Uniforms have been worn since thousands of years, beit the old days of traditional army on chariots and horses or the modern dayarmy on tanks be it the Egyptians, Chinese, Greeks, Romans, etc. The mainpurpose of the uniform is to signify well organized military forces equipped bya central authority. Troops not under government control are less likely towear uniforms. With modern technology and globalization different factors affectthe design and making of the military uniform. This article is intended tocover basic aspects and information related to army uniform beginning frombrief history, to its basic purpose, current technology, and different fabricsbeing used for the uniform. Finally the article also throws light on the latesttechnology being used for the army uniform to provide enhanced protection against environment, enemy at the same time preserving the mandatory aspects of theuniform.
History
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The exact details of the first military uniform beingmade are still unknown. The soldiers of the roman republic wore army uniforms; Germanlandsknechts of the 16th century wore distinctive military uniform.
Eighteenth Century
During the eighteenth century the normal military uniform in Europe comprised of a standardized form of civilian dress tricom hat, longskirted coat, waist coat and breeches. Uniforms displayed colored facings onthe collar, cuffs and lapels of the blue coat, by group of states, notregiment, as in Europe. The color that emerged as the uniform colorduring the 18th century was Army Blue wherein battleformations required soldiers to stand elbow to elbow with smoothbore muskets.Colorful uniforms provided unit cohesion amidst the clouds of black-powdersmoke.
Nineteenth Century
The military uniform reached its ornamental peak in the 19thCentury in Europe.British soldiers were known for their striking red clothingredcoats. This was actually a fairly dull shade of madder red until the generaladoption of scarlet for tunics in the 1870s. It is believed that the ornatecrest of the military uniform was reached in the early 19th century in Western Europe. Napoleonic wars are being identified with the splash of colors and ornateuniforms. By 1810 Napoleonic fashion had changed the cut of the uniform wornsince the Revolutionary War. The coat now fastened in front and no longerexposed the waistcoat. That garment had become the roundabout fatigue jacketwith sleeves, in winter gray or summer white. The skirts of the coat were cutin, straight across, without color facings. However, with undress and fatigueuniforms being worn in the Seminole and Mexican Wars and the costs of theold-style elaborate uniforms becoming a concern for officers, a radical newuniform concept appeared in 1851. A French-pattern, full-skirt tunic or frock coat with black-leather waist beltaccoutrements began to replace the old body coat and the white shoulder beltsworn since 1810.
In 1902 foreign duty and the advent of smokeless powder madeit mandatory to use one uniform for both in garrison and field with seasonalfabrics of summer khaki or winter olive drab. At the end of the 19thCentury, the Army Blue uniform had battered the ends of frontier duty andtropical fights. The uniform traveled from garrison to the field by merelyexchanging the natty blue forage cap for the wide-brim slouch campaign hat andby securing the sky-blue trousers cuffs with a pair of cavalry boots orinfantry canvas leggings.
World War I
The First World War finally put an end to the expensive practice of furnishing colorful uniforms to all ranks of the various armies
World War II
Uniforms of varying shades of khaki and grey were universalin the World War II. Several experiments were made in the look of the militaryuniform with the advent of reinventing the dress. The olive drab became the newModern Army Green in 1954. Emphasis on black shoes increased. The uniformrediscovered after the Second World War laid the foundation of the uniformused today.
Also apart from the dresses and uniforms in the old era,beards and moustaches worn by the officers at that time were equally ornamentalcomplementing their rank and age. Some of the styles still bear names payinghomage to this age.
Purpose of Army uniform
Distinguished clothing
Army uniforms are used tocater many different purposes and one of the chief purposes is to set thedistinction apart from civilians and other people carrying weapons that do notenjoy protection. In ancient times another purpose to use the army uniforms wasto locate the soldiers in the deserts with distinctive army uniforms. Also armymen being one of most important professionals the soldiers are made to dress toimpress the population. The soldiers are also made to dress to impress the superiors. It is believed that attractive or distinctive uniforms can make a militarycareer desirable to young men. During 1914 the British Army found thatregiments with attractive uniforms found it easier to attract recruits. We cantake an example of the four Rifle regiments in their sombre dark green had ahigher public profile than the great mass of line infantry in scarlet.
Camouflage
Another purpose of the armyuniform was to improve visibility of troops during the war time. During theeighteenth and nineteenth centuries, bright contrasting colors were used whichmade it easier for the troops to recognize their men amidst of gun power andother dust. But the bright colors brought with them another issues of beingeasily recognizable by the enemy as well, from about 1880s enemies were ableto shoot at distance spotting men in contrasting colors. Taking this issue upthe British Army changed the color of their forces to mix with thesurroundings, khaki and olive green symbolized the new army power tocamouflage. The idea was further explored to come up with different uniformsfor different weather white for snowy regions, khaki for deserts and greens forforests. This pattern is being adopted by different armies worldwide.
In current times a universalcamouflage pattern is used which blends the green, tan and gray to workeffectively in desert and urban environments. Black colors are usually omittedform the uniform as it is not found in the nature. It was found that when nightvision goggles are used pure black color appears excessively dark creating anundesirable high contrast image whereas on the other hand gray tends to matchthe environment, dust could cover up the gray. Also gray is a neutral color anddoes not catch the eye as more saturated colors do.
Logistics
Standardization is anotherpurpose of the military uniform. Mass production of army uniforms results inspecific cut and color; also it becomes easier to replace uniforms if mass production is done.
Psychological Purpose
Wartime instead of being thegame of the battle is also a game of mindset and human psychology andappearance plays a big part in intimating the enemy. For instance the tall,mitre-shaped caps worn by grenadiers in the 18th Century made thesoldiers wearing them, larger and impressive. From 1740 to 1918 Prussianhussars wore the skull and crossbones on their hats. The clothing and theuniform also tells about the financial power of that army, in ancient Sparta warriors wore expensive red cloaks to depict their luxuries lifestyle. There is abelief that the red color was being adopted by the British soldiers as it wouldnot show off the blood stains of their enemy.
Different Army uniform Fabrics
Several fabrics are used for the Army uniform, they are aslisted below:
- Visa; Polyester fabric. It is generally used for ladies white (summer) jackets.
- Bradman 11: It is a mix of 45% merino wool/55% polyester. This fabric has lighter & finer finish than the Poly/wool fabric.
- Poly/Wool; a mix of 45% wool/55% polyester for heavy wearing.
- 80/20; a mix of 80% wool/20% polyester for long wearing.
- Wool fabric: 100%wool, wool & cotton blended wool & polyester blended, wool & cashmere blended. Wool & tencel & modal blended.
- Cotton fabric, Cotton/Polyester, Linen fabric for hot weathers
- Chemical fiber fabric: Polyester & viscose blended, polyester & madel.
- Lining: 100%polyester
- Recent research and technology has enabled development of fibers that automatically remain waterproof. The particles absorb water and then use its electrical force to reject what it absorbed.
Different types of Uniforms
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It is beyond the scope of this article to listeach and every type of uniforms used by all different armies of the world butsome of the most common types of military uniforms are as listed below:
- Dress Uniform
- White Spring/Autumn Service Uniform
- Spring/Autumn Service Uniform
- Summer Service Uniform
- Winter Service Uniform
- Combat Navy Uniform
- Combat Desert Uniform
- Combat Snow Uniform
- Fight deck
- Air force uniform
Female personnel generally have female versionsof their respective uniforms, including a skirt to be worn instead of trousers.Also at times their cap and helmet gears are different compared to their malecounter parts.
Parts of Military Uniform
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Basic accessories of the military uniform remain somewhatsimilar for all the armies. The area of focus here is not the navy or the airforce but the defense soldiers uniform. Below listed are most of theaccessories that comprise a military uniform.
- Sweater
- Shoes
- Coats
- Rank insignia
- Collar tab
- Cap badge
- Name tag
- Ribbon bars
- Service branch shoulder patch (for Service Uniform)
- Army flag shoulder patch (for Dress Uniform)
- Service badge
- Boots desert operational
- DPM (disruptive pattern material) camouflage uniform
- Boots barrack light operational
- T-shirts
- Summer, winter, tropical issues socks
- Short and long sleeve tops
- Short and long sleeve leggings
- DPM shirt
- DPM smock
- DPM rain suit with breathable material
- Helmet
- Fleece liner
- Shemag
- Beret
- Water proof cap
- Bush hat
- Battle vest
- Large backpack
- Combat body armor
- Hydration systems
- Field gear
- Sleeping gear
- Special-operations gear
Current Technology
Advance technologies are being used to provide better protection to the military. Some of the technologies include double-layerinfrared neutral fabric lined with Gore-Tex. The uniform made with thistechnology is reversible, thereby incorporating day and night use and woodlandand desert capability in a single garment.
Companies have also come up with lightweight bulletproof vest to be used continuously under clothing, the vest is designed in such a way that itallows for easy mobility. Also a steel plate can be inserted in the frontpocket to give added protection to the heart area against steel-core bulletsand pointed weapons; there is also a provision wherein stab resistant panelscan also be incorporated in the structure.
Military glove are being made from hydrophobic NATO leather,Kevlar and Gore-Tex and acts as a reliable 'all-rounder' which is adaptable andusable in almost any situation. Special Forces gloves are developed usingNomex, Kevlar, waterproofed leather and Gore-Tex, with special processing to guarantee optimum protection and sensitivity.
Companies are coming up with warrior wear system with builtin eight tourniquets, two in each sleeve and each pant leg correctly positionedand oriented to the upper and lower extremities are immediately accessibleunder existing gear and can be operated by the wearer, their buddy or a medic.
Apart from that waterproof fibers are being used in themaking of the army uniforms to be used in the humid conditions and in water.
Research into the field
Government is giving grants worth billions of dollars to theuniversities and research centers all around the globe to come up withtechnology and design for uniforms which would help enhance the efficiency oftheir military compared to their competitors. Some of the problem with current material and design of the army uniforms are as follows:
- Soldiers wear a system of Kevlar and ceramicplated body armor in the form of a vest that weighs more than 100 pounds, limiting the armor to only their arms and legs.
- The soldiers have different uniforms for different environments such as their uniforms are different while fighting in the deserts, different when in grasslands and similarly others.
- The uniforms are heavy
- The fabric does not entail the soldiers any kind of protection from deadly micro organisms or chemicals
- Large objects to carry
Scientists are doing research to come up withintelligent technology to help soldiers in many different ways. Some of theexamples of the smart technology are as follows:
- The smart technology will come to soldiers rescue in changing environment wherein the fabric will change colors on command as per the environment
- To be able to manipulate light to make soldiers invisible in the field
- Technology which would enable the soldiers to change a shirtsleeve into a splint or a pant leg into a rigid cast in the field if a soldier is injured
- Possess built-in sensors of each soldier's physical condition and location in the battlefield so command posts can monitor soldiers from a distance
- The new technology would also weave radio communications materials inside the uniform's fabric which would in return provide soldiers flexibility and lighter loads
- It may be look to be aiming high in the beginning but scientists are actually working to come up with technology which would administer medicines and transmit vital signs to distant medicswho could then potentially perform medical triage on soldiers in the field
- Provide impact protection materials and systems including ballistic and shrapnel
Nanotechnology
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To turn the above mentioned aims into realityscientists are relying on the nano-technology. The most important feature ofnanotechnology is its microscopic size; to explain it further size of onenanometer is when you divide single strand of human hair into 50,000. The valueof nanotechnology is that miniaturized mechanisms that are able to modifymolecular structures to gain new abilities.
Use of nanotechnology will help design chemical protective over garments which shield soldiers against hazardous chemicals and deadlymicro-organisms. Uniforms equipped with nanotechnology will also make thefabric lighter and breathable by around 20%. Soldiers and military bases makeuse of large objectssuch as the radiosized chemical sensors which are large in size, use ofnanotechnology will help to reduce the size, thereby increase its portability.ISN scientists are hoping to able to reduce sensors to the size of a dime sothey can incorporate them into uniforms that would enable soldiers to know whatpotentially harmful particles are floating in their environment.
Tom Tassinari a scientist with the Soldier System Center in Natick, Massachusetts says "We are in the early stages ofanticipating how nanotechnology will revolutionize army equipment."
Uniform made out of nanotechnology will have properties similar to that of a chameleon which would help change the properties according tothe environment. The fabric will have absorbing materials to counter ballisticpenetration, for this there would be a need for a lightweight and flexiblesubstance that could instantly turn rigid upon impact. To investigate furtherfor such a substance, scientists are in the process of studying the behaviorsof magnetic polarization of a fluid to a solid. ISNs team hopes to infusemagnetized fluid current into the suits fiber, for instance if there is aglove and it is send opposite a large magnet then it instantly becomes stiff.Magnetization would modify the atomic composition of the fiber so the solidificationwould increase the strength of the Kevlar while the remaining suit will becomeflexible good enough for mobility, this would help in reducing the weight thatsoldiers can carry on combat.
Scientists are trying to find cues among the nano structurein nature. Different materials such as composition of marine conch shells,turtles carapaces, insect exoskeletons and spider silk are being examined tofind break through in the research. Scientist have found that spider silk isone of the strongest materials in the world because it stretches before itbreaks, scientist to utilize the unique property of silk have already built asilk producing machine in order to test ways to make suits stiff, stretchy,light and durable.
Scientists are focusing on sensor studies that could helpequip the suit with physiological functions. This would help to regulate healthof the soldier, to give an example to be able to detect chemical and biologicalweapons in the atmosphere. The suit would also assist in stabilizing optimumtemperature, blood pressure and bring remedies to open wounds. Scientists alsoclaim to equip the suit with an automatic treatment kit with an antidote systeminjected into the body once a toxin is detected. The suit would also have in-builtsystems which would help monitor physiological state of each soldier at acentral head quarter which in turn would send data back to the suit.
Military uniform is a wide area of research and differentaspects, thought process goes into the making of one. Today each country isputting up research efforts and huge amount of money to come up with uniformswhich ensures more protection and efficiency for its warriors.
References
4. www.army.mil
11. www.fibre2fashion.com
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