Page 286 - Trang Phục Việt Nam

Clothes for the Vietnamese People’s Army
On December 22 1944, under the leadership of the Indochinese Communist Party, at the
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northern base of Việt Bắc, the Unit for Armed Propaganda and Liberation of Vietnam was
established. There were originally 34 people at full strength. This organization was the first
regular armed force of the Party. Though they were all devoted to the same ideal, they were
dressed in different clothes due to their different social classes, jobs and missions. Their
garments were indigo or brown. Some had suits, xảo shoes, or shoes made of fabric or
leather. Because funds were so short during the early years, the supply of clothes for the
soldiers depended on the common people’s support and booty. Therefore, in addition to
ordinary clothes, they sometimes even wore the clothes of enemy guardsmen (lính khố xanh),
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fighters (lính khố đỏ) or Japanese and French soldiers. On September 2 1945, the Unit of
for Propaganda and Liberation of Vietnam came from the Việt Bắc base to the capital Hanoi,
all dressed in uniform to celebrate National Independence Day with Hanoians.

The men were dressed in shirts with short sleeves, the shirt hems worn under the wide
belts of the shorts. They wore leather shoes and white sun-helmets (cát hat). The women
were dressed in shirts with short sleeves and pockets on the chests. Their trousers were
black, with wide belts and tightened hems. They wore sneakers and indigo hats with wide
brims.
Though the Vietnamese army had already seized power from the invaders, they had not
decided on clear regulations for the military uniform. The supply of soldiers’ clothes depended
on the capability of each military unit and local authority.

In Hanoi, soldiers of the National Defense Army were particularly smartly dressed. Their
garments included shirts, trousers with tapered legs and leather shoes. Noticeably, they wore
forage caps askew which were made of yellow cloth or deep violet felt, and with a yellow star
attached to the piece of circular red cloth on the front. The partisans of the Citadel Defense
Unit wore a yellow star on the square of red cloth.
On December 19 1946, the whole nation began to carry out a war of resistance against the
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colonial French invader. The armed services operated secretly among the community with the
assistance of the residents. Therefore, they were dressed like common people. In the North
and the Central region, they mostly wore brown shirts, short cánh shirts with two pockets,
trousers tapered at the bottom. That is why they were known as Vệ túm (tapered soldiers).
Some people explained the design saying that because their trousers were torn, the soldiers
had to sew their trousers narrower. Army officials wore lumber-jackets, Ca na điêng jackets or
va rơi shirts. In general, they wore whatever hats, footgear and attire they could afford. The
soldiers of the fifth zone wore áo cánh and gray trousers, made of cotton fabric, also known as
Sita fabric. In the South, the soldiers wore black bà ba shirts and shorts to suit the hot climate
and geographical conditions with many canals and marshes.
At the end of 1947, padded waistcoats were produced and introduced to the army. These
waistcoats had round collars and had no sleeves. It was made from two pieces of cloth sewn
together at the sides and shoulders. It had buttons under the arm and on one shoulder. The