Jäger (military)
Encyclopedia
Jäger is a term that was adopted in the Enlightenment era in German-speaking states
and others influenced by German
military practice to describe a kind of light infantry
, and it has continued in that use since then.
While it literally means "hunter" in German
, in military contexts Jäger may be regarded as meaning "rifleman
" or "fighter" (in the same sense as "fighter aircraft"). In English
it is often written as jaeger (both pl. and sgl.) or anglicised as jager (pl. jagers) to avoid the umlaut
.
In modern times it has also been adopted in the original sense of "hunter" for compound terms such as Panzerjäger
, "tank destroyer
". The military police of the German
Bundeswehr
are called "Feldjäger
", and interceptor and fighter aircraft are also called "Jäger", or Jagdbomber (meaning fighter-bomber
).
" backgrounds, or belonged to the lesser nobility
. As professional foresters, jägers were skilled in weapons and horses, and were primarily used for reconnaissance
, skirmishing or screening bodies of heavier troops. Since they owned their own weapons they could (in principle) fill a crucial defensive role as militia
in case of surprise assaults before any mobilization
had been ordered, or as organizers of partisan
warfare after an occupation. Jäger were not just skilled riflemen, they were also able to handle and maintain delicate, accurate rifles in an age when very few people had any mechanical skill.
Jäger were excellent sniper
s able to inflict heavy casualties among enemy officers. Their ability to lay exceptionally accurate rifle fire also made them good for providing covering fire for other more vulnerable troop types such as sapper
s or engineers
constructing forward trenches
.
For fights in close quarters the Jäger carried a straight-bladed hunting dagger
(Hirschfänger), a short sabre or a falchion
.
tactics increased across Europe
after the Battle of Valmy
, where the Prussian
line infantry
proved unable to break through the French sharpshooters
. Initially soldiers were drawn directly from the line infantry to fight as skirmishers instead, but in time many German-speaking
states adopted Jäger to fulfill this role. In theory the Jäger operated in pairs to protect each other while reloading, and remained within 100-200 yards of close-order infantry on which they could fall back if they were endangered by cavalry or driven off by infantry. However, it was admitted that, due to the difficulty of controlling troops spread out in open-order and in the thick of battle, these guidelines might not always be followed. Jäger were allowed to act with a certain amount of initiative on the battlefield, unlike line infantry who were kept under tight control by their officers. For this reason, it was the most energetic and daring soldiers who were selected to become Jäger.
The Prussians in particular developed their light infantry tactics both in theory and in practice during the early Napoleonic era. There was much disagreement over how much emphasis should be placed on Jäger, though, and reform was for the most part at the regimental level by more energetic commanders such as Yorck. It was not until the reorganization of the army led by Scharnhorst
that the Jäger corps was strengthened on a national level. Having suffered crippling defeats at Jena
and Lübeck
, the Prussian army undertook major reforms, in many ways following the example of the French Revolutionary Army
, becoming a nationalized force. Foreign mercenaries were removed, corporal punishment became rare (and was abolished for Jäger troops), and promotions were based on merit
rather than nobility
. New volunteers from a bourgeois
background were organized to resist Napoleon's invasion and occupation of Central Europe
. Continuing the earlier traditions, in Prussia these Jäger were patriotic volunteers, bearing the cost of their weapons and uniforms at their own expense or with the help of contributions from friends and neighbours, and often organizing themselves into clubs and leagues. As one of the early adopters of skirmisher tactics, Yorck became inspector-general of the light infantry in Prussia and oversaw the increase and improvement of the new Jäger troops during the years of peace after the Treaty of Tilsit. The most famous of the Jäger were the Lützow Free Corps
.
The Prussian army gained experience as an auxiliary force in the French invasion of Russia
, where the Jäger were often used on the strategic level to provide support and cover for the rest of the army. They managed to escape the fate of Napoleon's French soldiers after Yorck negotiated a battlefield truce
with Russia
when, during a rear-guard action, the French withdrew and left Yorck's troops isolated. In the War of the Sixth Coalition
that immediately followed, the Jäger of the various armies performed well against Napoleon's forces, and Prussian Jäger played a significant role in the battles of the Waterloo campaign, holding off Grouchy's corps at the Battle of Wavre
.
The resistance against Napoleon exacted a high toll of military casualties, officers in particular. This in combination with a shift towards a meritocratic officer corps led to many promotions within the ranks. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars
many of the junior officers in the Germanic states' armies were Jäger soldiers who had been promoted through the ranks.
, chasseur
or cacciatori units of the British, French, Italian and other armies. While such units still enjoyed considerable prestige and high esprit de corps, their training, equipment and tactical roles had for the most part become aligned with those of the line infantry of their respective armies.
Best known were the German Jäger units who were distinguished by their peace-time wear of dark green tunics and shako
s (in contrast to the dark blue tunics and spiked helmets
of most German infantry).
In the peacetime Prussian Army, the main component of the Imperial German Army
, there were one Imperial Guard Jäger battalion, the Garde-Jäger-Bataillon, and twelve line Jäger battalions. One Jäger battalion, the Großherzoglich Mecklenburgisches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 14, was from the grand duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
. Another, Westfälisches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 7, known as the "Bückeburg Jägers", was raised in the principality of Schaumburg-Lippe
(whose capital was Bückeburg
). The other ten were from Prussian lands. In addition, another Prussian Guard unit, the Garde-Schützen-Bataillon, though not designated Jäger, was a Jäger formation. Its origins were in a French chasseur battalion of the Napoleonic era, and its troops wore the shako and green tunic of Jäger.
The army of the Kingdom of Saxony
added two Jäger battalions, which were included in the Imperial German Army order of battle as Kgl. Sächsisches 1. Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 12 and Kgl. Sächsisches 2. Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 13. The Saxon Jäger had a number of dress distinctions - notably tunics of a darker green than the Prussian colour, black facings instead of red and a black buffalo-hair plume buckled to the side of the shako. The autonomous Royal Bavarian Army provided a further two Jäger battalions, Kgl. Bayerisches 1. Jäger-Bataillon and Kgl. Bayerisches 2. Jäger-Bataillon, who wore the light blue of Bavarian infantry with green facings.
On mobilization in August 1914, each of these Prussian, Saxon and Bavarian Jäger battalions raised a reserve Jäger battalion. In September 1914, an additional 12 reserve Jäger battalions were raised (10 Prussian and 2 Saxon). In May 1915, the German Army began joining the Jäger battalions to form Jäger regiments, and in late 1917, the Deutsche Jäger-Division was formed.
During the early stages of World War I
the German Jäger maintained their traditional role as skirmishers and scouts, often in conjunction with cavalry units. With the advent of trench warfare they were committed to an ordinary infantry role, integrated into divisions and losing their status as independent units. Cyclist Jäger served in the Balkan and Russian theatres of war while Wurttemberg and Bavaria raised Ski-Jäger during the winter of 1914-15. Another specialist formation was the Jäger Storm Companies, serving as trench raiders during 1917-1918.
in 1914 included four regiments of Tiroler Kaiserjäger, descended from a unit first raised in 1801. There were also 29 battalions of Feldjäger recruited from different regions across the Empire (including 7 Hungarian, 5 Bohemian and 4 Galician battalions) and one Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalion (Bosnisch-hercegovinisches Feldjägerbataillon). All wore pike grey uniforms faced in green, with a form of bowler hat
carrying a distinctive plume of dark green feathers. The exception was the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalion which wore the fez
. Later, an additional three Feldjäger battalions and seven Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalions were formed.
of the Weimar Republic
. After the Nazis came to power in 1933 and the rearmament of Germany began, the new Wehrmacht
revived the name Jäger for various types of units:
rejected the term Feldgendarmerie
and instead kept the term Feldjäger
for its military police units. To emphasize the traditional connection with the Prussian Reitendes Feldjägerkorps, rather than the Wehrmacht military police units, the Feldjäger of the Bundeswehr wear a red beret with star badge (the Gardestern) of the Order of the Black Eagle
, Prussia's highest chivalric order. The Reitendes Feldjägerkorps had been granted the right to wear the Gardestern in 1847.
In addition, at certain periods, light infantry units of the Bundeswehr were designated as Jäger, and wore a green beret with a beret badge patterned after the Jäger sleeve patch of Wehrmacht Jäger units. Also, Fallschirmjäger, Gebirgsjäger, and Panzerjäger were retained for airborne, mountain and anti-tank troops (the latter being not infantry, but armored troops).
The modern Jäger-type infantry units are distinguished as follows:
With the latest restructuring of the German Army, only one new air-mobile regiment the Jägerregiment 1 (JgRgt 1) and two battalions Jägerbataillon 291 (JgBtl 291) and Jägerbataillon 292 (JgBtl 292), (both battalions as part of the German-French brigade) and the Jäger companie at the Wachbataillon, of regular Jäger are retained. On the other hand, Fallschirmjäger have become the most important infantry type, due to their versatility and the nature of modern-day peacekeeping missions abroad.
Jäger is also the entrance rank for all of these three infantry branches (the German Army has a number of different entrance ranks by troop type, like Grenadier for mechanized infantrymen, Kanonier for artillerymen, and so forth).
In the Austrian Bundesheer
, Jäger is used as the generic term for most infantry soldiers (armored infantrymen are known as Panzergrenadiere, as in the German Bundeswehr). In Austrian Bundesheer the special forces are called Jagdkommando (lit. Hunting Command).
German-speaking Europe
The German language is spoken in a number of countries and territories in West, Central and Eastern Europe...
and others influenced by German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
military practice to describe a kind of light infantry
Light infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
, and it has continued in that use since then.
While it literally means "hunter" in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, in military contexts Jäger may be regarded as meaning "rifleman
Rifleman
Although ultimately originating with the 16th century handgunners and the 17th century musketeers and streltsy, the term rifleman originated from the 18th century. It would later become the term for the archetypal common soldier.-History:...
" or "fighter" (in the same sense as "fighter aircraft"). In English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
it is often written as jaeger (both pl. and sgl.) or anglicised as jager (pl. jagers) to avoid the umlaut
Umlaut (diacritic)
The diaeresis and the umlaut are diacritics that consist of two dots placed over a letter, most commonly a vowel. When that letter is an i or a j, the diacritic replaces the tittle: ï....
.
In modern times it has also been adopted in the original sense of "hunter" for compound terms such as Panzerjäger
Panzerjäger
Panzerjäger was a branch of service of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War which were the anti-tank arm-of-service who operated anti-tank artillery, and made exclusive use of the tank destroyers which were also named Panzerjäger...
, "tank destroyer
Tank destroyer
A tank destroyer is a type of armored fighting vehicle armed with a gun or missile launcher, and is designed specifically to engage enemy armored vehicles...
". The military police of the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
are called "Feldjäger
Feldjäger
For the German Military Police in WWII see: Feldjaegerkorps and FeldgendarmerieIn presence Feldjäger is the name of military police of the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces. The term Feldjäger, literally meaning field huntsmen or field Jäger, has a long tradition and dates back to the mid-17th...
", and interceptor and fighter aircraft are also called "Jäger", or Jagdbomber (meaning fighter-bomber
Fighter-bomber
A fighter-bomber is a fixed-wing aircraft with an intended primary role of light tactical bombing and also incorporating certain performance characteristics of a fighter aircraft. This term, although still used, has less significance since the introduction of rockets and guided missiles into aerial...
).
Age of Enlightenment
Jäger were at first recruited in the mid-eighteenth century amongst huntsmen and foresters in certain German states. They were often of "middle classMiddle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
" backgrounds, or belonged to the lesser nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. As professional foresters, jägers were skilled in weapons and horses, and were primarily used for reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
, skirmishing or screening bodies of heavier troops. Since they owned their own weapons they could (in principle) fill a crucial defensive role as militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
in case of surprise assaults before any mobilization
Mobilization
Mobilization is the act of assembling and making both troops and supplies ready for war. The word mobilization was first used, in a military context, in order to describe the preparation of the Prussian army during the 1850s and 1860s. Mobilization theories and techniques have continuously changed...
had been ordered, or as organizers of partisan
Partisan (military)
A partisan is a member of an irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation by some kind of insurgent activity...
warfare after an occupation. Jäger were not just skilled riflemen, they were also able to handle and maintain delicate, accurate rifles in an age when very few people had any mechanical skill.
Jäger were excellent sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
s able to inflict heavy casualties among enemy officers. Their ability to lay exceptionally accurate rifle fire also made them good for providing covering fire for other more vulnerable troop types such as sapper
Sapper
A sapper, pioneer or combat engineer is a combatant soldier who performs a wide variety of combat engineering duties, typically including, but not limited to, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, demolitions, field defences, general construction and building, as well as road and airfield...
s or engineers
Combat engineering
A combat engineer, also called pioneer or sapper in many armies, is a soldier who performs a variety of construction and demolition tasks under combat conditions...
constructing forward trenches
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
.
For fights in close quarters the Jäger carried a straight-bladed hunting dagger
Hunting dagger
The hunting dagger is a long double-edged German stabbing hunting knife, used to kill deer and boar. It was a weapon mainly used in the fancy hunts of the German nobility. This dagger developed from Medieval hunting swords which were longer and mainly used by mounted hunters...
(Hirschfänger), a short sabre or a falchion
Falchion
A falchion is a one-handed, single-edged sword of European origin, whose design is reminiscent of the Persian scimitar and the Chinese dao....
.
The Napoleonic Era
Interest in light infantryLight infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
tactics increased across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
after the Battle of Valmy
Battle of Valmy
The Battle of Valmy was the first major victory by the army of France during the French Revolution. The action took place on 20 September 1792 as Prussian troops commanded by the Duke of Brunswick attempted to march on Paris...
, where the Prussian
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
line infantry
Line infantry
Line infantry is a type of infantry which composed the basis of European land armies from the middle of the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century....
proved unable to break through the French sharpshooters
Tirailleur
Tirailleur literally means a shooting skirmisher in French from tir—shot. The term dates back to the Napoleonic period where it was used to designate light infantry trained to skirmish ahead of the main columns...
. Initially soldiers were drawn directly from the line infantry to fight as skirmishers instead, but in time many German-speaking
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
states adopted Jäger to fulfill this role. In theory the Jäger operated in pairs to protect each other while reloading, and remained within 100-200 yards of close-order infantry on which they could fall back if they were endangered by cavalry or driven off by infantry. However, it was admitted that, due to the difficulty of controlling troops spread out in open-order and in the thick of battle, these guidelines might not always be followed. Jäger were allowed to act with a certain amount of initiative on the battlefield, unlike line infantry who were kept under tight control by their officers. For this reason, it was the most energetic and daring soldiers who were selected to become Jäger.
The Prussians in particular developed their light infantry tactics both in theory and in practice during the early Napoleonic era. There was much disagreement over how much emphasis should be placed on Jäger, though, and reform was for the most part at the regimental level by more energetic commanders such as Yorck. It was not until the reorganization of the army led by Scharnhorst
Gerhard von Scharnhorst
Gerhard Johann David Waitz von Scharnhorst was a general in Prussian service, Chief of the Prussian General Staff, noted for both his writings, his reforms of the Prussian army, and his leadership during the Napoleonic Wars....
that the Jäger corps was strengthened on a national level. Having suffered crippling defeats at Jena
Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
The twin battles of Jena and Auerstedt were fought on 14 October 1806 on the plateau west of the river Saale in today's Germany, between the forces of Napoleon I of France and Frederick William III of Prussia...
and Lübeck
Battle of Lübeck
The Battle of Lübeck took place on 6 November 1806 in Lübeck, Germany between soldiers of the Kingdom of Prussia led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher and troops of the First French Empire under Marshals Joachim Murat, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, and Nicolas Soult...
, the Prussian army undertook major reforms, in many ways following the example of the French Revolutionary Army
French Revolutionary Army
The French Revolutionary Army is the term used to refer to the military of France during the period between the fall of the ancien regime under Louis XVI in 1792 and the formation of the First French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804. These armies were characterised by their revolutionary...
, becoming a nationalized force. Foreign mercenaries were removed, corporal punishment became rare (and was abolished for Jäger troops), and promotions were based on merit
Meritocracy
Meritocracy, in the first, most administrative sense, is a system of government or other administration wherein appointments and responsibilities are objectively assigned to individuals based upon their "merits", namely intelligence, credentials, and education, determined through evaluations or...
rather than nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. New volunteers from a bourgeois
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
background were organized to resist Napoleon's invasion and occupation of Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
. Continuing the earlier traditions, in Prussia these Jäger were patriotic volunteers, bearing the cost of their weapons and uniforms at their own expense or with the help of contributions from friends and neighbours, and often organizing themselves into clubs and leagues. As one of the early adopters of skirmisher tactics, Yorck became inspector-general of the light infantry in Prussia and oversaw the increase and improvement of the new Jäger troops during the years of peace after the Treaty of Tilsit. The most famous of the Jäger were the Lützow Free Corps
Lützow Free Corps
Lützow Free Corps was a voluntary force of the Prussian army during the Napoleonic Wars. It was named after its commander, Ludwig Adolf Wilhelm von Lützow. They were also widely known as "Lützower Jäger" or "Schwarze Jäger" .-Origins:...
.
The Prussian army gained experience as an auxiliary force in the French invasion of Russia
French invasion of Russia
The French invasion of Russia of 1812 was a turning point in the Napoleonic Wars. It reduced the French and allied invasion forces to a tiny fraction of their initial strength and triggered a major shift in European politics as it dramatically weakened French hegemony in Europe...
, where the Jäger were often used on the strategic level to provide support and cover for the rest of the army. They managed to escape the fate of Napoleon's French soldiers after Yorck negotiated a battlefield truce
Convention of Tauroggen
The Convention of Tauroggen was a truce signed 30 December 1812 at Tauroggen , between Generalleutnant Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg on behalf of his Prussian troops, and by General Hans Karl von Diebitsch of the Russian Army...
with Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
when, during a rear-guard action, the French withdrew and left Yorck's troops isolated. In the War of the Sixth Coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
that immediately followed, the Jäger of the various armies performed well against Napoleon's forces, and Prussian Jäger played a significant role in the battles of the Waterloo campaign, holding off Grouchy's corps at the Battle of Wavre
Battle of Wavre
The Battle of Wavre was the final major military action of the Hundred Days campaign and the Napoleonic Wars. It was fought on 18-19 June 1815 between the Prussian rearguard under the command of General Johann von Thielmann and three corps of the French army under the command of Marshal Grouchy. A...
.
The resistance against Napoleon exacted a high toll of military casualties, officers in particular. This in combination with a shift towards a meritocratic officer corps led to many promotions within the ranks. By the end of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
many of the junior officers in the Germanic states' armies were Jäger soldiers who had been promoted through the ranks.
Imperial Germany
By the early twentieth century Jäger units were part of the Imperial German, Austro-Hungarian, Swedish, Dutch and Norwegian armies. They corresponded to the rifles, light infantryLight infantry
Traditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
, chasseur
Chasseur
Chasseur [sha-sur; Fr. sha-sœr] is the designation given to certain regiments of French light infantry or light cavalry troops, trained for rapid action.-History:...
or cacciatori units of the British, French, Italian and other armies. While such units still enjoyed considerable prestige and high esprit de corps, their training, equipment and tactical roles had for the most part become aligned with those of the line infantry of their respective armies.
Best known were the German Jäger units who were distinguished by their peace-time wear of dark green tunics and shako
Shako
A shako is a tall, cylindrical military cap, usually with a peak or visor and sometimes tapered at the top...
s (in contrast to the dark blue tunics and spiked helmets
Pickelhaube
The Pickelhaube , also "Pickelhelm," was a spiked helmet worn in the 19th and 20th centuries by German military, firefighters, and police...
of most German infantry).
In the peacetime Prussian Army, the main component of the Imperial German Army
German Army (German Empire)
The German Army was the name given the combined land forces of the German Empire, also known as the National Army , Imperial Army or Imperial German Army. The term "Deutsches Heer" is also used for the modern German Army, the land component of the German Bundeswehr...
, there were one Imperial Guard Jäger battalion, the Garde-Jäger-Bataillon, and twelve line Jäger battalions. One Jäger battalion, the Großherzoglich Mecklenburgisches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 14, was from the grand duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Mecklenburg-Schwerin was a duchy in northern Germany created in 1348, when Albert II of Mecklenburg and his younger brother John were raised to Dukes of Mecklenburg by King Charles IV...
. Another, Westfälisches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 7, known as the "Bückeburg Jägers", was raised in the principality of Schaumburg-Lippe
Schaumburg-Lippe
Schaumburg-Lippe was until 1946 a small state in Germany, located in the present day state of Lower Saxony, with its capital at Bückeburg.- History :...
(whose capital was Bückeburg
Bückeburg
Bückeburg is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, on the border with North Rhine Westphalia. It was once the capital of the tiny principality of Schaumburg-Lippe and is today located in the district of Schaumburg close to the northern slopes of the Weserbergland ridge...
). The other ten were from Prussian lands. In addition, another Prussian Guard unit, the Garde-Schützen-Bataillon, though not designated Jäger, was a Jäger formation. Its origins were in a French chasseur battalion of the Napoleonic era, and its troops wore the shako and green tunic of Jäger.
The army of the Kingdom of Saxony
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
added two Jäger battalions, which were included in the Imperial German Army order of battle as Kgl. Sächsisches 1. Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 12 and Kgl. Sächsisches 2. Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 13. The Saxon Jäger had a number of dress distinctions - notably tunics of a darker green than the Prussian colour, black facings instead of red and a black buffalo-hair plume buckled to the side of the shako. The autonomous Royal Bavarian Army provided a further two Jäger battalions, Kgl. Bayerisches 1. Jäger-Bataillon and Kgl. Bayerisches 2. Jäger-Bataillon, who wore the light blue of Bavarian infantry with green facings.
On mobilization in August 1914, each of these Prussian, Saxon and Bavarian Jäger battalions raised a reserve Jäger battalion. In September 1914, an additional 12 reserve Jäger battalions were raised (10 Prussian and 2 Saxon). In May 1915, the German Army began joining the Jäger battalions to form Jäger regiments, and in late 1917, the Deutsche Jäger-Division was formed.
During the early stages of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the German Jäger maintained their traditional role as skirmishers and scouts, often in conjunction with cavalry units. With the advent of trench warfare they were committed to an ordinary infantry role, integrated into divisions and losing their status as independent units. Cyclist Jäger served in the Balkan and Russian theatres of war while Wurttemberg and Bavaria raised Ski-Jäger during the winter of 1914-15. Another specialist formation was the Jäger Storm Companies, serving as trench raiders during 1917-1918.
Austria-Hungary
The Austro-Hungarian ArmyAustro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
in 1914 included four regiments of Tiroler Kaiserjäger, descended from a unit first raised in 1801. There were also 29 battalions of Feldjäger recruited from different regions across the Empire (including 7 Hungarian, 5 Bohemian and 4 Galician battalions) and one Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalion (Bosnisch-hercegovinisches Feldjägerbataillon). All wore pike grey uniforms faced in green, with a form of bowler hat
Bowler hat
The bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby , billycock or bombin, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the English soldier and politician Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester...
carrying a distinctive plume of dark green feathers. The exception was the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalion which wore the fez
Fez (clothing)
The fez , or tarboosh is a felt hat either in the shape of a red truncated cone or in the shape of a short cylinder made of kilim fabric. Both usually have tassels...
. Later, an additional three Feldjäger battalions and seven Bosnian-Herzegovinian Feldjäger Battalions were formed.
World War II Germany
After World War I, the Jäger units of the Imperial German Army were disbanded, but their traditions were carried by infantry regiments of the 100,000-man ReichswehrReichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
of the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
. After the Nazis came to power in 1933 and the rearmament of Germany began, the new Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
revived the name Jäger for various types of units:
- In 1935, the first specialized mountain infantry units were formed, and their regiments and battalions were designated GebirgsjägerGebirgsjägerGebirgsjäger, in English Mountain Riflemen, is the German designation for mountain infantry. The word Jäger is the traditional German term for rifleman...
("mountain infantry" — Gebirge is German for "mountain range"). More specialized units, such as the Hochgebirgs-Jäger-Bataillone, for use in high-Alpine conditions, were also developed. The Waffen SS also raised a "KarstJägerKARSTKilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
" Division.
- When the LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
began forming parachute units in the late-1930s, the first parachute regiment was designated Fallschirm-Jäger-Regiment 1. German paratroopers became known as FallschirmjägerFallschirmjägerare German paratroopers. Together with the Gebirgsjäger they are perceived as the elite infantry units of the German Army....
(Fallschirm is German for "parachute"). At first, Fallschirmjäger was applied only to genuine airborne-qualified troops, but the term was retained for Fallschirmjäger regiments and divisions even after they began operating as regular infantry. A number of Luftwaffe Feld-DivisionenLuftwaffe Field DivisionThe Luftwaffe Field Divisions were German military formations which fought during World War II.-History:...
("field divisions"), regular ground combat units raised by the Luftwaffe, also used the term Luftwaffen-Jäger-Regiment for their infantry regiments. Many of these were later taken over by the army but retained the name Jäger-Regiment.
- Two Skijäger regiments were formed in 1943 as part of Skijäger-Brigade (later a Skijäger-Division).
- Certain infantry divisions were raised as "light infantry divisions" (leichte Infanterie-Divisionen) in late 1940 or were renamed "light divisions" (leichte Divisionen) in late 1941. They were raised to operate in rough terrain, especially in southeastern Europe. Their infantry regiments were called Jäger-Regimenter, and in 1942 the light and light infantry divisions were renamed Jäger divisions.
- The antitank units of German divisions, originally called Panzer-Abwehr-Abteilungen ("anti-tank battalions"), began in 1940 to be resignated as Panzerjäger-Abteilungen, (literally "tank hunter battalions"). These were equipped with towed or self-propelled guns (often the ad hoc mounting of an antitank gun on a captured or obsolete tank chassis). As the war progressed, some Panzerjäger-Abteilungen were fully equipped with specialized tank destroyers known as JagdpanzerJagdpanzerJagdpanzer , German for "hunting tank", is a name given to German self-propelled anti-tank guns.It typically refers to anti-tank variants of existing tank chassis with a well-armoured casemate fixed superstructure, mounting an anti-tank gun with limited traverse in the front, and usually classed by...
("hunting tank") or PanzerjägerPanzerjägerPanzerjäger was a branch of service of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War which were the anti-tank arm-of-service who operated anti-tank artillery, and made exclusive use of the tank destroyers which were also named Panzerjäger...
.
- The military police of the Wehrmacht was known as the FeldgendarmerieFeldgendarmerieThe Feldgendarmerie were the uniformed military police units of the armies of the German Empire from the mid 19th Century until the conclusion of World War II.- Early history :...
. In December 1943, a new force of military police, directly subordinated to the Armed Forces High Command, was formed. Its units were designated Feldjäger-Kommandos with subordinated Feldjäger battalions and regiments. These were known collectively as the FeldjägerkorpsFeldjägerkorpsFor the modern German Military Police see: FeldjaegerThe Feldjägerkorps was a military police organization in the German Wehrmacht during World War II. It was formed on 27 November 1943 from distinguished veterans and Patrol Service personnel...
. The name was taken from the Reitendes Feldjägerkorps, a Prussian Army military policeMilitary policeMilitary police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
-type unit directly under the General Staff.
- Infantry equipped with the Zielgerät 1229Zielgerät 1229The Zielgerät 1229 , also known in its code name Vampir, was an active infrared device developed for the Wehrmacht for the Sturmgewehr 44 assault rifle, intended primarily for night use.-Design:...
Vampir were called Nachtjäger.
Post-World War II
The German BundeswehrBundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
rejected the term Feldgendarmerie
Feldgendarmerie
The Feldgendarmerie were the uniformed military police units of the armies of the German Empire from the mid 19th Century until the conclusion of World War II.- Early history :...
and instead kept the term Feldjäger
Feldjäger
For the German Military Police in WWII see: Feldjaegerkorps and FeldgendarmerieIn presence Feldjäger is the name of military police of the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces. The term Feldjäger, literally meaning field huntsmen or field Jäger, has a long tradition and dates back to the mid-17th...
for its military police units. To emphasize the traditional connection with the Prussian Reitendes Feldjägerkorps, rather than the Wehrmacht military police units, the Feldjäger of the Bundeswehr wear a red beret with star badge (the Gardestern) of the Order of the Black Eagle
Order of the Black Eagle
The Order of the Black Eagle was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg . In his Dutch exile after WWI, deposed Emperor Wilhelm II continued to award the order to his family...
, Prussia's highest chivalric order. The Reitendes Feldjägerkorps had been granted the right to wear the Gardestern in 1847.
In addition, at certain periods, light infantry units of the Bundeswehr were designated as Jäger, and wore a green beret with a beret badge patterned after the Jäger sleeve patch of Wehrmacht Jäger units. Also, Fallschirmjäger, Gebirgsjäger, and Panzerjäger were retained for airborne, mountain and anti-tank troops (the latter being not infantry, but armored troops).
The modern Jäger-type infantry units are distinguished as follows:
- Jäger - Rangers - light infantry specialized for assault and defense operations in rugged terrain, and urban warfare. Often also used for air-mobile/air-assault operations (heliborne). Also employed as elite commando troops for protection of Electronic Warfare units and for protection and transport of nuclear weapons that were under the control of SACEUR (Supreme Allied Command Europe). Wear a green beret with a golden badge displaying oak leafs surrounded by a braided chord.
- FallschirmjägerFallschirmjägerare German paratroopers. Together with the Gebirgsjäger they are perceived as the elite infantry units of the German Army....
- Airborne Rangers - paratroopers, light airborne infantry units. Wear a Bordeaux beret with a badge displaying an attacking eagle. - GebirgsjägerGebirgsjägerGebirgsjäger, in English Mountain Riflemen, is the German designation for mountain infantry. The word Jäger is the traditional German term for rifleman...
- Mountain Rangers - light infantry for highlands, rugged terrain and mountains, with special equipment for winter warfare. Each battalion has a "heavy company" of Wiesel weapon-carriers equipped with 20 mm cannon, TOW launchers or 120 mm mortars (on MTW M113 or in the future Wiesel 2). Wear no beret but the grey Bergmütze (mountain cap, a type of stiff forage cap) with Edelweiss insignia. - The WachbataillonWachbataillonThe Wachbataillon is the German Bundeswehr's elite drill unit. The Wachbataillon is the largest battalion of the German forces with about 1,800 soldiers, split in two garrisons in Berlin and Siegburg...
(Guard battalion at the Ministry of Defence) also contains a Jäger companie.
With the latest restructuring of the German Army, only one new air-mobile regiment the Jägerregiment 1 (JgRgt 1) and two battalions Jägerbataillon 291 (JgBtl 291) and Jägerbataillon 292 (JgBtl 292), (both battalions as part of the German-French brigade) and the Jäger companie at the Wachbataillon, of regular Jäger are retained. On the other hand, Fallschirmjäger have become the most important infantry type, due to their versatility and the nature of modern-day peacekeeping missions abroad.
Jäger is also the entrance rank for all of these three infantry branches (the German Army has a number of different entrance ranks by troop type, like Grenadier for mechanized infantrymen, Kanonier for artillerymen, and so forth).
In the Austrian Bundesheer
Military of Austria
The Österreichisches Bundesheer , is the name for the military of the Republic of Austria....
, Jäger is used as the generic term for most infantry soldiers (armored infantrymen are known as Panzergrenadiere, as in the German Bundeswehr). In Austrian Bundesheer the special forces are called Jagdkommando (lit. Hunting Command).
See also
- ChasseurChasseurChasseur [sha-sur; Fr. sha-sœr] is the designation given to certain regiments of French light infantry or light cavalry troops, trained for rapid action.-History:...
- SchützenSchützen (military)Schützen is a German plural noun used to designate a type of military unit of infantrymen, originally armed with a rifled musket and used in a light-infantry or skirmishing role - and hence similar to the Jäger...
- RiflemanRiflemanAlthough ultimately originating with the 16th century handgunners and the 17th century musketeers and streltsy, the term rifleman originated from the 18th century. It would later become the term for the archetypal common soldier.-History:...
- Light infantryLight infantryTraditionally light infantry were soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry. Heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight...
- ArmyArmyAn army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
- List of Jäger units
External links
- Austro-Hungarian Infantry 1914-1918, from Austro-Hungarian Land Forces 1848-1918
- Preußen Jäger Battalion 4 NCO Waffenrock, an example of a Jäger uniform from Kaiser's Bunker, a non-commercial reference site for Imperial German uniforms.
- Lexikon der Wehrmacht, for detailed information on types of Wehrmacht units.