Fusilier - Germany

Germany

Prussia made early use of the title "fusilier" for various types of infantry. In 1705 the Foot Guards (Leibgarde zu Fuss) were designated as Fusilier Guards. By 1837 low-quality infantry raised from garrison companies also were named fusiliers. These latter units were dressed in blue with low mitre caps. See . Between 1740 and 1743 on Frederick the Great raised 14 separate Fusilier Regiments (numbers 33-40, 41-43 and 45-48). Except for the mitre caps, these new regiments were identical in appearance, training and role to the existing line infantry (musketeers).

Subsequently Prussia and several other German States used the designation Fusilier to denote a type of light infantry, dressed in green, that acted as skirmishers. In the Prussian Army they had been formed in 1787 as independent battalions, with many of the Officers having had experience in the American Revolutionary War. The Prussian reforms of 1808 absorbed the Fusiliers as the third battalion of each line infantry regiment. Now wearing blue uniforms, they were distinguished by black leather belts, and a slightly different arrangement of cartridge pouch.

In the Prussian Army of 1870, Infantry Regiments 33 to 40 plus Regiments 73 (Hanover), 80 (Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel) and 86 (Schleswig-Holstein) were all designated as fusiliers, as was the Guard Fusilier Regiment. In addition the third battalions of all Guard, Grenadier and Line infantry regiments retained the designation 'Fusilier Battalion'. They were armed with a slightly shorter version of the Dreyse Rifle (Füsiliergewehr), that took a sword bayonet (Füsilier-Seitengewehr) rather than the standard socket bayonet. Although still theoretically skirmishers, in practice they differed little from their compatriots, as all Prussian infantry fought in a style that formed a dense 'firing' or 'skirmish' line.

By the 1880s the title was honorific and, while implying 'specialist' or 'elite', did not have any tactical significance. In a sense all infantry were becoming fusiliers, as weapons, tactics and equipment took on the fusilier characteristics - that is: skirmish line, shorter rifles, sword bayonets and black leather equipment. Nonetheless these titular units remained in existence until the end of the German Imperial Army in 1918, as follows:

• Guard Fusilier Regiment
• Fusilier Regiment Count Roon (East Prussian) No.33
• Fusilier Regiment Queen Victoria of Sweden (Pomeranian) No.34
• Fusilier Regiment Prince Henry of Prussia (Brandenburg) No.35
• Fusilier Regiment General Field Marshal Count Blumenthal (Magdeburg) No.36
• Fusilier Regiment von Steinmetz (West Prussian) No.37
• Fusilier Regiment Field Marshal Count Moltke (Silesian) No.38
• Lower Rhineland Fusilier Regiment No.39
• Fusilier Regiment Prince Charles Anton of Hohenzollern No.40
• Fusilier Regiment Field Marshal Prince Albert of Prussia (Hanoverian) No.73
• Fusilier Regiment von Gerdsdorff (Electoral Hessian) No.80
• Fusilier Reqiment Queen (Schleswig-Holstein) No.86
• Grand-Ducal Mecklenburg Fusilier Regiment No.90
• Fusilier Regiment Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria King of Hungary (4th Royal Württemberg) No.122

In addition, there was the following regiment:

• Royal Saxon Schützen (Fusilier) Regiment Prince George No.108

This was a special case, as it was also classed as 'Schützen' (Sharpshooter): this designation originally signified a type of 'Jäger' (Rifleman), and thus the regiment wore the Jäger-style dark green uniform.

The various Fusilier regiments and battalions in the German Imperial Army of 1914 did not have any single distinctions of dress or equipment to distinguish them as fusiliers. Individual regiments did however have special features worn with the dark blue full dress. Some of these features were maintained on the field grey dress of the trenches right up to 1918. As examples in full dress, the Guard Fusiliers had nickel buttons, yellow shoulder straps and black plumes and the 80th Fusiliers special braiding on collars and cuffs deriving from their origin as the Elector of Hesse's Guards.

In World War II the elite German Division Großdeutschland contained a regiment titled Panzerfüsiliere ('Armoured Fusiliers'), to maintain the old German traditions. This was again titular, as in organisation, appearance and tactical use they were essentially Panzergrenadiere. The modern German Army has no fusiliers.