Wearing a glengarry

[Knouse]

It is clear the dress regs are that the glengarry is worn a finger to two over the eye, and slightly canted to the right. (no great expanse of forehead, no jaunty angle). Here are the current Dress Regs for the RROS http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...sHandBook.pdf; the glengarry is specifically addressed on Page 57, but do note the pictures.

The link you posted is broken because there is a trailing semi-colon in the link.
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...nsHandBook.pdf

[plaid preacher]

The link you posted is broken because there is a trailing semi-colon in the link.
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...nsHandBook.pdf

Sorry about that! The semi-colon actually has nothing to do with the link; we old fuddies call it "punctuation".

[OC Richard]

the glengarry is worn a finger to two over the eye, and slightly canted to the right.

Hmmm... a finger or two over the eye? One finger over my eye is still under my eyebrow, two fingers comes just about to the top of my eyebrow. They probably mean eyebrow.

In that photo of the pipers of The Highlanders above the Glengarry is nearly touching the eyebrow.

Here's another very low Glengarry on a modern soldier, also of The Highlanders (not of the Queens Own Highlanders as one might think)



Yes nowadays soldiers wear the Glengarry with just the slightest angle, or straight, usually. I do see some modern soldiers wearing their Glens at nearly the jaunty angle of the past.

Here ya go, a small range of angles in the Army today

[ddaydodger]

I had a friend in the Canadian Army who was visiting the RROS, wearing his glen at a very jaunty angle. He was informed by the RSM to straighten the glen on his head because "We don't do that anymore."

[Dileasgubas]

Headdress is one of the areas where a highland soldier, at least in Canada, is allowed to express a bit of his/her own personality. It does not surprise me that an RSM would correct a soldier for wearing his headdress in an original fashion. There have been many heated discussions in the Mess about how highland military headdress should or should not be worn. In the end, much is still left to individual preference.

Throughout the years, the glengarry "tilt", whether left-to-right or fore-and-aft appears to come into and out of fashion. As for the balmoral, which is made with more material, there is considerable latitude for a soldier to express a bit of creativity. It drives the non-highland RSMs crazy but to me a bit of roguish flair is a distinguishing characteristic of the highland soldier. (See XMarks postings on "jocking" a balmoral for an explanation of how this is achieved.) Our Regimental archives are full of photos of uniformed soldiers wearing their headdress in all manner of ways. To me, this is perfectly fine.

I've seen glengarries tucked behind a dirk belt or even into the waistband of a kilt, but never worn under an epaulette.

[ddaydodger]

I really depends on the RSM and Regiment. Mine allows no flexibility on the wearing of headdress. the ORs TOS's are to be ironed flat and forward. Glens square on the head. The biggest issue we have is the cost and the availabilty of the headdress. We have had to change Sr NCOs and Officer's balmorals because the old manufacturer stopped making them. The new ones are very different in size and shape.

[Macman]

This reminds me of when I was a private in the reserves. For summer training, we had regular force (PPCLI) NCOs rather than our own, and our TOSs drove them crazy! First, they tried getting us to wear them with our cap badges in a uniform position. This meant that our bows at the back were all over the place. They eventually decided that our bows should be straight at the back, and gave up on any other semblance of uniformity.

[ddaydodger]

This reminds me of when I was a private in the reserves. For summer training, we had regular force (PPCLI) NCOs rather than our own, and our TOSs drove them crazy! First, they tried getting us to wear them with our cap badges in a uniform position. This meant that our bows at the back were all over the place. They eventually decided that our bows should be straight at the back, and gave up on any other semblance of uniformity.

LOL, I was probably one of them. I'm now in a Highland unit, and you can spot the guys who have transferred in from other Scottish units by the way they wear their TOS.

[dcommini]

All of these arconyms make me feel like I'm still in the military... oh, wait I am