A smart regimental swagger stick for The Duke of Edinburgh’s (Wiltshire Regiment), comprising a bamboo shaft capped with a silver top bearing the regimental crest. The silver cap measures 4.5 cm; overall length 69.8 cm. Though rubbed from service use and polishing, traces of hallmarking are faintly visible on the reverse.
The shaft is fashioned from natural bamboo with a warm honey tone and visible nodes, tapering to a plain foot secured with a small iron pin. The silver top is decorated in relief with the Wiltshire Regiment insignia — a Maltese cross with crowned cypher within a circular cartouche, and the regimental title “THE WILTSHIRE REGIMENT” across a scroll. The hallmarking has been mostly polished down.
History Note:
Swagger sticks were a mark of smartness for officers and NCOs in the British Army from the late Victorian era through the inter-war years. They were often capped in silver and personalised with regimental insignia, used for walking-out dress and parade. The Duke of Edinburgh’s (Wiltshire Regiment), raised in 1881, saw major service in the Boer War and in both World Wars — notably on the Western Front and at Gallipoli. This swagger stick would have been carried in precisely that era of regimental pride and formality.
*Condition*
The bamboo shaft shows age-related wear, with longitudinal age cracks, surface scuffs, and abrasion to the tip. The silver cap has dents, bruises, and surface scratches, consistent with use and polishing. The regimental crest remains bold and legible, and hallmark traces are very faint. Structurally sound overall, with attractive patination. Please see photographs as part of the condition report.
