The Black Veil Respirator was an early British gas mask designed by John Scott Haldane and introduced in May 1915.
The German army used chlorine as a poison gas for the first time against Allied troops at the Second Battle of Ypres on 22 April 1915.
[4] First issued on 20 May 1915, the Black Veil had a pouch for the pad to sit in and a string to hold the mask in to the face, and was thus an improvement to the hand-held cloth.
However, it was of fragile construction, required training to use effectively, and largely immobilized its wearers because they were concerned about the mask coming loose.
[6][7] Following the introduction of the British Smoke Hood, the Black Veil was relegated to an emergency backup.