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The many uniforms of Prince Harry explained

The British Army has a whole host of uniforms for all occasions and Prince Harry, as an officer in the Blues and Royals (on attachment to the Army Air Corps), gets to wear many of the 20+ orders of dress available to the Blues & Royals on a regular basis.

Prince Harry wearing number 2 (dismounted) service dress of the Blues & Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

Prince Harry wearing number 2 (dismounted) service dress of the Blues & Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

Number 2 dress is one of the most common orders in the British Army, worn by the Prince most prominently when he opened a new Royal Navy Centre in Plymouth earlier this year.

Its proper name is ‘service dress’ and it used to be worn in the battlefield in the early 1900s – nowadays it’s reserved for ceremonial use. In this picture, Prince Harry is also wearing his Army Air Corps Beret.

At the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in America, Prince Harry wearing number 1 dress of the Blues and Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

At the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in America, Prince Harry wearing number 1 dress of the Blues and Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

When Harry visited the USA earlier this year, he made a visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier where he laid a wreath and took a walk past some of the graves of fallen servicemen. During this, he wore the number 1 dress of the Blues and Royals with his Army Air Corps beret.

Nowadays, he wears this also to the annual Trooping the Colour on Horse Guards Parade and also to other military orientated engagements.

Prince Harry in full combat fatigues.

Prince Harry in full combat fatigues.

Let’s not forget that Prince Harry is also a serving officer. Here his is wearing army combat fatigues, the modern fighting gear used by the British Army.

Not quite as colourful as the ceremonial uniforms, though surely symbolic in its own way.

Prince Harry in Army Air Corps operational uniform, sat in helicopter.

Prince Harry in Army Air Corps operational uniform, sat in helicopter.

Since 2009, Prince Harry has been on attachment to the Army Air Corps – a most orchestrated to give him the best chance of being able to be deployed on operational service.

This picture shows him in operational uniform in the seat of a helicopter.

At the Royal Wedding, Captain Wales wore the uniform of a Blues and Royals officer in Dismounted Review Order.

At the Royal Wedding, Captain Wales wore the uniform of a Blues and Royals officer in Dismounted Review Order.

Whilst Prince William turned up to his wedding in his bright Irish Guards tunic (as the regiment’s colonel), Prince Harry was in a uniform known as ‘Blues and Royals Dismounted Review Order’, which included spurs on his boots and aiguilettes (gold grading on his right shoulder) – as all commissioned officers in the Household Cavalry wear aiguilettes.

For the wedding, he had pockets fitted to the uniform so he could safely keep hold of the rings – the uniform doesn’t normal have pocket on it.

 

On his visit to Sydney for the International Fleet Review, Harry wore Tropical Dress of the Blues and Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

On his visit to Sydney for the International Fleet Review, Harry wore Tropical Dress of the Blues and Royals with Army Air Corps beret.

Perhaps the most lively of Captain Wales’s uniforms is his Tropical Weather Dress – we’ve only seen him in it about twice in the last two years though it definitely suits him! Tropical Weather Dress in the Blues and Royals is essentially the same as number 1 dress, but with a change of tunic.

photo credit: Defence Images, Royal Navy Media Archive, DVIDSHUB, Beacon Radio, Defence Images and Government House, Canberra via photopin cc

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