WOMEN’S uniforms during the Great War were not always so stylish.

“Munitions Girls ready to accord a loyal welcome”, ran the caption to this photograph illustrating a booklet to commemorate a wartime royal visit to the works of Prince Smith and Son on May 29, 1918.

King George V and Queen Mary had a comprehensive tour of Burlington Shed, from the machining and turning shops to the erecting shop, where their Majesties showed “a lively interest in the latest type of combing, backwashing, drawing and spinning machinery”.

The royal party’s route through the yard to its waiting motor cars was lined with cheering munition workers, The Queen especially admiring this group of workers in attendance in its “smart khaki-coloured uniforms”.