Rittmaster (German: Rittmeister, literally: riding master, cavalry master) is or was a military rank of a commissioned cavalry officer in the armies of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and some other countries. A Rittmeister is typically in charge of a squadron (a company-sized unit called a "troop" in the United States, as opposed to the U.S. cavalry squadron of larger battalion size), and is the equivalent of a Hauptmann rank (en: captain). The various names of this rank in different languages (all Germanic, plus Estonian) were:
Swedish: ryttmästareDanish: ritmesterNorwegian: rittmester (bokmål; the spelling ritmester was used until 1907) or rittmeister (nynorsk)German: RittmeisterEstonian: rittmeisterThe Dutch equivalent, Ritmeester, is still the official designation for officers in the cavalry branches of the Royal Dutch Army.
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