Caterpillar Helmet

Caterpillar Helmet (German Raupenhelm, French casque à chenille, or à la romaine), a military headdress, surmounted by a caterpillar crest. For reasons of economy, caterpillar crests made of valuable bearskin were usually reserved for officers and senior non-commissioned officer, those of the rank and file being made of wool.

The caterpillar helmet was already known in antiquity, but fell out of use, only to become fashionable again as the Tarleton helmet worn by the British Legion Cavalry of the American Revolutionary War. The French Chasseurs à Cheval adopted it in 1791, Austro-Hungarian dragoons and cuirassiers from 1798, and in 1800 the so-called Raupenhelm became the standard infantry helmet of the Austro-Hungarian army. Soldiers of the bishopric of Würzburg received the Austrian caterpillar helmet in 1801. In 1805, the Raupenhelm replaced the more practical Rumford helmet of the Bavarian Army, and in 1806 the bicorne worn by the infantry of Baden, as well as the grecian helmet of the Württemberg army.

Military Glossary