GDG- Re: cavalry in the Napoleonic style in the ACW

[Biggsk at aol.com]

Dick writes:

>>>whole idea seems absurd. cavalry during the ACW was for  the most part 
used for scouting, and not for battlefield results shock  value as was the heavy 
cavalry of the Napoleonic wars.  Is  anyone aware of an ACW situation where 
cavalry broke the lines of steady  infantry?>>>
 
And Eric adds:
 
>>>There is one instance where I am aware of a successful  Napoleonic cavalry 
charge.  In fact, I've often said that if I could  witness one event of the 
Civil War, this would be it: the grand five  brigade charge of the Union 
cavalry at Third Winchester.  The line of  battle was two miles across, and they say 
that the ground shook like  an earthquake.  This massive cavalry force 
crashed into the end  of Early's line, rolled it up, and sent it "reeling through  
Winchester", as one of Sheridan's staff officers put it.  Col. George  S. Patton
received his mortal wound during this charge.  It had to have  been quite a 
thing to see.>>>

As student of the Napoleonic Wars and familiar with the use of cavalry in  
them, there was much more to what they did in the Emperor's time than as heavy  
shock troops breaking an enemy infantry line.  Cavalry was used for much  more 
on the battlefield back then.
 
First, breaking the line was typically the job of the cuirassier, or  heavy 
cavalry.  The French heavy cavalry had armored chest and back plates  (while 
other European units had only front armor or no armor at all) and were,  thus, 
pretty invulnerable to infantry bayonets.  Only a well-disciplined  veteran 
infantry formation stood up to a charge of heavy cavalry as they rode  (at least 
in the French Army), huge horses.  The charge of the French  cavalry at Eylau 
was spearheaded by the heavy cavalry and the Russian lines were  smashed 
allowing Napoleon to save his army, especially after losing almost all  of 
Augereau's Corps already in their bungled attack.  There were some  11,000 horsemen in 
that charge of all types.
 
Other French cavalry units had other jobs, as light, and medium  cavalry.  
The Hussars were light cavalry and along with the Chasseurs did  all the typical 
cavalry roles like scouting, counter-scouting, etc, and were  among the first 
units to start the pursuit phase.  The Lancers were also  light cavalry and 
were used to counter enemy cavalry charges (they ate up the  Scots Greys at 
Waterloo for example) and were also somewhat effective at  breaking infantry 
squares, such as that of one British regiment in Spain.   The Dragoons, were much 
the same as they were over here - mounted riflemen but  also had traditional 
cavalry roles to perform.
 
The secret to Napoleon's cavalry's effectiveness (and I rate them the  finest 
of the 19th Century) was that his tactical matrix interspersed them with  his 
infantry and artillery in his Corps D'Armee system.  Each corps had  organic 
infantry, cavalry and artillery components that answered to the corps  
commander.  There were also army level cavalry units (the heavy cavalry  typically) 
as well as army level artillery units and the Imperial Guard (itself,  in later 
years a full combined arms corps).  Civil War corps lacked the  organic 
cavalry components and thus were not truly combined arms  formations.
 
The secret was to use all of the three components in a true combined arms  
mode, where each could assist the other on the field.  If one component or  
another got too far afield it could be, and sometimes was, chopped up.   Witness 
the French cavalry charge of the British squares at Waterloo for  example.  
They did so without infantry and horse artillery support - and  squares make nice 
fat targets for cannons!
 
Civil War cavalry suffered from improper use for much of the war.  Few  ACW 
generals truly understood combined arms warfare in my opinion, using all  three 
arms to their best, complimenting each other on the field.  Yet there  are 
examples of where cavalry made the difference in battle and it did not  always 
have to be by breaking an enemy battle line of infantry  - they could also add 
to victory by attacking the enemy flanks or,  better yet, enveloping them.  
There are also examples of where aggressive  cavalry pursuit also paid off in 
big dividends for the attacking force.   Some examples of these:
 
1)  The Battle of Richmond, KY (8/1862) - Scott's CS Cavalry  Brigade rode to 
the left of the Confederate line as the latter was  attacking the Federals.  
Scott enveloped the Union line getting into  its rear and they collapsed - the 
Union force (some 10,000 troops) were crushed  making it one of the most 
complete defeats of an enemy force in the whole  war.  This is a fine example of 
true combined arms battle in the CW - as  the artillery also played its part.
 
2) Battle of Lavergne, TN (10/1862)  As part of the attacking combined  arms 
Union force, the cavalry succeeded in breaking the Confederate lines and  
enveloping them causing a rout to occur.  There were several CS regiments  in the 
action.
 
3)  Battle of Parker's Crossroads (12/62) - Forrest, in between two  Union 
brigades, attacked one of them, dismounting the bulk of his troopers to do  so.  
The others were sent as a blocking force or were his small reserve (he  had a 
brigade only then).  When the  blocking force took the wrong  road, it 
allowed the second Union brigade to strike Forrest's rear.  Using  only his mounted 
bodyguard (only some 100 men), Forrest rode across their front  and then 
turned and struck them in flank with a charge, stopping their advance  cold and 
buying the time needed to extricate his command from the field.   Since Forrest 
had artillery, infantry (his dismounted component) and mounted  cavalry, this 
was also a combined arms fight.
 
4) Confederate breakout at Ft. Donelson - (2/62) - On Feb. 15th, the  
Confederate infantry massed below the town and struck at the lines of Union Gen.  
John McClernand's Division deployed along the top of a ridge.  Over the  next few 
hours, his lines were rolled up and pushed back opening the two escape  roads 
for the besieged garrison.  The 11th Illinois Infantry had provided a  very 
stout defense at a crossroads and CS attack after attack failed to move  them.  
Forrest's regiment, who had been attacking Union lines all morning  as well 
as moving forward ammunition (in hilly and wooded terrain by the way -  much 
worse than were Elon Farnsworth made his charge) was asked to support an  attack 
by the 2nd Kentucky Infantry on the 11th Illinois.  The 2nd KY hit  them from 
one side and Forrest from the other and their lines collapsed, 62 men  dying 
on the spot (now the first 63 graves in the Ft. Donelson National  Cemetery).  
This was another combined arms attack method (save for CS  artillery, which 
did not advance).  Prior to this time, Forrest was  operating down in Bufford 
Hollow enveloping the Union lines time and  again.
 
5)  Brice's Crossroads (6/64) - Using his men in mounted, dismounted  and 
artillery (including a replication of Gen. Senarmont's French artillery  charge 
at Friedland), Forrest routed a Union force over twice his size using all  
three modes of combat as well as a double envelopment.
 
6)  Eric has cited Third Winchester - there is also Cedar Creek, where  the 
Union cavalry smashed and enveloped Early's left flanks causing another  rout.
 
7)  Appomattox Campaign - at places like Saylor's Creek, it was massed  Union 
cavalry acting very aggressively and in mass, that cutoff some of Lee's  
retreating army - and finally blocked its escape entirely.
 
8) Battle of Nashville (12/64) - Wilson's massed cavalry enveloped the  
Confederate left flank for two solid days using mounted and dismounted forces  
operating against CS forts and entrenchments for part of the attacks.  His  
troopers then transited to the pursuit phase against Confederate infantry units  
trying to hold roads open for wagons to escape and at several of the gaps near  
Franklin, the rebel infantry got beaten badly.  Only when Hood recalled  
Forrest from Murfreesboro did the odds change and what was left of the Army of  
Tennessee managed to get back to Alabama.  Forrest had beaten Wilson like a  drum 
on the way into Tennessee and he beat him like a drum on the way out as  well.
 
9) Battle of Selma, AL, West Point, GA and Columbus, GA (3-4/1865) -  
Wilson's Cavalry Corps, 14,000 men armed with Spencers (rifles and carbines),  and 
the most powerful cavalry force assembled in the entire war, smashed CS  
entrenchments, forts and more in mounted and dismounted attacks at all three  places, 
inflicting on Forrest his biggest defeat of the war at Selma.
 
10) First Manassas (7/61) - Stuart's cavalry rode right over the New York  
Zouaves regiment breaking them.  One can only imagine the damage to  McDowell's 
army had there been a couple CS cavalry brigades there instead of a  handful 
of regiments.
 
11)  Price's Missouri Campaign - Union cavalry was all over him for  much of 
this roving campaign, duly showing its wonderful capability in the  pursuit 
phase of battle.
 
12)  Battle of Shelbyville, TN (6/83) - as part of the Tullahoma  Campaign, 
Union cavalry was quite aggressive - in fact this battle ranks with  Brandy 
Station for importance as it saw the ascendancy of Union cavalry in the  West for 
the first time.  Bragg's cavalry was scattered covering avenues of  approach 
towards his Tullahoma lines.  Wheeler, with his troopers  dismounted in the 
town and supported by artillery, held open the one bridge left  to them to the 
northern banks - and riding hard towards that point was Forrest's  division 
trying to get across before the bridge was taken.  Riding even  harder was 
Minty's crack cavalry brigade, featuring the 7th Pennsylvania Cavalry  (the Saber 
Regiment).  Wheeler deployed his forces and guns to hold the  town and protect 
the bridge.  Minty ordered a charge and by the time the  smoke cleared, Wheeler 
had been routed and driven from the town on a run.   Forrest had to cross the 
river to the west to escape.  There is more  combined arms here on the 
Confederate side, but this is an example of aggressive  mounted cavalry attacking a 
line of men, with artillery support, and breaking  them.
 
13) Battle of Murfreesboro/Stones River (12/62-1/63)  As part of  Bragg's 
attack plan, the Confederate cavalry force under John Wharton, was to  attack to 
the left of the CS battle line, defeat the supporting Union cavalry  and drive 
them from the field, and, supporting the Confederate infantry advance,  
envelop the Union right flank and gain the road to Nashville cutting off  
Rosecrans' army.  This they did marvelously and it is one of the few  examples of a big 
scale attack by a major army where the cavalry was part of the  tactical 
planning from the start.
 
Do not forget - standing in a line and seeing a bunch of guys charging at  
you on big horses was a very scary sight to behold.  Eric' description of  the 
Union charge at Third Winchester must have been a truly frightening  thing for 
the Confederates to witness.  It takes a brave man, and a solid,  disciplined 
body of troops, to stay in line and not run and sometimes even that  was not 
enough!  I have read OR accounts of where infantry would fire at  such a charge 
and, as they tended to aim high at them, the bullets passed over  the 
charging troopers.  Charging cavalry also had the advantage of closing  the gaps much 
faster than infantry could reload, and the latter might only get  off one to 
three volleys before being hit.
 
Then we have things like Farnsworth's charge (albeit the troopers were not  
properly formed in lines of battle thus diminishing their true combat power in  
that attack - didn't Merritt's attack, which was, do much better?) where the  
mounted attack is chopped up as well as the attack of the 8th Texas Cavalry  
(Terry's Texas Rangers) at Rowlett's Station in December, 1861 in  Kentucky.  
The latter, without the supporting infantry and artillery of  Hindman's 
Brigade to help, did a mounted charge against the 32nd Indiana  Infantry, whose 
colonel was Prussian Augustus Willich.  He had them  well-drilled by the Prussian 
drill manual and not only did they form a square in  the KY field south of the 
Green River bridge, but they formed company squares  and Willich staggered 
them to give them inter-locking fields of fire!   Needless to say, the Texans 
got the snot shot out of them and Colonel Terry was  killed.  Had he waited for 
the rest of the Confederate force to advance  with him, his regiment would 
have won the day.
 
So it came down to how was the charge deployed; what was its objective;  what 
was the terrain; how many troopers were to be involved; how was the enemy  
deployed; do they get infantry and/or artillery support too?  Even in  modern 
times, improperly supported attacks by one of the service arms can often  have 
deadly consequences.  For example, in one of the Gulf Wars (might have  been 
the second one), the Apache Battalion of the 101st Airborne attacked an  Iraqi 
target unsupported by other fixed wing aircraft, and got shot up very  badly by 
AAA fire.  It was a pretty bad defeat for the chopper pilots and  it failed 
because of a lack of proper combined arms to support it.
 
Another modern example was in the Yom Kippur War of 1973, where  
counter-attacking Israeli tanks got chopped up by Egyptian infantry armed with  RPGs.  The 
Israelis, thinking their tanks were invulnerable, got very cocky  after the 
Six Day War of 1967 and failed to train and execute true combined arms  
attacks.  In 1973, these tank attacks lacked both artillery and, most  importantly, 
infantry support.  There was nothing to protect the tanks from  these 
well-trained Egyptian troops who stayed in their foxholes and fought and  the Israelis 
lost heavily.
 
Cavalry in the Civil War still had more uses than standing on the flanks,  
scouting and raiding.  One did not have to lunge at an enemy infantry line  to 
win a battle - helping the attacking infantry by attacking or enveloping the  
enemy's flanks at the same time did even better!  I always thought that If  
McClellan had massed his cavalry to support the Union attacks into the corn  
field by charging them down the road by the Dunker Church, he would have won the  
battle and really damaged Lee's army.
 
Greg Biggs