Milsurp After Hours

If this is to esoteric whack me with a quirt......

When did the British forces adopt "puttees" and was there any reason the British cavalry wrapped theirs from the top down versus from the foot up?

John

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puttees

I have some old reference material around and will have a look later today and see what I can find.

Puttees appear to have been adopted by the British Army about the same time as the 'brown' khaki* for overseas service dress in about the 1880s

The Indian Army (and possibly the British Army in India) had, I believe, adopted these sometime earlier.

Apparently, the reason donkey walloper^H^H^H^H^H^H^H mounted troops tied their puttees from knee to ankle was that, as the knee was in constant contact with the saddle leather and rubbing, the puttee tended to loosen and become unraveled if tied from ankle to knee+.

The problem with this 'practical' argument is that they continues the practice when, dismounted, they served in the Trenches during the Great War, where the mud around the tapes made them incredibly difficult (and when dry - finger shredding) to remove.

Despite what some people will claim, when properly tied, puttees can be quite comfortable, providing support to the lower leg, however, if badly tied they can almost cripple the wearer or, at best, lead to 'strings' of small 'pressure blisters' on the leg (which itch like the Devil**).

Any help?

Tom

* The original 'khaki' (from the Persian for 'dust) was a blue/grey colour

+ Personally, I think they just did it to be different

** Voice of bitter experience.

Logical but apparently in our (US) mounted service they were wrapped from the foot up.

Perhaps it's something that would require some experimentation and even then logic might not triumph over tradition.

I can't find a direct reference on how to wrap them with any justification for the manner it's done.

Thank you!

John

Yup,I've never worn them while riding but I can't see why they would be more comfortable one way than the other.

John

It's not that they are more comfortable one way or the other, but, that, if tied at the top, it is claimed, the rub of puttee tape against the saddle leather caused the puttee to loosen (usually at an inopportune moment).

I can't say that I've ever worn puttees 'mounted style' (I'm a mudcrusher at heart) and the only time I've tried horses, I wore leather gaiters (It was an attempt to teach me to 'ride and drive').

Oh! and a couple of hints for would be puttee wearers:

1) Always wind your puttees inside out, from the tape end.

2) Mark the end of the puttees and always use them on the same legs each time.

3) If you can't get 'shaped' puttees (not made since the 1930s), at some point, either wet the puttees before donning or wear them in the rain/wade through a river (if you are feeling hardy) and let them dry in place - they will adopt the characteristic long 'S' shape which makes tem easier to put on next time.

Have fun

Tom

cloth wound tightly and spirally round the leg, and serving both as a support and protection

Yeah, right. Looks like nobody thinks that way anymore. Wonder who invented the idea? Same guy who's great grandson now has introduced football uniforms with black pants probably.

"...Same guy who's great grandson now has introduced football uniforms with black pants probably..."

I'm sorry, I don't understand the allusion.

Are '"...football uniforms with black pants..." a good or a bad thing? and why? (I take it from your location and the mention of 'uniform' that you are talking of American Football ).

Tom

What I should have said was that not seeing them in use today, the puttee must not have actually served the purpose of protection and support as they were alleged to do. Could it have been just a uniform fad, making no difference if they were put on from the top or bottom?

Black football pants, or purple pants, or red for that matter....American football,...just look funny to me. Just another fad of course.