Harquebusier The most common form of cavalry man found throughout Western Europe during the early and mid 17th century was initially characterised by the use of a form of carbine , called a " harquebus " . In England , harquebusier was the technical name for this type of cavalry . In everyday usage they were usually simply called ' cavalry ' or ' horse ' . In Germany they were often termed " ringerpferd " , or sometimes " reiter " , in Sweden they were called " lätta ryttare " . Development . According to John Cruso in his cavalry manual of 1632 , the harquebusier was " first invented in France . " This type of cavalryman was characterised by the use of a form of carbine , the earliest type of carbine used was called a " " harquebus " " ( a word derived from the heavier infantry weapon , the arquebus ) . In the late 16th century and into the first decades of the following century the harquebusier was envisioned , like the similar and earlier " petronel , " as a support for more heavily armoured cavalry , demi - lancer s or pistol - armed cuirassiers and reiters . Later , towards the mid 17th century , the harquebusier became the standard type of cavalry found throughout western Europe . The switch of the harquebusier from a mounted support role , reliant on firearms , to one of shock - capable close combat cavalry can be attributed to Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden in the 1620s and 1630s . Initially , this was from neccessity ; Sweden was a relatively poor nation and could not afford to equip many expensive cuirassiers , therefore more lightly equipped cavalry had to be employed in a shock role . The success of Swedish cavalry in battle during the Thirty Years War led to other nations adopting their methods . Gustavus Adolphus also reduced the number of ranks in a cavalry formation from the previously usual six to ten , for pistol - based tactics , to three to suit his sword - based shock tactics . The later harquebusier was used in a shock role by cavalry leaders of the English Civil War , such as Prince Rupert of the Rhine and Oliver Cromwell . They employed harquesbusiers very aggressively : charging with sword in hand , thus relegating their firearms to a secondary function . Indeed by the 1620s cavalry not equipped with a carbine could be termed " harquebusiers , " just from the level and style of their armour protection . By the time of the English Civil War all cavalry not equipped as cuirassiers or carrying a lance , the Scots fielded light lancers as late as the 1650s , were called harquebusiers . In the course of the war the cuirassier ceased to be fielded in Britain , and when the cuirassier discarded his limb armour he instantly became indistinguishable from the harquebusier . Equipment . The typical harquebusier would have worn an iron cuirass , with a breast and backplate , and an open faced helmet such as a lobster - tailed pot ; the fashion conscious could replace the helmet with a broad - brimmed felt hat , often worn over a concealed iron skullcap or " secrete " . In England , in 1629 , a harquebusier ' s armour cost one pound and six shillings , that of a cuirassier four pounds and ten shillings . A more wealthy harquebusier may have worn a buff coat ( the finest quality buff coats were often more expensive than an iron cuirass ) under his armour and a metal gauntlet to protect his bridle hand and forearm . Also worn were tall , cuff - topped riding boots ; these reached the thigh and were often also of buff leather . The harquebusier would usually have been armed with a doglock carbine , hung from a swivel attached to a baldric , pistols , either wheellock or flintlock , in saddle holsters and a stout , straight - bladed , sword . The ' dog ' of the doglock was a type of safety - catch , very useful to prevent the unintentional firing of the carbine when on horseback . Records also indicate that some harquebusiers were also armed with a horseman ' s poleaxe or pick , these were hafted weapons with axe or hammer heads and armour - piercing spikes . Organisation . Harquebusiers were organised into troops , and a variable number of troops made up a regiment . The organisation of the cavalry of the New Model Army in England was typical : each troop was ideally composed of 100 cavalrymen , commanded by a captain , with 6 troops making a regiment under a colonel . Regiments were usually named after their colonel , and both the colonel and his second in command , the major or sergeant major , personally led their own troop . When the regimental colonel was also a general or had other duties , a ' stand - in ' termed a lieutenant - colonel was appointed . Numbers of cavalrymen per troop were often lower than the ideal when on campaign and some regiments had more troops than was normal . Prominent commanders also often had a ' lifeguard ' ; Prince Rupert had a 10 troop regiment plus a lifeguard of 150 men , whilst Oliver Cromwell ' s regiment had 14 troops . Tactics . National variation in the battlefield employment of harquebusiers existed . The French tended to retain greater use of firearms , often their harquebusiers would give a volley of carbine and or pistol fire before closing with the sword . The Swedes and Royalist English charged home directly with the sword , not using firearms until the melee . The Parliamentarian cavalry retained the use of firearms in the charge until later in the Civil War , but by the time of the New Model Army had largely adopted the direct charge with the sword . The Royalists , under Prince Rupert ' s direction , began the Civil War using the Swedish three ranks - deep formation but the Parliamentarians retained a six - deep formation until late 1643 or early 1644 . A cavalry unit drawn up in a shallow formation would outflank a similar sized unit arrayed in a deep formation , a considerable tactical advantage . The Swedes and Royalist cavaliers usually charged at speed , the English Parliamentarian Ironsides charged at a slower pace , troopers keeping together knee - to - knee , in order to retain their formation . In England many harquebusiers did not employ a carbine , as is described in " Militaire Discipline " of 1661 : " Many troops and regiments only with sword and pistol armed , their encounterings being not after the ancient manner of firing at a distance and wheeling off , which hath been found to be of dangerous consequence , but to fire at near distance their swords hanging at their wrists by a string , and with their sword points charging through adverse troops . " Demise . The term harquebusier fell out of use gradually , as armour use declined and the ' fully armoured cuirassier ' disappeared . Harquebusiers became part of the undifferentiated " horse " or , in French , " cavalerie " , of the early and mid 18th century . In the British army many cavalry regiments having their origins as units of harquebusiers eventually transformed into dragoon s . In the last two decades of the 17th century use of armour and the buff coat declined and helmets were more definitively replaced by felt hats , and uniform coats were widely adopted . As an example , all items of armour previously employed by the regiment of Oxford Blues ( precursor of the Royal Horse Guards ) were ordered to be put in store in 1688 before the regiment went on active service . The equipment of the harquebusier disappeared at different rates ; the doglock carbine was replaced by the ' true ' flintlock in the late 17th century . Cuirasses fell in and out of fashion during the 18th century before the Napoleonic renaissance of the later type of cuirassier in the first decade of the 19th century . The lobster tailed pot helmet fell out of favour in most countries by 1700 , though the Austrian army retained this type of helmet for its cuirassiers into the 1780s , especially when campaigning against the Turks .