Model 1885 Defense Force Steel Helmet

In March, Ernst inspected the Guard Division troops. The Guard Division's main duty was to defend Central Province and First Town, and it was also the East African Army unit he inspected most often.

During this visit to the Guard Division, the most obvious change was that the division had been equipped with helmets, a first for the East African Army.

Thus, the commander of the 101st Guards Division, Reder, specifically introduced the origins and features of this military helmet to Ernst.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, this helmet is also known as the Model 1885. It is a Defense Force steel helmet designed to address the potential dangers posed to soldiers in positional warfare by stray bullets and shrapnel on the battlefield.

Its visor follows the traditional German design, making the helmet's overall body somewhat resemble the traditional military helmet of the German territories—the Pickelhaube."

Ernst naturally knew what a Pickelhaube was. It was a hallmark of armies throughout the German territories. A German Empire proclamation in 1871 stipulated that all German Army soldiers had to wear one, with police officers and firefighters no exception.

The Pickelhaube's most distinctive feature was the conspicuous "spike" on top. The most widely accepted explanation for its pointed crest was that ancient European armies such as the Teutonic Knights used it to hang ornaments that distinguished different branches of service.

Others said cavalrymen could use it as a support for feathers and horsehair. Furthermore, adding a pointed crest could effectively deflect slashing and thrusting attacks aimed at the head, since saber clashes were standard tactics in cavalry combat at the time.

Wilhelm II, Otto von Bismarck, Paul von Hindenburg, and other figures from Germany's military and political circles all liked posing for photographs in Pickelhaubes.

In Ernst's view, the Pickelhaube did have aesthetic