Under the Union Jack

Under the Union Jack was a patriotic picture magazine that ran in 34 parts from November 1899 to June 1900, presenting jingoistic Victorian British propaganda in its purest form. The publication appears to be an offshoot of Army & Navy Illustrated. For the Boer War historian (and the ornatologist!), its hundreds of captioned photos, cartoons, and drawings present a wealth of information. The picture below was taken from the cover of Vol. II - No. 21, dated 31st March 1900. As will have been noted, these three photos show a curious pattern of Rifle Equipment that lies between Pattern 1901 and the earlier Sea Service Accoutrements. From the Collection of Jeffrey Hayes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Backbone of the Navy

Two post cards from a series entitled The Backbone of the Navy. The card at far left displays the same rear quarter view of the Rifle Equipment seen on the Union Jack cover shown above. The second card, though, presents a different bluejacket, this time modeling a Pistol Equipment, which again appears to be a possible trials version of Naval accoutrements, pattern 1901. This leads to the obvious conclusion that there should be other photos in the same series, showing more views of the Pistol Equipment. Can any reader help? These two cards from the Collection of John Bird.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ogdens Guinea Gold Cigarettes

Appearing this time on a cigarette card, it's the front view of the Rifle Equipment. Note the building in the background - it's the same structure shown in the Pistol Equipment photo above. The caption reads 'One of our "Handy Men"of H.M.S. "Powerful"'. From the Graham Tweeddale Collection.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ogdens Tab Cigarettes

Another Ogdens cigarette card, this time advertising Ogdens Tab Cigarettes. This caption reads 'The "Handy Man" with his Rifle". From the Karkee Web Collection.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A British Bluejacket of To-day

The same right rear quarter view of the Rifle Equipment used in The Backbone of the Navy, this time appearing in another postcard series, and titled A British Bluejacket of To-day. This card adds another clue to the puzzle, in that the name "Stephen Cribb" has been appended to the lower right hand corner of the photo. Stephen Cribb of Southsea was an official photographer for the Admiralty during the late Victorian and Edwardian periods, and a number of books of his photos have been published. His name led us to George A. Malcomson, Archivist, of the Royal Navy Submarine Museum, and a noted authority on Stephen Cribb. George recognised the photos, and was able to confirm that Mr. Cribb did indeed take them, at H.M.S. Excellent, the Royal Navy’s gunnery school at Whale Island, Portsmouth. From the Karkee Web Collection.