Guest Author - Susan Hopf
Family picnics, ceremonies honoring those that fight for their beliefs, good food and relaxing in the shade is how many spend their Memorial Day holiday. For those serving overseas in active combat today is no picnic. For those horses that have served, throughout the myriad of historical battles, today is their day too – a good day to remember the important role of the horse in human history.
Cavalry is a generic term that coincides with a unit of force separate from the main military brigades that utilizes mobility, firepower and the ability to surprise the enemy. Cavalry units generally incorporate speed and often engage the enemy in advance of the main forces of power. Once upon a time the cavalry rode atop of horses but modern day cavalry now ride on mechanized armaments such as tanks and helicopters. But for our purposes we will revisit the horses and riders that conjure the heroic picture of rattling sabers, flying manes and the pounding of thousands of hooves upon the battlefield.
When stirring up memories of great cavalrymen one cannot help but think of Custer and his Wolverines at the Battle of Gettysburg. The horses advanced so swiftly that there was no stopping them at the front lines – the cavalry came and conquered sending the Confederates running for their lives just to avoid being trampled.
The horses of the cavalry were required to fight or march for fifteen hours out of twenty-four. They carried an average of 225 lbs on their backs and sustained life-threatening wounds as a matter of course. Soldiers were the animals’ caretakers and executioners but only if a bullet could be spared. Many dying horses were just left along the way. Letters written from soldiers often contained mention of the stench of dying horseflesh.
While marching and dying in service they were fed very meager rations. No hay, water muddied from the multitudes passing through the creeks and brooks from which they drank and only 6-10 lbs of grain a day. When halted they were allowed to graze but often times the ground was so spoiled from spilled blood that there nothing left to eat. Riders were made to ride each horse until it could go no further at which point they left the unserviceable animal for another as soon as a fresh horse could be obtained. When horses were killed or there was not a fresh horse available those left were often required to carry two riders at a time.
War is ugly – so much death and destruction throughout the course of human history – in the name of freedom, religion, territory and power. The human toll has been very high. But today of all days we should also remember the extreme sacrifice made by the animals that serve side by side in those human entanglements. Without our noble equine soldiers the world would be a very different place. So here’s to you, our four-legged compatriots, on this day of remembrance – may heaven hold a special, very green, place for all the kind and generous souls that bore us into far too many wars.
