How did the ancient Greeks use cavalry?

Answer 1

No, they did not have guns yet. [You don't need guns to have cavalry in a pre-gunpowder era. All you need are horses and whatever military weaponry was available.] Chariots were used by the Egyptians and Sumerians, but the Hittites were the first to breed a horse large enough for a soldier to ride. Because the terrain of Greece was not conducive to large-scale cavalry operations, Greek cavalry were used mostly for scouting and skirmishing. Their Macedonian cousins to the North where the terrain was more level put a greater emphasis on cavalry. At the Battle of Chaeronea, a 16-year old Macedonian prince named Alexander and the Companion Cavalry were instrumental in defeating the Greeks led by the city-state of Thebes. Afterward, Alexander became king and defeated the Persian Army four times and the Indian Army once to carve the greatest empire the world had yet seen. Each time, he personally led the Companions which were the best heavy cavalry in the world at that time, while the general Parmenio led the Greco-Macedonian infantry phalanx. [If anyone is interested, you don't need guns to have artillery either. The Greeks had missile-launcing devices called catapaults. Greek infantry were armed with spears, swords, bows, slings, and javelins, but the principle is the same as modern infantry armed with guns. The Macedonian Companion Cavalry which united Greece and invaded Persia was considered heavy cavalry. After their contact with Persia and India, some Greek armies used war elephants as ultra-heavy cavalry.

Answer 2

Based on the terrain of the ancient Greek city-states, cavalry was not a primary part of Greek warfare. However, contrary to the popular belief that they had no cavalry is not correct. The Macedonians however, were able to develop both light and heavy cavalry units.