Description
Physical description
A royal lion, statant guardant, head to left, above a bar on which is mounted THE KING'S OWN, all in brass /gilding metal. Slider to reverse.
History note
Badge of the pattern worn 1898 - 1958.
The ultimate predecessor Regiment was raised in 1680 as 2nd Tangier, or Earl of Plymouth's, Regiment of Foot. This was successively re-designated over the next thirty years, in 1684 as the Duchess of York and Albany's Regiment of Foot, in 1685 as the Queen Own Regiment of Foot, in 1688 as the Queen Consort's Regiment of Foot, from 1702 – 1715 as the Queen's Own Regiment of Marines, then becoming the King's Own Regiment of Foot. They retained this name until 1751 at which date they were re-designated the 4th (The King's Own) Regiment of Foot. In 1867 it was re-designated yet again, now as the 4th (The King's Own Royal) Regiment of Foot.
In this latter name the Regiment adopted in 1874 a badge of a figure 4 surrounded by an oval belt circlet inscribed KING'S OWN ROYAL REGIMENT, surmounting which was a royal lion statant guardant. The lion symbol had been granted by William III to commemorate the fact that it was the first unit to join him when he landed at Torbay in 1688, but this seems to be the first appearance of the motif as an element of headdress.
In the 1881 re-organization there was yet another change of name, now to The King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment). The resulting new badge had the lion motif as the centre of a circlet inscribed ROYAL LANCASTER. By this time the Regiment, as a Royal regiment, had been permitted a red backing to its badge, which became a permanent feature.
With the introduction of cap badges in 1898 the lion, now somewhat elongated, became the main motif, mounted above the title THE KING'S OWN. The Regiment was the only one granted the privilege of wearing the royal lion on its own as a badge.
In 1921 the name changed again, to the King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster), the badge staying largely the same other than variations on whether the letters were voided and supported on a bar to the reverse or set on a solid backing plate.
During World War Two, 5th Battalion was converted to armour as 107th RAC but continued to wear the King's badge, albeit in chrome and without the red backing. In December 1943 the 5th Battalion was disbanded and the 10th King's Own, earlier also converted to armour as 151st RAC, wearing the RAC badge, was re-titled 107th RAC, at which point it re-adopted the King's Own badge.
In 1958 the Regiment joined the Lancastrian Brigade and amalgamated with the Border Regiment, becoming King's Own Royal Border Regiment, adopting the Lancastrian Brigade badge.
In 1970 the King's Own Royal Border Regiment regained a degree of individual identity with its own cap badge that featured the traditional royal lion.
Inscription
The King's Own