A very nice WW2 Battledress Jacket with originally applied insignia to a sergeant in the Royal West African Frontier Force's 81st Division.
The 81st (West Africa) Division was one of two such divisions raised in 1943 from elements of Britain’s large pre war Royal West African Frontier Force. It consisted of three brigades, all of which fought extensively in Burma.
In 1944 one of the 81st’s Brigades, the 3rd, was detached to take part in Operation “Thursday”, this the second Chindit expedition behind Japanese lines. The 3rd Brigade mainly consisted of Nigerian Infantry Regiments and was codenamed “Thunder” for the operation.
The Battledress Jacket is of Canadian manufacture, this not an uncommon feature given the typically disparate supply situation of the Far East campaign.
To each shoulder there is applied an embroidered shoulder title for the Royal West African Frontier Force, with below that the printed spider sign of the 81st West African Division. The sleeves also have sergeant stripes; upon close examination it can be seen these are made from corporal stripes with an extra stripe added, this no doubt denoting promotion in the field.
Of special interest is the lower left sleeve of the Jacket are two bullion wound stripes which have been theatre applied. A wonderful element demonstrating the hard fighting seen by the original owner.
The Jacket is in very good condition overall but with a number of small moth holes and with one large hole to the waistband. This is not visible when the Jacket is closed.
