Band 1903

The large number of musicians in the Grenadier Guards band are an indication of their importance and fame at this time. The officer at the front is the well-known Lieutenant Dan Godfrey. This photo was published in 'The Regiment' 21 Feb 1903 with the caption, 'The Grenadier Guards Band, one of the most expensive bands of the British Army. At the recent Glasgow Exhibition it received 400 pounds per week.' They wear their gold laced dress tunics but have undress peaked forage caps. At this time other ranks of the Guards and other regiments, wore a peakless cap but every member of this band has a style of cap that was usually reserved for senior NCOs and officers. This was changed, within a year or two to the wider topped forage cap that became universal throughout the army. The sleeve decoration is not clear in this photo but the time-beater in the middle standing behind his drum has vertical gold lace on his sleeve. This can be seen more clearly in the photo of the band in 1904.

Regimental details | Band