Fig.1: A group of Portuguese officers, c. 1912, wearing the 1911 helmets (Jaime Regalado).

The fall of the Portuguese Monarchy, on October the 5^th 1910, brought about deep changes in Portuguese military uniforms. The very first measure, taken as early as October the 8^th, was the abolishment of the use of royal crowns on the uniforms. In most uniform items, the royal crowns could simply be disassembled, but that was not always so. In buttons, the crowns had to be filed and in helmet front plates, they had to be cut. Most of the surviving helmets keep their front plates complete, so it is likely that this type of headdress was scarcely worn in the early days of the Republic. Continue reading →