United States Mounted Rangers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| United States Mounted Rangers | |
|---|---|
 A sketch of Henry Dodge in 1833 as the commander of the United States Mounted Rangers [1] | |
| Active | 1832-1833 |
| Country | .svg){kind=small} United States |
| Allegiance | United States Army |
| Branch | Cavalry |
| Type | Light cavalry |
| Role | Cavalry tactics Charge Counterinsurgency Desert warfare Hand-to-hand combat Maneuver warfare Peacekeeping Raiding Reconnaissance Screening Tracking |
| Size | Battalion |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Major Henry Dodge |
United States Mounted Rangers, or "Battalion of Mounted Rangers", was raised in 1832. The light cavalry unit operated on the frontier, but proving itself to be lacking in discipline, and being very costly, it was disbanded and replaced by a dragoon regiment in 1833.
At the time of the formation of the Mounted Rangers, the United States Army lacked cavalry due to downsizing of the army after the War of 1812. The opening of the Santa Fe Trail led to demands for military escorts of the annual trading caravans across the prairies. In 1829 four infantry companies from Fort Leavenworth were ordered to protect that year's caravan. This expedition demonstrated the inferiority of foot soldiers against mounted Comanches. At the end of 1831, Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri put forward a bill authorizing President Jackson to organize a mounted ranger unit of volunteers for frontier defense. The outbreak of the Black Hawk War meant that the bill was promptly passed by both houses of the Congress.[2] The decision to organize a volunteer battalion instead of a regular cavalry regiment, emanated from the prevalent attitudes of the ruling Democratic Party toward the United States Army. The Regular Army was seen as a stronghold of aristocratic West Pointers in contrast with the virtuous citizen soldiers of the militia.[3]
Organization
The Mounted Rangers were organized into six companies, each with a captain, a first lieutenant, a second lieutenant, a third lieutenant, five sergeants, five corporals, and 100 private rangers.[4] Henry Dodge was made a major and the commander; captains were Lemuel Ford, Benjamin V. Becks, Jesse B. Brown, Jesse Bean, Nathan Boone, and Matthew Duncan.[5] The officers and NCOs were appointed directly from civilian life. The private rangers were hardened hunters, trappers, and other outdoorsmen, who were used to a rugged life. They enlisted for one year only, and had to supply their own mounts, horse tack, weapons, equipment, and clothing, and pay for their horses' forage. As compensation they received one dollar a day in addition to their pay.[2][6]