"Prussian Landwehr drums? (1813-1815)" Topic

Likely to be a law unto their own but any thoughts? Brass, white cords…band colour in provincial colour?

I thought that all drums were the same regardless of the "grade" or type of infantry. I will check the sources. But I painted all of mine with the white/red "toothed" look. Gold or better stated brass drum body.

Interesting topic. Did not find anything on landwehr, but Knotel has a drummer of the 1st Reserve with brass body but the drum hoops at top and bottom are yellow and red and look more Austrian than Prussian. Elting says to this plate, "I have found no explanation for the red-and-yellow drum hoops. Officers and NCOs of a unit issued British uniforms were supposed to wear its regulation Prussian dress." Elting italicizes the word "supposed." So maybe that means "Who knows?"

All the Landwehr on the Mont St Jean site have white/red tooth look with a gold/brass barrel and white cords. So that is how I painted mine.

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I'll dig out my Summerfield too! Definitely found one source last night that suggested reserve regts had diagonal white and provincial stripes on the band and paintwork on Calpe/Perry websites leans towards bands in pure provincial colours.

I have several books about the Prussian Landwehr, but no real information on the drums. Some color plates do seem to show brass drums with white cords and color bands. The band colors are hare to figure out for sure. One looked blue-grey.

The the Prussian Landwehr, supplies were somewhat limited and I would think they got whatever they could get. Even captured drums? Anyway, brass with white cords is a safe bet. As for bands, be creative.

Most Landwehr Drums would have been the Prussian standard brass drums with white cords. Some dated back even to Frederick the Great. The upper and lower band is more difficult to be certain about. The normal pattern would be facing colour and white often in the lozenge arrangement as shown in the pictures.

Certainly an area I will be revisiting this year as I am producing a new book on the Prussian Landwehr being that my last one has been out of print for many years.
Stephen

Except for the guards, who seem to have had them earlier, the painting of the wooden bands on the drums with red and white triangles was introduced as late as 28 January 1817.

Before, the wood in the line infantry was painted in (diagonal?) "stripes" with the alternating colours of collars and buttons. Hence also the combination of red and white for the 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß.

The belts for carrying the drums were corresponding in colour to the belts worn by the other men of the battalion.

Sources are mentioned here:

link

I never came accross any contemporary description or painting of Landwehr drums. I would follow the pattern for the line infantry.