"Wore Prussian Cuirassiers and dragoons laces on the hats?" Topic

According to a contemporary source they wore laces
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Are there any contemporary sources that confirm that or prove it wrong?

The same author shows later hats kind of different (in 1787), but in his 1770 edition there a still laces
So could it be that there was an actual change in uniform?

At least from my sources cuirassiers had white tape on their tricorns until 1762, none thereafter during the SYW

Dragoons on the other hand as far as I can see had no coloured lace or tape at least during the SYW

It's pretty much all covered on this site.
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At kronoskaf (which I use as my main source for painting) neither dragoons nor cuirassiers are shown to have laces on the hat

@ dogtail. You did ask about contemporary sources & Kronoskaf, strictly, isn't one.

But I would also endorse it as I know the various posters on it take the site very seriously & research extensively (archives, museums etc). And they are not adverse to changing something if they originally got it wrong. So if they say "no lace" then that's what I would do.

I know I'm "selling ice to Inuit" but it doesn't hurt to record this endorsement.

Fun fact: the source I linked to is stated as a source by kronoskaf, I found it at their website. And I actually informed them about the conflict.

Don't mistake me for an expert but it seems on balance, Kronoskaf's "no lace" conclusion reflects the mainstream interpretation of the evidence. If lace existed beyond the early 1760s, it should appear more clearly in primary material—and it doesn't.

If you informing Kronoskaf of the issue sparks further research: that's good!

Contemporary sources don't always agree, dogtail. To give an Austro-Hungarian example, the Albertina Bilderhandschrift (I have the 1973 Edition Tusch reprint) and Bautzener Bilderhandschrift (reprinted 1993), both published in 1762, not only disagree on details like button-holes and lace for some uniforms, they can even disagree on the colours of dolmans and pelisse for some regiments.

As for the Prussian Kürassiere and Dragoner, the lack of lace is in accordance with the uniform information from a number of sources, including Bleckwenn (Das Altpreussische Heer – Erscheinungsbild und Wesen 1713-1807; Die friderzianischen Uniformen 1753-1786 and Unter dem Preußen-Adler); Dorn and Engelmann (Die Kavallerie-Regimenter Friedrichs des Großen); Jany (Geschichte der Königlich Preußischen Armee bis zum Jahre 1807, Band II), Menzel's plates and others.

I think the answer to your question can be found in Die friderzianischen Uniformen 1753-1786, Band III (DfU3). According to the Dessauer Spezifikation 1737 (DS37), the Prussian Kürassiere and Dragoner all wore gold braid on their hats. But on page 19, first paragraph, DfU3 states that the gold braid was worn, for parades, up until 1753, but had disappeared by 1756. Only Officers now had the edging.

Thanks for the info. I own Dorn and Engelmanns books, fantastic pictures, but I kind of mistrust everything after Menzel who is afaIk not correct in his beautiful drawings. Having FrontRank and BlackHussar miniatures on the painting table it is highly visible that the hats are quite different, I guess the sculptor of FR used Menzel as source.
But disagreement is common in everything, so if Frederick the Great decided that black hats are enough to defend silesia, I can decide that laces are necessary to defend my wargaming area. And every wargame in that gaming era looks like a parade anyway.
Again, Dankeschoen / thanks for the input!

I understand, mate, and I'm glad to have helped. According to DfU3, page 18- bottom of the 2nd column- in 1763 a new style of Kavallereihut, with the front corner being flatter and more upright, was introduced in 1763 ("Der Kavallereihut war schon im Siebenjährigen Krieg etwas größer als der Infanterie, nahm aber erst nach 1763 erheblich abweichende Form an: Er zog sich in die Breite und Höhe, und die Spitze flachte noch stärker ab als bei der Infanterie.") Besides, regimental Inhaberen liked to add personal touches to uniforms, which seems to have annoyed Friedrich. There's no really definite answers about the uniforms of 260 years ago. For all we know a painting may have been done in 1762, but using notes that the artist wrote in 1752.

Your regiments, so lace or no lace is for you to decide. (I give my grenadier battalions and hussar squadrons fahnen, using the same reasoning )

There's even more questions about SYW fahnen and standarten, too, as even the Dessauer Spezifikation descriptions can disagree with surviving artefacts!