Was Cavalry still useful in WWII ?

Thanks for the info Castelot. This is the first time I hear of a succesful Italian move that wasn't made against something so hopelessly inferior that it wasn't really a battle.

 

I see. That's very interesting, since I don't think of Yugoslavia being good cavalry country any more than it's good tank country.

 

Yes, but it's still more cavalry than tank country.The germans and their tchetnik allies made great use of cavalry in Yugoslavia.

 

True. And not a bad idea, given the lack of roads in the region.

 

Have you discussed the cavalry charge the Italians made on the russians in 1941?

As I recall it the Italians actually came out victorious!

If u havent discussed this, im sure i can provide u with more info.

 

Sorry!!

Castelot already discussed that battle (and it was 1942) better than i ever can!


Just one thing that i want is that part of the reason the Italians were succesful was that the russians were in GAZ model trucks at the time of the attack and did not realise the cavalry charge until it was upon them.

 

Well, in the age of the machine gun that is the difference between a succesful and a doomed cavalry charge: surprise! You don't want to go at them yelling "charge!" or any other battlecry...

 

No, nor blowing a bugle, either. Forget the colors streaming in the wind too, while you're at it.

 

The only things horses were truly useful was in transportation and logistics.

There were a few cavalry charges that took the enemy by complete surprise and worked because of that.

However cavalry were no longer useful.

In France (After the regular french army was crushed naturally) the french tried to use cavalry, however the horses were too afraid of the sounds made by the german army and ran away with their riders.

 

Totally agree.

 

Agreed, although part of me thinks it's a pity...

 

What? No more knights in shining armor!!!!! :cry:

totally agree

 

And even there, they were nothing but a cheap but slow and obsolete alternative to better methods, which the Americans and British knew to use very well... (the better methods that is)

 

The advantages offered by horse transport are:
Can access areas a truck cannot go.
Can be refueled with grass.
Can serve as extra rations if things go wrong.

There is a place for them as pack animals - even for mounted infantry, but not in the 'normal' run of things. Mountain & jungle troops, mostly.

 

One thing that is often overlooked is that the British Army in 1939 was entirely mechanised.
However, as it was not exactly huge, this is not too surprising!

 

mechanised!!!!! All of it!!???

Dont u mean motorized??

 

LOL! :lol: :lol:

 

The two terms are interchangeable, I believe.

 

Not so,

Mechanized means carried by armored infantry carriers or APCs such as the Bradely, bren gun carrier, or M113.


Motorized means carried exclusively by trucks and lorries.

 

Then why do they have different military symbols. Mechanized infantry is represented by a box with cross and circle in it, where motorized infantry is shown as a box with a cross on it and two blocks (wheels) underneath.