A carabinier (also sometimes spelled carabineer or carbineer) is in principle a soldier armed with a carbine, musket, or rifle, which became commonplace by the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe.Chandler, David G. (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York: Macmillan. . The word is derived from the identical French word carabinier.
Historically, carabiniers were generally (but not always) horse soldiers. The carbine was considered a more appropriate firearm for a horseman than a full-length musket, since it was shorter in length, weighed less, and was easier to manipulate on horseback. 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. 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.
Today, the term is used by some countries in military, law enforcement, and gendarmerie roles.
Background Carabiniers differed from army to army and over time, but typically were medium cavalry, similar in armament and tactical role to dragoons.
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. In 1810, French Carabiniers were equipped like cuirassiers, with helmets and cuirasses (though these were of brass and brass-skinned iron), and they were no longer issued carbines . The French army has no carabinier regiments today. The British army raised regiments of carabiniers in the late 17th century. The descendants of one such regiment survived as the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) until 1971, when it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Greys. Accordingly, no regiment bears the title today, although the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards are sub-titled "Carabiniers and Greys".
Italy has a famous force of carabiniers, a gendarmerie known by the Italian name Carabinieri. Chile also has a force of gendarme carabiniers, the Carabineros de Chile, and the National Police of Colombia has mobile road-based units called Mobile Carabinier Squadrons. The Belgian Land Component includes a Regiment des Carabiniers, which saw service against the German invaders in August 1914 still dressed in its 19th century uniform complete with a form of top hat. The Spanish Army formerly maintained a corps of Carabineros who served as frontier guards. This force was, however, disbanded following the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 and replaced by units of the Civil Guard.
Infantry Carabiniers The use of carabinier to refer to infantry troops comes from the French light infantry battalions of 1794, where it denoted troops of the elite company known as grenadiers in line infantry.Knötel, p. 86.
Other infantry units with the title of carabiniers included: The military of Monaco includes an infantry unit called the Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince, which has been active since at least 1817. In the Imperial Russian Army during the Napoleonic Wars, the sections on the right flank of yeger battalions deployed in line were called carabiniers. Quite apart from the elite yeger platoons, foot carabinier regiments existed for a brief time after 12 February 1816 when the six grenadier-yeger Regiments were renamed as carabiniers. These included the oldest regular infantry regiment in the Russian Army, the Yerivan Leib-Grenadier regiment as the former 7th Carabinier Regiment.Andreyev, p. 17. Foot Carabinier regiments were renamed rifles () in 1857 following the Crimean War. Bavarian Volunteer Jäger Corps in 1813Stein 2007
The Belgian ChasseursKnötel, pp. 40-41. included an infantry Regiment des Carabiniers, which saw service against the German Army in August 1914 still dressed in its 19th century uniform complete with a form of top hat. Following a merger in 1992, the unit became the Regiment Carabiniers Prins Boudewijn – Grenadiers. Waldeck, Lippe-Detmold, Shaumburg-Lippe contingents in the 2nd battalion, 6th Rheinbund Regiment of the Confederation of the Rhine.Knötel, p. 212; see also "von Pivka", Armies of 1812 Nassau 2nd Light Infantry Regiment Legion Irlandaise (Irish Legion) in French servicepp.172-173, Dempsey; also known as the Regiment Irlandais or the 3eme Regiment Etranger Westphalian voltigeurs-carabiniers created by Jérôme Bonaparte, and after 1811 renamed Jäger Carabinier d'EliteKnötel, pp. 241-242. Papal States Carabinieri indigeni formed from Italian recruits, and Carabinieri esteri formed from foreign recruitsKnötel, p. 292. Kingdom of Italy under Viceroy Eugène de Beauharnais (1805–1814) had Velites Carabiniers of the Guard.Knötel, p.299. One of the three light infantry battalions of the reorganised Royal Spanish Army in 1812 was called Carabiniers.Funcken & Funcken 1984, p. 114.
Mounted Carabiniers
Royal Spanish carabineros
Although the Spanish Crown was the first to raise carbine armed cavalry regiments, the Spanish Army is not known for its cavalry carabiniers. The la Brigada de Carabineros Reales, though dressed as hussars,pp.39-40, Torres did however participate in several of Spain's wars, including the Peninsular War against Napoleon (part of the Napoleonic Wars), where they distinguished themselves at Sepúlveda (28 November 1808), along with the Alcántara and Montesa cavalry regiments, against Lasalle's French 10th Chasseurs à cheval and 9th Dragoons. One notable officer serving with the brigade was Carlos María de Alvear. The regiment, along with the cavalry of the Spanish Royal Guard, was reformed at Valladolid by General Gregorio García de la Cuesta by which time they were numbered scarcely more than a squadron, and were given the pick of some 5,000 volunteers.p.149, Fernández They later participated in the Carlist Wars, notably at Bilbao.pp.273-305, De La Calle See also the separate section on the frontier guard Carabineros of the Spanish Army below.
French Carabiniers-à-Cheval
In 1690, one company of carabiniers was maintained in each regiment of the French army's cavalry. Their duties were analogous to those of grenadiers in infantry regiments: scouting, detached work, and, in general, all duties requiring special activity and address. They fought mounted and dismounted alike, and even took part in siege warfare in the trenches. The French carabiniers were mentioned at the battle of Neerwinden in 1693 commanded by Prince de Conti.p.280, Jasinski Although their original role was that of a mounted police similar to the Gendarmes, as combat troops they first took the form of separate companies within each cavalry regiments on 29 October 1691 under Louis XIV. Only later was an independent regiment or cavalerie de reserve established in 1693 under the command of Duc du Maine.p.44, d'Alméras However at that time all French cavalry other than the gendarmes were called light cavalry,Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 85 and their first name was Corps royal des carabiniers, organised by brigadingin this case the word brigade refers to a unit of regimental size of four squadrons commanded by a lieutenant-colonel.p.137, Le Bas; Knötel p.92 says they were first known as Regiment Royal de Carabiniers
The Corps was enlarged to ten squadrons by the start of the Seven Years' War. Their depot was in Strasbourg, where it remained for a century. On 13 May 1758, the Corps was renamed Royal carabiniers de monsieur le Comte de Provence.p.137, Le Bas By 1762, the Corps was enlarged to five brigades of thirty squadrons, but was reduced to two regiments in 1788.p.92, Knotel However, the events of the French Revolution affected all of the French Army and the cavalry Arm in particular, and the carabiniers were reduced to two regiments of four squadrons each,Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 87, the regiments were at one time in a fit of Revolutionary fervour reduced to the 22nd and 22nd-bis Cavalry regiments later serving in the Army of the Rhine.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 93 The regiments retained their distinctive bearskin headwear until 1810 when it was replaced by even more distinctive helmets with scarlet combs. They were also distinguished by Napoleon with a brass overlay on the iron cuirassesp.7, Bukhari after suffering heavy casualties in the 1809 campaign, but were no longer equipped with carbines.p.5, Bukhari
The two Carabiniers regiments, brigaded together and as a part of General of Division Nansouty's 1st Heavy Cavalry Division saw action during the Napoleonic Wars, including in the Battle of Austerlitz, Battle of Friedland, Battle of Wagram, Battle of Borodino (commanded by General of Brigade Defrance), Battle of Leipzig, Battle of Laon,p.28, Bukhari and Battle of Waterloo. The Carabiniers were restored as a single régiment de Monsieur after the second Bourbon restoration.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 127
By 1814, there were two regiments of Carabiniers with their distinctive style of helmet, which was temporarily adopted by the cuirassiers.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 130 The Carabiniers were present in Paris in June 1848 for the creation of the Republic, when nine regiments were brought in to maintain peace, the first time in 200 years that carabiniers were again serving as military police.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 145 From 1852 the Carabiniers were a part of the Army of the Second French Empire, but did not serve in the Crimean War. In 1870, they saw service again as a single regiment, but now as part of the Imperial Guard.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, pp. 156, 166; inducted into Guard 15 November 1865 Following the Franco-Prussian War, the Carabiniers were amalgamated with the 11th Cuirassier regiment on 4 February 1871.Detaille & Richard 1885-1889, p. 166
The 1-11e Régiment de Cuirassiers of the modern French Army can accordingly trace its origin, in part, to the 19th Century Carabiniers. By coincidence the present day regiment is stationed in Carpiagne Camp militaire de Carpiagne in Wikimapia within Provence, once the domain of their former commander. Cartographie des unités de l'armée de Terre stationnées en Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
British Carabiniers