Jerkin (garment)

A jerkin is a man's short close-fitting jacket, arranged naturally of light-colored leather, and without sleeves, worn over the doublet in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Leather jerkins of the sixteenth century were regularly slashed and punched, both for decoration and to improve the fit.
Jerkins were worn congested at the neck and hanging open over the peasecod-bellied fashion of doublet.
During the Normandy disgusting, American troops had small reasons to feel under provisioned compared to the Brits and Canadians, but the lack of leather jerkins was one major deficit.
During the post war period, a much less individual PVC version was introduced to the armed forces. WD excess leather jerkins swamped the UK during the 1950s and 1960s and were a common sight on manual workmen across the country.