Posts Tagged ‘cavalry’

Horses In The Crimean War

10th January

2010

written by Will

Sunny, before his winter coat

Today, I went to our stables, the wonderful Saw Horse Farm, run by Wendy Dutterer, in Hunterstown, Pennsylvania, to ride my horse, Sunny. He is taken excellent care of there, and has grown his own lush winter coat. It was a great ride, but a searing cold day. When I ride and see the horses on brisk days like this, I am reminded of the plight of the horses in the Crimean War.

Numerous horses were required by a mid-19th century army. Not merely for the cavalry and horse artillery, but for all the senior officers of infantry regiments, and the many staff officers. Some wealthier officers brought several horses. All of these animals had to be transported by water from England to the Crimea in sailing or steam-driven ships. This could take anywhere from weeks to months, depending on the speed of the ships.

Over 150 horses of the Cavalry Division were lost during deployment to the Crimea. In one bad storm, it was necessary to shoot injured horses, who became wild and uncontrollable below decks.

Many horses were rendered unserviceable by the rigors of the voyage. These losses had a near crippling effect on the cavalry. Those that made it intact, had to face severe climate changes, and one of the worst winters recorded in Crimean history.

It had been planned that remounts would be purchased from various local horse traders, but like so many plans for this badly mismanaged war, this one fell apart quickly and drastically. Captain Louis Nolan, the famous staff officer who brought the order to Lord Lucan prompting the ill-fated “Charge of the Light Brigade,” was even tasked to travel across Syria and overland to the staging area at Varna on the Black Sea, with the mission of purchasing remounts and transport horses along the way. He was only modestly successful. There were insufficient horses for sale anywhere enroute, at the staging area, or in the Crimea. Those horses that were available were smaller, often weak, and frequently unserviceable for cavalry, artillery, or even transport requirements.

Not long after landing on the Crimean coast, the savage winter set in and took its toll. The horses brought from England were hardly used to the unbearable Crimean temperatures or conditions – colic and death were everywhere among these unfortunate animals.

By far the most disastrous loss of horses, however, was a direct result of that unhappy charge by the Light Brigade into a gauntlet of Russian guns. The charge, in about 25 minutes, cost the British army over 100 men killed, but perhaps the most telling catastrophe was the loss of horses. Around 400 were killed and many more put out of service. It was the loss of horses which left the Light Brigade unfit for further action as a unit.

Two horses of particular note were in the Light Brigade’s charge: the mount of Captain Nolan, the first casualty of the affair, and, Ronald, Lord Cardigan’s horse. I will tell their tale tomorrow.