Rodeleros

Rodela in Spanish means Buckler. The hereby armed soldiers called Rodeleros. They were with one-handed swords and shields rounded equipped having a diameter of about 60 cm had. The " Rodelas " were mostly made ​​of steel, but there were also variants that made ​​of wood, clamped in iron and covered with animal skins wurden.Speziell against pikemen and halberdiers the Rodeleros were very effective, as they could easily escape the crowded bar weapons, dived under the enemy's weapons and formations set off from the inside out.

When Hernán Cortés reached the New World in 1506, he was accompanied by 1,300 soldiers. 1,000 of them were Rodeleros. Their advantage was that they were versatile and adaptable soldiers, as they dominated both the melee on narrow boat decks as well as the guerrilla tactics of the local opponents.

• Branch of service ( historical )
• Branch of service ( Early Modern Times )
• Infantry