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''Totenkopf'' is the German word for "Death's Head" and is used to describe a military insignia featuring a Skull with crossed bones. The symbol and its name are sometimes associated with 's Head"). Frederick formed Husaren-Regiment Nr.5 (von Ruesch) , a Hussar regiment commanded by Colonel von Ruesch. These Hussars adopted a black uniform with a ''Totenkopf'' emblazoned on the front of their Mirleton s and wore it on the field in the War Of Austrian Succession and in the Seven Years' War . in 1744 with the Totenkopf on the Mirleton ]] In 1808, when the regiment was reformed into Leib-Husaren Regiments Nr.1 and Nr.2, the ''Totenkopf'' remained a part of the uniform. Prussia was not the only nation to use the ''Totenkopf''. The Kingdom Of Sweden 's Hussar Regiments wore it in the Prussian Style on the front of the Mirleton. The Russian Kornilov regiment adopted it in 1917. During the Napoleonic Wars , when Frederick Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg was killed in battle, his troops changed the colour of their uniforms to black, with a ''Totenkopf'' on their Shako s in mourning their dead leader (Other sources claim that the " Black Brunswickers " were so equipped while Friedrich Wilhelm of Brunswick lived, as a sign of revenge on the French {Link without Title} ). The deaths head continued to be used throughout the Prussian and Brunswick Armed forces until 1918. The ''Totenkopf'' was used throughout the inter-war period, most prominently by the Freikorps . In 1933 it was in use by the regimental staff and the 1st, 5th, and 11th squadrons of the Reichswehr 's 5th Cavalry Regiment. In the early days of the NSDAP, Julius Schreck , the leader of the ''Stabswache'' ( Adolf Hitler 's bodyguard unit), adopted the ''Totenkopf'' for his unit. In 1935 , the ''Stabswache'' was renamed as the ''Schutzstaffel'' (''SS'') and the SS continued to use the ''Totenkopf'' as insignia throughout their brief history. As they had done with the Swastika , the Nazis simply adopted the ''Totenkopf'' from the historical tradition and used it for their own purposes, leaving it marked with a stigma that has continued to the present. The WW II era Luftwaffe's 54th Bomber Wing (Kampfgeschwader 54) was known officially by the name "Totenkopf", using virtually the same graphic skull-crossbones insignia as the SS units of the same name. ]] The skull with crossed bones is also the current insignia of a regiment in the British Army, the Queen's Royal Lancers . The badge has been used by the Lancers since 1859 and is a reference to the participation of the 17th Lancers in the Charge Of The Light Brigade at the Battle Of Balaclava . SEE ALSO |
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