6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment

6th Pennsylvania Cavalry
Pennsylvania flag
ActiveOctober 5th, 1861 – August 7th, 1865
CountryUnited States
AllegianceUnion
BranchCavalry
EngagementsBattle of Hanover Court House
Battle of Gaines' Mill
Battle of White Oak Swamp
Battle of South Mountain
Battle of Antietam
Battle of Fredericksburg[1]
Stoneman's 1863 raid
Battle of Brandy Station
Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Bristoe Station
Battle of Mine Run
Battle of Yellow Tavern[2]
Battle of Cold Harbor
Battle of Trevilian Station
Valley Campaigns of 1864
Siege of Petersburg
Battle of Five Forks
Battle of Sayler's Creek

The 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry was a Union Army cavalry regiment that served in the Army of the Potomac and the Army of the Shenandoah during the American Civil War. It was formed in 1861 as the Philadelphia Light Cavalry and the 70th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteers by Richard H. Rush who also served as colonel from 1861 to 1862. At the request of Major General George B. McClellan, the regiment was equipped with lances which prompted the unit to be known as "Rush's Lancers." The lances proved ineffective in battle and the regiment was issued carbine rifles in 1863. The regiment served in many of the key battles in the Eastern theater of the American Civil War and were mustered out in August 1865.

  1. ^ Dyer 1908, p. 1560.
  2. ^ Salmon, John S. (2001). The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. p. 282. ISBN 0-8117-2868-4. Retrieved 15 March 2024.