Description
Physical description
Single-breasted open-collared blouse of midnight blue serge with unpleated breast pockets. The blouse is closed by three gilt brass Royal Navy crested buttons, as are the breast pockets. At the lower waist the waistband is closed secure by a short tab that engages over one of three black plastic buttons. Sewn (crudely) to the shoulders are a pair of matching epaulettes, decorated with two deep stripes in gold wire with one thinner in the centre, the upper wide stripe terminating in an open 'eye'. Within the eye, worked in gold wire, is a letter, 'R' (this is the form of rank adopted by officers of the RNVR from 1951).
Label
No. 5A Working Dress was officially adopted by Royal Navy officers from 1943. Only to be worn whilst on board ship, it had come into being initially as a result of some enterprising individuals obtaining examples of army battledress blouses and dying them dark blue. The term, 'Battledress' was forbidden as the Navy received its own variant. Worm with blue shirt and black tie, trousers that were of similar cut to the Army issue were worn with this uniform, together with the standard officer's service dress cap.
History note
This example was worn by Geoffrey William Claydon (17/4/1911 – February 1996). Commissioned a Temporary Sub-Lieutenant into the Royal Naval Volunteers Reserve in September, 1939, he was assigned to HMS Conqueror in April 1940. Promoted Temporary Lieutenant that September, he was posted to HMS Defiance (a torpedo school ship) at Davenport, where he served until February, 1941. From May-December of 1941, T/Lt. Claydon served on board HMS Christopher, the Coastal Forces establishment (Fort William), training on motor launches. From January 1943 to January 1945, Claydon became commanding officer of HM MTB 652 (motor torpedo boat) and was decorated with a Mention in Dispatches (MiD) for a coastal action on 24th October, 1943, and a Distinguished Service Cross during Operation Neptune, June1944 (gazetted 29th August 1944 and presented 22nd June, 1945). The fact that this blouse features the post-1951 style of rank epaulettes adopted by officers of the RNVR would suggest that Claydon continued to wear this garment well after the Second World War.
Inscription
OFFICER'S
BLUE WORKING DRESS
BLOUSE
SIZE No.9
HEIGHT – 5ft. 7ins. to 5ft. 8ins.
BREAST - 39ins. to 40ins.
WAIST - - 34ins. to 35ins.
HAIGHS HUDDERSFIELD
1945