Cap badges, generally, identified the branch and regiment to which the wearer belonged. The badges were defined by regulation and policy, but in a vast war enforcement often seems less important. Officers purchased their own uniforms and insignia and could be inventive. Their cap badges were embroidered with silver and gold wire, sometimes following Army dictates and sometimes not.

Enlisted troops were issued their uniforms and insignia. Their cap badges were of stamped brass, in some cases they included their regiment number and company letter. Although of less frequency, they were also prone to imaginative substitutions. The following are the badges you would be most likely to encounter and are not always strictly according to regulation.