Potsdam Giants

[My Good Babushka]

The Potsdam Giants. Friedrich Wilhelm I founded a special infantry of unusually tall soldiers after he took the Prussian throne in 1713. None were less than 7 feet tall. The king once told a French ambassador, “The most beautiful girl or woman in the world would be a matter of indifference to me, but tall soldiers- they are my weakness”. The regiment never saw battle and was dismissed when Friedrich died in 1740.

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. How interesting......

I dunno how many are in an infantry, but 7 foot tall would be kind of rare back then, I should think.

[panader0]

2. From wiki:

the Prussian population quickly nicknamed them the Lange Kerls ("long guys&quot .

[Wounded Bear]

3. Interesting...

Given the tactics of the time, would have pluses and minuses.

Plus: imposing in bayonet attack, close combat.

Minus: Would be a big target for cannon and musket fire. Most soldiers tend to aim high.

[malthaussen]

4. Well, they used smoothbore muskets, after all.

Aiming not exactly an issue.

The selfsame Prussian army once lined up 100 men to shoot at a sheet of cloth 100 ft long X 6 feet high 100 feet away; 6 bullets hit the target. So an extra foot more or less probably wouldn't matter much.

But how Freddy found enough 7-footers to fill out his regiment is a mystery. Maybe he was using French measure, not English.

-- Mal