| General
Birdwood, when approached on the matter, was unwilling to provide any
official direction in regard to such a distinction, however he advised
on 19.8.1916 that there was no objection to regimental arrangements
being made for those who had landed on the Peninsular in April 1915, had
taken part in the fighting in early August, or were present at the
evacuation, providing that all eligible personnel of the unit wore an
identical mark.(AWM 25, item 89/15)
The question of just what
constituted eligibility proved difficult to define in the absence of any
official ruling on the subject, and it is evident that even some senior
officers who were wearing it prior to mid 1917 had little knowledge of
the circumstances of its approval.
The idea was wholeheartedly embraced by the GOC
3rd Aust. Division, Major General J. Monash, who after consultation with
his unit commanders, some of whom were opposed to the granting of a
special distinction, directed on 25.8.1916 that a copper oxidised 'A',
3/4 inch in height, would be worn on the colour patch by all eligible
personnel in the division.
No information relating to the granting of this
distinction was communicated to Australia, and its appearance on the
shoulders of returned officers and men in early 1917 created some
confusion. In reply to queries from various military district
headquarters as to whether its wear had been approved for Home Service
or not, AHQ was forced to advise that it had not been authorised in
Australia, prompting HQ 3rd Military District to direct that the
practice was to cease.(AIF 3rd Military District Routine Orders, No. 26,
Para. 6, 21.3.1917. AA(Vic): MP 742/1, item 87/1/37.)
Its use continued for the time
being in other districts, while AHQ made urgent enquiries with AIF
Administrative Headquarters for the authority and conditions of wear. On
16th May 1917 HQ AIF advised that General Birdwood had granted
permission for divisional commanders to authorise the wearing of the
distinction by personnel who had taken part on the Gallipoli Peninsular
in either the landing or operations during April 1915, during early
August 1915, or the evacuation. (Cablegram dated 16.5.1917 from the
Commandant, AIF Headquarters, London. AA(Vic): MP 742/1, item 87/1/37.)
There was opposition from the Military Board to
the wearing of any such distinction, the Adjutant-General maintaining
that the privilege was open to abuse, and that equally gallant service
had been displayed by Australian troops in France, for which no
distinction had been awarded. The Quartermaster-General held similar
views, which it might be added were also held by senior officers
actually serving abroad with the AIF, however he felt that the
withdrawal of the distinction from those already wearing it would
engender considerable bitterness, and recommended that it continue to be
worn for the time being. The fact that 3rd Military District had
directed the wearing of this badge to cease did in fact lead to several
misleading statements being made in a leading newspaper of the day to
the effect that it had been prohibited throughout Australia. The
Military Board proposed that all personnel who served
at Gallipoli be eligible for this badge, and following concurrence by
General Birdwood, an amendment to Orders for AIF, Para. 61, published as
Military Order No. 354 of 18.8.1917, and later as AIF Order No. 937 of
6.11.1917, established eligibility for wear, stating;
- "Members of the Australian
Imperial Force who served on Gallipoli will be entitled to wear over
their unit Colour Patches on both sleeves of the Service Dress
Jacket and Greatcoat, the letter 'A' as an indication that the
wearer had taken part in the operations on the Gallipoli
Peninsular."
In January 1918, HQ AIF sought to
extend the classification of eligibility to include members of units
serving on transports and hospital ships off Gallipoli, and on the
various islands off the coast of Turkey which were being used as part of
the base for the Dardenelles campaign. The Military Board agreed, but
believed in that case that eligibility should also be extended to
personnel of line of communication units in Egypt, including the
hospital staffs, for their service. Despite the opposition of the CGS,
approval for further extension in the classification of eligible
personnel resulted in another amendment to Orders for AIF, published as
Military Order No. 20, 19.1.1918, which stated;
- "Members of the Australian
Imperial Force who served on Gallipoli or the Islands of Lemnos,
Imbros or Tenedos, or who have served on transports or hospital
ships at or off Gallipoli or the Islands above named or in AIF lines
of communication units in Egypt, will be entitled to wear over their
unit Colour Patches, on both sleeves of their Service Dress Jacket
or Greatcoat, the letter 'A' as an indication that the wearer had
taken part in the Gallipoli operations."
Due to an error in decoding of
the cable notifying HQ AIF of the Military Board decision in relation to
the extension of eligibility, "..in Egypt" was corrupted to
read "...from Egypt", and as such appeared as AIF Order No.
1084, dated 25.1.1918. Despite an instruction by AHQ in April 1918 to
amend AIF Order 1084, General Birdwood was successful in gaining
permission to allow it to stand as promulgated while the classification
of line of communication units was defined. It was in fact never
amended, thus for the remainder of the war two separate instructions
stood, one of which restricted its wear to personnel serving outside
Egypt in relation to the Gallipoli campaign, while another extended its
use to almost every L of C unit serving in Egypt at the time with the
exception of remount units. There is little wonder that an attempt was
made to allow this distinction to die a natural death in the postwar
period.
The letter 'A' was initially supplied at public
expense vide AIFO 937. Its size was approved as I inch high by AIF Order
No. 994, 30.11.1917, then was modified by AIF Order No. 1012 of
11.12.1917 to state that it was to be 3/4 inch high, and of brass. In
practice examples range in size from 1/2 inch to I inch and appear in a
variety of materials other than brass.
 |
Curiously the official history
makes no reference to brass, referring instead to "...an 'A'
embroidered in gold (Bean, Volume VI, p.5.) a
point also made in the history of the 5th Battalion. (Esprit de
Corps: The History of the Victorian Scottish Regiment and the 5th
Infantry Battalion, Speed (ed.), p.90 "..... and those men who had
served on Gallipoli had a golden 'A' for Anzac embroidered on their
shoulder patches.")
It is believed that the 'A'
embroidered in gold bullion wire was the result of private purchase,
either by individuals or on a unit basis. Examples in gold silk thread
and hand woven brass
wire also exist however brass letters are the most common of the
examples noted to date. |
No subsequent reference to this emblem appears in Standing Orders for
Dress, Part 111, 1922 although it continued to be worn by both serving
and reserve personnel who were entitled to it. The first surviving query
in relation to it was by HQ 11th (Mixed) Brigade in June 1923, to which
the Military Board advised that it was desired that wearing of the brass
letter 'A' be discontinued. (MB Memo No. 18361, 17.7.1923.
AA(Vic): MP 742/1, item 87/1/37. Advice to all remaining military
districts was undertaken vide MB memos No's 28988 to 28992 inclusive,
dated 7.11.1923.)
Remaining military districts
were informed of this policy on 7th November, 1923, and AAO 549/1925,
dated 21.11.1925, directed that the wearing of badges, other than those
authorized in Standing Orders for Clothing Part III, was to cease
immediately. A further enquiry in relation to the subject by 2nd
District Base in April 1926 was advised that the wearing of the 'A' had
been discontinued. (ibid: AHQ (Dof E&OS) memo No. 6855, dated
27.4.1926.)
The matter remained dormant for several years,
then in early 1933 Major-General Blamey, then GOC 3rd Division, advised
that members of his formation who were still wearing the 'A' had
resented an instruction to remove it, stating that they would rather
leave the army than comply, particularly as the 'A' was still worn by
former members of the AIF on the reserve or retired lists with
permission to wear uniform on appropriate occasions. On 31.5.1933 the
Military Board decided that the wearing of this distinction by personnel
who were entitled to it would not be prohibited; on 14.6.1933 HQ 3rd
Division was advised that an amendment to Standing Orders for Dress 1931
was being prepared to allow of the wearing of a brass 'A' on the
miniature colour patch by those so entitled, and that its promulgation
could be anticipated. (AHQ(DOS) Memo No. 5773, 14.6.1933.
AA(Vic): MP 742/1, item 87/1/37. The amendment in question was to page
48, para. 269, and read; "A brass letter 'A' 1/2 inch high may be
worn over the half size colour patch by ex-members of the Australian
Imperial Force who served on Gallipoli, or in A.I.F. Lines of
Communication in Egypt during the Gallipoli campaign.)"
For reasons unknown this
amendment was never notified, and no further mention of the subject was
made in Standing Orders for Dress, 1935.
It is not until the outbreak of the Second World
War and the return to active service of many former servicemen that
further reference to this badge has been located. A HQ Western Command
RO Part 1, No. F3, dated 7.5.1941, recognises that some personnel were
wearing a brass 'A' on their colour patches and directs that the
practice was to cease. While acknowledging that the 'A' was an
authorised symbol, it states that its use was discontinued on the
introduction of the 1914/1915 Star. This would appear to be the official
statement on the subject, repeated by the Secretary, Department of the
Army, in October 1941 in response to further queries, although it was
erroneously stated that approval for the distinction had been withdrawn
in 1917, and that no useful purpose would be gained by the
reintroduction of the 'A' as the 1914/1915 Star was sufficiently
distinctive. (ibid: Memo No. 81723, Secretary, Department of the
Army, dated 29.10.1941, and 10497 of 27.1.1942 from the same Office on
behalf of the Minister for the Army.)
No mention of the item was made
in War Scales of Clothing and Necessaries, and GRO 245/1943 specifically
directed that no badges other than those authorized by these scales were
to be worn.
Following further enquiries in 1943 an exhaustive examination of the
subject was undertaken by the DAG who refuted the view that approval for
its wear had been withdrawn, or that the 1914/1915 Star was sufficient
to distinguish personnel with specific service on Gallipoli. His report
stated that in practice the wearing of the device had been discontinued
by all but a few of those personnel so entitled, and that an instruction
as to whether the 'A' was to be worn or not was desirable. The C-in-C
was approached for a decision and on 10. 11. 1943 he approved of the
wearing of this distinction by personnel who were entitled to it. GRO
815/1943, dated 17.12.1943, directed that eligible personnel could wear
a brass letter 'A' under the terms of Military Order No. 20 of January
1918. This was to be worn on the miniature colour patch of the wearer's
original AIF unit of the Great War, or, if this was not worn, on the
full size colour patch of the wearer's present unit. Purchase and supply
of the item was to be at private expense.
The final reference to this badge was GRO
310/1945, 7.12.1945, which was a repeat of GRO 815/1943. No mention
appears in "Post War Dress for the Army", promulgated in 1948,
nor in subsequent clothing instructions, it being assumed that the
demise of colour patches also coincided with the age related discharge
of most personnel who were eligible for the distinction anyway.
|
