For £30,000, you can own the beret Monty donned: British war hero's famous hat is for sale

Published: 20:43 EDT, 1 November 2026 | Updated: 21:14 EDT, 1 November 2026 It was perched firmly on his head as he led the Allied advance to victory in Germany in 1945.And now Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's Second World War black beret is up for auction priced at £30,000.'Monty', pictured, adopted the Royal Tank Regiment's headpiece while commanding the Eighth Army in North Africa in 1942. The British military hero wore the trademark headwear during the Allied advance into Germany in 1945. He even added his General Officer's badge to the regiment's tank emblem, saying the look meant that troops recognised him on the battlefield. Monty gifted the beret to an American friend and it later passed into a private collection. Along with Monty's messages to troops, the beret is going under the hammer on November 19 at Boston-based RR Auction in the US, who said it was Monty's 'instantly recognisable visual signature'.Monty died in his sleep at the age of 88 in 1976 at his home in Alton, Hampshire. Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's Second World War black beret (pictured) is up for auction priced at £30,000 Field Marshal Montgomery (left) and Winston Churchill (right) at the El Alamein Reunion, a concert for 5,000 soldiers who fought in the pivotal 1942 World War II desert victoryAn RR Auction spokesperson said: 'Few pieces of military dress became as closely identified with a single commander as Montgomery's black, double-badged beret.'Like Napoleon's bicorne, MacArthur's peaked cap, or Moshe Dayan's eye patch, it became an instantly recognisable visual signature of the man who wore it.'Montgomery adopted the black beret of the Royal Tank Regiment while commanding the Eighth Army in North Africa in 1942, adding his General Officer's badge alongside the regiment's tank badge.'He quickly recognised its value on the battlefield, later recalling that the distinctive beret allowed his troops to recognise his presence.'He continued wearing the double-badged black beret through the campaigns that followed, and images of Montgomery in North Africa, Normandy, and across Europe made it inseparable from his wartime identity.'Also offered in the sale in a separate lot are dozens of wartime messages issued by Monty to Eighth Army and 21 Army Group troops ahead of the pivotal battles of the war.They include a prophetic message ahead of the famed Battle of El Alamein in October 1942, in which he states: 'We are ready now.'The battle which is now about to begin will be one of the decisive battles of history. It will be the turning point of the war.'Twenty-four hours before D-Day, he issued a hair-raising rallying cry to his men, writing: 'The time has come to deal the enemy a terrific blow in Western Europe.'The blow will be struck by the combined sea, land, and air forces of the Allies - together constituting one great Allied team, under the supreme command of General Eisenhower.'On the eve of this great adventure I send to you my best wishes to every soldier in the Allied team.'To us is given the honour of striking a blow for freedom which will live in history; and in the better days that lie ahead men will speak with pride of our doings*'I want every soldier to know that I have complete confidence in the successful outcome of the operations that we are now about to begin.'With stout hearts, and with enthusiasm for the contest, let us go forward to victory.'In his final wartime message, he paid a moving tribute to his men, stating: 'This great Allied team has achieved much in war; may it achieve even more in peace.'It has been a privilege and an honour to command this great British Empire team in Western Europe.'Few commanders can have had such loyal service as you have given me. I thank each one of you from the bottom of my heart. And so let us embark on what lies ahead full of joy and optimism.'We have won the German war. Let us now win the peace.'