The Hindenburg light or Hindenburglicht, was a source of tallow

lighting Lighting or illumination is the deliberate use of light to achieve practical or aesthetic effects. Lighting includes the use of both artificial light sources like lamps and light fixtures, as well as natural illumination by capturing daylig ...

used in the

trenches A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from eros ...

of the First World War, named after the Commander-in-Chief of the German army in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fro ...

. It was a flat bowl approximately diameter and deep, resembling the cover of Mason jar lid (''Schraubglasdeckel'') and made from

pasteboard Card stock, also called cover stock and pasteboard, is paper that is thicker and more durable than normal writing and printing paper, but thinner and more flexible than other forms of paperboard. Card stock is often used for business cards, p ...

. This flat bowl was filled with a wax-like fat (

tallow Tallow is a rendering (industrial), rendered form of beef or mutton fat, primarily made up of triglycerides. In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton fat. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain techn ...

). A short wick (''Docht'') in the center was lit and burned for some hours. A later model of the Hindenburglicht was a "tin can (''Dosenlicht'') lamp." Here, a wax-filled tin can have two wicks in a holder. If both wicks are lit, a common, broad flame (''zungenfoermige Flamme'') results. The lights were also used in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

air raid shelter Air raid shelters are structures for the protection of non-combatants as well as combatants against enemy attacks from the air. They are similar to bunkers in many regards, although they are not designed to defend against ground attack (but many ...

s (''Luftschutzkeller'') or during power cuts, and mandated black outs as emergency lighting. The Hindenburg light is mentioned in the novels and ''Berlin'' by

Theodore Plievier Theodor Otto Richard Plievier (Plivier, until 1933) (12 February 1892, Berlin – 12 March 1955, Avegno, Switzerland) was a German writer and communist, best known for his 1948 anti-war novel . During World War I, he served on the '' SMS Wolf'' ...

, as used on the Eastern Front and in air raid shelters respectively. Also it is mentioned in ''Wheels of Terror'' by

Sven Hassel Sven Hassel was the pen name of the Danish-born Børge Willy Redsted Pedersen (19 April 1917 – 21 September 2012) known primarily for his novels focusing on stories of German combatants during World War II. In Denmark he used the pen name ''Sven ...

and ''In Deadly Combat A German Soldier's Memoir of the Eastern Front'' by Gottlob Herbert Biedermann.

References

{{Reflist Lighting World War I military equipment of Germany World War II military equipment of Germany

See also

References