The National Civilian Uniform of 1940

[Nick Komiya]

The National Civilian Uniform of 1940

The China Incident that broke out in July 1937 and the pursuant material shortages caused by the massive mobilization of troops forced the military to actively seek alternative materials to use for production. Thus were born the felt field caps, rubberized canvas ammo pouches, belts and slings, use of aluminum or steel in place of brass or copper, etc.

But if the army had to yield and compromise in terms of specs for its equipment, civilian life was much harder hit. Use of cotton and wool for commercial civilian production was severely restricted from 1937.

So young men graduating from school and starting to work, who usually needed to buy business suits, or kids getting into school and needing school uniforms faced difficulty getting their wardrobes. With a war going on, one also needed a black suit as formal wear at funerals and such, but they were now impossible to get.



One Jacket from Cradle to Grave (for Schooling, Dating, Weddings, Funerals and Soldiering)

To rationalize the civilian wardrobe needs in times of this material shortage, the government launched civilian uniforms that could be worn for all occasions, even replacing frock coats formerly required at order bestowing ceremonies.

These uniforms, called Kokumin-Fuku (国民服), were first introduced in May of 1940 and further issued as an Emperor’s edict in November to make it law. Though it became law, it was not an obligation to wear them. However, as a nationally approved code of dress for all occasions, it had “great mileage”, so they did become the norm for the average Joe (or Taro for that matter).

In 1945, by Edict 384 of 22nd June you could even go to war as soldier in this national civilian uniform. So if you couldn’t afford different clothes for each occasion, this was the magic solution for your financial woes. In that sense, it must have achieved reasonable benefits in economies of scale.



Choose any Color, so long as it’s “National Defense Drab”

Initially jackets were proposed in 4 styles in May of 1940, but by the time it became law in November, it got reduced to 2 models. They were all in so-called National Defense Color (Kokuboh Shoku 国防色), but instead of limiting the color to be identical with the army uniform, they offered colors in several shades of earth brown with differing tones of grey, as lip service to allowing a degree of personal choice.

The jackets only needed the addition of a purple dress cord to be worn to make the whole ensemble into a dress uniform for formal occasions.

The newly designed cap featured fold-ups, but when wearing the number 4 style jacket with closed collar, which most resembles the army jacket, one could wear a cap in the same design as the army field cap. Those caps had no insignia or came with school badges, but have a way of getting transformed into army field caps by receiving post war stars. During the war, design similarity with army field caps was not unwelcomed by the army, but application of a star in front was an offense that got you arrested by MPs.

[Nick Komiya]

A Kimono-Shirt?

The jackets were straightforward Western design, but a unique undergarment was designed to be worn beneath the jacket, which replaced the vest and shirt of a normal business suit ensemble. This undergarment was not meant as underwear, but served as one’s normal business attire in the office and also replaced the jacket in summer. This garment, the designers tried to make unique to Japan, and it came out as a combination of a Japanese kimono style robe collar and shirt. This, too, was initially proposed in 4 designs, but reduced to two in the Edict that came out in November 1940.

These had detachable white collar liners to facilitate cleaning, and the white liners sticking out made them look even more Kimono-like. Note that in the photo above, the man modelling the Model A jacket is seen wearing this undergarment with the unique neckline. Naturally, neckties were not supposed to be worn, but some seem not to be able to get used to not wearing them and continued with the practice.

In WW2 Japan, both Mao Zedong and Kim Jong-un would have blended in nicely into the Japanese crowd without looking as strange as they do otherwise. But unlike those communists that made it a permanent anti-fashion statement, the Japanese thankfully only intended the drab look as a temporary wartime contingency.

[Nick Komiya]

The foregoing only featured men's wear, but a little known series for women was actually also developed later from June 1941 and got announced in April 1942. It is little known, because women mostly ignored it and did not wear the strange designs. But for the sake of women's rights, I'll show the illustrations of this fashion dud below.