What are Morale Patches? Who Wears Them, And Their History.

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Cutting to the chase – are you a patch-obsessed individual? If yes, then this article is for you! It holds a lot of valuable information, including who can and can’t wear them, the history of the badges, exciting facts, and much more. So dear readers, brace yourself because this will be a fun ride!

What Are Morale Patches?

It is a military ornamental badge with images and texts. It is used to identify a particular unit like a brigade or division. It is not authorized to officially wear insignia on the uniforms, but it is often found on their uniforms.

Who Can Wear Them?

We talked about these patches and hope you understand that term now. The next question that would come to mind is “who can wear them?” right?

Traditionally, these monograms are used by veterans and active personnel of the military. It has several types and each of them is associated with some unit, squad, and division.

Armed forces wear it as a source of pride and loyalty toward their nation.

Who Can Not Wear Them?

You might think that adding that badge to your outfit would add a spark to it as these convey a positive message.

In case, you are here to know whether you qualify to wear them or not. You can’t answer it in black and white.

Practically speaking, real badges can’t be dressed by those who have never served in the army. Many civilians indeed like to collect and trade them.

Often, veterans’ families pass these insignia as a remembrance.

A civilian who appears with an army insignia without affiliation to the army can land on a hot seat.

However, these days military camouflage is also worn by civilians. They use it to express their patriotism toward their nation. Similarly, the public also uses military emblems for fashion purposes or as a symbol of nationalism. 

What is a stolen Valor?

There is a thin wire between admiration and faking to be a veteran. Sometimes, corrupt wear army ornamental emblems to take illegal benefits.

The president of the United States, George W Bush, introduced a new law in 2005. This law deals with the strict punishment for those who impersonate to be civilian personnel for their gains.

After this act came into action, several fake officers were put behind bars for it.

Such lawbreakers are arrested because they can easily make others buy their scam.

You should read how to wear an emblem correctly and what you shouldn’t add to your monogram.

You can visit websites of custom morale patches UK to know what kind of badges you can wear. This can save you from any possible trouble.

Etiquettes of Morale Patches

Armed forces of every country are hustling hard and fighting against their enemies to help their civilians sleep well at night. Almost everyone is a fan of their army.

You might also be one of them, right? You would want to show your patriotism towards them. This nowhere means that you step out wearing Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) specialist insignia.

You can wear a badge that is less associated with the armed forces. You can think of wearing a flag emblem or a patch that was either passed onto you or bought.

You can also get it custom-made. Isn’t it cool? Just make sure that your badge doesn’t show association with any unit or squad.

Etiquettes also include your intention of wearing them and how the on-looker perceives them.

Several veterans have shared their viewpoints. They honestly have no issues with civilians wearing them. Instead, they feel pride each time they see the public decorating their outfits with it.

Six Interesting Facts about the History of Ornamental Military Insignia

The morale patches have shot up to the sky after the invention of soft PVC. They are no longer just limited to armed forces. Their usage has become more diverse. They are being consumed by youth groups, sports groups, paintball, motorcycle groups, private clubs, fundraising events, and whatnot.

1. What is the Origin of Morale Patches?

They have a very long history as it dates back before the First World War was even started. The British army started this first by naming it “battle patches”.

They did know who was their ally or enemy. These emblems help them to identify who belongs to what sector, unit, or squad.

• The First Ever Patch

The blood chit is a small message carried out by military officers on the inner side of their jacket or shirt. The word “chit” has a British origin, meaning “a small note”.

This helped when armed officers came across either an injured or dead ally. In current times, the chit has evolved into an insignia-style note.

• Superheroes Also Own Morale Insignia

There are some of the most creative and eye-catchy monograms to boost the self-confidence of one. You can look at the emblems of superheroes. Even the oldest comic heroes like Wonder Woman have a cool insignia.

Some great websites of custom patches online can create badges themed on your famous comic or anime character. You can use it to decorate your outfit and look cool.

• The First Chit Transformed Into an Insignia Morale Patch

Army officials were suggested to transform the chit into a military insignia badge of a certain division during the First World War.

This was done to boost the confidence of the troops. Soon after that, this change was brought in almost every division.

• Trading of This Emblem Became Very Famous

Trading and collecting of emblems became very famous in the 1920s. They become unique and popular. This was also done to bring the civilian population closer to law enforcement agencies.

• Name Morale Patch Came In Widespread Practice During the Vietnam war

The term started being widely used during the Vietnamese war era. Interestingly they used to make sarcastic, rude, and critical comments on the badges and somewhat uniforms of each other.

Final Thoughts

Let’s look into what we discussed in this article. Firstly, we discussed emblem is traditionally a military ornamental. Then we talked about they were originally used by army personnel to identify what unit, squad, and group they belonged to.

A civilian wearing a real military emblem can land the person on hot waters. So, be careful that if you use this type of PVC badge, it shouldn’t have any direct association with the armed forces.

In short, we opened up about what morale patches are, who can wear them, and their history. You can also get customized monograms to boost your self-confidence.