Stable belt

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Clip art of a pre-2007 Stable Belt of the Royal Air Force. Newer versions feature a decorative buckle instead of the leather buckle.

A stable belt is an item of uniform used in the armed forces of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries. Gymnastic belts are similar coloured belts used in Brazil and Lebanon. Stable belts or gymnastic belts are also worn by the armed forced of other nations such as Denmark.

Originally, stable belts were worn by cavalrymen in the working dress they used for cleaning the stables and tending to their horses, but in the 1950s they spread to all branches of the armed forces, adding a splash of colour and individuality to the drab khaki working uniforms. Initially they were resisted by many senior officers, who saw them as too individualistic, but they soon became accepted throughout the forces.

Gymnastic belts have a similar appearance but a different origin, being derived from physical training equipment.

A stable belt is a wide webbing belt, usually a single solid colour or horizontally striped in two or more different colours. It is worn around the waist and when worn with Combat Soldier 95 it is worn through the trouser belt loops. In the British Army or Royal Marines, when worn with barrack dress, the belt is placed either in the belt loops of trousers or a skirt or over a jersey. In the Royal Air Force, it is worn with service working dress (No. 2 dress) either covering the top of the trousers (or skirt) and the lower part of the shirt or through the belt loops if they have been specially designed to accommodate the belt's width. Unlike the Army, it is never worn over a jersey. The original cavalry stable belts buckled at the side to avoid chafing the soldier's stomach as he bent down during stable work, but many stable belts are now clipped at the front, sometimes behind a metal belt plate (usually bearing the badge of the regiment), although a few regiments such as the Light Infantry clip their stable belts at the front with the original two leather straps. A large number of units, however, continue to use the traditional method of securing the belt using two leather straps and metal buckles at the left-hand side.

Today, every regiment and corps of the British Army has its own stable belt, often very colourful. The Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force also have their own, although stable belts are rarely worn in the Navy. Stable belts are worn with most styles of informal dress, but not with full dress, service dress or mess dress. Stable belts are purchased by individual service personnel, not issued, so are theoretically neither regulation nor compulsory but since most people own one they are effectively uniform items in the Army.

Brazil

Firefighters Corps of Paraná - 1923.

Brazilian Firefighters Cadets - 2009.

In Brazil this belt is designated like gymnastic belt (Portuguese: cinto ginástico). It is one of the most traditional items of the uniforms of the Military Firefighters Corps; which is used with few modifications, since 1887.^[1] At first it was rather reinforced, made of cotton and leather, to serve as climbing harness. Today it is mild and only serves as a ceremonial item.

There are only two models of belts:

For Officers:

The belt has a horizontal strip in blue colour, with the buckles in silver metal. In the 1960s the leather parts were painted with white colour.

For Soldiers (Sergeant, Corporal, and Private):

The belt is in red colour, with the buckles in gold metal.

Denmark

The Danish Army, Home Guard, and Air Force all use stable belts. The Danish armed forces have had in total 42 different stable belts. Today there are only sixteen in use.

Lebanon

Lebanese firefighters (الدفاع المدني, i.e. "Civil Defense") use the same type of gymnastic belt as used by firefighters in Brazil.

New Zealand

The various Corps and Regiments of the New Zealand Army wear stable belts.

Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment

Personnel of the Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment, with the exception of those serving in Territorial Force battalion groups, wear the regimental belt of the Durham Light Infantry, being rifle green with two thin red stripes. The belt was adopted as the RNZIR Corps belt in 1970. The Durham Light Infantry regimental belt was given to the 1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment when it relieved the 1st Battalion, Durham Light Infantry at Sarawak, Borneo in May 1966.

Canterbury, and Nelson-Marlborough and West Coast Regiment

Rifle green, derived from the light British Light Infantry

Auckland (Countess of Ranfurly's Own) and Northland Regiment

Two sets of thin Red and White stripes on a Black background, adopted in 1995. Originally the belt consisted of three even sized stripes of Red, Black and White and were based on the Regiment's colours.

Otago and Southland Regiment

The Otago and Southland Regimental belt is that of Queen’s Own Highlanders, and is the pattern of the McKenzie tartan.

Wellington West Coast and Taranaki Regiment

Two separate belts are worn; officers and warrant officers wear a black belt with central stripes of red, green, yellow, mauve, and red, while soldiers below the rank of warrant officer wear a black belt with central stripes of yellow, red, green, and mauve. The belts adopted in 1973 were based on the Royal Hampshire Regiment with colours stemming from the regimental colours and the colours of the lace and facings on the uniforms of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment.

Hauraki Regiment

Thames blue with a gold strip in the middle, derived from the old Royal Warwickshire Regiment which in turn is derived from the old 6th Regiment of Foot. The 6th Foot were once charged with guarding the Crown Jewels in the Tower of London; hence the blue of the belt represents the Thames river and the Gold stripe, the Crown Jewels.^[2] The belt was introduced in 1975 and has a buckle in worn centre which has the Regiments bagde mounted.

Wellington (City of Wellington's Own) and Hawke's Bay Regiment

The 7th Wellington (City of Wellington’s Own) and Hawke’s Bay Battalion Group inherited the York and Lancaster Regiment stable belt. The belt is composed of maroon bands at the top and bottom (16mm wide), with a centre stripe of black (18mm wide) with a silver stripe above and gold stripe (each 6mm wide) below the centre strip. The York and Lancaster Regiment was allied to the Wellington Regiment in 1913 in recognistion of the York and Lancs (65th of Foot) 19 year participation in the New Zealand Wars.

New Zealand Special Air Service

Originates from belt worn by the British Special Air Service. It was first worn in 1965 by 1 Detachment, 1 Ranger Squadron NZSAS. The colours originate from a concept by David Stirling integrating the Oxford Blue and Cambridge Blue.^[3]

Queen Alexandra's Mounted Rifles

The QAMR belt is Black with a central Amber stripe as used by the original Queen Alexandra’s Mounted Rifles, they are also the colours of the Taranaki, where the unit’s foundations were laid in the early 1860s.

Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment

Blue

United Kingdom

Note that these belts are shown in cross section, the stripes actually being horizontal as worn, and are actually considerably wider than shown, although the stripes are shown in correct proportion. Where belts are asymmetrical, the left-hand side of the illustration is the uppermost as worn.

Cavalry/Armoured regiments

Life Guards

Blues and Royals

1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards

Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

Royal Dragoon Guards

Queen's Royal Hussars

9th/12th Royal Lancers

King's Royal Hussars

The Light Dragoons

Queen's Royal Lancers

Royal Tank Regiment

Royal Yeomanry^[4]

Royal Mercian and Lancastrian Yeomanry

Royal Wessex Yeomanry^[5]

Queen's Own Yeomanry

Infantry regiments

Foot Guards

Royal Regiment of Scotland

Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment

Duke of Lancaster's Regiment

Royal Regiment of Fusiliers

Royal Anglian Regiment

Yorkshire Regiment

Mercian Regiment

Royal Welsh

Royal Irish Regiment

The Parachute Regiment

Royal Gurkha Rifles

The Rifles

Special Air Service

Royal Gibraltar Regiment

Corps

Royal Horse Artillery

Royal Artillery

Royal Engineers

Royal Corps of Signals

Army Air Corps

Royal Army Chaplains' Department

Royal Logistic Corps

Royal Army Medical Corps

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers

Adjutant General's Corps
(Staff and Personnel Support)^[6]

Adjutant General's Corps
(Royal Military Police)^[6]

Adjutant General's Corps
(Military Provost Staff)^[6]

Adjutant General's Corps
(Educational and Training Services)^[6]

Adjutant General's Corps
(Army Legal Services)^[6]

Royal Army Veterinary Corps

Small Arms School Corps

Royal Army Dental Corps

Intelligence Corps

Royal Army Physical Training Corps

Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps

Corps of Army Music^[7]

Queen's Gurkha Engineers

Queen's Gurkha Signals

Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment