Back زي القتال Arabic Uniforme de combat Catalan Kampfanzug German Välivorm Estonian لباس رزم Persian Treillis (vêtement) French 戦闘服 Japanese 전투복 Korean Pakaian tempur Malay Battledress SIMPLE
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A combat uniform, also called a field uniform, battledress, or fatigues, is a casual uniform used by military, police, fire, and other public uniformed services for everyday fieldwork and duty, as opposed to dress uniforms for formal functions and parades. It generally consists of a jacket, trousers, and shirt or T-shirt, all cut to be looser and more comfortable than more formal uniforms. Combat uniform designs vary by regiment or service branch (e.g. army, navy, air force, marines, etc.). Uniform fabrics often come in camouflage, disruptive patterns, or otherwise olive drab, brown, or khaki monochrome, to approximate the background and make the soldier less conspicuous in the field. In Western dress codes, field uniforms are considered equivalent to civilian casual wear, less formal than service dress uniforms, which are generally for office or staff use, as well as mess dress uniforms and full dress uniforms.
Combat uniforms have existed to some degree in most organized militaries throughout history, with the intent of providing both protection and easy identification. The British Indian Army's Corps of Guides were the first to use drab combat uniforms starting in 1848, when they wore light-brown clothing called "khaki" by Indian troops.[1][2] The Second Boer War and World War I ended the pre-modern practice of issuing brightly-colored combat uniforms in favor of green, brown, khaki, and grey uniforms that better suited the varied environments of modern warfare. The first proper military camouflage pattern was Italy's telo mimetico, originally designed for half-shelters in 1929. Germany's Wehrmacht began issuing camouflage uniforms to paratroopers during World War II, and by the end of the war, both the Allies and Axis made use of camouflage uniforms for select units, usually special forces.[3] The Cold War and post–Cold War era saw the gradual shift from monochromatic olive and khaki combat uniforms to those using camouflage patterns.
- ^ "Khaki Uniform 1848-49: First Introduction by Lumsden and Hodson". Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research. 82 (Winter): 341–347. 2004.
- ^ Barthorp, Michael (1988). The British Army on Campaign 1816–1902: Volume 3 (1856–1881). Osprey. pp. 24–37. ISBN 0-85045-835-8.
- ^ Borsarello, J.F. (1999). Camouflage uniforms of European and NATO armies : 1945 to the present (1.udg. ed.). Atglen, PA: Schiffer Pub. ISBN 0764310186.