"What are Puttees made out of?" Topic

Are they made out of wool only? Or can they be made out of cotton and other lightweight material?? I've been searching for the answer to this question for a while, and been unable to find an answer.

I would imagine much like spats they would or could be made of leather.

Back in the navy we wore gaiters, which where stiff canvas.
Puttees were wool, however a cotton may have been substituted in warmer climes.

At least in Canada, puttees were wool – my father-in-law had less than fond memories of putting them on

They were still wearing puttees in the British Army in the Falklands. They were thick wool as were the previous issues going back to the 19th Century.

Yes I wore puttees in my time, light khaki for officers, darker for the other ranks, not sure of the exact composition but i would imagine it to be a wool mix not 100% wool.

Mine are wool…

May I ask a stupid question? What exactly was their purpose? I assume to provide some protection against burs and such like, but wouldn't simple trousers have been an easier and less fussy way to handle this? Now I admit, puttees have much more panache. Maybe that's all it was; spit and polish needs no justification in my book!

British Army ones are wool, both the long WW1 type and the shorter ones used in WW2 and postwar until DMS boots fell out of use. I have some Russian ones which are just thin cotton. I think the Japanese WW2 ones were cotton too, with extra long tapes.

The British ones stay up much better:)

But they can be made of anything. I've seen photos of French troops wearing what appear to be strips of hessian sacking.

Basically puttees were to provide a seal between the trousers and the boots and to provide support to the ankle and lower leg in the same way gaiters would have.

Thank you!

This is a question not asked of a lady by a gentleman…

Stops the bottoms of your trousers snagging on stuff, stops insects etc going up trouser leg, stops boots flooding with water if you step into a deep puddle, gives a modicum of ankle support.

Don't forget, British infantry wind puttees bottom to top, and cavalry, top to bottom! (or is it the other way round?) I forget………….

John

Latterly it was just round and round (the boot top) ensuring that the triangular flash at the end pointed backwards and was on the outside. The narrower tape was then wound round the middle of the puttee in similar fashion being finished over the flash by winding it perpendicularly a few times. Easier to do than explain.