Subject: Landsknecht mercenary infantry
Culture: Imperial German
Setting: Holy Roman Empire, Germany/Italy 16th-mid 17thc
Evolution:
Context (Event Photos, Primary Sources, Secondary Sources, Field Notes)
* Royal Armouries Museum > War Gallery
"Infantry of the early 16th century From 1496 until 1529 Italy was the battleground of Europe. During these Italian Wars military tactics and equipment saw several new developments.
"This period saw the rise of the arquebusier (handgunner) supplemented by large cohesive blocks of pikemen. The most notable pikemen were the Swiss and the Germans. Crossbows were still used, but their significance on the battlefield diminished."
* Bennett 1998 p187
"Landsknecht (medieval German 'servant of the country') term first used for troops raised by Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, in 1470 in imitation of the Swiss pikemen. Landsknechts were also used extensively in the campaigns of the Holy Roman emperor Maximilian I, who took an oath of loyalty from his troops in 1490."
* Krause 2017 p23
"Renaissance Landsknechts were mercenary soldiers, men who fought for money. But such people have existed throughout history up to and including modern wars. What made Landsknechts so important in the early modern era were their revolutionary tactics and their subsequent impact on the outcome of many battles.
"Armed with pikes or halberds, Landsknechts formed tight squares on the battlefield. These highly-disciplined, dense, armed blocks were almost impossible to penetrate on horseback. But this strategy could prevail only if each soldier remained at his assigned post in this human bulwark during an enemy charge. Camaraderie and collaboration were thus essential. Consequently these infantry troops celebrated their more or less uniform appearance and this, in turn, clearly indicated that they belonged to a distinctive social group.
"Long before the Landsknechts from southern Germany became a force to be reckoned with, the Swiss had employed similar battlefield tactics to great effect. In the 1480s Archduke (later Emperor) Maximilian I began to raise foot troops in southern Germany, especially in Swabia, the Tyrol and around lake Constance, i.e. in lands that had earlier supplied mercenaries to the Swiss, which meant they were familiar with these modern Swiss tactics. Under Maximilian, however, they began to form independent units -- the Landsknechts, as they came to be called soon after their first appearance on the European stage."
* Tallett/Trim 2010 eds. p163 (Olaf van Nimwegen, "Army organization in western Europe, 1500-1789" p159-180)
"The Landsknechte mirrored the Swiss in organisation, weaponry, and tactics, but were raised in the Holy Roman Empire. They were typically organised in regiments, usually of ten companies, each of between 300 and 400 men. Their weapons consisted of pikes, halberds, two-handed swords, and arquebuses, with the pikemen forming the backbone of the unit. Like the Swiss, they were drawn up in massive formations called Gewalthaufen, with a depth of forty to sixty men, and they copied Swiss tactics. The close order, use of combined weapons, and discipline of the Landsknechte made them able to defeat numerically superior forces ...."
* Blau 1882 p68-69 (describing Läufer troops)
"Der >>verlorene haufe<< wurde diese Schar gennant, >>Läufer<< heißen die deutschen Landsknechte die Einzelnen, die von den Franzosen als >>enfants perdus<< bezeichnet wurden. Oft genug waren sie in der Tat verloren, sei es nun, daß sie als >>Katzbalger<< bei dem Versuch, durch schräge Hiebe mit dem Zweihänder auf die feindlichen Spieße Lücken im Speerwald der Feinde zu verursachen, gleich anfangs niedergestoßen oder bei unglücklicher Wendung des Kampfes ihrem Geschick überlassen wurden. Bisweilen wurden diesem >>verlorenen Haufen<< Landskenchte eingereiht, die ihr Leben nach den strengen Bestimmungen des Artikelbriefs verwirkt hatten und denen der Obrist gestattete, sich selbst einen ehrlichen Tod im Kampf zu suchen oder durch todesmutiges Kämpfen ihre frühere Schuld zu sühnen."
* Norris 1938 p171
"The word [Landsknecht] means in German a lance or land knight and one of a chosen body of German soldiers.
"'Lansquenets' were mercenary soldiers, who served on foot and were of great repute during the early years of the sixteenth century. The word 'landsknecht' was also used for a German pikeman, billman, or halberdier."
* Krause 2017 p24-26
"Many of the soldiers serving in infantry units at the turn of the sixteenth century came from the bourgeoisie of one of the free imperial cities dotted throughout southern Germany. We know of journeymen serving in these regiments together with the sons of burghers and even patricians and gentlemen. But the majority of mercenaries were recruited from the lower echelons of society, they were, for example, urban residents with only limited citizenship (or none), or men listed as 'have-nots' in contemporary tax records. Many of those crowding around the recruiting tables were poor city dwellers or countrymen such as landless peasants, craftsmen, and the younger sons of farmers without prospects or an inheritance.
"For many joining the Landsknechts meant leaving their familiar social environment behind. A love of adventure and the lure of danger attracted 'many a wild child' to warfare, as Burkhard Waldis put it in 1548. Adventurers hoping to get rich fast were drawn by the chance of plunder that vanquished and sacked cities offered. Units composed of urban or guild-organised recruits may, however, have been motivated by more noble reasons. At the Battle of Guinegate/Thérouanne in the summer of 1479 infantrymen allegedly shouted, 'long live Austria and Burgundy' before charging the entrenched enemy.
"Most of these men were motivated neither by greed not by some noble goal. Becoming a soldier was often simply a basic necessity, the only chance to make a living. Since the middle of the fourteenth century the population of southern Germany had increased rapidly. A bad harvest or some other economic crisis negatively affected more and more people. The change from farming to cattle breeding put many farm hands out of work as far fewer men were needed to tend cattle than to plough fields. For all those who, for whatever reason, had to fend for themselves, signing up as a mercenary offered some form of security."
* Wilkinson 1971 p92
"Swiss mercenaries with their long pikes enjoyed a period of unbroken success, and military leaders in many countries sought means to overcome their method of fighting. Emperor Maximilian I of Austria (1493-1519) recruited a body of German pikemen and halberdiers known as Landsknechts, and these mercenaries proved themselves ferocious and stubborn fighters. They delighted in elaborate and extravagant dress with slashing, bunches of ribbons, wide-brimmed hats, plumes, and every form of foppery, but these tastes in no way prevented them from fighting bravely."
* Miller/Embleton 1976 p
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* Richards/Embleton 2002 p
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Armor
* Fliegel 1998 p112
"[T]he German Landesknecht [were] a mercenary infantry that during the early sixteenth century established a reputation for fearless fighting. The Landesknecht wore little armor, usually just an iron skullcap and a mail collar. They did, however, affect an oulandish, multicolored, 'puffed and slashed' mode of dress."
* Wilkinson 1971 p92
"Landsknecht armor was very simple, with a rounded breastplate, and leg defenses reached only to the knee. The shoulders were protected by curved lames, although many of the troops wore wide mail capes which covered the neck, shoulders, and tops of the arms. Light, open-faced helmets were worn by some, while others favored a close-fitting skull0cap with a peak."
* Imperial Austria 1992 p28 f25,26
"Some soldiers retained types of mail defences long after plate armour replaced mail as the primary knightly defence. The German Landsknechte wore a mail cape, sometimes called a 'bishop's mantle,' well into the 16th century."
* Cassin-Scott 1994 p19
The German/Swiss mercenary soldiers known as Landknecht[e] created a mixture of fashions, the remnants of their plunder, which were copied by fashionable young men. Their large-brimmed leather or felt hats were slashed, curled back and profusely decorated with feathers. The parti-coloured hose worn with ribboned garters below each knee were often slashed to reveal bare flesh. The doublet, of various colours, had very wide slashed sleeves caught in at the wrist. Scanty slashed hose pants were worn with a small cod-piece. Armoured breast plates were attached over these soldiers' doublets. Heavy swords were carried as tools of their trade. Square-toed shoes called void shoes were slashed and had narrow strap fastenings."
* Wilkinson 1970 p56
"[H]alf-armours became increasingly common. Known as corslets, these comprised a breast- and backplate, tassets, arm defences, simple gauntlets -- often no more than two or three overlapping plates covering the back of the hand -- and a light helmet. A cheap version of this corslet, mass produced for armies, was known as the 'Almain rivets', and and Milan was certainly one of the main centres for such armours.
"German mercenaries known as Landsknechts favourred these corslets worn with a collar which protected the neck and shoulders -- others preferred a cape of mail, a 'Bishop's mantle,' which covered the shoulders and reached nearly to the elbows. Many armours of the period were covered with thick black paint except for a border about an inch or so wide, which was left polished bright. The painting was primarily for protective purposes, to guard against rust -- a constant problem for campaigning troops."Costume
* Barsis 1973 p125 (describing lansquenets, Germany circa 1525)
"The medieval armies of the knights in armor were by now replaced by the lansquenets, or Landsknechte, mercenary soldiers who were mostly peasant lads or men of the lower urban classes.
"These men were the first to express in their way of dress the spirit of the new times, with its craving for a freer, less repressed, and less hampered life. Whenever they felt hemmed in by a garment, they simply split it wide open in several places. At the same time, their urge to express the swagger adn bravado which characterized the soldier's life led them to widen and multiply these slits and slashes beyond the demands of mere comfort. These they lined with other materials of flashy colors, intentionally disregarding any system or symmetry.
"With every man suiting his own whim and taste, this style can hardly be considered the beginning of the military uniform. On the other hand, it had an enormous influence on civil costume throughout Europe."
* Tallett/Trim 2010 eds. p164 (Olaf van Nimwegen, "Army organization in western Europe, 1500-1789" p159-180)
"Becoming a Landsknechte meant leaving normal society and joining an organisation that, similarly to a monastic order, lived by its own rules. This does not of course mean that soldiers and monks lived a comparable life; on the contrary. Monks were supposed to be pious and chaste, whereas Landsknechte emphasised their manhood as expressed by their unruly behaviour and extravagant clothing. Drinking bouts were part of their daily life, and although uniforms were not introduced until the later seventeenth century, one could easily recognise Landsknechte by their colourful and baggy clothes. They could afford these because they were paid partly in cloth in lieu of ready money, which was always in short supply."
* Miller/Embleton 1976 p35 (describing a pikeman ca. 1520)
"It was uncommon for the normal footsoldier to wear armour. The 'true' Landsknecht never wore a backplate since he never turned his back on the enemy. It was, however, due to lack of resources that this custom was adopted. The left leg was often left bare, free of any hindrance, so that pike drill could be carried out with greater dexterity. Sometimes this was carried to the extreme, the buttocks being completely exposed. The hose were sometimes slashed in the upper part and striped in the lower. The legs were of different colours and decorated in various ways with pipings, stripes and spiral bands."
* Erasmus 2008 p33 (writing ca. 1530)
"Clothing that's been slashed apart suggests madness. Embroidered or multicoloured clothes are for fools and apes. So make sure your style of dress is in keeping with your means and standing, and well-suited to your country and custom. Don't be conspicuous by your shabbiness, nor by any opulence, wantonness or arrogance."
* Norris 1938 p172-174
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Sword Zweihander
* Boeheim 1890 p261, 263-264
"In den Landsknechtregimentern begegnen wir einer charakteristichen Waffe, dem Zweihänder oder Bidenhander, Schlachtschwert, welche, von ungemeiner Größe und Schwere, in der Hand eines Fußsoldaten eine nicht unbedeutende Gewandtheit zu ihrer Führung voraussetzte. Das Schlachtschwert als Waffe des Fußknechtes hatte seinen Ursprung bei den Schweizern gefunden, welche sich desselben in ihren Kriegen im 14. Jahrhundert bedienten. Sie verstanden es, sich mit demselben derart in Respekt zu sezten, daß man, um ebenbürtig zu erscheinen, dasselbe auch in anderen Ländern einführte. Die ältesten dieser riesigen Schwerter -- Meyrick setzt ihr erstes Auftreten um das Ende der Regierung Heinrichs V., also um 1420, -- gehören noch dem 15. Jahrhundert an. In den Regimentern der Landsknechte erhalten sie eine typische Form. Die ein oder zweimal gekerbten Griffe haben eine Länge von durchschnittlich 120 cm. Die Parierstangen von Eisen, zuweilen hübsch ausgeschmückt, sind an den Enden schneckenförmig abgebogen und besitzen beiderseits starke, einfache Faustbügel, nicht selten auch Stichblätter dazwischen. Die älteren haben noch keine Parierhaken, jene seitlich ausladenden hakenförmigen Ansätze, welche zum Auffangen der Hiebe dienten. Zweihänder wurden selten oder nie mit Scheiden versehen, sondern mit unverwahrter Klinge auf der Schulter getragen, zu welchem Zwecke die Klinge von den Parierhaken bis zum Griffe mit Leder überzogen war.
"Das Regiment hatte nur eine beschränkte Zahl von mit Schlachtschwertern ausgerüstaten Landskenchten. Diese mußten sich mit einem Zeugnisse eines ,,Meisters vom langen Schwert'' über ihre Geübtheit in der Führung der Waffe ausweisen, bezogen dafür aber doppelten Sold. Diesen erprobten Leuten war zunächst der Schutz der Fahne und des Obersten anvertraut. Von dem Werte jener Waffe hatten die Kriegsleute und auch die Schriftsteller der Zeit zwar eine hohe Meinung, doch blieb seren Leistung infolge ihrer schwierigen Führung im Gewühle des Kampfes immer hinter den Erwartungen zurück. Demungeachtet bildeten die martialisch aussehenden Schlachtschwertrotten bis ans Ende des 16. Jahrhunderts den Stolz des Regimentes. Durch die Schwizer fand das Schlachtschwert auch in Italien einigen Eingang und zwar, wie wir bereits bemerkten, in der Form zweihändiger Stecher."
* Edge/Paddock 1988 p149
"[C]ertain categories of sword were ... developed during this period [the 1500s] in response to specific needs and requirements. The two-handed Landesknecht sword was one of these; carried by lightly armoured infantry who often bore no other weapon, it could be wielded with deadly effect to 'soften up' an enemy force before the main attack, for example by lopping off the heads of pikes and generally demoralizing his infantry. The ricasso of the blade was usually covered with leather to enable one's grip to be extended to the maximum possible width when used in this way."
* Zbirka oružja i vojne opreme u Muzeju seljačkih buna 2006 p6
"Njemački najamnici naoružani su kopljima ili helebardama, o pojasu im je visio mač, a u pojas im je bio utaknut bodež. U prvim borbenim redovima bili su dvostruko plaćeni odredi naoružani teSkim mačevima -- dvoručnjacima. Zadatak im je bio lomiti koplja i nanositi gubitke neprijateljskoj navali."
* Royal Ontario Museum > Samuel European Galleries > Arms & Armor
"Two-Handed Swords Among the weapons used by Swiss infantry and German Landsknechts were large, two-handed swords. Like halberds, these were employed to protect formations of pikemen or to open up gaps in enemy ranks. They could be held in either of two ways: by leather covered grip alone, or by the grip and the long, flat ricasso below the hilt. Many two-handed swords were fitted with crescent-shaped lubs or projections below the hilt; these were useful for parrying opponents' weapons."
* XVII Exposição Europa de Arte, Ciênca e Cultura 1983 p60 f46
"Espada de duas mãos alemã, utilizada pelos Doppelsöldneren, soldados que recebiam o dobro do soldo normal porque necessitavam de mais alimentação. Vinham em grupos de 50, para abrir brechas nas linhas dos piqueiros e alabardeiros e assim permitir o avanço da cavalaria." ...
* Coe/Connolly/Harding/Harris/LaRocca/Richardson/North/Spring/Wilkinson 1993 p48 (Donald J. LaRocca, "The Renaissance spirit" 44-57)
"The two-handed sword was a specialized and effective infantry weapon, and was recognized as such in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Although large, measuring 60-70 ins/150-175 cm overall, it was not as hefty as it looked, weighing something of the order of 5-8 lbs/2.3-3.6 kg. In the hands of Swiss and German infantrymen it was lethal, and its use was considered a special skill, often meriting extra pay. ... [During the sixteenth century in Germany] a more flamboyant form developed. Two-handed swords typically have a generous ricasso to allow the blade to be safely gripped below the quillons and thus wielded more effectively at close quarters. Triangular or pointed projections, known as flukes, were added at the base of the ricasso to defend the hand."
* Hermann/Wagner 1979 p23
"Der Zweihänder, ursprünglich im Gevierthaufen der Landsknechte von Doppelsöldnern geführt, die zur Fahnenbedeckung abgestellt waren, wurde gegen Ende des Mittelalters mehr und mehr eine Paradewaffe. Die Klingen (länger als ein ganzes Schwert) hatten zum Abfangen eines Hiebes angeschmiedete Parierhaken unterhalb der Fehlschärfe, die mit Leder umwickelt war. Parierringe fanden sich beiderseits der Parierstangen. Die Griffe wiesen zumeist eine Verkröpfung in der Mitte auf."
* Miller/Embleton 1976 p11
"The Zweihander, the enormous battle swords about 66 inches long, also had a double-edged blade, sometimes undulating in design with a long grip covered in leather or cloth. The hilt was reinforced with two curved quillons and two ring-guards on each side. The lugs at the heel of the blade served as a second guard, to parry blows as well as to enable the user to grasp the weapon at a lower point, as prescribed in the drill movements. The was facilitated by a leather ricasso between the ring guards and the lugs. On the march it was sometimes slung over the back crosswise by means of a strap."
* Arlington Museum of Art > A Knight's Tale
"The two-handed sword appeared on battlefields by the 1400s. By the following century, it was primarily a parade or ceremonial weapon. For reasons of balance, it was not brandished with both hands on the hilt, but with one hand on the grip and the other on the upper part of the blade that was covered with leather to protect the hand. The upper cross-guard was much larger than the second guard in order to balance the weight of the blade, rather than to protect the hand."
* Wilkinson 1971 p92
"One of their weapons was the two-handed sword standing more than five-and-a-half feet high. Blades were of two forms --either straight-sided or flamboyant, with a wavy edge. Although the grip was big enough to be held in two hands, there was also a long, leather-covered ricasso, so that the blade itself could be grasped and the effective length of the weapon reduced for close-in work. Just below this ricasso there were often two lugs designed to protect the hand from an enemy blade slipping along the edge."
* Weapons 2006 p102
"In 16th and early-17th century Germany, particularly ornate two-handed swords ... were used on ceremonial occasions. These paratschwerter [SIC] (parade swords, also called 'bearing swords') were longer and heavier than battlefield weapons, and often so ornate that they were of little use as offensive weapons. The flame form of the blade (flammenschwert [SIC]) was impressive, but made little difference to its cutting abilities."
Sword Katzbalger
* Hermann/Wagner 1979 p23
"Der Katzbalger war eine Militärwaffe der Landsknechte im 15. und 16. Jahrhundert. Das Kurzschwert bestand aus einer kurzen, breiten Klinge, S- und später 8-förmig geschwungenen Parierstangen und einem sich zum Knauf hin verdickenden Griff."
* Wilkinson 1971 p92
"Members of these troops of Landsknechts fought with firearms, spears, two-handed swords, and halberds, but almost every one carried a short fighting sword in addition to the main weapon. Blades were wide and double-edged, and the swords were primarily intended for slashing rather than stabbing. Grips were simple, leather-covered, and widened gradually from the cross-guard to the pommel, which was usually dome-shaped. Guards had a characteristic shape, with the two bars folded back into an S, often terminating with a simple knob. Many of the blades had various marks inlaid in copper, and similar marks also decorated the S-shaped guards. The scabbards were usually extremely plain and often had a pocket at the top to hold a small knife."
* Boeheim 1890 p261
"In den Landsknechtheeren hatte sich am Beginne des 16. Jahrhunderts für diese Waffe eine besondere Form das ,,Landsknechtschwert'' herasgebildet. Dasselbe besafs einen kurzen Handgriff mit fächerförmig ausgebreitetem Knaufe, die langen Parierstangen waren horizontal S-förmig gebogen und mit kleinen Knäufen besetzt. Zuweilen setzt sich an diese ein Griffbügel an. Die breiten, nur etwa 50 bis 54 cm. langen Klingen waren meist abgestumpft, die Lederscheiden trifft man nicht selten mit Besteckscheiden ausgestattet. Der Landsknecht führte dieses Schwert in der Magengegend in einem Gürtel, an welchem rückwärts an der rechten Seite der Dolch befstigt wurde. Um 1570 verändert sich die Form der Griffe des Landsknechtschwertes.""
* Coe/Connolly/Harding/Harris/LaRocca/Richardson/North/Spring/Wilkinson 1993 p47 (Donald J LaRocca, "The Renaissance spirit" p44-57)
"Another distinctive short weapon for use on foot was the Landsknecht sword or Katzbalger ('brawler' or, more literally, 'cat skinner'), favoured by German mercenaries from the later part of the [fifteenth] century onwards. The characteristic features of this sword are a metal grip that flares out into an integral pommel, strongly recurved S-shaped quillons, and a short stout blade with parallel edges and a short point. In the sixteenth century, the terminals of the S-shaped quillons were occasionally extended to form a figure of eight. Landsknecht swords (and the related Landsknecht dagger) for officers and commanders could be richly ornamented, with chiselled, engraved or gilt hilts and etched blades."
* Richards/Embleton 2002 p43
"[T]he Landsknecht's favourite weapon [was] the katzbalger. 'Katz' means cat, while 'balgen' means to scrap, so a rough translation would be 'weapon for a fight with tooth and claw.'"
* Miller/Embleton 1976 p11
"[T]he Katzbalger or 'mangler' had a short metal hilt which joined a broad double-edged blade about 28 inches long and had a guard of two S-curved quillons forming rings. It was carried in a leather or metal scabbard, and the weapon was usually worn horizontally over the stomach at the belt."
* Fryer 1969 65
"Landsknecht Sword A sword used by the Landsknechts, with distinctive quillons of horizontal recurved S form, often like a figure 8."
* Arlington Museum of Art > A Knight's Tale
"The katzbalger was a sword used by the German Landsknechts. The rather short, wide blade was very functional in the melee environment of infantry engagements. Usually wielded by infantry, the katzbalger was a low quality weapon for poorer soldiers..."
Dagger
* Fryer 1969 p65
"Landsknecht Dagger A type of dagger worn by the German Landsknechts, a corps of foot mercenaries, raised by the Emperor Maximilian in the first half of the sixteenth century. The hilt has a grip tapering towards the quillons. The sheath has bands of raised decoration suggestive of the puffed and slashed costume of the Landsknechts."
Cup
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