Germany m.91 pickelhaube of 1915 (part one)

Leave it to those rootin' tootin' teutons to provide the world with what is, arguably, the most distinctive helmet design of the late 19th and early 20th century; the pickelhaube, or, "spiked helmet"

I picked up this one in 1978 in Lansing Michigan. At that time I was attending Michigan State University. Back then there were a couple of junk stores-cum-antique shops on Michigan avenue about eight or ten blocks from the magnificent capitol building. This district was home to all of the restaurants, watering holes, and gay bars that catered to a diverse clientele of legislators, winos, leather guys, and helmet weenies, I being of the latter persuasion.

I was living off my GI bill money so I didn't have a lot of cash to spread around, but when I spotted this helmet in an old warehouse of a junk store, I knew that I had to take it home with me. It was surprisingly complete and in pretty good considering it had been sitting around for who-knows- how- long in a junk store.

Today I probably couldn't afford a comparable helmet at current prices.

The spiked helmet of WWI is a classic, even a cliché. It is the caricature of prussian militarism.

And of course, who can forget...













I think its fair to trace the roots of this style back to the Indo Persian helmet.

The tight fitting dome and very fierce spike are referenced by the, less combat functional, Pickelhaube of 1915.

This very cool example is circa 1700. Check the garage, you never know what might be under that stack of old fruit crates.






Front view with eagle front plate ("wappen") and sliding buckle chin strap.



Left view showing the red, white, and black Reichs kokarde (relax, lets just say "cockade").

Left side showing the other ranks (enlisted men's) black and white state kokarde, in this case the state is Prussia. Note that the Kokarden on this helmet are reproductions, the rest of the helmet is, as near as I can determine, completely original.

The back of the helmet showing the rear visor and the reenforcing spine. But wait, there's more!

The spine is hollow, and note the little metal sliding door that provides an adjustable opening. What's up?

The interior view shows the intact liner and upon closer inspection one of the greatest mysteries of this helmet is slowly revealed...

"Why the spike?"

When I take this helmet around to school groups, I'll always ask the kids what the spike is for. Invariably, they give the same answer. A fourth grader will bend over and lunge forward in a pantomime of the pointy part's perceived purpose, that is, to charge the enemy soldier and stab him (or at least freak him out) with the deadly spike. After congratulating the kid on a fine and reasonable guess I then reveal the very mundane point of , er, the point.

Peer into the bowl of the helmet...hey! I see daylight!
Note the holes emitting light (and air) around what is the base of the spike. Also, notice the small hole to the left of that base, it connects with the spine.

Back to the outside of the helmet and it all starts to become obvious. The holes are to provide some airflow, ventilation for this helmet. You can imagine just how uncomfortable this tight fitting, black, helmet could be in hot weather.

The screw-off spike now reveals the communicating holes into the bowl of the helmet. The spike itself is merely a decorative and rain proof cupola.


Moving some air through this headgear may be all that can keep the young WWI German soldier from passing out while standing in formation, under the sun, waiting for Edith Cavell to appear before the firing squad.



Sorry, just an unpleasant reminder to keep it all real.


There you have it, an up close and personal exploration of the M-91 pickelhaube of 1915.
For an absolutely exhaustive, and pretty fantastic study of the pickelhaube, go to:
http://www.kaisersbunker.com (in my links at right), you'll be glad you did.


See you next time with another cool helmet from the collection.


Mannie

Model 1881 U.S. Cavalry Helmet

Our last piece of retrospection before we launch back into the 20th century.
This is the full-dress version of the 1881 cavalry enlisted man's helmet, resplendent in yellow braid, horsehair plume, and gilt eagle and shield. The helmet was worn by all branches, the plumed versions only by mounted branches, each with a distinctive arm-of-service colored plume. Infantry wore the helmet with spike only.Yours truly with an 1881 artilleryman's helmet. Note the scarlet plume and crossed cannon motif. An interesting side by side comparison to two American helmets; the 1881 as a European clone, and the M1, that most distinctive and widely copied helmet of the last half of the 20th century.


The same helmet fitted with the more understated spike atop the rosette.

Holey-moley...what's going on here? When did this republic of democrats get so highfalutin?

Here we have, in 1881, a relatively new nation, the United States of America, flexing its post-Civil War muscles and trying to assert itself on the world stage. Then, as now, emerging nations looked to established world powers for cues regarding military fashion. Paper soldiers of the Franco-Prussian era demonstrate what was fashionable among the world's great military powers, the trendsetters, so to speak.
The spiked and plumed helmets of Europe evidently resonated with Generals Nelson Miles, Monty Meigs, and others in the high command of the U.S. Army. As a result this rather garish and impractical confection of pressed felt, gilt, and horsehair was foisted upon the troops.

Needless to say, as were all things European, it was generally viewed with suspicion, hostility, and contempt by the rank and file of the U.S. Army.




Drink in the splendor, the pomp, and the circumstance. Whether the troops hated it or not, spiked or plumed, this helmet would see service for 21 years, finally falling by the wayside at the turn of the 20th century, not coincidentally following the American triumph in the Spanish-American War. This victory on the world stage began America's assertion as a newly arrived world power, and provided an opportunity to cast off the trappings of "old Europe" (as a recent American leader termed it).




The details:

The interior is very simple, just a standard hat band. As this helmet is not meant to provide any sort of ballistic protection, there is no liner or suspension of any sort. Heck, this thing doesn't even provide any protection from the elements! Some models had small "pinwheel" ventilators, though most, like this example, were without any ventilation at all. Despite the very light weight of these helmets, they must have been particularly uncomfortable on hot days.

Under the band is stamped the manufacturers mark, in this case the well known maker: W.H. Horstmann, with a contract date of 1899. This is a very late contract date. I acquired this helmet in unissued condition. By the time of its manufacture its day had been eclipsed.


Although Franco-Prussian in form and appearance, the motifs were strictly yankee-doodle-dandy. The large front plate provides us with several American icons; the eagle, the shield of the Union, and the arm-of-service crossed sabers. No mistaking the nationality here...but wait, there's more.

The side buttons also drive home the cavalry identity...

and the plume holder repeats the eagle motif.

Even the hooks for the "chicken-guts" braid are smaller Union shields.

And how 'bout all that gold braid? Included with the braid are tassels, ornamental knots, and these things, the so-called "waffles".


Joining us now is American icon, genocidal maniac, paragon of faulty judgment, and the original Arrow Shirt man, George Armstrong Custer. Here he is, modeling the "waffles" and braid from an earlier version of the 1881 helmet and uniform.

You go George!
(indian name: "crazy mustache")

Provenance
1881 U.S. cavalry helmet, Horstmann mfg.
number MOAh1952.6
condition: outstanding, possibly unissued, original in all respects (save for the reproduction cord and "waffles"), with both plume and spike.
Purchased in 1987 ath the Plainfield Antique Mall in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Okay, that's a wrap for our pre-20th century foundation work. We've seen the fully functional Hoplite helmet and the completely ornamental U.S. 1881. From here on in it's all 20th century.

Next stop: The Pickelhaube of 1914

Hoplite Helmet: a clarification

I've gotten emails on my last post that lead me to believe I didn't make myself clear:




Bud lite (left), Hoplite (right)

Start at the beginning: the Hoplite helmet of 500 BC

I was getting ahead of myself. Before we really get into this discussion of 20th century helmets we've got to go back in time and pay our respects to the progenitor, the great grand pappy, of combat helmets. Back to what is now Greece in 500 BC.

These are the Hoplites, y'know, Spartans (Go State!). They were the big ass-kickers on the world stage at that faraway time. They had helmets of bronze that provided an extraordinary amount of protection. Heavily armed and highly mobile, the Hoplites gave military tactics the "phalanx"... a formation which exists to this day, primarily utilized by tanks.

An onrushing phalanx of helmeted Hoplites was something to strike terror into the heart.

"Don't ask, don't tell"
The American military could take a cue from these guys. Many Hoplite soldiers were homosexuals, openly so, celebratorally so. The theory seems to be that these men would fight even more ferociously at the side of their lovers, providing mutual protection for a loved one while totally eviscerating the enemy.

These helmeted, oiled-up, and mostly naked terrors, provide a whole new take on "homophobia". I'd be pretty scared.



In my collection I have a replica Hoplite Helmet. I use it for my traveling helmet show that I take to libraries, historical associations, schools, etc.





It's a really cheap helmet hammered out of old Buick bumpers (back when bumpers were still made of steel) and definitely not bronze. But its a logical place to start our exploration into the "tin lid".

The helmet was somewhat restricted in visibility but provided outstanding protection for the head neck and face. Plus it makes the wearer look like an anonymous, featureless, killing machine. Man, that's scary!

Aside from the restricted visibility another drawback is the suspension and lining of the helmet, of which there was none. The hoplite soldier relied on his full head of hair and beard for the needed cushion inside the helmet. I wonder if baldness provided one with a deferment?

Provenance: Helmet (replica) acquired on Ebay in 2004. Purchase price $35.00

So now we're off and running, zooming through time from 500 BC into the more recent past. Next stop will be our only other pre-20th century side trip. The time: 1881. The place: the lone prairie of the United States of America.

Here comes the cavalry!

Mannie