Shako

A shako (/ˈʃækoʊ/, /ˈʃeɪkoʊ/, or /ˈʃɑːkoʊ/) is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor, and sometimes tapered at the top. It is usually adorned with some kind of ornamental plate or badge on the front, metallic or otherwise, and often has a feather, plume (see hackle), or pompom attached at the top.

Origins

The word shako originated from the Hungarian name csákó, which was a part of the uniform of the Hungarian hussar of the 18th century. Other spellings include chako, czako, schako and tschako.

From 1800 on the shako became a common military headdress, worn by the majority of regiments in the armies of Europe and the Americas. Replacing in most instances the light bicorne, the shako was initially considered an improvement. Made of heavy felt and leather, it retained its shape and provided some protection for the soldier's skull, while its visor shaded his eyes. The shako retained this pre-eminence until the mid-19th century, when spiked helmets began to appear in the army of Russia, which influenced armies of the various German States, and the more practical kepi replaced it for all but parade wear in the French Army. The Imperial Russian Army substituted a spiked helmet for the shako in 1844-45 but returned to the latter headdress in 1855, before adopting a form of kepi in 1864. Following the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, military fashions changed and cloth or leather helmets based on the German headdress began to supersede the shako in many armies.

List of Inuyasha characters

The Inuyasha manga and anime characters are created by Rumiko Takahashi. Most of the series takes place in a fictional version of Japan's Warring States period with occasional time-travel/flashback elements to modern Tokyo or the Heisei period. The setting and plot incorporate many elements of traditional Japanese folklore and religion; its main characters (both protagonists and antagonists) include a Shintō priestess, a Buddhist monk and several types of yōkai (usually rendered as "demon" in English-language translations of the series).

The story begins with Kagome Higurashi, who, after being pulled down a well by a demon, finds herself in the Warring States period of feudal Japan, where she learns that a powerful jewel known as the Shikon Jewel has been reborn inside her body. After the jewel shatters in an attempt to retrieve it from one of the many demons who are after its power, Kagome joins forces with the half-demon Inuyasha—also after the jewel's power—to track down the Shikon shards before the demon lord, Naraku uses it.