07-28-2011, 08:13 PM
I have heard that the tradition of the black leather coat for NKVD personnel came about from an incident in the early days of the Bolshevik state. Supposedly a group of railroad men were protesting the Soviet regime and the Chekists were dispatched to settle the problem. Upon completing their crackdown the Chekists found a batch of leather coats that had been issued for use by the railway workers and they simply took them and began wearing them.
I don't have a source for this account, but it seems to make sense. Most of the early photos that I have seen of Chekists in leather coats show them wearing a short coat, double-breasted, with patch pockets, very much the style worn by railway personnel. The coats look very similar to the leather tanker jackets adopted by armored forces at a later date.
I don't have a source for this account, but it seems to make sense. Most of the early photos that I have seen of Chekists in leather coats show them wearing a short coat, double-breasted, with patch pockets, very much the style worn by railway personnel. The coats look very similar to the leather tanker jackets adopted by armored forces at a later date.
