The following has been reproduced with the kind permission of Mr Howard Weddell, author of the book Soldiers from the Pacific. Published 2015. ISBN 978-0-473-33830-5. Appendix C Page 241.

​

The New Zealand Native Contingent and the Pacific Islands reinforcements wore a cap badge that was designed by the Māori Contingent Committee. This design was advised to and approved by the Chief of General Staff on 26 October 1914. It was manufactured by George T White, a Jeweller in Wellington. A total of 750 were received into stock on 11 December 1914, however when received they were deemed to be too be flimsy and the specification was changed to a thicker metal.

​

A further 600 were made of this design at a cost of 3s each which were to be sold to soldiers. These were shipped by the Warrimoo to the NZ Native Contingent which was by this time on garrison duty on the island of Malta. However, the Contingent Commanding Officer did not think they were worth 3s and they were not supplied to the troops. Evidently the badges were returned to Egypt then forward to Gallipoli but were lost. Much paperwork ensued over the lost badges and the £95 cost to the public account.

​

When the NZ Pioneer Battalion was formed in February 1916 a new design of badge was required to reflect the new role of the battalion. On 8 July 1916 an order was placed with J R Gaunt & Son in London for 1200 cap and 1000 sets of the smaller collar badges. It was this style badge that the Pacific Island contingents wore.

​

In September 1917 the New Zealand Māori (Pioneer) Battalion was formed, although the Pacific Islanders and soldiers formerly with the Otago Mounted Rifles did not depart until January 1918, and the new hat badge was instituted based on the original NZ Native Contingent style. In this new design the ‘NZNC’ encryption was altered to ‘NZ’. The Assistant Adjutant General of the NZEF stated “The omission of the letter NC alluded to has become necessary owing to the fact that the Māoris are no longer the only Native Contingent in the NZEF, there being another of Rarotongans in Egypt”.

​

In May 1917 Captain Bush requested that 114 sets of the NZ Pioneer Battalion badges be forwarded to him for the Rarotongan Company and that he also be sent a quantity of infantry puggarees for the ‘lemon squeezer’ hats.

​

A hat badge known as the New Zealand Cook Islands Company was manufactured based on the design of the NZ Pioneer Battalion with modification to the scroll incorporating the phrase ‘Cook Is Coy’, image below. The history of the badge is obscure as whilst the original badges appear to be produced by J R Gaunt or similar quality manufacturers, there is a lack of photographic evidence of them being worn during World War One. It has been postulated that these badges were received by the New Zealand Defence Force after the war’s end.