DLI Objects

Officer's Service Dress Slouch Hat, 1st Battalion DLI, 1900. This slouch hat is made from khaki felt (now much moth eaten) with a brass DLI shoulder title mounted on a green cloth patch, and cotton turban. During the Boer War many British soldiers, especially mounted troops, adopted the slouch hat as worn by Colonial troops. This hat belonged to Lieutenant Colonel Walter Ross of the 1st Battalion DLI, who commanded the 8th Corps of Mounted Infantry in South Africa. On 6 November 1900 near Bothaville, Walter Ross was badly wounded in the face during a surprise raid on a Boer camp. He survived and served as a Brigadier General during the First World War. For further reading, 'Faithful: The Story of The Durham Light Infantry' by S G P Ward (1962) has a detailed chapter on the DLI during the Boer War. Acc No: 2924/1