Cavalry

It is difficult to use words with modern meaning to discuss the uniforms of the Commonwealth cavalry from the 16^th C. to the start of the 18^th C. We can describe their uniforms^viii, or more accurately, certain unifying aspects of external appearance within or among a set of rota or banners. Zamoyski completed Batory’s reforms with a complete set of regulations for arming the ‘comrades’ (towarzyszy or knights) and fighting-retainers (pocztowych)^ix. The result is documented in the 1605^x Stockholm Roll and also in a grand entrance into Rome by Sebastian Cefali^xi, Jerzy Lubomirski’s secretary of Polish troops in the second half of the 17^th C. including the hussars and pancerni cossacks. “The Gentry (szlachta) are not dressed nor armed alike and everything depends on the difference.” (??) Some march in ranks before and some behind the musicians. The 17^th C. Hussar armor, despite certain insignificant differences, are substantially of uniform type for any given period’s army. Numerous examples of such armors exist in museums in Poland, enough to demonstrate this fact. This armor type with its distinctive set of major pieces, lamina, decorative rivets, decorative edging, and even prominent emblems on the breast of the knight’s cross and of Mary and the Immaculate Conception exists throughout 17^th to the start of the 18^th C. The helmet (szyszak) was more individual but still followed uniform trends.

Pelts of lynx, wolf, jaguar, even lion and bear, were a few of the typical cloaks and saddle kilims (heavy woven textile, light rug or pad), shown on the 1605 Stockholm Roll. They presented a certain discrimination of military tastes. Dyakowski^xii, courtier of Jan III Sobieski, wrote that ‘while colonels bore rough sheep-skin cloaks, comrades wore skins of leopard.’ Comrades wore cloaks of exotic furs such as tiger, leopard, lion and lynx. Retainers wore wolf cloaks in the 18^th C.^xiii Starowolski indicates that pennants for the kopia-lance were uniform for all riders in a hussar banner, but different for each individual banner. It is possible to quote many examples. The first example is of the earliest hussars, when they served more as light cavalry; a banner of lancers is shown in a picture of the battle of Orszą^xiv 1514. The force of lancers with the Marshall of the Crown escorting cardinal Henry Gaetano (the papal Nuncio) went with red pennons on the kopia -lances in procession, described by Gaetano in 1595.^xv

In other documents in 1628 Starowolski^xvi wrote ‘that flags of various colors distinguished between the several regiments and banners. In p. De Guebriant description of the entrance to Warsaw of Queen Mary Gonzaga and the ladies of her court in 1645, we read that 100 Pancerni “Cossacks” (Retinue of Prince Stanisława Albrecht, Chancellor of Lithuania) rode under red banners on which Albrecht’s coat of arms (herb) was embroidered in silk.^xvii Cefali^xviii tells that in 1665 “banners of hussars are distinguished by the color of their pennants and wooden kopi (lances). Above all, these squads of Commonwealth cavalry were characterized by homogeneous color uniform żupans. This was noted not only by Starowolski. Sufficient other references exist so that we can be sure that this is not a unique case, but is customary. For example a poem by Stryjkowski describing a 1574^xix scene about the travel of Henry Walezjusz to Krakow: “Pan Czechowski had three hundred men in scarlet, with pennants flying in golden brilliance”.

Pennants flew from the kopia (lances) carried by hussars, such as those escorting Zygmunt III in 1592, “a banner of 150 hussars in uniform navy blue with eagle wings, with kopia, and white and blue crests....a further 150 hussars in crimson with tiger fur cloaks, and eagle wings.... The King’s banner of 50, with green and red velvet and silk satin dress, shining gold and with decorative eagle wings.^xx In 1596 in a procession of Zygmunt III, who left Warsaw on 22 November to meet cardinal Henry Gaetano^xxi, envoy of Pope Clemens VIII, a hussar unit of 12 riders wore cloaks of black velvet with impressive wings fastened to the rear of the saddle. A second body of 12 hussar retainers rode in green velvet coats with edges embroidered in gold and silver; presenting their long kopia with “fluttering pennants in crimson and yellow kathy silk (thin satin)”. The rearguard royal banner included 50 knights dressed in black with black pennons, with appliqué golden snakes".^xxii Black cloaks were worn as a sign of mourning for Anna Jagiello, who died September 9 of the same year.

This author writes, that “out of respect, their master ordered the new uniforms for the courtiers, Polish style, all on horses. Fifty lancers of the Marshall of the Crown flew red pennons on their kopia”. In 1605 at Cracow in a procession of Zygmunt III to his wedding, the Stockholm roll^xxiii shows units of hussars dressed in homogeneous colored żupans, unfortunately, we can not now tell how widely this practice extended^xxiv. Gustavus Adolphus said in 1626 in Prussia about his soldiers, that they can be a match for “red kaftans (‘Rothrócke’) and Cossacks” (pancerni ) ²³.

In every case in the 17^th C. There existed a type of men's apparel called: ‘usarka’, as recorded in 1653 when Katarzyna Lipowca Dydyński willed to her brother Norbert Lipowski, her deceased husband’s “usarke of crimson velvet and golden buttons. ^xxv

It is possible to ascertain from the available materials only what applies to royal or magnate’s units for parades. There existed units of homogeneously clothed hussars and other Polish cavalry, but the extent is difficult to ascertain in today's state of factual knowledge. Fredry’s comment is characteristic, that “lieutenants and Comrades do not give their lackeys fine Flanders cloth. Only buckthorn and sheepskin coats in winter. It would be very desirable for researchers to further study archives on the question of Commonwealth military clothes in the 17^th C.^xxvi

Records mentioning clothes provide some insight on lighter cavalry²⁴, such as cossacks, or pancerni, for example in 1645 de Guebriant wrote about some magnate sponsored units. But memoirs written with astonishing care for details regarding organization have little on the arming and outfitting of individual units. In this regard certainly none can fault the ladies of the court of queen Mary Gonzaga about this. They had a healthy interest in material goods and appearances. So, according to their letters, Prince Janusz Radziwiłł was accompanied by 501 Lithuanian cossacks, dressed in hand-embroidered green silk, covered by the mail armor ‘shirt’. 100 others were in scarlet dress with the same armor. Castelian Lanckoroński’s 50 cossacks were dressed in dark-yellow (‘iza-belowo’) with crimson; armed with carbines (bandolety). 100 Cossacks of Marshall Opaliński, helmets, steel armor with coats covering then, “with sleeves of red”; probably, these were the żupans showing.

During a embassy to Pope Urban VIII in 1633 Jerzy Ossoliński representing King Władysław IV sent “30 beautifully kitted out riders armed with carbines and muskets, they represented a distinguished guard for the envoy, dressed to uniforms of rose-colored silk, set off with gold fastenings and toped with white feathers”. More is said about the unit of arquebusers.^xxvii

Light cavalry details are sparse. It is possible to assume that the greatest amount of diversification occurred in this branch of the cavalry here, with various nationalities ( Polish, Wallachian and Tatar ) and varying wealth of individual men. Dębołęcki wrote: “Eleary to the fore released... Flowers Leopold for various colored dye for the clothing. so some will fall”.^xxviii

From the above quoted examples we conclude that red in different hues was the typical uniform color of Commonwealth cavalry at the end of the 16^th C. and in first half 17th, with the appearance of other colors such as navy blue, green, light blue and even (during periods of court mourning) black.