Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

Pre 1914, Field Service Cap, 1900

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Overview

Field service cap of the "Austrian" design with "Vigilans" cap badge, variously worn by units of the Western Australian Defence Force in the period 1898 to 1903. Field service caps of this style, in coloured versions and khaki continued to be worn until 1945. The khaki version was a standard item of wear during World war 2.

Historical information

In the British Army, the first cap to be adopted of this style was the "Glengarry", which was authorised for all British infantry regiments in 1868 (although Scottish regiments had been wearing a round version since 1848 called a Kilmarnock[30] or Humle bonnet, which had been folded to make a side cap). The Glengarry was replaced for officers of most non-Scottish units by a cap called the "torin" (which was worn from circa 1884 until 1896, when it too was replaced by a style for all ranks known as the "Austrian cap", which had a fold-down arrangement, giving the appearance when unfolded of a balaclava, thus warming the ears and back of the neck.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-54-614

Inscriptions and markings

A side cap is a military cap that can be folded flat when not being worn. It is also known as a garrison cap or flight cap in the United States, wedge cap in Canada, or field service cap in the United Kingdom. A convenient feature of the Side Cap is that it can be stored by folding it over the belt or by tucking it under a shoulder strap.

Contextual Information

This exhibit may be found as part of the Volunteer units display in the Pre 1914 Gallery of the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia.

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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