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Miniatures Adventure => Interwar => Topic started by: smirnoff on 26 November 2014, 09:36:42 AM

Title: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: smirnoff on 26 November 2014, 09:36:42 AM
Gents
What colour would the shirt of the standard British infantryman be serving on the NWF in the 1920s?
I have some Copplestone WW1 Brits (Tropical Dress) to paint (Steve Dean does them in a lightish grey like the WW1 shirt....)
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: Cubs on 26 November 2014, 09:44:26 AM
Between about 1880 and 1930 there seems to have been a lot of fiddling about with the overseas campaign uniform with the colours ranging from grey, grey-blue, beige, khaki, all sorts of stuff. I don't know whether this was official policy or local initiative.

I can look it up in one of my books if you like.

Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: smirnoff on 26 November 2014, 09:48:09 AM
Oh yes please cubs
Have a look
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: Ming on 26 November 2014, 12:26:37 PM
Have a look at the film The Drum on YouTube. It was filmed in 1937 and shows the Gordon Highlanders & other British servicemen in khaki green. As it was filmed partly in Chitral it is about as authentic a record of the British Army on campaign as you are going to get. It is an excellent source for material.
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: smirnoff on 26 November 2014, 01:31:12 PM
Thank you Ming.
I will idle away this afternoon doing just that.
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: carlos marighela on 26 November 2014, 09:10:52 PM
Officially speaking, Aertex shirts in khaki came in around 1937/ or '38. Prior to that the official issue was the greyback collarless shirt in a sort of light greyish blue (varied quite a bit with wear). You do see examples of individuals and even occasionally groups that have had local bazaar tailors make up items in khaki but usually as unofficial walking out gear.

For the 'twenties you are best with grey-blue shirts.
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: Captain Blood on 27 November 2014, 12:03:18 AM
Grey-blue looks nice. That's the main thing  ;)
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: FramFramson on 27 November 2014, 04:22:56 AM
Paint them a florid pink and have the men blame the local washerwoman. Hilarious skirmish game ensues.
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: Cubs on 27 November 2014, 11:57:22 AM
Yup, what they said.

It's not entirely clear from my wee books, but it looks like the grey-blue collarless shirt was the thing from the end of WW1 up to the mid thirties.
Title: Re: British Army Shirts NWF?
Post by: smirnoff on 27 November 2014, 03:36:04 PM
Thanks very much Cubs and gents