Chip Bag With a Story

One of the enduring pleasures of Charing Cross Collectors’ Market is that it rarely delivers exactly what you expect. Not every find is a medal or a rare coin. Sometimes it is a piece of kit that feels quietly familiar, yet turns out to have a story stitched into every seam.

The British Army side cap, officially known as the khaki field service cap, can trace its origins back to 1894. Designed to be practical rather than decorative, it was worn angled on the head so as not to be knocked off by a rifle or bayonet. Its less formal nickname, “chip bag”, hints at how soldiers themselves viewed it.

An unusual feature of some examples is the unfolding construction, which allowed the cap to be pulled down slightly for a degree of weather protection (see below). While never intended as a substitute for a helmet, it was a small concession to comfort in often uncomfortable conditions.

The cap received its last major official recognition with its adoption as part of the Home Guard uniform in 1940. Period photographs show Home Guard units wearing locally appropriate regimental badges, reinforcing the strong regional identity that defined these formations.

The example shown here is particularly intriguing. It carries a General Service badge alongside two Polish buttons, and is marked by a Glasgow maker dated 1939. Taken together, these details strongly suggest issue in Scotland to a member of the Polish Free Forces who trained there during the early years of the war.

As the conflict progressed, the side cap gradually gave way to the more practical beret, and by 1947 it had largely disappeared from service, surviving only in a handful of pre-war regimental colour traditions.