Military Badge Collecting Bookshop

I've done some research to find military insignia reference books on the internet - click on the hyperlinks to buy direct from Amazon.co.uk.  (A number of North American customers have commented that even with shipping costs, Amazon.co.uk is cheaper than its US partner Amazon.com).

The books listed are ones that I use on a regular basis.  In many cases they show insignia reference numbers that I use on my mail-order catalogues.  Please note that these books are sold by Amazon.co.uk - not by Ian Kelly (Militaria).  A number of books do not have links to Amazon - this is because they are out-of-print.  I have kept the details of suitable out-of-print books on my web site so that you can use the information to buy them second-hand.

Akers, MA. 1985. British Fire Service Cap Badges - Volume 1 - 1974-1985. ISBN 0951093207: MA Akers
. Buy Book

 Akers, MA. 1989. British Fire Service Cap Badges and Buttons - Volume 2 - 1947-1974. ISBN 0951093215: MA Akers.
An excellent book with full colour photographs of every cap badge in the period covered (1947-1974). Buttons are described but not illustrated.
 

Audax, CE. 1992. Badge Backings and Special Embellishments of the British Army. ISBN 0951434209: UDR Benevolent Fund.
A superb unique reference work - the only book on this subject. Many pictures and information direct from the regiments concerned.
 

Baily's. 2000. Baily's Hunting Directory. ISBN 0953318109: Pearson Publishing.
Describes hunt uniforms and illustrates hunt buttons for the UK, Ireland, America, the Commonwealth and Europe.  The most useful book dealing with hunt buttons. 

Bennett, RW. 1994. Badges of the Worcestershire Regiment. ISBN 0952423103: RW Bennett
 

Bloomer, WH & KD. 1973. Scottish Regimental Badges 1793-1971 including Commonwealth Forces. ISBN 0853684294: Arms and Armour Press.

Bragg, RJ & Turner, R.. 1979. Parachute Badges and Insignia of the World. ISBN 0713708824: Blandford Press Ltd.

Bragg, RJ & Turner, R. 1985. Parachute Wings. ISBN 0950642622: Peter A Heims Ltd.
This book is one of the major references in the field of military badge collecting. Each badge is numbered and many badge dealers refer to their stock using 'Bragg and Turner' numbers from this book and their earlier similar work. If you are going to buy Parachute Wings by mail order, then you need this book.
 

Burns, KV. 1986. Badges and Battle Honours of HM Ships. ISBN 0907771262: Maritime Books
 

Carroll, W. 1997. Eagles Recalled. ISBN 0764302442: Schiffer Publishing.
Air Force Wings of Canada, Great Britain and the Commonwealth 1913-1945
 

Churchill, C & Westlake, R. 1986. British Army Collar Badges 1881 to the Present - An Illustrated Guide for Collectors. ISBN 0853688958: Arms and Armour Press.
Probably the only specialist book on the subject - unfortunately no longer in print.   Second-hand copies are quite scarce.

Cole, HN. 1993. Formation Badges of World War 2 - Britain, Commonwealth and Empire. ISBN 0853680787: Arms and Armour Press.

Congdon, P. 1985. Behind the Hangar Doors. ISBN 0951013904: Sonik Books.
Written by a serving RAF Regiment officer, this is an interesting and wide-ranging book covering history, heraldry and etiquette of the Royal Air Force.  There are excellent sections on insignia.

Corbett, DA. 1980. The Regimental Badges of New Zealand. ISBN 0908596057: Ray Richards, New Zealand.
An excellent book suitable for both beginners and advanced collectors.  Cap badges, collar badges, shoulder titles and buttons.  320 pages with photographs of over 1000 badges.  An illustrated history of the badges, mottoes and battle honours of the Regular and Volunteer units of the New Zealand Army from the 1840's to the 1970's. 
 

Cossum, JK. 1994. Australian Army Badges - A Collectors Reference Guide - part 1 - 1930 - 1942. ISBN 0949530115: JK Cossum.

Cossum, JK. 1994. Australian Army Badges - A Collectors Reference Guide - part 2 - 1900 - 1930. ISBN 0949530123: JK Cossum.

Cossum, JK. 1994. Australian Army Badges - A Collectors Reference Guide - part 3 - 1948 - 1985. ISBN 0949530131: JK Cossum.

Cossum, JK. 1986. Australian Army Badges - The Rising Sun Badge. JK Cossum.

Cox, RHW. 1982. Military Badges of the British Empire 1914-18. ISBN 0510000827: Naval and Military Press.
An excellent book with photographs of over 3200 First World War badges.  This is one of the few books to cover British Empire badges in depth.  Out of print, but second-hand copies are well worth buying.
  

Davis, BL. 1993. British Army Uniforms & Insignia of World War Two. ISBN 0713717378: Blandford Press.

Davis, BL. 1988. NATO Forces - An Illustrated Reference to their Organization and Insignia. ISBN 185409159X: Arms and Armour Press.

Davis, BL. 1987. US Army Cloth Insignia 1941 to the Present. ISBN 0853688508: Arms and Armour Press.

Edwards, TJ. 1981. Regimental Badges. ISBN 0510000835: Benn.
Excellent line-drawings of British Army Cap Badges.  

Edwards, D & Langley, D. 1984. British Army Proficiency Badges. ISBN 0950942707: Wardley Publishing.

Forty, G. 1998. British Army Handbook 1935 - 1945. ISBN 0750914033: Sutton Publishing.
An impressive 369 pages covering mobilization & training, command structures, weapons, equipment, vehicles, tactics, abbreviations, signals codes, badges and medals.  The text is backed-up with over 300 photographs.  The author spent 32 years in the Royal Tank Regiment, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel.  He later became the Curator of the Tank Museum at Bovington, Dorset.
 

Froggatt, DJ. 1986. Railway Buttons, Badges & Uniforms. ISBN 0711016496: Ian Allan Ltd.

Gaylor, J. 2002. Military Badge Collecting. ISBN 0850525241: Leo Cooper.
6th revised edition of a photographic reference covering 800 military badges from the period 1881 to 1996, with an explanation of the evolution of military badges, and advice on the acquisition, mounting and storage of badges.  Includes sections on tartan badge-backings and feather hackles.
 

Gordon, DB. 1998. Tommy - Volume One. ISBN 1575100428: Pictorial Histories Publishing.
A useful, well-researched hand-book covering WW2 British uniforms, equipment. weapons and vehicles- written by a re-enactor for re-enactors.  Lots of illustrations.
 

Harfield, AG. 1982. Head Dress, Badges and Embellishments of the Royal Corps of Signals. ISBN 0902633813: Picton Publishing (Chippenham).

Hobart, MC. 2000. Badges and Uniforms of the Royal Air Force. ISBN 0850527392: Pen & Sword Books.
Recently published - excellent book on Royal Air Force insignia - includes Royal Observer Corps and Air Cadets.  This is the only specialist RAF badge book still in print.
 

Kipling, AL & King, HL. 1995. Head-Dress Badges of the British Army - Volume 1 - Up to the end of the Great War. ISBN 0584109474: Muller, Blond & White Ltd.
An excellent book with black and white photographs of nearly 1900 cap badges. Each badge is numbered and the numbers are used by dealers and collectors as the 'industry-standard' to refer to cap badges. If you are going to buy cap badges by mail order, then you need this book.
 

Kipling, AL & King, HL. 1994. Head-Dress Badges of the British Army - Volume 2 - From the end of the Great War to the Present Day. ISBN 0584109482: Muller, Blond & White Ltd.
An excellent book with black and white photographs of many cap badges. Each badge is numbered and the numbers are used by dealers and collectors as the 'industry-standard' to refer to cap badges. If you are going to buy cap badges by mail order, then you need this book.
 

Linaker, D & Dine G. 1997. Cavalry Warrant Officers' and Non-Commissioned Officers' Arm Badges. ISBN 0951060333: Military Historical Society.

Loughran, JL. 1995. Brown's Flags and Funnels of Shipping Companies of the World. ISBN 0851746349: Brown, Son & Ferguson
Useful for identifying Merchant Navy buttons and insignia - 1088 illustrations of shipping company liveries.
 

May, WE; Carman, WY & Tanner, J. 1974. Badges and Insignia of the British Armed Services. ISBN 0713613440: A & C Black Ltd
An excellent book with 6 colour plates, 39 black 7 white photographs and 765 line drawings.  The book is in 3 sections to cover the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force.  The authors were senior directors of the national museums of the respective services.  It is a particularly good reference for Royal Naval branch & trade insignia.  Unfortunately no longer in print, it contains much information unavailable elsewhere.  Try to get a second-hand copy if you can.

Mills, J. 1997. Doing Their Bit - Home Front Lapel Badges 1939-1945. ISBN 0952811405: Wardens Publishing
'Doing Their Bit' is a superb unique reference work covering lapel badges worn during the Second World War 1939-1945. The badges are illustrated in colour, together with dates and history of each badge. The badges were worn on civilian clothes to denote that wearers were 'doing their bit' to contribute towards the war effort. This is the only book on the subject and is also a useful research reference regarding the many short-lived organisations that appeared during WW2.
 

Mills, J. 1993. A People's Army - Civil Defence and Uniforms 1939-1945. Wardens Publishing

Morgan, JLP & Thurman, T. 1997. American Military Patch Guide. ISBN 1884452337: Medals of America Press
 

Nevill, T. 1999. The Scottish Regiments. ISBN 1861262841: Crowood Press
A colour guide to the legendary Scottish regiments of today's British Army. The regular units covered are: The Scots Guards; The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards; The Royal Scots; The Royal Highland Fusiliers; The King's Own Scottish Borderers; The Black Watch; The Highlanders; and The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. The text details the units, their organization, equipment, weapons and vehicles and their uniforms and insignia. Illustrated with more than 100 colour photographs of Scottish soldiers in combat dress, training and working in the field, and on parade, this book is part of the "Europa Militaria" series
 

Owen, CR. 1990. The Military Badges and Insignia of Southern Africa. ISBN 0620154381: Chimperie Agencies
.

Parkyn, HG. 1956 (re-printed 1986). (Military) Shoulder-Belt Plates and Buttons. ISBN 0950853054: Ray Westlake
.

Seaman, P. 1994. Arm Badges of the British Cavalry Regiments. ISBN 0952426102: P Seaman.
 

Taylor, MB & Wilkinson, S. 1995. Badges of Office - an Illustrated Guide to the Helmets and Badges of the British Police 1829 to 1989. ISBN 0901718521: PICA GB.
 

Taylor, P. 2000. Allied Special Forces Insignia 1939 - 1948. ISBN 0850525829: Leo Cooper.

Taylor, P. 1998. Collecting Anodised Cap Badges. ISBN 085052637X: Leo Cooper.
This book lists nearly every anodised cap badge which has ever been used by the British Forces.  Black & white line drawings of badges.
 

Thomas, C & Endean Ivall, D. 1976. Military Insignia of Cornwall. ISBN 0903686147: Penwith Books. 

Thomas, M & Lord C. 1995. New Zealand Army Distinguishing Patches 1911-1991 - Part One. ISBN 0473032880: Thomas & Lord, New Zealand.

Thomas, M & Lord C. 1995. New Zealand Army Distinguishing Patches 1911-1991 - Part Two. ISBN 0473032899: Thomas & Lord, New Zealand.

Thompson, L. 1999. Badges and Insignia of the Elite Forces. ISBN 0713713291: Blandford.
 

Thornton, WM. 1997. Submarine Insignia of the World. ISBN 0850525365: Leo Cooper.
 

Westlake, R. 1997. Collecting Metal Shoulder Titles. ISBN 0850525055: Leo Cooper.
This is an excellent book with black and white photographs of over 1800 British Army metal shoulder titles, and descriptions of many more. Each badge is numbered and the numbers are used by dealers and collectors as the 'industry-standard' to refer to shoulder titles. If you are going to buy British Army shoulder titles by mail order, then you need this book.
 

Whittaker, LB. 1990. Stand Down - Orders of Battle for the units of the Home Guard of the United Kingdom. ISBN 1871167140: Ray Westlake Military Books.
An excellent book on the Home Guard, including locations, dates, insignia and unit commanders.

Windle, D. 2000. Badges and Insignia of the Royal Air Force. ISBN 1854095293: Cassell Military.
 

Ian G Kelly (Militaria)
P.O. Box 66
Ellesmere
Shropshire
SY12 0YS
United Kingdom

http://www.KellyBadge.co.uk/