Military cap in fashion: between history and revolution

There are clothing items that have been at the center of international conflicts and epoch-making revolutions, that have helped to define the identity of a people and have been symbols of identification for both those in power and those fighting to conquer it. The military berets have always told stories of struggle, but now also of fashion: at the latest Fashion Week, designers like Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons have reintroduced modern variants of the accessory, inaugurating a true revival of the trend. At FW24, in an interview with WWD, Miuccia Prada herself emphasized the timeless and generative value of historical clothing. “One looks at history to learn something,” the designer stated. «It was some intellectual who said that removing a piece from the past means separating it from its cage.»

At the FW24 Prada, Simons and Prada showcased various types of military berets: those inspired by World War II uniforms (perhaps a cinematic reference to Charlotte Rampling in The Night Porter (1974) by Liliana Cavani), and the typical cylindrical-shaped kepi hats first worn by the Austrian army in the 1800s, paired for the occasion with colorful cardigans and skirts that resembled petticoats in the back. The originality of this choice lies in having liberated military accessories from their historical rigidity by covering them with delicate, soft fabrics, light as feathers and velvet. In the FW24 Menswear show, Prada and Simons reflected on the complex relationship between artifice and nature, expressed in the dialogue and mutual contamination between everyday places and the external environment. In this collection, the design duo also brought military berets reminiscent of the kingform worn by high-ranking naval officers under wool peacoats adorned with gold buttons, just like a typical winter uniform of an admiral. It is not the first time that Miuccia Prada has shown interest in sailor uniforms: for FW16, the designer created the typical white sailor hat, commonly called a docker, still worn by the American navy in some official ceremonies and made famous in animated cinema by Popeye. This type of beret has been recently proposed by Pharrell in the Pre-Fall 2024 Louis Vuitton Men collection.

Hermès’ creative director Nadège Vanhée chose the classic elbsegler as the key accessory for the Resort 2025 collection, a hat usually made of felt with a short visor decorated with a cord. For the show, it was made entirely of leather, like those worn by Madonna in some photo shoots during the early years of her career. This beret originally spread in the first half of the 19th century, not only as a working hat for sailors but also as a military item for leaders Lenin and Stalin during the Russian Revolution. In the 1950s, the leather version of the breton cap became popular in the Rockers subculture – also known as “leather boys” – and was later made famous on the big screen by Marlon Brando in The Wild One (1953). The following decade, the beret was often worn by artists like the Beatles and Bob Dylan, becoming, as noted, an iconic accessory of punk culture in the 1980s. The elbsegler was often showcased by Karl Lagerfeld during his years as creative director of Chanel (notably in the Pre-Fall 2018 collection), a stylistic feature that made the sailor hat one of the most recognizable items of the French maison, recently reintroduced in tweed by Virginie Viard in Pre-Fall 2024.

Giorgio Armani, from his early collections, has always shown great interest and curiosity for military clothing, which perfectly matches his idea of functional fashion. In the Emporio FW24 Men’s collection, to the notes of “Il mare d’inverno” by Loredana Bertè and inspired by the Atlantic crossings undertaken by many ships throughout history, Armani staged a show of sophisticated sailors armed with berets and side caps. The side cap, also known as a bustina, is characterized by the practicality with which it can be folded and placed in a bag. Initially worn by the Red Army in Russia (pilotka), it was later used by the Italian and German armies during the two world wars, and still today by the U.S. Air Force. Over time, the flight cap lost ground after the invention of the beret, which is found in the Emporio Fall 2024 Women’s collection with office suits, velvet jackets, and furs. The beret has the merit of being a symbol of popular revolutions as well as an identifying item of various national military units, depending on the color and embroidery on the beret. After being worn by the Folgore brigade, it was made famous by Che Guevara during the Cuban Revolution of the 1950s and by the Black Panthers in the 1970s (a movement for the emancipation of the African American community). From being an emblem of grassroots struggle, the béret basque today is a distinctive sign of the artist’s uniform, an accessory that embodies refined Parisian elegance. Originally used by Dutch farmers, it has climbed the social pyramid to become a daily item that cyclically returns among designers’ proposals in contemporary collections, as seen in the Pre-Fall 2024 show by Dior and the Resort 2025 by Louis Vuitton Men.

From Jil Sander, Lucie and Luke Meier have chosen to delve into an even more distant past, proposing for FW24 actual helmets reminiscent of the Venetian sallet (barbute helmet), worn by infantrymen and knights in the 15th century. The rigidity evoked by these military headgear is contrasted by soft silhouettes, particularly quilted coats and capes that sometimes hide and other times reveal the softness of the bodies. This minimal and aseptic reinterpretation of medieval armor creates a homogeneous effect, a trick that allows viewers to focus on the garment and nothing else. Pieter Mulier, current creative director of Alaïa, for the SS24 collection, has retrieved from the maison’s archives the pillbox hat, giving it an erotic and seductive allure by pairing it with latex coats and bodysuits. Originally born during the late Roman Empire as a military pillbox hat, the hat in question was used for a long time in military settings before attracting the attention of milliners in the 1930s. It became popular thanks to Jacqueline Kennedy, who often wore pillbox hats made especially for her by the famous American designer Halston during her public appearances. The headgear was also worn in a famous leopard version by Audrey Hepburn in the film Charade (1963) (also the subject of a Bob Dylan song Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat). Recently, Miley Cyrus posted a picture on her social channels wearing an Alaïa pillbox hat, which many compared to the style of Grace Jones, one of the most famous muses of the Tunisian designer.

Celine for FW24 proposed a personal version of the classic Police Bobby Hat, the metropolitan helmet still worn today by local English police. This type of military beret was already the subject of the so-called Atomic Age, a 1960s fashion movement led by Andres Courrèges, Paco Rabanne, and Pierre Cardin, who at the time had models wearing hats similar to military helmets and aviator berets. It is no coincidence that the designers proposed this type of aesthetic during the Cold War, confirming that designers’ choices are inevitably influenced by the historical context and thus also by ongoing armed conflicts. The return of military berets to the catwalk recalls the long-standing and mutual influence between fashion and military clothing. Fashion’s fascination with war-wear has always existed: it can be seen in the choice of materials such as nylon and gabardine, still used in military contexts and often employed by designers, in the silhouettes of army uniforms that, starting in the 1970s, inspired the construction of ready-to-wear garments. An example remains the safari jacket by Yves Saint Laurent, originally worn by the Afrika Korps during World War II and reintroduced by Anthony Vaccarello for SS24 of the maison.