Brunswick Leib Battalion Sapper

36174

W. Britain

The Black Brunswickers (Schwarze Legion) were raised in 1809 to oppose Napoleon Bonaparte's occupation of Germany. Most of the men in this unit wore black wool uniforms giving them the nickname of the "Black Horde." The Leib Battalion was even more imposing wearing large silver death's head insignia on the fronts of their shakos, which were topped by tall black horsehair plumes.
The Black Brunswickers earned themselves a fearsome reputation over the following decade of combat, taking part in several important battles, including the fighting at Quatre Bras on the 16th of June 1815.