We're looking to revitalize this wiki! For more information, click here. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century France and Spain, and the beret remains associated with these countries.
Berets are worn as part of the uniform of many military and police units worldwide, as well as by other organizations. Archaeology and art history indicate that headgear similar to the modern beret has been worn since the Bronze Age across Northern Europe and as far south as ancient Crete and Italy , where it was worn by the Minoans , Etruscans and Romans. Such headgear has been popular among the nobility and artists across Europe throughout modern history.
The commercial production of Basque-style berets began in the 17th century in the Oloron-Sainte-Marie area of Southern France. Originally a local craft, beret-making became industrialised in the 19th century. The first factory, Beatex-Laulhere, claims production records dating back to By the s, berets were associated with the working classes in a part of France and Spain and by more than 20 French factories and some Spanish and Italian factories produced millions of berets.
In Western fashion, men and women have worn the beret since the s as sportswear and later as a fashion statement. Military berets were first adopted by the French Chasseurs Alpins in They were approved for use by King George V in While the two officers were serving at Sandhurst in , Gatehouse, who had transferred to the Royal Tank Corps, had been given the task of designing a practical headgear for the new corps.
Dorman-Smith had toured Spain, including the Basque region, with his friend Ernest Hemingway during the past few years, and had acquired a black Basque beret during his travels. A soldier of the Italian Folgore Brigade wearing a beret.
