In 19th century and early 20th century warfare most armies wore uniforms consisting of brightly colored coats and trousers of matching or aesthetically contrasting colors. Various explanations for this practice have been given through the years. Providing a feeling of unity among the troops by seeing their comrades smartly dressed and making an impression on the general public, which was the source of new recruits, are among the more compelling ideas for having an army dressed in parade fashion.

Another more obvious, no pun intended, advantage of these “stand out” types of uniforms was simply to be easily distinguished from the enemy in combat situations. The easier it was to identify the combatants the more readily the commanders could assess conditions and make decisions on the field of battle. If an army had a reputation as being a competent, tough, fierce fighting unit, just the sight of the uniform may put some doubt and a little hesitation in the mind of the opposition.

With the improvements in firepower, range and accuracy of weapons the brightly colored uniforms of the day became a liability. As battle losses increased, because the troops were such visible targets, changes in philosophy and tactics led too much more subdued uniform coloring. An event with the British Army in India in the mid 1800′s had them dying their red coats a kind of khaki color. This action was a sign of future changes. At the start of the 20th century Britain and the United States converted to the khaki military wear that is prevalent today.

The thought of reducing the visibility of soldiers for their protection certainly led to further experimentation and a broader use of camouflage clothing was one result of this process. Camouflage – from the French camoufler (to disguise) – is common in many forms in the natural world of animals, plants and insects on land and more prolific in the water world. There are two basic types of camouflage Read the rest of this entry »