Sam Doty presents a pair of soldier's trousers that reveal some of the hardships of day-to-day life during the Second World War (1939-45).
Trousers (video)
Transcript
Voiceover:
Now, in 'A small piece of history', Sam Doty of the National Army Museum presents a favourite object from the Collection.
Sam Doty:
I've got a pair of soldier's trousers here, worn by Sergeant Waterman in Burma in the Second World War, and they were given to us by his widow.
Now, soldier's trousers are quite an ordinary thing. These particular trousers, though, give us a little view of what Sergeant Waterman went through in the war. Because Sergeant Waterman, and every other man in his unit, had dysentery. And they had dysentery so badly they had to cut the seats out of their trousers. And it was only when they were recovering in hospital that they could put them back in again.
When people think about the Second World War, they tend to think of combat, because of video games and war films. Very few people realise the day-to-day life of the soldier really was one of hardship and very often, for men serving in these far-eastern climates, sickness and long-term sickness as well.
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