Army and Navy Uniforms and Insignia / How to Know Rank, Corps and Service in the Military and Naval Forces of the United States and Foreign Countries

by Dion Williams

UNIFORMS AND INSIGNIA OF MIDSHIPMEN

The Corps of Midshipmen at the Naval Academy is organized into a regiment of four battalions of four companies each for military formations and drills, with Midshipmen Officers and Petty Officers, as follows:

Midshipman Commander	Commanding the Regiment.
Midshipman Lieutenant Commander	Commanding a Battalion.
Midshipman Lieutenant	Regimental Adjutant and Company Commander.
Midshipman Junior Lieutenant	Regimental Commissary and Regimental Signal Officer, Battalion Adjutant, and junior Company officer.
Midshipman Ensign	Regimental Aide, Battalion Commissary, and junior Company officer.
Midshipman Regimental Staff Petty Officer.
Midshipman Battalion Staff Petty Officer.
First Petty Officer.
Second Petty Officer.
First-Class Petty Officer.
Second-Class Petty Officer.

The Midshipmen are provided with uniform as follows:

Full dress—consisting of a dark blue double-breasted jacket cut to reach just below the waist, roached at the sides over the hips, pointed at front and back, with standing collar and two rows of gilt buttons down the front and three gilt buttons on each cuff; dark blue trousers, a blue cap similar to that worn by other naval officers, white gloves and black shoes.

Service dress—consisting of a dark blue blouse coat similar in cut and design to the blue service coat of other officers; dark blue trousers, the blue cap and black shoes.

White service dress—consisting of a white duck coat with gilt buttons similar in cut and style to the white service coat of other officers, white duck trousers, white cap and white shoes.

Khaki undress—consisting of a khaki blouse, trousers and cap.

Working dress—consisting of khaki blouse and trousers and white hat.

Working undress—consisting of khaki shirt and trousers and white hat.

The overcoat is an ulster of dark blue cloth, double-breasted, buttoning to the neck with two rows of gilt buttons on the front with a wide rolling collar.

The insignia of the Corps of Midshipmen are a gold anchor worn on the full dress jacket and blue service coat on each side of the collar near the front. All Midshipmen attaining above 85 per cent in standing also wear a gold star on each side of the collar.

The rank of Midshipman Officers is indicated by stripes of gold braid one-eighth of an inch wide sewn around the sleeves of the full dress jacket, service coat and overcoat, the lower stripe being about two inches from the lower edge of the sleeve, the number of stripes for the different grades being:

Midshipman Commander	Five stripes one-quarter of an inch apart.
Midshipman Lieutenant Commander	Four stripes one-quarter of an inch apart.
Midshipman Lieutenant	Three stripes one-quarter of an inch apart.
Midshipman Junior Lieutenant	Two stripes one-quarter of an inch apart.
Midshipman Ensign	One stripe.

All Midshipman Officers also wear a gold star one inch in diameter three-fourths of an inch above the upper stripe on each sleeve.

The rank of Midshipman Petty Officers is indicated by devices embroidered in gold upon the sleeves, above the elbow, of the full dress jacket, undress coat and overcoat, indicating the different grades as follows:

Regimental staff petty officer—an eagle and an anchor, surmounted by three stars placed pyramidally, with a chevron of three stripes below the anchor.

Battalion staff petty officer—the same as for regimental staff petty officer except there are but two stars.

First and Second Petty Officers—the same as for staff petty officers except there is but one star.

First-class Petty Officer—the same as for first and second petty officers except that the chevrons are omitted.

Second-class Petty Officer—the same as for first-class petty officers except that the star is omitted.

U. S. Navy. Midshipmen. Sleeve stripes indicating class

Gold stripes on the sleeves of the dress coat,
undress coat and overcoat

1. First Class	2. Second Class
3. Third Class	4. Fourth Class

The midshipmen are divided into four classes, according to the year’s course, the first class corresponding to seniors at college, the second class corresponding to juniors at college, the third class corresponding to sophomores at college and the fourth class corresponding to freshmen at college.

To distinguish the class to which they belong all midshipmen, except Midshipman Officers and petty officers and fourth classmen, wear service stripes of gold braid one-eighth of an inch wide diagonally across the outside of each sleeve of the full dress jacket, service coat and overcoat from front seam to rear seam, each stripe indicating one year of service at the Naval Academy; thus, the first classmen have three stripes, the second classmen two stripes, the third classmen one stripe, and the fourth classmen plain sleeves with no stripes.