Pattern 1901 Naval Accoutrements

Listed below are all of the List of Changes entries and other official documentation entries we've found that pertain to Naval Accoutrements, Pattern 1901. There are certainly many others. If anyone can supply additional documentation, please send copies to KW for inclusion in this section.

List of Changes Entries

L. of C. §11110. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901 -. 8th Aug 1901 / 28th Feb 1902

Introduces Pattern 1901 (Mark I).

L. of C. §11111. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901. 8th Aug 1901

Changes nomenclature of Rifle sling and Sword becket to make them part of Pattern 1901.

L. of C. §11202. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901 - Case, pistol (Mark II). 25th Jun 1902

Revises Pistol case to Mk. II status.

L. of C. §11659. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901 -. 13th Jan 1903 / 11th Feb 1903 / 4th Apr 1903 / 13th May 1903

Revises Bandolier & Waterbottle carriage to Mk. II status. Modifies Mess-tin cover and Frog, but leaves nomenclature as Mk. I. Declares Mess-tin strap obsolete.

L. of C. §12697. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901 - Pockets, cartridge, rifle (Mark I). 20th Dec 1904

Adds 45 round Cartridge pockets to the pattern, modifies Waist belt to suit.

L. of C. §15390. Cover, mess tin, Pattern 1901. 9th Nov 1910

Stud on lid changed to a brass button.

L. of C. §15766. Carriage, water bottle, Mark II. 7th Nov 1911

Alters pattern of Water bottle carriage.

L. of C. §16043. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1912 -. 31st May 1912

Introduces pattern 1912 Pistol case and Cartridge pouch.

L. of C. §17417. Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901 - Cases, pistol (Mark III). 3rd Jul 1915

Revises Pistol case to Mk. III status.

L. of C. §19481. Cover, mess tin, Pattern 1901. 4th Aug 1917

Brass button changed to brass stud.

L. of C. §20764. Accoutrements, Naval, Pattern 1901 - Bandolier (Mark II). 29th Jan 1918

Modifies Mk. II Bandolier but does not advance mark.

List of Changes Entries Prior to the Introduction of Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901

The following L. of C. entries pre-date introduction of the Accoutrements, naval pattern 1901, but are included here, for the convenience of readers, as they are referred to in the various pattern 1901 L. of C. entries. Listed below is the title of each related L. of C. entry followed by the pattern 1901 item(s) that it relates to.

L. of C. § 3969. Accoutrements, naval service.

Relates to Belt, waist (Mark I.) and Becket, sword (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 4974 Carriage, water-bottle, Italian.

Relates to Carriage, water-bottle (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 5138 Cases, brown, cartridge.

Allegedly relates to Belt, waist (Mark I.), but appears to be a typo!

L. of C. § 6434 Accoutrements, naval.

Relates to Case, pistol (Mark I.) and Frog (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 7188 Accoutrements, naval.

Relates to Sling, rifle (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 7576 Bag, ammunition, leather, .303- inch.

Relates to Bag ammunition (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 8362 Braces M. H.

Relates to Braces, pairs (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 10440 Case, brown, pistol, “Sam Browne”. 1st Apr 1901

Relates to Case, pistol (Mark I.).

L. of C. § 10764 Bandolier, leather, .303-inch ammunition, 60 rounds. 19th Jun 1901

Relates to Bandolier, naval (Mark I.).

Official Documentation

ADMIRALTY FLEET ORDERS

ADMIRALTY FLEET ORDERS were issued by the Royal Navy on an as required basis, over the calendar year, covering the various Administrative, Logistical & Technical issues related to running the R.N. Listed here are A.F.O’s. that relate to the Accoutrements naval pattern 1901. There are other relevant A.F.O’s. that we have been unable to locate examples of, so help here would be appreciated.

There are also other series of R.N. orders such as N.O’s. & C.M.O’s. that are relevant to the study of Accoutrements, but as yet the KWRT has not been able to track these down. Can you help?

A.F.O. 828/22. Short M.L.E. Rifles and Web Equipment – Supply.

Relates to the return to store of other patterns on receipt of Web Equipment.

A.F.O. 905/22. Web Equipment for Webley Pistols – Proportions Allowed to H.M. Ships.

Relates to the issue of Accoutrements, Pattern 1901 Mess tins with Web Equipment.

A.F.O. 2545/22. Rifles, Pistols, Equipment, etc. - Revised Proportions.

Relates to the return of leather accoutrements, Pattern 1901 to nearest Armament Depot.

A.F.O. 2546/22. Pistols, Webley, for Landing Parties.

Relates to the retention of Pattern 1901 Accoutrements pending supply of Pattern 1919 Web Equipment.

A.F.O. 5604/43. Accoutrements for Auxiliary Vessels.

Relates to the future supply of web equipment Pattern 1937 in lieu of present leather accoutrements Pattern 1901.

COMMONWEALTH NAVY ORDER 282 of 1923

COMMONWEALTH NAVY ORDERS were the Royal Australian Navy equivalent of the R.N. Admiralty Fleet Orders and were issued on an as required basis, over the calendar year, covering the various Administrative, Logistical & Technical issues related to running the R.A.N. It is fortuitous that Royal Australian Navy realized what a valuable resource for researchers their orders would be and posted them as PDF files on the Sea Power Centre – Australia web site for all to access. This document is presented in PDF format. You'll need to use your browser's back key to return to Karkee Web after accessing it.

This extract from COMMONWEALTH NAVY ORDER 282 of 1923 covers changes to the scale of issue of accoutrements (among other things) to Royal Australian Naval Reserve Depots. It is the only reference to the scale of issue of the Accoutrements Pattern 1901 that the KWRT has been able to locate to date.

THE QUEENS REGULATIONS AND ADMIRALTY INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF HER MAJESTY’S NAVAL SERVICE 1899

While some may wonder what the QUEENS REGULATIONS AND ADMIRALTY INSTRUCTIONS 1899 have to do with Accoutrements, naval, pattern 1901, they did govern the running of the Royal Navy at the time the Accoutrements were introduced. Buried away in this massive volume, under Duties of The Gunner and Torpedo Gunner, is Paragraph 890, which directs him to take care that no brown leather articles, such as pouches & belts, are blacked. From the John Bird collection. As usual, this document is presented in PDF format. You'll need to use your browser's back key to return to Karkee Web after accessing it.

We assume that this duty would have been carried over into any subsequent Regulations & Instructions. Can any KW reader supply the equivalent extract from a later publication?

ACCOUTREMENTS; REPAIR & INSTRUCTIONS AS TO MARKING & ISSUE

This small set of text and drawings was extracted from a period document believed to be a post 1912 edition of Instructions for Armourers for HM Fleet, and cover the section entitled Accoutrements. Unfortunately the KWRT has not been able to positively identify the publication from which they came, as the scans presented here have come from unidentified photocopies given to Graham Tweeddale many years ago. If any reader can positively identify which publication they have come from, please let us know.

The document itself is self explanatory, a set of instructions for repair, marking & issue for items of Naval Accoutrements. It covers both P’01 and the earlier pattern accoutrements. Whilst it is rare to see P’01 Accoutrements marked in accordance with these instructions, there are some interesting details to be found in the text, and the line drawings provide very good reference views of the various components of the pattern. This document is presented in PDF format. You'll need to use your browser's back key to return to Karkee Web after accessing it.