My understanding is that yes, the post would be held by a senior Sgt/Sjt who would be held in high regard, equivalent to a Warrant Officer by today's roles.
He'd also oversee the rough riders typically as well.
@Marcus Cribb The Military Dictionary says: "an officer" and that he instructs "officers", which for me does not mean an NCO.
@Andrew Bamford Do you have any source for your caveat? The KGL Standing Orders explain the role of the riding master in some length, and the wording in my eyes makes clear, that a regular subaltern is meant, who is explicitely freed from his company duties. In the later Royal Hanoverian Army the regimental riding masters were commissioned officers with a very high reputation.
Agreed that in the era that we are discussing, this was a post for a commissioned officer, not an NCO.
Also no dispute that the riding master would be the holder of a regular commission (a lieutenancy, in the examples that I can think of) and would serve at the depot rather than as a troop officer, but I base my caveat on the fact that the cases that I have come across in British cavalry regiments were all men who had come up from the ranks. No doubt there are exceptions to to this; I am not suggesting that it was a hard and fast rule.
This is most certainly not to suggest that such men were not held in high regard though. In the 12th Light Dragoons, which I have studied and written about at length, the riding master was a protege of the regimental colonel who actively sought to advance his career and employed him in a number of extra roles not directly connected to his official duties but where trust and judgement were required.
I see now - British units - so my post below is redundant
In case you stumble across Rittmeister - in a German text, it was a military rank equivalent to the captain or Hauptmann in the infantry - maybe indicating that he had to present for riding instructions as well to supervise that the Wachtmeister did their job.
I do not know this for British regiments, but Standing Orders 1808 and 1813 for the King's German Legion cavalry say that the regimental riding master (Regiments-Bereuter) is a subaltern officer. He is allowed to choose two rankers to become "roughriders" (literally so in the German orders), who receive the brevet rank of corporal. In every company there should be two company riding masters with the ranks of sergeant (Wachtmeister) and corporal respectively.
My understanding is that yes, the post would be held by a senior Sgt/Sjt who would be held in high regard, equivalent to a Warrant Officer by today's roles.
He'd also oversee the rough riders typically as well.
I see now - British units - so my post below is redundant
In case you stumble across Rittmeister - in a German text, it was a military rank equivalent to the captain or Hauptmann in the infantry - maybe indicating that he had to present for riding instructions as well to supervise that the Wachtmeister did their job.
With the caveat that it was one of the posts that typically went to a man commissioned from the ranks.
Just looked that up and took two pictures with the smatphone:
I do not know this for British regiments, but Standing Orders 1808 and 1813 for the King's German Legion cavalry say that the regimental riding master (Regiments-Bereuter) is a subaltern officer. He is allowed to choose two rankers to become "roughriders" (literally so in the German orders), who receive the brevet rank of corporal. In every company there should be two company riding masters with the ranks of sergeant (Wachtmeister) and corporal respectively.