United Kingdom

It is believed that some of the very first camouflage uniforms were developed and worn by British soldiers in the early part of the 20th century. In fact, the earliest type of camouflage "uniform," called a Ghillie suit (from the Gaelic word gille for servant), had appeared during the 17th century for use by British gamekeepers or poachers hunting deer in the Scottish highlands. It was the Lovat Scouts, a Scottish Regiment of the British Army, that first designed functional Ghillie suits, worn by sharpshooters during the Boer War (1899-1902). ^[1] This same regiment revived the uniforms during the First World War, using them as specialized outfits for snipers. Such hand-made uniforms were also known as "Yowie suits" (particularly by Australians). In 1917, the Symien sniper suit was introduced, following typical Ghillie designs, and worn by British troops in reconnaissance and sniper roles. This category of uniform typically utilizes loose strips of multi-colored cloth, twine or burlap attached to a canvas boiler suit, loose hooded jacket & trousers, or netting, and designed to appear as foliage.

Britain also experimented with handpainted camouflage designs on canvas tents during the First World War, incorporating brushstrokes or streaks in brown on a khaki background. This is likely the first use of the brushstroke technique that would be revived during the Second World War mark the beginning of an entire family of camouflage patterns that continue to influence design today. Personal capes and uniforms (primarily intended for snipers and observers) were also fabricated during the war, hand-painted using blotch, spot and stripe patterns on various canvas designs. These were probably influenced by French designs.

Although British airborne personnel would continue to wear brushstroke camouflage Denison smocks well into the 1970s, the standard uniform of the British soldier remained khaki or olive green until 1966. It was at this point that Britain introduced another camouflage design, Disruptive Pattern Material or DPM, that would not only remain in service with British troops well into the present era, but would become one of the most widely-copied camouflage designs in the world. Although the basic combat uniform and the DPM pattern itself would undergo several changes and appear in many guises (including desert versions), it is one of the longest-lived single camouflage designs ever to remain in service with a single nation.

British Camouflage Patterns

The earliest mass-produced British camouflage item was an oversized smock designed to provide the wearer some protection during a gas attack. Introduced around 1930 and known officially as the "No. 1 Camouflaged Anti-gas cape," the knee length smock was printed with large brown or russet blotches on a khaki or sandy background. During the early years of the Second World War, the smocks were employed to some degree of usefulness by members of the British Special Air Service (SAS) operating in the deserts of North Africa.

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The British Special Operations Executive (SOE) was an organization charged with conducting irregular warfare, sabotage and espionage behind enemy lines during the Second World War. Operatives would frequently parachute into enemy-held territory and link up with local resistance movements, providing additional direction, instruction, equipment and materials for conductive clandestine warfare. A specialized camouflaged coverall, known as the SOE Jumpsuit was designed specifically for issue to these personnel, painted with large blotches of green & reddish-brown on a khaki base. As the fabric was hand-painted using different dye batches, considerable variation existed as to colors and style of printing. These suits were worn until the end of the war, although few survived as most were destroyed or discarded after the initial parachute drop.

The Denison Camouflage Parachutist Smock (or simply Denison smock) was developed by the British Army in late 1941 to provide airborne troops with a camouflaged jacket that would aid their deployments behind enemy lines. The smock bears the name of a Major Denison (reputedly attached to a military camouflage unit under the command of stage designer Olive Messel), who was largely responsible for the smock’s design as well as the development of the camouflage pattern itself. The original smocks were made of medium weight windproof khaki-coloured cotton drill cloth, painted with non-colourfast dyes in broad green and brown coloured stripes or "brushstrokes," and produced in two patterns, reflecting primarily colour changes, throughout World War Two and into the 1950s. The camouflage design on these original smocks was not roller-printed, but actually hand-painted using large, mop-like brushes, thus accounting for broad variation among early smocks, owing to fluctuations in dye batches and individual methods of creating the pattern. Initially worn by members of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), the Denison smock became standard issue to all European Allied airborne and airlanding personnel, and was commonly worn by Commandos, Royal Marines and the Special Air Service as well. 1st pattern Denison smocks generally incorporated pea green and dark brown stripes, whilst the later 2nd pattern smocks varied from a sand to a light yellowish-olive combination, with overlapping brushstrokes of reddish brown and dark olive green.

Introduced in 1942, the British "Windproof" pattern is in fact a variation of the brushstroke design printed on the early Denison smocks. Designed primarily for use in Northern Europe and produced using roller-printing machines, the pattern generally featured broad brushstrokes of dark brown & olive green on a pinkish-tan base. This design was issued as a lightweight two-piece Infantry oversuit and issued primarily to Infantry scouts & snipers during the Second World War. Later, a heavier weight one-piece uniform designed for armored crews was produced, although there is some debate over whether these were actually utilized during the war. The lightweight uniform became popular with British Special Forces (particularly the SAS Regiment) and continued in service with them into the 1970s. Surplus stocks were also given to the French, who wore them during the First Indochina War. The examples below illustrate the variability encountered with the pattern.

All-white winter camouflage was introduced during the Second World War for issue in snowy conditions. These uniforms were not insulated but made from lightweight fabric and designed to be worn over the normal woolen combat clothing. (no photographs)

From 1946 until the mid-1950s, Britain continued to produce the Denison smock using roller-printed versions of the original brushstroke camouflage design. These smocks were of similar construction to the wartime originals, although in practice the colorations did vary somewhat.

Beginning in 1959 the Denison smock was redesigned and the brushstroke pattern reconfigured. The 1959 pattern smock camouflage (and those produded thereafter) has a distinctively different look to it than the earlier Denisons, with a lighter and more prominent background, incorporating only two additional colours (usually brown and green) to create the basic brushstroke overprint. (WW2 era Denisons were darker and often appeared to incorporate more than two colours due to the blending and mixing of dyes that occurred during the application process.) These smocks were produced into the 1970s, and despite the improvements in manufacturing and application technique, they still show much variation in colour and hue depending on when they were produced. The 1959 pattern Denison smock was worn exclusively by members of the Parachute Regiment in theatres such as the Suez and Ulster (Northern Ireland). Illustrated below are examples of the early (1959-60) and late (1967-70) pattern camouflage.

In 1966 the British Ministry of Defense issued the Pattern 1960 DPM (P60), the first in a long line of Disruptive Pattern Material uniforms to be issued by the British Armed Forces. The cut of the standard uniform was based on the Pattern 60 olive green combat uniform, but made in the DPM material. Additional versions were produced in the style of the M1942 Windproof uniform, and worn by British Special Forces. It is difficult to classify British DPM designs because so many different versions have been produced, yet only the type of uniform has ever received an official classification. Adding to the confusion, uniform classifications (P60, P68, P84) quite often conflict with the year in which the uniform was first issued. Subsequent uniform types may have initially been produced using the same printing of fabric of the previous model (P68, P84), while in most cases several production variants were also fielded in a single uniform classification. Illustrated below are two variations of the earliest known productions of DPM fabric, which would have appeared on the P60 Combat Uniform. Both designs also appeared on the 1968 Pattern Combat Uniform.

Replacing the Pattern 1960 Combat Uniform was the Pattern 1968 (P68). The uniform had a number of modifications based on the experience with the Pattern 60 as well as additional items such as a detachable hood, peaked field cap and lined cold weather cap. The P68 uniform was worn by British troops during the Falklands War (1982). Early versions of the DPM Parachutist's Smock (1977 or 78) were also manufactured in this time period, using the same camouflage print. Several color variations of DPM have been documented on this uniform, including the two patterns illustrated above. Those illustrated below are the more common variants.

Circa 1985, a newer version of the standard Combat Uniform began to replace the P68. Called the Pattern 1984 (P84), the new uniform reflected lessons learned during the Falklands War. The P84 uniform would remain standard issue to British military personnel for the next ten years. Illustrated below is the most commonly encountered pattern variant, as well as a rare version with the grass green replaced by a more olive color.