Service dress uniform

Last updated August 24, 2024

Service dress uniform is the informal type of uniform used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for everyday office, barracks and non-field duty purposes and sometimes for ceremonial occasions. It frequently consists of a jacket, trousers, dress shirt, and neck tie, along with orders, medals, and insignia. Design may depend on regiment or service branch, e.g. army, navy, air force, marines, etc. In Western dress codes, a service dress uniform is a permitted supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian suit—sometimes collectively called undress or "dress clothes". As such, a service dress uniform is considered less formal than both full dress and mess dress uniforms, but more formal than combat uniforms.

Service dress uniforms were originally worn in active service in the field or at sea, but became relegated to office, barracks, and walking out dress as more practical field uniforms evolved. In some parts of some armed forces such as the British Army, service dress uniform may also be used for ceremonial occasions, gradually replacing in this role the full dress uniforms that had preceded them as field uniforms. In the United States Navy, for example, service dress uniforms are worn for official functions not rising to the level of full dress or mess dress uniforms. They are also commonly worn when travelling in official capacity, or when reporting to a command. They may be seasonal, with a white uniform worn in summer and darker versions in winter.

History

The origins of the service dress can be traced back to when the British introduced khaki to their uniforms in India in the mid 18th century, with its official introduction into the regular British Army commenced in the early 1900s.

Service dress uniform by country

Australia

The Service Dress in use by the Australian Army is the ceremonial dress, a continuation of the uniform of the world wars.

Canada

Although the Canadian Armed Forces is a single service, its respective environmental commands maintain "distinctive environmental uniforms", distinct for its specific environmental branch (including the Canadian Army, the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the Royal Canadian Navy). Service dress is listed as No. 3 Service Dress in the Canadian Armed Forces order of dress. The order of dress may be further split into five variant.^[1]

The complete service dress uniform, known as No. 3 Duty includes the service's headgear, neck tie, name tag. The uniform's jacket, trousers, and collared shirt, are coloured in the style of their environmental command. A skirt may be used by females members in place of trousers.^[1]

Service dress with a long-sleeve collared shirt and no jacket is known as No. 3A, while service dress with a short-sleeved collared shirt and no jacket is No. 3B.^[1] Wearing an authorized sweater over the collared shirt, instead of a jacket is known as No. 3C.^[1] No. 3D Service Dress is the Canadian Armed Forces tropical service dress, and is similar in wear to No. 3B, except it is coloured in tan; and shorts may be worn in place of trousers.^[1]

Israel

When founded in 1948, only khaki combat uniforms were issued to the Israeli Defence Force Ground Arm. In April, 1948, the first military parade was held, in which soldiers wore the Hittlemacher hat, a square cap with a flap at the back to protect the neck from sun exposure. A winter uniform similar to British Army No. 2 Dress was introduced in the 1950s, and uniforms similar to British Army Barrack Dress was often worn for ceremonial parades from the 1950s and 1960s. For female soldiers, these uniforms included skirts, brown dress shoes (known as Golda shoes for Golda Meir) and caps similar to those worn by airline stewardesses known as rooster caps.^[2]

Presently, the Madei Alef uniforms serves as the IDF's service dress uniform. Made out of rayon, the uniforms consist of a shirt, trousers, sweater, jacket or blouse, and shoes or boots. The general service dress uniform is coloured olive-green, although the Madei Alef uniforms used by the Israeli Sea Corps and Air Force are coloured beige.

United Kingdom

British Army

The British Army has issued khaki Service Dress uniforms for use in the field shortly since after the Second Boer War in the early 1900s. Since World War II, the uniform has been referred to as No. 2 Dress, with the tunic being swapped out for a jacket with an open collar for wear with collared shirt and tie. Berets may be worn in place of a peaked cap. Additionally, officers of the British Army are authorized to wear a second variant of service dress, known as No. 4 Warm Weather Service Dress. The uniform is similar to No. 2 Service Dress, except it is stone grey coloured, made from a polyester/wool worsted mix. No. 4 Service Dress is typically worn on warm-weather formal occasions not including parades.

Royal Marines

In the Royal Marines the equivalent of British Army service dress is Number 1B dress 'Parade Lovats'.

United States

The five service branches of the United States Armed Forces each maintain their own variant of service dress.

United States Air Force

The service dress uniforms used by the United States Air Force consist of a blue jacket and matching trousers worn with a light blue shirt and blue tie. A side cap or peaked cap are worn as headwear. The tradition of blue service uniforms date back to 1949, shortly after the Air Force was spun-off from the Army. The first version were made in a shade known as "Uxbridge Blue" and were developed and manufactured at the former Bachman Uxbridge Worsted Company in Uxbridge, Massachusetts. The current version was introduced in the 1990s. Members of the Civil Air Patrol, the United States Air Force Auxiliary, are authorized to wear the uniform with distinctive markings.

United States Army

The United States Army authorizes the Army Service Uniform as its daily wear service uniform. Since 2018, there are two versions authorized, a green uniform and a blue one.

In November 2018, the U.S. Army announced the introduction of a new green service uniform modeled after the "pinks and greens" service uniforms worn by officers during the Second World War and Korean War. This uniform consists of a dark olive drab coat with belted waist, light taupe trousers, tan shirt, olive necktie, olive garrison cap, and brown shoes. A peaked cap is optional. This uniform became standard-issue beginning in 2020 and becomes mandatory in 2027.

The blue service uniform consists of a dark blue coat, light blue trousers (dark blue for general officers), a white turndown-collar shirt, black necktie (neck tab for women), a black beret, and black shoes. Women may wear a dark blue skirt instead of trousers. A peaked cap may be worn instead of the beret. The blue uniform's colours are based on the traditional colours used by most U.S. Army uniforms until 1902, when the introduction of khaki and olive drab uniforms relegated blue uniforms to full-dress use and off-duty wear until 1917, when issuance was halted due to the First World War. The current version of the uniform was reintroduced in 1957 as an optional full dress uniform. It was authorized as the army-wide service dress uniform in 2008, becoming standard-issue in 2010, when it replaced the previous green service uniform in use since 1954. With the reintroduction of a green service uniform, the blue uniform returns to being an optional uniform for more formal occasions.^[3]

United States Coast Guard

In 1972, the current Coast Guard Service Dress Blue uniform was introduced for wear by both officers and enlisted personnel; the transition was completed during 1974. Relatively similar in appearance to the old-style U.S. Air Force uniforms, the uniform consists of a blue four-pocket single breasted jacket and trousers in a slightly darker shade. Unlike the U.S. Navy, officers and CPO's do not wear khaki; all personnel wear the same colour uniform.

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mess dress uniform</span> Formal evening dress worn by military personnel

Mess dress uniform is the most formal type of evening-wear uniform used by military personnel, police personnel, and other uniformed services members. It frequently consists of a mess jacket, trousers, white dress shirt and a black bow tie, along with orders and medals insignia. Design may depend on regiment or service branch, e.g. army, navy, air force, marines, etc. In modern Western dress codes, mess dress uniform is the supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian black tie for evening wear. Mess dress uniforms are typically less formal than full dress uniform, but more formal than service dress uniform.

A combat uniform, also called field uniform, battledress or military fatigues, is a casual type of uniform used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for everyday fieldwork and combat duty purposes, as opposed to dress uniforms worn in functions and parades. It generally consists of a jacket, trousers and shirt or T-shirt, all cut to be looser and more comfortable than more formal uniforms. Design may depend on regiment or service branch, e.g. army, navy, air force, marines, etc. In the army branches, fabrics tend to come in camouflage, disruptive pattern or else green, brown or khaki monochrome, in order to approximate the background and make the soldier less visible in nature. In Western dress codes, field uniform is considered equivalent to civilian casual wear. As such, field uniform is considered less formal than service dress uniform, generally aimed at office or staff use, as well as mess dress uniform, and full dress uniform.

Full dress uniform, also known as a ceremonial dress uniform or parade dress uniform, is the most formal type of uniforms used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for official parades, ceremonies, and receptions, including private ones such as marriages and funerals. Full dress uniforms typically include full-size orders and medals insignia. Styles tend to originate from 19th century uniforms, although the 20th century saw the adoption of mess dress-styled full-dress uniforms. Designs may depend on regiment or service branch. In Western dress codes, full dress uniform is a permitted supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian white tie for evening wear or morning dress for day wear – sometimes collectively called full dress – although military uniforms are the same for day and evening wear. As such, full dress uniform is the most formal uniform, followed by the mess dress uniform.

The United States Army in World War II used a variety of standard and non-standard dress and battle uniforms, which often changed depending upon the theater of war, climatic environment, and supply exigencies.

The uniforms of the United States Navy include dress uniforms, daily service uniforms, working uniforms, and uniforms for special situations, which have varied throughout the history of the navy. For simplicity in this article, officers refers to both commissioned officers and warrant officers.

The uniforms of the Canadian Armed Forces are the official dress worn by members of Canada's military while on duty.

This page details the uniforms and insignia of the Israel Defense Forces, excluding rank insignia. For ranks, see Israel Defense Forces ranks and insignia.

The uniforms of the British Army currently exist in twelve categories ranging from ceremonial uniforms to combat dress. Uniforms in the British Army are specific to the regiment to which a soldier belongs. Full dress presents the most differentiation between units, and there are fewer regimental distinctions between ceremonial dress, service dress, barrack dress and combat dress, though a level of regimental distinction runs throughout.

The Army Service Uniform (ASU) is a military uniform for wear by United States Army personnel in garrison posts and at most public functions where the Army Combat Uniform is inappropriate. As of 2021, the Army has two service uniforms for use by its personnel. The Army Green Service Uniform, announced in 2018 and authorized in 2020, is used primarily for daily use in situations where civilians wear business attire, such as office settings or official meetings.

The United States Marine Corps (USMC) prescribes several types of military uniform to distinguish its service members from other armed services, depending on the situation.

The Royal Air Force uniform is the standardised military dress worn by members of the Royal Air Force. The predominant colours of Royal Air Force uniforms are blue-grey and Wedgwood blue. Many Commonwealth air forces' uniforms are also based on the RAF pattern, but with nationality shoulder flashes. The Royal Air Force Air Cadets wear similar uniforms.

The uniforms of the United States Air Force are the standardized military uniforms worn by members of the United States Air Force to distinguish themselves from the other services.

The uniforms of the United States Army distinguish soldiers from other service members. U.S. Army uniform designs have historically been influenced by British and French military traditions, as well as contemporary U.S. civilian fashion trends. The two primary uniforms of the modern U.S. Army are the Army Combat Uniform, used in operational environments, and the Army Green Service Uniform, worn during everyday professional wear and during formal and ceremonial occasions that do not warrant the wear of the more formal blue service uniform.

The Singapore Police Force has employed several different styles of uniforms throughout its history. Since 1969 it has used dark blue for its uniforms, although the first police uniforms introduced in 1856 were also in the same colour.

The uniforms of the Royal Canadian Navy are a variety of different official dress worn by members of the Royal Canadian Navy while on duty. Originally, the uniforms of the RCN were modelled after their counterparts from the United Kingdom. However, after the RCN was merged with the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1968 to form the single-service Canadian Armed Forces, the RCN began to wear "Canadian Armed Forces green" uniforms, worn throughout the Canadian Armed Forces

The New Zealand Army uniform has changed over the years from that of the original Armed Constabulary of the 1800s to the modern Army Combat Uniform style in use by the majority of world armies today. While British Army influence has always been strong, distinctive New Zealand features have gradually developed. From 2013 the New Zealand Army uniform underwent a complete redesign with a new and distinctive camouflage pattern unique to the NZDF.

The Royal Marines uniform is the standardised military dress worn by members of the Royal Marines.

The extensive system of uniforms of the Russian Armed Forces was inherited from the Soviet Armed Forces and modified across the years.

The uniforms of the Italian Armed Forces include the official dress worn by members of the Italian Armed Forces while on duty. Each of the branches of the Italian Armed Forces, the Italian Army, the Italian Navy, the Italian Air Force, and the Carabinieri Corps, maintains its own style of dress. The Italian Armed Forces have an extensive history, during which they have undergone changes in the equipment they use, and the military uniforms they wear.

References

1 2 3 4 5 "Dress instructions Annex C Service dress – No. 3". Canadian Forces Dress Instructions. Government of Canada. 1 February 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
↑ Cut from the Same Cloth: A Look Back at the IDF's Uniforms. IDF Blog
↑ "18-.Overcoat,ceremonial,blue" (PDF). Guide to Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia. Department of the Army. 25 May 2017. p. 127. Retrieved 4 June 2019.

External links

Media related to Service dress at Wikimedia Commons

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[can-1] 1 2 3 4 5 "Dress instructions Annex C Service dress – No. 3". Canadian Forces Dress Instructions. Government of Canada. 1 February 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2019.

[2] Cut from the Same Cloth: A Look Back at the IDF's Uniforms. IDF Blog

[3] "18-.Overcoat,ceremonial,blue" (PDF). Guide to Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia. Department of the Army. 25 May 2017. p. 127. Retrieved 4 June 2019.

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