Uhlan

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Uhlan (/ˈuːlɑːn, ˈjuːlən/; French: uhlan; German: Ulan;^[1] Lithuanian: ulonas; Polish: ułan) is a type of light cavalry, primarily armed with a lance.^[2] The uhlans started as Lithuanian irregular cavalry,^[3] that were later also adopted also by other countries during the 18th century, including Poland, France, Russia, Prussia, Saxony, and Austria-Hungary. The term "lancer" was often used interchangeably with "uhlan"; the lancer regiments later formed for the British Army were directly inspired by the uhlans of other armies (even though they were never known by that name).

Uhlans traditionally wore a double-breasted short-tailed jacket with a coloured plastron panel at the front, a coloured sash, and a square-topped Polish lancer cap (rogatywka, also called czapka).^[4] This cap or cavalry helmet was derived from a traditional Polish cap design, formalised and stylised for military use.^[4] Their lances were traditionally topped with a small, swallow-tailed flag (pennon) just below the spearhead.^[4]