Lancer


A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used in mounted warfare by the Assyrians as early as and subsequently by Greek, Persian, Gallic, Chinese, and Roman horsemen. The weapon was widely used in Asia and Europe during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance by armoured cavalry, before being adopted by light cavalry in Europe and Central Asia. In a modern context, a lancer regiment usually denotes an armoured unit.

17th, 18th, and 19th century lancers

The lancer had become a common sight in almost every European, Ottoman, and Indian army during this time, but, with the exception of the Ottoman troops, they increasingly discarded the heavy armour to give greater freedom of movement in combat. The Polish "winged" lancers were amongst the last to abandon the armour in Europe. There was debate over the value of the lance in mounted combat during the 18th century and most armies had few lancer units by the beginning of the 19th century.
However, during the Napoleonic Wars, lancers were to be seen in many of the combatant nations as their value in shock tactics became clear. During the wars, the Poles became a ready source of recruitment for several armies, willingly or unwillingly. Polish lancers served with distinction in the Austrian, Prussian, Russian and French armies, most famously in Napoleon's French Imperial Guard as the 1er Regiment de Chevau-Legers-Lanciers de la Garde Impériale.
At the Battle of Waterloo, French lances were "nearly three meters long, weighed three kilograms, and had a steel point on a wooden staff," according to historian Alessandro Barbero. He adds that they were "terrifyingly efficient." Commander of the French 1st Corps, 4th Division General Durutte, who saw the battle from the high ground in front of Papelotte, would write later, "I had never before realized the great superiority of the lance over the sword."
In the Siege of Los Angeles, during the war between Mexico and the United States, a company of Californio lancers temporarily recaptured the town, expelling a company of U.S. Marines.
Although having substantial impact in the charge, lancers could be vulnerable to other cavalry at close quarters, where the lance proved a clumsy and easily deflected weapon when employed against sabres. By the late 19th century, many cavalry regiments in European and Asian armies were composed of troopers with lances, as primary weapons, in the front rank and horsemen with sabres only in the second: the lances for the initial shock and sabres for the subsequent mêlée that would follow suit.

Lancers equipage

Lancers typically wore a double-breasted jacket with a coloured panel at the front, a coloured sash, and a square-topped Polish cap. Their lances usually had small swallow-tailed flags just below the spear head. The pennons were normally removed or wrapped in a canvas cover on active service. With the improved range and accuracy of infantry rifles, the high-profile presented by lancers with their conspicuous weapons became a problem. The ułans or uhlans, as lancers are known in the Polish and German languages respectively, were trained to lower their lances when scouting on hill-tops.

20th century lancers

In 1914, lances were still being carried by regiments in the British, Indian, French, German, Italian,Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, Ottoman, Belgian, Argentinian, and Russian armies, amongst others. Almost all German cavalry retained a steel lance as their primary weapon. As late as 1914, half of the troopers in each Russian regular cavalry regiment carried lances on active service, as did all cossacks.
The British cavalry lost the lance for all but ceremonial use in 1903, following the Boer War; but a conservative backlash led to its reintroduction as an active service weapon from 1909 to 1928.
The French army did not have lancer regiments as such, but steel lances 2.97 metres in length were carried by the twenty-six dragoon regiments and some light cavalry units in 1914. The French had earlier tested the Indian bamboo lances used by the British cavalry, but had rated them as being too fragile for the shock of encounter. The six Italian lancieri regiments still in existence until 1920 carried the 1870 model of ashwood lance, noted for its balance and manageability.
in the uniform of the 15th Uhlan Regiment of Poznań from 1939
Prior to the outbreak of World War I, there had been controversy as to whether lances or sabres were the more effective armes blanches for cavalry, but neither proved a match for modern firearms. Some armies continued to use lances throughout this war, but they seldom saw use on the Western Front after initial clashes in France and Belgium in 1914. On the Eastern Front, mounted cavalry still had a role and lances saw limited use by the Russian, German and Austrian armies.
During the 1920s and 1930s, the use of lances ceased for active service in most armies. British and Indian lancer regiments continued to carry lances on mounted parades, until mechanization took place in the late 1930s. Some other armies retained lance-armed ceremonial units. The Polish cavalry did not discard the lance as a weapon until 1934 or 1937 and continued to use it for training purposes up to the outbreak of World War II.

Current lancer units

Some modern armored cavalry units are still designated as lancer regiments for historical and ceremonial reasons. There are examples in the armies of Spain, United Kingdom, India, Belgium, Portugal, Pakistan, Italy, Australia, Argentina, and Chile.
Although not classified as lancers, the Brazilian Army's Dragões da Independência and the elite soldiers of the Colombian National Army are called Lanceros.
The Portuguese National Republican Guard horse squadrons carry lances on mounted parades, as do many cavalry regiments in South America such as Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru.
The modern Italian Regiment "Lancieri di Montebello" parade detachments armed with the lances carried as combat weapons until 1920.