Six Divisions of Cavalry
The Six Divisions of Cavalry (
in the corps. Two of the six were sub-divisions. The divisions were:- Sipāhiyān (Ottoman Turkish: سپاهيان, roughly, "Armymen")
- Silah-dārān (From Persian, translated roughly as "weaponbearers")
- Ulufeciyān (Turkish: Ulufeciler; translated as "stipendiaries"), organised into two sub-divisions:
- Ottoman Turkish: علوفه جي يسار)
- Ottoman Turkish: علوفه جي يمين)
- Garibān (Turkish: Garipler; translated roughly as "strangers"), organised into two sub-divisions:
The elite cavalry was the mounted counterpart to the Janissaries and played an important part in the Ottoman Army. The Six Divisions were probably founded during the reign of Sultan Mehmed II (r. 1451–1481), but the Sipahis had existed since 1326.
Sources
- Uyar, Mesut; Erickson, Edward J. (2009). A Military History of the Ottomans: From Osman to Atatürk. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-275-98876-0.
