The First Contingent of the Canadian Expeditionary Force to Europe in 1914 wore the Canadian Service Dress uniform designed and issued in 1903. The inadequacies of Canadian uniforms, equipment and weapons made themselves felt not long after arrival in England in late 1914. In the field in France, the CEF found that Canadian pattern jackets were too tightly fitting to be as useful for field service.
Eventually, the CEF began to issue jacket of British pattern. In addition to the differing features outlined below, the British jacket had “rifle patches” on the shoulders (an extra layer of wool which resisted the wearing out of the shoulders due to field chafing from the field equipment).
- Collar: Stand and fall collar. This was often tailored by Canadians, however, by the addition of hooks and eyes that closed the front of the collar, giving the appearance of a Canadian stand-up collar.
- Front Closure: 5 button front
- Pockets: Two breast pockets, box pleated, with straight cut flaps secured by buttons. Two hip pockets with flaps and buttons.
- Cuffs: Plain cuffs.