Razor wire: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Mesh of metal strips with sharp edges to prevent trespassing}} | {{Short description|Mesh of metal strips with sharp edges to prevent trespassing}} | ||
[[File:Chain-link and barbed wire.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Razor wire—long-barb type on top of a [[chain link fence|chain link privacy-fence]] surrounding a utility power sub-station]] | [[File:Chain-link and barbed wire.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Razor wire—long-barb type on top of a [[chain link fence|chain link privacy-fence]] surrounding a utility power sub-station]] | ||
'''Barbed tape''' or '''razor wire''' is a mesh of metal strips with sharp edges whose purpose is to prevent [[trespassing]] by [[human]]s or to secure facilities such as prisons where there is a risk of escape | '''Barbed tape''' or '''razor wire''' is a mesh of metal strips with sharp edges whose purpose is to prevent [[trespassing]] by [[human]]s or to secure facilities such as prisons where there is a risk of escape. | ||
== Use == | == Use == | ||
[[File:Tuolsleng3.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.8|Short barb razor wire at [[Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum]] in [[Cambodia]]]] | [[File:Tuolsleng3.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.8|Short barb razor wire at [[Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum]] in [[Cambodia]]]] | ||
The first use of barbed wire for warfare was in 1898 during the Spanish American War, thirty-one years after the first patents were issued in 1867. One of the most notable examples during the Spanish American War is the defense provided by the Moron-Jucardo Trocha. The trocha (or trench) stretched for fifty miles between the cities of Moron and Jucardo. Within this trench, and in addition to fallen trees, barbed wire was used. The barbed wire was arranged in a [[Cat's cradle|cat’s cradle]] formation that for every 12 yards of barbed fence built, 420 yards of barbed wire was strung (or 35 yards of wire per yard of fence).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carlson |first=Benjamin John |date=2013-02-01 |title=Barbed Wire Museum |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/212982649.pdf |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=core.ac.uk}}</ref> | The first use of barbed wire for warfare was in 1898 during the [[Spanish–American War|Spanish-American War]], thirty-one years after the first patents were issued in 1867. One of the most notable examples during the Spanish-American War is the defense provided by the Moron-Jucardo Trocha. The trocha (or trench) stretched for fifty miles between the cities of Moron and Jucardo. Within this trench, and in addition to fallen trees, barbed wire was used. The barbed wire was arranged in a [[Cat's cradle|cat’s cradle]] formation that for every 12 yards of barbed fence built, 420 yards of barbed wire was strung (or 35 yards of wire per yard of fence).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carlson |first=Benjamin John |date=2013-02-01 |title=Barbed Wire Museum |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/212982649.pdf |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=core.ac.uk}}</ref> | ||
Later versions of this type of barbed wire were manufactured by Germany during | Later versions of this type of barbed wire were manufactured by [[Germany]] during [[World War I|World War I.]] The reason for this was a wartime shortage of wire to make conventional barbed wire. Therefore, flat wire with triangular cutting edges began to be punched out of steel strips ("band barbed wire"). A welcome side effect was that a comparable length of barbed wire of this new type could be produced in less time. These precursors to [[NATO]] wire did not yet have an inner wire for stabilization, were therefore easy to cut with tin snips, and were also not as robust as normal barbed wire. However, they withstood the wire cutters used at the time to cut normal barbed wire, as was common at the front.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-01-08 |title=Barbed Wire War – How One Farmer's Innovation Changed The Battlefield |url=https://militaryhistorynow.com/2014/01/08/barbed-wire-war-how-one-farmers-innovation-changed-the-battlefield/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=MilitaryHistoryNow.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Barbed Wire |url=https://ddscreenprinting.goldsupplier.com/blog/19489.html |access-date=2025-09-26 |website=Razor Wire: A Comprehensive Guide to Secure Fencing Solutions |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=World War I Centenary: 100 Legacies of the Great War |url=https://online.wsj.com/ww1/ |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=The Wall Street Journal |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vučković |first=History Nerds, Aleksa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=14cEEAAAQBAJ&dq=razor+barbed+wire+germany++ww1&pg=PT63 |title=World War 1: The Sacrifice of a Generation |publisher=History Nerds |language=en}}</ref> | ||
An article in a 1918 issue of ''The Hardware Trade Journal'' tells the story under the headline: "This Cruel War’s Abuse of Our Old Friend ‘Bob Wire.'" After | An article in a 1918 issue of ''The Hardware Trade Journal'' tells the story under the headline: "This Cruel War’s Abuse of Our Old Friend ‘Bob Wire.'" After describing Glidden and his invention, the article goes on as follows: "Quite naturally some animals enclosed by Glidden’s fencing gashed themselves on the barbs. Just as naturally, men and boys tried to climb over or under those fences and had their clothes and flesh torn...These wounds upon man and beast and the suddenness with which Glidden’s barbs halted all living things came to the attention of military men, and the barbed wire entanglement of which we now read almost every day in the war news was born...And it may be said right here that soldiers who have been halted by wire entanglements while making a charge say the devil never invented anything nastier."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Sam |date=2018-04-12 |title=Barbed wire's history entangled in war |url=https://www.farmanddairy.com/columns/barbed-wires-history-entangled-in-war/480937.html |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=Farm and Dairy |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first=Robert |last=Zaretsky |date=September 27, 2015 |title=The tangled history of barbed wire |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2015/09/26/the-tangled-history-barbed-wire/rpSHBoMNNOhbaDY8iSp7JJ/story.html |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=BostonGlobe.com |language=en-US}}</ref> | ||
Due to its dangerous nature, razor wire/barbed tape and similar fencing/barrier materials are prohibited in some locales. Norway prohibits any barbed wire except in combination with other fencing, in order to protect domesticated animals from exposure.<ref>§ 15 in Lov om dyrevelferd (Animal welfare law). Accessed November 5th, 2018, at https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2009-06-19-97/KAPITTEL_1#%C2%A715</ref> | |||
=== India === | |||
According to independent news reports, an indigenous variant of punched tape concertina coil (PTCC) was developed in India during the 1980s by engineer Dr. Girish Mohan Gupta and his company Global Engineers. This locally manufactured razor-wire–based design was later adopted for enhanced border fencing in the Punjab region during a period of increased cross-border infiltration.<ref>{{cite news |title=84-Year-Old Innovator Dr. Grish Mohan Gupta: Six Decades of Indigenous Defence Technology |url=https://newst24.com/dr-girish-mohan-gupta-iim-mba-at-84-atmanirbhar-bharat-innovation/ |publisher=Newst24 |date=19 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Border Fencing Innovation in India |url=https://naradnews.com/dr-grish-mohan-gupta/ |publisher=Narad News |date=19 November 2025}}</ref> | |||
== Construction == | == Construction == | ||
{{expand section|date=August 2025}} | |||
Razor wire has a central strand of high [[tensile strength]] wire, and a steel tape punched into a shape with barbs. The steel tape is then cold-[[crimp (joining)|crimp]]ed tightly to the wire everywhere except for the barbs. Flat barbed tape is very similar, but has no central reinforcement wire. The process of combining the two is called roll forming. | Razor wire has a central strand of high [[tensile strength]] wire, and a steel tape punched into a shape with barbs. The steel tape is then cold-[[crimp (joining)|crimp]]ed tightly to the wire everywhere except for the barbs. Flat barbed tape is very similar, but has no central reinforcement wire. The process of combining the two is called roll forming. | ||
<gallery widths="200px" heights="150px"> | <gallery widths="200px" heights="150px"> | ||
File:BarbedTape1.JPG|right|Barbed tape on a fence | |||
File:RazorWire2.JPG|Short barb razor wire with central reinforcement | File:RazorWire2.JPG|Short barb razor wire with central reinforcement | ||
File:RazorWire3.JPG|Medium barb razor wire | File:RazorWire3.JPG|Medium barb razor wire | ||
Latest revision as of 18:17, 19 November 2025
Barbed tape or razor wire is a mesh of metal strips with sharp edges whose purpose is to prevent trespassing by humans or to secure facilities such as prisons where there is a risk of escape.
Use
The first use of barbed wire for warfare was in 1898 during the Spanish-American War, thirty-one years after the first patents were issued in 1867. One of the most notable examples during the Spanish-American War is the defense provided by the Moron-Jucardo Trocha. The trocha (or trench) stretched for fifty miles between the cities of Moron and Jucardo. Within this trench, and in addition to fallen trees, barbed wire was used. The barbed wire was arranged in a cat’s cradle formation that for every 12 yards of barbed fence built, 420 yards of barbed wire was strung (or 35 yards of wire per yard of fence).[1]
Later versions of this type of barbed wire were manufactured by Germany during World War I. The reason for this was a wartime shortage of wire to make conventional barbed wire. Therefore, flat wire with triangular cutting edges began to be punched out of steel strips ("band barbed wire"). A welcome side effect was that a comparable length of barbed wire of this new type could be produced in less time. These precursors to NATO wire did not yet have an inner wire for stabilization, were therefore easy to cut with tin snips, and were also not as robust as normal barbed wire. However, they withstood the wire cutters used at the time to cut normal barbed wire, as was common at the front.[2][3][4][5]
An article in a 1918 issue of The Hardware Trade Journal tells the story under the headline: "This Cruel War’s Abuse of Our Old Friend ‘Bob Wire.'" After describing Glidden and his invention, the article goes on as follows: "Quite naturally some animals enclosed by Glidden’s fencing gashed themselves on the barbs. Just as naturally, men and boys tried to climb over or under those fences and had their clothes and flesh torn...These wounds upon man and beast and the suddenness with which Glidden’s barbs halted all living things came to the attention of military men, and the barbed wire entanglement of which we now read almost every day in the war news was born...And it may be said right here that soldiers who have been halted by wire entanglements while making a charge say the devil never invented anything nastier."[6][7]
Due to its dangerous nature, razor wire/barbed tape and similar fencing/barrier materials are prohibited in some locales. Norway prohibits any barbed wire except in combination with other fencing, in order to protect domesticated animals from exposure.[8]
India
According to independent news reports, an indigenous variant of punched tape concertina coil (PTCC) was developed in India during the 1980s by engineer Dr. Girish Mohan Gupta and his company Global Engineers. This locally manufactured razor-wire–based design was later adopted for enhanced border fencing in the Punjab region during a period of increased cross-border infiltration.[9][10]
Construction
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Razor wire has a central strand of high tensile strength wire, and a steel tape punched into a shape with barbs. The steel tape is then cold-crimped tightly to the wire everywhere except for the barbs. Flat barbed tape is very similar, but has no central reinforcement wire. The process of combining the two is called roll forming.
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Barbed tape on a fence
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Short barb razor wire with central reinforcement
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Medium barb razor wire
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Long barb razor wire on a fence. At the bottom there is some barbed wire.
See also
References
External links
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- ↑ § 15 in Lov om dyrevelferd (Animal welfare law). Accessed November 5th, 2018, at https://lovdata.no/dokument/NL/lov/2009-06-19-97/KAPITTEL_1#%C2%A715
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