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Beret

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Black beret

A beret (UK: [bəˈɹeɪ;], US: [ˈbɛɹeɪ]; IPA) is a soft round cap with a flat crown which is worn by both men and women. The cap fits snugly around the head, and the soft crown can be shaped in a variety of ways – it is commonly pushed to one side. Berets were originally worn by Northern Basque peasants and were knitted from wool. Today berets are normally made from wool felt.

Berets are worn by many military and police units, and in some countries are particularly associated with elite units, who often wear berets in more unusual colours (such as the maroon of the British Parachute Regiment or the green of the American Special Forces).

Berets in the military

Berets are a part of certain military uniforms, such as those of the British Armed Forces and the United States Army. Berets are traditionally worn by those in armoured fighting vehicles. Light blue berets are worn by United Nations Peacekeeping forces. Military berets are usually pulled to the right, but the militaries of some European countries (including France) have influenced the pull to the left.

The use of berets as a military headdress dates back to the creation of the French Chasseurs alpins in the early 1880s. These mountain troops were issued with a new style of uniform which included several features which were very practical and advanced by the standards of the time, notably the large and floppy blue beret which they still retain (see below). This was so unfamilar a fashion outside France that it had to be described by the 1911 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannia as "a sort of tam o'shanter hat".

Berets have features that make them very attractive to the military: They are cheap and easy to make in large numbers, they can be manufactured in a wide range of colours to enhance branch or regimental esprit de corps, they can be rolled up and stuffed into a pocket without damage and they can be worn with headphones (this is one of the reasons why tank crews came to like the beret). However, they are not so useful in field conditions for an infantryman, as they do not offer the protection for the face against sun and rain that a peaked cap does. They have however become the default military headdress of the early 21st century (just as the tricorn, shako, kepi and peaked cap were in various early eras) worn by the majority of military personnel across the World. The two major hold outs were the US and Russia but both have now followed the example of nearly all other armies.

Canada

Berets were first worn in the Canadian Army in 1937 when tank regiments (at that time part of the infantry) adopted the black beret of the Royal Armoured Corps. During the Second World War, a khaki coloured beret was adopted throughout the Canadian Army, with the Canadian Armoured Corps (later Royal Canadian Armoured Corps) wearing the black beret and parachute troops wearing the maroon beret adopted by British airborne forces. The 2nd Canadian Parachute Battalion (the Canadian component of the First Special Service Force) wore a red beret with the dress uniform. Wartime berets were much fuller in cut than postwar berets.

Midnight Blue Beret with coloured flash, worn by a soldier of the Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps in 1954.

After World War Two, a series of coloured berets were adopted, with infantry regiments wearing scarlet, rifle regiments wearing dark (rifle) green, the armoured corps wearing black, and other arms and services wearing midnight blue berets, with a large coloured "flash" in corps colours - dull cherry for the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, Emerald Green for the Royal Canadian Dental Corps, etc. The coloured flashes were not popular and replaced in 1956 with forage caps bearing coloured bands in corps colours. The midnight blue beret itself was retained, however.

When the Canadian Forces unified in the late 1960s, the rifle green beret was adopted as the CF standard. The RCAC fought to retain its distinctive black beret, and the Canadian Airborne Regiment wore the maroon beret until the unit was disbanded. Scottish and Irish infantry regiments wear tam o'shanters, glengarries, balmorals or caubeens instead of berets. The berets listed below are the current standard:

  • Maroon — jump-qualified personnel in parachute units
  • Black — Royal Canadian Armoured Corps, other personnel employed in armoured trades, Canadian Navy
  • Scarlet — qualified Military Police
  • CF green (also known as "rifle green") — other army units
  • Postman blue (official designation; informally "Air Force blue") — Canadian Air Force
  • Blaze orange — Search and Rescue technicians
  • Rusty orange — personnel on duty with the Multi-National Force and Observers (MFO), Sinai
  • Tan — the new special forces command created in 2006 has adopted a tan beret similar to the sand beret worn by Britain's Special Air Service.

The beret is used with the Distinctive Envivornment Uniform (DEU - dress uniform) as formal headdress (especially after the move away from the forage cap in the 1990s) as well as with CADPAT clothing as garrison dress and as a form of combat dress. In certain uses the beret is even used as Ceremonial Dress, most commonly in units of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps.

Finland

The Finnish Defence Force uses berets with cap badges for the Army, Navy, and the Air Force. The berets are worn in "clean" garrison duties such as roll calls and with the walking out uniform, but not with the battle dress. Until the mid-1990s, the beret was reserved for troops with special status, such as the coastal jaegers and the parachute jaegers, but is nowadays used by all units. In the winter, berets are replaced by winter headgear.

Berets are also used by the Finnish Frontier Guard, which is a military organization under the aegis of Ministry of Interior.

  • Olive-green (Badge: silver lion's head) — Army
  • Olive-green (Badge: golden lion's head) — Finnish Rapid Deployment Force and units abroad
  • Light blue (Badge: Air Force insignia) — Air Force
  • Light blue (Badge: Harp and sword) — Military bands
  • Dark blue (Badge: Anchor and Lion) — Navy (including coastal troops, but with the exception of coastal jaegers)
  • Black (Badge: Armored head) — Armoured Brigade
  • Green (Badge: Golden sea eagle's head) — Coastal jaegers
  • Maroon (Badge Arrow and parachute) — Parachute jaegers or special jaegers (Utti Jaeger Regiment)
  • Olive-green (Badge: Golden bear's head, sword and fir tree twig) — Frontier jaegers

France

File:Chasseur alpin FAMAS.gif
The French Chasseurs alpins wear a special wide beret.

As noted above the beret originated in the French Army, in the form of the wide and floppy headdress worn by the Chasseurs Alpin (mountain light infantry) from their foundation in the early 1880s. A tight fitting version was subsequently adopted by French armoured troops towards the end of World War I. Between the wars special fortress units raised to garrison the Maginot Line wore khaki berets. The beret in red, blue or green was a distinction of the Metropolitan, Colonial and Foreign Legion paratroop regiments during the Indochina and Algerian wars. After 1962 the beret in either khaki or the colours specified above became the standard French Army headdress for ordinary use.

Germany

The German Heer uses berets with cap badges for every branch of service. The Luftwaffe and the Navy issue dark purple berets only to their ground or land combat units (called Luftwaffen- and Marine-Sicherungsstaffeln). Berets are usually worn at special ceremonies and roll calls, although units with a special esprit de corps, especially armoured and mechanized infantry battalions, wear their berets all the time.

  • Black — armoured units
  • Dark red — airborne troops, army aviation, KSK (special forces)
  • Light red — artillery, engineers, intelligence, psychological operations ("operative information"), anti-aircraft, supply, NBC protection, signals, electronic warfare, transport, topography
  • Dark green — light infantry, panzergrenadiers (armoured infantry), panzerjägers (anti-tank), ceremonial guards, military bands
  • Dark blue — medical units

India

The beret is the standard headgear for the Indian Army. Berets are worn by officers and other ranks, apart from Sikhs, who wear turbans. The beret colours worn by the Indian Army are as follows:

  • Green — Infantry regiments (except light infantry and rifles)
  • Dark (rifle) green — Light infantry and rifle regiments
  • Maroon — The Parachute Regiment and Special Forces
  • Black — Armoured Corps
  • Grey — Army Aviation Corps
  • Scarlet — Corps of Military Police
  • Navy blue — Other corps and regiments

Israel

Israeli Defense Forces soldiers wear berets only on formal occasions, such as ceremonies and roll calls. The beret is placed beneath the left shoulder strap while wearing the Class-A (formal) uniform, but not while wearing the Class-B (regular duty) uniform. The beret colors are as follows:

Italy

Italian Army personnel used to wear a garrison cap alongside the combination cap, until the early 1980s when the garrison cap was replaced by the beret. The beret is used in the various armed forces of Italy. The colours used are:

  • Maroon — paratroopers
  • Blue — army aviation
  • Black — all army units except the above-mentioned ones
  • Green — navy special forces (Incursori)
  • Teal blue — air force guards

Netherlands

When the Royal Netherlands Armed Forces acquired new modernised uniforms (designed by the Dutch couturier Frans Molenaar) in 2001, the berets changed as well. Since 2004, soldiers of the Royal Netherlands Army wear a petrol (blue-green) beret. Only paratroopers (maroon) and special forces (green) wear berets of different colours. The Royal Netherlands Air Force use grey-blue berets. The Royal Military Police Forces use royal blue berets.

Before the modernisation the following colours were also used:

  • Brown — Common armed forces
  • Orange — Support units (logistics, intendance)
  • Black — Armour and Cavalry (military personnel of the Gele Rijders (Mobile Artillery Troops) wear a blue garrison cap with a yellow stringe)
  • Yellow — Administration and Staff

Norway

The Norwegian armed forces use the beret as a garrison cap, but some units also use it in field, mostly armored vehicle personnel. The colours used are (incomplete list):

Poland

Black berets were introduced before World War II for tank and armoured car crews. During World War II, berets were widely adopted in the Polish Army on the Western Front. After the war in the communist era, berets were worn only by armoured units (black), paratroopers (red) and marines (light blue). After 1990, the beret became the standard headgear in the Armed Forces of Republic of Poland. The following colours are in use:

  • Light Blue — Marines
  • Black — Armoured troops
  • Brown — Territorial Defence
  • Green — Army general use
  • Red — Airborne troops and Special Operations
  • Scarlet — Military Police (Gendarmerie)
  • Steel gray — Air force

The black beret is also the distinctive headgear of World War II veterans, particularly Armia Krajowa veterans.

Portugal

In the Armed Forces of Portugal, the following berets are in use:

  • Emerald green — Paratroopers
  • Brown — Army general use
  • Black — Cavalry (except Cavalry Paratroopers)
  • Red — Commandos
  • Grass green — Special Operations
  • Navy blue — Marines
  • Sky blue — Air Force Police

Until 1975, the following berets were also in use:

  • Yellow — Mozambique Special Groups
  • Crimson — Mozambique Parachutists Special Groups
  • Camouflage — Angola and Mozambique "Flechas" (covert operations special forces)

Russia/USSR

Russian military structures (both Armed Forces and Interior troops) use the following types of berets:

  • Sky blue — Airborne troops (VDV)
  • Black — Marine infantry
  • Dark green — Interior troops (formerly: black)
  • Crimson — Elite interior troops
  • Orange — SAR and Emergency Ministry troops (EMERCOM)

Singapore

The Singapore Armed Forces adopted the beret as their standard headgear. The different color divisions are as follows:

  • Green — infantry
  • Black — armour
  • Khaki — guards
  • Maroon — commandos
  • Blue — support and artillery
  • Air force blue — Air Force (contrary to its name, the beret is closer to green in color)

The berets are all adorned with the Singapore Armed Forces coat of arms, with the exception of the Air Force beret, which is decorated with the Air Force badge instead. Regimental police serving in the navy use the same color as the Air Force; however, it has the Navy's badge instead.

South Africa

The South African Army wears the beret as its standard headgear. The different color divisions are as follows:

The berets are all adorned with the unit's insignia. Some of the traditional units wear other headgear - for example, the Cape Town Highlanders Regiment and the South African Medical Services.

Sweden

The beret is used in the various armed forces of Sweden. The colours used are:

  • Black (formerly dark blue) — (badge: an armoured fist with a sword, inscribed within a hexagon, all in gold) Armoured units
  • Maroon — (badge: a parachute encircled by oakleaves, all in gold) Paratroopers
  • Bright red — (badge: a lyre upon two crossed swords, encircled by leaves; in silver for conscripts, in gold for employed personnel) Musicians
  • Green — Rangers
  • Green (formerly dark blue) — (badge: a viking's helmet on a shield over two crossed artillery pieces and an anchor, all in silver) Amphibious troops (formerly, special units of amphibious commandos used a golden trident as a badge in their green beret)
  • Blue — Army aviation
  • Brown — Home Guard (used by units serving abroad until 2004, with the Lesser Coat of Arms of Sweden as badge)
  • Dark blue — All other units (the badges are all in gold, different for different lines of service) including those serving abroad (using the symbol of the Swedish army; two crossed swords encircled by leaves, all in gold, as badge)

Thailand

The beret is used in the various armed forces of Thailand. The colours used are:

The black beret is also worn by ordinary police in certain situations.

United Kingdom

The British Army beret dates back to to 1918 when the French 70th Chasseurs alpins were training with the British Tank Corps. The Chasseurs alpins wore a distinctive large beret and Major-General Sir Hugh Elles, the TC's Colonel, realised this style of headdress would be a practical option for his tank crews, forced to work in a reduced space. He thought, however, that the Chasseur beret was "too sloppy" and the Basque-style beret of the French tank crews was "too skimpy", so a compromise based on the Scottish tam o'shanter was designed and submitted for the approval of George V in November 1923. It was adopted in March 1924.

During the Second World War, a beret-like hat, called a General Service Cap, was issued to all ranks of the British Army (with RAC, parachute, commando, Scottish and Irish units excepted), to replace the earlier Field Service Cap. The GS Cap was not popular, and after the war was replaced with a true beret.

Today, every British military unit wears a beret, with the exception of Scottish and Irish line infantry regiments, who wear the tam o'shanter and the caubeen respectively (the Scots Guards and Irish Guards, however, wear berets, as frequently do the Royal Irish Regiment on operations). Many of these berets are in distinctive colours and all are worn with the cap badge of the service, regiment or corps.

The colours are as follows:

Members of the Royal Tank Regiment, Army Air Corps, Parachute Regiment and SAS never wear any other form of uniform headgear except the beret (i.e. they do not wear peaked caps). Troops from other services, regiments or corps on attachment to units with distinctive coloured berets often wear those berets (with their own cap badge). Colonels, brigadiers and generals usually continue to wear the beret of the regiment or corps to which they used to belong with the cap badge distinctive to their rank. The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and Royal Welch Fusiliers wear a coloured feather hackle on the beret.

United States

The United States Army Special Forces are generally known as "green berets" for the color of their headgear. Other United States Army units can also be distinguished by the color of their headgear, as follows:

Berets were originally worn only by elite units of the U.S. Army. Hence, there was controversy when in 2001 the United States Army adopted the black beret, previously reserved for the Rangers, as standard headgear for all army units. The Rangers are now distinguished by tan berets.

The wearing of berets in the United States Air Force is somewhat less common, but several career fields are authorized to wear berets of differing colours, as specified in the following list:

  • Maroon — Pararescue
  • Scarlet — Combat Controllers
  • Grey — Combat Weathermen
  • Royal blue — Security Forces
  • Pewter-green — Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape Specialists (SEREs)
  • Black — Air Liaison Officers (ALOs), Air Mobility Liaison Officers (AMLOs), Tactical Air Control Parties (TACPs)

Berets in other organizations

Singapore

Black berets were worn by all members of the Singapore Police Force until 1969, when the peaked cap was introduced. The beret was, however, retained for specialist forces, such as officers of the Special Operations Command (SOC) and the Police Coast Guard, as well as the Gurkha Contingent. A dark blue beret is worn, although the Police Tactical Unit of the SOC switched to red berets in 2005.

Auxiliary police officers of CISCO Security Private Limited don dark blue berets when performing escort and other high-risk duties, as do specialist forces of the Singapore Prison Service. In addition, student cadets of uniformed youth organizations such as the National Police Cadet Corps and the National Cadet Corps also wear berets of different colours.

Spain and the Basque Country

The beret, boina in Spanish or txapela in Basque, was introduced into Spain during the First Carlist War. Carlists wore red berets (txapelgorri in Basque, which later also came to mean "Carlist soldier") and Isabellines white ones. The red beret became a Falange symbol when Carlism was merged into it after the Spanish Civil War.

Today the Basque police force, Ertzaintza, wears red berets.

United Kingdom

SO19, the armed response unit of the London Metropolitan Police, used to wear dark blue berets, and were nicknamed the 'Blue Berets'. Today, they generally wear baseball caps. British Scouts wore green berets.

Hong Kong

The beret is the standard headgear of officers of the Police Tactical Unit of the Hong Kong Police Force. Officers are nicknamed the "Blue Berets" or the "Blue Caps". Scouts wear green berets. Staff of some security companies, such as Securicor, also wear berets.

Civilian use and association of berets

Aside from armed forces, berets are associated with a variety of other different people. A beret completes the image of the stereotypical Frenchman, especially French peasants, artists, and intellectuals, even though berets are fairly rare in France nowadays among men under 60. It also was the stereotypical headgear of film directors until it was replaced in the public eye with the baseball cap in the 1980s. Berets are also worn by some scout groups and are part of the stereotype of Beatniks.

Berets (chapelas, from Basque txapela) have become the standard headgear of the Castilian peasant, and sousaphone players in marching bands, who typically wear berets because the regular uniform hat would get in the way of the bell.

The British comedian Michael Crawford made a beret the trademark headwear of his 1970s comic character Frank Spencer.

Also the favoured headgear of ex-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussain.

The late Fred Berry wore a beret when he played Rerun in What's Happening!! and What's Happening Now!!, and in real life.

See also

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