Prussian Napoleonic Hussars, 1813

Like the rest of the army, with the reorganization of 1808, the number of regiments was decreased, and the uniforms became more modern, and more somber (relatively speaking, in the case of the Hussars!). The Hussar arm was further diminished when von Schill's regiment, the 2nd Btrandeunburg Hussars #7 was disbanded in 1809 following its participation in his failed raid. The number of Hussar regiments was doubled for 1815, with six new units being raised from various sources.

Prussian Hussars, 1812 -1815

Rgt	Name	Dolman/Pelisse	Collar/Cuffs	Buttons/Lace
1	1st Leib	Black	Scarlet	White
2	2nd Leib	Black	Scarlet	White
3	Brandenburg	Dark Blue	Scarlet	White
4	1st Silesian	Brown	Yellow	Yellow
5	Pomeranian	Dark Blue	Dark Blue	Yellow
6	2nd Silesian	Green	Scarlet	Yellow
7	West Prussian*	Black	Scarlet	Yellow
8	1st Westfalian*	Dark Blue	Light Blue	White
9	Rheinish*	Light Blue	Light Blue	Yellow
10	1st Magdeburg*	Green	Light Blue	Yellow
11	2nd Westfalian*	Green	Scarlet	White
12	2nd Magdeburg*	Light Blue	Light Blue	White

* = newly raised March 1815 from National Cavalry regiments and other volunteer formations.

Barrel sashes: alternating "barrels" in the colors of the regiment's collar/cuffs and the regiment's lace. 

Pelisse Fur:  White for troopers, Black for NCO's, and grey for officers. Exceptions:Black fur for all in the Normal Hussar Squadron, and, from 1815, the 2nd, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th and 12th regiments. 

Plumes: Tall thin white plumes for the troopers (thick Busch plumes for the Normal squadron and the Leib regiments on parade), tall red with a white tip for trumpeters (thick Busch style for the Normal and Leib regiments again), NCO's had white plumes with a black tip, Officers had white plumes with a black base.
Belts: black for all regiments

The 1st and 2nd Leib Hussars were distinguished by the shoulder straps - white for the 1st, red for the 2nd; in 1815 lace was substituted but the 2nd Regiment changed its collars to Black. Both wore the white metal Totenkopf (Death's head) on the front of the shako; other regiments had a large black within white rosette on the front (with the usual black within white cockade at the front top as well, when not wearing their shako covers. The Normal (and later Guard) Hussars had a yellow metal Guard star on the front of their shakos (silver for officers). 

The Normal Hussar squadron (part of the 1st Leib Hussars, "Normal" in this case meaning "setting the standard" for the army) was absorbed in the formation of the Guard Light Cavalry regiment, later the Guard Hussars; by 1815 the Guard wore Dark blue Dolman and Pelisses, scarlet collars and cuffs with yellow lace trim, yellow cords. 

This is the 1st Silesian Hussar Regiment #4; I love the yellow and brown uniform, which is unique, especially for the Prussians.

Note the "wings" on the trumpeter's Dolman.  Some sources say this regiment had black sabretaches with the royal cipher in silver, others the standard red with lace in the regimental lace color, in this case, yellow. 

The standard formula of barrels sashes in the color of the collar and the lace color would give the Erstes Schleisches Hussaren-Regiment solid yellow barrel sashes, which didn't seem right, so I went with brown and yellow instead. The plate of the Hussars in Funken does show this unit with a solid yellow barrel sash, however. 

The Perrys have done these wonderful figures in "campaign dress', so they are wearing just the dolman without the pelisse (boo, hiss!), and they have an assortment of supplies handing on the rear of the saddles!

As my units have 8 figures, this  Hussar officer was surplus; I therefore painted him in the uniform of the Rheinisch Hussar regiment #9.

He can act as an ADC, or as the commander of a Light cavalry brigade. 

One might almost  mistake him for a Prussian Dragoon officer, but the sabretache shatters that illusion!

Here is the Erstes Leib-Husaren Regiment (1st Life Hussars) in parade dress; Old Glory figures. As the hussars didn't carry standards, I should add a lance pennon to the shaft, as some of the hussar troopers *did* carry lances! Note the grey fur on the officer carrying it. These are the famed "Death's Head Hussars"

The sabretache for this unit should actually be black leather, as it was also for the 2nd Leib Hussars, and later, the Pomeranian Hussars. Other regiments had a red cover on the sabretache, with the border and royal monogram in the lace color of the regiment. Note the plume and shoulder wings on the trumpeter, who rides a grey. 

All Hussars had black sheepskin saddles with red wolves teeth border, and wore the usual Prussian grey cavalry overalls with a red strip down the outside seams. 

Sources:

Hofshroer, Peter and Fosten, Bryan, The Prussian Cavalry of the Napoleonic Wars (2), 1807 - 1815. Osprey Publishing, London, 1986

Nash, David, The Prussian Army 1808-1815. Almark Publications, London, 1972