Scara

This article is about a military unit. For robotic configuration, see SCARA.

A scara was a contingent or unit of soldiers, possibly cavalry, in Carolingian armies.

Etymology

The term (pl. scarae) is a Latinized form of an ancient German word meaning "group." (A modern descendant is the German word Schar, also meaning "group.") Members of the scara units were called scariti, escariti and scarii.

Function

Although of uncertain composition, the scarae are thought by many modern historians to have been permanently embodied units of elite cavalry, because in the primary sources they are generally described as being tasked to important missions that required mobility.

References

Bachrach, Bernard S. Early Carolingian Warfare: Prelude to Empire. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001.

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