Adrian helmet The M15 Adrian helmet ( ) was a combat helmet issued to the French Army during World War I . It was the first standard helmet of the French Army and was designed when millions of French troops were engaged in trench warfare , and head wounds from the falling shrapnel generated by the new technique of indirect fire became a frequent cause of battlefield casualties . Introduced in 1915 , it was the first modern steel helmet and it served as the basic helmet of many armies well into the 1930s . Initially issued to infantry soldiers , in modified form they were also issued to cavalry and tank crews . A subsequent version , the M26 , was used during World War II . History and usage . At the outbreak of World War I soldiers in the French army wore the standard kepi cap , which provided no protection against injury . The early stages of trench warfare proved that even basic protection of the head would result in a significantly lower mortality rate among front - line soldiers . Consequently , the French staff ordered development of a metal helmet that could protect soldiers from the shrapnel of exploding artillery shell s . Since soldiers in trenches were also vulnerable to shrapnel exploding above their heads , a deflector crest was added along the helmet ' s axis . Branch insignia in the form of a grenade for line infantry and cavalry , a bugle horn for chasseurs , crossed cannon for artillery , an anchor for colonial troops and a crescent for North African units was attached to the front . Contrary to common misconception , the M15 helmet was not designed to protect the wearer from direct impact by rifle or machine gun bullet s . The resulting headgear was credited to Intendant - General August - Louis Adrian . The helmet adopted by the army was made of mild steel and weighed only 0 . 765 kg ( 1 lb . 11oz . ) , which made it lighter than the contemporary British Brodie helmet and the German " Stahlhelm " , although it also delivered less protection against shrapnel and bullets . By the end of World War I , it had been issued to almost all infantry units fighting with the French army . It was also used by some of the American divisions fighting in France and the Polish forces of Haller ' s Blue Army . The helmet proved to be fairly efficient against shrapnel and it was cheap and easy to manufacture . As a consequence , more than three million Adrian helmets were produced , and they were widely adopted by other countries including Belgium , Brazil , China , Greece , Italy ( including license - built versions ) , Japan , Luxembourg , Mexico , Morocco , Peru , Poland , Romania , Russia , Serbia , Siam , United States , U . S . S . R . , and Yugoslavia , each of these nations adding its own insignia to the front of the helmet . Because the new steel helmets offered little actual protection against bullets , some were reportedly among the first pieces of equipment being abandoned by the soldiers on the battlefield . It was also discovered that the badge placed on the front of helmets impaired the helmet ' s durability , which made several armies remove their national insignia altogether . Early helmets were painted blue for French troops and khaki for colonial forces . Those made after 1935 are usually painted khaki , reflecting the French army movement to a more camouflaged uniform in the 1930s . In 1926 the Adrian helmet was modified by being constructed of stronger steel and simplified by having the main part of the helmet stamped from one piece of metal , and therefore without the joining rim around the helmet that characterizes the M15 . The large ventilation hole under the comb , which had been a weak point of the old design , was also replaced with a series of small holes . The M26 helmet continued in use with the French army until after World War II , and was also used by the French police up to the 1970s . During the Interwar years Belgium began to produce their own domestically made M26 Adrians and exported them around the globe . These helmets can be distinguished from their French counterparts , because they have a slightly different comb and a wider rim . In other countries the Adrian - type helmets were also in use with the fire - fighting units , railway guards or marine infantry ( e . g . Japan ' s SNLF ) . Adrian helmets are still prized by collectors today . Winston Churchill wore an Adrian helmet while serving in France as commanding officer of the 6th Royal Scots Fusiliers from 5 January to 6 May 1916 . According to Nicholas Rankin , Churchill was presented with the helmet by a French general in December 1915 , before joining his regiment .