Pulaski's Legion was a cavalry and infantry regiment raised on March 28, 1778 at

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

under the command of Polish-born General

Casimir Pulaski Kazimierz Michał Władysław Wiktor Pułaski of the Ślepowron coat of arms (; ''Casimir Pulaski'' ; March 4 or March 6, 1745 Makarewicz, 1998 October 11, 1779) was a Polish nobleman, soldier, and military commander who has been called, tog ...

and Hungarian nobleman Michael Kovats de Fabriczy for their service with the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. The Legion consisted of one

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Tr ...

lancers A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by Persia, India, Egypt, China, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the ...

, two troops of

dragoons Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

, and 200

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often foug ...

soldiers. It was one of the few cavalry regiments in the

Role in the American Revolution

The Legion would see action at the

Little Egg Harbor massacre The Affair at Little Egg Harbor took place on October 15, 1778, in southern New Jersey during the American Revolutionary War. American Loyalists killed nearly 50 Patriot men, bayonetting them as they slept. The battle took place about one week af ...

in 1778,

siege of Savannah The siege of Savannah or the Second Battle of Savannah was an encounter of the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) in 1779. The year before, the city of Savannah, Georgia, had been captured by a British expeditionary corps under Lieutenan ...

in 1779, and the

siege of Charleston The siege of Charleston was a major engagement and major British victory in the American Revolutionary War, fought in the environs of Charles Town (today Charleston), the capital of South Carolina, between March 29 and May 12, 1780. The Britis ...

in 1780. The Legion was disbanded in November 1780 and the men were merged into

Armand's Legion Armand's Legion was formed on June 25, 1778, at Boston, Massachusetts under the command of Colonel Charles Armand Tuffin of France, for service with the Continental Army. From French Army to American Armand had previously served in the French ...

. The Legion's 1st Cavalry was commanded by Maj. Pierre-Francois Vernier during the siege of Charleston's first bloody skirmishes.

References

*Robin Smith, Pulaski's Legion, Military Illustrated magazine, Issue 116 *Richard Henry Spencer, Pulaski's Legion (including Legion's muster roll), Baltimore 1920

External links

The Continental Army
(describes Pulaski's Legion)

* ttp://www.pulaskilegion.org/ The Pulaski Legion (reenactment and research) Military units and formations established in 1778 Military units and formations of the Continental Army Maryland in the American Revolution Dragoons 1778 establishments in Maryland Casimir Pulaski {{US-mil-hist-stub