Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

44th Battalion (The West Australian Rifles) - Regimental Colour (1927 Presentation)

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Subcollections

Honourable Insignia - Regimental Colours, Guidons, and Royal Banners

Overview

Dark green with gold fringes. In the centre the battalion colour patch of a white over blue oval within a circle inscribed "FORTY FOURTH INFANTRY", the whole within a wreath of Australian wattle and surmounted by the Imperial Crown. In the upper canton the Arabic numeral "44".

The following battle honours are emblazoned on the Colour:
SOUTH AFRICA 1899-1902, MESSINES 1917, YPRES 1917, BROODSEINDE, PASSCHENDAELE, SOMME 1918, ANCRE 1918, HAMEL, AMIENS, MONT ST QUENTIN, HINDENBURG LINE

Historical information

Presented by Lieutenant-General Sir JJ Talbot Hobbs, KCB, KCMG, VD, LLD at a parade held on the Esplanade, Perth, 22 October 1927.

With the re-activation of the Citizen Military Forces (CMF) following the Second World War, the 11th/44th Infantry Battalion (The City of Perth Regiment) was raised as a linked battalion in 1948 to carry on the identity and traditions of the pre-war 11th and 44th Battalions respectively. The King's and Regimental Colours formerly held by these two battalions were passed on to the new battalion who paraded them in rotation on ceremonial occasions.

Under major reorganisation of the CMF in 1960, all individual infantry battalions that existed at the time within each State were amalgamated to form State regiments, taking effect from 1 July 1960. Thus from that date the 11/44th, 16th and 28th Infantry Battalions were amalgamated to form The Royal Western Australia Regiment. In September 1960, at a ceremonial parade held at Northam Camp, the Colours carried by all former battalions were handed over for safe keeping by the new regiment.

These former colours were subsequently laid up in the undercroft at the State War Memorial, King's Park on 29 November 1964. These were transferred to the Army Museum of WA in 1988 as part of the Bicentenary Colours Project.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-AAMWA00012

Item type

Textiles

Themes

War and Conflict

Material

Silk (Textile)

Public Location

Traditions Gallery

Geotag