Napoleon inherited two French carabinier regiments of heavy cavalry (the two most senior cavalry regiments in the army), which gained some prestige in his wars.

4.2 Spanish Carabineros under the Monarchy and RepublicĬarabiniers differed from army to army and over time, but typically were medium cavalry, similar in armament and tactical role to dragoons.

Today, the term is used by some countries in Military, Law Enforcement, and Gendarmerie roles. In Italy and Spain, carbines were considered suitable equipment for soldiers with policing roles, so the term carabinier evolved to sometimes denote gendarmes and border guards. Light infantry sometimes carried carbines because they are less encumbering when moving rapidly, especially through vegetation, but in most armies the tendency was to equip light infantry with longer-range weapons such as rifles rather than shorter-range weapons such as carbines. The carbine was considered a more appropriate firearm for a horseman than a full-length musket, since it was lighter and easier to handle while on horseback. Historically, carabiniers were generally (but not always) horse soldiers. The word is derived from the identical French word carabinier. Carabiniers were first introduced in the late 17th century and were commonplace by the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe. A carbiniere is a carabiniere musket or rifle. Spanish Carabiniers in the Pyrenees, 1892.Ī carabinier (also sometimes spelled carabineer or carbineer) is in principle a soldier armed with a carbine.

Arma 3 napoleonic wars