Uniforms and insignia of the Red Army (1917–1922)

Common card · No. 467801

In its nascent years, the Red Army's uniform was defined by two main factors: the revolutionary symbology developed in 1917 and the abysmal logistical realities of a country in crisis. This typically meant soldiers marching to Civil War battles in shabby World War hand-me-downs and rustic peasant shoes made of bark, if even that. At this time insignia was also primitive, scant strips of red cloth at best. As the Soviet state consolidated however, these would become more developed. Uniforms became more distinctive and insignia more specific in their meanings, evoking symbols of labour or a mythologised Russian historical continuity. Yet this often would not last: once the revolutionary period had ended, many of these elements would be abandoned or even reversed entirely under the coming regime.

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