Re:The Great French Mustache Strike of 1907
by yellowapple on Monday October 08, 2018 @06:36PM
(#18171920)
I think we might be talking about two different navies. I thought the discussion was around the US Navy; looks like you're referring to the Royal Navy?
Re:The Great French Mustache Strike of 1907
by NeedMoreTea on Monday October 08, 2018 @06:53PM
(#18172024)
Indeed I was, and foolishly didn't put Royal Navy in the OP, though I thought I had.
Sorry for the confusion :)
Turns out to be more complex than I thought. "The CO may permit all personnel (except Royal Marines) to request to wear full set beards. RM personnel may wear moustaches at their discretion."
The moustache only ban seems to be Queen Victoria's doing.
It's up to the CO if the resulting beard is good enough. Uneven growth, e.g. scrappy, is unacceptable. The advised maximum time to achieve a sufficiently thorough beard is 2 weeks. lol
More here: https://www.forces.net/news/beard-royal-navy-tradition
As far as I know it goes back to the days of Drake. No idea if there's variations for submariners or COs. I know there are some variations of regs and traditions for the silent service.