The Cavalry Corps (CAV) () is one of the combat support corps of the

Irish Army The Irish Army () is the land component of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Defence Forces of Republic of Ireland, Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. ...

. In peacetime, the Cavalry carries out various duties in Aid to the Civil Power, such as: * Border operations supporting Gardaí. * Escort duties - cash, explosives, VIP, prisoner. * Patrolling Government installations. * Intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. For this, the corps is equipped with various light armoured vehicles including the Mowag Piranha and RG-32M Light Tactical Armoured Vehicle, which are utilised as part of the light cavalry mission, in support of the

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

History

The Cavalry Corps traces its history to the formation of the Armoured Car Corps on 14 September 1922. Mechanised from the start, the corps used armoured vehicles that the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

left following the War of Independence. Following a debate on the use of the term "cavalry", and whether the word was meant to encompass horse, wheeled or tracked, the corps was renamed the Cavalry Corps in 1934. The first Landsverk L60 was delivered in 1935 and joined Ireland's only other tank, a Vickers Mk. D in the 2nd Armoured Squadron. The second Landsverk L60 arrived in 1936. The Landsverk's were still in use up until the late 1960s. One L60 is preserved in running order and the other is in the National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks,

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. After The Emergency, the corps established a

main battle tank A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank or simply tank,Ogorkiewicz 2018 p222 is a tank that fills the role of armour-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more po ...

cadre equipped with the

Churchill tank The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple Bogie#Tracked vehicles, bogies, its ability to ...

(total 4 tanks, in use 1948-1969), which formed the basis of the 1st Tank Squadron in 1959. This was equipped with the

Comet tank The Comet tank or Tank, Cruiser, Comet I (A34) was a British cruiser tank that first saw use near the end of the World War II, Second World War, during the Western Allied invasion of Germany. The Comet was developed from the earlier Cromwell ta ...

(total 8 tanks, in use 1959-1973) until its disbandment in 1973. The Cavalry Corps has served in many locations on UN

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities, especially military ones, intended to create conditions that favor lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed w ...

missions, including the Congo,

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

, either as Cavalry groups on their own, or attached as part of a battalion group. In these deployments the Cavalry Corps were equipped with

Panhard AML The Panhard AML (''automitrailleuse légère'', or "light armoured car") is an armoured car with reconnaissance capability. Designed by Panhard on a lightly armoured 4×4 chassis, it weighs an estimated 5.5 tonnes, and is thus suitable for airbo ...

vehicles - prior to their retirement in 2013.

Cavalry Corps today

The Cavalry Corps today is approximately equivalent in size to a single cavalry

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

; however, the Defence Forces have never used the regimental structure (although there was an attempt during 1942 to organise units into a cavalry regiment). Instead, cavalry operates as independent squadrons. Today, the army has a total of three cavalry squadrons: *1st Cavalry Squadron (1 CAV) *2nd Cavalry Squadron (2 CAV) *1st Armoured Cavalry Squadron (1 ACS) The 1st, 2nd Squadrons are standard

light cavalry Light cavalry comprised lightly armed and body armor, armored cavalry troops mounted on fast horses, as opposed to heavy cavalry, where the mounted riders (and sometimes the warhorses) were heavily armored. The purpose of light cavalry was p ...

units equipped with the Mowag Piranha AFV and other light armoured vehicles. One squadron is attached to each of the army's two infantry brigades to act as light armoured support. In addition to their regular duties, 2nd Cavalry Squadron also operates as the Presidential Motorcycle Escort, a task inherited from the Blue Hussars in 1948. The 1st Armoured Cavalry Squadron was formed in 1998 by the amalgamation of the 1st Armoured Car Squadron and the reformed 1st Tank Squadron. 1st Armoured Cavalry Squadron is an independent unit that is stationed at

The Curragh The Curragh ( ; ) is a flat open plain in County Kildare, Ireland. This area is well known for horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is on the edge of Kildare town, beside the Irish National Stud#The Japanese Gardens, Japane ...

. Disbanded (Defence Forces Re-org 2012) * 4th Cavalry Squadron, Athlone (2012) * 31st Reserve Cavalry Squadron, Clonmel,Cork (2012) * 54th Reserve Cavalry Squadron, Longford (2012) * 62nd Reserve Cavalry Squadron, Dublin (2012) The Army Reserve (AR) squadrons have been integrated with the Permanent Defence Forces (PDF) units as part of the "single force concept".

Cavalry tasks

ISTAR ISTAR stands for Military intelligence, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, #ISTAR, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employ ...

(Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition & Reconnaissance) **

CBRN Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense (CBRN defense) or Nuclear, biological, and chemical protection (NBC protection) is a class of protective measures taken in situations where chemical, biological, radiological, or nucl ...

(Chemical, Biological, Radiological & Nuclear) Recce **Obstacle Recce **Route Recce **Patrolling **Scouting **Observation Post (OP) Screen **Close Target Reconnaissance (CTR) **Control Measure Security & Marking **Location Recce *Security/Protective **Screens **Advance & Rear Guard **Counter Recce **Deception **Anti-Airborne **Flank Protection **Rear Area & Supply Route Security *Exploitation **Raids **Pursuit **Seize & Hold **Recce Strike **Delaying Action *Secondary **Liaison **Traffic Regulation **Escort **Communications

References

External links

The Cavalry Corps , Irish Army
{{Irish Army & Army Reserve Cavalry Corps Cavalry regiments Military units and formations established in 1934