Rare Original 1940 Dated British Battledress Serge Blouse - Size 15

An original early WW2 'Battledress, Serge' jacket which is a hard to find size 15.

This pattern of battledress is the first pattern to come into service, replacing the earlier Service Dress uniform in 1938. It was worn during the first two years of the war and saw service during the Phoney War, The Battle for France and the Dunkirk evacuation before being replaced with the 1940 pattern in the later part of the summer of the same year. This pattern did still see limited use throughout the rest of the war and was by no means only worn in the first couple of years. Unlined collar jackets were very sought-after, particularly by officers, who wanted to wear the jacket open with a shirt and tie. The unlined collar was perceived to look much smarter than an example with a lined collar.

This jacket has all the correct early features including the unlined collar, wire waist buckle and twin inside pockets. The buttons have been replaced by the original owner with plastic examples which is not an uncommon period modifiaction, particularly with officers. One of the original revolving shank buttons is still present to the right epaulette whilst the other is a period replacement which is possibly of European origin. The jacket has had the collar pressed open to be worn by an officer but this could be pressed back.

The label is still present to the interior and is still bright and legible. It bears the title of 'Battledress Blouses, Serge' below which is the size of 15. The maker's name of 'Clarence Clothing Co. Ltd' is also present as is the War Department broad arrow marking. There is a pink coloured issue stamp which reads 'August 1940'. As well as this there is a War Department acceptance stamp to the interior which does not feature a letter date code. This is not uncommon to find with early war produced battledress. 

The condition of the jacket is very good for its age with only very limited signs of wear and use. The only real flaw is a very small hole to the rear of the collar which is illustrated in picture 8. Overall it displays very well and is totally wearable but please remember that this is a pre-worn issued item so may have issues commensurate with this.

Early examples of original Battledress serge such as this have become extremely rare to find now, particularly those that still retain clear dates. A must have for the serious BEF collector!  

This is a vintage item which is 'sold as seen'