Early regular armies of the modern era frequently relied on irregulars to perform the duties of light infantry skirmishers. In particular, the French Army employed detachments of German and Balkan mercenaries to serve as patrols in the rough country until a permanent corps of Mountain Fusiliers ("Fusiliers des Montagnes") was raised in the 1740s. In the 17th century, dragoons were sometimes employed as the skirmishers of their day – mounted infantrymen who rode into battle but dismounted to fight, giving them a mobility lacking to regular foot soldiers.