French
At the start of the war, the French soldiers were provided with uncomfortable equipment that was unsuitable for modern warfare. At the same time, their uniforms were not designed for the weather conditions. Exactly the same uniform was worn in the summer as in the winter: tunic, long cloth hood, cotton flannel shirt and long johns, which would have been unbearable in the heat wave of August 1914! The peaked cap and trousers were madder red. The "red trousers", as the infantrymen were nicknamed, were an easy target for the German machine guns. The army then arranged for kepi and trouser covers to be distributed as quickly as possible. The men were instructed to hide their famous red trousers as much as possible. Early in 1915, new "horizon blue" uniforms were ordered by the general staff. During the time that it took to make and distribute them, the soldiers were dressed differently, as it was not easy to replace all the equipment at once. The men also changed gradually from kepis to helmets, due to the large number of head injuries that occurred in the trenches.

German
The uniforms worn by the German forces in the field were far more practical. The infantrymen, who were dressed entirely in grey and therefore nicknamed the "feldgrau", were far less conspicuous than the French soldiers. The most striking part of their uniform was certainly the leather helmet that was topped with a point intended to defend the soldier against sword blows. It was detachable and could be replaced with a plume when on parade. As it was easy to spot from a distance, it was often removed from helmets. Later, during the trench war, the helmets were made from steel, in order to provide better protection against shrapnel.