Light cavalry

The main difference from the heavy shock cavalry was the mass of horses, which had significantly less weight (150-500 kg, and in the early Middle Ages and even more, the European destrie weighed 750 kg more (4 times) the Mongolian or Tatar steppe horse). The advantageous feature of light cavalry was significantly greater endurance and mobility: strategic, in view of the possibility of using only feed, and tactical, in view of the smaller mass. The disadvantages were the impossibility of fighting against the densely built masses of heavy cavalry and infantry (with very rare exceptions). Often the heavier horses of the heavy cavalry, which were significantly superior in mass, simply knocked down light enemy horses, dooming doom riders crushed by their vehicle.

The design of the saddle (the lower height of the back) and the stirrup , which was attached much higher, also differed.

According to the mass of war horses, the Mamluk cavalry can be attributed to light, despite the fact that the riders wore chain mail . The stunning properties of the Mameluke horses are explained by their adaptability to the climate of the African Mediterranean coast (with high temperature and low humidity), and a special diet consisting of dates and dried fish. When changing the diet, they significantly lost their abilities, so it was extremely unreasonable for Napoleon to drag the Mameluke cavalry to Russia ^[1]

Hussars (after being transferred from the category of heavy cavalry to the category of light) formed the basis of the light cavalry of most European countries, in the British Empire light dragoons were analogous. During the Napoleonic Wars, the British were forced to create a specialized light cavalry, transforming part of the easy dragoon regiments into hussars.

Ulans are often considered light cavalry, but their horses needed feed grain and were larger than the hussars, because in addition to the high speed necessary for an effective spear strike, the horses had to push the infantry already hit by the peaks in full swing. In the case of a battle with the cavalry, they needed to withstand the enormous force of the blow of the enemy horses. Lancers, as a rule, did not conduct strategic reconnaissance , much less were not used as skirmishers . Armed with long (~ 3.5 m) hollow peaks, sometimes bound by iron rings or containing an iron rod, and sabers. Before the attack, the spearmen were built in two lines, behind them were the riders who lost spears during the battle, or entered the battle without them. ^[2]

In the British army, in order to save money, all cavalry regiments (except for horse guards) were renamed to dragoon (with a lower status and payment), including light ones. So there were light dragoon regiments that performed the same tasks as the light cavalry of the rest of Europe, but for less money. However, their activity was so successful that soon another 8 easily-dragoon regiments were formed at the expense of ordinary dragoons . ^[3] Nevertheless, in clashes with the “real cavalry” they were of little use. Shelves of light dragoons were created in the US Army (in any case, they participated in the war of 1775-1783) and some Scandinavian countries. Later during the Napoleonic Wars and after them, part of the easy-dragoon regiments were reorganized into hussar and ulan regiments. By the end of the century, all regiments of light dragoons were reorganized into a hussar and a lancer, although the "usual" dragoon regiments were preserved. .

Initially organized regiments of light cavalry appeared in the Austrian Empire , recruited mainly from Hungarians and Croats, in contrast to the unorganized masses of the Tatar irregular cavalry and other Ottoman vassals , and then were taken over by all the leading European powers.

Many nomadic peoples like the Scythians relied almost exclusively on light cavalry.

However, light cavalry was used long before Europe entered the Renaissance ; its use during the Second and Third Punic Wars is especially noteworthy, the outcome of which was largely decided by the Numidian horsemen, who successively occupied the side of either Hannibal or Scipio African ^[4] .

At the Battle of Cannes, the Numidian cavalry could not squeeze the Roman, but completed its defeat after the successful operations of the Spanish and Celtic infantry ^[5] , after which the complete encirclement with the subsequent extermination of the Roman army was not difficult. At the Battle of Carra, the Roman legions were completely defeated by a combination of light infantry cavalry and cataphractic Parthians. After that, part of the Roman legionnaires taken prisoner allegedly fought in China as mercenaries ^[6] .

Extensive Mongol conquests, made almost exclusively by light cavalry, make up a special page in history ( heavy cavalry was used sporadically, but after the conquest of China they began to use it more widely). For the most part, all these great victories were won thanks to the hitherto unprecedented strategic mobility of their troops, in which each warrior had at least three horses, and not thanks to the primitive tactics of carousel with bows around the enemy ^[1] . The Mongols easily avoided clashes in unfavorable conditions for them and imposed battle on a weaker enemy.

A more distant indicator of the ability of light cavalry to withstand heavy cavalry is the battle of Belin of the Northern War of Russia and Sweden. During the battle, the Kalmyk cavalry (usually classified as light irregular, but using the correct construction with a pike strike) was able to destroy the Ostrogradsky cuirassier regiment, headed personally by Charles XII ^[7] . Another example of the light cavalry’s ability to withstand heavy cavalry was the success of the Kalmyk cavalry in the battle of the White Church in the Russo-Polish War in 1665 - Kalmyks defeated the Polish army, including the elite Polish heavy cavalry units (hussars and “rams”), as well as the raider and German hired infantry - according to contemporaries, a massive attack by the Kalmyk cavalry (about 7 thousand people) defeated the Polish army, forcing the retreat of the elite units of the then-famous Polish cavalry (hussar, reytar and "pan yrnyh ") and mercenary German infantry, the Kalmyks were killed and surrendered prisoner. Describing the Kalmyk trophies after the battle, the hetman Bryukhovetsky reported on the armor and armament of the hussars and other “servicemen of the Ylyadskys” ^[8] . We can also mention the role of the Kalmyk cavalry in the Battle of Kunersdorf, when the Kalmyks managed to defeat the last reserve of Frederick II - the life-cuirassiers, including the capture of their commander.

At the Battle of Waterloo, the French Light Lancer cavalry (which is essentially not light) completely defeated the English heavy. In the vast majority of clashes, the heavy cavalry won a landslide victory over the light.

There were rare cases of a breakthrough in the construction of poorly trained linear infantry with its subsequent extermination by the forces of small light cavalry. In the battles of Edesheim and Kaiserslauternps in 1794, the Prussian cavalry under the command of Blucher defeated the French infantry, and in the second battle only 80 Prussian hussars managed to break through and scatter the battalion rack of 600 soldiers ^[9] .

In Great Britain, armored units became the successors of cavalry regiments, and light cavalry was no exception: its successors were armored regiments, composed of armored vehicles mainly with machine gun weapons.

• Gineta
• Heavy cavalry