Reiter

They were originally recruited in the North German Plain, west of the Oder river at the time of the Schmalkaldic War (1546–1547).

A Reiter's main weapons were two or more pistols and a sword; most Reiters wore helmets and cuirasses and often additional armor for the arms and legs; sometimes they also carried a long cavalry firearm known as an arquebus or a carbine (although this type of horsemen soon became regarded as a separate class of cavalry—the arquebusier or in England as the harquebusier).

In the 16th century and up to about 1620, Reiters often formed up in deep blocks and used their firearms in a caracole attack in the hopes of disordering enemy infantry before charging home and engaging in hand-to-hand combat.

During the late 17th century, Reiters gradually merged into generic cavalry regiments and were no longer seen as a distinct class of horsemen.

The designation Reiter did however survive until 1918 as part of the title of one of the two Saxon heavy cavalry regiments: Königlich-Sächsisches Gardereiter-Regiment.