Mounted infantry wereinfantry who rodehorses instead ofmarching. Unlikecavalry, mounted infantry dismounted to fight on foot. The originaldragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to theEncyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911), "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially mobile infantry."[1] Today, with motor vehicles having replaced horses for military transport, themotorized infantry are in some respects successors to mounted infantry.
The origins of mounted infantry go back to at least the beginnings of organised warfare. With the weight of ancientbronzearmor, the opposingchampions would travel to battle onchariots before dismounting to fight. With the evolution ofhoplite warfare, some hoplites would travel to battle on horseback, before dismounting to take their place in thephalanx. TheDimachae were cavalry units in theMacedonian army who also fought on foot when necessary.[2][3][4] The early pre-MarianRoman military had units consisting of infantrymen clinging to the saddles of the cavalry to take them to battle and then dismounting to fight.Gallic andGermanicwarbands were reported to use double-riders, with a second warrior joining a horseman only for a short distance before dismounting to fight on foot.[citation needed]TheHan dynasty also extensively used mounted infantry in theircampaigns against the Xiongnu confederation.[5] During many of the Han campaigns, the vast majority of the army rode on horseback;either as mounted cavalry or mounted infantry who fought dismounted.The Arabs, during their campaigns in the deserts of Mesopotamia and Syria against the Byzantines andSassanids, used camels to enhance their mobility, marking a stark contrast to their enemies, especially in the desert environment. The Carolingians underCharlemagne also used horses as transport for the bulk of their army, and special care was taken to ensure the health, fodder, and availability of horses on-campaign.Other notable infantry to use horses to enhance their mobility include theGenoese crossbowmen, andViking raiders who wouldgather all the horses they could find in the vicinity of their landings.
Dragoons originally were mounted infantry, who were trained inhorse riding as well as infantryfighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventionallight cavalry units and personnel. Dragoon regiments were established in most European armies during the late 17th century and early 18th century.
The name is possibly derived from a type offirearm (called adragon) carried by dragoons of theFrench Army. There is no distinction between the wordsdragon anddragoon in French.
The title has been retained in modern times by a number ofarmoured or ceremonial mountedregiments.
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With the invention of accurate and quick firing repeating pistols and rifles in the mid-19th century,cavalry started to become increasingly vulnerable. Many armies started to use troops which could either fight on horseback or on foot as circumstances dictated. Fighting on horseback withswords andlances would allow rapid movement without cover fromenemy fire, whilst fighting on foot withpistols andrifles allowed them to make use of cover and to form defensive lines.
The first mounted infantry units were raised during theMexican–American War (as theRegiment of Mounted Riflemen, but redesignated Third Cavalry Regiment in 1861), and others followed, for example in Australia in the 1880s. Terms such as "mounted rifles" or "Light Horse" were often used.
Voltigeurs were a class oflight infantry originally intended toride double with cavalrymen and dismount near the battlefield, although this tactic proved difficult and was seldom used in combat.
TheFrench Foreign Legion usedmule-mounted companies from the 1880s. Each mule was shared by two legionnaires, who took turns in riding it. This arrangement allowed faster and more prolonged marches that could cover 60 mi (97 km) in one day.
In the Western Theater of theAmerican Civil War, several infantry regiments were converted to mounted infantry and armed withrepeating rifles. TheLightning Brigade at theBattle of Chickamauga was an example of these Union mounted infantry units.
In theBritish Army, infantry units in some parts of theBritish Empire had a mounted platoon forscouting andskirmishing. In addition, many locally raised units such as theCeylon Mounted Rifles,Cape Mounted Rifles,Natal Carbineers, andMarshall's Horse fought as mounted infantry.
In theSecond Boer War, the British copied theBoers and raised large forces of their own mounted infantry. Among various ad hoc formations, theImperial Yeomanry was raised from volunteers in Britain between 1900 and 1901. Many of the contingents from Australia, Canada, and New Zealand (e.g. theAustralian Light Horse and theCanadian Mounted Rifles) were MI (mounted infantry), as well as locally raised irregulars like theImperial Light Horse andSouth African Light Horse. As artillery was of limited use against scattered Boer guerrilla bands later in the war, the mounted personnel ofRoyal Artillery units were formed intoRoyal Artillery Mounted Rifles.
As part of the lessons learned from that war, British regular cavalry regiments were armed with the same rifle as the infantry and became well-trained in dismounted tactics. A version of the standard infantry rifle, the shorter-barreledLEC or "Lee-Enfield Cavalry Carbine Mark I" had been introduced in 1896.
Many European armies also usedbicycle infantry in a similar way that mounted infantry used horses. However they were handicapped by the need for proper roads.[6]
The Australian4th Light Horse Brigade which took part in the cavalry charge in theBattle of Beersheba (1917) duringWorld War I are labelled as mounted infantry brigade in popular media; however, they were in fact mounted rifles as were theNew Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade which also took part in this battle. Mounted rifles regiments lack the mass of a mounted infantry battalions, as a light horse brigade could only muster as many rifles in the line as a single battalion. Consequently, their employment reflected this lack of mass, with the tactics seeking to harness greater mobility and fire to overcome opposition, rather than echeloned mass attacks.
Mounted infantry began to disappear with the shift from horses to motor vehicles in the 1920s and 1930s. Germany deployed a few horse-mounted infantry units on theRussian Front during the Second World War,[citation needed] and cyclist units on both fronts as well, and both Germany and Britain (which had used cyclist battalions in the First World War) experimented withmotorcycle battalions. Germany also utilized organic horse and bicycle mounted troops within infantry formations throughout World War Two, although bicycle use increased as Germany retreated into its own territory. Japan deployed cyclists to great effect in its 1941 to 1942 campaign inMalaya and drive onSingapore during World War II. A horsed cavalry regiment of thePhilippine Scouts assisted in the defense of thePhilippines at the onset of World War II. The 10th Mountain Division of the U.S. Army also maintained a mounted reconnaissance troop throughout World War Two, which saw service in Italy and Austria during the war.
Countries with entrenched military traditions, such as Switzerland, retained horse-mounted troops well into theCold War, while Sweden kept much of its infantry on bicycles during the snow-free months.
Instead, the military focus under the Han [...] as well as professional soldiers during his campaigns.
