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War Horses are horses specially trained for use in battle or individual combat (see also: Jousting).
History of the horse in warfare
The earliest documented examples of horses playing a role in warfare date to the 19th century BC, when they were used in chariot warfare. The oldest preserved hippological text, the horse training manual of Kikkuli, dates to the age of the chariot. The first instance of cavalry was the horsed archer deployed by Eurasian nomads, notably the Parthians. Though the saddle was invented fairly early on, arguably one of the most important inventions that made mounted cavalry particularly effective was the stirrup, appearing in about the 7th century, which gave nomadic tribes such as the Mongols a decisive military advantage.
Throughout time and across multiple cultures, most military officers came from the elite cavalry ranks.
Heavy cavalry was an Iranian innovation, first appearing in Sassanid Persia in ca. the 2nd century, rising in importance until it reached its highest form in the plate-armoured knight of the European High Middle Ages. Though useful as "shock troops," particularly against unmounted infantry, mounted heavy cavalry units were not particularly useful in extremely large numbers, developing instead the single and small group combat skills of jousting.
During the Middle Ages, large horses with the strength and stamina to carry both a knight and his heavy armor into battle were highly prized. In addition to size, this type of horse, known as a Destrier or Great Horse, was selected for speed and trainability. The expense of keeping, training and outfitting these specialized horses prevented the majority of the population from owning them. Modern breeds of draft horse such as Belgian, Percheron and Shire horse descended from the huge horses that carried armored knights and were often armored themselves.
Horses were particularly useful for the Conquistadors when they came to the Americas and conquered the Aztec and Inca empires. Because the horse had been extinct in the Western Hemisphere for approximately 10,000 years, the Indigenous peoples of the Americas had no warfare technologies that could overcome the considerable advantage provided by European possession of horses and gunpowder.
One of the last major uses of horses in combat by a national army was during World War II when the underequipped army of Poland used their cavalry in a last-ditch attempt to defend themselves against the tank warfare of Nazi Germany. In some Third World nations today, there are still a few mounted units of soldiers used for raiding, mostly against unarmed refugee and other civilian populations. Examples include the Janjaweed militias used in the Darfur region of Sudan.
Training of war horses
A common misconception is that a war horse is simply a horse in armor. In fact, much training was required to overcome the horse's natural aversion to the smell of blood, and its natural disinclination to trample a person. A war horse's training would generally address its responsiveness to being controlled without reins, tolerance for the noises of battle, and its adaptability to weapons and armor the rider would be using. In addition, some war horses were trained to kick, strike and even bite on command, thus becoming weapons in the extended arsenal of the warriors they carried. The Haute ecole or "High School" movements taught to the famous Lipizzan horses at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna have their roots in manuvers needed on the battlefield.
Horses in the military today
Today, the historical military uses of the horse have mostly evolved into peaceful applications. The graceful training techniques and equestrian competition known as dressage has its roots in training horses for battle maneuvres. The Police Horse is a fixture in many large cities, used for patrol and crowd control. In more rural areas, many Sheriff's offices have specially deputized, usually volunteer search and rescue units who are often sent out to locate missing people in wilderness areas.
Although horses have little combat use today by modern armies, the military of many nations still keeps a few mounted units for certain types of patrol and reconnissance duties in extremely rugged terrain, including the current conflict in Afghanistan. Germany, Hungary, many Commonwealth nations, many Balkan nations, and nations that comprised Soviet Central Asia maintain cavalry units as part of light infantry and reconnaisance formations for use in mountainous terrain or areas where petrol supply may be difficult. Many nations also maintain traditionally-trained and historically uniformed cavalry units for exhibition purposes.
External links
- New Riders of the Golden Age Modern performers of authentic full contact jousts on Belgian, Percheron, Shire, and Clydesdale horses.
- The British Cavalry Regiments of 1914-1918 The British Cavalry Regiments of 1914-1918
- The Spanish Mustang Registry (preservers of the warhorse of ancient Spain)
- United States Dressage Federation
- Home Page of the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, where the "high school" art of Dressage preserves the ancient movements and manuvers of the war horse. (in German, can be translated into English via Google)
Cavalry | Horse breeds | Medieval warfare | Warhorses | Military animals | Horses
"War horse"