Hussars' bright military dress from 1700 onward was influenced by the popular Hungarian trends of the time. The typical components of this outfit included a short jacket called a "dolman" or, later, a medium-length "attila" jacket, both with heavy, horizontal gold braid on the chest and yellow or gold Austrian knots (sjtás) on the sleeves, a matching pelisse (a short-waisted over-jacket frequently worn slung over one shoulder), coloured pants, sometimes with yellow or gold Austrian knots at the front, a busby ( (often Hessian boots). Frequently, a sabretache—a decorative bag hung from the belt—completed the attire.

Hussars were known for being the army's daring, if disorderly, explorers. The stereotypical portrayal of a hussar is that of a womanising, hard-drinking, hard-swearing, reckless swashbuckler with a moustache. This mentality was best exemplified by General Lasalle, the prototypical arrogant hussar officer, who said things like, "Any hussar who is not dead by the age of thirty is a blackguard."