Robert Dudley in a slashed, probably leather, jerkin of the 1560s

A jerkin is a man's short close-fitting jacket, made usually of light-colored leather, and often without sleeves, worn over the doublet in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The term is also applied to a similar sleeveless garment worn by the British Army in the twentieth century.

The stock phrase, buff jerkin, refers to an oiled oxhide jerkin, as worn by soldiers.

The origin of the word is unknown. The Dutch word jurk, a child's frock, often taken as the source, is modern, and represents neither the sound nor the sense of the English word.

Sixteenth and seventeenth centuries[link]

Leather jerkins of the sixteenth century were often slashed and punched, both for decoration and to improve the fit.

Jerkins were worn closed at the neck and hanging open over the peascod-bellied fashion of doublet. At the turn of the seventeenth century, the fashion was to wear the jerkin buttoned at the waist and open above to reflect the fashionable narrow-waisted silhouette.

By the mid-seventeenth century, jerkins were high-waisted and long-skirted like doublets of the period.

Gallery[link]

• 

  Martin Frobisher wears his jerkin closed at the neck and open below, 1570s

• 

  Sir Walter Raleigh wears his jerkin closed at the waist, 1602

• 

  Dutch musician wears a jerkin with ribbon points as fasteners, 1632

• 

  Guardsman's buff jerkin is worn with a sash, c. 1639, from a painting by Frans Hals

Twentieth century[link]

During the First World War, the British army issued brown leather jerkins to the troops as a measure to protect against the cold but to allow freedom of movement. These garments generally had four buttons and were lined with khaki wool. They were practical, hardwearing and extremely appreciated by officers and other ranks alike. By the time of the Second World War, the leather jerkins were still on issue to all the Commonwealth forces and were universally popular. Jerkins made in Canada were dark brown with black wool linings and differed in general appearance from the British jerkins.^[1]

The jerkins from the Second World War had bakelite buttons instead of the brass or brown leather of the originals, and were each unique in that they were finished around the bottom edges with offcuts in a bid to eliminate waste. (It has been suggested that many of the WWII jerkins were made up from leather left over from the Irvin flying jackets also in production in the UK - however, the flying jackets were made of sheepskin so this may not be the case). Jerkins remained warm and comfortable garments to wear whilst fighting, working or driving, and came to characterise the British forces as a preferred alternative to the heavy greatcoats that other armies persisted with.

A practical garment known as the Battle Jerkin was developed in 1942 by Colonel Rivers-MacPherson of the British Army; a modification of the English hunting vest, it was developed into a garment made of leather (canvas versions were also created) with multiple pockets, intended to replace the conventional web gear then in use. It was issued to assault troops for the Normandy landings and was used widely by commando personnel in 1944–45.^[2]

During the post war period, a much less distinctive PVC version was introduced to the forces. WD surplus leather jerkins flooded the UK during the 1950s and 1960s and were a common sight on manual workmen across the country. Wartime vintage leather jerkins are now collector's items, and at least one UK firm has produced a facsimile. The Belgian Army also produced vinyl jerkins in the postwar era.

See also[link]

• 1550–1600 in fashion
• 1600–1650 in fashion

References[link]

1. ^ canadiansoldiers.com
2. ^ Chappell, Mike British Infantry Equipments 1908–1980 Men at Arms series, Osprey Publishing Ltd., London, UK.

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 
• Janet Arnold: Patterns of Fashion: the cut and construction of clothes for men and women 1560–1620, Macmillan 1985. Revised edition 1986. (ISBN 0-89676-083-9)

Christopher James Hardman (born 26 August 1990, Lowestoft, England to parents Ian Hardman and Karen Elizibeth Clarke),^[1] more commonly known by his stage name Lil' Chris, is an English singer-songwriter, DJ and television personality.

[edit] Rock School

Chris rose to prominence in January 2006 at the age of 16 after appearing in series two of Channel 4's Rock School.^[1] The TV show saw Gene Simmons (from the band KISS) try to form a rock band out of a class of children attending Kirkley High School (now East Point Academy).^[2] In the series, Chris was immediately seen as a contender for the band after revealing that he could sing, play guitar, drum, and write songs. Eventually Chris was selected as frontman and lead singer in the line-up for the band (now named "Hoax UK"). In the final episode the band went on to open for Judas Priest, Rob Zombie, and Anthrax at a concert in Long Beach, California.^[3]

Solo career[link]

A week after the performance Chris was contacted by record producers Ray Hedges and Nigel Butler, who appeared in Rock School to help the class with songwriting. Chris went on to sign a record contract with RCA Records and released his debut single "Checkin' It Out" in September 2006 which reached no. 3 in the UK Singles Chart.^[3] After performing a cover of Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack" on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, Chris then released his debut album Lil' Chris in January 2006. Chris continued to promote and release singles from his album throughout 2007, as well as performing as a supporting act for McFly on their 24 date Up Close and Personal tour throughout the UK. Chris also took part in BBC Three's Celebrity Scissorhands and made guest appearances in episodes of CBBC's SMart and TMi.

More television work followed in 2008, including appearances on The Weakest Link, Hider in the House, Dani's House and Never Mind the Buzzcocks. Chris also compered the 4Music stage of the T4 on the Beach music festival in July 2008. In October - November 2008 (after a successful pilot earlier in the year) Chris hosted Everybody Loves Lil' Chris on the T4 strand of Channel 4 on Saturday mornings. The show was a mixture of celebrity interviews, live music performances and various 'challenges' that Chris undertook.^[4] The airing of the show coincided with the release of Chris's second album Whats It All About in October 2008. He also supported pop band Alphabeat on their Wolfbaggin' tour, throughout the UK.

Throughout 2009, Chris made celebrity appearances as a DJ, visiting various venues around the UK. These included Zanzibar club in Leicester in May 2009, and Tramps Nightclub in Worcester in August 2009. In October 2009 Chris made a guest appearance in the BBC1 game show Hole In The Wall, and also featured in an episode of the second series of the CBBC comedy show Sorry, I've Got No Head. During December 2009 to January 2010, Chris presented the making of Remo Skilla's music video, Stoosh, which was posted on YouTube.

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Lil' Chris (4 December 2006) #54 UK
• What's It All About (6 October 2008) #94 UK

Singles[link]

• "Checkin' It Out" (September 2006) #3 UK
• "Gettin' Enough??" (December 2006) #17 UK
• "Figure It Out" (February 2007) #57 UK
• "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off" (October 2007) #63 UK

TV appearances[link]

• "Rock School"
• "The Sharon Osbourne Show"
• "TMi: Festive Special 2"
• "Hider in the House"
• Everybody Loves Lil Chris
• T4 on the Beach 2008
• "Dani's House"
• "Never Mind the Buzzcocks"
• "Hole in the Wall"

"My super sweet sixteen" (UK)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Lil' Chris on Myspace
• Lil' Chris at the Internet Movie Database