The Östergötland Cavalry Regiment ( sv, Östgöta kavalleriregemente) was a

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was merged with another unit to form a new regiment in 1791. The regiment's soldiers were recruited from the province of

Östergötland Östergötland (; English exonym: East Gothland) is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish) in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland and the Baltic Sea. In older English li ...

History

The regiment has its origins in fänikor (companies) raised in Östergötland in the 16th century. In 1619, these units—along with fänikor from the nearby

Jönköping County Jönköping County ( sv, Jönköpings län) is a county or '' län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The total county population was 356,291 inhabitants in Sept ...

—were organised by

Gustav II Adolf Gustavus Adolphus (9 December ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 19 December15946 November ld Style and New Style dates, N.S 16 November1632), also known in English as Gustav II Adolf or Gustav II Adolph, was King of Sweden from 1611 to ...

into

Östergötlands storregemente ''Östergötlands storregemente'' or ''Landsregementet i Östergötland'' (Östergötland Grand Regiment, Regiment of the Land in Östergötland) was one of the nine grand regiments organized by Gustavus Adolphus in the late 1610s and split into ...

. Sometime between 1623 and 1628, the grand regiment was permanently split into three smaller regiments, of which Östergötland Cavalry Regiment was one. The regiment was officially raised in 1636 although it had existed since the 1620s. Östergötland Cavalry Regiment was one of the original 8

Swedish cavalry This is a list of Swedish cavalry regiments, battalions, corps and companies that have existed in the Swedish Army. They are listed in three ways, first by the actual units that have existed, then by the various names these units have had, and la ...

regiments mentioned in the

Swedish constitution The Basic Laws of Sweden ( sv, Sveriges grundlagar) are the four constitutional laws of the Kingdom of Sweden that regulate the Swedish political system, acting in a similar manner to the constitutions of most countries. These four laws are: th ...

of 1634. The regiment's first commander was Hans Rotkirch. It was allotted in 1687. Östgöta Cavalry Regiment was merged with

Östergötland Infantry Regiment The Östergötland Infantry Regiment ( sv, Östgöta infanteriregemente) was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was merged with another unit to form a new regiment, the Life Grenadier Regiment, i ...

in 1791 to form the Life Grenadier Regiment. The reorganisation and renaming to a "life grenadier" title of honour was conducted in regard to the regiment's achievements during

Gustav III's Russian War Gustav, Gustaf or Gustave may refer to: *Gustav (name), a male given name of Old Swedish origin Art, entertainment, and media * ''Primeval'' (film), a 2007 American horror film * ''Gustav'' (film series), a Hungarian series of animated short cart ...

. Östgöta Cavalry Regiment was renamed to ''Livgrenadjärregementets rusthållsdivision'' and retained some form of semi-independence.

Organisation

;1634(?) * Livkompaniet *Överstelöjtnantens kompani *Majorens kompani *Vadstena kompani *Vifolka kompani *Skänninge kompani *Västanstångs kompani *Tjusts kompani ;17?? *Livkompaniet *Tjusts kompani *Linköpings kompani *Västanstångs kompani *Bergslags kompani *Vifolka Klosters kompani *Skänninge kompani *Vadstena kompani

Name, designation and garrison

References

;Print * * * * * ;Online * * * *

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ostergotland Cavalry Regiment Cavalry regiments of the Swedish Army Disbanded units and formations of Sweden Military units and formations established in 1636 Military units and formations disestablished in 1791

History

Organisation

Name, designation and garrison

See also

References

Notes