This Ersatzpickelhaube – a substitute spiked helmet made of pressed felt – is a compelling artifact of the material deprivations that reshaped the German military during the First World War. Bearing the handwritten name of its owner, a soldier called Elser, and the chamber stamp of the 7th Infantry Regiment “Prinz Leopold” of the Bavarian Army, this helmet tells the story of wartime improvisation, industrial adaptation, and the twilight of one of the most iconic military headdresses in European history.
The 7th Infantry Regiment “Prinz Leopold”
The 7th Infantry Regiment was a formation of the Bavarian Army, with its peacetime garrison located in the Franconian city of Bayreuth. The unit had borne the honorary title of its regimental patron, Prince Leopold, since 1873. Following the Armistice of Compiègne, the remnants of the regiment marched home and were demobilized in Bayreuth beginning on 12 December 1918. The regiment was formally disbanded on 25 March 1919. Its tradition was carried forward in the Reichswehr from 24 August 1921 by the 9th and 12th companies of the 21st (Bavarian) Infantry Regiment, also stationed in Bayreuth.
The Pickelhaube and Its Bavarian Adoption
The Kingdom of Bavaria was the last German state to adopt the Pickelhaube, doing so in 1887. While the spiked helmet had become an unmistakable symbol of German military power during the nineteenth century, the early months of the First World War quickly revealed its inadequacy. It was soon discovered that the Pickelhaube did not measure up to the demanding conditions of trench warfare, offering no meaningful protection against the artillery shell fragments that were the leading cause of casualties on the Western Front.
The Leather Crisis and the Rise of Ersatz Helmets
As the war progressed, Germany’s leather stockpiles dwindled alarmingly. The Allied sea embargo cut the Reich off from vital raw material sources and left many helmet manufacturers unable to fulfill their army contracts. After extensive imports from South America, particularly Argentina, the German government was compelled to begin producing ersatz Pickelhauben from alternative materials. The extreme demand and the ever-shrinking pool of available raw materials drove the adoption of replacement substances.
The Filzhaube – the felt Pickelhaube – was the first of many derivative ersatz helmets, being made of pressed felt with metal fittings. The German high command needed to produce an enormous number of helmets, and many thousands were fabricated early in the war to meet the needs expressed by army quartermasters. Beyond felt, thin sheet steel and even paper were used to construct Pickelhauben. Initially, leftover stocks of standard metal fittings were utilized, but these were subsequently replaced by chemically subdued components. As a result, many variations exist depending on the factory production process and the ability to supply materials – some helmets lack a rear spine, while others have no edging to the front peak.
The Role of Bing Brothers of Nuremberg
One of the most remarkable stories of wartime industrial adaptation involves the firm of Bing Brothers of Nuremberg. This company, previously known as toy makers, readily adapted its manufacturing skills to military production and produced a significant 100,000 felt helmets fitted with the Bavarian front plate. This figure underscores both the scale of wartime demand and the extraordinary versatility of the German industrial base when mobilized for total war.
Physical Description and Markings
This felt substitute helmet is complete with all fittings. The front bears the Bavarian coat of arms (Wappen) in the small version introduced from 1916 onwards, a simplified and reduced front plate characteristic of the 1916 Bavarian pattern. The helmet retains its original chinstrap on Knopf 91 button, along with both cockades. German military Pickelhauben mounted two round, colored cockades behind the chinstraps: the right cockade was the national cockade in red, black, and white, while the left cockade displayed the Bavarian colors of blue and white.
The interior features a lashed leather lining with the handwritten owner’s name “Elser”, providing a tangible personal connection to the individual soldier who once wore this helmet. The neck visor carries a clearly legible chamber stamp “7.I.R.”, confirming its issue to the 7th Infantry Regiment. The helmet is size 59, an unusually large size that makes this particular example exceptionally rare among surviving Pickelhauben.
The End of an Era
Beginning in 1916, the Pickelhaube was slowly replaced by the new German Stahlhelm (steel helmet), which was specifically designed to offer greater head protection from shell fragments. After the adoption of the Stahlhelm, the Pickelhaube was reduced to limited ceremonial wear by senior officers away from the war zones, as well as by the Leibgendarmerie S.M. des Kaisers, whose role as an Imperial escort led them to retain peacetime full dress throughout the war. With the collapse of the German Empire in 1918, the Pickelhaube ceased to be part of the military uniform entirely.
This Ersatzpickelhaube represents a convergence of regimental history, wartime industrial necessity, and individual soldier experience. For the collector, it offers an exceptionally rare combination: a complete felt ersatz helmet in an unusually large size, with verified regimental markings and a named attribution to a soldier who served in one of Bavaria’s historic infantry regiments during the Great War.
