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The Brunswick Ducal Field-Corps (german: Herzoglich Braunschweigisches Feldcorps), commonly known as the Black Brunswickers in English and the ''Schwarze Schar'' (Black Troop, Black Horde, or Black Host) or ''Schwarze Legion'' (Black Legion) in German, were a military unit in the
Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
. The corps was raised from volunteers by German-born
Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (german: Friedrich Wilhelm; 9 October 1771 – 16 June 1815), was a German prince and Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Oels. Nicknamed "The Black Duke", he was a military officer who led th ...
(1771–1815). The Duke was a harsh opponent of
Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
's occupation of his native Germany. Formed in 1809 when war broke out between the
First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...
and the
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...
, the corps initially comprised a mixed force, around 2,300 strong, of
infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...
, cavalry and later supporting
artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
. Most units of the corps wore black uniforms, leading to the "black" nicknames of the unit, though some light units (such as sharpshooters and
uhlan Uhlans (; ; ; ; ) were a type of light cavalry, primarily armed with a lance. While first appearing in the cavalry of Lithuania and then Poland, Uhlans were quickly adopted by the mounted forces of other countries, including France, Russia, Pr ...
s) wore green uniforms. The Brunswickers wore silvered skull "
totenkopf ''Totenkopf'' (, i.e. ''skull'', literally "dead person's head") is the German word for the skull and crossbones symbol. The "skull and crossbones" symbol is an old international symbol for death, the defiance of death, danger, or the dead, as ...
" badges on their hats. Their title originated from Duke Frederick William, who claimed the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, which the French had abolished in order to incorporate its lands into the French satellite
Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...
. The Black Brunswickers earned themselves a fearsome reputation over the following decade, taking part in several significant battles including the prelude to the
Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
, at
Quatre Bras Quatre Bras (, French for crossroads; literally "four arms") is a hamlet in the municipality of Genappe, Wallonia, Belgium. It lies on the crossroad of the Charleroi-Brussels road (currently named N5) and the Nivelles-Namur road south of Genappe ...
on 16 June 1815, where the Duke lost his life. However, recruiting, the replacement of casualties, and finance had always been problematic, and the corps was disbanded in the early 1820s. The exploits of the Brunswickers caught the British Victorian public's imagination: an example of this can be found in
John Everett Millais Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet, ( , ; 8 June 1829 – 13 August 1896) was an English painter and illustrator who was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He was a child prodigy who, aged eleven, became the youngest ...
's painting ''
The Black Brunswicker ''The Black Brunswicker'' (1860) is a painting by John Everett Millais. It was inspired in part by the exploits of the Black Brunswickers, a German volunteer corps of the Napoleonic Wars, during the Waterloo campaign and in part by the contras ...
''. Completed in 1860, the painting depicts a Brunswicker in his black uniform bidding goodbye to an unnamed woman.


Formation and early years


War of the Fifth Coalition

In 1806 the Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, Charles William Ferdinand, was fatally wounded during the
Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
defeat at the Battle of Jena–Auerstedt. Following Prussia's defeat and the collapse of the Fourth Coalition against
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
, his duchy remained under French control. Rather than permit the Duke's heir, Frederick William, to succeed to his father's title, Napoleon seized the duchy and, in 1807, incorporated it into his newly created model
Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...
ruled by his brother Jérôme. Two years later in 1809 the
Fifth Coalition The War of the Fifth Coalition was a European conflict in 1809 that was part of the Napoleonic Wars and the Coalition Wars. The main conflict took place in central Europe between the Austrian Empire of Francis I and Napoleon's French Empir ...
against Napoleon was formed between the
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...
and the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. The dispossessed Frederick William, who had been a strenuous critic of French domination in Germany, seized this opportunity to seek Austrian help to raise an armed force. To finance this venture he mortgaged his principality in Oels. In its initial incarnation (dated to 25 July 1809), the 2300-strong 'free' corps consisted of two
battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions a ...
s of infantry, one Jäger battalion, a company of
sharpshooters A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with " marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" ...
, and a mixed cavalry contingent including hussars and
uhlan Uhlans (; ; ; ; ) were a type of light cavalry, primarily armed with a lance. While first appearing in the cavalry of Lithuania and then Poland, Uhlans were quickly adopted by the mounted forces of other countries, including France, Russia, Pr ...
s. Despite a successful campaign with their Austrian allies, the defeat of the latter at the
Battle of Wagram The Battle of Wagram (; 5–6 July 1809) was a military engagement of the Napoleonic Wars that ended in a costly but decisive victory for Emperor Napoleon's French and allied army against the Austrian army under the command of Archduke Charles ...
on 6 July 1809 led to the
Armistice of Znaim The Armistice of Znaim was a ceasefire agreed between Archduke Charles and Napoleon I on 12 July 1809 following the Battle of Znaim, effectively ending hostilities between Austria and France in the War of the Fifth Coalition. Following defe ...
on 12 July. William refused to accept this and led his ''Schwarze Schar'' ("Black Host") into Germany, succeeding in briefly taking control of the city of Brunswick. Faced with superior Westphalian forces, the Brunswickers conducted a remarkable fighting retreat across Germany, twice holding off the pursuing armies, at the Battle of Halberstadt and the Battle of Ölper; finally being evacuated by the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
from the mouth of the river
Weser The Weser () is a river of Lower Saxony in north-west Germany. It begins at Hannoversch Münden through the confluence of the Werra and Fulda. It passes through the Hanseatic city of Bremen. Its mouth is further north against the ports o ...
. Landing in England, the Duke was welcomed by his cousin and brother-in-law, the Prince Regent (later King
George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...
) and the Black Brunswickers entered British service. During the next few years, the Brunswickers earned themselves a sound reputation through service with the British in the Peninsular Campaign. However, steady attrition in battles and
skirmishes Skirmishers are light infantry or light cavalry soldiers deployed as a vanguard, flank guard or rearguard to screen a tactical position or a larger body of friendly troops from enemy advances. They are usually deployed in a skirmish line, an i ...
through Portugal and Spain, combined with a lack of political support and financial difficulties, led to a situation where the unit's imminent disbandment looked likely.


Peninsular War

When organized for British service, the corps was renamed the Brunswick Oels Jäger and Brunswick Oels Hussar regiments. Prussians represented a large part of the original officer corps, while the enlisted men were motivated by German patriotism. However, once the Oels entered English service, they were cut off from their natural recruiting grounds. Compelled to enlist men from the prisoner of war camps to fill up the ranks, the quality of soldiers in the Oels decreased. Also, the King's German Legion obtained the best of the German recruits, leaving the Oels with the less desirable ones. In addition to Germans, the Oels recruited Poles, Swiss, Danes, Dutch, and Croats.
Charles Oman Sir Charles William Chadwick Oman, (12 January 1860 – 23 June 1946) was a British military historian. His reconstructions of medieval battles from the fragmentary and distorted accounts left by chroniclers were pioneering. Occasionally his ...
, the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
historian, calls the Oels a "motley crew, much given to desertion" and records one occasion where ten men were caught deserting in a body. Of these, four were shot and the rest flogged. Nevertheless, the Brunswick Oels Jägers gave a good account of themselves during the war. The regiment — really a single battalion—arrived in Portugal in early 1811. The
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...
distributed one company to the 4th Division and two companies to the
5th Division In military terms, 5th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 5th Division (Australia) *5th Division (People's Republic of China) * 5th Division (Colombia) *Finnish 5th Division (Continuation War) * 5th Light Cavalry Division (France) *5th Mo ...
as skirmishers, while the remaining nine companies served in the newly formed 7th Division. The Oels remained in this organization until the end of the war in April 1814. During this period, the Oels served in most of the major battles including Fuentes de Oñoro,
Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...
, Vitoria, the Pyrenees,
Nivelle Nivelle () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department * Nivelle Offensive The Nivelle offensive (16 April – 9 May 1917) was a Franco-British operation on the Western Front ...
, the Nive, and
Orthez Orthez (; eu, Ortheze; oc, Ortès, ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of New Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the sm ...
.


Waterloo campaign

Following Napoleon's failed invasion of Russia in 1812, and his subsequent retreat back into France, William was able to return to Brunswick in 1813 to reclaim his title. He also took the opportunity to replenish the ranks of his Black Brunswickers. Upon Napoleon's escape from
Elba Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano Nationa ...
in 1815 he once more placed himself under the
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...
's command and joined the allied forces of the
Seventh Coalition The Hundred Days (french: les Cent-Jours ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition, marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration ...
in Belgium. The "Brunswick Corps", as it is called in the order of battle for the
Waterloo campaign The Waterloo campaign (15 June – 8 July 1815) was fought between the French Army of the North and two Seventh Coalition armies, an Anglo-allied army and a Prussian army. Initially the French army was commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte, but he l ...
, formed up as a discrete division in the allied reserve. Its strength is given as 5,376 men, composed of eight infantry battalions: one advance guard or ''Avantgarde'', one life guard or ''Leib-Bataillon'', three light and three line battalions. They were supported by both a horse and foot artillery battery of eight guns each. Also included were a regiment of Brunswicker ''hussars'' while a single squadron of ''uhlans'' were often attached to the allied cavalry corps.


Battle of Quatre Bras

Quatre Bras Quatre Bras (, French for crossroads; literally "four arms") is a hamlet in the municipality of Genappe, Wallonia, Belgium. It lies on the crossroad of the Charleroi-Brussels road (currently named N5) and the Nivelles-Namur road south of Genappe ...
was a
hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
at a strategic crossroads on the road to
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. French control of it would not only threaten the city, but divide Wellington's allied army from Blucher's Prussians. At 14:00 on 16 June 1815, after some initial skirmishing, the main French force under
Marshal Ney Michel Ney, 1st Duke of Elchingen, 1st Prince of the Moskva (; 10 January 1769 – 7 December 1815), was a French military commander and Marshal of the Empire who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one o ...
, approached Quatre Bras from the south. They came up against the 2nd Netherlands Division who had formed a line well in advance of the crossroads. Facing three French infantry divisions and a cavalry brigade, the Dutch and
Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
troops were forced back but did not break. Reinforcements arrived at 15:00, being a Dutch cavalry brigade, Picton's 5th British Division, followed closely by the Brunswick Corps. The sharpshooters of the Brunswick Advance Guard regiment were sent to support Dutch skirmishers in Bossou Wood on the allied right (western) flank; the rest of the corps took up a reserve position across the Brussels road. The Duke reassured his inexperienced troops by walking up and down in front of them, calmly puffing on his pipe. A French infantry attack was halted by the allied front line, which was attacked in turn by French cavalry. Wellington moved the Brunswick infantry into the front line, where they were subjected to intense French artillery fire, forcing them to fall back a short distance. As a mass of French infantry advanced up the main road, the Duke led a charge by his ''uhlans'', but they were beaten back. Swept by
canister shot Canister shot is a kind of anti-personnel artillery ammunition. Canister shot has been used since the advent of gunpowder-firing artillery in Western armies. However, canister shot saw particularly frequent use on land and at sea in the various ...
at short range, the Brunswickers broke and rallied at the crossroads itself. At this point, the Duke, who was reforming his troops, was hit by a musket ball, which passed through his hand and into his liver. He was rescued by the men of the Leib Regiment, who carried him back using their muskets as a stretcher. He died shortly afterwards. The Duke's final words, to his aide Major von Wachholtz, were: Colonel Elias Olfermann was the Duke's
adjutant general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...
, who assumed immediate command of the corps. Wellington then ordered the Brunswick hussars to make an unsupported counterattack on the French light cavalry brigade, but they were driven off by heavy fire. Later in the battle, French
cuirassier Cuirassiers (; ) were cavalry equipped with a cuirass, sword, and pistols. Cuirassiers first appeared in mid-to-late 16th century Europe as a result of armoured cavalry, such as men-at-arms and demi-lancers, discarding their lances and adop ...
s broke the allied front line and were only prevented from taking the crossroads by the Brunswick infantry who had formed themselves into
square In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90- degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length a ...
s. By 21:00, allied reinforcements, including the newly arrived Brunswick 1st and 3rd light regiments, had driven the French back to their starting positions. Brunswick losses that day amounted to 188 killed and 396 wounded.


Battle of Waterloo

Only two days later, on Sunday 18 June, the Duke of Wellington positioned his Anglo-allied army along a ridge near the village of Waterloo, in order to block Napoleon's advance along the road to Brussels. The Brunswick Corps formed part of Wellington's reserve corps, under his personal command. In that capacity, they were kept well behind the crest of the ridge and avoided casualties during the opening French bombardment. In the early part of the afternoon, the British Foot Guards moved down the slope to reinforce the Château d'Hougoumont, which was under fierce French attack; the Brunswick Corps was brought forward to take their place. At about 16:00, Ney decided to attempt to break the centre right of the Anglo-allied line with his cavalry. Some 4,800 French horsemen charged up the hill and into the allied infantry, who had formed themselves into squares to resist them. In all, 9,000 cavalry were involved in repeated attacks on the allied squares but were unable to break any of them, including the Brunswickers, who some British officers regarded as "shaky". The Brunswick ''hussars'' and ''uhlans'', who formed part of the 7th British Cavalry Brigade, made harrying attacks on the French whenever they retired to regroup. Eventually, Ney had no choice but to abandon the attacks. The French capture of the fortified farm of
La Haye Sainte La Haye Sainte (named either after Jesus Christ's crown of thorns or a bramble hedge round a field nearby) is a walled farmhouse compound at the foot of an escarpment on the Charleroi-Brussels road in Belgium. It has changed very little since it ...
had left a gap in the centre of Wellington’s line, and the Brunswick infantry were brought along to fill it. It was here that Napoleon sent one of two attacks by his imperial guard in a last effort to break Wellington’s army. Faced with the veterans of the grenadiers of the middle guard, the inexperienced Brunswickers broke from the line and "fell back in disorder", but rallied when they reached the cavalry reserve in the rear. The same fate befell the
Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
Infantry Regiment and two British battalions. Finally, the guards were halted and thrown back when they were surprised by a flank attack from allied troops. The Brunswick Corps had recovered sufficiently to participate in the allied “general advance” that swept the French army from the field. British sources give the number of Brunswickers killed in action that day as 154 with 456 wounded and 50 missing. In the following days, they escorted 2,000 French prisoners back to Brussels and then marched on to Paris. They finally returned to Brunswick on 6 December 1815.


Uniform

The Brunswickers were awarded various nicknames by their contemporaries, including the ''Black Crows'', the ''Black Legion'' and the ''Black Horde''. However, although the uniforms of the individual units that comprised the corps were, as the names suggest, predominantly black, they varied in their details. *Infantry units in 1809 wore a black ''polrock'' or "Polish coat", a type of
frock coat A frock coat is a formal men's coat characterised by a knee-length skirt cut all around the base just above the knee, popular during the Victorian and Edwardian periods (1830s–1910s). It is a fitted, long-sleeved coat with a centre vent at th ...
derived from a Lithuanian garment called a ''litewka'' which had six pairs of black lace fastenings down the front. Trousers were black with a side stripe of light blue. A tall collar and shoulder straps also in the regimental colour. The backpack and other equipment were of Austrian design and manufacture. The Sharpshooter companies wore a dark green Prussian-style
coatee A coatee was a type of tight fitting uniform coat or jacket, which was waist length at the front and had short tails behind. The coatee began to replace the long tail coat in western armies at the end of the eighteenth century, but was itself su ...
and a tall hat of Austrian origin with an elongated brim turned-up at one side. In the Peninsular War, the ''polrock'' was replaced by a short black ''koller'' or cavalry-style tunic. Equipment and badges of rank were of British pattern. Trousers were black with a side stripe of light blue; footwear was black shoes with buttoned
gaiters Gaiters are garments worn over the shoe and bottom of the pant or trouser leg, and used primarily as personal protective equipment; similar garments used primarily for display are spats. Originally, gaiters were made of leather or canvas. ...
. They wore a
shako A shako (, , or ) is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor, and sometimes tapered at the top. It is usually adorned with an ornamental plate or badge on the front, metallic or otherwise; and often has a feather, plume (see hackle) ...
on their heads, with a death's head badge for the Leib battalion or a hunting horn badge for light infantry. The hussar cavalry were garbed in a black, light blue collared
dolman The somewhat vaguely defined term dolman (from Turkish ''dolaman'' "robe" ) can refer to various types of clothing, all of which have sleeves and cover the top part of the body, and sometimes more. Originally, the term ''dolaman'' referred to ...
, sometimes with a black
pelisse A pelisse was originally a short fur-trimmed jacket which hussar light-cavalry soldiers from the 17th century onwards usually wore hanging loose over the left shoulder, ostensibly to prevent sword cuts. The name also came to refer to a fashion ...
. Black overalls were worn over tight breeches of the hussar style. The hussars also wore a black Shako. The sword and equipment were originally of Austrian design. The Uhlan squadron wore a green ''kurtka'' or lancer's jacket with red facings and a traditional ''
czapka Czapka (, ; also spelt ''chapka'' or ''schapska'' ) is a Polish, Belarusian, and Russian generic word for a cap. However, it is perhaps best known to English speakers as a word for the 19th-century Polish cavalry headgear, consisting of a high ...
'' cap, their uniform being a copy of the Austrian ''Graf von Meerveldt'' Uhlan Regiment. The lance had a red and yellow pennon. By 1815, the Uhlans were wearing all-black uniforms, the ''czapka'' was now topped light blue and piped and crossed on top in yellow. For the 1815 Waterloo Campaign, three new line battalions and three new light battalions were added to the ducal forces. These units wore the black koller, with black trousers with a side stripe in each regiment's facing colour; footwear was black shoes with buttoned
gaiters Gaiters are garments worn over the shoe and bottom of the pant or trouser leg, and used primarily as personal protective equipment; similar garments used primarily for display are spats. Originally, gaiters were made of leather or canvas. ...
. They wore a
shako A shako (, , or ) is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a visor, and sometimes tapered at the top. It is usually adorned with an ornamental plate or badge on the front, metallic or otherwise; and often has a feather, plume (see hackle) ...
on their heads, with white metal "amazon" style plates for the line battalions or a white metal hunting horn badge for light infantry. The line battalions wore a short light blue over yellow "carrot" pompom; that of the light battalions was yellow over light blue and the Leib Battalion continued to wear the falling black horsehair plume and the death's head badge. Artillerymen wore similar clothing to the cavalry: mostly black in colour with a ''koller'' and black trousers. They were additionally equipped with a standard hussar sword should they have need to defend their guns. There are a number of speculative theories on the origin of the Brunswickers' dark and seemingly grim choice of garb. It has been suggested that black was chosen to mourn Duke Frederick William's late father; as a sign of respect for the Duke; or in mourning for the Duke's occupied homeland. Colonel Augustus Frazer, who had served alongside the Brunswickers, reported that black was adopted in mourning for the Duke's wife, Princess Marie of Baden, who had died in 1808, and that the black uniforms would not be put aside until Brunswick had been finally liberated. The black clothing of the Brunswicker soldier became closely associated across Germany with the liberation movement of 1813. Accordingly even after Brunswick became a member of the
North German Confederation The North German Confederation (german: Norddeutscher Bund) was initially a German military alliance established in August 1866 under the leadership of the Kingdom of Prussia, which was transformed in the subsequent year into a confederated st ...
in 1866 and the German Empire in 1871 the military units of the Dukedom retained the special privilege of wearing uniforms in black, in marked contrast to the
Prussian blue Prussian blue (also known as Berlin blue, Brandenburg blue or, in painting, Parisian or Paris blue) is a dark blue pigment produced by oxidation of ferrous ferrocyanide salts. It has the chemical formula Fe CN)">Cyanide.html" ;"title="e(Cyani ...
of most of the other member states. This distinction lasted until April 1892 when a new military convention between Brunswick and Prussia did away with the special status and uniforms of the Brunswick regiments.


Inspired art

''
The Black Brunswicker ''The Black Brunswicker'' (1860) is a painting by John Everett Millais. It was inspired in part by the exploits of the Black Brunswickers, a German volunteer corps of the Napoleonic Wars, during the Waterloo campaign and in part by the contras ...
'' (1860), by
John Everett Millais Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet, ( , ; 8 June 1829 – 13 August 1896) was an English painter and illustrator who was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He was a child prodigy who, aged eleven, became the youngest ...
was inspired in part by the exploits of the Brunswickers and in part by the contrasts of black broadcloth and pearl-white satin in a moment of tender conflict. The artwork took an estimated three months to paint, and it was greatly admired at the time. It was also bought for the highest price Millais had received from dealer and publisher
Ernest Gambart Jean Joseph Ernest Theodore Gambart (12 October 1814 – 12 April 1902) was a Belgian-born English art publisher and dealer who dominated the London art world in the middle of the nineteenth century. Life and career Gambart was born in Kortrijk, ...
- the lucrative sum of 100
guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...
. Later, in 1898,
William Hesketh Lever William Hesketh Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme , (, ; 19 September 1851 – 7 May 1925) was an English industrialist, philanthropist, and politician. Having been educated at a small private school until the age of nine, then at church schools ...
purchased the work for his private collection.
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
' daughter
Kate Kate name may refer to: People and fictional characters * Kate (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Gyula Káté (born 1982), Hungarian amateur boxer * Lauren Kate (born 1981), American autho ...
was used as a model for the woman seen in the painting.


Later years

A single infantry regiment and the hussars were maintained by the Duchy of Brunswick after the end of the Napoleonic War. In 1830, the uniform colour was changed to blue, but reverted to black in 1850. The Brunswick units were integrated into the Prussian Army in 1866 with the titles: ''Braunschweigisches Infanterie-Regiment Nr.92'' and ''Braunschweigisches Husaren Regiment Nr.17'' following the Prussian regimental numbering sequence. Both units kept the skulls with the crossed bones on their helmets and caps and carried the
battle honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...
s "Peninsula-Sicily-Waterloo" until the end of World War I in 1918, when they were disbanded. At that time, a collection of artefacts and uniforms from the Napoleonic era were presented by the officers of the corps to the
Braunschweigisches Landesmuseum Braunschweigisches Landesmuseum (BLM) is a history museum in Braunschweig, Germany, operated by the state of Lower Saxony. The museum is scattered on four locations: ''Vieweghaus'', ''Hinter Ägidien'' (both in Braunschweig), ''Kanzlei'' (Wolfenbü ...
, where they remain. The historic black of the Brunswick Corps was retained by the ''Husaren Regiment Nr.17 ''in full dress parade uniform until the outbreak of war in August 1914. The Brunswick ''Infanterie-Regiment Nr.92'' however adopted the dark blue tunic of the Prussian line infantry.Verlag Starnberg, "Die Uniformen der Deutschen Armee",


Sources


See also

* The
Sacred Band (1821) The Sacred Band ( Greek: ) was a military force founded by Alexander Ypsilantis at the beginning of the Greek War of Independence, in the middle of March 1821 in Wallachia, now part of Romania. It was formed by volunteers students of the Gree ...
set up by
Alexander Ypsilantis Alexandros Ypsilantis ( el, Αλέξανδρος Υψηλάντης, Aléxandros Ypsilántis, ; ro, Alexandru Ipsilanti; russian: Александр Константинович Ипсиланти, Aleksandr Konstantinovich Ipsilanti; 12 Dece ...
had uniforms inspired by the Black Brunswickers


Further reading

* Hugo von Franckenberg-Ludwigsdorff: ''Erinnerungen an das Schwarze Corps, welches Herzog Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig-Oels im Jahre 1809 errichtete. Aus dem Tagebuche eines Veteranen.'' Schwetschke, Braunschweig 1859
digitized
* Ruthard von Frankenberg: ''Im Schwarzen Korps bis Waterloo. Memoiren des Majors Erdmann von Frankenberg''. edition von frankenberg, Hamburg 2015, * Gustav von Kortzfleisch: ''Des Herzogs Friedrich Wilhelm von Braunschweig Zug durch Norddeutschland im Jahre 1809.'' In: ''Militär-Wochenblatt.'' Beiheft 9/10, 1894, , p. 300–396 (Auch Sonderabdruck: Mittler, Berlin 1894
digitized
. * Fred Mentzel: ''Der Vertrag Herzog Friedrich Wilhelms von Braunschweig mit der britischen Regierung über die Verwendung des Schwarzen Korps (1809).'' In: ''Braunschweigisches Jahrbuch.'' Bd. 55, 1974, , p. 230–239
digitized
* Detlef Wenzlik: ''Unter der Fahne des Schwarzen Herzogs 1809'' (= ''Die Napoleonischen Kriege.'' Bd. 9). VRZ-Verlag Zörb, Hamburg 2002, .


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brunswickers, Black Freikorps of the Napoleonic Wars Military units and formations established in 1809 Army regiments of Germany History of Brunswick
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
1809 establishments in Germany