Medieval History Term of the Week: Hobelar

Hobelar (or Hobilar)

1) Lightly armed cavalrymen, Irish in origin. First appeared in Edward I’s reign in his Scottish wars.
(Prestwich, Michael. Armies and Warfare in the Middle Ages: The English Experience, 348)

2) Light horseman armed with knife, sword, and lance. Hobelars were used for reconnoitring and combat, in which they dismounted to fight with the infantry.
(Waugh, Scott. England in the Reign of Edward III, 238)

*term definition retrieved from Netserf’s Medieval Glossary (http://www.netserf.org/Glossary)

Filed under: Middle Ages History, Medieval Glossary, Medieval History on April 24th, 2009

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4 Responses to “Medieval History Term of the Week: Hobelar”

  1. Michael Rhian Driscoll, on April 24th, 2009 at 11:11 am Said:

    so….hobelar is an early form of the classic dragoon?

  2. stevent, on April 24th, 2009 at 11:30 am Said:

    I would say that is a fair comparison, yes. Both units were light cavalry that would often dismount to fight as infantry. I’ve been playing this PC game “Medieval Total War” lately. Addicting game, but they have hobelars available during the 11th century, a bit too early for my taste, and you cannot have them dismount to fight with the infantry.

  3. Alexander Field, on April 25th, 2009 at 10:47 am Said:

    Thanks for the history term! Great idea by the way…especially for writers of history of fiction! I love that idea. Have a great day!

  4. stevent, on April 27th, 2009 at 8:53 am Said:

    Thanks, Alexander. I’m glad it’s useful. Thanks for stopping by my site! Come back and comment often.

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