Bren Gunner, Winter 1944

Winter has come and the British Army is still fighting in Europe. This soldier from the King’s Own Scottish Borderers is the section’s Bren gunner, and as such carries both the Bren and its associated spare parts wallet. With the weather turning colder he has donned a leather jerkin and woollen gloves in addition to his standard battledress uniform. He has a Mk II helmet, with a scrim scarf and netting over it to break up the shape and give a place to attach camouflage. His battledress has the square of tartan that indicates he is from the KOSB and the triangular divisional patch of the 3rd Infantry Division. His webbing is the standard set of 37 pattern, with a sandbag threaded through the entrenching tool cover. The straps holding the Bren gun wallet and the gas mask haversack criss-cross over the front, underneath the webbing set. He has also slid a pick axe through the belt of his webbing. This is a rather awkward place to hold it, but it is easy to pull out and use in an emergency.