During WWII all soldiers wore khaki field uniforms. Then at some point,the American soldiers and Marines became dressed in the camouflage fatigues. Then I noticed that the field uniforms changed to camouflage kind world wide. Tonight I noticed on TV that the Israeli soldiers fight terrorists in khaki dress. I vaguely remember that North Koreans wore khaki. Any other armies? And was the American military the first to introduce it or did I see them first?
The Israelis wear khaki because it more or less is camo for that environment (lots o’ sand in that part of the world…). The British had khaki (or really “British tan”) uniforms before the Americans did.
The subject of military uniforms is a most interesting one. You have specifically asked about “field” uniforms which I take to mean what someone would wear in combat. Of course it depends on where you are doing the fighting and what your role is. (see last post). If you take a look at some uniform books in the library you will see the most bewildering assortment of garb you have ever seen. The German uniforms of WW II are unbelievable in their variety. Since it was a police state, there was a uniform for virtually everything and everybody.
I was probably imprecise: in different countries the colors were different, from almost “beige” to khaki, to olive, to green. But it was uniform color, as opposed to green-balck-brown-tan fatigues. Regular (which look pretty much the same in all countries) or “desert storm” kind. But not unicolor.
Peace, does this sound like what you are trying to say?
In the past it seems as though different countries had different colored uniforms, but they were all one solid color rather than camouflage (e.g. the gray uniforms of Germany in WWII.) Now it seems as though all countries use camouflage of either the forest/jungle colors or ‘desert storm’ colors. Did the Americans start this practice? When?
Is that an accurate portrayal of the question? I had a hard time with your second post, but I think I’ve got it. Let me know if this is even close.
Camouflage uniforms WERE used by various branches of the German and Commonwealth armies during WWII. The Germans, especially, used a fascinating array of field uniforms. Actually, the Germans used a huge array of everything; their supply and acquisition system was disorganized and inefficient. At one point they were using over two dozen different kinds of motorcycle.
Canada still uses plain Khaki uniforms, though apparently there is now a plan to relpace them. A lot of Canadian soldier and ex-soldiers (including yours truly) liked the plain khakis because they’re adapatable to different kinds of terrain, but what do I know?
Doug,
It is my question. Who started it and when? The second question, touched by Rick, was, apparently answered my the military itself long time ago.
It started with the British army in India during the late 19th Century. In warm climates they switched from scarlet-and-blue to white uniforms (most navies still do this in summertime). After a long march, the white uniforms would become stained brown with dust and dirt. As repeating rifles and machine guns became common the soldiers noticed that concealment offered protection. They started intentionally coloring their white uniforms, and eventually persuaded the brass to adopt it as a legal uniform.
The word “khaki” comes from a Hindi or Persian word for “dust”.
Although the Austrian army switched from white to gray fairly early, most European armies resisted the trend until World War One. The machine gun quickly showed them the error of their ways, and by 1918 everyone had a field uniform in some brownish or grayish color.
Multi colour camouflage uniforms certainly pre-date WWII by many years, camouflage items for snipers existed during the Great War (although these were non standard items and not general issue).
In addition during WWII, the German Army (and/or Waffen SS) did have various camouflage uniforms (seasonal IIRC) and the Finnish use of snow camouflage in the “Winter War” also pre-dates 1941.
Regards
Walrus
Walrus, if you know:
my question is: when the US (or another military) dressed her entire army (soldiers, generals and everyone in-between) in camouflage? I know about limited use before WWII.
It seems that there are two questions here: (1) when did camouflage coloring become popular for field uniforms and (2) when did “soldiers, generals and everyone in-between” start parading around in public in their (camouflage-colored) field uniforms?
IIRC, during the 1970s, the US Army’s field uniform (“fatigues”) were a solid olive drab and it was generally forbidden to seen in public wearing them. They were (according to regulations) to be worn only when on duty or commuting back and forth to work. You did see GIs and even General Westmoreland on TV wearing them but only in VietNam and then only in combat areas.
Now, in the 1990s, it seems like “soldiers, generals and everyone in-between” runs around in camouflage-colored field uniforms all over the place. I first noticed this during the Gulf War when General Schwarzkopf and other officers were interviewed wearing combat fatigues in settings where a dress uniform would have been more appropriate. (I assume this was on the advice of public relations types who wanted their clients to project a gritty, down-to-earth image…kind of like how when presidential candidates visit automobile plants they roll up their sleeves.) Now I see GIs all over town wearing combat boots and fatigues. I assume its all a matter of projecting an image. The next thing you know, the army will swap their silly baseball caps for sporty berets. What, they are planning to do just that??
Tx, Yeah. I remember seeing Vietnam chronicles. There and in “Good Morning, Vietnam!” the “field” or combat iniform was old style unicolor. I was in the Army Reserve in the ‘80s. We were required to wear camouflage in field/camp situations and for the desk jobs. Many officers wore a regulation sweater and straight trousers with patent leather shoes, although I do not remember formal tunics or even ties. The choice was officers’. I never participated in official parades, but I guess everyone is ordered to wear “uniform uniform” (after all, a maching army should not look “motley”.
So, I guess the swich happened sometime after 1975. Did it coincide with the repeal of the draft? Was the U.S. Army the first one to adopt it as basic field/combat gear?
I guess I’m still not sure what the question is, AFAIK the Army, the Marines and all other branches of the service have a number of uniforms which are worn when the circumstances dictate. I know for a fact that the Marines have utility uniforms that are olive drab, a green camoflage pattern and a brown camoflage pattern, any of which might be used in a combat situation. This has nothing to do with their dress uniforms or semi-dress uniforms that are used for non-field use (like office work). So far as I know, nobody uses camoflage exclusively for any of their uniform types. If the question is when did everyone appear on camera is camoflage then it would be during Desert Storm. Was it appropriate? Probably not for anyone who wasn’t actually in the field. (Schwartskoph (sp?) had no reason to wear a tiger suit) It’s pushing 3am, excuse the spelling.
The change from olive drab to camoflage came during Vietnam. Specifically, I believe sometime between Full Metal Jacket and Apocalypse Now. I believe the pattern in the latter is tiger stripes, not the usual pattern, but I can’t recall for sure. I also believe that there were a number of countries that preceded the US in switching from the solid color uniforms. Interestingly, no one seems to have informed Beetle Bailey’s command of these matters at any point since the WWII era.
Last I heard, the Marine Corps (and Navy, but they rarely wear cammies) had strict rules for when they were allowed to wear field uniforms rather than dress uniforms. One example I recall is that if dressed in cammies while commuting, one is allowed to stop at a convenience store that is also a gas station, but not a regular convenience store. The Army and Air Force are less strict about such things, and also refer to them as Battle Dress Uniforms, while the Navy and Marines refer to them as Camoflage Utilities.
The change from olive drab to camoflage came during Vietnam. Specifically, I believe sometime between Full Metal Jacket and Apocalypse Now. I believe the pattern in the latter is tiger stripes, not the usual pattern, but I can’t recall for sure. I also believe that there were a number of countries that preceded the US in switching from the solid color uniforms. Interestingly, no one seems to have informed Beetle Bailey’s command of these matters at any point since the WWII era.
Last I heard, the Marine Corps (and Navy, but they rarely wear cammies) had strict rules for when they were allowed to wear field uniforms rather than dress uniforms. One example I recall is that if dressed in cammies while commuting, one is allowed to stop at a convenience store that is also a gas station, but not a regular convenience store. The Army and Air Force are less strict about such things, and also refer to them as Battle Dress Uniforms, while the Navy and Marines refer to them as Camoflage Utilities.
So I think the Army and Air Force do wear their BDU’s for office work and such, and it was perfectly acceptable for Schwartzkopf to brief the press in them. Has anyone noticed any Marine Corps generals doing this? That would be a bit different.
And for those who care, Army Uniform Regulations. They are pretty vague about the conditions for wear of each uniform.
Tx, all.
It’s called BTU, or field uniform, or whatever. It is convenient for field and office work and requires less care than dress uniform. My guess is that generals wear it to office to show grunts that they are not different from them. It also makes everyone equal, which is kind of important in the modern military.
Except the Navy, apparently, where they have dungarees for the enlisted (E-6 and below) while the officers and chiefs get khakis. Also, the dress uniforms are very different.
Some US forces, I’m not sure who but I think paratroopers or Marines, wore disruptive pattern smocks in France in 1944 but this was quickly abandoned as it was easy for them to be confused with Waffen SS troops with a similar smock and for friendly fire incidents to occur.
The US army wore olive drab fatigues in Vietnam. Some soldiers (guessing: special ops types) started wearing the tiger stripe fatigues. While the overall colour is meant to help the soldier blend into the background, the camouflage pattern is meant to break up the soldier’s outline. By breakinf up his outline, he looks less like a person and blends into the b.g. better. Late in the war the US adopted the “jungle pattern” fatigues. Later, when we were more concerned about fighting in Europe, the pattern was changed to “woodland”. Personally, I can’t tell the difference. But then, I haven’t made a side-by-side comparison.
Somewhere along the line, “fatigues” became “battle dress uniforms” (BDUs).
With deployment in the Middle East came “desert” camouflage. These were six colours, mainly shades of tan plus black and white. Some soldiers called them “chocolate chip” because of the white-and-black spots. These are the BDUs associated with the Gulf War. Late in the war, the six-colour BDUs were changed to three-colour. I have a pair of these for my lounging-around-the-apartment pants (they’re very comfortable) and the colours are fairly close: i.e., at a glance you may think they are all khaki.
Some camouflage was not meant to hide, but to confuse. For example, in WWI and early WWII ships were painted in “dazzle” camouflage. These were often black and white stripes painted in patterns. When a submarine spotted a ship, especially in foggy conditions, it made it harder to determine the ship’s direction of travel. The german battleship Bismark had its bow and stern painted much darker than the rest of the ship, and there were white parts painted behind the dark parts. The idea there was to make the ship look smaller than it actually was, the white looking like the bow and stern waves.
About khaki: The guy who runs the place where I rent helicopters was wearing an olive green shirt. I asked him if it came in khaki (pronouncing it “CAK-ee”). The owner, an Irish ex-pat (strangely, I could swear his accent is British) had no idea what I was talking about. I explained and he said, “Oh! KAH-kee!” The other owner, also an ex-pat with the same accent, said, “Kah-kee? Isn’t that what you start your car with?”