Lancero

Lancero (English: Lancer) is a military course and qualification of the Colombian National Army, run at the School of Lanceros (Escuela Militar de Lanceros) in Tolemaida, Tolima, Colombia. Established in 1955 with help from US Army Rangers, it trains small-unit leaders for irregular and counterinsurgency warfare; the United States and other foreign militaries also send personnel to the course.

The Colombian Army has been in conflict with rebel guerrillas since the 1960s, which led the government and its armed forces to develop courses aimed specifically at training soldiers and officers for that kind of warfare. The name Lancero honors a unit of lancers that fought for Simón Bolívar in the war of independence and showed particular bravery at the Battle of Vargas Swamp.