Landsknecht

Landsknechts were European, most often German, mercenary pikemen and foot soldiers from the late 15th to the early 17th century, with the formidable reputation for being the most effective fighting troops during the European Renaissance.

Clothes

However, what made the landsknechts so conspicuous was their elaborate dress. Doublets, deliberately slashed at the front, back and sleeves with shirts and other wear pulled through to form puffs of different-colored fabric, so-called slash and puff; parti-colored hose; jerkins; ever-broader flat beret-type hats with tall feathers; and broad flat shoes, made them bodies of men that could not be mistaken.

External Links

• Wolfgang von Orlok's pages of interest
• Landsknecht clothing
• St. Max Landsknecht recreation group in Northern California
• German Landsknecht Recreation Group - in German

This article has been modified from a version found on the wikipedia: http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landsknecht