Temporary Uniforms for Siberian Police, April 1919

All material and reconstructions are by A. Karevskiy unless noted otherwise.

Circular No. 1516 of the Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of 8 April 1919.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs hereby forwards to you the description of the uniform of police and special purpose units approved by the Supreme Ruler, together with photographs.

The Ministry is seeking the fastest and best way to provide uniforms in accordance with the official uniform, but at this time cannot guarantee that this issue will be resolved quickly and completely.

Therefore the Ministry considers it necessary to express its wish that you, for your part, take all possible measures in the near future to produce uniforms that are as close as possible to the official form.

If the manufacture of uniforms proves to be completely impossible, the Ministry considers it necessary to recommend the following solution to you:

During Deputy Minister Pepelyaev's tour of the Tomsk, Enisei and Irkutsk Provinces in March of this year, it was noted that the police of those provinces are dressed in normal military uniforms, with distinctive insignia in the form of longitudinal shoulder-boards having been introduced for officers – made of silver braid of the former police model, and for other ranks made of green and white fabric.

Recognising the establishment of such simplified insignia as highly desirable, the Ministry considers it necessary to recommend them as a temporary measure, if they have already been introduced in the province (region) entrusted to you. If such distinctions have not yet been introduced by you, the Ministry requests that measures be taken to supply police officers with clothing of a general military design with transverse shoulder-boards for officers made of black with silver braid, and for policemen made of green fabric.

You should inform the Ministry of Internal Affairs about the measures taken to establish a uniform for the police.

Signed: on behalf of the Minister of Internal Affairs, Comrade-Minister Pepelyaev,
Acting Director of the Police Department, Agarev,
Head of Department Khrashchevskiy.

This document was published by Perm researchers D. Lobanov and K. Novikov at bergenschild.com [link dead]

Shoulder insignia for police, approved by the Police Department of the Russian Government's Ministry of Internal Affairs in Circular No. 1516, dated 8 April 1919:

Provisional uniform for police, approved by the Police Department of the Russian Government's Ministry of Internal Affairs in Circular No. 1516, dated 8 April 1919:
1 – court counsellor; 2 – provincial secretary; 3 – senior policeman; 4 – junior policeman