess again in a short speech, said he desired to present to her an emblem, the outgrowth of the labors of the Sons and Daughters of Liberty. The ensign that stands for everything that is just, true, and progressive, the symbol of the sovereignty of Civilization, the banner that had been unfurled in more movements for the protection, the liberty, and the elevation of mankind, than any ensign that ripples to the four winds of Heaven. ”

“ Their colors in the wind flowing, in the sun brightening:
Deep blue of the night sky, or the splendor of flame,
Or green of spring, or the daring imperious scarlet,
The color of men’s blood:
Their curious blazonry I love, heraldic, historic,
Leopard or eagle, stripe or star or raying sun,
Or the Cross of St. George and the Cross of St. Andrew,
Or whatsoever sign men have loved and followed.
For surely a flag has a soul.
It is a thing sacred as sunrise,
It is sacred as the stars. [Pg 98]
The spirit of Man lifts it up into the sky
That holds all stars, all flags. ”

“ In the breasts of all who serve or have served in the army there exists an esprit de corps, a filial attachment, to all that belongs to their regiment, to its past history, its conduct in peace and war, its badges won in battle--those honours which are the heraldry of the service, and connected with the glory of the empire--in its officers and soldiers of all ranks. ”

“ Guarding a shining helmet, sword, and shield,
Waiting to hear the thrilling battle cry,
Ready then to answer, 'Mas-ter, here am I.'
Only an armor-bearer, yet may I share
Glory immortal, and a bright crown wear:
If in the battle to my trust I'm true,
Mine shall be the honors in the grand review. ”

“ An Ensign is the boy of the colours—the page to regimental victory, whose chin should never bear a beard while he holds the post—a youthful soldier,—a Mars of fifteen, with the staff of his country’s flag fixed firmly in the earth, supporting and supported by him, while the rough mustachioed band like rocks surround and shield him from the tempest of the fight. ”