As Falconer’s dictionary defined it in 1815, “Mess implies any company of the officers or solders, who eat, drink and associate together.”
In 1845, the British military introduced evening dress intended for formal occasions held in mess halls and elsewhere. Canada assumed full responsibility for its own defence in 1868 and continued to follow most British military customs.
Mess kit uniforms are worn as formal evening attire for mess dinners. The mess kit uniform usually includes the dinner jacket, trousers, cummerbund or waistcoat and bow tie.
The design may depend on regiment or service branch, e.g. army, navy, air force, etc. In Western dress codes, mess dress uniform is the supplementary alternative equivalent to the civilian black tie for evening wear.
In Canada, mess kit uniforms range from full mess dress (with bow tie, pants with stripes, tuxedo shirts, dinner jackets, cummerbunds or waistcoats) to service dress worn with a bow tie for individuals not required to own mess dress (non-commissioned members and members of the Reserve Force). Commissioned Officers are expected to purchase mess kit eventually at their own expense.
At right, Royal Canadian Army Service corps (RCASC) Mess Kit
(scarlet jacket) prior to unification in 1968.
At left, a (Canadian) Army Service Corps (ASC) Mess Kit (dark jacket; waistcoat; white shirt, off-white lapels and sleeve cuffs) from the late 1800s /early 1900s.