Military Hat Photos

[DOUGLAS]

German WWII Infantry Field Officer ( original-I doubt it)
For the sake of space I will show only one pic of each. If anyone would like to see detail I will be happy to oblige.

German WWII Air Force Artillery NCO (original parts but butchered)

German WWII Navy Petty Officer( nice hat but I think it is post war with Original insignia)

 

[Windsock]

Douglas I note that you invited others so I thought i'd help out. My main interest is Aviation however my other passion is the humble Aussie Slouch Hat. So much character embedded in it's details.

Here is one of my favourites. Victorian maker (they coded Manufacturers during the war), 1943 raw edge.

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/bockinc/MyPictures/photo?authkey=y8aIBDva2P8ZW4FZ_e3vka2r-WM#4978583444831666194"><img src="http://lh4.google.com/bockinc/RRd7Q_HVABI/AAAAAAAAAQM/kZhblExLuz8/IMG_8433.JPG?imgmax=288"></a>

<a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/bockinc/MyPictures/photo?authkey=y8aIBDva2P8ZW4FZ_e3vka2r-WM#4978583195244167186"><img src="http://lh3.google.com/bockinc/RRd7CdVCABI/AAAAAAAAAQE/Y3zLKnuIavI/IMG_8435.JPG?imgmax=288"></a>

 

[DOUGLAS]

Beautiful hat man. I have looked for a good slouch hat but I have not been successful. Thanks for showing. I have posted a few Air Force caps so please take a look if you find the time.

 

[Windsock]

Thanks Douglas...

Your gear is excellent too. It does take time to find really good items.

Here is one I have had for years- my oldest hat- 1939 dated and it would have been to New Guinea for sure, Army elec and Mech Engineers field unit- fixed tanks etc...

Here is another 1943 model with 6th Div- 2/7 Bat colour patch. (Unit served in Nth Africa, Greece, Crete and NG) though this one is in very good nic.

 

[Windsock]

Flying gear...

Would anyone like to see some?

 

[mikepara]

Sorry not Polish Paras!....

Nope. I think it's a WW2 Polish Paratrooper's beret. I don't know what the "Jerusalem" cross and globe and olive branch badges are, but the large winged eagle is definitely the Polish eagle with the two stars below that would identify a Lieutenant.

The dark grey beret was worn by Polish paras belonging to units raised in Britain and forming part of the 1st Airborne Division which was dropped on Arnhem during Operation Market Garden, launched on 17 September 1944. BTW, the anniversary of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade's jump during this operation is tomorrow.

Cheers!

.....but 2nd Polish Corps of Monte Cassino fame and who due to political reasons finished the war in the British Mandate of Palestine. Where they joined forces with the 3rd Carpathian Division which was composed mostly of Polish Jewish soldiers who had managed to escape to French Lebanon through Romania and Hungary after the Polish Defensive War of 1939.

 

[mikepara]

Try Kaminski Bde

German WWII although it seems too good to be real. It has soom writing behind the sweat that looks Russian.

Theres a good chance, [if your hat is genuine WW2] your hat was local supply for The Kaminski Brigade. This was a German anti-Partisan formation made up of Belarusians from Lokot The formation saw action behind the lines of the Eastern Front during World War II. From 1944 they Mostly joined the Waffen SS.

 

[DOUGLAS]

Mikepara,Thanks so much for the info.I know that after the war the Soviets collected a huge amount of disgarded equiptment and uniforms from stocks through out Eastern Europe and their own boarders. I know much of it was distributed to "the people" and much more was stored away. Almost all was marked and many of these items can be seen in films. One of my favorite is a film called "COME AND SEE". It is an amazing film however very disturbing.

Windsock, please by all means post away.

 

[DOUGLAS]

Here are some field caps
Austrian

French

Russian

Swiss

 

[DOUGLAS]

This is not a hat but it goes on one so I will show it.
USA Navy Cap Emblem
I love these types of detail.Just lookat how great the craftsmanship is on the bullion embroidery.

 

[deanglen]

Douglas, thank you for the camouflage caps! I wondered if you had any! And you did! I used collect those, but in a fit of panic to avoid losing the wife's apparoval of my hat hobby, sold them off on e-bay. I have a few left, but it's nice to see what you've got. If I had your resources, my collection in hats would be very similar in taste and preference. Your photography is terrific ,too!:eusa_clap

dean

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Here's a nice bit of military hat trivia for you. Please forgive me if you already know it.


Ever notice that the insignia on General Douglas MacArthur's cap looked, well, unique? How the entire bullion was embroidered, with no metal emblems at all? What was that all about?


Well, I finally found out. A BBC documentary on MacArthur explained that the cap was made especially for him in the Philippines. It was presented to him as a gift from the Phillipine people sometime before December, 1941.


MacArthur wore the unique cap to stand out from other generals, and to show the Filipinos that he hadn't forgotten them.



.

 

[deanglen]

Here's a nice bit of military hat trivia for you. Please forgive me if you already know it.


Ever notice that the insignia on General Douglas MacArthur's cap looked, well, unique? How the entire bullion was embroidered, with no metal emblems at all? What was that all about?


Well, I finally found out. A BBC documentary on MacArthur explained that the cap was made especially for him in the Philippines. It was presented to him as a gift from the Phillipine people sometime before December, 1941.


MacArthur wore the unique cap to stand out from other generals, and to show the Filipinos that he hadn't forgotten them.



.

Much appreciated, Marc! I believe MacArthur also was one of the first American officers in WWI to wear his visor cap without the stiffener in the rim of the body of the cap to give it a "crushed" look that set him apart from the crowd of conformist officers. I read that in a book about the AEF, but I can't remember the title, it's pretty new only about four years old, written Eisenhower's son I think.

dean

 

[Italian-wiseguy]

Italian Carabinieri used a slouch hat in the australian fashion for a certain period in Libya and occupied greek islands.

This probably ended with fascism, but I'm not sure of this.

I'll search for reliable infos and photos

Douglas
I really love your collection!
The italian navy cap you posted is completely unknown to me, maybe some type of fatigue or navigation cap, definitely too complex to be a today issue as such, and for sure not a "class A" (uniforme ordinaria) cap, as these always were and still are normal white peaked caps.

Ciao!

 

[Speedster]

Flying gear

Would anyone like to see some?

YES PLEASE.

 

[DOUGLAS]

sorry for the poor close up shot.I have more and will see how they look.
Italian-wizeguy, thanks for the info I will try to get more shots of other Italian head gear. You know a lot more than I about their history.
Deanglen most of the military hats I've had for years and I got them at a time when they were relatively cheap. I've only bought a few current German Air Force Caps recently in order to fill out my obsession with have things complete and correct. I will post them soon.
Thanks for the MacArthur info.I knew that it was made for him but did not know by whom. Great cap is'nt it.

 

[Windsock]

OK, some RAAF items

Officers Service Dress cap with Tropical cover

Officers SD Cap- has seen some action, complete with ground in dust from either Nth Africa, Italy, New Guinea or Northern Australia. Love the dirt. Also has a wear mark in the u/s of the visor, right hand side from a thumb. Must have been right handed, dipping the lid.

OR's Cap. Interestingly it has brass buttons- I think it's pre-War. Most had bakelite.

 

[DOUGLAS]

Beautiful :eusa_clap :eusa_clap Those are great.Windsock,please keep them coming.That tropical cap cover is spectacular! You don't see them often.

 

[Windsock]

Yep you are right Douglas. I have seen plenty of Period shots but you don't ever see them around for sale. Where are they now???

Here are some more;

RAAF Pith Helmet, named to a Pilot Officer but i've not been able to identify the Sqn. This is great and it's a large size;

RAAF Version of the Type B Helmet and MkIIIa Goggles with Gosports. The goggle lenses are badly warped but I have in the past had very good reproduction lenses manufactured for display. If anyone needs some I can get more.

 

[Windsock]

Flying Helmets- not exactly hats but they go on yer head...

Let me know if these should be in a different section;

Pretty rare SAAF Type B, MkIIIa Goggles and D Oxy mask.

Anyone know where these were worn? My research suggests Nth Africa...

RAF Type C with MkVIII goggles and Type G Oxy mask. Has an interesting paintjob and a big cross on the top of the head. Anyone know why?

Fleet Air Arm type C with radio Telephones plus Gosports for inter ship communications.

That'll do for a while. Hope you enjoyed the shots.