Stable Belt

A stable belt is an item of uniform used in the armed forces of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries. Gymnastic belts are similar coloured belts used in Brazil and Lebanon. Stable belts or gymnastic belts are also worn by the armed forced of other nations such as Denmark.

Originally, stable belts were worn by cavalrymen in the working dress they used for cleaning the stables and tending to their horses, but in the 1950s they spread to all branches of the armed forces, adding a splash of colour and individuality to the drab khaki working uniforms. Initially they were resisted by many senior officers, who saw them as too individualistic, but they soon became accepted throughout the forces.

Gymnastic belts have a similar appearance but a different origin, being derived from physical training equipment.

A stable belt is a wide webbing belt, usually a single solid colour or horizontally striped in two or more different colours. It is worn around the waist and when worn with Combat Soldier 95 it is worn through the trouser belt loops. In the British Army or Royal Marines, when worn with barrack dress, the belt is placed either in the belt loops of trousers or a skirt or over a jersey. In the Royal Air Force, it is worn with service working dress (No. 2 dress) either covering the top of the trousers (or skirt) and the lower part of the shirt or through the belt loops if they have been specially designed to accommodate the belt's width. Unlike the Army, it is never worn over a jersey. The original cavalry stable belts buckled at the side to avoid chafing the soldier's stomach as he bent down during stable work, but many stable belts are now clipped at the front, sometimes behind a metal belt plate (usually bearing the badge of the regiment), although a few regiments such as the Light Infantry clip their stable belts at the front with the original two leather straps. A large number of units, however, continue to use the traditional method of securing the belt using two leather straps and metal buckles at the left-hand side.

Today, every regiment and corps of the British Army has its own stable belt, often very colourful. The Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force also have their own, although stable belts are rarely worn in the Navy. Stable belts are worn with most styles of informal dress, but not with full dress, service dress or mess dress. Stable belts are purchased by individual service personnel, not issued, so are theoretically neither regulation nor compulsory but since most people own one they are effectively uniform items in the Army.