Essex Batteries, Royal Field Artillery (T / RFA / ESSEX) Shoulder Title

Essex Batteries, Royal Field Artillery shoulder title in brass, produced in the three-tier Territorial Force pattern worn from 1908 to 1924 by other ranks of the Essex Batteries of the Royal Field Artillery, Territorial Force, of the British Army. This British Army Territorial Force artillery shoulder title is configured as three separate curved title bars worn in vertical sequence, reading from top to bottom: “T” (denoting Territorial Force), “RFA” (Royal Field Artillery), and “ESSEX”, each bar struck in brass with raised block lettering on a flat ground. The three-tier construction is consistent with the standard Territorial Force shoulder title format introduced across all arms of the Territorial Force on its formation in 1908, in which the upper “T” bar distinguished Territorial other ranks from regular army personnel wearing the same arm or corps title below.

The Territorial Force was established on 1 April 1908 under the Haldane Reforms, replacing the earlier Volunteer Force and bringing county-based artillery, infantry, and cavalry units under a unified reserve structure. The Essex Batteries of the Royal Field Artillery were among the Territorial Force artillery units raised in this reorganisation, recruited from the county of Essex and affiliated to the broader East Anglian artillery establishment. The Royal Field Artillery itself had been constituted as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, responsible for the medium calibre field guns and howitzers providing close artillery support to infantry formations, and distinguished from the Royal Horse Artillery supporting cavalry formations and the Royal Garrison Artillery operating heavy and coastal ordnance. The Essex RFA Territorial batteries mobilised on the outbreak of war in August 1914, serving in a range of theatres during the First World War, including France and Flanders, Egypt, and Palestine. The Royal Field Artillery was amalgamated with the Royal Garrison Artillery in 1924, at which point the separate RFA designation and its associated shoulder titles ceased to be worn, making the production and wear period for this title 1908 to 1924, with active service use concentrated in the 1914 to 1918 period.

Manufactured in brass consistent with British Army Territorial Force other ranks’ shoulder title production of the First World War period, this three-tier title provides a well-defined representation of the county-designated artillery shoulder title as worn by Essex gunners throughout the war. T / RFA / ESSEX shoulder titles are collected as examples of First World War Territorial Force artillery militaria, county-designated shoulder insignia of the Royal Field Artillery, and uniform hardware of the East Anglian artillery units of the Great War.

Dimensions Approx. 45mm x 45mm

Condition Good, some tarnishing at the solder points