Mounted warrior

“ Look! he draws his sword, the sharp blade quivers through the air, he points to the distant battle and lo! he is gone; gone through those clouds, while his shout echoes over the plains. Wherever the fight is thickest, there through intervals of cannon-smoke you may see riding madly forward that strange soldier, mounted on his steed black as death. Look at him, as with face red with British blood he waves his sword and shouts to his legions. Now you may see him fighting in that cannon's glare, and the next moment he is away off yonder, leading the forlorn hope up that steep cliff. ”

“ In former days, warriors took part before starting on the warpath, to stimulate their courage. The mounted men were dressed in war clothes and had their horses painted with war signs—pictures of weapons, guns, bows and arrows; a red hand stood for blood lust and red marks for men wounded or killed in battle. They wore headdresses of eagle feathers and horned bonnets, and carried war bundles—the sacred War Bridle, the Lance, and the Shield. ”

“ Oft have I seen the stern kings meet in war, seen shield and helmet bruised, and the fields redden with blood, and the cuirass broken by the spear-point, and the corselets all around giving at the thrust of the steel, and the wild beasts battening on the unburied soldier. Here, as it chanced, one that attempted a mighty thing, a strong-handed warrior, fighting against the press of the foe, smote through the mail that covered my head, pierced my helmet, and plunged his blade into my crest. ”

“ The probable fact is that the cavalry, being more mobile than the infantry, whose fighting power depended on the fire-action, which was necessarily slow, were used for the real attack, as the infantry were less able to take a vigorous offensive. Besides, the enemy’s centre was composed chiefly of the mounted arm. The artillery, slow moving like the infantry, were brought up in support of the more mobile body. ”

“ Anon the dust rises and the fight becomes visible; we see half the knights dismounted, some not to rise, others already on their feet fighting hand to hand with mace or ax amid a struggling pile of disabled horses, wounded men, broken spears and armor, the still mounted knights trampling and fighting with swords, the crash of which on iron helmets and shields makes an infernal din, over which roar the shouts of the champions, and the more excited shouts of the crazed spectators, the shriller encouragement of ladies and the clang of trumpets. ”

“ It is evident, however, that to carry on war on the above principle, it will be necessary that cavalry, in their equipment as well as drill, should undergo a complete revolution, with a view to enable them in future, in addition to the use of their sabres, to help artillery with their lassos,—act as mounted infantry,—in short, make themselves generally useful ”

“ The cavalry and other mounted troops, aided by a strong force of artillery, will meanwhile check the enemy’s advance, and the remainder of the force, with the exception, if possible, of a rear guard in support of the mounted troops, will move as rapidly as possible to the shelter of the rallying position and there reorganise. Steps should be taken immediately to secure any bridges, defiles, or other vital points on the line of retreat at which the enemy’s mounted troops might intercept the force. ”

“ The sentinels are generally dismounted, their horses being left with those of the outguards.
Mounted cavalry at night can offer little resistance; the supports and outguards are therefore generally dismounted, the horses being under cover in rear, and the positions are strengthened by intrenchments and obstacles. By holding villages, bridges, defiles, etc., with dismounted rifle fire, cavalry can greatly delay a superior force. ”

“ There was considerable divergence of opinion in the cavalry as to the best method to be employed in a mounted attack. As there were no reliable precedents in modern warfare, with its machine guns and quick-firing artillery, brigadiers had been given a free hand to develop the tactics they favoured, subject to the principle that fire support should always be provided if available, and that the line of fire and the direction of the mounted attack should be as nearly as possible at right angles to one another. ”

“ Obviously, too, you cannot expect even the best Infantry under the best leaders eternally to sustain at the highest level the ardour of the fire-fight on foot unless they know that riflemen equal in mobility to the enemy—that is, mounted riflemen—are co-operating with equal ardour and efficiency for that defeat and destruction 297of the mounted enemy which mounted men can alone ensure. ”

“ Behind the weapon is the horse, and the horse is common to all mounted troops. Properly handled, mounted men will always be able to exert a strong moral effect upon non-mounted men, simply from their mobility, from their power to change or gain ground rapidly, to feint, raid, and swoop, envelop, outflank, mystify, outmanœuvre—in a word, to surprise their slow-moving antagonists. ”

“ Still he was better than his comrades, and many a man was anxious for his mount, should our retreat be pressed.
Early in the morning we were on our way toward the rear,—about eight thousand cavalry, ten sections of artillery, two thousand pack-mules, and an unnumbered cloud of fugitive slaves mounted on their masters’ mules, often two or three on each, and clustering under our shadow as their only means of escape to the happy land of freedom. In an organized advance, all of this vast hanging on could be kept at the rear and in good order ”

“ An instant more and to the sound of rising thunder, before the astonished eyes of the cavalry line there burst into view, full tear for safety, the uncouth, yet marvelously swift-running leaders of the little herd. The whole dozen came flying across the sky line and down the gentle slope, heading well around to the left of the line of troopers, while sticking to their flanks like red nettles half a dozen young warriors rode like the wind on their nimble ponies, cracking away with revolver or rifle in savage joy in the glorious sport. ”

“ Turning his body sideways to the enemy, the warrior crouches behind his shield, keeping up a continuous capering, rushing forward or dancing backward, seeking for an opening but seldom coming to close quarters. ”

“ Before defensive action in a War of Manoeuvre the cavalry have been out on reconnaissance, and during the early stages they have endeavoured to lure the assailants on to a false position. During the battle they will frustrate the efforts of opposing mounted troops, will protect a vulnerable flank, and will assist generally by dismounted fire action. After the victorious counter-attack they will emerge in pursuit. In case of a reverse they will delay the enemy's victorious advance by fire action and by mounted tactics to protect the withdrawing forces from the depredations of hostile cavalry. ”

“ To place any piece of ordnance on its frame, for the more easy carriage and management of it in firing. Hence to dismount is to take cannon from any serviceable position.
To MOUNT a breach, to run up in a quick, and determined manner to any breach made in a wall, &c.
To MOUNT guard, to do duty in a town of garrison, in a camp, or at out quarters.
To MOUNT, to place on horseback, to furnish with horses; as, twelve thousand men have been well mounted, without any considerable expence to the country. A cavalry regiment may be said to be well or ill mounted ”

“ For light arms afford sufficient protection against unarmed men, by whom victory is either lost or won at the first onset; where it is necessary that an active and retreating enemy should be overcome by a certain proportional quantity of moderate armour; whereas with a more complex sort, and with high and curved saddles, it is difficult to dismount, more so to mount, and with the greatest difficulty can such troops march, if required, with the infantry. ”

“ At this cavalry then he hurled his horsemen with orders to cut their way through and force an opening for the rest of the army, who vigorously supported the attack. It was, indeed, a forlorn hope that was thus entrusted to the faithful squadrons, but they responded with matchless dash and spirit, tearing a wide gap through the opposing cavalry and capturing guns and prisoners. Then they suddenly halted and surveyed the field with dumb despair. Behind the parted screen of horsemen lay a solid wall of blue infantry arrayed in line of battle and hopelessly blocking the road. ”

“ Troops of the enemy are moving to the left, our left, to outflank us, and we lengthen out correspondingly; and now the blue smoke of the musket discloses the line by day trending away, far away south toward the Chattahoochee, and by night it is marked, at times, by the red glow of the artillery amidst the sparklike flashes of small arms that look in the distance like innumerable fireflies. ”

“ Where our cannon had mauled their retreating cavalry, the horses lay in close ranks, with their long necks stretched out, and their riders beneath them, all torn, brained, or disembowelled alike by the iron storm of grape-shot that had swept through the squadron. In some places we saw only a red, muddy pulp, composed of flesh and bones, where the enemy's brigade of guns had traversed the ground.
"War!" says a French writer; "those by whose will war comes—those who make men resemble the savage beasts—will have a fearful account to render to the righteous Judge above!" ”

“ Every muscle was called into action in our little band, who hung firmly together, discharging their arrows and occasionally a fusee at the enemy with the steadiest aim. The dead and wounded were falling in every direction in both parties. The enemy were so numerous that numbers of their braves, armed only with a shield, having rejected their offensive weapons, hovered in front of their companions, intent only' upon the acquisition of the renown dearest to the heart of the warrior, that of first striking the body of a fallen enemy ”

“ These things depend upon whether the mobility of a mounted man is regarded as secondary to his function as a rifleman, or whether his weapon be merely adapted to his mobility. In other words, are mounted men wanted for their riding or their shooting? The arming of our cavalry with rifles, and certain modifications in its training, together with the formation of corps of mounted infantry, show that those who held the ear of the Secretary of State for War a few years ago pinned their faith to the superior value of shooting, and regarded mobility in a mounted man only as a means to an end. ”

“ As soon as the officer gives the word of command to attack, the infantry beat to arms and storm the hill. Thousands of spears, large stones, and immense beams of wood are instantly hurled at the storming party, every stone is an ambush to a wary negro, who either throws his poisoned dart at the enemy, or, waiting his opportunity, thrusts his spear into the body of his unsuspecting foe on his approach. ”

“ The uncertainty, however, of the results of shooting when mounted, and the inconvenience of dismounting or mounting according as to whether the fight raged on foot or on horseback, showed plainly as time went on that the idea of an intermediate arm, a sort of mounted infantry, could not yet be brought to perfection. ”

“ Small units have been seen on several occasions to dismount on open ground when mounted action was the only sound course to adopt. On the other hand, squadrons have been seen to remain mounted in enclosed country when under fire at close range of dismounted men. ”

“ Up the road rose a cloud of dust and the sound of determined feet, and presently a martial figure came in sight, clad in bronze and leather helmet and cuirass, and carrying an oblong shield and a short, broad-bladed sword of double edge. Short yet agile, a soldier every inch, he looked neither to the right nor to the left, but marched steadily and purposefully upon his business. ”

“ Four lurking warriors,—part of the daring band that, hanging about the battalion, watched its every move, ever on the alert for just such opportunity as this—had lashed their ponies to the gallop, darted along the winding ravine between the two ridges until opposite the point where the hunters crossed, then crawling to the top, had shot the poor fellows from their hidden covert, and rushing in as they tumbled from their saddles, had quickly finished the bloody work. ”

“ Besides this I had placed a battery of horse artillery on either flank, while the line of boulders was also guarded with entanglements and maxims; altogether we had some three thousand troops guarding that spot. The guns, and the men, were concealed behind bushes and small trees, as well as the masses of rock, some hundred men only being on view.
Against this defence, there were some five thousand of the enemy. Relying upon the reports of their scouts, who had been misled by the small number of our men to be seen, their cavalry swept forward. ”

“ Elsewhere the British artillery was too exposed to be defended, and the gunners again fled back to the squares. Once more the cavalry surrounded our footmen, like "heavy surf breaking on a coast beset with isolated rocks, against which the mountainous wave dashes with furious uproar, breaks, divides, and runs hissing and boiling far beyond." ”

“ Their first discharges of arrows, stones, and double-headed darts covered the whole ground which we occupied, and they advanced continually till closed upon us all around, attacking us with the utmost resolution with lances and two-handed swords, encouraging each other by continual shouts. Our artillery, musketry, and cross-bows plied them with incessant discharges, and made prodigious havoc among the crowded masses of the enemy, and the home thrusts of our infantry with their swords, prevented them from closing up so near as they had done in the former battle. ”