Evolution of British Uniforms | Animated History

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letting you change your virtual location to bypass region locking and access historical materials videos and documentaries anywhere at any time nordvpn also keeps your navigation safe from enemy threats or baits cybersec automatically blocks you from navigating websites known for fishing malware or spyware fans of the armchair historian can also take advantage of a unique discount by going to nordvpn.com history vpn to get 73 off of the two-year plan with four additional months for free try today without risk thanks to nord's 30-day money-back guarantee [Music] following the acts of the union in 1707 a newly formed british army was established succeeding the prior english and scottish armies and their predecessor the new model army almost immediately this newborn military force equipped with dog lock muskets was thrust into battle during the war of the spanish succession suffering severe losses at the phyric victory at malpleche as it would become popularized the red tunic of the british army would be cemented in its military tradition for centuries in contrast to their lower ranked counterparts the elite officer class brandished edged weapons as components of their status and position as leaders this practice to carry such an item into combat would carry on for many decades into the modern era although its practical use decreased over time defeating the french during the battle of varberg along with their hanoverian allies british grenadiers during this time were equipped with brown bass muskets and their peculiar grenadier caps the brown bass would remain in british military service for over a hundred years with variations and improvements over that period of time the east india company set up by the british as a joint stock company for trades within the region of the indian ocean saw indians being enlisted into various presidency armies until 1857 these formations served under the british army across multiple campaigns chiefly on the sub-continent in the effort of colonial expansion british forces would find a number of their own muskets being used against them during the american war for independence those fighting the british army would refer to their oppressors as bloody backs and on occasion redcoats in reference to their long-standing uniforms those who stayed loyal to the crown wore blue or green in contrast although eventually they conformed to wearing the red uniforms grenadiers continued to serve as elite specialized formations during the war for independence grenadiers would continue to be armed similarly to their line infantry counterparts although on occasion utilizing an older long land pattern that had been supplanted by the short land pattern grenadiers were common on the battlefield with a company being found in every line infantry battalion they would continue to maintain their distinct status as disciplined top-tier troops supplemented by the increasing use and popularity of the british grenadiers march by this era in portugal a coalition landing force led by sir arthur wellesley defeated the outnumbered french division posted near the village of holisa catching the nickname of the grasshoppers riflemen of the 95th rifles wore a more distinctive green uniform in contrast to their red line infantryman counterparts although this was a popular color choice of similarly armed formations in the era the color would become synonymous with various other british rifle formations in history this would also see the acceptance and issue of the british made baker rifle supplanting the older smoothbore muskets in 1814 the british army would return to the united states making a drive for the white house itself and burning it down line infantrymen would continue to be armed with the india pattern brown bass musket with minor improvements in standard equipment in comparison to their counterparts 40 years ago while ultimately this was an inconclusive conflict as both the british empire and canada and the us withdrew from their respective front lines the empire would continue to be engulfed in campaigns in europe with the raging napoleonic wars the highland soldiers of the 42nd regiment of foot royal highlanders nicknamed the blackwatch fought valiantly in the battle of waterloo complete in dress with their distinctive patterned kilts the kilts originate as a traditional dress garment of gaelic men and those in the scottish highlands during the 16th century and continue to be worn in certain military formations to this day with regiments claiming their own unique patterns the british army fought valiantly alongside their french allies in the chaotic battle of inkerman in 1854 the era saw the introduction of the rifle musket into british service with first the p-51 monet rifle and then the p-53 enfield rifle musket in the crimea the majority of the british infantry were armed with the rifle musket although around one-fifth of the infantry deployed at the beginning of the war still carried the smoothbore p-42 percussion cap musket by the midpoint of the war in 1855 the army of the east as it was known was completely armed with the rifle musket and the remainder of the british army deployed at home and around the world would soon follow suit with a push for economic opportunities in southeast asia more specifically china the british military came into conflict twice over opium and other trade disputes while proper rifles were not the main armament across the army it had further become the standard issue weapon of the line infantrymen alongside their french allies the city of canton that numbered in nearly a million had been captured by a force of six thousand within the region the indian rebellion of 1857 had also taken place although a failed revolt this propelled the british army to more widely adopt a simpler khaki field uniform rather than to be dressed in ornate and brightly colored garments although suffering a notable disaster at isla wanna in january of that year works drift fought later the same day was a hard-fought victory for the british army although continuing to be clad in their traditional red and blue uniforms they were armed with the relatively new and very effective rifle the martini henry which had replaced the recently adopted snyder enfield rifle although this was a time of significant tactical change in the british army it was found that more traditional close order tactics were found to be most effective against the swift moving and aggressive zulu army the 24th regiment of foot and gonville bromhead would be immortalized in their actions in the 1964 film zulu the traditional red uniforms had by this era become a true liability in combat to counter this khaki now became the authorized dress for all foreign service in the late 1890s the boar wars notably during the disastrous events of black week and bloody sunday taught many lessons to the british army in field craft musketry and logistics these lessons would be refined and would stand the british army in good steed as it entered the great war this era also saw the introduction to the lee family of rifles which would be in british military service throughout the 20th century by the start of the great war the bright uniforms and flashy color facings were long done away with for field service in their place was an improvised khaki service dress that allowed the soldier to better blend in with his surroundings the main weapon for the average rifleman was the mark iii smle the officer corps wore mostly the same khaki colored uniform as their enlisted counterparts it was privately purchased of normally higher quality and differing in detail in addition to a traditional sword at their side most carry the webley mark vi revolver across all ranks a simple peaked cap with a regimental badge was worn head injuries increased significantly as soldiers who would have died otherwise were now better protected from above this steel combat headgear cemented itself as part of the british soldier for several decades until the 1950s as well as seeing use by the american expeditionary force and us military as a whole until relegated to civilian use in 1941. with the ferocious blitzkrieg across western europe the british army was pushed further and further to the coast of dunkirk where an evacuation of colossal scale took place along with the iconic number one mark iii lee enfield rifle the rifleman was given a new battle dress a full wool ensemble worn by all ranks with the distinct waist cut top that influenced the ike jacket the united states would adopt in later years formulated by david sterling under the name el detachment this commando force would be used to operate behind enemy lines not through airborne insertion but via jeeps during its second mission during operation crusader it successfully destroyed over 60 enemy aircraft notably the parachute wings of this elite unit were prominently worn above their left pocket sterling the sas's brainchild stated that the wings were treated as metals in their own right during their operations they adapted the tropical uniform for the desert heat dating back to the board of ordnance in the 15th century the british royal engineers have been responsible for all military engineering and technical functions as a combat support service in the british army as a whole sappers in this role would have responsibilities in fortifying defenses as well as handling mines both to plant and diffuse especially in the flat open terrain of north africa the diapered formerly known as operation jubilee was an operation all too similar to what the d-day landings would pursue two years later the american-made thompson submachine gun given to british commandos allowed a single soldier an increase in available firepower the commandos themselves were formed from volunteers and trained for raids within german occupied europe at the request of winston churchill it should be noted that outside of the commando force nearly 80 percent of troops allocated to this operation were canadian unfortunately this would be a failed operation to test the metal of hitler's atlantic wall operation market garden became widely known as the largest yet most disastrous allied airborne operation despite this the red devils of the british parachute regiment fought tooth and nail against their heavily armed enemy which also included their german counterparts the falsehood their signature red beret and wings were the icon of the airborne force by this point the sten submachine gun had been improved with a rear sight derived from the standard bolt action rifle and a higher degree of manufacturing quality the denison smox became the first major widespread adoption of camouflage by the british army and would continue to be used for decades the british army deployed the 27th commonwealth brigade during the korean war being made of british canadian australian indians who served as medics and new zealanders a uniform developed for the warmer climates was issued for troops first arriving in korea although a winter uniform had been made up from u.s cold weather gear stocks worn on top of a warm jumper ultimately the armament and web equipment would remain similar as it did in the previous war british malaya would be engulfed in a guerrilla war just as vietnam would be a decade later communist forces fought for independence against the british ultimately successful in defeating the communists the conflict would see the resurgence of the special air service and would also see troops from many parts of the commonwealth including australians new zealanders as well as a large contingent of gurkhas the tough and hardy men from nepal had considerable experience in jungle conditions as had been found in burma during the second world war these forces would be the strong backbone during this conflict at the iranian embassy in london six armed men vying for the kuzastan province's sovereignty had taken 26 people hostage for several days by the sixth day with no progress made for compromise the sas was deployed repelling down from the building's rooftop and making their forceful entry into the embassy the sas forces were equipped with the reliable german-made mp5 submachine gun a popular now iconic choice for many police and special units the operation overall was a resounding success and thrusted this elite unit into the public eye for the first time and the sas was looked upon for expertise for counter-insurgency tactics april 2nd 1982 kicked off the falklands war argentina invaded the falkland islands and south georgia the following day in response the british forces deployed a naval task force to counter the argentinian forces and conducted an amphibious assault on the islands the rifleman conducting the assault were issued the l1a1 self-loading rifle a british made a licensed copy of the belgian fn fal and by this point camouflage uniforms were standard for the british army the conflict would end within 10 weeks although interestingly this was never a declared war between either nation with the onset of the gulf war the british army deployed alongside coalition forces like other nations operating in the middle east a desert camouflage uniform was created to blend in better against the arid terrain the british rifleman was now given an assault rifle the la-85a1 although several flaws had been discovered from its service in the sand-dominated environment these were improved upon when the war in afghanistan began in 2004. adopted in 2010 the multi-terrain pattern replaced both the original dpm and desert patterns in a way the british army accomplished what the u.s failed in adapting an effective universal camouflage pattern during this time the a3 upgrade was applied to the current service rifle to address various flaws and make improvements as the years went on all soldiers complete their 14-week basic training at army training center perbrite as well as the necessary skills and trades for their chosen service within the army for routine ceremonial duties the british soldier is smartly dressed in a khaki tunic and trousers with some differences depending on the unit they are serving in in addition the uniform is augmented with a distinctive peaked cap or beret in traditional colors for example in the rifles the uniform features black buttons versus the more generic brass a distinct green peaked cap or beret black belts and straps as well as distinct regimental insignia adorned on their headgear and belts all ranks wear the same style and cut although officers are to purchase certain items it would be a disservice not to mention the most iconic and recognizable uniform of the modern british army that of the regiments of the foot guards the distinct scarlet tunic and black bearskin cap are the hallmarks of this uniform and although a form of bare skin cap has been seen in british service since the 1700s the current version dates from after the battle of waterloo in 1815 when all ranks of the first or grenadier regiment of foot guards were permitted to wear it as a result of their role in defeating the imperial guard in that battle in 1831 all regiments of foot guards were granted permission to wear the bare skin cap a tradition maintained to this day where it is worn for ceremonial or public duties at various locations including buckingham palace the individual regiments of which there are five in seniority the grenadier cold stream scots irish and welsh guards are recognizable by their button placements and plumes in their caps they're not just ceremonial soldiers and they take their place on operations and deployments around the world equipped with the standard british service rifle these scarlet sentries stand silent on post and display a high amount of commitment to their duty to the british royalty [Music] you

Channel: The Armchair Historian

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Length: 18min 8sec (1088 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 13 2021