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Leatherneck

For other uses, see Leatherneck (disambiguation).
Circa 1817, First Lieutenant Charles Rumsey Broom, USMC, sports a black leather stock beneath a high collar, which gave birth to the term "leatherneck"

Leatherneck is a military slang term in the U.S. for a member of the United States Marine Corps. It is generally believed to originate in the wearing of a "leather stock" that went around the neck. Its original purpose was to protect the neck from slashing blades in battle but it also served to keep the head and the neck erect when the uniform was worn.

History

The term "Leatherneck" was derived from a leather stock once worn around the neck by both American and British Marines and soldiers (British sailors referred to Royal Marines as "Bootnecks"). Beginning in 1798 "one stock of black leather and clasp" was issued to each United States Marine every year.[1] Its use as a synecdoche for Marines began as a term of ridicule by sailors.[2]

The dress blue uniform of the US Marines still bears a tribute to that stock collar today, with a stiff cloth tab behind the front of its collar.[3]

Leather neck collar

This stiff leather collar, fastened by two buckles at the back, measured between 2.5 and more than 3 inches tall in front, tapering toward the back.[4][5] The origin of the leather neck collar, also known as a "stock", has to do with early 19th-century military fashion trends in Europe and North America; its use among enlisted men supposedly improved their military bearing and appearance by forcing the chin high and posture straight.[6]

The stock was uncomfortable, but Marines would be punished for failure to wear them on duty, so some would have the stock stitched to their coats to ensure it was always on their uniform.[4] General George F. Elliott, recalling its use after the American Civil War, said the "effect of the stock when buckled around a man's neck was to hold his head high in the air, like geese looking for rain".[7]

The stock was dropped as an article of American Marine uniform in 1872, after surviving through the uniform changes of 1833, 1839, and 1859.[8]

As protection

The stock collar was worn originally to protect the neck from sword cuts,[9] such as cutlass slashes while boarding ships,[10] and to maintain an erect posture.

Alternative etymology for Royal Marines

The American Marine Corps nickname "leatherneck" is generally attributed to the wearing of the leather stock. The use of the term "Bootneck" for British Royal Marines had a similar cause, and also on the alleged habit of cutting a strip of leather from the top of a boot to provide additional protection for the neck, although it is unclear if this was ever common practice.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Legends of the Marine Corps". Marine Corps Historical Reference Series. USMCHangout.com. 1963. Retrieved 2014-06-22.
  2. ^ Lighter, Jonathan (June 20, 2014). "How World War I gave us 'cooties'". CNN. Retrieved 2014-06-22. 'Leatherneck,' ... denoted the U.S. Marine, whose 19th-century uniform had featured a high leather collar that sailors ridiculed.
  3. ^ "Lore of the Corps". National Museum of the Marine Corps. Archived from the original on 2012-09-18. Retrieved 2014-06-22. This leather collar served to protect the neck against cutlass slashes and to hold the head erect in proper military bearing. Sailors serving aboard ship with Marines came to call them 'leathernecks.' Use of the leather stock was retained until after the Civil War when it was replaced by a strip of black glazed leather attached to the inside front of the dress uniform collar. The last vestiges of the leather stock can be seen in today's modern dress uniform, which features a stiff cloth tab behind the front of the collar. The term 'leatherneck' transcended the actual use of the leather stock and became a common nickname for United States Marines.
  4. ^ a b Robert H. Rankin (1970). Uniforms of the Marines. Putnam. p. 26.
  5. ^ Lawrence F. Lowery (2007). The Golden Age of Big Little Books. Educational Research and Applications LLC. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-9762724-8-9.
  6. ^ Our Navy, the Standard Publication of the U.S. Navy. 1918. pp. 2–.
  7. ^ The Leatherneck. Leatherneck Association. 1953. p. 32.
  8. ^ USMC uniforms during the Civil War. Marine Corps Association
  9. ^ Edward F. Dolan (1 September 2009). Careers in the U.S. Marine Corps. Marshall Cavendish. pp. 23–. ISBN 978-0-7614-4637-8.
  10. ^ Richard S. Lowry (2006). US Marine in Iraq: Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2003. Osprey Publishing. pp. 63–. ISBN 978-1-84176-982-0.
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