In the beginning, during the XVIII century, the light cavalry were small mixed irregular troops made up of infantrymen, cavalrymen and even some gunners.
The duty of these units was to gather information, carry out operations in the enemy’s rear, set up ambushes, create entropy in the enemy’s territory; in short, they were the forerunners of corps francs and commando units.
Early XIX century, having been grouped into light cavalry regiments, light cavalrymen took part in all Napoleonic campaigns. They were volunteers, full of self-confidence just like the hussars, who earned the dual reputation of philanderers and adventurous soldiers with rash courage, always prompt to unsheathe their swords at the slightest impulse no matter the circumstance.
Napoleon paid constant tribute to them by adopting the uniform of light cavalry colonels as his personal campaign outfit.
In the course of the XX century, with the advent of modern sophisticated equipment, weapons and devices like tanks, aircrafts and missiles, the role of the various units of the armed forces changed remarkably.
Presently, the infantry still has some light cavalry units in addition to the specialized chasseurs units of mountaineer chasseurs and parachutist chasseurs, which subsequently became introduced. As for the Armoured-Cavalry Arm, it had the privilege of having within its ranks the famous African chasseurs (chasseurs d’Afrique), the 1 st regiment of which had been created in 1832, during the Algerian conquest. African chasseurs fought battles all over the world under the French banner and equally made their mark during World War I & II as well as in Algeria .
It should be noted that after having been dissolved following the Algerian War, the 1 st African Chasseurs Regiment was recreated in 1998 in Canjuers, in the Var.