The Carabiniers-à-Cheval ( French for Horse Carabiniers or Mounted Carabiniers) were mounted troops in the service of France. Their origins date back to the mid-16th century, when they were created as elite elements of the French

light cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was primarily rai ...

, armed with

carbines A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges. The smaller size and lighte ...

but then gradually evolved towards semi-independent status during the 18th century. They only became independent units as late as 1788, when a two-regiment

heavy cavalry Heavy cavalry was a class of cavalry intended to deliver a battlefield charge and also to act as a Military reserve, tactical reserve; they are also often termed ''shock cavalry''. Although their equipment differed greatly depending on the re ...

corps was created. From the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

onwards, they were the senior heavy cavalry regiments in the French army, rose to prominence during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

and were disbanded in 1871, after the fall of the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Empire, Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the French Second Republic, Second and the French Third Republic ...

Ancien Régime

The French carabiniers are first mentioned at the battle of Neerwinden in 1693 commanded by

Prince de Conti The title of Prince of Conti (French: ''prince de Conti'') was a French noble title, assumed by a cadet branch of the princely house of Bourbon-Condé. History The title derives its name from Conty, a small town in northern France, c. 35 k ...

. Although their original role was that of a mounted police similar to the

Gendarmes Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to "men-at-arms" (literally, " ...

, as combat troops they were first took the form of separate companies within each cavalry regiments on 29 October 1691 under

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

. Only later was an independent regiment or ''cavalerie de reserve'' established in 1693 under the command of Duc du Maine. However at that time all French cavalry other than the gendarmes were called light cavalry, and their first name was ''Corps royal des carabiniers'', organised by brigading of four squadrons commanded by a lieutenant-colonel. The Corps was enlarged to ten squadrons by the start of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. Their depot was in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, where it remained for a century. On 13 May 1758 the Corps was renamed ''Royal carabiniers de monsieur le Comte de Provence''. By 1762 the Corps was enlarged to five brigades of thirty squadrons, but was reduced to two regiments in 1788.

Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

Géricault - Portrait de carabinier - Louvre

The 1st and 2nd Carabiniers-à-Cheval were created in 1787, as regiments of

. They participated with distinction to the

and

. Their uniform was described by the ''Etat militaire de l'an X'' (1802): "National blue costume and scarlet lapels, blue collar, bearskin hat, yellow bandolier and belt, with white plait on the edges. Horse equipage: saddle ''à la française'', blue cover with white plait on the edges, a grenade in the corners, the ornaments of the bridle stamped with a grenade."Fierro, Alfredo; Palluel-Guillard, André; Tulard, Jean – ''Histoire et Dictionnaire du Consulat et de l'Empire'', Éditions Robert Laffont, , pp. 593–594. Before 1810 the Carabiniers-à-Cheval did not wear a

cuirass A cuirass (; french: cuirasse, la, coriaceus) is a piece of armour that covers the torso, formed of one or more pieces of metal or other rigid material. The word probably originates from the original material, leather, from the French '' cuira ...

Cuirass holed by a canonball at Waterloo Antoine Fauveau 18Juin 1815

The decree of 24 December 1809 altered the uniform of the carabiniers: white costume, double steel cuirass (breastplate and backplate) covered with brass sheathing (copper for officers), helmet with a peak and which covered the back of the neck, with a golden-yellow copper crest decorated with a chenille made of scarlet bristle. Their armament included a

carbine A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges. The smaller size and lighter ...

, a sabre (straight-bladed before c. 1811, then ''"a la Montmorency"'' – with a very slight curve) and a pair of pistols.

19th Century

Carabiniers were again raised in the form of two regiments by 1824, with their distinctive style of helmet being temporarily adopted by the cuirassiers also. The Carabiniers were present in Paris in June 1848 for the creation of the Republic when nine regiments were brought in to maintain peace, the first time in 200 years that carabiniers were again serving as

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...

. From 1852 the Carabiniers were a part of the Army of the Second French Empire, but did not serve in the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

. They saw service again in 1870 as a single regiment, but now as part of the Imperial Guard. Following the Franco-Prussian War the Carabiniers were amalgamated with the 11th Cuirassier regiment on 4 February 1871. The 1-11e Régiment de Cuirassiers of the modern French Army can accordingly trace its origin, in part, to the 19th Century Carabiniers. By coincidence the present day regiment is stationed in Carpiagne within

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

, once the domain of their former commander.
Cartographie des unités de l'armée de Terre stationnées en Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur

Units

* 1e Régiment des Carabinier * 2ème Régiment des Carabinier

Uniform evolution

File:1Cav Carabiniers 1757.png, Uniform of the Regiment ″Carabiniers cavalerie″ as of 1757 File:Pascal Frankreich Tafel2.jpg, Pre-

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

Carabinier-à-cheval (1787). File:Napoleon Carabinier of 1810 by Bellange.jpg, Trooper of the Carabiniers-à-cheval in pre-1809 uniform. File:Napoleon Carabiner of 1812 by Bellange.jpg, Trooper of the Carabiniers-à-cheval in post-1809 uniform File:Gros-General Lariboisière and his son.jpg, General Lariboisière and his son, an officer of the Carabinier-à-cheval who died during the

battle of Borodino The Battle of Borodino (). took place near the village of Borodino on during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. The ' won the battle against the Imperial Russian Army but failed to gain a decisive victory and suffered tremendous losses. Napoleon ...

. File:Bellangé--Carabinier-Restauration.jpg, Carabiniers-à-Cheval, Bourbon Restauration, 1815-1830. File:Carabinier-à-cheval - Second Empire - Edouard Detaille.jpg, Carabiniers-à-Cheval,

, 1852-1870.

Ancien Régime

Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

19th Century

Units

Uniform evolution

References

See also