RE: Why Btonze Age?
July 3, 2016 at 9:34 pm
(This post was last modified: July 3, 2016 at 9:45 pm by Anomalocaris.)
The soviets used sizeable cavalry forces for scouting and for mobile shock force where conventional wheeled or tracked vehicles had a hard time throughout WWII. The soviets used cavalry charges effectively in the pursuit stages of the battle against routed and fleeing German units once the main German front was broken by soviet mechanized forces. The soviets almost certainly launched fairly sizeable real horse cavalry charges as late as 1945.
The Germans also used both German and Cossack horse mounted cavalry for anti-partisan operations in yogoslavia and on the eastern front. Throughout WWII, much of the supply of the German army from the railhead to frontline troop was pulled by horses despite German reputation for mechanization. In fact, one of the main reason why Germans never used chemical warfare during 1943-1945, despite the fact chemical warfare warfare would have theoretically given tremendous advantage to the defensive side, was the fact the Germans never managed to produce an effective gas mask for horses, and resorting the chemical warfare would have killed all the horses that the German army depended on for logistics.
The US actually deployed real horse mounted special forces in Afghanistan in 2001. Horses can still be more mobile than any wheeled or tracked vehicles in mountainous terrain.
The Germans also used both German and Cossack horse mounted cavalry for anti-partisan operations in yogoslavia and on the eastern front. Throughout WWII, much of the supply of the German army from the railhead to frontline troop was pulled by horses despite German reputation for mechanization. In fact, one of the main reason why Germans never used chemical warfare during 1943-1945, despite the fact chemical warfare warfare would have theoretically given tremendous advantage to the defensive side, was the fact the Germans never managed to produce an effective gas mask for horses, and resorting the chemical warfare would have killed all the horses that the German army depended on for logistics.
The US actually deployed real horse mounted special forces in Afghanistan in 2001. Horses can still be more mobile than any wheeled or tracked vehicles in mountainous terrain.
