Sapper helmet

Sapper helmet
Information
Weapon type:	Protective weapon
Designations:	Sapper helmet, sapphire helmet, miner helmet
Use:	helmet
Region of origin / ; author:	Europe , armory
Distribution:	Europe
Lists on the subject

The sapper helmet also "Sappenhelm", "Mineurhelm", French. "Pot èn tète", engl. "Sappers helmet" or "Siege helmet" is a helmet that was made for the military unit of the sappers .

description

The sapper helmets are specially developed helmets for sappers who were given the task of undermining walls and fortifications as early as medieval times.

Since they had to get very close to the front area in their work, which in later times consisted of digging trenches and positions, and therefore worked in the fire area of the enemy soldiers, the armor and helmets were extremely stable and heavy.

The sapper helmets and the corresponding breast armor ( sapper armor ) are mostly forged from iron and are very heavy compared to other armor and tanks. A helmet of this type weighs up to about 10 kg, the breastplate up to over 18 kg (front part). In some versions, very large forehead and neck shields were attached to protect against falling stones and earth. To demonstrate their stability and protective effect, the helmets and breastplates were shot at with a musket , which means that a shot was fired at the armor. The dent caused by the shot was left on the object and thus served as a quality feature. The bullet marks can still be seen on helmets and breastplates today.

The last armor for sappers was made during the First World War and used in trench warfare. In addition to the helmet and breastplate, there was a heavy mask, which was alternatively worn without the helmet. The helmet consisted of a mixture of helmet and mask (see web links). Different types of overall armor were developed in different countries, consisting of helmets, breastplates and greaves (Japan). Different helmet designs and test types were also included (see web links).

literature

Charles John Ffoulkes: Inventory and Survey of the Armories of the Tower of London. His Majesty's Stationery Office, London 1916, pp. 188-189.
Heinrich Müller, Fritz Kunter: European helmets. From the collection of the Museum of German History. Military Publishing House of the GDR, Berlin 1971, p. 177, fig. 220.
Heinrich Müller, Rolf Wirtgen (ed.): Armored times. 2000 years of body protection for soldiers from ancient muscle armor to bulletproof vest. An exhibition of the defense technology study collection of the BWB on the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of the Bundeswehr. Federal Office for Defense Technology and Procurement, Koblenz 1995, ISBN 3-927038-60-1 .

Web links

Sapper helmet, France around 1850
German sapphire helmet with neck shield and folding face plates, 17th century
Sapper helmet, mid 17th century (bottom center)
[1] , [2] Photos of the German sapphire mask in World War I, front and side views
[3] , [4] Different test types for sapper helmets
Sappeurhelm (Siege helmet) in the Metropolitan Museum / New York

Individual evidence

↑ Sappeurhelm (Siege helmet) on the website of the Metropolitan Museum, New York, available online, (English, accessed on 23 September 2011)
↑ Sappenpanzer in the German Historical Museum Berlin with a fire test at the bottom right, viewable online, (German. Viewed on September 20, 2011)
^ Heinrich Müller: The army in Brandenburg and Prussia from 1640 to 1806. Volume 1: The armament. Brandenburgisches Verlags-Haus, Berlin 1991, ISBN 3-327-01072-2 , p. 65.

[1] Sappeurhelm (Siege helmet) on the website of the Metropolitan Museum, New York, available online, (English, accessed on 23 September 2011)

[2] Sappenpanzer in the German Historical Museum Berlin with a fire test at the bottom right, viewable online, (German. Viewed on September 20, 2011)

[3] Heinrich Müller: The army in Brandenburg and Prussia from 1640 to 1806. Volume 1: The armament. Brandenburgisches Verlags-Haus, Berlin 1991, ISBN 3-327-01072-2 , p. 65.