page_title: British Army uniform and equipment in World War I
section_title: Short Magazine Lee–Enfield Mk III
hierarchical_section_title: British Army uniform and equipment in World War I / Weapons / Short Magazine Lee–Enfield Mk III
caption_attribution_description: IWM caption&#160;: "Trench Layout and Conditions: A fatigue party carrying duckboards over a support line trench at night, Cambrai".
context_page_description: The British Army used a variety of standardized battle uniforms and weapons during World War I. According to the British official historian Brigadier James E. Edmonds recorded in 1925, "The British Army of 1914, was the best trained best equipped and best organized British Army ever sent to war". They were the only army to wear any form of a camouflage uniform; the value of Drab clothing was quickly recognised by the British Army, who introduced Khaki drill for Indian and colonial warfare from the mid-19th century on. As part of a series of reforms following the Second Boer War, a darker khaki serge was adopted in 1902, for service dress in Britain itself. On the whole, the British military authorities showed more foresight than their French counterparts, who retained highly visible blue coats and red trousers for active service until several months into World War I. The soldier was issued with the 1908 Pattern Webbing for carrying personal equipment and he was armed with the Short Magazine Lee–Enfield rifle.
context_section_description: The Lee–Enfield rifle, the SMLE Mk III, was introduced on 26 January 1907, along with a Pattern 1907 bayonet (P'07) and featured a simplified rear sight arrangement and a fixed, rather than a bolt-head-mounted sliding, charger guide.
  The fast-operating Lee bolt-action and large magazine capacity enabled a trained rifleman to fire 20 to 30 aimed rounds a minute, making the Lee–Enfield the fastest military bolt-action rifle of the day.
  World War I accounts tell of British troops repelling German attackers who subsequently reported that they had encountered machine guns, when in fact it was simply a group of trained riflemen armed with SMLE Mk III rifles.
  During the war, the standard SMLE Mk III was found to be too complicated to manufacture (an SMLE Mk III rifle cost the British Government £3/15/-), and demand was outstripping supply, so in late 1915 the Mk III* was introduced.
caption: Soldiers armed with Lee–Enfield rifles and wearing Brodie helmets in a trench at night, Cambrai – 12 January 1918
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