
Military Sweetheart Brooches of the First World War - petethomas
http://www.historyworkshop.org.uk/radical-objects-military-sweetheart-brooches-of-the-first-world-war/
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sandworm101
The 'legal' version of a less-legal reality. Soldiers are not rich. For lack
of funds, they would often their girlfriends bits of their uniforms. They
cannot hand over equipment, but they can get away with "loosing" a bit of
uniform here or there. Look at all the WWII photographs of french girls with
military berets. The crests and insignia were the closest thing a soldier has
to jewelry. Soldiers were not, are still not, supposed to do this nor are
civilians normally allowed to wear military stuff. These replicas are the more
palatable version of an older tradition.

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chrisseaton
People still wear sweetheart broaches today. It let wives and girlfriends show
which regiment their partner is with. Some female officers wear them as a
female equivalent of regimental ties, as well.

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Wildgoose
I inherited a cardboard box from my grandparents which is lined with newspaper
describing a giant tank battle - which given the date must be the Battle of
Kursk.

One of the items it contained appeared to a kind of RAF badge made of some
kind of plastic but with no identifying insignia.

After investigation I realised it was a "sweetheart badge" from the Second
World War, (my Grandfather was in the RAF).

Apparently they were worn by women to discourage unwanted attention by making
it clear to potential suitors that they already had a partner.

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arethuza
My dad was in the RAF in WW2 - he had piles of stuff from the war in our attic
that I used to trawl through as a young kid.

Unfortunately when my mother was in the early stages of dementia she threw all
that stuff out - he was quite upset.

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tyingq
I imagine these were handy for men looking for someone that might be lonely
and not interested in a long term commitment.

Perhaps the opposite of the intended outcome.

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Retric
‘almost every female seemed to wear one’ speaks to how different the world
wars where vs what we think of a modern wars where only a small percentage of
the population are directly involved.

