Grand Hairy One

Rapier Sword from Italy dated to 1610 on display at the Royal Armouries in London, England

Dragoons Sword from England dated to 1690 on display at the National Army Museum in London, England

During the British Civil Wars the army reforms under Oliver Cromwell resulted in the rise of dragoon regiments in the English army and the Scottish army following suit. This was mirroring the rise of dragoon regiments in France. Dragoon cavalry were equiped to be able to fight as both ccavalry and infantry with swords and early flintlock muskets. In Britain, the majority of cavalry regiments were converted to dragoon and by the time of the Glorious Revolution and Queen Mary Stuart II taking the throne with her husband, William III, they were very common.

The army during this time had dragoon regiments from not only parts of Britain but also exiled Protestant Huguenot's from France as well as Dutch dragoons. The Dutch had come over with William of Orange to support the deposing of King James VII/II, William's father in law.

Black Figure Amphora from Athens, Greece dated to 500 BCE on display at the Museum of Mediterranean and Near Eastern Antiquities in Stockholm, Sweden

The amphora depicts the mythological figure of Heracles fighting the Amazons, mythical female warriors and daughters of Ares, the god of war. One of Heracles' labours was to steal the magical belt of Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons. The Amazons were often depicted wearing a mixture of Greek and Eastern fashions when it came to armour and weapons. Here they are armed in the manner of Greek hoplites with a large shield (hoplon) and spear (dory).