WW2 DEMS Matched Pair of Brass Collar Badges

Pair of brass fouled anchors circa 3.4cm tall. In very good condition.

Defensively Equipped Merchant Ship ( DEMS ) was an Admiralty Trade Division program established in June, 1939, to arm 5,500 British merchant ships with an adequate defence against enemy submarines and aircraft. The acronym DEMS was used to describe the ships carrying the guns, the guns aboard the ships, the military personnel manning the guns, and the shore establishment supporting the system.

DEMS guns were manned by 24,000 Royal Navy personnel and 14,000 men of the Royal Artillery Maritime Regiment. 150,000 merchant sailors were trained to assist by passing ammunition, loading, and replacing casualties among the military gun crew. Initially, Royal Artillery personnel provided anti-aircraft protection by bringing their own machine-guns aboard ships operating close to the British Isles. DEMS gunners were often retired military personnel and young "Hostilities Only" ratings commanded by a petty officer or Royal Marine sergeant. Large ships sometimes embarked a junior naval officer to command the DEMS gunners.

Canada placed guns on 713 ships, while the Royal Australian Navy provided gun crews for 375 Australian and other allied ships.

Code: 61997