Historical information

Slouch hats were first worn by the Victorian Mounted Rifles in 1885. It was originally worn with the right side looped up to make it easier for marching troops to perform the “eyes right” command in parades but as more states adopted the slouch hat, it became more common to wear the left side turned up.

The slouch hat was widely worn by Australian soldiers during the Boer War and it was universally adopted for the Australian Army after Federation. It was usually worn with a khaki hatband, known as a puggaree, and a Rising Sun badge on the left-hand side.

The word ‘slouch’ refers to the sloping brim. The brim is made from rabbit-fur felt or wool felt and is always worn with a puggaree. The majority of the Australian Army wear the light khaki coloured puggaree, with a unit colour patch sewn on the right side, however, there are slight variations. The seven pleats in the standard puggaree represent each state and one for the Australian Territories.

Significance

The slouch hat is an object strongly associated with Australian identity.

Physical description

Australian Army standard issue khaki fur felt slouch hat with leather chinstrap, commonly worn as part of a military uniform.
Wide-brimmed with snap up latch on left-hand-side. Without Rising Sun badge or unit colour patch.
7 fold/pleat khaki cloth band puggaree around the hat.
Dark brown leather sweatband, embossed with a gold stamp identifying manufacture as Akubra, date of manufacture as 1988, size 58, and a broad arrow to signify the hat is owned by the Australian Department of Defence.
The slouch hat is also known as a hat KFF, or hat khaki fur felt.