Danish Military Uniforms
To say that Denmark has some of the best military ceremonial uniforms in the world would be an understatement! In this writer's opinion, they are without a doubt the best such Scandinavian uniforms. If you need convincing, watch the Oslo or Stockholm changing of the guards. Both are lovely, but catching a Copenhagen guard changing in which they wear their finest "red parade dress" is a sight to behold given the bright colors and the number of giant Danish military flags on hand.
Below are Denmark's best:
a. Guard Hussar Regiment Mounted Squadron - still worn today; a real stunner for many reasons
b. Royal Life Guards - still worn today; gloriously patriotic and inspiring
c. Royal Horse Guards - this regiment was dissolved in 1866, but their attire and regalia were something special!
Guard Hussar Regiment Mounted Squadron
(Gardehusarregimentets Hesteskadron, HESK)
The Guard Hussar Regiment Mounted Squadron (Danish: Gardehusarregimentets Hesteskadron, HESK) parade uniform is a sight to behold! It is typically worn about once per year and is the only time that the famed red jacket (the pelisse) makes an appearance. At other times of year, the Mounted Squadron wears an all-blue uniform.
The Mounted Squadron is tasked with ceremonial duties such as escorting the Danish royal family. It consists of about 75 horses, 18 officers and 100 soldiers and is stationed in Slagelse, Denmark. The soldiers are conscripts serving a 1-year term.
The Mounted Squadron is part of the larger Guard Hussar Regiment (Danish: Gardehusarregiment), which was founded as a cavalry (horse) regiment in 1762, but today is an armored infantry regiment (e.g. armored personnel carriers).
The story of the Guard Hussar Regiment's inception is interesting. In 1762, Denmark believed war with Russia was looming. Russia's light cavalry (i.e., no body armor), consisting of Cossack horsemen from Ukraine, were especially feared as they were skilled swordsmen while on horseback. To respond to this threat, Denmark in 1762 created the Guard Hussar Regiment, a light cavalry regiment which copied the dashing and flamboyant uniform of the storied Hungarian Hussar light cavalry.
The current Mounted Squadron parade uniform has the following elements:
a. Dolman jacket: a blue dolman (jacket) with elaborate silver braids is cut short and worn relatively tight. From 1762 until 1870, Denmark's dolman had about twenty horizontal braids. In 1870, the dolman was simplified by reducing the number of braids from about twenty to five.
b. Riding breeches: "light blue" riding breeches were worn from 1762-1774. From 1774-1822, the breeches were yellow. From 1822-Present, the riding breeches have been cobalt blue with a white vertical stripe on the outseam.
c. Hessian boot: the Hessian boot, a polished boot with ornamental tassels, is believed to have been a part of this uniform from 1762 through the present day. It was standard issue for hussar regiments throughout Europe. It has a low heel and a semi-pointed toe, which makes the use of stirrups easier. The boot comes almost to the knee with a decorative tassel in front. Notably, there is a v-shaped notch in the top front of the boot.
d. Pelisse: The crimson red pelisse (outer coat) is the most notable and distinctive element of this impressive parade uniform. It was introduced in 1762 and has about 20 horizontal silver braids. Its military purpose was to be worn over the blue dolman during horse-mounted sword combat in order to help protect the wearer against sword cuts (recall that "light" cavalry" does not wear metal body armor in order to make them faster and more agile). When not worn for combat, the pelisse is draped across the left shoulder and held in place by a lanyard ("mantequet") around the neck.
Notably, in 1870, the crimson red pelisse was to be removed from the uniform, as bullets were more of a threat than sword cuts by that time. However, fate had other plans! In 1863 England's Prince of Wales and future monarch Edward VII had married Princess Alexandra of Denmark. He quite liked the sharp and dashing look of the red pelisse and used his Danish connections to push for the retention of the pelisse. A compromise agreement was reached that a new cardinal red, 5-braid pelisse would be retained for officers only, while soldiers could continue to wear the old 20-braid crimson red pelisses until the were worn out and no longer presentable for ceremonial use. Over time, the 20-braid crimson red pelisse was so popular that worn out ones would be replaced rather than dropped from the uniform. Thus, the 20-braid crimson red pelisse is still worn today (by non-officers) and is unchanged since 1762. Denmark is the only military in the world still using this distinctive garment, the pelisse!
e. Sabretache: A pouch in the colors of the regiment with a royal monogram. Denmark is the only military in the world still using one!
f. Shabraque: A saddlecloth the colors of the regiment, with a royal monogram toward the front.
g. Bridle: It has cowries (seashells) woven into it in order to make the horse look like a skeleton. This dates back to 1787.
h. Horse color: Buglers ride white horses.
Differences Between Officer and Enlisted Hussar Uniform:
a. officer's pelisse is cardinal red; enlisted soldier's pelisse is crimson red (FWIW, the British "redcoat" is scarlet red)
b. officer's dolman (blue jacket) and pelisse (red coat) have more elaborate silver embroidery on outer sleeve
c. officer's headgear has some gold-colored plating and uses buffalo hair; enlisted soldier's uses horse tail hair
d. officer's shabraque (saddlecloth) has elaborate silver embroidery to the rear of the stirrups
Headgear with hair dyed red signifies that these soldiers play brass instruments such as bugles.
Typically, the only soldier who gets to actually don the red pelisse is the drummer. It is my suspicion that those who wear it are not also wearing the blue dolman underneath as Danish hussars would have done in the 1700s.
The blue of the riding breeches appears darker in this photo than it really is due to image oversaturation. The true shade of the breeches is actually cobalt blue, and is a bit lighter than royal blue.
Royal Life Guards
(Kongelige Livgarde)
Red Parade Dress
Royal Life Guards
This is one of the most famous military uniforms in the entire world! It is represented through countless images as a symbol of Denmark itself. As an example, this uniform represents Denmark at Disney World's "It's a Small World" ride.
It has the following elements:
a. It is typically only worn about once or twice a year.
b. The headgear uses fur from Canadian black bears.
c. The breeches are the same cobalt blue of the hussars, but have a wider white stripe on the outer seam.
d. The jacket is crimson red (same as the hussar coat)
Differences between officer and enlisted uniform:
a. The jacket color is cardinal red for officers and crimson red for enlisted soldiers.
b. The officer jacket has a fancier collar.
c. Officers also carry a sword and wear a belt.
In the image above, the color difference between the officer jackets (cardinal red) and enlisted jackets (crimson red) can be seen.
Blue Dress Uniform
Royal Life Guards
Royal Horse Guards
(Kongelige Livgarde til Hest)
Royal Horse Guards at port of Korsør on way to the front, First Schleswig War, 1848
Image credit: "Royal Danish Horse Guards" by Otto Bache, 1888
Note that the Royal Horse Guards, unlike their contemporaries in the Guard Hussar Regiment, were cuirassiers (i.e., they wore metal body armor). The Royal Horse Guards would also have carried the Danish 1865 revolver pistol from 1865 until the unit's disbandment in 1866.
Royal Horse Guard circa 1806
Image credit: Senn & Lahde lithograph, 1806
Until 1866, the Royal Horse Guards (1661-1866) fulfilled the role of ceremonial mounted troops. Upon their being disbanded in 1866, that ceremonial role went to the Guard Hussar Regiment's Mounted Squadron.
Royal Horse Guards during the Napoleonic Wars (circa 1800-1813)
Jutland Regiment
