Danish Uniform Designations and Documentation

This is an attempt to document the basic uniform designations and details of the Danish military.  It is starting out as a summary of this great thread here:

https://iacmc.forumotion.com/t9840-my-m84-stuff

I have used official Danish T and M numbers that are known, but I added "standard" collecting nomenclature to distinguish the different purposes of the uniform.  Specifically that Temperate is smooth cloth in green colors, Tropical is ripstop in green colors, and Desert is ripstop in desert colors.  1st Model indicates the first major version within a designation (in this case M/01) and 2nd Model indicates the second major version within the same designation.  This allows collectors an easier way to know which uniform is which with less chance of confusion:

T/78 - combat and garrison trousers and jacket
M/84 1st Model - combat and garrison trousers and jacket

T/99 Tropical - also known as "Balkan" type. Made in Ripstop cloth
T/99 Desert - 1st model desert
M/01 1st Model Tropical - production version of T/99. I do not think there are differences
M/01 1st Model Desert - same as above

2003 Trials Tropical - M/01 Tropical with added arm pockets and other features.  Definitely official Danish MoD and dated 2003.  This appears to be the trials version of what became the M/01 2nd Model.

M/84 2nd Model - similar to standard M/84 but with arm pockets as with M/01 2nd Model jackets and similar trousers.  I have one dated 2007
M/01 2nd Model Lightweight  - similar to 2003 Trials, but simplified and in smooth cloth.  I have one dated 2007
M/01 2nd Model Tropical  - same as above, but in ripstop.  I have one dated 2007
M/01 2nd Model Desert - same as above, but in desert colors.  I have pictures of one dated 2006

M/11 ALM - same cut as M/84 2nd Model but in Multicam colors
M/11 LET - same as M/01 but in smooth cloth

Following this are examples of these uniforms. If you have an example of a particular uniform that has not been pictured yet, please post along with the corresponding name from the above list and the year of manufacture.

If you have an example of one that is already pictured, please don't repost as that just makes this page take longer to load and might confuse people.  Plus, I think most people on this Forum have at least one M/84 so we don't need to see more than one  If you have an example that is already shown, but the date is different, please note the type and date.  There might be some interesting info to glean from this.

Steve

T/78 Jacket - 1980



T/78 Garrison Trousers - 1980



T/78 Combat Trousers -1980 (not in my collection)



Steve

T/99 or M/01 Tropical - nicknamed "Balkan" as it was introduced due to Danish soldiers serving on the Balkans - in Bosnia and Kosovo.

T/99 desert - first used by Danish UN soldiers in UNMEE (United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea) in 2000

2003 model trials tropical - not issued in any quantities. Has a number of features that distinguish it from the Balkan uniform (T/99 and M/01) - eg. holes in the pockets to let out water and no "Canadian buttons" on the pockets

Here is my strange M/01 uniform that I am calling M/01 2nd Model Lightweight (2007):





M/01 2nd Model Desert (2005), prior to to the addition of the rank flap on the trousers (2007?)





Steve

I can contributed with some other Cold War related information:

NB (disclaimer): This is only rough guidelines, and in no way exhaustive.

The source material for this section is:
[1] ____,Hærens Kampuniformssystem M/58. Copenhagen: Hærkommandoen, 1961.
[2] ____,Uniform og Oppakning. For Danske Styrker til Lands. Copenhagen, 1954.
[3] ____,Vejledning i Anvendelsen af Hærens Oppakningsystem. Copenhagen: Hærkommandoen, 1962.
[4] Hvidt, Anton,The Danish Infantry's Uniforms and Equipment Throughtout the Past 200 Years. 12 Coloured plates with Danish end English Text. Copenhagen: E. Harder, 1961.
[5] Lethern & Wise,The Development of the Mills Woven Cartridge Belt. 1877-1956, London: M.E.Co., 1959.


A "timeline":

1947-1950: The M/45-50 is developed.
1948: The US M1 helmet is adopted.
1950: The M/45-50 webbing is introduced.
1948: Uniform M/44 is now becoming widely distributed. The uniform is used from the 1940s and well into the 1960s.
1958: The M/58 uniform is introduced. The M/58, in its many versions, is used well into the 1990s (with the Home Guard).
1959: The M/45-59 equipment is introduced. The M/45-59 webbing, and its many, many versions are used well into the 1990s.
1961: The standard colour for all equipment and uniforms change from karkee to OD-green, and the M/58 uniform is now being produced with shoulder straps. A new gas mask and carrier is introduced.




Uniforms:

Several uniforms was used throughout he Cold War, the M/44, M/58 (and M/58-61) and M/84.
The M/84 is covered in the post above, hence I will only cover the M/44 and M/58.

M/44:
The M/44 is a British inspired, karkee-coloured uniform.
Outer layer consisted of a 'battledress jacket', trousers and if the weather permitted a greatcoat.
The uniform was not widely distributed before at least 1948, and underwent some minor changes during its service life.
E.g.: In 1949 regimental badges (collar badges) was introduced, and the uniform changed colour - from a very "sand" coloured karkee, to a more green hued version in the late 1950s - early 1960s.
The uniform initially survived the introduction of the much more practical 1958, as it was used as garrison and parade uniform.

Photos:





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M/58:
The M/44 was far from perfect, and constant complaints about the insufficiency of the uniform made the army to design a new uniform. Denmark had at the time adopted more and more US items, and the total domination of the US in NATO made it clear that a US-style uniform was needed (it is a little more complicated than this, but for now it is only about the uniforms).

The M/58 was made of cotton, and was Denmark's first cotton uniform. It had many more standard items, and the soldiers were now not required to bring anything from home!
A full set consisted of:
Parka M/58
Hood M/58
Jacket M/58
Trousers M/58
Hat / Cap M/58
Suspenders M/58
Scarf M/58
Mittens M/58
Cardigan M/58
Shirt M/58
Boots M/58
Then came undergarments, socks.. etc. The list was very long, and contained more than 20 items.
All designed to achieve the greatest comfort.  

The M/58 came in two variants. Before 1961 the colour was 'karkee' and it had no shoulder straps.
Post 1961, the uniform was now found with shoulder straps, and had changed colour to an 'OD', because of the introduction of Night vision. OD does not stand out the same way as other colours.

The boots also came in two main version - with either hooks or eyelets for the laces.
The M/58 had a 'herringbone weave', as it is aptly named here. The M/58-61 had a standard horizontal weave pattern.
The herringbone weave does not tear as easily, but is more expensive in the long run.  

Here is photo of a M/58-61, with the early style M/58 boots.



And the "parka" (trench coat):




Period photos of the original M/58 in use (from 1960):




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Equipment:

The equipment is, albeit the persistance of the modern collector, only found in two main versions:

The M/45-50 and the M/45-59.

The original M/45-50 webbing was put together during a few years in the late 1940s with the conjoined effort of the Mills Equipment Company (in London) and the Equipment Commission of the Danish Army, headed by Anton Hvidt. Described as a very "enthusiastic soldier" (see source [5]).

M/45-50 equipment
The 1950 date should not confuse you, the equipment set was put together between 1947-1950, and most items actually entered service in 1948. The set was however not done before 1950 - hence the '50' in M/45-50. The equipment is designed for use of two destinct weapons, the US Garand (introduced in 1950) and the Madsen LMG, with its box magazines.
Here seen in "battle order":









M/45-59:
Still meant for the M/50 Garand (as the US Garand was designated in Denmark), but now with smaller ammunition pouches. The M/45-59 saw the introduction of a new water bottle carrier, bayonet frog, ammunition pouch, poncho roll, gas mask carrier (1961). However, most of the equipment remained the same and kept the nomenclature from the M/45-50 equipment. This Causes major confusion among modern collectors. E.g.: The belt is designated M/45, no matter if it is in OD-green, karkee, with brass or aluminium fittings.

Here seen with pistol holster (for MG gunners, medics, officers, etc.):