What was the school uniform of Soviet children? What school uniform was in the USSR? Soviet school uniform for girls.
School uniforms are starting to come back. Many parents support this initiative of education officials, believing that the general style of dress will not distract from the most important thing - mastering the material. Indeed, very often, instead of listening carefully to the teacher, classmates examine each other's outfits and discuss them. In addition, parents of students recall their own youth, when they all wore school uniforms.
Reasons for the introduction
In the post-war period, uniform style was introduced in all departments. Employees had to strictly adhere to the dress code prescribed by law, as they now say. School life was no exception. In educational institutions, wearing a school uniform became mandatory in 1948, when the first, most strict and ascetic version of it was approved. The upbringing of a true patriot, distinguished by high moral principles, had to begin from childhood. The school uniform of the times of the USSR not only accustomed the child to accuracy, disciplined him, but also indicated the absence of class differences. All children were equal. In any case, during the training sessions it was impossible to demonstrate to classmates some unusual thing that his parents had difficulty getting to their child.
School uniform worn by girls
Introduced in 1948, the USSR school uniform for girls very much resembled the style of dress that pupils of pre-revolutionary women's gymnasiums had to follow. She was a neat brown dress made of wool and an apron. For everyday wear, a black apron was intended, which could be replaced with white.
To freshen up the look a little, white cuffs were sewn onto the sleeves, and a white collar was also used. Their presence was obligatory both on a holiday and on an ordinary weekday.
The dress was quite long, below the knee. Any experiments with the elements of the dress, its length and style were prohibited. The school administration usually severely punished fashionistas who dared to break the generally accepted rules.
The school uniform worn by the boys
The school uniform for boys of the USSR had several mandatory elements:
1. A cap decorated with a cockade.
2. Gymnast.
3. Belt with shiny chunky buckle.
The tunic and trousers were made of gray woolen fabric. Such products were not very comfortable to wear, as they quickly lost their shape. And after not very careful washing or unsuccessful drying, they could significantly increase in size.
Boys were also not allowed to experiment with their appearance. The school uniform of the USSR was mandatory for all students without exception.
General appearance
The appearance of schoolchildren also had to comply with certain conditions. It was not enough just to wear a school uniform, the student always had to look neat.
Appearance at school was allowed only in clean and well-ironed clothes. Cuffs and false collars, which are a mandatory attribute of the uniform for girls, must always be clean. Coming to school with dirty or poorly ironed cuffs could turn into a great shame. Shoes should also be kept clean, despite the time of year and the remoteness of the house from the educational institution.
Hairstyle of schoolchildren
The school uniform of the USSR, the severity and minimalism manifested in it, dictated a certain type of hairstyle for schoolchildren. There were also no liberties.
For boys, a short haircut was mandatory. Girls could braid braids using black or brown bows. On a holiday, you could tie a white bow. Other colors were banned, so they were not easy to find in Soviet stores. Braids with bows were obligatory for girls, there was no question of any other hairstyle.
Shape change
In 1960, the school uniform of the USSR began to change, photos from different periods of the existence of the Soviet Union perfectly demonstrate these transformations. The changes taking place in all spheres of people's lives at that time could not but affect the clothes of students.
The main transformations were manifested in the school uniform for boys. Inexpressive gray clothes were replaced by brighter models made of blue wool blend material. She kept her shape better, did not stretch after washing. The cut of the jacket resembled denim, which was very popular at that time in the West. Emblems were sewn on the sleeves, which were pictures with images of an open textbook and the rising sun. The color of these stripes was blue or red.
The school uniform of the USSR, which girls wore, did not undergo any special changes. It was only allowed to shorten the dress a little - its length became just above the knees.
Form for high school students
The real breakthrough of that time was the introduction in early 1980 of a uniform for high school students. Boys began to wear trouser suits instead of separate trousers and jackets. The color of the form also remained blue. Sometimes it was even possible to remove the emblems, as over time the paint on them was erased, and they looked sloppy.
The long-awaited transformation of school uniforms also affected girls. From the first to the seventh grade, they still wore the usual dresses with aprons. But from the eighth grade it was already possible to wear a three-piece suit made of dense blue material. It included a neat A-line skirt with pleats at the front, a vest, and a jacket. The girl herself could choose a blouse for the costume, which was the field for a huge number of experiments. The skirt could be worn with both a vest and a jacket. In cold weather, the whole suit was worn at once.
Another innovation was the introduction in 1988 of trousers for schoolgirls living in They could be worn in the winter season.
Pioneer badges
The school uniform of the USSR was necessarily supplemented with badges worn by students according to their age and belonging to a particular organization.
Children studying in elementary grades were Octobrists and wore an Octobrist badge, which was the face of little Volodya Ulyanov inside a red star. Older schoolchildren, middle school students, wore a pioneer badge. It was also made in the shape of a star, but it had an image of V. I. Lenin on it. If a pioneer distinguished himself in social work, showed himself to be an active person, he was awarded a special badge. Instead of the inscription "Always ready", it had the inscription "For active work", and the insignia itself was slightly larger than the standard one. The school uniform worn by the pioneers was supplemented
High school students had to wear It was a small symbol that looked like a red flag, decorated with a portrait of V. I. Lenin.
Recently, more and more schoolchildren are striving to find out where to buy the USSR school uniform, which would have the exact look of the clothes of that time. High school students want to wear it for the last bell, for example. This tradition has become widespread in many schools. In this case, the option with a white festive apron is usually used. Finding a form is not so difficult. It can be seen both in specialized stores and for sale on various Internet resources, where a considerable number of models of various sizes are presented.
According to media reports, Deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets rejected school uniforms proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Education and Science. The first draft turned out to be "too lobbyist", the second - "extremely vague". Meanwhile, manufacturing companies complain that due to the protracted process of coordinating the style of a single school uniform, they may not have time to sew clothes by the beginning of the school year.
It was not possible to find the rejected styles on the net, so Motherhood decided to give free rein to memories and admire the models of school uniforms that existed in different years, from the time of the Russian Empire to the developed USSR.
In 1834, a general system of all civilian uniforms in the Russian Empire was approved, including for secondary educational institutions. The regulation on the gymnasium uniform for girls was approved in 1896. The form of students of secondary educational institutions had a semi-military character. Similar in style, their caps, overcoats and tunics differed in color, piping, as well as buttons and emblems.
Everyday dresses of pupils of institutes of noble maidens were sewn from camlot. Preparatory school girls (from five to seven years old) wore coffee or brown dresses; from eight to ten - light blue or blue; from eleven to thirteen - gray. Senior schoolgirls wore white dresses. The dresses were closed ("deaf"), one-color, of the simplest cut. They wore a white apron, a white cape, and sometimes white sleeves.
Uniforms also existed in women's gymnasiums. In state gymnasiums, pupils wore brown dresses with a high collar and aprons - black on school days and white on holidays. The dress uniform was complemented by a white turn-down collar and a straw hat. If there were several women's gymnasiums in the city, then, as a rule, their uniforms were of different colors.
Outerwear was also regulated: gymnasium students wore an overcoat similar to an officer's.
In 1918, the gymnasium uniform of pre-revolutionary Russia was recognized as a bourgeois relic and canceled along with many other developments in the field of education. However, over time, it was decided to return to the former image - to brown strict dresses, aprons, student jackets and turn-down collars. This happened in 1948, during the period of general “uniforms”, when department after department dressed in uniform. The school uniform of the 1948 model actually copied the style of the uniform of classical gymnasiums - both in color, and in cut, and in accessories.
This uniform existed until the end of the 1962 school year. On September 1, 1962, first grade boys went to school in a new uniform - without caps with a cockade, without waist belts with a massive buckle, without tunics. The uniform for girls has not changed much.
The form was changed in the direction of moving away from "military". The boys received a gray wool-blend suit - trousers and a single-breasted jacket with three black plastic buttons. A white shirt was recommended under the jacket.
For boys, from the 1975-1976 school year, gray woolen trousers and jackets were replaced with trousers and jackets made of blue wool blend fabric. The cut of the jackets resembled classic denim jackets (the so-called “denim fashion” was gaining momentum in the world) with epaulets on the shoulders and chest pockets with brace-shaped flaps).
The jacket was fastened with aluminum buttons, reminiscent of the military in design. Buttons were 2 diameters - smaller for elementary school students and more for high school students. On the side of the sleeve was sewn an emblem (chevron) made of soft plastic with a drawn open textbook and a rising sun - a symbol of enlightenment.
For high school boys, trousers and a jacket were replaced with a trouser suit. The fabric color was still blue. Also blue was the emblem on the sleeve. On this emblem, in addition to the sun and an open book, there was a stylized image of an atom. Very often the emblem was cut off, as it did not look very aesthetically pleasing, especially after some time - the paint on the plastic began to wear off.
Girls from first to seventh grade wore a brown dress, as in the previous period. Only it became slightly above the knees.
For girls, a blue three-piece suit was introduced in 1984, consisting of an A-line skirt with pleats at the front, a jacket with patch pockets (without a sleeve emblem) and a vest. The skirt could be worn either with a jacket, or with a vest, or the whole suit at once. In 1988, Leningrad, regions of Siberia and the Far North were allowed to wear blue trousers in winter.
The compulsory wearing of a school uniform in Russia was abolished in the spring of 1994. By decision of the President, from September 1, 2013, a compulsory school uniform was reintroduced, but a single style has not been approved, so for now the choice remains with the school administration.
According to the websites:
One of the signs of the decline of the Soviet era was the spontaneous refusal of students to wear school uniforms. In 1988, our class teacher refused to pose for a general graduation photo, because almost all the students came to shoot in loose clothes. A year ago, this would have been unthinkable!
Original taken from dubikvit in On the waves of our memory! Soviet school uniform
Today, September 1, let's remember our old school uniform, in which we went to school for a long time, and some not so much...
The Soviet school uniform, in fact, is an analogue of the gymnasium uniform of Tsarist Russia. She also consisted of a dress and an apron, white on holidays, and black on weekdays. For elementary school, the color of the dress was brown, for middle school students it was blue, and green for high school students. At the balls, older girls appeared in white dresses.
In 1920, it was customary for all high school girls to wear a brown dress and apron. Only rich people could afford such a uniform, so wearing this uniform was considered a bourgeois relic. There was even a contemptuous nickname "high school student".
A unified Soviet school uniform in our country was introduced in the era of Stalin. The USSR school uniform for boys was gray and consisted of trousers and a shirt, like a soldier's tunic. This was complemented by a wide belt with a massive buckle and a cap with a cockade.
The USSR school uniform for girls still consisted of a brown dress and an apron. The dress was brown, perhaps because this color matches the business environment, helps to concentrate, does not distract attention from study.
In the era of Stalin, strict morals reigned in our country. This also applies to school life. Even small experiments with the style or length of the dress were severely punished by the school administration. In addition, it was obligatory for girls to wear braids with bows. No haircuts were allowed.
In the 1960s, the Soviet school uniform for boys changed.
On September 1, 1962, first grade boys went to school in a gray wool blend suit - trousers and a single-breasted jacket with three black plastic buttons.
And in the seventies there were changes again
Now, for elementary school students, it began to consist of a jacket and trousers in dark blue. The trousers became narrower, and the jacket resembled a modern denim jacket in its style. Buttons were metal, white. They were made from aluminium. On the sleeve of the jacket was sewn an emblem of soft plastic with a drawn open textbook and a rising sun.
In the early 1980s, a uniform for high school students was introduced. (This uniform began to be worn from the eighth grade). Girls from first to seventh grade wore a brown dress, as in the previous period. Only it became slightly above the knees.
For boys, trousers and a jacket were replaced with a trouser suit. The fabric color was still blue. Also blue was the emblem on the sleeve.
Very often the emblem was cut off, as it did not look very aesthetically pleasing, especially after some time - the paint on the plastic began to wear off.
The Soviet school uniform for high school students was of fairly good quality, but it was inexpensive. Men willingly bought it as clothes for work. Therefore, the USSR school uniform for high school students fell, in those days, into the category of shortage.
For girls, a blue three-piece suit was introduced in 1984, consisting of an A-line skirt with pleats at the front, a jacket with patch pockets and a vest. The skirt could be worn either with a jacket, or with a vest, or the whole suit at once. In 1988, Leningrad, regions of Siberia and the Far North were allowed to wear blue trousers in winter. Also, girls could wear a pioneer uniform, which consisted of a dark blue skirt, a white blouse with short or long sleeves and a pioneer tie.
A mandatory addition to the school uniform, depending on the age of the student, was the October badge (in the elementary grades), pioneer (in the middle grades) or Komsomol (in the senior grades) badges. Pioneers were also required to wear a pioneer tie.
In addition to the regular pioneer badge, there was a special variant for pioneers active in community service. It was slightly larger than usual and had the inscription "For active work" on it. And the badge of the senior pioneer, which was a regular pioneer badge against the background of a red banner.
The question of the need for a school uniform is still open. He has many opponents and supporters. Today, a uniform has been introduced in Russia that is very similar to the style in which the USSR school uniform was created, although parents and children have the opportunity to choose styles, colors, and fabric quality.
The main argument of the opponents of the school uniform is the assertion that it deprives a person of individuality, does not allow him to express himself. Supporters of the form argue that it disciplines children, sets them up for study. Both of them are right.
Today it is fashionable to wear Soviet-era school uniforms for the first and last bell. This is a tribute to the past and an immersion in the history of school uniforms. The photos presented on the site will help you remember how the school uniform of the USSR arose, and what it was like a few decades ago.
In pre-revolutionary Russia
The school uniform of the USSR is rooted in the history of uniforms for schoolchildren in Tsarist Russia. The year of reference is usually called 1834. It was at this time that the school uniform for boys was introduced, as shown in the photo. Under Nicholas I, it was very similar to the uniform of the military.
The girls acquired the uniform much later - in 1896. At this time, the students of the Smolny Institute had to wear a uniform that depended on the age of the girls:
- 6-9 years - brown;
- 9-12 - blue;
- 12-15 - gray;
- 15-18 - white.
In 1918, after the revolution, the school uniform was abolished and called "a relic of the past." However, there were other reasons for this:
- the state did not have money to sew the same clothes for all children;
- the form was associated with the upper classes;
- it restricted the freedom of students.
The "shapeless" stage continued until 1949.
For boys
After the Second World War, the school uniform was introduced as compulsory clothing for students. At the time of I. Stalin, the uniform for boys was very similar to the clothes of high school students: a tunic and woolen trousers, as shown in the photo.
In 1962 there was a reform in clothes for boys. Now she was a gray wool suit, but the military style remained in fashion for a long time. In addition to the gray suit, the young men wore caps with cockades and a belt with a badge (see photo).
In 1973, another reform of boys' clothing takes place. The color has changed: now the suits were dark blue. This is clearly visible in the photo. Iron stripes and buttons, cuffs were added to them. Two chest pockets are left over from the old uniform.
In 1980, the previously existing trousers and jacket were replaced with woolen suits. The color has remained the same. Pioneer paraphernalia red ties are added, as in the photo.
The school uniform was completely abolished in 1992, but today this tradition has been resumed, and each school has the opportunity to independently choose the color and style of clothing for students.
For girls
The school uniform of the USSR for girls practically did not change and reminded many of the clothes of the students of the Smolny Institute. The photo clearly shows long dresses and neat aprons with frills that almost covered the skirt of the dress.
At the time of I. Stalin, the uniform for girls was brown dresses with a skirt below the knees and an apron. Subsequently, blue dresses appeared. The everyday apron was black, and the front one was white (see photo).
So that the student's outfit did not seem gloomy, white cuffs were sewn onto the sleeves and collar. When they got dirty, new ones were sewn on. The hairstyle was a braid in which bows could be braided.
In different republics there could be differences in the color of dresses. For example, in the Uzbek SSR, girls wore blue dresses and aprons. Otherwise, however, experiments in the style and style of school uniforms could be severely punished.
Only in the 1980s did the length of the skirts of the students become a little shorter. At the same time, blue three-piece suits were introduced and hair rules were slightly relaxed. The photo shows what were the latest changes in the style of school uniforms of the Soviet era.
Despite significant differences in the school uniform of modern educational institutions, the tradition of putting on the dress uniform of the Soviet era in honor of significant events in the life of students is being renewed.
Tomorrow is the first of September! Inspired by ... I reviewed a lot of material, I decided to put it together somehow. Here's what happened
The history of school uniforms in USSR and R Russia
If we recall Soviet times and school years, then many people immediately have associations with school uniforms. Some think of her as brown with white collars, some as blue. Some recall elegant white aprons, while others remember large bows on their heads. But everyone agrees with the fact that during the Soviet era, school uniforms were compulsory, and the question of whether or not to wear a uniform was not subject to discussion. On the contrary, non-compliance with school discipline was severely punished. The memory of the school uniform of the USSR still lives on.School uniforms in Russia have a rich history.
Until 1917, it was a class sign, because. only the children of wealthy parents could afford to study at the gymnasium: nobles, intellectuals and large industrialists.The exact date of the introduction of school uniforms in Russia— 1834. It was in this year that a law was adopted that approved a separate type of civilian uniforms. These included gymnasium and student uniforms of military style: invariably caps, tunics and overcoats, which differed only in color, piping, buttons and emblems.
The introduction of uniforms for students of educational institutions of Tsarist Russia is primarily due to the fact that these institutions were state-owned. In those days, all civil servants had to wear uniforms corresponding to their rank and rank, according to the Table of Ranks. So, all teachers in state educational institutions (gymnasiums) wore uniform frock coats. Proceeding from this, the introduction of uniforms for students was also natural.
The uniform was worn not only in the gymnasium, but also on the street, at home, during celebrations and holidays. She was a point of pride. All schools had uniforms.
The caps were usually light blue with three white edgings, and with a black visor, and a crumpled cap with a broken visor was considered a special chic among the boys. In winter, headphones and a hood in the color of natural camel hair, trimmed with gray braid, were added to it.
Usually, students wore a blue cloth tunic with silver bulging buttons, belted with a black lacquered belt with a silver buckle and black trousers without piping. There was also an exit uniform: a dark blue or dark gray single-breasted uniform with a collar trimmed with silver galloon. A schoolbag was an invariable attribute of high school students.
Until 1917, the style of the uniform changed several times (1855, 1868, 1896 and 1913)— according to fashion trends. But all this time, the uniform of the boys fluctuated on the verge of a civilian-military suit.
At the same time, women's education began to develop. Therefore, a student uniform was also required for girls. In 1896, a regulation on the gymnasium uniform for girls appeared. Pupils of the famous Smolny Institute were ordered to wear dresses of certain colors, depending on the age of the pupils. For pupils 6-9 years old - brown (coffee), 9-12 years old - blue, 12-15 years old - gray and 15-18 years old - white.
To attend the gymnasium, they had three types of clothing provided by the charter:
1. "compulsory uniform for daily attendance", which consisted of a brown woolen dress and a black woolen apron.
2. dark formal dresses with knee-length pleated skirts.
3. On holidays - a white apron.Girls always wore braids with bows.
The charter required "to keep the dress clean, tidy, not wear it at home, smooth it daily and monitor the cleanliness of the white collar."
The dress uniform consisted of the same dress, a white apron and an elegant lace collar. In dress uniform, gymnasium students attended the theater, the Yeleninskaya Church on holidays, they went to Christmas and New Year's evenings in it. Also, "no one was forbidden to have a separate dress of any model and cut, if the parents' means allowed such a luxury."
The color scheme was different for each educational institution.
For example, from the memoirs of Valentina Savitskaya, a graduate of gymnasium No. 36 in 1909, we know that the color of the fabric of the dresses of the gymnasium girls was different, depending on age: for the younger ones it was dark blue, for 12-14-year-olds it was almost the color of a sea wave , and for graduates - brown. And the pupils of the famous Smolny Institute were prescribed to wear dresses of other colors, depending on the age of the pupils: for pupils of 6 - 9 years old - brown (coffee), 9 - 12 years old - blue, 12 - 15 years old - gray and 15 - 18 years old - white.
However, soon after the revolution, as part of the struggle against bourgeois remnants and the legacy of the tsarist-police regime, a decree was issued in 1918 that abolished the wearing of a school uniform. Undoubtedly, in the early years of the existence of the Soviet state, wearing a school uniform was an unaffordable luxury in a country devastated by world war, revolution and civil war.
From the memoirs of Valentina Savitskaya, a graduate of gymnasium No. 36 in 1909: “The old uniform was considered a symbol of belonging to the upper classes (there was even a contemptuous nickname for a sentimental girl - “gymnasium student”). It was believed that the form symbolizes the lack of freedom, the humiliated, servile position of the student. But this rejection of the form had another, more understandable reason - poverty. Pupils went to school in whatever their parents could provide.”
From the point of view of the “class struggle”, the old uniform was considered a symbol of belonging to the upper classes (there was even a contemptuous nickname for a sentimental girl - “gymnasium student”). On the other hand, the form symbolized the absolute lack of freedom of the student, his humiliated and bonded position.
The official explanations were as follows: the form demonstrates the lack of freedom of the student, humiliates him. But in fact, the country at that time simply did not have the financial means to dress a huge number of children in uniform. Pupils went to school in what their parents could provide them, and the state at that moment actively fought against devastation, class enemies and remnants of the past.
1945 M. Nesterova. "Study well!"
Frame from the movie "Two Captains"
The period of "formlessness" lasted until 1948.School uniform becomes mandatory again.The new uniform resembled the old uniforms of high school students. From now on, the boys were required to wear gray military tunics with a stand-up collar, with five buttons, with two welt pockets with valves on the chest. An element of the school uniform was also a belt with a buckle and a cap with a leather visor, which the guys wore on the street. Girls - brown woolen dresses with a black apron tied at the back with a bow. It was then that white "holiday" aprons and sewn-on collars and cuffs appeared. On ordinary days, it was supposed to wear black or brown bows, with a white apron - white (even in such cases, white tights were welcome).Even the hairstyle had to meet the requirements of puritan morality - "model haircuts" were strictly prohibited until the end of the 50s, not to mention hair coloring. Girls always wore braids with bows.
October and Komsomol badges remained a mandatory addition to the school uniform. The pioneers added a badge to the pioneer tie. Other types of badges appeared, including award and commemorative ones.
