08-02-2011, 09:13 PM
Well, it certainly seems that the early Chekists were fond of leather jackets based on period photographs, although they do not seem to have been regulation issue. But I actually have never seen a photo of any early Chekist wearing a "trench coat". All of the photos that I have seen show them wearing leather jackets that stop at about the point of mid-thigh. The jackets are double-breasted; have external patch pockets in many cases; and sometimes appear to be belted.
In other words, no fixed "regulation" style, but all do seem to be pretty close to what I believe was issued for Russian train personnel.
As for the color, it was black, although that was not an attempt to be sinister on the part of the railway personnel; it just didn't show the soot and dirt.
The SS of the Third Reich, on the other hand, adopted the Death's Head Hussar totenkopf to reflect that they constituted an organization that would demonstrate "the obedience of a cadaver." The patter of the uniform was quite simply that of the British WW I officer's uniform, right down to the Sam Browne belt. The black color was selected by Himmler because it was his stated intention to model the SS on the Jesuits of the Catholic church.
In other words, no fixed "regulation" style, but all do seem to be pretty close to what I believe was issued for Russian train personnel.
As for the color, it was black, although that was not an attempt to be sinister on the part of the railway personnel; it just didn't show the soot and dirt.
The SS of the Third Reich, on the other hand, adopted the Death's Head Hussar totenkopf to reflect that they constituted an organization that would demonstrate "the obedience of a cadaver." The patter of the uniform was quite simply that of the British WW I officer's uniform, right down to the Sam Browne belt. The black color was selected by Himmler because it was his stated intention to model the SS on the Jesuits of the Catholic church.
