Description
British: Rare! 21st Special Air Service, (Artists) Officer’s 1949 Patt.Battledress. Circa.1951
Superb 100% Original 21st S.A.S. (Artists) Officer’s (Captain) Battledress with all insignia. The battledress is the 1949 pattern with correct label to the inside, manufactured by B.Bloom Ltd.Manchester, Size 10 which is 5’9″ to 5’10” Breast 36″ to 37″ waist 31″ to 32″ .Dated 1951 which ties it into Malaya and later service. It does have a quite large patch of probably rodent damage on the waist just under the right arm. This is not visible when on a dummy because the sleeve covers it but it does have an effect on its value. It could be repaired with a piece placing over, or behind it and professionally repaired would be a good option, I have left it just as obtained. Rest of the battledress is in good condition, three plain buttons to the breast for fastening with the small pull over belt and brass buckle. The two breast pockets have Artists Rifles black buttons attached as do the two epaulettes which also have the bronze officer rank pips attached. Artists lanyard is present of green and black twist cord. both sleeves have the silver/grey on maroon Special Air Service woollen shoulder titles, the right hand sleeve has the S.A.S. wings and also the silver grey on black Artists badge. A superb battledress, extremely desirable and very very difficult to find or obtain. Good Investment for both Investor and Collector alike.
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Brief History:
The Artists Rifles is a regiment of the British Army Reserve. Raised in London in 1859 as a volunteer light infantry unit, the regiment saw active service during the Second Boer War and the First World War, earning a number of battle honours. It did not serve outside Britain during the Second World War as it was used as an officer training unit at that time. The regiment was disbanded in 1945, but in 1947 it was re-established to resurrect the Special Air Service Regiment. Today, the full title of the Regiment is 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve)(21 SAS(R)) and with23 Special Air Service Reserve(23 SAS(R)), it forms the Special Air Service (Reserve) (SAS(R)).
History as 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve)
For much of the Cold War, 21 SAS’s role was to provide stay-behind parties in the event of a Warsaw Pact invasion of Western Europe, forming (alongside 23rd SAS I Corps Corps Patrol Unit.
By January 1991, 15 volunteers from 21 and 23 SAS joined more than 300 regular SAS soldiers participating in the Gulf War.
In mid-October 2001, members of 21 SAS and 23 SAS deployed to Afghanistan as reinforcements of two squadrons of 22 SAS, for Operation Determine during the 2001 Coalition Invasion of Afghanistan to topple the Taliban regime and destroy and dismantle al-Qaeda in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.
Following the invasion, members of both territorial SAS regiments remained in the country to provide close protection to SIS members; during Operation Herrick, members of 21 and 23 SAS were involved in the training of the Afghan National Army and Afghan Police until 2010.In 2008, members of 21 SAS were sent to Marjah to assist the Afghan police, arriving just in time to see the police flee due to Taliban infiltration of the area. In October 2008, a small team from 21 SAS mentored the Afghan Police in Nad-e Ali.
During the Cold War, the Reserve SAS Regiments had a clearly defined and understood role but since then, the requirement for them appears to be less clear and more difficult to articulate. A number of reviews have been conducted over the years and included the prospect of a merger or disbandment, which was considered to be presentationally unpalatable. A review was conducted of the unit’s operational capability and role in 2009/10; it was found that the SAS Reserve lacked a clearly defined role, and also stated that the reservists lacked the capability, equipment, and skills to serve alongside the regular special forces. As an outcome of this review, on 1 September 2014, 21 SAS was placed alongside 23 SAS and the HAC under the command of 1st Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Brigade, a brigade under Force Troops Command which provides combat specialist support to the British Army’s Reaction and Adaptable Forces.
