The appearance of these troops astonished the English.

They resembled rather a horde of Italian banditti than a body of European cavalry.

They observed little order in their military movements, and no uniformity of dress or accoutrement.

Each man was armed and clad according to his own fancy, and accompanied by a mounted servant, carrying his baggage.

But, like the Cossacks, whom they closely resembled, they were distinguished by an extreme rapidity of movement, and a fierceness and contempt of all difficulty and danger.