page_title: Lützow Free Corps
section_title: Uniforms
hierarchical_section_title: Lützow Free Corps / Uniforms
caption_attribution_description: English: Preußen. Königlich Preußisches von Lützow'sches Freicorps. 1813-15 Deutsch: Knötel, Band II, Tafel 7: Preußen. Königlich Preußisches von Lützow'sches Freicorps. 1813-15
context_page_description: Lützow Free Corps was a volunteer force of the Prussian army during the Napoleonic Wars. It was named after its commander, Ludwig Adolf Wilhelm von Lützow. The Corpsmen were also widely known as the “Lützower Jäger“ or “Schwarze Jäger“, sometimes also "Lützower Reiter".
context_section_description: Because the Kingdom of Prussia already had problems financing and equipping its regular forces, the volunteers had to equip and supply themselves by their own means. Many times civilian clothing or old uniforms ― even enemy uniforms taken as booty ― were simply dyed. Black was therefore used for their uniforms rather than the normal Prussian blue, because this was the only color that could be used to dye the improvised clothing (if any other had been used, the clothing's original color would have shown through, resulting in an unacceptable mix of colors for the Corps as a whole). The quality of the material often left much to be desired.
  For similar reasons of economy, a civilian-style trench coat, the so-called litewka or Polish frock coat ― double-breasted, without a tail-slit ― was chosen for infantry and rifle detachments, and later extended to the artillery. The tunic was black, as were the trousers, with red trim chosen for the rank insignia along the collar, cuffs, epaulets, and front edge of the tunic; on officers’ uniforms, collars and cuffs were faced in velvet. On the tunic’s front, eight embossed brass buttons were arranged in two vertical rows.
  Volunteers with particular skills were allowed to transfer to special units with their own uniforms. Hussars and lancers (uhlans) wore dolman jackets, often brought from their former units, dyed black (as were the hussars’ pelisses). Hussars and lancers wore only black and white, the red being omitted. Officers’ uniforms carried silver cords, rather than white, and were in addition trimmed with black fur. Lützow himself wore the black hussar uniform.
  The Tyrolean Jäger retained their previous uniform, gray with green facings.
  Headgear
  Due to its improvised nature, headgear worn by the Free Corps was varied. The infantry headgear corresponded to that of Schill’s corps of 1809, consisting of a black shako, with a clasp and side cordon and tassel. The cavalry wore a felt shako (though due to scarce resources, some were made even of cardboard) with a black-and-yellow braid and tassel; often a black oilcloth was worn over them as protection from the weather. For parades cavalry were accustomed to wear a black horsehair tassel and a black cordon. The Tyroleans continued to wear the turned up and plumed hats of their native region.
  In addition, some volunteers sported peaked caps or even large berets. Often against orders the symbol of a civilian or student society would be attached. In the early days of the Corps, Lützow and others also wore a skull on their headgear (in the same manner as the Duke of Brunswick’s Schwarze Schar), until forbidden by royal command.
caption: Free Corps Uniforms: Mounted Jäger and Hussars. Illustration from Uniformenkunde by Richard Knötel
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