English

An 1835 lithograph by H. A. Eckert showing the field artillery of the Austro-Hungarian Army

Noun

Handlanger ‎(plural Handlangers)

1. (military, historical) A low-ranking artillery soldier in the Austro-Hungarian Army.
   • 1746 January 22, “Jovis, 22° die Januarii; Anno 20° Georgii II Regis, 1746”, in Journals of the House of Commons. From October the 17th, 1745, in the Nineteenth Year of the Reign of King George the Second, to November the 22nd, 1750, in the Twenty-fourth Year of the Reign of King George the Second. Re-printed by Order of the House of Commons, volume 25, London: His Majesty's Stationery Office, published 1803, OCLC 237516907, pages 247 and 250–251:

     Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, by His Majeſty's Command, preſented to the Houſe, Copy of a Convention between the King of Great Britain and the States General, on the one Part; and the Empreſs Queen of Hungary and Bohemia on the other— […] Artillery. […] 12 Gunners, or Handlangers. […] 2 Drummers, at the Pay of Handlangers. […] 4 Aſſiſtants, at the Pay of Handlangers.

   • 1973, Albert Seaton, The Austro-Hungarian Army of the Napoleonic Wars (Men-at-arms Series), Reading, Oxon.: Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-0-85045-147-4:

     The Handlanger soldier was not a gunner or a bombardier, since he merely acted as labour on gun-sites […]

   • 1990, Philip J. Haythornthwaite, Austrian Specialist Troops of the Napoleonic Wars (Men-at-arms Series; 223), London: Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-0-85045-950-0, page 11:

     After the defeat of 1809, the four artillery regiments were kept in existence, but the Handlanger-Corps was reduced to a cadre.

   • 2003, David Hollins, Austrian Napoleonic Artillery 1792–1815 (New Vanguard; 72), Oxford: Osprey Publishing, ISBN 978-1-84176-499-3, page 14:

     The artillerymen concentrated on directing, loading and firing the guns, the remaining simpler functions being performed by the Handlanger. The No. 1 gunner inserted the charge and shot into the muzzle, No. 2 (a Handlanger) rammed it home and cleared the barrel with the sponge after firing. The chief gunner was No. 3, the Vormeister (gun commander) who was often a Bombardier, as were many Korporals. […] [H]e would also direct No. 5; the Handlanger holding the traversing spar and the Handlanger moving the gun.

German

Etymology

Hand +‎ langen +‎ -er.

Noun

Handlanger m ‎(genitive Handlangers, plural Handlanger)

1. A handyman.
2. (politics) A henchman.

Declension

English

Apprentices working in Leipzig, Germany, in 1963

Noun

handlanger ‎(plural handlangers)

1. (South Africa) An unskilled assistant to an artisan.
   • 1976, Het Suid Western:

     […] building himself brick by brick, with his wife as his only handlanger.

   • 2006, Richard Calland, Anatomy of South Africa: Who Holds the Power?, Cape Town: Zebra Press, ISBN 978-1-86872-903-6, page 177:

     [E]very political leader has a handlanger. Like a toddler with a security blanket, the political handlanger is a necessary sop and sponge for all the tension that goes with the job. And there is nothing either disreputable or degrading about the role. Politics can be spiteful and demanding; the handlanger is the trusted confidant, the one person whom the leader can sound out, seek counsel from and trust.

   • 2016 March 17, Judith February, “Which colour pill will the ANC choose?”, in Daily Maverick, archived from the original on 11 April 2016:

     The time for talk truly is over now. The ANC will have to do the necessary, find its backbone and rein in [Jacob] Zuma, his cronies and their handlangers to avert an economic crisis happening on its watch.

2. Alternative letter-case form of Handlanger

Translations

References

• Jean Branford (1978) A Dictionary of South African English, Cape Town; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-570099-2.

Dutch

Pronunciation

Noun

handlanger m ‎(plural handlangers, diminutive handlangertje n)

1. accomplice
2. assistant; helper