The Royal Green Jackets On 1st January 1966 the regiments of The Green Jackets Brigade took a further step forward by transforming themselves into the three battalions of a single `Large Regiment`: The Royal Green Jackets.  And so the individual identities of their famous forbears were merged into a single whole, and in a few short years a generation has grown up owing no separate allegiances, only a single one to the new Regiment.  Since the Royal Green Jackets was formed, a new area of conflict has opened in the shape of Northern Ireland and all battalions have taken their turn as resident units or emergency tours of duty.  To the residue of the overseas garrisons of the immediate post-war years, such as Hong Kong and Gibraltar, new ones have been added in Belize and the Falklands, and all of these have seen Green jackets since the Regiment was formed, while the countries to which whole battalions or small parties have travelled on exercise range from the USA and Canada to Morocco, Jordan, Kenya and Nepal, to mention but a few.  Though the Royal Green Jackets once more find themselves at a point their history where no specialised role distinguishes them from others, they stand prepared to take the lead when ever the evolution of the military environment so demands.  What is certain is that their originality of thinking and fostering of the family spirit still mark them out as exceptional.
	THE GREEN JACKET LEGACY egimental histories often start with a description of traditions, as if they were in themselves a source of pride; often they are only empty substitutes for real achievements.  Having traced the story, however, it is appropriate to mention some of the forms by which historical events are remembered today.
	The Green Jacket and the Rifle The 5th Battalion of the 60th was the first British infantry regiment to be dressed in green and the Rifle Corps adopted a similar uniform from its formation.  The purpose was both practical and symbolic, representing the first camouflage as required for the new open-order tactics and a clean break with the rigid mechanical methods of `redcoat` troops.  Both regiments were armed with rifles (the Hompesch rifle for the 60th and the Baker for the Rifle Corps), a more accurate and longer-range weapon than the musket but shorter and requiring a long sword-bayonet to compensate in close-quarter fighting, hence the use of the term `sword` for bayonet in Rifle Regiments.  The Bugle Open-order tactics where individuals often found themselves beyond the range of the human voice called for an efficient means of signalling to control battlefield manoeuvres.  The bugle provided the necessary communications and a complex system of calls was developed, many of them still in use today, while bugles replace the drums of other infantry on parade.  The Cap Badge At the centre is the bugle horn, the badge of all Rifle and Light Infantry Regiments.  The Maltese Cross is derived from the badges of both The King's Royal Rifle Corps and The Rifle Brigade, while on its arms are some of the Battle Honours of the former regiments, displayed in this way because Green Jacket Regiments carry no colours.  At the foot is the Naval Crown awarded to The Rifle Brigade to commemorate their forebears service under Nelson at Copenhagen. Marksmanship The introduction of the early rifle led to a tradition on marksmanship, as Green Jackets were required to be the sharpshooters of the Army.  Only in recent years has the bulk of the Army started to devote the same attention to the subject, despite the fact that rifles have been standard issue for nearly 140 years.  Discipline The officers of the British Army of the eighteenth century have been described as mainly incompetent and habitually drunk: their soldiers as largely drawn from the criminal class.  It was this unpromising material with a succession of forward-thinking officers, many of them associated with former Green Jacket Regiments and culminating in Sir John Moore, set to work to turn into a dedicated and efficient fighting force by a system of discipline based on thorough training and encouragement, rather than the threat of the lash.  Much of the Army was slow to follow, but the principles of mutual trust and respect remain the foundation of Green Jacket discipline today.  Innovation he assumption that Green Jackets should be in the forefront of military thinking long predates the name.  The Royal Americans (described by Fuller as `the first true light infantry the British standing Army ever had`) adopted equipment and tactics for a new role in forest warfare; the Light Brigade brought the profession of the light infantry to a pitch of perfection in the Peninsular War and through the nineteenth century are predecessors were constantly seeking ways of increasing mobility by developments in mounted infantry using horses, camels and elephants.  It was a logical consequence that the 60th and the Rifle Brigade should have been chosen to pioneer the motor battalion concept in World War II, while the 52nd did the same for airlanding by glider.