Light cavalry

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Light cavalry refers to lightly-armed and armored troops mounted on horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the riders (and sometimes the horses) are heavily armored. The missions of the light cavalry were primarily reconnaissance, screening, skirmishing, and raiding, and were usually armed with spears, swords, bows and later pistols.

Light cavalry was used infrequently by the Greeks and Romans (though Roman auxiliaries were often mounted), but were popular among the armies and hordes of Central Asia. The Huns, Turks, Mongols and Hungarians were all adept light cavalrymen and horse archers.

With the decline of feudalism and knighthood in Europe, light cavalry became more prominent in the armies of the continent. Many were equipped with firearms, as their predecessors had been with bows. European examples of light cavalry included hussars, Chasseurs à cheval and dragoons.

[edit] See also

• Cavalry
• Heavy cavalry
• Horse archer
• Horses in warfare