ORIGINS & HISTORY OF DANISH STABLE BELTS

Danish Stablebelts started in the mid- or late seventies, modelled on the British Armed Forces but the very very, first belt in the Danish Armed Forces was the UN- Cyprus belt and this belt was adopted from The Indian Armed Forces. The first Danish troops on Cyprus were equipped with summer-uniforms from India, and they saw the Indian troops were wearing a colourful belt (UN- colour) with their uniform, so we “bought” the idea from them. (I was serving on Cyprus 74 – 75, during the war). The belt was introduced with a new uniform system, called “T78” and produced as “Model M85”. When it was completed, the Army stated that a black belt should be the standard issue.

One regiment, The Royal Hussars were the first regiment to use their own colours in a belt.

The Air Defence Regiment of Jutland were the second regiment to introduce their own belt, and that is the same belt as The Royal Artillery.

After that, all regiments in Denmark chose to use there own colours in the belt, and we use the same word in Denmark: Stable belt or Corps belt (Belt = Bælte).

In the old days the Hussars and Dragoons had an extra piece of equipment to hold the horse saddle if something on the saddle was broken: Stable belt (Stable = Stald).

The stable belts are used in The Army, Home Guard & Air Force, but not with The Navy.

All in all there are 35 different belts.

Our Forces are very small today, and the belts include the disbanded regt. and units (as listed on the Danish Belts page)

Only about 16 – 18 units are using stable belts today.

With thanks to Mogen Vestergard

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