Rare R.N.M.B.R Chief Petty Officers bullion cap badge.

Extremely rare Royal Navy Motor Boats Reserve padded bullion Chief Petty Officers cap badge, amazing to have served without moth or damage , removed from hat band.

Royal Navy Motor Boat Reserve (1912–1919)

The Royal Navy Motor Boat Reserve was formed in late 1912 and became Britain’s first wartime “petrol navy,” adapting fast motor launches, yachts and pleasure boats for patrol, escort and harbour defence. During WWI, RNMBR crews served around the British Isles and, as part of the wider Auxiliary Patrol, also operated in key Allied waters such as Gibraltar, Malta and the Mediterranean, sweeping mines, guarding ports, escorting convoys and hunting submarines.

• Crews were drawn from sailors, fishermen, yachtsmen and naval volunteers, already familiar with handling small craft.

• Their boats included fast motor launches, picket boats, working yachts and dispatch craft, ideal for tight inshore work.

• Duties ranged from coastal patrols, harbour defence and mine clearance to carrying messages, scouting and inshore escort.

• Missions were often carried out in small, open boats where skill and nerve mattered more than armour or size.

• RNMBR vessels supported the main fleet by keeping channels safe, ports supplied and submarines under constant watch.

• Although short-lived, the RNMBR helped pioneer tactics later used by Coastal Forces and motor-launch flotillas in both World Wars.

• Bases and patrol zones expanded beyond home waters, with small-craft units operating in strategic Allied ports including Gibraltar and Malta, reinforcing the Royal Navy’s wider presence.