The Green Howards Cap Badge: History, Symbolism and Meaning

Introduction

The Green Howards’ final cap badge brought together more than two centuries of regimental history.

The Roman numerals XIX recalled the old 19th Regiment of Foot, while THE GREEN HOWARDS preserved a nickname first used in the eighteenth century. At the centre were the devices associated with Alexandra, Princess of Wales: her A cypher, the Dannebrog or Cross of Denmark, her Princess’s coronet and the date 1875.

The date 1875 marks the beginning of Alexandra’s formal association with the regiment, not the introduction of the final badge. Green Howards Museum documentation places the Alexandra-inspired badge in wear from 1883, while the later pattern incorporating XIX appeared in 1970.

That story begins with the regiment’s formation in 1688.

About This Guide

This article draws on material from the Green Howards Museum, National Army Museum, contemporary Army publications, official records and recognised regimental histories. Where sources differ — particularly over the development of the cap badge — I’ve followed the best documented evidence available and noted important differences where they matter.

Formation, the Green Howards Name and the 19th Foot

Origins in 1688

The regiment was raised in November 1688 by Francis Luttrell at Dunster Castle in Somerset. It was formed to support William, Prince of Orange, during the political and military upheaval that became known as the Glorious Revolution.

Its first active service came at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The regiment then served in Flanders, fighting at Steenkirk in 1692, Neer Landen in 1693 and the Siege of Namur in 1695.

Like other regiments of the period, it was not yet known by a permanent regimental number. Units were normally identified by the name of their colonel, a practice which eventually gave rise to the Green Howards name.

Flanders and the Green Howards Name

The regiment spent much of the eighteenth century campaigning in Europe.

During the War of the Spanish Succession, the regiment returned to Flanders in 1710 and joined Marlborough’s army. It fought at the siege of Douai that year and was also involved in the taking of Bethune, Aire and St Venant. In 1711 it served at Arleux and the siege of Bouchain. It later returned to Flanders during the War of the Austrian Succession, fighting at Fontenoy in 1745, Rocoux in 1746 and Lauffeld in 1747.

The name Green Howards arose in 1744.

Two regiments serving in the same theatre were then commanded by colonels named Howard. Charles Howard’s regiment wore green facings, so his men became known as Howard’s Greens, or the Green Howards, to distinguish them from the other Howard regiment. The other, with buff-coloured facings, became known as the Buff Howards.

The nickname stuck and stayed with the regiment.

The 19th Regiment of Foot

In 1751, Howard’s Greens became the 19th Regiment of Foot.

The number remained part of regimental memory long after numerical titles ceased to be the normal way of identifying infantry regiments. More than two centuries later it returned to the cap badge as the Roman numerals XIX.

In 1756, the regiment raised a second battalion. Two years later that battalion became a separate regiment, the 66th Regiment of Foot.

The 19th continued on active service. It took part in the expedition against Belle Île in 1761 during the Seven Years’ War, served at Gibraltar, and later went to North America during the American War of Independence.

Yorkshire and the North Riding

The regiment embarked for North America in 1781. During the southern campaign it joined the relief of Ninety-Six and later fought at Shubrick’s Plantation, near Quinby Bridge. At Eutaw Springs on 8 September 1781, the 19th’s light infantry and grenadier companies formed part of a composite flank battalion under Major John Marjoribanks of the regiment. The regiment subsequently spent eight years in the West Indies.

In 1782, it received a formal county association and became the 19th (1st Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of Foot.

The regiment had been raised in Somerset, but the North Riding connection became central to its later identity, recruiting and regimental life.

On the later cap badge, XIX refers directly to the eighteenth-century numbered regiment. It has a quite separate origin from the Alexandra devices added much later.

Key Dates

The principal dates in the development of the regiment and its badge are:

The Green Howards Cap Badge: How the Design Developed

Princess Alexandra and 1875

In 1875, Alexandra of Denmark, Princess of Wales and wife of the future King Edward VII, presented new Colours to the 1st Battalion. That association later appeared in both the regimental title and its insignia.

The National Army Museum holds an officer’s cap badge dating from about 1904 and identifies the design as one created by Alexandra while she was Princess of Wales. The museum records its principal devices as the Dannebrog, her personal A cypher, and her Princess’s coronet. The date 1875 commemorates her presentation of the Colours and the beginning of the association; the cap-badge pattern itself developed later.

The Alexandra Badge and 1883

The Royal association established in 1875 did not immediately produce the badge familiar from the regiment’s later years.

Documentation published by the Green Howards Museum for the full-dress tunic of Lieutenant-Colonel John Henry Eden describes the new regimental device as a coronet above an intertwined A and Danish cross. The museum’s supporting documentation records the new regimental cap badge as having been taken into wear in 1883.

An account published in the British Army’s Soldier magazine in 1983 describes the early badge as incorporating Alexandra’s A cypher, the Dannebrog and the date 1875, surmounted by the coronet and surrounded by a wreath and title scrolls.

The cap badge changed several times between 1883 and 2006.

In 1983, the British Army’s Soldier magazine reviewed the development of the Green Howards badge and set out the succession of patterns.

The early Alexandra design incorporated the A cypher, Dannebrog, 1875 and coronet within a more elaborate arrangement of wreaths and title scrolls. A later pattern altered the shape while retaining the central symbolism. Another pattern used an Imperial Crown in place of the proper coronet.

Surviving Green Howards badges cannot be dated reliably by applying a simple King’s Crown versus Queen’s Crown sequence.

The 1950 Pattern

A further pattern was officially sealed on 27 July 1950.

The February 1983 issue of Soldier described it as a comparatively squat design. A correction published in April by military badge historian John Gaylor distinguished its flat-topped upper device from both Princess Alexandra’s proper coronet and the Imperial Crown. The Dannebrog and date 1875 remained, while the smaller scroll carried “The Green Howards.”

The pattern did not yet contain XIX. The appropriate Princess’s coronet and the old regimental number were incorporated in the redesigned badge issued in 1970.

The Yorkshire Brigade Period

In 1958, the Green Howards became part of the Yorkshire Brigade and adopted the common brigade head-dress badge in place of their individual regimental badge.

The Green Howards’ own 1950 badge was temporarily set aside.

When the brigade system was reorganised in 1968, regiments which had not amalgamated were allowed to resume their own insignia. The Green Howards returned to the 1950 pattern while a redesigned badge was prepared.

A July 1970 issue of Soldier records that the old badge was still being worn pending the introduction of the new design.

The 1970 Green Howards Cap Badge

The badge most closely associated with the regiment’s final decades was introduced in 1970. It retained the established Alexandra imagery, used the appropriate Princess’s coronet, and restored the old regimental number as XIX.

A contemporary Army account says the main changes from the 1950 pattern were the form of the coronet and the addition of the old regimental number. The 1983 review also records the later badge with the appropriate coronet, XIX and the regimental title.

Later Green Howards artwork generally follows this pattern. So although 1875 sits prominently at the centre of the badge, the familiar design itself developed much later, bringing together symbols from different periods of the regiment’s history.

What the Green Howards Cap Badge Means

The Ministry of Defence’s Army Dress Regulations, Part 14, Section 2, Annex E records the device previously worn by the Green Howards as Alexandra’s cypher, with “Alexandra” upon it, the Dannebrog inscribed 1875, XIX below, and the whole surmounted by the Coronet of the Princess.

Because Part 14 deals with Standards, Guidons, Colours and Banners, it confirms the heraldic design rather than the material or finish of an issued cap badge.

Princess Alexandra’s Coronet

At the top of the badge is Princess Alexandra’s coronet.

The National Army Museum identifies it specifically as her Princess’s coronet. It forms part of Alexandra’s personal symbolism and should not simply be described as the Royal Crown of the reigning Sovereign.

The precise form of the coronet mattered to the regiment. In 1983, a correspondent in Soldier criticised an illustration which had substituted St Edward’s Crown for the Green Howards’ proper coronet. The magazine acknowledged the error and noted that the illustration had been based on an official but incorrect source.

The A Cypher

The prominent A is Princess Alexandra’s personal cypher.

It is not an abbreviation of the regiment’s name or a battle honour. The National Army Museum identifies it explicitly as Alexandra’s personal device, while Army Dress Regulations describe the former regimental device as bearing “Alexandra” upon the cypher.

The Dannebrog

Crossing the cypher is the Dannebrog, or Cross of Denmark.

Alexandra was Danish by birth. The Danish cross therefore refers directly to her origins and was one of the principal elements incorporated into the badge associated with her.

The Date 1875

The date 1875 commemorates the year in which Alexandra’s association with the regiment began through her presentation of new Colours.

It does not date the final cap badge to 1875.

XIX

The Roman numeral XIX means 19 and represents the regiment’s historic designation as the 19th Regiment of Foot.

XIX predates the Alexandra devices by more than a century. The Army’s 1983 account records that the old number, lost from the badge after the 1881 reforms, returned in the 1970 design.

THE GREEN HOWARDS

The lower scroll records the name which began as an informal means of distinguishing two Howard regiments in 1744.

The nickname survived successive official titles and eventually became part of the regiment’s formal designation in the twentieth century.

Princess Alexandra’s Coronet — Not a King’s or Queen’s Crown

British military badges are often dated by whether they carry a Tudor Crown or St Edward’s Crown, but that approach can be misleading with the Green Howards. The device above Alexandra’s cypher on the later 1970 pattern is her Princess’s coronet, not simply the crown of the reigning Sovereign.

Earlier Green Howards patterns did use other crown forms, so crown shape alone is not a reliable way to date every version of the badge.

The Regiment on Campaign: Early Service to South Africa

Revolutionary Wars, India and Ceylon

During the French Revolutionary Wars it served again in Flanders and took part in operations connected with Ostend and Brittany. In 1796 the regiment began its first deployment to India.

It fought at Seringapatam in 1799 during the Fourth Mysore War against Tipu Sultan. Service in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, followed during the Kandian Wars.

In 1803, a detachment of 178 officers and men was lost in a massacre in Ceylon. The regiment subsequently fought during the Travancore rebellion of 1808 and later garrisoned Mauritius.

After a prolonged period overseas, the 19th Foot returned to England in 1820.

The Crimean War and Alma

The Crimean War of 1854–56 saw the 19th Foot return to major campaigning.

The 19th Foot fought at the Alma and Inkerman and took part in operations around Sevastopol. At the Battle of the Alma on 20 September 1854, the regiment took part in the assault on the Russian position known as the Great Redoubt.

The Green Howards Museum records 238 casualties at the Alma. The regiment later marked Alma Day annually on 20 September.

The Crimean War also produced the first two Victoria Crosses associated with the regiment, awarded to John Lyons and Samuel Evans.

The Colours carried during the Crimean campaign were later replaced by the new Colours presented by Princess Alexandra in 1875.

India, Burma and the North-West Frontier

In 1857, the regiment sailed to India during the Indian Rebellion and remained on the subcontinent until 1871. It saw further action on the North-West Frontier in 1868.

A new 2nd Battalion was raised in 1858. Although much of its service was garrison duty, it also fought in Burma in 1863 and again in 1892.

Sudan and Ginnis, 1885

The regiment served in the Sudan during the 1880s.

At the Battle of Ginnis on 30 December 1885, it fought Mahdist forces. The Green Howards Museum describes Ginnis as the last occasion on which the regiment fought in the scarlet infantry coat.

Tirah and the South African War

The Green Howards returned to the North-West Frontier during the Tirah Campaign of 1897.

Soon afterwards the regiment served in the South African War of 1899–1902, including the Relief of Kimberley and Paardeberg. At Paardeberg in February 1900, Sergeant Alfred Atkinson carried out the action for which he was awarded the regiment’s third Victoria Cross.

The First World War

During the First World War the regiment expanded to 24 battalions and more than 65,000 men served. The Green Howards Museum records more than 7,500 killed, nearly 24,000 wounded and 12 Victoria Crosses awarded during the war.

The Museum’s Roll of Honour also shows why casualty totals differ. The traditional roll contains almost 7,500 names, while the wider Yorkshire Regiment Remembrance database records almost 9,300 because it includes categories omitted from the traditional roll.

The 1st Battalion remained in India throughout the war, while the 2nd Battalion served on the Western Front. In addition, the regiment raised Territorial, Reserve, New Army and Garrison battalions which served in Britain and overseas.

Gallipoli, 1915

The 6th Battalion suffered heavily during the Gallipoli campaign.

The 6th Battalion landed at Suvla Bay on 6 August 1915. In darkness and under fire, it took part in the attack on Lala Baba. Further fighting followed as the Allied force attempted to break out from the Suvla beachhead.

On 21 August, the battalion attacked towards Ismail Oglu Tepe. Around 100 Green Howards reached the first Turkish line but were left without the reinforcement or direction needed to hold the position and withdrew the following morning.

Of the 25 officers who had landed with the battalion on 6 August, only Quartermaster Lieutenant Benjamin Williams survived.

The Western Front and Italy

Green Howards battalions were heavily engaged on the Western Front and later in Italy.

The 2nd Battalion fought around Ypres in 1914, while other battalions went on to serve on the Somme, at Arras, Third Ypres, Cambrai and in the battles of 1918.

Second Lieutenant Donald Simpson Bell VC

Donald Simpson Bell served with the 9th Battalion and had played professional football for Bradford Park Avenue before the war. On 5 July 1916, during the fighting around Horseshoe Trench on the Somme, a German machine gun caught the attacking troops in enfilade. Bell crossed open ground under heavy fire with Corporal Colwill and Private Batey, shot the gunner and helped destroy the position with bombs.

Bell was killed near Contalmaison five days later, aged 25. The Green Howards Museum describes him as the only professional footballer to have been awarded the Victoria Cross, and a memorial near Contalmaison commemorates Bell and the men of his battalion who died in the fighting there.

Private William Henry Short VC

Among the regiment’s First World War Victoria Cross recipients was 12067 Private William Henry Short of the 8th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment.

Short was born at Eston, near Middlesbrough, in 1885 and worked as a craneman at Bolckow, Vaughan & Co.’s steelworks before the war. He enlisted in September 1914 and went to France with the 8th Battalion in August 1915.

On 6 August 1916, during fighting at Munster Alley near Pozières on the Somme, Short was among the leading men in the attack, bombing the German position. Severely wounded in the foot, he was urged to go back but refused and carried on fighting.

He was later hit again when a shell shattered his leg. Unable to stand, he stayed in the trench and continued helping the men around him by adjusting detonators and straightening the pins of bombs for them to throw.

Short died from his wounds on 7 August 1916, aged 31, and was buried at Contalmaison Château Cemetery. His Victoria Cross and medal group are now held by the Green Howards Museum in Richmond. The Imperial War Museum also holds the steel helmet associated with him and his actions on the Somme.

Green Howards also served in Italy, including on the Piave, where Private William McNally earned the Victoria Cross for actions in October 1918.

By the end of the war, Green Howards had served in Belgium, France, Turkey and Italy. Further service followed in North Russia after the Armistice.

North Russia, 1918–20

For some Green Howards, service continued after the Armistice.

Men of the regiment were sent to North Russia during the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War, supporting anti-Bolshevik forces against the Red Army.

Between the Wars

In 1919, the 1st Battalion served during the Third Afghan War. The 2nd Battalion was posted to Ireland, where it served during the Irish War of Independence.

Both regular battalions spent substantial periods in India during the inter-war years and served in Shanghai in the late 1920s.

The regiment also served in Palestine, and Green Howards were involved in the Waziristan operations of 1937–39.

The Second World War

During the Second World War the regiment raised 12 battalions and served across France, Norway, the Western Desert, Sicily, Italy, Burma, the Netherlands and Germany.

The 1st Battalion deployed to France at the outbreak of war and then took part in the British campaign in Norway in 1940. It later served in Iraq, Iran, Palestine, Syria, Egypt, Italy and Germany.

The 2nd Battalion, which had been in India since 1931, remained in the Far East and later fought in Burma in 1944.

Other Green Howards battalions fought with the British Expeditionary Force in France in 1940. The Territorial 6th and 7th Battalions took part in the retreat to Dunkirk and later served in the Western Desert and Sicily before returning to Britain to prepare for the invasion of Normandy.

Tunisia and Lieutenant Colonel Derek Seagrim VC

In March 1943, the 7th Battalion fought at the Mareth Line in Tunisia. On the night of 20/21 March, Lieutenant Colonel Derek Seagrim led the battalion against a strongly defended position on the left of the main attack. With the advance in danger of being held up, he went forward at the head of his men, crossed the anti-tank ditch with the assault and personally attacked two machine-gun posts.

The objective was taken and held. Seagrim was awarded the Victoria Cross posthumously; he died of wounds received in later fighting at Wadi Akarit.

Sicily, 1943

Green Howards battalions took part in Operation Husky, the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943. The 1st Battalion landed at Avola, while the 6th and 7th Battalions also fought during the campaign.

The 6th and 7th Battalions later returned to Britain and prepared for the invasion of Normandy.

D-Day and Stanley Hollis VC

6 June 1944 holds a special place in Green Howards history.

The 6th and 7th Battalions landed on Gold Beach as part of the Allied invasion of Normandy. The 6th Battalion landed first and the 7th followed around two hours later.

There was also a Green Howards link to the airborne landings. In May 1943, the 10th (East Riding Yeomanry) Battalion, Green Howards was converted into the 12th (Yorkshire) Parachute Battalion, The Parachute Regiment. By D-Day it was no longer a Green Howards battalion, although many of its men came from the regiment. It dropped near Ranville during the night of 5/6 June 1944, captured and defended the village against German counter-attacks, and later relieved glider-borne troops at Pegasus Bridge.

By the evening, Green Howards had fought several miles inland. The fighting continued through the Normandy bocage during the days and weeks that followed.

Warrant Officer Class II Stanley Hollis, Company Sergeant-Major of the 6th Battalion, carried out a series of actions for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He attacked a German defensive position during the advance from the beach and later exposed himself to enemy fire while helping men who had become isolated to withdraw.

Hollis received the only Victoria Cross awarded for action on D-Day itself.

His Victoria Cross is held by the Green Howards Museum.

Burma and Lieutenant William Basil Weston VC

Lieutenant William Basil Weston was a Green Howards officer attached to the 1st Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment. On 3 March 1945, during the fighting at Meiktila in Burma, he led his platoon through a succession of Japanese bunker positions for more than four hours.

At the final bunker he was wounded at the entrance. Weston used the grenade he was carrying to destroy the position and was killed in the action. His Victoria Cross was awarded posthumously.

Gallantry: Eighteen Victoria Crosses and Three George Crosses

Of the regiment’s 18 Victoria Cross recipients, three received their awards before the First World War, 12 during the First World War and three during the Second World War.

The regiment counts 18 Victoria Cross recipients in its history, although not every one of those medals was won while serving in a Green Howards battalion. Henry Tandey won his VC after transferring to the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, Oliver Watson was serving with the 2/5th King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, and William Basil Weston was a Green Howards officer attached to the 1st Battalion, West Yorkshire Regiment.

The Green Howards’ regimental record also includes three George Crosses. The Green Howards Museum’s medal collection includes all three George Crosses and fourteen of the regiment’s Victoria Crosses.

The total of 18 Victoria Crosses and three George Crosses was also cited in a 1976 House of Commons debate.

Regimental Home, Traditions and Royal Connections

Richmond: The Regimental Home

The opening of the Depot at Richmond strengthened the regiment’s connection with North Yorkshire.

The barracks were built between 1875 and 1877 and opened on 1 April 1877. For generations of Green Howards the Depot became the place where recruits arrived, soldiers trained, stores were held and men returned between postings.

In 1958, the Depot became an out-station of the Yorkshire Brigade and was renamed Alma Barracks. On 22 May 1958, the regiment received the Freedom of Richmond.

The Depot closed in 1961, but the regiment returned in 1969 to exercise its right to the Freedom of Richmond, marching from the old barracks for the last time with drums beating, bayonets fixed and Colours flying.

Regimental Headquarters and the museum moved to Holy Trinity Church in Richmond Market Place in 1973. The Green Howards Museum remains in Richmond today.

Changes to the Regimental Title

The regiment’s formal title changed several times between 1875 and the early twentieth century.

Princess Alexandra’s association was reflected in the title before the 1881 reforms. John S. Farmer’s 1901 regimental record gives the title from 1875 to 1881 as:

The 19th (1st Yorkshire, North Riding—Princess of Wales’s Own) Regiment of Foot.

Under the Army reorganisation of 1881, published in The London Gazette on 1 July that year, it became The Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment).

After Alexandra became Queen Consort, the title changed again in 1902 to Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own (Yorkshire Regiment).

In 1914, Queen Alexandra became Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment. The National Army Museum describes her as the first female member of the Royal Family to hold such a position.

The Green Howards nickname remained in everyday use. The Green Howards Museum dates its formal adoption into the title to 1920, while the National Army Museum gives 1921. The London Gazette was using “Green Howards” as the regimental title by 20 January 1921.

The resulting title was:

The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales’s Own Yorkshire Regiment).

Green Facings, White Facings and Their Restoration

The green facings which gave the regiment its famous nickname were not worn continuously.

John S. Farmer’s 1901 regimental record describes the uniform as scarlet with grass-green facings until 1881, when white facings were introduced. The Green Howards Museum’s surviving Eden tunic documents this white-facing period and notes how unpopular the loss of distinctive regimental facing colours was.

By 1900, Farmer recorded that the grass-green facings had been restored. The museum dates Eden’s white-faced tunic to 1881–1899, placing the restoration at the end of the nineteenth century.

The facing colour mattered particularly to the Green Howards because it was the distinction which had given the regiment its name in the eighteenth century.

The Norwegian Royal Connection

The regiment’s Royal connections did not end with Alexandra.

Her son-in-law King Haakon VII of Norway became Colonel-in-Chief in 1942. His successors, King Olav V and King Harald V, continued the association.

The Norwegian connection was also reflected in a distinctive regimental tradition. Each year, the companies competed in sporting and military skills for the honour of bearing the Colonel-in-Chief’s name, producing titles such as King Olav’s Company and later King Harald’s Company.

Post-War Service, 1945–2006

Malaya and Post-War Service

The regiment deployed to Sudan in 1947 and, following the general reduction of line infantry regiments, became a single regular battalion in 1948.

The 1st Battalion served in Malaya from 1949 to 1952 during the Malayan Emergency.

The 2nd Battalion was briefly revived between 1952 and 1956, serving in Egypt and Cyprus, before again being placed in suspended animation.

During much of the 1950s and 1960s the regiment served in West Germany with the British Army of the Rhine, while other postings included Libya from 1963 and British Honduras in 1968.

Other post-war postings and commitments included Austria, Suez, Hong Kong and Kuwait.

Northern Ireland, Berlin and Later Operations

During the 1970s, the regiment undertook seven tours in Northern Ireland and also served in West Berlin in 1976.

A further three Northern Ireland tours followed from 1987, the last in 2002.

The regiment garrisoned the Falkland Islands in 1989. In 1996, Green Howards served as peacekeepers in Bosnia, and in 1999 B Company served in Kosovo.

The regiment also spent a further period in Germany during the 1990s and served in Afghanistan in 2004.

2006: The End of the Independent Regiment

The Green Howards’ existence as an independent regiment ended in 2006.

On 6 June 2006, the anniversary of the regiment’s landings on Gold Beach in 1944, the Green Howards amalgamated with The Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire and The Duke of Wellington’s Regiment (West Riding) to form The Yorkshire Regiment.

Green Howards soldiers initially formed the new regiment’s 2nd Battalion.

On 5 July 2012, the Defence Secretary announced that 2nd Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards) would be removed from the Order of Battle as part of wider Army reductions. The Yorkshire Regiment was restructured the following year, when the old antecedent titles were dropped from its regular battalions.

On 5 April 2023, the successor regiment was granted Royal status by King Charles III, becoming The Royal Yorkshire Regiment.

Collecting and Identifying Green Howards Cap Badges

Surviving Green Howards badges vary because the design changed several times. An early Alexandra badge may lack XIX or use a different wreath and scroll arrangement and still be correct for its period. A badge carrying the Green Howards title but no XIX may likewise be an earlier twentieth-century pattern.

Identifying the pattern comes first; construction, rank, finish and period can then be compared with documented examples.

The 1970 Pattern: Officers and Soldiers

The 1983 Soldier account records the 1970 pattern in silver plate for officers and silver anodised finish for soldiers. A modern coloured reproduction can make the heraldic elements easier to distinguish, but it should not be taken as evidence that issued badges were historically worn in those colours.

Crown and Coronet Identification

Crown shape should not be used in isolation to date a Green Howards badge. The badge’s history included Princess Alexandra’s coronet, an Imperial Crown on another pattern, the distinctive 1950 form and the appropriate coronet again on the 1970 design.

For the later pattern, the correct identification is Princess Alexandra’s coronet.

A Note on Authenticity

Construction, reverse fittings, finish and maker’s marks should be judged against documented examples of the relevant pattern. No single feature, including a maker’s mark, proves authenticity on its own.

Frequently Asked Questions

When were the Green Howards formed?

The regiment was raised in November 1688 by Francis Luttrell to support William, Prince of Orange.

Why were they called the Green Howards?

The name arose in 1744 when two regiments were commanded by colonels named Howard. Charles Howard’s men wore green facings and became known as the Green Howards to distinguish them from the other Howard regiment.

What does XIX mean on the badge?

XIX is 19 in Roman numerals and refers to the regiment’s former designation as the 19th Regiment of Foot. It was restored to the later cap-badge design in 1970.

What does 1875 mean?

The date commemorates the beginning of Princess Alexandra’s association with the regiment, when she presented new Colours to the 1st Battalion. It is not the introduction date of the final cap badge.

When was the Alexandra-inspired badge introduced?

Green Howards Museum documentation records the new regimental cap badge as taken into wear in 1883.

What is the cross on the Green Howards cap badge?

It is the Dannebrog, or Cross of Denmark, referring to Princess Alexandra’s Danish origins.

What does the A stand for?

It is Princess Alexandra’s personal A cypher.

Is the device at the top a Royal Crown?

For the later Green Howards pattern it is properly Princess Alexandra’s coronet. The badge’s history contains other crown forms, but the 1970 design should not be classified simply according to whether a King or Queen was reigning.

When was XIX added to the later badge?

The Roman numeral XIX was incorporated into the redesigned badge in 1970.

Why do Green Howards cap badges look different?

The regiment used a succession of patterns. Changes affected the wreaths, scrolls, crown or coronet, overall shape and eventually the inclusion of XIX. During the Yorkshire Brigade period, the regiment also wore the common brigade badge rather than its own regimental cap badge.

How many Victoria Crosses are associated with the Green Howards?

The regimental record is 18 Victoria Crosses. The Green Howards also have a record of three George Crosses.

What is the Green Howards connection with D-Day?

The 6th and 7th Battalions landed on Gold Beach on 6 June 1944. Warrant Officer Class II Stanley Hollis, Company Sergeant-Major of the 6th Battalion, received the only Victoria Cross awarded for action on D-Day itself.

When did the Green Howards cease to exist as an independent regiment?

On 6 June 2006, the Green Howards amalgamated with The Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire and The Duke of Wellington’s Regiment (West Riding) to form The Yorkshire Regiment.

The Green Howards Cap Badge Today

The final Green Howards cap badge developed over generations. The name goes back to 1744, XIX recalls the 19th Regiment of Foot, and the Alexandra devices stem from the association established in 1875.

The 1970 pattern brought those elements together in the form associated with the regiment’s final decades: Princess Alexandra’s coronet and cypher, the Dannebrog, the date 1875, XIX and the Green Howards title.

Where the Green Howards’ Heritage is Preserved

The history of the Green Howards is preserved principally by the Green Howards Museum in Richmond, which holds the regiment’s collections of uniforms, medals, insignia, photographs, documents and personal material. The museum occupies the former Holy Trinity Church in Richmond Market Place, close to the regimental home established in the town during the nineteenth century.

The National Army Museum also preserves important Green Howards material and provides useful wider context for the regiment’s place within the British Army. Its collection includes surviving examples of Green Howards insignia, including an officer’s cap badge dating from about 1904.

Further Reading

For anyone wanting to explore the regiment’s history and insignia in greater depth, the following are among the most useful sources used in researching this article.

• The Green Howards Museum — Regimental History
• The Green Howards Museum — Timeline
• The Green Howards Museum — Campaigns and Wars
• National Army Museum — Green Howards Officer’s Cap Badge, c.1904
• The Green Howards Museum — Eden’s Tunic Supporting Documentation
• Ministry of Defence — Army Dress Regulations, Part 14
• British Army — Soldier, July 1970
• British Army — Soldier, February–March 1983
• British Army — Soldier, April 1983
• Richard Cannon — Historical Record of the Nineteenth Regiment of Foot (1848)

For particular episodes, the article also draws on the Green Howards Museum’s material on Alma, Gallipoli, the First World War Roll of Honour and D-Day. The accounts of Donald Simpson Bell VC and William Henry Short VC were checked against the Yorkshire Regiment’s First World War remembrance archive and, in Short’s case, material held by the Imperial War Museums.

The regimental record of 18 Victoria Crosses and three George Crosses is also recorded in Hansard, 14 April 1976. Post-war service was checked against contemporary records, including Hansard — Forces, Libya, 24 May 1965 and the Belize Archives and Records Service — British Honduras Newsletter.

For later regimental history, the Royal Yorkshire Regiment’s heritage material, its Regimental Handbook and the Ministry of Defence’s Army 2020: Defining the Future of the British Army were used for the 2006 amalgamation and subsequent restructuring.

The National Army Museum catalogue also lists specialist works including Geoffrey and John Powell’s The History of the Green Howards: Three Hundred Years of Service, H. C. Wylly’s history of the regiment during the First World War, W. A. T. Synge’s Second World War history and surviving volumes of the Green Howards Gazette.

National Army Museum — Green Howards Books and Periodicals

Officially Licensed Green Howards Emblems and Heritage Displays

Precision Military Emblems produces officially licensed Green Howards emblems and heritage display pieces using Ministry of Defence-authorised artwork.

The full-colour interpretation allows the separate components of the design to be seen clearly: Princess Alexandra’s coronet and A cypher, the Dannebrog, 1875, XIX and THE GREEN HOWARDS scroll.

• The Green Howards Cap Badge | Full Colour | Officially Licensed
• The Green Howards Cap Badge | Silver & Black | Officially Licensed
• The Green Howards Cap Badge Display Frame | Full Colour | Officially Licensed
• The Green Howards Cap Badge Display Frame | Silver & Black | Officially Licensed

The silver-and-black version uses the same authorised design in a different finish.

Both are modern display pieces based on the authorised emblem. Neither is intended to suggest that original Green Howards cap badges were issued in the same materials, finish or colours.

About Precision Military Emblems

Precision Military Emblems specialises in officially licensed British military emblems and regimental display pieces produced from authorised Ministry of Defence artwork.

Alongside the 3D printing itself, we research the history and symbolism behind each badge we reproduce.

The Green Howards badge shows why that research matters. Its design brings together the old 19th Foot, the eighteenth-century regimental name and the association with Princess Alexandra that began in 1875.