Chapter 1698 - New Military Uniforms (Continued)
Zhu Mingxia nodded slightly, whether in agreement or appreciation was unclear.
Hong Huangnan continued: "This uniform was previously known as the Type 31 Northern Region Army Field Force Winter Dress. The Shandong Detachment's overall feedback during use was quite positive. The new winter uniform not only provided good thermal insulation but also had excellent waterproofing and moisture resistance. The Shandong Detachment conducted continuous marching, combat, and field bivouacking in temperatures of minus ten degrees Celsius or lower without suffering serious frostbite casualties, fully demonstrating its success."
The "Type 31 Northern Region Army Field Force Winter Dress" was displayed on a mannequin—a double-breasted short overcoat style made from fine English wool, featuring a high standing collar and waterproof hood, paired with woolen riding breeches and deerskin boots.
Although the Shandong Detachment's response had been favorable, this garment was designed as an overcoat or windbreaker. In actual use, troops basically wore it over the Year One Pattern uniform. It couldn't simply serve directly as a winter service dress.
"...Considering that our army's winter operations span a great range—from Guangdong, where temperatures generally remain above freezing, all the way to Liaodong, where they can drop to minus twenty degrees or more—all fall within our projected operational areas. The new uniform's design must take the whole picture into account, so this time we've created an entirely new design."
The Year Five uniform drew upon various uniforms from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The final decision was to design only one type of service dress. Service dress was divided into spring/autumn and summer versions, with greatcoats issued additionally for winter.
The army spring/autumn service dress used thin wool fabric in a blue-gray color with red piping. The uniform was a single-breasted standing-collar design. The jacket continued the tradition of two pockets for enlisted men and four for officers. Officers and NCOs had shoulder boards and collar tabs; enlisted men had only collar tabs. Different branches were distinguished by collar tab color. In addition to collar tab colors, officers and NCOs had branch insignia patterns on their shoulder boards.
For field units, regardless of rank, the left collar tab bore the embroidered Arabic numeral of their battalion. The upper left sleeve featured an embroidered shield-shaped arm patch indicating their unit or branch. Both sleeves from the elbow down to the cuff could display merit stripes based on the individual's commendations and awards.
The sleeves themselves were a focal point of decoration. According to different units and branches, Hong Huangnan planned to adorn them with stripes, cuffs, and decorative buttons of varying colors and shapes.
Regardless of rank, trousers were riding breeches with red stripes, convenient for movement and easy to put on and take off. Senior officers were issued tall boots; others received regulation ankle boots or military shoes, which must be worn with integral canvas gaiters.
Because wool was difficult to wash, additional linen or cotton overtrousers were issued to be worn over the wool breeches. When the weather warmed but summer uniforms hadn't yet been issued, the overtrousers could be worn on their own.
Military caps came in two distinct styles. One was the traditional peaked cap, but with a greatly reduced crown ring and a flat top instead of an upturned one, reverting to the classic style of the early twentieth century. The Army used a red cap band. This cap was worn only at parades and when in garrison during peacetime. For combat and training, a German-style mountain cap was used, convenient for wearing steel or tropical helmets. The cap badge was a stamped metal Morning Star emblem.
The combat cap was modified to suit East Asian head shapes. Conditions permitting, the combat cap band could feature decorative cords of different colors, as well as pompoms or feathers.
"Regarding the wearing of decorative cords, pompoms, and feathers—specific regulations haven't been finalized yet. I'm currently working on compiling relevant materials. The general idea is that apart from distinguishing different branches and regiments, they can also serve as honors. Please note the buttons on this jacket."
Hong Huangnan pointed to the spring/autumn service dress on the mannequin as he explained.
"At first glance, the metal buttons on the jacket seem identical. But if we look closely, they can be arranged in single rows, groups of three, or groups of five—different arrangements to distinguish different units. In the British... ahem, in the Royal Guard Brigade of the Great Song Australian Expeditionary Court, the various regiments are distinguished exactly this way..."
"What material are the buttons made of?"
"Currently they're turned from hardwood. For formal production, we're considering stamped alloy buttons."
"Have we become so prosperous?" Xi Yazhou frowned. "What about the Planning Board...?"
"Stamped metal buttons are far more durable, and when uniforms wear out, the buttons can be salvaged and reused. It shouldn't be too much of a problem."
"That's good, that's good."
Hong Huangnan continued explaining that when the spring/autumn uniform was worn in winter, additional greatcoats, cotton caps, padded vests, gloves, and warm sock liners would be issued depending on the posting's climate. For troops stationed in extreme cold regions like Liaodong, specialized "Arctic uniforms" would be issued.
The summer uniform was largely the same as the spring/autumn version, except the jacket was a small Western-style lapel design. The fabric used was linen or hemp. These were more breathable than cotton, absorbed moisture quickly, and dried quickly as well—ideal for summer use. Linen and hemp fabrics were also stiffer than cotton and more imposing when made into uniforms.
"If we consider future army expansion and the high cost of wool uniforms, spring/autumn dress can also be made from linen or hemp fabrics. Compared to cotton, these materials are warmer in winter and cooler in summer. The drawback is that linen is more easily torn than cotton."
"That alone makes it unsuitable." Zhu Mingxia frowned. "Soldiers train daily and perform labor duties. If it tears easily, how can it be used? And all those bits and pieces on the cap, plus all the stripes on the sleeves—they'll easily get damaged during training and work. The time soldiers would spend mending and patching would be too much."
"That's why we call it service dress," Hong Huangnan replied, fully prepared for this objection. "You can think of this service dress as a simple dress uniform for displaying martial bearing at major events or military operations. For daily training and labor, soldiers will continue wearing the current cotton Year One Pattern uniform."
"The Soviet out-of-garrison uniform, right?"
"Correct!" Hong Huangnan nodded repeatedly, not forgetting to flatter: "Chief of Staff Xi is truly learned and professional! We've considered that the Year One Pattern uniform has been in use for years and we have large stockpiles, and it would be a waste to discard the Year One Pattern templates the garment factory has accumulated. So we plan to convert the cotton Year One Pattern uniform into a training uniform for the Year Five system. It would be worn for daily training and labor, while the service dress would be worn only for going out, parades, collective activities, and combat."
"Won't linen be too thin?" Xi Yazhou asked. His impression of linen cloth was the lightweight, cool Dutch fine linen that Waimao Company had imported in large quantities from The Trading Company for making shirts.
"A characteristic of linen fabric is that it can be made very soft, or thick and stiff. Many of the splendid, crisp uniforms from the Napoleonic Wars era were actually made of linen or hemp."
"I have a question. Why use blue-gray as the army uniform color?" Zhu Mingxia asked.
"Currently, the dye colors that can be industrially produced on a large scale are, first, indigo. But that conflicts with the navy's blue-and-white color scheme. Second, black—but black has already been designated for police uniforms. So we recommend dying the uniforms a lighter blue-gray using indigo, to differentiate from the navy." A naturalized cadre from the textile and dyeing department spoke up. "Red is also possible, but cochineal dye is much more expensive, and linen fabric doesn't take colors well except for indigo."
"So in reality, what will ultimately be issued to the troops is linen blue-gray service uniforms, correct?"
"I can only say that equipping our infantry, artillery, cavalry, and other main branches entirely with wool uniforms is not a problem at present. Whether that will hold if we expand further, I can't say." Hong Huangnan said. "Although imported coarse wool isn't expensive, it still costs more than cotton."
"Is imported linen cheaper?"
"Actually, it's more expensive than cotton. But the advantages of linen I've already mentioned. It's an inexpensive yet relatively crisp fabric."
Xi Yazhou carefully examined the Year Five Army infantry private's uniform on the mannequin. From a purely visual standpoint, it was already quite splendid—even the webbing belt was white. He leaned closer to examine it, curious about what material the white belt was made from. Hong Huangnan seemed to read his mind:
"That wasn't dyed. It's canvas bleached directly to white."
Xi Yazhou nodded. Though not as magnificent and imposing as he'd imagined, it was still quite impressive.
"Here's a little surprise." Hong Huangnan clapped his hands mysteriously, and two soldiers carried in another mannequin. The color immediately brightened everyone's eyes.
"Lobsterback," Hong Huangnan said.
The mannequin before Xi Yazhou and the others wore a standard Year Five Army uniform, but the jacket was bright red while the riding breeches remained blue-gray. The cap was a black-and-white "bishop's miter" decorated with ornate brass plates and cords.
"Our soldiers average only 1.60 meters in height. Add this cap and they'll be 1.80 meters," Hong Huangnan joked. "I intend to outfit the grenadier companies with these."
Xi Yazhou and Zhu Mingxia both knew that each battalion's grenadier company was composed of carefully selected tall, sturdy men over 1.70 meters. Combined with this cap and the scarlet uniform, the visual impact would be unprecedented.
"Why not use bearskin caps?" Xi Yazhou exhaled softly. "There are bears in Hainan too, and even if there aren't enough, we could buy some from Hongtaiji."
"Partly due to cost, and partly because bearskin caps have always been the hallmark of the Guard. I don't think any of our current units deserve to be called the Old Guard yet." Hong Huangnan said. "Let war tell us which battalions earn that cap."
(End of Chapter)