| rdfs:comment
| - Later, towards the mid 17th century, the harquebusier became the standard type of cavalry found throughout western Europe. The switch of the harquebusier from a mounted support role, reliant on firearms, to one of shock-capable close combat cavalry can be attributed to Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden in the 1620s and 1630s. Initially, this was from neccessity; Sweden was a relatively poor nation and could not afford to equip many expensive cuirassiers, therefore more lightly equipped cavalry had to be employed in a shock role. The success of Swedish cavalry in battle during the Thirty Years War led to other nations adopting their methods. Gustavus Adolphus also reduced the number of ranks in a cavalry formation from the previously usual six to ten, for pistol-based tactics, to three to suit hi
|
| abstract
| - Later, towards the mid 17th century, the harquebusier became the standard type of cavalry found throughout western Europe. The switch of the harquebusier from a mounted support role, reliant on firearms, to one of shock-capable close combat cavalry can be attributed to Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden in the 1620s and 1630s. Initially, this was from neccessity; Sweden was a relatively poor nation and could not afford to equip many expensive cuirassiers, therefore more lightly equipped cavalry had to be employed in a shock role. The success of Swedish cavalry in battle during the Thirty Years War led to other nations adopting their methods. Gustavus Adolphus also reduced the number of ranks in a cavalry formation from the previously usual six to ten, for pistol-based tactics, to three to suit his sword-based shock tactics. The later harquebusier was used in a shock role by cavalry leaders of the English Civil War, such as Prince Rupert of the Rhine and Oliver Cromwell. They employed harquesbusiers very aggressively: charging with sword in hand, thus relegating their firearms to a secondary function. Indeed by the 1620s cavalry not equipped with a carbine could be termed "harquebusiers," just from the level and style of their armour protection. By the time of the English Civil War all cavalry not equipped as cuirassiers or carrying a lance, the Scots fielded light lancers as late as the 1650s, were called harquebusiers. In the course of the war the cuirassier ceased to be fielded in Britain, and when the cuirassier discarded his limb armour he instantly became indistinguishable from the harquebusier.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)