Military History of the Chief

Military

History of the Chief Petty Officer Khaki Uniforms

The first uniform instruction for the U.S. Navy was issued by the Secretary of War on 24 August 1791. It supplied a distinguishing dress for the officers who would command the ships of the Federal Navy. The education did not contain a uniform for the enlisted man, although there was an amount of uniformity. The usual and customary dress of a seaman was made up of a short jacket, shirt, vest, long trousers, and a black low crowned hat (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

The foul anchor as a naval insignia got its establishment as the seal of the Lord Howard of Effingham. He was the Lord Admiral of England at the time of the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588. During this time the personal seal of a grand officer of state was accepted as the seal of his office. At the time that this office became part of the current Board of Admiralty, the seal was retained on buttons, official seals, and cap badges. The Navy's implementation of this symbol and many other customs can be directly credited to the influence of British Naval tradition. The fouled anchor is amid them (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

The Khaki uniform was put into use in 1845 in India where British soldiers saturated white uniforms in mud, coffee, and curry powder in order to blend in with the landscape. Khakis originally came on the scene in the U.S. Navy in 1912 when they were worn by naval aviators, and were accepted for submarines in 1931. In 1941 the Navy approved khakis for on- post wear by senior officers, and soon after Pearl Harbor chiefs and officers were sanctioned to wear khakis ashore on liberty (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

In 1913 high laced shoes of tan leather first emerged in Uniform Regulations and were certified for wear by aviators with khaki's. The color was changed to russet brown in 1922. Uniforms limited to the aviation community were abolished in the 1920's and then put back in place in the 1930's. The official color of aviator's shoes has alternated between brown and black since that time (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

Officer stars were first approved online officers uniforms in January of 1864. All rules and regulations since 1873 have specified that one ray would point downward toward the gold stripe on the sleeve. The reason for this is unknown. CPO stars were launched with the creation of SCPO and MCPO. The logic for stars pointed one ray down is unknown. There are indications thought that point to following the line officers standard. Strips and Stars emerged on jumper uniforms in January 1876. Rear Admiral Stephen B. Luce suggested a collar with stars and stripes as an alternative for the plain collar used on the frocks of seamen. Three stripes on the collar were proposed for all grades, with the stripes on the cuffs to designate grade (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

In 1841, insignia known as distinguishing marks were first approved as a part of the official uniform. An eagle and anchor emblem, which was the precursor of the rating badge, was the first unique mark. In 1886 rating badges were set up, and some fifteen specialty marks were provided to cover the assorted ratings. In April of 1893, petty officers were reclassified and the ranking of chief petty officer was established. Until 1949 ranking badges were worn on the right or left sleeve, depending on whether the person in question was on the starboard or port watch. Since February 1948, all unique marks have been worn on the left sleeve between the shoulder and elbow (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

The command at sea pin was established in 1960 to recognize the responsibilities placed on those officers of the Navy who are in command, or who have effectively commanded, ships and aircraft squadrons of the fleet. The element parts, a commission pennant, an anchor, and the line star, were determined to be perfectly suited for a design which would be symbolic in the ready recognition of those officers who have attained the highly coveted and accountable title of Commanding Officer of our commissioned units at sea (Navy Uniform History, 2010).

Currently the service khaki uniform is the sole area of officers and Chief Petty Officers. It is a khaki button-up shirt and trousers, worn with a gold belt buckle. The shirt features two front flap pockets and a pointed collar. Ribbons are to be worn above the left pocket of the shirt, with the warfare insignia over them. A nametag may be worn on top of the right pocket, and rank insignia is worn on the collar. The rules and regulations for ribbons state the highest three, or all ribbons can be worn at once. There are three kinds of headgear that are authorized. Regularly, a khaki garrison cap or command ball cap is worn, but a khaki combination cover is also allowed (United States Navy Uniform Regulations NAVPERS 1566, 2009). The official shoes for this uniform are black oxfords, but customarily, brown shoes are worn by aviation connected officers and Chief Petty Officers. The black shoes are worn with black socks, and the brown with khaki socks (Shoes, 2005).