How practical are combat boots?

How practical are combat boots?

- Why Europe and America have more boots and Asia has more gaiters? How practical are combat boots?

The origin of military boots has a long history, because the geographical environment and material resources around the world are different, the material and style of military boots of ancient countries are not the same. It was not until the 1860s that Prussia produced the world's first brown, cowhand boots. Soon after, other European powers such as Russia, France, Britain and other armies also equipped their boots as standard military boots, and the modern military boot was born.

On September 24, 1937, Wehrmacht soldiers marched to Berlin linden boulevard. The distinctive M35 helmet and black thigh-high boots were typical of soldiers of the third Reich during this period.

In fact, in Europe, leather military boots have appeared, but the work is too rough, ugly and uncomfortable. This was especially true in America, far from Europe, where there was even a famous battle during the civil war over better boots. In June 1863, general hill, on the confederate side, got word that he had a large store of union boots in a warehouse at Gettysburg. On the 7th, hill ordered troops into the town to grab boots. As troops from both sides massed in the Gettysburg area, a small operation for shoes turned into a fierce large-scale battle known as the battle of Gettysburg, the turning point of the American civil war.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the German army boots have been divided into officers and soldiers use two kinds. Soldiers wore ordinary boots, while officers were given breeches and boots for riding. During world war I, the allied soldiers were basically given low-waisted boots with a waist about 15 centimeters high, and leggings. However, the Germans on the allied side still wore long boots for traditional and trench warfare purposes. Despite their bulky appearance, the boots proved to reduce the number of soldiers suffering from trench feet.

As the German army in the early stage of the war mainly based on the European battlefield operations, to face the environment of bushes and thorns, marsh, ice and snow, gravel, barbed wire. These are very easy to cause damage to the lower leg. Accordingly, boots of tall upper leather canister can have good ground to keep out the cold, waterproof, protective effect. But given their bulky nature, senior officers often use special materials, such as lighter and thinner leather boots made from calfskin, just to make them into breeches. In addition to mechanized infantry tank soldiers, assault artillery, paratroopers and other arms do not use high-top leather boots, but special lace-type high-waist or low-waist combat boots.

After 1940, the German front stretched from the hot north African desert to icy Moscow. In order to adapt to the environment of different combat areas, boots with different USES were also distributed to German troops fighting abroad. Known as the "desert fox", the famous German field marshal Erwin Rommel led the African legion with special desert boots. Desert boot cent is tall waist and low waist two kinds, all be lace-type, boot waist is made by breathable field ash or sand yellow canvas, boot upper and boot bottom are cowhide quality of a material, can avoid skin disease effectively occurrence.

In contrast to the blistering heat of the Afrika Korps, German soldiers who fought in freezing temperatures near -50c on the eastern front were issued with two types of boots, one for ordinary infantry and one for mechanized troops. Although these boots were not as practical as the tall cotton boots used by the red army at home. But it did reduce frostbite rates among many soldiers who fought in cold climates.

In Asia, China's military boots have a long and profound history. Leather military boots have existed since the Zhou dynasty. The northern nomads have abundant animal skins, and their cavalry leather boots are more abundant. After the Manchu entered the central plains, eight flag soldiers and green battalion with cloth boots. However, the concept of modern military boots was that in the middle and late 19th century, when the government of the late Qing dynasty prepared to form a new army to learn from the European countries, they were issued with yellow-brown leather low-waist military boots. It is also the first time for Chinese soldiers to wear western-style military boots.

In the period of the republic of China, the warlord melee, soldiers pay very low, and there is no systematic provisions on soldiers' shoes. Generally speaking, the middle and superior officers wear leather boots or shoes, while the majority of soldiers can only wear cloth shoes or even straw shoes. The Nanjing nationalist government established several German divisions in the 1930s, well equipped and equipped with German leather boots, but only for a small number of troops. In addition, because the Chinese army did not reach mechanization at that time, even not motorized, so a large number of mobile mainly rely on feet, foot march is inevitable, so the use of military boots in the Chinese battlefield is not very practical, far less comfortable than cloth shoes or straw shoes.

At the beginning, Japan's military construction mainly followed France's example, from uniforms to hats, referring to the French design. Officers wore long boots and soldiers wore khaki leather boots with leggings as standard. Due to the poor environment of the Asian battlefield at that time, there was no good road network, which made the efficiency of motorization and mechanization in battle greatly reduced. At the same time, due to Japan's weak national strength and lack of resources, as well as its inherent combat habits, Japan maintained the collocation pattern of almost world war I until the end of world warⅡ. But it is worth mentioning that the Japanese in southeast Asia when the war has been issued with a very strange rubber canvas boots, this kind of cloth boots like the Japanese wearing clogs with socks, the big toe is separated from the other toes. The idea is to prevent soldiers from slipping and falling while marching on wet, slippery ground.

During the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese soldiers in Shanghai, the Japanese army construction at first mainly modeled after the French, from the military uniform to the military hat style are referring to the French design. Officers wore long boots and soldiers wore khaki leather boots with leggings as standard.

As early as in the era of cold weapons, ancient Chinese people realized the importance of gaiters through daily life. In ancient times when there were no means of transportation, people could travel in three ways: by boat, by horse or on foot. Among them, the ancient river transport industry is not developed, plus there is no modern ship, the route is small and short, the cost is quite high; As for riding horses, the need for a certain economic strength, not the poor can do; Most farmers and small traders go out on foot.

During a long walk, because of the rough road, the long walk, and other reasons, generally at the end of the day, due to blood deposition in the legs, legs will be very sore. Nature directly affects the next day's walk. If you are walking in a mountain or hilly area, the pain will be worse because of the need to climb and climb. In practice, the ancients found that if they tied a piece of cloth to their legs, they could effectively reduce the pain of their legs and facilitate long-distance walking. As a result, many farmers and climbers wear leggings to relieve walking fatigue.

The real military gaiters, first appeared in Europe in the 18th century, were very popular in the legions of the French emperor napoleon Bonaparte. His infantry soldiers, whether soldiers or officers, were all wearing gaiters, and the gaiters were played up to the knee, which could be regarded as the longest in the armies of all European countries. Napoleon once said, "leggings are necessary to prevent dirt and small stones from getting into the poor shoes made by our 'patriotic' French tailors, and to relieve the pain of soldiers' legs." The leggings of French soldiers are generally grey, but some are black, and white leggings are only worn at parades or among French guards.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the first full-scale war in human history, world war I, broke out, although at that time European armies relied mostly on railways for motor transport. However, the railway cannot cover all the areas, and most of the combat marches of the world's armies are done on foot, so the soldiers of the world's major military countries almost always wear leggings. But with the advent of world war ii, a mechanized war, leggings have gradually lost their meaning and gradually disappeared from the view of western troops, only in certain battlefield environments, there are still flashes of morning light.

As a condition of no complete transportation network, and the hard life of Asian countries, the dense jungle, rolling hills and convex mountain, even a few forests of the loess plateau and north China plain, all is legging the necessary equipment for long hikes marching comes in, it is also played 14 years in the Anti-Japanese War between the two sides always use one of the important reasons of leggings.

Of course, everything has two sides, leggings of course also has its inherent shortcomings: first, although leggings in the long walk has a better effect, but because of the compression of blood vessels, reduce the explosive force and flexibility. That is to say, the advantages of leggings in saving effort and reducing pain are suitable for a long walk in Ping Yuan, mountain areas, but not suitable for Ping Yuan sprint and intense mountain activities.

Second, play leggings need a long time, if an emergency, soldiers have time to complete the binding action of leggings, completely not suitable for the needs of modern war.

It is possible to tighten the front of the blood vessel with a dirty bandage to prevent massive bleeding, but it is more likely to cause infection by directly tying the bandage on the wound. With the popularity of first-aid supplies for soldiers, the function of the bandage as a gauze is actually meaningless. And a long time be affected with damp worn cloth, use to climb over bearing too dangerous, although can emergency, but can be replaced completely with more professional rope.

Last, Leggings often have side effects when used in wooded areas with more rivers, more rainfall, and more rainfall. Wear knickers, the gaiters that USES natural fiber to make, easy wear, be affected with damp easily, and not easy air is dried, and make with chemical fiber, be affected with heat easy adhesion, the skin still is easy allergy. If wear pants and leggings more trouble, easy to store water, difficult to breathe, easy to "crotch."

The advantage of gaiter leg can play only in our country north and the area with drier south central, can be in the area with the kind of extremely wet south boundary, became defect instead; Five, winter insulation performance is poor, general leggings tighten, the clothes in the middle air storage will be greatly reduced, directly affect the insulation effect of clothing, exercise may not feel out, but will feel very cold after stopping.

With the change of times, the battlefield environment is changing constantly. Leggings, once an important piece of protective equipment for soldiers' legs, have been far from meeting the needs of modern warfare.