Casimir Pulaski, or Kazimierz Pułaski in Polish (Polish pronunciation: [kaʑiˈmʲɛʂ puˈwaski] ( listen); full name in Polish: Kazimierz Michał Wacław Wiktor Pułaski) of Ślepowron coat-of-arms (March 6, 1745^[1] – October 11, 1779), was a Polish soldier, nobleman, and politician who has been called "the father of American cavalry".^[2][3]

A member of the Polish landed nobility, Pulaski was a military commander for the Bar Confederation and fought against Russian domination of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. When this uprising failed, he emigrated to North America as a soldier of fortune. During the American Revolutionary War, he saved the life of George Washington^[4] and became a general in the Continental Army. He died of wounds suffered in the Battle of Savannah. Pulaski is one of only seven people to be awarded honorary United States citizenship.