Jump To:

• Hessian
  Hessian

  adjective

  of or relating to the state of Hesse or its inhabitants.
• hessian
  hessian

  noun

  a coarse jute fabric similar to sacking, used for bags, upholstery, etc

Hessian

American  

[hesh-uhn] / ˈhɛʃ ən /

adjective

1. of or relating to the state of Hesse or its inhabitants.

---

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Hesse.

2. a Hessian mercenary used by England during the American Revolution.

3. a hireling or ruffian.

4. (lowercase) burlap.

5. Also called Hessian andiron.  (in the U.S.) an andiron having as an upright the figure of a Hessian soldier of the Revolutionary War.

Hessian ¹ British  

/ ˈhɛsɪən /

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Hesse

2. 1. a Hessian soldier in any of the mercenary units of the British Army in the War of American Independence or the Napoleonic Wars

   2. any German mercenary in the British Army during the War of American Independence

3. a mercenary or ruffian

---

adjective

1. of or relating to Hesse or its inhabitants

hessian ² British  

/ ˈhɛsɪən /

noun

1. a coarse jute fabric similar to sacking, used for bags, upholstery, etc

---

Other Word Forms

• half-Hessian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of Hessian

1670–80; Hesse, Germany + -ian

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Hessian hessian

It was but a week after its appearance that Washington and his men crossed the icy Delaware River by night and surprised Hessian mercenaries in Trenton, N.J.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026

Mazzei’s vineyards showed promise but, according to one legend, were destroyed during the Revolutionary War by rambunctious Hessian prisoners bivouacked there.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 16, 2023

Maniscalco was the co-founder of the Hessian Motorcycle Club.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 16, 2023

The rest of the Hessian wounded were left where they lay until the next day, when American soldiers were tasked with burying the dead.

From New York Times ● Aug. 8, 2022

On December 26, the Americans launched a surprise attack on a Hessian camp in Trenton, New Jersey.

From I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis

His body was wrapped in a hessian cotton blanket with rope wrapped in a cross pattern with paintbrushes, flowers and a poem in the grave.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2022

There are no Mubarak-and-sons-type pictures of him behind bars in hessian, camera lights flashing in his bewildered face.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 16, 2019

Jacquemus’ invite was a giant hessian tote bag with thick rope-like straps.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 25, 2018

And the hessian fly, a pest of wheat, has crossed the Mediterranean from North Africa into Spain, Portugal and southern France.

From Nature ● Sep. 25, 2013

One of the legs collapsed and it fell backwards, revealing crossed lattice strips of hessian on its underside.

From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques