REME: The Corps That Keeps Everything Else Working

September 14, 2026

The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers exist for one reason: modern armies run on machinery, and machinery breaks. REME is the corps responsible for keeping the British Army's equipment working, from small arms to armoured vehicles to electronics.

Formed in the middle of a war

REME was formed in 1942, and the timing tells you everything about why. By the middle of the Second World War the British Army had become mechanised to a degree that would have been unimaginable a generation earlier, and the responsibility for repairing all of it was spread across several different organisations.

Consolidating that into a single corps was a straightforwardly practical decision made under wartime pressure. It is one of the more recent corps in the British Army, and one of the most obviously necessary.

The badge

The REME badge is among the most distinctive in the British Army and it is not subtle about what the corps does. It combines a rearing horse, a globe and lightning — mechanical power, worldwide service and electricity, in one device.

The corps motto is Arte et Marte, usually rendered as "by skill and by fighting", which is a neat summary of a corps whose members are tradesmen and soldiers at the same time.

The badge has been produced in a range of materials over its relatively short life, and because the corps only dates from 1942 the whole collecting field sits within living memory — which makes provenance easier to establish than for older regiments.

Craftsman, and the rank that surprises people

REME uses Craftsman where most of the Army uses Private. It is the same level in the structure, with a different name, and it reflects the corps' identity as a body of skilled tradesmen.

This is one of those British Army details that catches people out constantly. The Army has a whole collection of alternative titles for the same rank — Gunner, Sapper, Trooper, Rifleman, Signaller, Guardsman, Craftsman — and each one tells you which part of the Army the person belongs to before they have said anything else.

You will also encounter artificer, usually shortened to "tiffy", for highly qualified technical tradesmen. It is a term REME shares with the Royal Navy, which is not a coincidence: both use it for the same reason.

Trade badges

Because REME is built entirely around skilled trades, trade and qualification badges matter more here than in most corps. A REME soldier's insignia can tell you their specific technical specialisation and the level they have reached in it, which is considerably more information than a cap badge alone.

For collectors this is the interesting part. Cap badges are plentiful; the specialist trade insignia is far less so, and it is where the real detail of what the corps actually does becomes visible.

What to look for when buying

1942 is the floor. No genuine REME badge predates it. Any claim otherwise is a claim about a predecessor organisation, not about REME.
The horse is the tell. The rearing horse device is distinctive enough that REME items are easy to identify even when worn, and easy to distinguish from other badges featuring horses.
Check the crown for date, as with everything else.
Look for tools and vehicles in the imagery. Sub-unit and workshop insignia often incorporates equipment references, and those items are much scarcer than corps badges.

Why REME material is common in surplus

Two reasons. The corps is large, because the amount of equipment needing maintenance is enormous. And REME personnel are distributed throughout the Army rather than concentrated in their own formations — attached to units all over — which means REME insignia turns up alongside almost every other regiment's material rather than in its own separate pool.

If you buy a mixed lot of British insignia, there is a good chance something REME is in it.

REME and the Second World War

Being formed in 1942 means REME's earliest material is wartime, and that gives the corps an unusual collecting profile. There is no long Victorian tail to chase, and no pre-war variations to catalogue — the whole story begins in the middle of the largest mechanised conflict in history.

Wartime-period REME insignia is correspondingly desirable, and it is worth knowing that early examples differ in material and manufacture from later ones. Wartime economy measures affected badge production generally, so the earliest REME badges are not simply older versions of the modern one.

Workshop and unit insignia

Beyond the corps badge there is a whole layer of insignia associated with specific workshops, battalions and attached detachments. These are far less frequently seen, far less frequently identified correctly, and considerably more interesting to research than another cap badge.

If you find something with REME devices that does not match the standard cap badge, do not assume it is a reproduction. It is at least as likely to be sub-unit insignia that the seller could not place.

Why REME items are worth keeping an eye on

The corps sits at an unusual intersection: a modern corps, a short and well-documented history, a highly distinctive badge, and a role that puts its people alongside every other part of the Army. That combination makes REME material both easy to find and easy to research, which is a rare pairing and a good reason to pick it up when it appears in a mixed lot.