Light padded waistcoat, 1916 (c)

Although steel helmets were issued to all soldiers, body protection was not universally adopted. It tended to be used mainly on an individual basis and was often purchased by relatives at home and sent out to their loved ones at the front. The protective waistcoat shown here is made of multiple layers of linen, cotton and horsehair. It was thought that these fibres, like silk, could slow down bullets or protect the wearer from shrapnel blasts.