lansquenets
- Scope note
- Mercenary soldiers of a certain class in the German and other continental armies in the 16th and 17th centuries. The term originally applied to the serfs brought into the field by the nobles within the territories of the Empire, in contradistinction to the Swiss mercenaries. In time this distinction became obsolete, and the designation connoted a soldier armed with a particular kind of equipment, of which a lance was part.
- Date of creation: 18-Nov-2024
Accepted term: 18-Nov-2024