Horses in warfare

As formal cavalry tactics replaced the chariot, so did new training methods, and by 360 BC, the Greek cavalry officer Xenophon had written an extensive treatise on horsemanship.

Chariot tactics had been the basis for using the horse in war.

Europeans used several types of war horses in the Middle Ages, and the best-known heavy cavalry warrior of the period was the armoured knight.

The lords trusted the knights, who were skilled in battle on horseback.

The earliest evidence of horses ridden in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC.

In ancient times chariot warfare was followed by the use of war horses as light and heavy cavalry.

Light, oriental horses such as the ancestors of the modern Arabian, Barb, and Akhal-Teke were used for warfare that required speed, endurance and agility.

The Arabian also developed the high spirit and alertness needed in a horse used for raiding and war.

The effectiveness of horses in battle was also revolutionized by improvements in technology, including the invention of the saddle, the stirrup, and later, the horse collar.

As a tool allowing expanded use of horses in warfare, the stirrup is often called the third revolutionary step in equipment, after the chariot and the saddle.

By the Middle Ages, larger horses in this class were sometimes called destriers. During the European Middle Ages, there were three primary types of war horses: The destrier, the courser, and the rouncey, which differed in size and usage.

The destrier is the best-known war horse of the medieval era.

The Scythians were among the earliest cultures to produce taller, heavier horses.

This was the original horse used for early chariot warfare, raiding, and light cavalry. An ancient manual on the subject of training riding horses, particularly for the Ancient Greek cavalry is Hippike (On Horsemanship) written about 360 BC by the Greek cavalry officer Xenophon.

cheval 'horse') or horsemen are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback.

Breeds at the smaller end of the heavyweight category may have included the ancestors of the Percheron, agile for their size and physically able to manoeuvre in battle.

They were originally bred for use as war horses.

The effectiveness of horses in battle was also revolutionized by improvements in technology, including the invention of the saddle, the stirrup, and later, the horse collar.

This invention gave great support for the rider, and was essential in later warfare.

Horses were well suited to the warfare tactics of the nomadic cultures from the steppes of Central Asia.

The nomadic lifestyle was well suited to warfare, and the steppe horse riders became some of the most militarily potent people in the world, limited only by their lack of internal unity.

The earliest tools used to control horses were bridles of various sorts, which were invented nearly as soon as the horse was domesticated.

Use of horses spread across Eurasia for transportation, agricultural work and warfare.

In the European Middle Ages, a lightweight war horse became known as the rouncey. During the European Middle Ages, there were three primary types of war horses: The destrier, the courser, and the rouncey, which differed in size and usage.

They were used for riding, but could also be trained for war.

To move quickly, riders had to use lightweight tack and carry relatively light weapons such as bows, light spears, javelins, or, later, rifles.

The invention of stirrups was of great historic significance in mounted combat, giving the rider secure foot support while on horseback.

Europeans used several types of war horses in the Middle Ages, and the best-known heavy cavalry warrior of the period was the armoured knight.

As a tool allowing expanded use of horses in warfare, the stirrup is often called the third revolutionary step in equipment, after the chariot and the saddle.

These unified groups included the Huns, who invaded Europe, and under Attila, conducted campaigns in both eastern France and northern Italy, over 500 miles apart, within two successive campaign seasons.

M. Snædal, in a paper that rejects the Germanic derivation but notes the problems with the existing proposed Turkic etymologies, argues that Attila's name could have originated from Turkic-Mongolian at, adyy/agta (gelding, warhorse) and Turkish atli (horseman, cavalier), meaning "possessor of geldings, provider of warhorses".

They may have resembled modern Baroque or heavy warmblood breeds.

Historically, the destrier was a war horse.

Geldings were used in war by the Teutonic Knights, and known as "monk horses" (German Mönchpferde or Mönchhengste).

They valued geldings as war horses because they were quiet, lacked mating urges, were less prone to call out to other horses, were easier to keep in groups, and were less likely to fight with one another.

Evidence of bit wear appears on the teeth of horses excavated at the archaeology sites of the Botai culture in northern Kazakhstan, dated 3500–3000 BC.

Throughout history, the need for control of horses in warfare drove extensive innovation in bit design, producing a variety of prototypes and styles over the centuries, from Ancient Greece into modern-day use.

Muslim warriors relied upon light cavalry in their campaigns throughout North Africa, Asia, and Europe beginning in the 7th and 8th centuries AD.

During the European Middle Ages, there were three primary types of war horses: The destrier, the courser, and the rouncey, which differed in size and usage.

A courser is a swift and strong horse, frequently used during the Middle Ages as a warhorse.

Later texts, such as the Mahābhārata, c. 950 BC, appear to recognise efforts taken to breed war horses and develop trained mounted warriors, stating that the horses of the Sindhu and Kamboja regions were of the finest quality, and the Kambojas, Gandharas, and Yavanas were expert in fighting from horses.

This animal was later adapted through selective breeding to create a strong but rideable animal suitable for the heavily armored knight in warfare.

In Europe, horses were also used to a limited extent to maneuver cannons on the battlefield as part of dedicated horse artillery units.

An ancient manual on the subject of training riding horses, particularly for the Ancient Greek cavalry is Hippike (On Horsemanship) written about 360 BC by the Greek cavalry officer Xenophon.

Pitched battles were avoided if possible, with most offensive warfare in the early Middle Ages taking the form of sieges, and in the later Middle Ages as mounted raids called chevauchées, with lightly armed warriors on swift horses.