Originally Posted by
ex82watcher
I have been watching a French crime thriller,and I noticed that their policemen/women were wearing their rank 'epaulettes' buttoned onto the front of their shirts as seen on British/US soldiers.Do any of you current or ex-military people know of a reason for this change from the previous practice of displaying rank on one's shoulders ? Is it just current fashion ? (I am aware that RAF/RN still have rings on their sleeves).
The French have been using rank on the front of their combat uniforms for far longer than us (late 1970s?). As others have suggested, it makes more sense when kit carriage frequently obscures the shoulders.