Prussian Army - Generals, Staff, Officers and NCOs ranks and uniforms.

The Uniforms of Generals and Staff Officers

Generals' uniform closely followed the infantry style. Their full dress consisted of a dark blue Kollet, the Generalsrock, which had long coat-tails and Swedish cuffs. The collar, cuffs and coat tails were faced in scarlet and the two fromer items were trimmed with golden oak leaf lacing. From the right shoulder, a golden knotted aiguillette was worn and on the left was a single silver Kaantille. The butons were gilded. The trousers were of the normal officers' pattern with a single red stripe. Staff officers had double red stripe replaced the single one down the outside seams; this distinction having been worn by staff officers of all grades from late 1814. The head-dress was a black felt bicorne, which was worn fore and aft, and to which was affixed a black cockade, below a golden agraffe, and a white and black feather plume. The officers' mixed silver and black sash was worn around the waist.

This full dress uniform was seldom worn in the field. campaign dress varied, but took the form of one of the other three uniforms that a General was permitted to wear. All these styles of dress were worn with the usual grey trousers and a soft, grey or blue, peaked Schirmutze piped in scarlet, there was a double breasted dark blue Leibrock with gold buttons and scarlet facings; an Interimsrock on which the collars and cuffs were laced in gold and silver Kantille were carried on each shoulder; and an Uberrock. The Uberrock was coloured grey for Generals of Infantry; and dark blue for Generals of Cavalry or Artillery. This distinction of colour between the mounted and dismounted branches of the army applied to the dress of staff officers of all grades, for whom this garment was the most popular form of field service wear.

1)General's epaulette (rigid bullion fringe). (1a) Generals' cuff embroidery (1b) General's collar embroidery (1c) General's epaulette, elevation (2) Epaulette for Colonels, Lieutenant-Colonels and Majors (3) Captain's epaulette (ground of facing) (4) Lieutenant's epaulette (5) Counter-epaulette of Colonel, Lieutenant-Colonel and Major (6) Captain's counter-epaulette (7) Lieutenant's counter-epaulette (8) Regimental officer's full-dress collar (9) Warrant Officer's collar.

Generals who were Colonels-in-Chief, could also wear their regimental uniform. This was a rare distinction that was usually reserved for members of the Hohenzollern family. At Waterloo, for example, the Commander of the IV Armay Corp's reserve cavalry was the King's brother, Prinz Wilhelm, and he wore the field uniform of the Brandenburg Dragoon Regiment.

Frequently, brigades were commanded by Field Officers. In this case the officer would wear the Liebrock uniform of his regiment, together with a cocked hat, instead of the regimental form of head-dress.

The King's Adjudant Generals, General-Adjutant des Konigs, wore a uniform with red facings, gold collar and cuff Litzen and gilded buttons. From the right shoulder hung a golden aiguillette. The tunic was a double breasted infantry officer's Kollet, but in 1808, all cavalry officers who held this position, were authorized to wear a white cavalry Kollet. Head-dress was a shako, but all cavalry officers in staff appointments were required to wear a cocked hat with a white tunic.

Even though Prussian general officers wore the gold lace at collar and cuffs which were the marks of senior officers throughout Europe, the whole effect of the uniform of the Prussian general is markedly simpler than that of their opposite numbers in the French and British services in 1815. In particular, the saddlecloth in black fur with its two silver badges** contrasts strikingly with the gorgeous shabraque of a French general or with the royal blue cloth trimmed with a double line of gold braid and ornamented with the crowned royal cypher that covered the back of a British general's horse of the same period.

Flugel-Adjutanten wore similar uniforms to those noted directly on the prior page but with silver Litzen, aiguillettes and buttons.

The Aide-de-Camps, the Adjutantur-Offiziere again wore the blue foot service uniforms or the white cavalry dress. Their blue KOllet had Swedish cuffs. The collar and cuffs were faced in bright green velvet and the coat tail turnbacks were red. On the white Kollet the facing were all piped in green until the end of 1812, when the collars and cuffs were covered in green velvet. In 1814 a Polish cuff was introduced onto the uniform and with it came gold lace that was added to the collars and cuffs of the blue tunic; at the same time, the white cavalry uniform was abolished.


Hussar officers who took up staff appaointments for which there was not a specific uniform, were required to wear their regimental Liebrock, dark blue with collar and cuffs in the dolman colour. This was to be worn with a cocked hat, but frequently, this instruction was ignored and they continued to wear the distinctive dress of their arm.

Officers of the General staff and the War Ministry wore the uniform of a Flugel-Adjatant but with crimson collars and cuffs. On the white uniform, these facings were coloured scarlet.

Field Officers

Apart from the obvious differences of uniform, officers were distinguished in three ways. They were armed with a sword to which was attached a silver and black mixed sword knot; around their waists they wore a silver and black net sash and on their shoulders they carried either shoulder straps or epaulettes which indicated their status.

Officers fell into four distinct rank groupings and within each group there was no attempt to indicate a specific rank see Table 9 below:

The insignia of the other three groups was complicated owing to the fact that between 1808 and 1815 there were three different systems in use. Shoulder straps coloured as for the men, piped in red and decorated with black-trimmed silver lace, were worn up to 1814. From mid-1814, however, epaulettes were introduced. These eventually replaced the shoulder straps. They were topped as for the other rank's shoulder straps and were trimmed with the silver/black lace, the metal crescent and fringe being in the button colour.

The Infantry - Non Commissioned Officers

These grades were distinguished by gold or silver lace, corresponding to the button colours; that was sewn to the upper edges of the collar and cuffs; prior to 1813, this collar lace was sewn to the lower edge. The Landwehr had an NCO's lace that was coloured black and white.

All NCO's wore special black and white mixed Troddeln. On the black or white parade Busch, the top quarter was always in the opposite colour, white over black or vice-versa.

An unteroffizier was distinguished by the details noted above. A Feldwebel additionally carried a cane looped from the second button on the Kollet. Senior NCO's wore the NCO's uniform but carried an officer's sword and sword knot. NCO's in colour guards were armed with a pike.

Fahnrich

This was a title given to an aspirant officer who had to serve a period of time in the ranks. They wore an NCO's uniform with an officers sword and sword knot.

NCO's rank lace - The different patterns of lace in use drawn as if mounted on the pre-1814 collar:
(A) Line Units, (B) Guard Units, (C) Landwehr, (D) Landwehr variation.