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Winged Glory

The Arms and Equipment of the Winged Hussars

The Winged Hussars were an elite military unit of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. They were perhaps the greatest cavalry to have ever existed. They fought during a time when most armies had abandoned the point charge due to gunpowder weapons, yet, the Winged Hussars were rarely ever defeated. Their charges were absolutely devastating, and indifferent to gun and cannon and pike. The Winged Hussars were quite simply the final and ultimate evolution of the lancer.

The Poles and the Lithuanians were a border people, living on the divide between East and West. Earlier, in the 10-12th Centuries, their cavalry fought like typical chivalric lancers of the West. However, the Mongol invasions under Batu Khan and Subutai saw such forces utterly crushed.

Thus, by the 16th Century, the Winged Hussars had developed into a unique breed of cavalryman, tempered by influences from Mongol horse archers and heavy lancers, Serbian Hussars, and European point charge cavalry. One can easily see the cultural mixture by examining their arms and equipment.

Their weaponry was highly diverse though their primary weapon was an incredibly long lance. The lance was actually hollowed out, making it light and allowing it to be made in such lengths. By some reports, the lances were longer than the pikes used by infantry, meaning that the Hussars could charge into Pike formations with impunity. Their charges were legendary, and their Hussar nature meant that they could steal upon the enemy quickly, and disengage with equal alacrity - mimicking the mobility of the earlier Mongol and Serbian horsemen. They were still well-armored, however, meaning that the Winged Hussars were a deadly hybrid of light and heavy cavalry.

Besides the lance, the Winged Hussars used:

- A sabre, known as the Szabla.

- A long thrusting blade known as the Koncerz.

- Recurve bows and arrows, showing influence from the Mongols, Turks, and Tartars.

- As gunpowder was introduced, many riders carried several pistols to discharge at close range. Some used carbines, though the bow was always most favored for its beauty and grace.

- Maces, axes, rider’s picks, and other armor-piercing weapons were also popular. The Hussars could expect to fight heavily armored opponents like the steel-plated Reiters of the Swedish and Prussians, or the heavy lancers of the Crimean Tatars and Ottoman Turks.

Armor was often of a plate type, utilizing the highly advanced metallurgy skills of the 16th Century. It was, however, much lighter than earlier European plate, allowing the Hussars to reach incredible speeds. As guns became more and more potent, the Hussars would lighten their armor to increase their speed.

Scale armor, however, was utilized as well.

Their armor was ornately decorated, as most Winged Hussars were rich and wealthy. They often used leopard pelts as decoration. Their signature wings were purportedly made out of ostrich feathers attached to wooden frames.

While not well known to the west, the Winged Hussars remain a symbol of Polish and Lithuanian pride, and rightfully so. During WWII, the 1st Polish Armored Division adopted the Winged Hussars as their symbol.

The 1st Polish Armored Division would go on to be one of the deadliest armored units of the entire war. It was they who closed the Falaise Pocket, and held out against multiple SS divisions. The SS could never dislodge the Poles, and as a result, over 60,000 German soldiers were killed or captured, all but completely destroying the German 7th Army. 

Breathtaking 19th century Turkish miquelet pistol decorated with gold, jade, emeralds, and garnets.

Currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

(Source: metmuseum.org)

Capt. John Symmes, John Quincy Adams, and the Hollow Earth Expedition.

Captain John Cleves Symmes was a retired military man and veteran of the War of 1812.  After retiring from military duty, Symmes devoted his life to science and geography.  In 1818, after much study and thought Symmes published a pamphlet describing his new theory of the Earth,

To all the world.  I declare the earth is hollow and habitable within, containing a number of concentric spheres and that it is open at the poles 12 or 16 degrees. I pledge my life in support of this theory.”

Symmes was very certain of his theory that the earth was hollow and habitable, with entrances at the north and south pole.  He was not the only one who expounded such theory, but he certainly was the most vocal, holding public speakings on the matter and gathering support.  His son even believed that the Lost Tribes of Israel had migrated to the center of the earth.

Symmes was so dedicated to his theory that for eleven years he tried to find supporters for an expedition to find the opening at the north pole and explore to the inside of the earth.  He lobbied Congress, the Assembly of Ohio, and even the Russian Government to fund an expedition to prove his theories.  All rejected him.  Then in 1829 he found a supporter in the most unlikely of places.

President John Quincy Adams, son of the founding father John Adams, was an ardent believer of the hollow earth theory.  Upon meeting Symmes Adams drew up plans to mount an expedition to the north pole to find the entrance to the hollow earth once and for all.  He even allocated a large sum of money to fund the expedition.  Yes, that’s right, John Q. Adams was willing to spend taxpayers money to fund an expedition to the center of the earth, and you think politicians waste money today!  However it goes even further, Adams gave instructions to Symmes to make diplomatic contacts with the Boese, a race of mole people he believed to be living inside the earth.  Adams believed that the expedition could really pay off if trade relations could be established with the mole people. (This is not a joke, Adams really believed this)

Unfortunately for Symmes, the expedition never got off the ground… or under it.  Before details could be finalized, monies arranged, men recruited, and equipment purchased, President Adam’s term of office ended.  John Quincy Adams had lost the election to the famed war hero Andrew Jackson.  Upon taking office Jackson scoffed at the idea of an expedition to explore the hollow earth and cancelled the expedition immediately.  

John Symmes died unexpectedly after the cancellation of the expedition, aged 49.  Today his grave marker features a hollow globe with an opening on the north pole.

(Source: news.google.com)

Incredible 19th century Japanese Tenagashima percussion musket.

(Source: historicalarmsandarmor.com)

Incredible Martini Henry rifle with mother of pearl inlay decorations, possibly from India.

(Source: liveauctioneers.com)

The Last Duel in France, Gaston Deferre V. Rene Ribiere, 1967.

In 1967 the Mayor of Marseilles, Gaston Deferre, insulted Parliament Minister Rene Ribiere.  While today it is not uncommon for politicians to to sling some mud, how they settled their differences was certainly very uncommon.  Ribiere challenged Deferre to a duel, taking French politics back 100 years.  Deferre accepted and chose to duel with epee’s, a light sword similar to a foil.  In 1967 the two men fought the last official duel in France.  Fortunately neither men were killed.  Ribiere was sustained two minor wounds before surrendering to Deferre.   Amazingly the duel was caught on video.  Above is a French newsreel documenting the duel.

(Source: ilovemarseille.net)

Horrible Histories: Martin Luther was a very strange man.

Who Were the Hessians?

During the American Revolution the British Army brought along 30,000 mercenaries called “Hessians”.  Hired from Germany, the use of Hessian soldiers caused much controversy as their presence was used as a propaganda tool by the American colonists as an example of further tyranny by the British.  The Declaration of Independence itself mentions the Hessians in a grievance against the King,

“He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.”

The incredibly strong language of the Declaration of Independence clearly shows that the Hessians were not very well likde men in the colonies.  Perhaps their greatest legacy during the Revolution was their defeat at the hands of George Washington.  On Christmas night of 1776, George Washington and his Continental Army crossed the Delaware and mounted a successful surprise attack on a Hessian force at Trenton New Jersey.  The reputation of the Hessians was even known to Washington, who met the Hessian commander at Trenton, Col. Johan Rall, with scorn and anger even though the colonel was mortally wounded.  While the Hessians make a profound mark on early American history, high school history classes never usually expound on who the Hessians were.  Who were the Hessians, where did they come from, and why were they fighting someone else’s war thousands of miles from their homes?

During the 18th Century Germany was divided into dozens of small independent kingdoms, fiefdoms, dukedoms, and city states.  In the region of Hesse, located in central Germany, the noble house of Hesse ruled the kingdom and divided it among its many family members.  As a result Hesse was a motley collection of small semi-independent realms ruled by Hessian princes and dukes.  Despite ruling over small strips of territory (Principalities) that barely formed a unified and working kingdom, the Hessian states had some of the wealthiest nobleman in Europe.  The Principalities of Hesse  had little in the way of resources, and the Hesse-Kassel region itself only sported a population of poor peasant farmers.  The one resource the Hessian princes could rely upon was manpower.  As early as the 17th century, German kingdoms began raising regiments of soldiers for hire.  Unlike common footsoldiers in larger armies, such as that of the British, Spanish, or French, the regiments created by the Hessian Principalities were elite troops which were very well trained and equipped with the best in military arms.  This made the soldiers of Hesse some of the best soldiers in the world.  However, the Hessian princes did not use their soldiers for defense or to settle matters of foreign policy.  Rather the Hessians used their soldiers as a source of revenue for their respective principalities.  Because they were considered to be among the best soldiers of Europe, they were highly attractive to foreign powers embroiled in war.  Thus the princes of Hesse leased their regiments to armies around Europe for a handsome profit.  Other German states raised mercenaries as well, but were called Hessians regardless. As a result, Hessian mercenaries fought in wars all over Europe and the world, including Italy, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, France, Ireland, Scotland, Bavaria, and the British colonies of North America.  It was even common for Hessian soldiers to face each other in battle on opposing sides, as was the case where Hessian mercenaries were hired by both sides in the War of Austrian Succession.

Hessian soldiers themselves saw little of this money, but were rather paid a regular salary.  Despite their small cut of the riches, life in the Hessian regiments was brutal.  Discipline was strict, with brutal punishments such as flogging exacted for even simple infractions.  Hessian soldiers served a term of 24 years before being discharged.  The penalty for desertion was death.  More importantly many Hessians rarely volunteered for service.  Most were conscripts, drafted by the prince for his army.  Men were even kidnapped into the service, abducted by force by press gangs and crimpers.  The result of this practice was that Hesse became one of the most militarized societies in the world, with one in fourteen people serving in the Hessian Army. Hessian uniforms typically were either green or blue, with regular infantry wearing bi-corn or tri-corn hats and grenadiers wearing cone shaped brass mitres. Most Hessians were armed with a flintlock musket, although a few regiments of rifleman were known to operate.

While the Hessians were sold to kingdoms and empires all over Europe, perhaps their best customers were the British, who made use of their services on a number of occasions during the 1700’s.  Often the British were given special discounts as the ruling kings of Britain were Germans from the House of Hannover.  The height of the Hessians came during the Revolutionary War when the British Parliament purchased 15,000 Hessian soldiers as well as another 15,000 German mercenaries.  While the Hessian mercenaries provided much needed manpower (25% of British forces), their use backfired by further enraging colonists against Britain and alienating loyalists.  Even ministers in Parliament deplored the use of foreign mercenaries against British subjects.  The colonists themselves would sway many Hessians to defect by offering grants of land if they switched sides.  To many Hessians, who were conscripts forced to fight for the profit of their princes, it sounded like a pretty good deal. Many eagerly accepted the colonists offer.  Of 30,000 around 5,000 Hessians would settle in America.  

In the early 1800’s Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Germany and Hesse with it, effectively bringing an end to the Hessian mercenary system.  Thousands of Hessians served in Napoleon’s Grande Armee, most of whom died during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia.  After the Napoleonic Wars some Hessian regiments still hired out their services, but only rarely.

(Source: ushistory.org)

Padlock gun made by Will and Finck of San Francisco, 1898.

An interesting firearm, this weird device has a firearm built into a padlock.  Chambered for .38 caliber, the device had to be unlocked for use, with with the hasp acting as a trigger.  The lock could also be used as an alarm, firing when tampered with.

(Source: littlegun.info)