Sapper
A sapper called pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties such as breaching fortifications, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing field defenses, as well as working on road and airfield construction and repair. They are trained to serve as infantry personnel in defensive and offensive operations. A sapper's duties are devoted to tasks involving facilitating movement and survival of allied forces and impeding those of enemies; the term "sapper" is used in the British Army and Commonwealth nations, Polish Army and the U. S. military. The phrase "sapper" comes from the French saper. A sapper, in the sense first used by the French military, was one who dug trenches to allow besieging forces to advance towards the enemy defensive works and forts, over ground, under the defenders' musket or artillery fire; this digging was referred to as sapping the enemy fortifications. Saps instructed troops; when an army was defending a fortress with cannons, they had an obvious height and therefore range advantage over the attacker's guns.
The attacking army's artillery had to be brought forward, under fire, so as to facilitate effective counter-battery fire. This was achieved by digging. Using techniques developed and perfected by Vauban, the sappers began the trench at such an angle so as to avoid enemy fire enfilading the sappe by firing down its length; as they pressed forward, a position was prepared from which cannon could suppress the defenders on the fort's bastions. The sappers would change the course of their trench, zig-zagging toward the fortress wall; each leg brought the attacker's artillery closer until the besieged cannon would be sufficiently suppressed for the attackers to breach the walls. Broadly speaking, sappers were experts at demolishing or otherwise overcoming or bypassing fortification systems. An additional term applied to sappers of the British Indian Army was "miner"; the native engineer corps were called "sappers and miners", as for example, the Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners. The term arose from a task done by sappers to further the battle.
The saps permitted cannon to be brought into firing range of the besieged fort and its cannon, but the cannon themselves were unable to breach the fort walls. The engineers would dig a tunnel from the forward-most sap up to and under the fort wall place a charge of gunpowder and ignite it, causing a tremendous explosion that would destroy the wall and permit attacking infantry to close with the enemy; this was dangerous work lethal to the sappers, was fiercely resisted by the besieged enemy. Since the two tasks went hand in hand and were done by the same troops, native Indian engineer corps came to be called "sappers and miners". Sapper is the Royal Engineers' equivalent of private; this is the case within the Indian Army Corps of Engineers, Pakistan Army Corps of Engineers Royal Canadian Engineers, Royal Australian Engineers, South African Army Engineer Formation, Jamaica Defence Force Engineer Regiment, Royal New Zealand Engineers. The term "sapper" was introduced in 1856 when the Corps of Royal Sappers and Miners was amalgamated with the officer corps of the Royal Engineers to form the Corps of Royal Engineers.
During the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I Australian sappers repaired a bridge at the historic crossing of the Jordan River at Jisr Benat Yakub. Here the retreating Ottoman and German rearguard had blown up the bridge's central arch, repaired in five hours by sappers attached to the Australian Mounted Division. While the light horse brigades forded the river, continuing the Desert Mounted Corps' advance to Damascus, the sappers worked through the night of 27/28 September 1918, to repair the bridge to enable the division's wheeled vehicles and guns to follow on 28 September. In the Canadian Forces, sappers exist both in the regular reserve force; the rank of sapper is used instead of private trained to signify completion of the Engineer DP1 course. Canadian sappers have been deployed in many major conflicts in recent history including World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the War in Afghanistan; the roles of a sapper entail: Bridge building with the ACROW, Bailey, or Medium Girder Bridge bridging systems.
The objective of the sappers is to facilitate the living and fighting for friendly troops on the battlefield, denying the same to enemy forces. The motto of the Canadian Military Engineers is Ubique a motto shared with the Royal Canadian Artillery; the patron saint of combat engineers is Saint Barbara, 4 December is the corps' day of celebration. The term "sappers", in addition to the connotation of rank of engineer private, is used collectively to informally refer to the Engineer Corps as a whole and forms part of the informal names of the three combat engineer groups, viz. Madras Sappers, Bengal Sappers and the Bombay Sappers; each of these groups consist of about twenty battalion-sized engineer regiments and additional company-sized minor engineer units. The three sapper groups are descended from the sapper and miner groups of the East India Company and the British Indian Army of the British Raj. In the Israel Defens
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China and Japan, east of India, west of Papua New Guinea, north of Australia. Southeast Asia is bordered to the north by East Asia, to the west by South Asia and the Bay of Bengal, to the east by Oceania and the Pacific Ocean, to the south by Australia and the Indian Ocean; the region is the only part of Asia that lies within the Southern Hemisphere, although the majority of it is in the Northern Hemisphere. In contemporary definition, Southeast Asia consists of two geographic regions: Mainland Southeast Asia known as Indochina, comprising parts of Northeast India, Laos, Thailand and West Malaysia. Maritime Southeast Asia known as Nusantara, the East Indies and Malay Archipelago, comprises the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India, East Malaysia, the Philippines, East Timor, Christmas Island, the Cocos Islands. Taiwan is included in this grouping by many anthropologists; the region lies near the intersection of geological plates, with both heavy seismic and volcanic activities.
The Sunda Plate is the main plate of the region, featuring all Southeast Asian countries except Myanmar, northern Thailand, northern Laos, northern Vietnam, northern Luzon of the Philippines. The mountain ranges in Myanmar and peninsular Malaysia are part of the Alpide belt, while the islands of the Philippines are part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Both seismic belts meet in Indonesia, causing the region to have high occurrences of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Southeast Asia covers about 4.5 million km2, 10.5% of Asia or 3% of earth's total land area. Its total population is about 8.5 % of the world's population. It is the third most populous geographical region in the world after East Asia; the region is culturally and ethnically diverse, with hundreds of languages spoken by different ethnic groups. Ten countries in the region are members of ASEAN, a regional organization established for economic, military and cultural integration amongst its members; the region, together with part of South Asia, was well known by Europeans as the East Indies or the Indies until the 20th century.
Chinese sources referred the region as 南洋, which means the "Southern Ocean." The mainland section of Southeast Asia was referred to as Indochina by European geographers due to its location between China and the Indian subcontinent and its having cultural influences from both neighboring regions. In the 20th century, the term became more restricted to territories of the former French Indochina; the maritime section of Southeast Asia is known as the Malay Archipelago, a term derived from the European concept of a Malay race. Another term for Maritime Southeast Asia is Insulindia, used to describe the region between Indochina and Australasia; the term "Southeast Asia" was first used in 1839 by American pastor Howard Malcolm in his book Travels in South-Eastern Asia. Malcolm only included the Mainland section and excluded the Maritime section in his definition of Southeast Asia; the term was used in the midst of World War II by the Allies, through the formation of South East Asia Command in 1943.
SEAC popularised the use of the term "Southeast Asia," although what constituted Southeast Asia was not fixed. However, by the late 1970s, a standard usage of the term "Southeast Asia" and the territories it encompasses had emerged. Although from a cultural or linguistic perspective the definitions of "Southeast Asia" may vary, the most common definitions nowadays include the area represented by the countries listed below. Ten of the eleven states of Southeast Asia are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, while East Timor is an observer state. Papua New Guinea has stated that it might join ASEAN, is an observer. Sovereignty issues exist over some territories in the South China Sea; some southern parts of Mainland China, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan, are considered as part of Southeast Asia by some authors. * Administrative centre in Putrajaya. Southeast Asia is geographically divided into two subregions, namely Mainland Southeast Asia and Maritime Southeast Asia. Mainland Southeast Asia includes: Maritime Southeast Asia includes: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India are geographically considered part of Maritime Southeast Asia.
Eastern Bangladesh and Northeast India have strong cultural ties with Southeast Asia and sometimes considered both South Asian and Southeast Asian. Sri Lanka has on some occasions been considered a part of Southeast Asia because of its cultural ties to mainland Southeast Asia; the rest of the island of New Guinea, not part of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, is sometimes included, so are Palau and the Northern Mariana Islands, which were all part of the Spanish East Indies with strong cultural and linguistic ties to the region the Philippines. The eastern half of Indonesia and East Timor are considered to be biogeographically part of Oceania due to its distinctive faunal features. New Guinea and its surrounding islands are geologically considered as a part of Australian continent, connected via the Sahul Shelf; the region
Textile
A textile is a flexible material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibers. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, cotton, hemp, or other materials to produce long strands. Textiles are formed by weaving, crocheting, knotting or tatting, felting, or braiding; the related words "fabric" and "cloth" and "material" are used in textile assembly trades as synonyms for textile. However, there are subtle differences in these terms in specialized usage. A textile is any material made of interlacing fibres, including carpeting and geotextiles. A fabric is a material made through weaving, spreading, crocheting, or bonding that may be used in production of further goods. Cloth may be used synonymously with fabric but is a piece of fabric, processed; the word'textile' is from Latin, from the adjective textilis, meaning'woven', from textus, the past participle of the verb texere,'to weave'. The word'fabric' derives from Latin, most from the Middle French fabrique, or'building, thing made', earlier as the Latin fabrica'workshop.
The word'cloth' derives from the Old English clað, meaning a cloth, woven or felted material to wrap around one, from Proto-Germanic kalithaz. The first clothes, worn at least 70,000 years ago and much earlier, were made of animal skins and helped protect early humans from the ice ages. At some point people learned to weave plant fibers into textiles; the discovery of dyed flax fibres in a cave in the Republic of Georgia dated to 34,000 BCE suggests textile-like materials were made in prehistoric times. The production of textiles is a craft whose speed and scale of production has been altered beyond recognition by industrialization and the introduction of modern manufacturing techniques. However, for the main types of textiles, plain weave, twill, or satin weave, there is little difference between the ancient and modern methods. Textiles have an assortment of uses, the most common of which are for clothing and for containers such as bags and baskets. In the household they are used in carpeting, upholstered furnishings, window shades, coverings for tables and other flat surfaces, in art.
In the workplace they are used in scientific processes such as filtering. Miscellaneous uses include flags, tents, handkerchiefs, cleaning rags, transportation devices such as balloons, kites and parachutes. Textiles are used in many traditional crafts such as sewing and embroidery. Textiles for industrial purposes, chosen for characteristics other than their appearance, are referred to as technical textiles. Technical textiles include textile structures for automotive applications, medical textiles, agrotextiles, protective clothing. In all these applications stringent performance requirements must be met. Woven of threads coated with zinc oxide nanowires, laboratory fabric has been shown capable of "self-powering nanosystems" using vibrations created by everyday actions like wind or body movements. Textiles are made from many materials, with four main sources: animal, plant and synthetic; the first three are natural. In the 20th century, they were supplemented by artificial fibres made from petroleum.
Textiles are made in various strengths and degrees of durability, from the finest microfibre made of strands thinner than one denier to the sturdiest canvas. Textile manufacturing terminology has a wealth of descriptive terms, from light gauze-like gossamer to heavy grosgrain cloth and beyond. Animal textiles are made from hair, skin or silk. Wool refers to the hair of the domestic sheep or goat, distinguished from other types of animal hair in that the individual strands are coated with scales and crimped, the wool as a whole is coated with a wax mixture known as lanolin, waterproof and dirtproof. Woollen refers to a bulkier yarn produced from carded, non-parallel fibre, while worsted refers to a finer yarn spun from longer fibres which have been combed to be parallel. Wool is used for warm clothing. Cashmere, the hair of the Indian cashmere goat, mohair, the hair of the North African angora goat, are types of wool known for their softness. Other animal textiles which are made from hair or fur are alpaca wool, vicuña wool, llama wool, camel hair used in the production of coats, ponchos and other warm coverings.
Angora refers to the long, soft hair of the angora rabbit. Qiviut is the fine inner wool of the muskox. Wadmal is a coarse cloth made of wool, produced in Scandinavia 1000~1500 CE. Sea silk is an fine and valuable fabric, made from the silky filaments or byssus secreted by a gland in the foot of pen shells. Silk is an animal textile made from the fibres of the cocoon of the Chinese silkworm, spun into a smooth fabric prized for its softness. There are two main ty
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies — dating back to the late 15th century; the Spanish Army has existed continuously since the reign of Queen Isabella. The oldest and largest of the three services, its mission was the defense of Peninsular Spain, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Melilla and the Spanish islands and rocks off the northern coast of Africa. During the 16th century, Habsburg Spain saw steady growth in its military power; the Italian Wars resulted in an ultimate Spanish victory and hegemony in northern Italy by expelling the French. During the war, the Spanish Army transformed its organization and tactics, evolving from a pike and halberd wielding force into the first pike and shot formation of arquebusiers and pikemen, known as the columella. During the 16th century, this formation evolved into the tercio infantry formation; the new formation and battle tactics were developed because of Spain's inability to field sufficient cavalry forces to face the heavy French cavalry.
Backed by the financial resources drawn from the Americas, Spain could afford to mount lengthy campaigns against her enemies, such as the long-running Dutch Revolt, defending Christian Europe from Ottoman raids and invasions, supporting the Catholic cause in the French civil wars and fighting England during the Anglo-Spanish War. The Spanish Army grew in size from around 20,000 in the 1470s to around 300,000 by the 1630s during the Thirty Years' War that tore Europe apart, requiring the recruitment of soldiers from across Europe. With such numbers involved, Spain had trouble funding the war effort on so many fronts; the non-payment of troops led to many mutinies and events such as the Sack of Antwerp, in which 17,000 people died in military rape and killing. The Thirty Years' War drew in Spain alongside most other European states. Spain entered the conflict with a strong position, but the ongoing fighting eroded her advantages. Spanish armies continued to win major battles and sieges throughout this period across large swathes of Europe.
French entry into the war in 1635 put additional pressure on Spain, with the French victory at the Battle of Rocroi in 1643 being a major boost for the French. By the signing of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, Spain was forced to accept the independence of the Dutch Republic. In the second half of the century, a much reduced and neglected Spanish Army became infamous for being poorly equipped and paid. Spain remained an important naval and military power, depending on critical sea lanes stretching from Spain through the Caribbean and South America, westwards towards Manila and the Far East; the Army was reorganized on the French model and in 1704 the old Tercios were transformed into Regiments. The first modern military school was created in Segovia in 1764. In 1768 King Charles III sanctioned the "Royal Ordinances for the Regime, Discipline and Service in His Armies", which were in force until 1978. In the late 18th century, Bourbon-ruled Spain had an alliance with Bourbon-ruled France and therefore did not have to fear a land war.
Its only serious enemy was Britain. When the French Revolution overthrew the Bourbons, a land war with France became a danger which the king tried to avoid; the Spanish Army was ill-prepared. The officer corps was selected on the basis of royal patronage, rather than merit. About a third of the junior officers had been promoted from the ranks, they did have talent, but they had few opportunities for promotion or leadership; the rank-and-file were poorly trained peasants. Elite units included foreign regiments of Irishmen, Italians and Walloons, in addition to elite artillery and engineering units. Equipment was old-fashioned and in disrepair; the army lacked its own horses and mules for transportation, so these auxiliaries were operated by civilians, who might run away if conditions looked bad. In combat, small units fought well, but their old-fashioned tactics were hard of use against the French Grande Armée, despite repeated desperate efforts at last-minute reform; when war broke out with France in 1808, the army was unpopular.
Leading generals were assassinated, the army proved too incompetent to handle command and control. Junior officers from peasant families went over to the insurgents. Spain was unable to mobilize its cavalry. During the war, there was one victory at the Battle of Bailén within the first two months of the war and with little time to prepare against the veteran French troops, which however not followed in its advantage - the French evacuated the peninsula all the way to the Ebro valley near the Pyrenees - and suffering many humiliating defeats of the regular Spanish Army after such auspicious start, proved to be the first sound defeat to the hitherto seemly unbeatable Imperial French Army, demonstrating that if given more or less equal forces than the usual mass superiority of the French as it happened to force the surrender of a whole division of the Imperial French Army, this inspired many other nations defeated by France, motivating first Austria and showed the force of nationwide resistance to Napoleon.
Conditions however worsened as Napoleon brought more effective troops into the peni
Handgun
A handgun is a short-barrelled firearm that can be held and used with one hand. The two most common handgun sub-types in use today are semi-automatic pistols. In the days before mass production, handguns were considered a badge of office, much the same as a sword; as they had limited utility and were more expensive than the long-guns of the era, handguns were carried only by the few who could afford to purchase them. However, in 1836, Samuel Colt patented the Colt Paterson, the first practical mass-produced revolver, it was capable of firing 5 shots in rapid succession and quickly became a popular defensive weapon, giving rise to the saying "God created men, but Colt made them equal." Today, in most of the world, handguns are considered self-defence weapons used by police and military officers. However, in the United States and many other countries around the world, handguns are widely available to civilians and carried for self-defence. Firearms first appeared in China; the oldest known bronze barrel handgun is the Heilongjiang hand cannon, dated to 1288.
It weighs 3.55 kg. The diameter of the interior at the end of the barrel is 2.5 cm. The barrel is 6.9 inches long. The hand cannon has a bulbous base at the breech called the yaoshi or gunpowder chamber, where the explosion that propels the projectile occurs; the diameter of the Heilongjiang hand-gun's powder chamber is 6.6 cm. The walls of the powder chamber are noticeably thicker to better withstand the explosive pressure of the gunpowder; the powder chamber has a touch hole, a small hole for the fuse that ignites the gunpowder. Behind the gunpowder chamber is a socket shaped like a trumpet where the handle of the hand cannon is inserted; the bulbous shape of the base gave the earliest Chinese and Western cannons a vase-like or pear-like appearance, which disappeared when advancements in metallurgical technology made the bulbous base obsolete. The matchlock appeared in Europe in the mid-15th century; the matchlock was the first mechanism invented to facilitate the firing of a hand-held firearm.
The classic European matchlock gun held a burning slow match in a clamp at the end of a small curved lever known as the serpentine. Upon the pulling of a lever protruding from the bottom of the gun and connected to the serpentine, the clamp dropped down, lowering the smoldering match into the flash pan and igniting the priming powder; the flash from the primer traveled through the touch hole igniting the main charge of propellant in the gun barrel. On release of the lever or trigger, the spring-loaded serpentine would move in reverse to clear the pan. For obvious safety reasons the match would be removed before reloading of the gun. Both ends of the match were kept alight in case one end should be accidentally extinguished; the wheellock was the next major development in firearms technology after the matchlock and the first self-igniting firearm. Its name is from its rotating steel wheel to provide ignition. Developed in Europe around 1500, it was used alongside the matchlock; the wheellock works by spinning a spring-loaded steel wheel against a piece of pyrite to generate intense sparks, which ignite gunpowder in a pan, which flashes through a small touchhole to ignite the main charge in the firearm's barrel.
The pyrite is clamped in vise jaws on a spring-loaded arm. When the trigger is pulled, the pan cover is opened, the wheel is rotated, with the pyrite pressed into contact. A close modern analogy of the wheellock mechanism is the operation of a cigarette lighter, where a toothed steel wheel is spun in contact with a piece of sparking material to ignite the liquid or gaseous fuel. A wheellock firearm had the advantage that it can be readied and fired with one hand, in contrast to the then-common matchlock firearms, which must have a burning cord of slow match ready if the gun might be needed and demanded the operator's full attention and two hands to operate. On the other hand, wheellock mechanisms were complex to make, making them expensive. A flintlock is a general term for any firearm; the term may apply to a particular form of the mechanism itself, introduced in the early 17th century, replaced earlier firearm-ignition technologies, such as the matchlock and the wheellock. Flintlock pistols were used as a military arm.
Their effective range was short, they were used as an adjunct to a sword or cutlass. Pistols were smoothbore although some rifled pistols were produced. Flintlock pistols came in a variety of sizes and styles which overlap and are not well defined, many of the names we use having been applied by collectors and dealers long after the pistols were obsolete; the smallest were less than 15 cm long and the largest were over 51 cm. From around the beginning of the 1700s the larger pistols got shorter, so that by the late 1700s the largest would be more like 41 cm long; the smallest would fit into a typical pocket or a hand warming muff and could be carried. The largest sizes would be carried in holsters across a horse's back just ahead of the saddle. In-between sizes included the coat pocket pistol, or coat pistol, which would fit into a large pocket, the coach pistol, meant to be carried on or under the seat of a coach in a bag or box, belt pistols, sometimes equipped with a hook designed to slip over a belt or waistband.
Larger pistols were called horse pistols. Arguably the most elegant of the p
Handgun holster
A handgun holster is a device used to hold or restrict the undesired movement of a handgun, most in a location where it can be withdrawn for immediate use. Holsters are attached to a belt or waistband, but they may be attached to other locations of the body. Holsters vary in the degree to which they protect the firearm; some holsters for law enforcement officers have a strap over the top of the holster to make the handgun less to fall out of the holster or harder for another person to grab the gun. Some holsters have a flap over the top to protect the gun from the elements. Holsters are designed to offer protection to the handgun, secure its retention, provide ready access to it; the need for ready access is at odds with the need for security and protection, so the user must consider the individual's needs. Choosing the right balance can be important in the case of a defensive weapon holster, where failure to access the weapon or damage or loss of the weapon due to insufficient retention or protection could result in serious injury or death to the user.
Holsters are designed to be used with one hand, allowing the handgun to be removed and/or replaced with the same hand. To be able to return the handgun to its holster one-handed, the holster must be made from stiff material that holds its shape so that the holster won't collapse when the object is no longer inside to give it support. Holsters are attached to a person's belt or waistband or clipped to another article of clothing; some holsters, such as ankle holsters, have integrated support. Other holsters may fit inside a pocket, to add stability and protection to the handgun, keeping it more reliably secure and accessible than if it were in the pocket alone. Holsters are worn in a location where they can be accessible. Common locations are: at the waist, behind the back, at the ankle, at the chest, or on the upper thigh. Holsters are sometimes contained in an external bag, such as a fanny pack. Since holsters are made from stiff yet tough materials, there are a limited number of common choices.
The traditional material for handgun holsters, is leather. It has an attractive appearance and can be dyed in many colors and/or embossed with elaborate designs for cosmetic reasons. Ballistic nylon is another common fabric for holsters, as it is stiff, wear resistant, thick enough to provide protection. Molded plastics, such as Kydex, are popular, due to their low cost and robustness. Holster designs for firearms cover a wide range of shapes and retention/release mechanisms, from simple leather pouches hanging from a belt to protective holsters with flaps that cover the entire handgun, to adjustable competition holsters that hold the handgun at a precise position and release when activated; the wide range of types indicates the varied circumstances in which holsters are used, the varying preferences of the users. Holsters can be divided into four broad categories by use: duty holsters, worn by uniformed law enforcement and peace officers and security personnel. Duty holsters are designed to be carried so concealment is not an issue, but retention and appearance are.
Duty holsters can be made of nylon, or plastic. Duty holsters are only found for service and compact size handguns as opposed to small subcompact handguns as these are only used for concealed carry backup guns; the primary characteristic that distinguishes duty holsters from all other holster designs is retention. Modern law enforcement duty holsters are available with varying levels of retention security (i.e. Level I, Level II, Level II+, Level III, etc.. While a higher level of retention will make it more difficult for a suspect to snatch a holstered handgun away from an officer, it may reduce the speed and ease with which an officer may draw his handgun. Therefore, when selecting a duty holster, an officer may be forced to find a compromise of speed and retention that he/she is comfortable with. Tactical/military holsters are made of nylon or plastic, they may be made in a camouflage pattern to match the wearer's uniform. They are of a drop-leg design and offer a retention device; some military holsters still use the old flap design.
There is some overlap between duty holsters, tactical holsters, military holsters. Weapon retention is not as important a consideration in military use as it is in law enforcement due to the differences in their work environments. Concealment holsters are designed to be concealed, as well as lightweight and unobtrusive, they are designed for subcompact and compact handguns since they are easier to conceal. Concealment holsters are designed to be worn under clothing, such as on the belt under a coat, und
Pleat
A pleat is a type of fold formed by doubling fabric back upon itself and securing it in place. It is used in clothing and upholstery to gather a wide piece of fabric to a narrower circumference. Pleats are categorized as pressed, that is, ironed or otherwise heat-set into a sharp crease, or unpressed, falling in soft rounded folds. Pleats sewn into place are called tucks. A vertically hanging piece of fabric such as a skirt or a drape will be described in terms of its "fullness." Fullness represents the thickness/ depth of the pleats in relation to the original width of the fabric: fabric sewn at "zero fullness" would be flat and have no pleats. Accordion pleats or knife pleats are a form of tight pleating which allows the garment to expand its shape when moving. Accordion pleating is used for some dress sleeves, such as pleating the end of the elbow, with the fullness of the pleat gathered at the cuff; this form of pleating inspired the "skirt dancing" of Loie Fuller. Accordion pleats may be used in hand fans.
Box pleats are knife pleats back-to-back, have a tendency to spring out from the waistline. They have the same 3:1 ratio as knife pleats, may be stacked to form "stacked-" or "double-box pleats"; these stacked box pleats have a 5:1 ratio. They create a bulkier seam. Inverted box pleats have the "box" on the inside rather than the outside. Cartridge pleats are used to gather a large amount of fabric into a small waistband or armscye without adding bulk to the seam; this type of pleating allows the fabric of the skirt or sleeve to spring out from the seam. During the 15th and 16th centuries, this form of pleating was popular in the garments of men and women. Fabric is evenly gathered using two or more lengths of basting stitches, the top of each pleat is whipstitched onto the waistband or armscye. Cartridge pleating was resurrected in 1840s fashion to attach the full bell-shaped skirts to the fashionable narrow waist. Fluted pleats or "flutings" are small, rounded or pressed pleats used as trimmings.
The name comes from their resemblance to a pan flute. Fortuny pleats are crisp pleats set in silk fabrics by designer Mariano Fortuny in the early 20th century, using a secret pleat-setting process, still not understood. Honeycomb pleats are narrow, rolled pleats used as a foundation for smocking. Kick pleats are short pleats leading upwards from the bottom hem of garments such as skirts or coats at the back, they allow the garment to drape straight down when stationary while allowing freedom of movement. Organ pleats are parallel rows of rounded pleats resembling the pipes of a pipe organ. Carl Köhler suggests. Plissé pleats are narrow pleats set by gathering fabric with stitches, wetting the fabric, "setting" the pleats by allowing the wet fabric to dry under weight or tension. Linen chemises or smocks pleated with this technique have been found in the 10th century Viking graves in Birka. Rolled pleats create tubular pleats. A piece of the fabric to be pleated is pinched and rolled until it is flat against the rest of the fabric, forming a tube.
A variation on the rolled pleat is the stacked pleat, rolled and requires at least five inches of fabric per finished pleat. Both types of pleating create a bulky seam. Watteau pleats are one or two box pleats found at the back neckline of 18th century sack-back gowns and some late 19th century tea gowns in imitation of these; the term is not contemporary, but is used by costume historians in reference to these styles as portrayed in the paintings of Antoine Watteau. Kingussie pleats, named after the town in Scotland, are a rarely seen type of pleat used in some Scottish kilts, they consist of a single centrally located box pleat in the rear of the kilt with knife pleats fanning out on either side. Clothing features pleats for practical reasons as well as for purely stylistic reasons. Shirts and blouses have pleats on the back to provide freedom of movement and on the arm where the sleeve tapers to meet the cuff; the standard men's shirt has a box pleat in the center of the back just below the shoulder or alternately one simple pleat on each side of the back.
Jackets designed for active outdoor wear have pleats to allow for freedom of movement. Norfolk jackets have double-ended inverted box pleats at the back. Skirts and kilts can include pleats of various sorts to add fullness from the waist or hips, or at the hem, to allow freedom of movement or achieve design effects. One or more kick pleats may be set near the hem of a straight skirt to allow the wearer to walk comfortably while preserving the narrow style line. Modern kilts may be made with either box pleats or knife pleats, can be pleated to the stripe or pleated to the sett. Pleats just below the waistband on the front of the garment are typical of many styles of formal and casual trousers including suit trousers and khaki
Spanish Empire[edit]
Philippine Republic[edit]
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