A brassard or armlet is an armband or piece of cloth or other material worn around the upper arm; the term typically refers to an item of uniform worn as part of

military uniform A military uniform is a standardised clothing, dress worn by members of the armed forces and Paramilitary, paramilitaries of various nations. Military dress and styles have gone through significant changes over the centuries, from colourful ...

or by

police The police are Law enforcement organization, a constituted body of Law enforcement officer, people empowered by a State (polity), state with the aim of Law enforcement, enforcing the law and protecting the Public order policing, public order ...

or other uniformed persons. Unit, role, rank badges or other

insignia An insignia () is a sign or mark distinguishing a group, grade, rank, or function. It can be a symbol of personal power or that of an official group or governing body. An insignia, which is typically made of metal or fabric, is a standalone sy ...

are carried on it instead of being stitched into the actual clothing. The brassard, when spread out, may be roughly rectangular in shape, where it is worn merely around the arm; it may also be a roughly triangular shape, in which case the brassard is also attached to a shoulder strap. The term is originally French, deriving from ''bras'' meaning "arm". Brassards are also used with the uniforms of organizations which are not military, but which are influenced by and styled upon the military, such as police, emergency services, volunteer services, or militaristic societies and political parties.

Use

A brassard is often used: * to temporarily attach insignia, such as rank, to clothing not normally bearing insignia (such as civilian clothing or a military mechanic's coveralls); For example, when French police officers work in plainclothes or are off-duty and carrying a firearm, they must wear a red 'Police' brassard. * to temporarily attach insignia to a uniform for a limited time, such as the insignia for an " officer of the day" or "duty officer"; or for uniforms expected to have a high turnover of either wearer or insignia borne, such as those of

cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

s or members of other youth organizations. Brassards worn by

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

personnel fall under this category. Brassards are often used in this manner by

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. Not to be confused with civilian police, who are legally part of the civilian populace. In wartime operations, the military police may supp ...

, the brassard being both a badge of authority and identification. Brassard (also "brassart" or "brasset") is also used to refer to pieces of

armour Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

worn to cover the entire arm (encompassing vambrace, rerebrace, and possibly a couter). File:British military police officer looks across Berlin Wall with field glasses, 1984.jpg, Armlet-wearing soldier of the British Royal Military Police in 1984. File:Haitian police with rice bag and UN brassard.jpg, A Haitian policeman with a

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

brassard, 2008. File:Tag der polnischen Streikräfte (48616677747).jpg, Soldier of the Polish Military Gendarmerie (right) displaying brassard, 2019. File:Police handling traffic in Kaesong 20080926 3.jpg, North Korean traffic controller wearing armlet, 2008. File:JSA south korea military police.jpg, Soldier of the South Korean Military Police wearing brassard, 2007.

References

* {{cite book, last=Rosignoli, first=Guido, title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Military Insignia of the 20th Century, url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc00rosi, url-access=limited, publisher=Chartwell Books Inc, location=New Jersey, year=1986, pag
69
isbn=1-55521-085-6 Military insignia Military uniforms Western plate armour Armbands

Use

See also

References