A dragoon was originally a soldier intended to fight on foot but to deploy by horse. They were therefore trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. Dragoon regiments were established in most European armies during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Originally dragoons were considered as separate from regular cavalry, but during the 18th century they evolved into conventional mounted troops trained to fight from horseback.
The word "dragoon" is derived from the French Army designation dragon which was originally the name of a type of firearm (whose name means dragon) carried by French dragoons. In French, Portuguese and Spanish there is no distinction between the words dragoon and dragon.
The title has been retained in modern times by a number of armoured or ceremonial mounted regiments.
The establishment of dragoons in France evolved from the occasional practice of infantry being transported by horse when rapidity of manoeuvre was required. An early instance of this was ordered by Louis of Nassau during operations near Mons in Hennegau when 500 infantry were transported in this way.[1] In 1552 Prince Alexander of Parma, in order to secure surprise, mounted several companies of infantry on pack horses.[1] Another suggestion is that the first dragoons were raised by the Marshal de Brisac in 1600,[2]. According to an account in older German literature, dragoons were invented by Count Ernst von Mansfeld (1580-1626), one of the greatest German military enterprisers of the early 1620s. As noted above however there are several other instances of mounted infantry predating this. Mansfeld, who had learned his profession in Hungary and the Netherlands, did however often use horses to make his foot troops more mobile, thus creating what was called an "armée volante".
It is possible that the name derives from the dragoon's primary weapon, a short Wheellock called the dragon, so named because the weapon of the first unit of dragoons raised in France had the muzzle of their weapons decorated with the head of a dragon. The practice of so naming a weapon stems from the earlier period when all gunpowder weapons had distinctive names irrespective of size such as the culverin, serpentine, falcon, falconet, etc.[3] It is also thought that the mounted infantryman with his loose coat and the burning match at a gallop resembled the mythical dragon.
The early dragoons were organized not in squadrons or troops like the cavalry, but in companies like the foot soldier, and their officers and non-commissioned officers bore infantry ranks. Dragoon regiments employed drummers in the infantry style, rather than cavalry trumpeters, to communicate orders on the battlefield. The flexibility of mounted infantry made dragoons a useful arm, especially when employed for what would now be termed "internal security" against smugglers or civil unrest, and on line of communication security duties. The dragoon regiments were also cheaper to recruit and maintain than the notoriously expensive regiments of cavalry. When in the 17th century Gustav II Adolf introduced dragoons into the Swedish Army, he provided them with a sabre, an axe and a matchlock musket: many of the European armies henceforth imitated this all-purpose set of weaponry.
However, dragoons were at a disadvantage when engaged against true cavalry, and constantly sought to raise their horsemanship, armament and social status to the levels of the latter. In most European armies "dragoon" did not come to refer to cavalry until after the Napoleonic Wars, in the 1820s. Dragoons also acquired responsibilities for scouting and picket duty which in the French, Austrian, Prussian, and other armies was passing to hussars and other light cavalry corps. In the Imperial Russian Army due to the availability of the cossack troops the dragoons were retained in their original role for much longer.
An exception to the rule was the British Army. In order to cut the state's military budget, all Horse (cavalry) regiments were gradually demoted to the status of Dragoons from 1746 onwards--a change that placed them on a lower pay scale. When this change was completed in 1788, the heavy cavalry regiments had became known as either Dragoon Guards or Heavy Dragoons (depending on their precedence). The designation of Dragoon Guards did not mean that these regiments (the former 2nd to 8th Horse) had become Household Troops, but simply that they had been given a more dignified designation to compensate for the loss of pay and prestige[5]. Starting in 1756, seven regiments of Light Dragoons were raised. These Light Dragoons were trained in reconnaissance, skirmishing and other work requiring endurance in accordance with contemporary standards of light cavalry performance. The success of this new class of cavalry was such that that 8 regular Dragoon regiments were converted to Light Dragoons between 1768 and 1783[6]. .
Austria-Hungarian Dragoons Officers Helmet
During the Napoleonic Wars, dragoons often assumed a cavalry role, though lighter than armored cuirassiers. Dragoons rode larger horses than the light cavalry and wielded straight, rather than curved swords. Emperor Napoleon often formed complete divisions out of his 20 to 30 dragoon regiments and used them as battle cavalry owing to shortage of cavalry mounts, to break the enemy's main resistance.[7] In 1809, French dragoons scored notable successes against Spanish armies at the Battle of Ocana and the Battle of Alba de Tormes. British heavy dragoons made devastating charges against French infantry at the Battle of Salamanca in 1812 and at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
In the Spanish army, in 1635, Pedro de la Puente organized in Innsbruck (Austria) a body of dragoons, and in 1640 one was created in Spain a tercio of a thousand armed dragoons with arqabus. At the end of the 18th century[dubious – discuss] , there were three tercios in Spain, three in the Netherlands, and an other three in the Milan (Italy). In 1704[dubious – discuss], like the rest of the tercios, they were dissolved and transformed into regiments by Felipe V. During the 18th century several regiments of dragoons were created in the Spanish Americas , some of them to function as a police force. In 1803 the regiments of dragoons began to be called light cavalry and by the end of the early 19th century they ultimately disappeared.
In several stages between 1816 and 1861, the 21 existing Light Dragoon regiments in the British Army were disbanded or converted to lancers and hussars.[8].
Between 1881 and 1910 all Russian cavalry (other than Cossacks and Imperial Guard regiments) were designated as dragoons; reflecting an emphasis on dismounted action in their training and a growing acceptance of the impracticality of employing historical cavalry tactics against modern firepower.
Baden dragoon in World War I, with functional Stahlhelm
In 1914 there were still dragoon regiments in the British, French, German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Peruvian, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish and Spanish armies. Their uniforms varied greatly, lacking the characteristic features of hussar or lancer regiments. There were occasional reminders of the mounted infantry origins of this class of soldier. Thus the dragoon regiments of the Imperial German Army wore the pickelhaube (spiked helmet) of the same design as those of the infantry and the British dragoons wore scarlet tunics,[9] In other respects however dragoons had adopted the same tactics, roles and equipment as other branches of the cavalry and the distinction had become simply one of traditional titles.
The word "dragoon" is derived from the French Army designation dragon which was originally the name of a type of firearm (whose name means dragon) carried by French dragoons. In French, Portuguese and Spanish there is no distinction between the words dragoon and dragon.
The title has been retained in modern times by a number of armoured or ceremonial mounted regiments.
The establishment of dragoons in France evolved from the occasional practice of infantry being transported by horse when rapidity of manoeuvre was required. An early instance of this was ordered by Louis of Nassau during operations near Mons in Hennegau when 500 infantry were transported in this way.[1] In 1552 Prince Alexander of Parma, in order to secure surprise, mounted several companies of infantry on pack horses.[1] Another suggestion is that the first dragoons were raised by the Marshal de Brisac in 1600,[2]. According to an account in older German literature, dragoons were invented by Count Ernst von Mansfeld (1580-1626), one of the greatest German military enterprisers of the early 1620s. As noted above however there are several other instances of mounted infantry predating this. Mansfeld, who had learned his profession in Hungary and the Netherlands, did however often use horses to make his foot troops more mobile, thus creating what was called an "armée volante".
It is possible that the name derives from the dragoon's primary weapon, a short Wheellock called the dragon, so named because the weapon of the first unit of dragoons raised in France had the muzzle of their weapons decorated with the head of a dragon. The practice of so naming a weapon stems from the earlier period when all gunpowder weapons had distinctive names irrespective of size such as the culverin, serpentine, falcon, falconet, etc.[3] It is also thought that the mounted infantryman with his loose coat and the burning match at a gallop resembled the mythical dragon.
The early dragoons were organized not in squadrons or troops like the cavalry, but in companies like the foot soldier, and their officers and non-commissioned officers bore infantry ranks. Dragoon regiments employed drummers in the infantry style, rather than cavalry trumpeters, to communicate orders on the battlefield. The flexibility of mounted infantry made dragoons a useful arm, especially when employed for what would now be termed "internal security" against smugglers or civil unrest, and on line of communication security duties. The dragoon regiments were also cheaper to recruit and maintain than the notoriously expensive regiments of cavalry. When in the 17th century Gustav II Adolf introduced dragoons into the Swedish Army, he provided them with a sabre, an axe and a matchlock musket: many of the European armies henceforth imitated this all-purpose set of weaponry.
However, dragoons were at a disadvantage when engaged against true cavalry, and constantly sought to raise their horsemanship, armament and social status to the levels of the latter. In most European armies "dragoon" did not come to refer to cavalry until after the Napoleonic Wars, in the 1820s. Dragoons also acquired responsibilities for scouting and picket duty which in the French, Austrian, Prussian, and other armies was passing to hussars and other light cavalry corps. In the Imperial Russian Army due to the availability of the cossack troops the dragoons were retained in their original role for much longer.
An exception to the rule was the British Army. In order to cut the state's military budget, all Horse (cavalry) regiments were gradually demoted to the status of Dragoons from 1746 onwards--a change that placed them on a lower pay scale. When this change was completed in 1788, the heavy cavalry regiments had became known as either Dragoon Guards or Heavy Dragoons (depending on their precedence). The designation of Dragoon Guards did not mean that these regiments (the former 2nd to 8th Horse) had become Household Troops, but simply that they had been given a more dignified designation to compensate for the loss of pay and prestige[5]. Starting in 1756, seven regiments of Light Dragoons were raised. These Light Dragoons were trained in reconnaissance, skirmishing and other work requiring endurance in accordance with contemporary standards of light cavalry performance. The success of this new class of cavalry was such that that 8 regular Dragoon regiments were converted to Light Dragoons between 1768 and 1783[6]. .
Austria-Hungarian Dragoons Officers Helmet
During the Napoleonic Wars, dragoons often assumed a cavalry role, though lighter than armored cuirassiers. Dragoons rode larger horses than the light cavalry and wielded straight, rather than curved swords. Emperor Napoleon often formed complete divisions out of his 20 to 30 dragoon regiments and used them as battle cavalry owing to shortage of cavalry mounts, to break the enemy's main resistance.[7] In 1809, French dragoons scored notable successes against Spanish armies at the Battle of Ocana and the Battle of Alba de Tormes. British heavy dragoons made devastating charges against French infantry at the Battle of Salamanca in 1812 and at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
In the Spanish army, in 1635, Pedro de la Puente organized in Innsbruck (Austria) a body of dragoons, and in 1640 one was created in Spain a tercio of a thousand armed dragoons with arqabus. At the end of the 18th century[dubious – discuss] , there were three tercios in Spain, three in the Netherlands, and an other three in the Milan (Italy). In 1704[dubious – discuss], like the rest of the tercios, they were dissolved and transformed into regiments by Felipe V. During the 18th century several regiments of dragoons were created in the Spanish Americas , some of them to function as a police force. In 1803 the regiments of dragoons began to be called light cavalry and by the end of the early 19th century they ultimately disappeared.
In several stages between 1816 and 1861, the 21 existing Light Dragoon regiments in the British Army were disbanded or converted to lancers and hussars.[8].
Between 1881 and 1910 all Russian cavalry (other than Cossacks and Imperial Guard regiments) were designated as dragoons; reflecting an emphasis on dismounted action in their training and a growing acceptance of the impracticality of employing historical cavalry tactics against modern firepower.
Baden dragoon in World War I, with functional Stahlhelm
In 1914 there were still dragoon regiments in the British, French, German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian, Peruvian, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish and Spanish armies. Their uniforms varied greatly, lacking the characteristic features of hussar or lancer regiments. There were occasional reminders of the mounted infantry origins of this class of soldier. Thus the dragoon regiments of the Imperial German Army wore the pickelhaube (spiked helmet) of the same design as those of the infantry and the British dragoons wore scarlet tunics,[9] In other respects however dragoons had adopted the same tactics, roles and equipment as other branches of the cavalry and the distinction had become simply one of traditional titles.
