lance head (pi)
Ancient Era Pike like weapons were used by cavalry since antiquity. The
kontos was a type of lance mentioned in Greek texts which was employed by
cataphracts especially the
grivpanvar. During the late 3rd century the weapons of the cavalry attached to each
Roman legion evolved from
javelins and swords to sometimes include long reaching lances (
contus). These required the use of both hands to thrust.
Middle Ages The
Byzantine cavalry used lances (
kontos or
kontarion) almost exclusively, often in mixed formations of
mounted archers and
lancers (
cursores et defensores). The Byzantines used lances in both overarm and underarm grips, as well as being couched under the arm (held horizontally). The length of the standard
kontarion is estimated at , which is shorter than that of the medieval knight of
Western Europe. Formations of knights were known to use underarm-couched military lances in full-gallop closed-ranks charges against lines of opposing infantry or cavalry. Two variants on the couched lance charge developed, the French method,
en haie, with lancers in a double line, and the German method, with lancers drawn up in a deeper formation which was often wedge-shaped. It is commonly believed that this became the dominant European cavalry tactic in the 11th century after the development of the cantled saddle and stirrups (the
Great Stirrup Controversy), and of rowel
spurs (which enabled better control of the mount). Cavalry thus outfitted and deployed had a tremendous collective force in their charge, and could shatter most contemporary infantry lines. Because of the extreme stopping power of a thrusting spear, it quickly became a popular weapon of infantry in the
Late Middle Ages. These eventually led to the rise of the longest type of spears, the
pike. This adaptation of the cavalry lance to infantry use was largely tasked with stopping lance-armed cavalry charges. During the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, these weapons, both mounted and unmounted, were so effective that lancers and pikemen not only became a staple of every Western army, but also became highly sought-after mercenaries. (However, the pike had already been used by
Philip II of Macedon in antiquity to great effect, in the form of the
sarissa.) In Europe, a
jousting lance was a variation of the knight's lance which was modified from its original war design. In jousting, the lance tips would usually be blunt, often spread out like a cup or furniture foot, to provide a wider impact surface designed to unseat the opposing rider without spearing him through. The centre of the shaft of such lances could be designed to be hollow, in order for it to break on impact, as a further safeguard against impalement. Jousting lances were often made of pine or fir, much more fragile than war lances made from ash or oak. They were on average long, and had hand guards built into the lance, often tapering for a considerable portion of the weapon's length. These are the versions that can most often be seen at
medieval reenactment festivals. In war, lances were much more like stout spears, long and balanced for one-handed use, made of heavier and strong wood, and with sharpened tips for biting in and piercing armor.
Lance (unit organization) As a small unit that surrounded a knight when he went into battle during the 14th and 15th centuries, a lance might have consisted of one or two
squires, the knight himself, one to three
men-at-arms, and possibly an
archer. Lances were often combined under the banner of a higher-ranking nobleman to form companies of knights that would act as an ad hoc unit.
17th and 18th century decline in Western Europe The advent of
wheellock technology spelled the end of the lance in Western Europe, with newer types of heavy cavalry such as
reiters and
cuirassiers spurning the old one-use weapon and increasingly supplanting the older
gendarme type Medieval cavalry. While many
Renaissance captains such as Sir
Roger Williams continued to espouse the virtues of the lance, many such as
François de la Noue openly encouraged its abandonment in the face of the pistol's greater armor piercing power, handiness and greater general utility. At the same time the adoption of
pike and shot tactic by most infantry forces would neuter much of the power of the lancer's breakneck charge, making them a non-cost effective type of military unit due to their expensive horses in comparison to cuirassiers and reiters, who were usually charging only at a trot and could make do with lower quality mounts. After the success of pistol-armed
Huguenot heavy horse against their Royalist counterparts during the
French Wars of Religion, most
Western European powers started rearming their lancers with pistols, initially as an adjunct weapon and eventually as a replacement, with the Spanish retaining the lance the longest. Only the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth with its far greater emphasis on cavalry warfare, large population of
Szlachta nobility and general lower military technology level among its foes retained the lance to a considerable degree, with the famously winged
Polish hussars having their glory period during the 17th and 18th centuries against a wide variety of enemy forces. The 1860s and 1870s saw the increasing common usage of
ash,
bamboo,
beech, or
pine wood for lance shafts of varying lengths, each with steel points and butts, adopted by the uhlan regiments of the Saxon, Württemberg, Bavarian, and Prussian armies.
Twilight of use (1839) In the
American Civil War, the
6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment was equipped with lances modeled after
Napoleon Bonaparte's forces in France. American troops had never previously used the lance in combat. The lances proved ineffective in battle and were replaced with carbine rifles in 1863. The
Franco-Prussian War of 1870 saw the extensive deployment of cavalry armed with lances on both sides. While the opportunities for decisive use of this weapon proved infrequent during the actual conflict, the entire cavalry corps (93 regiments of
hussars,
dragoons,
cuirassiers, and
uhlans) of the post-war
Imperial German Army subsequently adopted the lance as a primary weapon. After 1893 the standard German cavalry lance was made of drawn tubular steel, covered with clear lacquer and with a hemp hand-grip. At it was the longest version then in use. The Austrian cavalry had included regiments armed with lances since 1784. In 1884, the lance ceased to be carried either as an active service or parade weapon. However the eleven
Uhlan regiments continued in existence until 1918, armed with the standard cavalry sabre. During the
Second Boer War, British troops successfully used the lance on one occasion - against retreating
Boers at the
Battle of Elandslaagte (21 October 1899). However, the Boers made effective use of
trench warfare, rapid-fire
field artillery, continuous-fire
machine guns, and accurate long-range
repeating rifles from the beginning of the war. The combined effect was devastating, so much of the British cavalry was deployed as mounted infantry, dismounting to fight on foot. For some years after the Boer War, the six British lancer regiments officially carried the lance only for parades and other ceremonial duties. At the regimental level, training in the use of the lance continued, ostensibly to improve recruit riding skills. In 1909, the bamboo or ash lance with a steel head was reauthorized for general use on active service. The relative value of the lance and the sword as a principal weapon for mounted troops was an issue of dispute in the years immediately preceding World War I. Opponents of the lance argued that the weapon was clumsy, conspicuous, easily deflected, and inefficient in a melee. Arguments favoring the retention of the lance focused on the impact on morale of having charging cavalry preceded by "
a hedge of steel" and on the effectiveness of the weapon against fleeing opponents. German
uhlans being "hampered by their long lances and a good many threw them away". A major action involving repeated charges by four regiments of German cavalry, all armed with lances, at
Halen on 12 August 1914 was unsuccessful. Amongst the Belgian defenders was one regiment of lancers who fought dismounted. With the advent of trench warfare, lances and the cavalry that carried them ceased to play a significant role. A Russian cavalry officer whose regiment carried lances throughout the war recorded only one instance where an opponent was killed by this weapon. The
Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), saw an unexpected revival of lances amongst the cavalry of the Turkish National Army. During the successful Turkish offensives of the final stages of the war across the open plains of
Asia Minor, Turkish mounted troops were armed with bamboo shafted-lances taken from military storage and inflicted heavy losses on the retreating Greek Army. The cavalry branches of most armies which still retained lances as a service weapon at the end of World War I generally discarded them for all but ceremonial occasions during the 1920s and 1930s. There were exceptions during this era, such as the
Polish cavalry, which retained the lance for combat use until either 1934 or 1937, but contrary to popular legend did not make use of it in
World War II. The German cavalry retained the lance (
Stahlrohrlanze) as a service weapon until 1927, as did the British cavalry until 1928. The Argentine cavalry were documented as carrying lances until the 1940s, but this appears to have been used as part of recruit riding school training, rather than serious preparation for use in active service. ==Use as flagstaff==