Is the 'mark of shame' rumour about the RLC and the RAOC true?

Did a case of mistaken delivery end up becoming a feature on two of the British Army's cap badges? 

The cap badge for the Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) shows the five regiments that were merged together to create the 'Loggies' we know and love today.

But is there a mistake on one of the original badges that is still there today? Many believe there is. 

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The regiment was formed in 1993 by the union of the Royal Engineers Postal and Courier Service, the Royal Corps of Transport, the Royal Pioneer Corps, the Army Catering Corps, and the Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC).

On the RLC's cap badge, there is the Royal Engineers' laurel and garter band, the Indian star from the Royal Corps of Transport, the crossed axes courtesy of the Royal Pioneer Corps and the motto 'We Sustain' from the Army Catering Corps. 

But it is the shield with three cannons and three balls from the RAOC that has caused debate. 

Anyone with a keen eye might have spotted that the cannon balls are too big for the cannons below, leading to the theory that the regiment delivered the wrong ammunition at some point in history.

In turn, this has led to some suggesting that it is an eternal mark of incompetence depicted on their badge.  

But is this true? The Royal Logistic Corps Museum, located in Worthy Down, has confirmed it is a myth. 

The museum said: "The story of the 'Mark of Shame', as its sometimes called, dates back to the Crimea War where, supposedly, because of the failure by the Board of Ordnance to supply the correct ammunition they and all their successors must carry the symbol of three cannon with oversized cannonballs as a permanent reminder of that failure.

"The three cannons and the cannonballs were used by the Board of Ordnance for centuries before the Crimea War. One of the oldest objects in the RLC Museum's collection to show the motif is a piece of a lead water tank dated 1719.

"On 16 May 1823, the College of Arms used the motif as the central design for the Coat of Arms for the Board of Ordnance.  

"The shield from the Coat of Arms is what was used for the Army Ordnance Corps (AOC) and Army Ordnance Department (AOD) cap badges, as well as forming part of the RAOC and RLC cap badges, while the motto underneath Sua Tele Tonanti would become the AOC, AOD and RAOC's motto.   

"As for why the cannonballs are too big to fit into the cannon, the reason is due to the practicality of the design rather than censure.

"If the cannonballs were the correct size, they would be impossible to see on any object that wasn't massive in size." 

Since the coronation of King Charles III, all cap badges were engraved with the King's cypher, however, the design of the RLC's cap badge will still have three cannon and balls in its design.