Poland has long been famous for their cavalry. In the last couple
centuries it was the Polish lancers, with their flat-topped Czapka
headgear, that were copied by militaries far and wide. Before that
though, no Polish horsemen were so famous as the fearsome “Winged
Hussars”. The Hussars have long been famous as the elite light cavalry
of the Kingdom of Hungary and they too have been widely copied around
the world.
Poland was influenced as well and in the XVI Century
developed their own hussars, heavily armored and adding some uniquely
Polish innovations. Originally these were modeled after the Serbian and
Hungarian heavy hussars who fought in the employ of the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the dominant Eastern European power of
their day. It was HM Stephan Bathory, King of Poland and Grand Duke of
Lithuania who reformed the Polish hussars and made them the preeminent
elite unit of the Polish-Lithuanian army, first as part of his royal
guard and then expanding them further throughout the army.
Their
most famous attribute was their “wings”, wooden frames affixed first to
their saddles and later to the back of their armor and decorated with
feathers. These gave the Polish cavalry a very distinctive appearance
and they quickly gained a great deal of notoriety, both by their
appearance and their heroic record of success, proving critical in one
victorious battle after another. Aside from the psychological impact of
their intimidating appearance, the “wings” had a more practical benefit.
When a mass of cavalry charged the “wings” would cause a loud
clattering noise that caused the enemy to exaggerate their number and
thus, combined with their appearance, greatly lowered the morale of
their enemies. In battle after battle the Winged Hussars proved so
successful, often defeating superior enemy forces, that the cavalry
became the backbone of the Polish-Lithuanian army, outnumbered the less
costly infantry by a considerable margin. Probably their most famous
engagement was at the siege of Vienna when the Polish army arrived, the
Winged Hussars leading the way, descending on the battlefield like a
heavenly host to break the seemingly invincible Ottoman siege and
probably saving Europe from Turkish domination.
The
Polish hussars were heavily armored and carried a lance (the only
equipment provided by the King), a stabbing sword, a traditional cavalry
saber and sometimes firearms. Their primary tactic was, of course, the
charge, starting in a rather open formation (which helped cut down
casualties to enemy projectiles) and then concentrating as they
approached the enemy line to strengthen their impact when they came
crashing through. Their horses were a special breed, mixing Polish and
eastern bloodlines to create a very sturdy and nimble animal and they
were very practical in their equipment, adopting what worked best from
any source. Eventually, the day of armored cavalry came to an end but,
as stated earlier, Polish lancers continued to be the standard by which
other cavalry forces were judged and the legacy of the Winged Hussars
remained strong, even being used as the symbol for the First Polish
Armored Division of World War II. They remain a source of pride for the
Polish people, and justly so.
