Trench coat
A trench coat is a stylish and popular item of clothing worn round the world. It is generally made of heavy duty cotton, drill or poplin, and has a removable lining, depending on the weather.
It is a descendant of the heavy serge coats worn by British, Canadian and French soldiers in World War I. The classical trench coat was a creation of Thomas Burberry, inventor of gabardine fabric, who submitted in 1901 a design for an army officer's raincoat to the UK War Office. That raincoat subsequently became part of the service uniform of British officers. During World War I, the design was modified to include epaulettes, straps, and D-rings. This latter version was dubbed "trench coat" by the soldiers in the trenches. Towards the Second World War, the trench coat became part of all enlisted men's and officers' kits, especially in the American forces: the US Army, US Army Air Corps, and US Marine Corps.
The typical trench coat is a ten buttoned double breasted long tan, khaki, beige or black coat with cuff straps on the sleeves, epaulettes (originally used to hold gloves and the folding service cap found on the heads of enlisted and commissioned personnel in American, British and Canadian Forces in the First and Second World Wars and the Korean Police action, and its Scottish-made relative, the Glengarry Bonnet), and a belt that may also have two small brass D-rings as a salute to its military heritage; the rings originally were used to secure grenades, sidearms and/or swords.
