Pandur

The Pandurs were any of several light infantry military units beginning with Trenck's Pandurs, used by the Kingdom of Hungary from 1741, fighting in the War of the Austrian Succession and the Silesian Wars. Others to follow included Vladimirescu's Pandurs, a militia established by Tudor Vladimirescu in the Wallachian uprising of 1821, Pandurs of the Croatian Military Frontier, a frontier guard infantry unit deployed in the late 18^th century, Pandurs of the Kingdom of Dalmatia, a frontier guard infantry unit deployed in the 19^th century. In the second half of the 18^th century the Republic of Venice used pandurs as a local militia to fight bandits in the Dalmatia area.^[1]

In early 19^th Century Wallachia, being a Pandur was a fixed, legally recognized social status - whether or not one was a member of a specific military unit. This social condition had a considerable bearing on the central role played by Pandurs in the Wallachian uprising of 1821.

Two armoured personnel carriers made by the Austrian company Steyr-Daimler-Puch are named after the historical Austrian units: the Pandur I 6x6, and Pandur II 8x8.

Four ships have also shared a namesake of Pandur units. The first was a ship of the French Navy, Pandour, renamed HMS Pandora after its capture by the Royal Navy in 1795. The additional British ships were named HMS Pandour.

Pandurs was also the name for the armed guard units of the Rila Monastery in Ottoman-ruled Bulgaria. In the 19th century, the Rila Monastery Pandurs numbered around 40 and they were headed by Ilyo Voyvoda at one point.^[2]

In Croatia and Serbia, pandur is a slang term for a policeman.