Västgöta kavalleriregemente (Västergötland Cavalry Regiment) was a Swedish Army

Swedish Army

The Swedish Army is one of the oldest standing armies in the world and a branch of the Swedish Armed Forces; it is in charge of land operations. General Sverker Göranson is the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Army.- Organization :...

 cavalry

Cavalry

Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

 regiment

Regiment

A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...

 that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was reorganized into an infantry regiment in 1811. The regiment's soldiers were recruited from the province of Västergötland

Västergötland

', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....

.

History

The regiment has its origins in fänikor (companies) raised in Västergötland in the 16th century. In 1613, these units—along with fänikor from the nearby province of Dalsland

Dalsland

Dalsland is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, and Norway to the northwest....

—were organised by Gustav II Adolf into Västergötlands storregemente

Västergötlands storregemente

Västergötlands storregemente or Landsregementet i Västergötland was one of the nine grand regiments organized by Gustavus Adolphus in the late 1610s and split into smaller regiments in the 1620s.- History :Raised in Götaland from smaller units of 500 men called fänikor, more specifically from the...

. Sometime between 1621 and 1624, the grand regiment was permanently split into four smaller regiments, of which Västgöta regemente till häst was one.

The regiment was officially raised in 1628 although it had existed since the early 1620s. The regiment soon changed name to Västgöta och Dals ryttare and was one of the original 8 Swedish cavalry regiments mentioned in the Swedish constitution

Constitution

A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...

 of 1634. The regiment's first commander was Erik Soop. It was renamed to Västgöta kavalleriregemente in 1655 and was allotted

Swedish allotment system

The allotment system was a system used in Sweden for keeping a trained army at all times. This system came into use in around 1640, and was replaced in the early 1900s by the Swedish Armed Forces conscription system...

 in 1691.

Västgöta kavalleriregemente was reorganised into a dragoon

Dragoon

The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...

 regiment in 1792 and changed its name to Västgöta linjedragonregemente and later Västgöta dragonregemente to reflect that. The regiment was then reformed into the infantry regiment Västgöta regemente

Västgöta regemente

Västgöta regemente was a Swedish Army cavalry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was converted from a cavalry regiment in 1811 and disbanded in 1927...

 in 1811.

Organisation

1634(?)

• Livkompaniet
• Överstelöjtnantens kompani
• Majorens kompani
• Södra Vassbo kompani
• Älvsborgs kompani
• Gudhems kompani
• Barne Härads kompani
• Vartofta kompani

Name, designation and garrison

Name	Translation	From		To
Västgöta regemente till häst	Västergötland Horse Regiment	1628	–	1634
Västgöta och Dals ryttare	Västergötland and Dalsland Horsemen	1634	–	1655
Västgöta kavalleriregemente	Västergötland Cavalry Regiment	1655	–	1802
Västgöta linjedragonregemente	Västergötland Line Dragoon Regiment	1802	–	1806
Västgöta dragonregemente	Västergötland Cavalry Regiment	1806	–	1811

Designation	From		To
No designation		–

Training ground or garrison town	From		To
Eggeby ängar	1689	–	1745-08-25
Axevalla hed	1745-08-26	–	1811