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cataphract
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cataphract

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thumb|Historical reenactment of a Sasanian-era cataphract, complete with a full set of [[scale armour for the horse. The rider is covered by extensive mail armour.]]

~41 min read

Encyclopedic overview

12 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • Iranian origins
  • Spread to Central Asia and the Near East
  • Hellenistic and Roman adoption
  • Appearance and equipment
  • Tactics and deployment
  • Later history and usage in the early Middle Ages
  • Cataphracts in East Asia
  • See also
  • References
  • Sources
  • External links

thumb|Historical reenactment of a Sasanian-era cataphract, complete with a full set of [[scale armour for the horse. The rider is covered by extensive mail armour.]]

A cataphract was a form of armoured heavy cavalry that originated in Persia and was fielded in ancient warfare throughout Eurasia and Northern Africa.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “cataphract” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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