In Garrison: a History of the Side Cap



A simple, flat foldable hat common in may of the world’s militaries, the side cap actually has a long and complex history, drawing from such varied countries as France, the UK (and Scotland in particular), Austria and Serbia. Set aside for a time in favor of the beret, it has recently been making a comeback, as it is practical, cheap, and easy to store.

Version française : (mise en ligne le 15 Décembre) https://youtu.be/stJhZWnc5so

The caps I wear in this video come from Doursoux.com ; Amazon.com ; the Fort de Chartres Rendezvous ; and friends who gave me their old ones.

Title sequence designed by Alexandre Mahler
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This video was done for entertainment and educational purposes. No copyright infringement of any sort was intended.

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21 thoughts on “In Garrison: a History of the Side Cap”

  1. Very interesting, well documented and well made episode (as usual, I should say). A few precisions though, if I may… it's true that the side cap adopted by the French army in 1891 was officially called "Serbian form" and was a fatigue cap mainly used for duties in the barracks, but it was also a cap that the men who had been punished had to wear too during thier punition, hence its name in French (bonnet de police). For that reason, it wasn't very popular among the troops, though some officers wore it, tailor-made of course. It gained popularity when the First world war begun as, no matter men could think about it, it was practical in the harsh environment of the trenches and even could be worn under the helmet when weather was cold, even covering the ears and the rear of the head with its flaps folded down. You said too the Gendarmerie introduced it recently, well… yes and no. For the gendarmerie, the side cap, though seeming new, is more a reintroduction that an introduction, as, though it's little known, the gendarmerie already used a side cap since the last years of the 19 century, similar to those of the army, but not made in old uniforms cloth (I have one in my collection, dated 1900 and very finely made). Last, about the British "beret", the cap you are talking about, introduced in 1943 and replacing the so elegant side cap, isn't really a beret. Made in three parts in the coarse British uniform cloth and named "General Service Cap", it was most often disliked by the troops who gave it the nickname "Cap, Ridiculous"… no need to say more, just look at period pics, and you'll understand why !
    Anyway, I still wait for each new episode, and of course wait now for the French version of this one !

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  2. Le calot ou "bonnet de police" n'est pas affilié qu'à la gendarmerie française, il est également porté par la Police Nationale française. Du moins, en théorie. Dans les faits, il est souvent retiré car a la fâcheuse tendance à s'envoler lorsque l'on court derrière quelqu'un ou lorsque l'on est en intervention… De fait, il est surtout porté durant le contrôle routier et durant les patrouilles pédestres. Comme toujours, très intéressant, merci pour la vidéo !

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  3. The side cap is also used by the World Scout Movement. While most land Scout units don't usually wear any headdress, the Air Scouts wear a navy blue side cap. For some reason, a majority of the Scouts refer to it as "the Beret", or the "Air Scout Beret", even though it bears no resemblance to the beret. In addition, unlike the armed forces, air scouts prefer to wear the hat at an angle, so that the front point of the hat is not symmetrical with their face.

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  4. Je n'avais jamais remarqué que tu faisais des vidéos en anglais, tu as un très bon anglais !
    J'ai vu chez un autre youtuber (Leo tech maker) que tu peux juste uploader une vidéo, avec deux pistes audio différentes, comme ça les vidéos en français et en anglais sont centralisées, un anglophone (les non-francophone en général) auront la version anglaise, et les français auront la piste audio française, bien sur, on peut choisir la langue de notre choix dans les paramètres de la vidéo.
    Bonne journée !

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  5. There are also Yugoslavian Titovka caps, vaguely related to the Sovet Pilotka, however having a different shape and stars typically being sewn into the cap, with physical stars only issued to the more elite units of the Yugoslav People's Army.

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