Posted on 10/29/2009 4:57:24 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
Texas training is on horseback??
Say what?
I want some of those Dianna Deane Exceptional Chocolates.
Too bad about the government taking all the wool in the UK
Did the Flint sail or not? Inquiring minds want to know.
The Germans actually did have a Horse Cavalry division, and it saw extensive use in Southern/Central Russia, as well as Poland.
The Horse Cavalry became invaluable for Recon-in-Force in the vast steppes of Russia, as Recon Vehicle losses exceeded German Production capabilities.
Italian, Hungarian, Russian Cossack, and Romanian Cav units filled this role until they were destroyed by Operation Saturn (Stalingrad).
After Stalingrad, the Germans would expand Cavalry to an entire Cavalry CORPS, for use in the Balkans and Southern Russia.
From the book “Actung Cavalry!”, about German Cavalry operations in WW2:
“On June 22, 1941, the 1st Cavalry Division with its 15,000 men and 17,000 horses, crossed the Bug River. “At 3.15 AM, the 1st and 2nd Brigades of General Feldt’s 1st Cavalry Division...crossed the river Bug.
The day’s target destination was reached, and the cavalrymen were already on the edge of the wood east of Rogalzna by midnight.”
The mission of the 1st Cavalry Division was carefully planned. “On the extreme southern flank of Army Group Center was positioned the 1st Cavalry Division, which was assigned the difficult task of moving along the edge of the Pripet swamps and guarding against a Soviet thrust from the south. This mounted division would later be reinforced by two infantry divisions.”
By the 23rd of June 1941, the division’s vanguard was near Nowosiolki.
On the 24th the cavalry division moved towards
Horodel, seventy kilometers away. Soviet aircraft caught the division in the open near Mokrany and temporarily disrupted it. However, the cavalry was able to obtain relief by exploiting the cover of a nearby wood.”
NAVAL EVENTS- Sunday, 29 October
Destroyers JERVIS, JANUS, JUNO, JERSEY, JUPITER, JACKAL departed the Humber on operation AG. They swept off the Dutch coast, but made no contact with enemy shipping, although JERSEY was near missed by German bombing. The ships arrived back in the Humber on the 30th.
_____
Light cruiser SHEFFIELD arrived at Rosyth for refit, and departed on 9 November.
_____
Light cruisers CARDIFF and CALEDON were on Northern Patrol duties between the Orkneys and the Faroes, light cruisers DRAGON, DIOMEDE, COLOMBO between the Faroes and Iceland, and light cruiser SOUTHAMPTON and armed merchant cruisers CHITRAL and AURANIA in the Denmark Strait.
_____
Anti-aircraft cruiser CALCUTTA departed Grimsby on escort duties and arrived back later the same day.
_____
The 22nd Destroyer Flotilla was formed at Harwich for East Coast Defence with destroyers EXMOUTH, KEITH and the Polish BURZA, GROM and BLYSKAWICA. On the 31st, destroyers ILEX, ISIS, IMPERIAL joined after completing repairs. The Flotilla was briefly composed of EXMOUTH as leader, ILEX, ISIS, IMPERIAL in the 43rd Division and KEITH and the three Polish ships in the 44th Division.
ILEX and ISIS were at Harwich at the end of the month and IMPERIAL at Plymouth preparing to depart. ILEX and ISIS departed Harwich on 2 November, arrived at Plymouth on the 3rd and departed the same day for Gibraltar to escort battleship WARSPITE. After this duty, they arrived at Scapa Flow on the 14th. Meanwhile IMPERIAL departed for Harwich on 1 November, but was ordered to Scapa Flow for duty with the Home Fleet, arriving on the 4th.
Captain R S Benson (D.12) in EXMOUTH was named Captain of the 22nd Flotilla on 2 November and continued in this capacity until the 11th, when he and EXMOUTH returned to Devonport.
Destroyer BOADICEA joined the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla on 5 November.
The three I’s of the 22th Destroyer Flotilla and all the destroyers, except BOADICEA, of the 23th Destroyer Flotilla were released on 5 November to return to their respective commands. The B’s returned to the 19th Destroyer Flotilla.
On 11 November, Captain G E Creasy in destroyer GRIFFIN was named D.22. On the same day, the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla was composed of GRIFFIN (D.22), GREYHOUND, GIPSY, GLOWWORM, KEITH, BOADICEA and Polish GROM, BURZA, BLYSKAWICA.
On the 22nd, GRAFTON and GALLANT replaced KEITH and BOADICEA in the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla.
On the 27th, D.22 transferred to submarine depot ship CYCLOPS, on 1 December, to BOADICEA, which had returned to the Flotilla, and on the 5th, to destroyer GRENVILLE, which completed repairs of her collision damage on the 7th.
Also, at Harwich, the 23rd Destroyer Flotilla was formed with CODRINGTON (Captain Simson, D.19) as leader, BOADICEA, ANTHONY, VANSITTART, VENOMOUS as the 45th Division, and BASILISK, BLANCHE, BEAGLE, BRAZEN as 46th Division.
In addition, destroyers BOREAS, which was repairing at Portsmouth until 13 November, and BRILLIANT were assigned to the 19th Destroyer Flotilla at Harwich.
_____
Polish destroyer BLYSKAWICA attacked a submarine contact.
_____
Convoy OA.27 of thirteen ships departed Southend escorted by destroyers WANDERER and WAKEFUL from the 29th to 31st.
_____
Convoy OB.28 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyers VIMY and MACKAY to 1 November.
_____
U.34 sank steamer MALABAR (7976grt, Commodore Rear Admiral G W Taylor (Rtd) aboard) from convoy HX.5A, 50 miles NW of the Scillies; five crew were lost. Destroyer GRAFTON rescued the survivors. U.34 attempted to sink another merchant ship of the convoy without success.
_____
American steamer CRANFORD (6096grt) and Italian steamer MANZONI (3955grt) collided off Deal with light damage to CRANFORD and extensive damages to MANZONI .
_____
Battleship WARSPITE departed Alexandria escorted by destroyers DAINTY and DIANA, and arrived at Malta on the 31st. After a brief docking, she left on 4 November with the same escort , which was relieved by destroyers ISIS and ILEX east of Gibraltar on the 6th and WARSPITE arrived at Gibraltar later that day.
_____
Convoy HG.5 of 40 ships departed Gibraltar escorted by French destroyers FOUGUEUX and L’ADROIT, from 29 October until their arrival at Brest on 6 November, and British destroyers DOUGLAS and VORTIGERN. The convoy arrived at various English ports on the 6th.
_____
Light cruiser DESPATCH departed Kingston.
War Diary and War Standing Orders of Commander in Chief, Submarines (Admiral Doenitz_)
Naval War Staff has ordered that passenger ships in enemy convoy be attacked.
U 33 sailed for a minelaying operation north of the Foreland.
U 25 and U 34 were ordered to make a situation report. I must know whether the French Admiralty’s claim concerns one of these boats. It might of course be U 40, but she could not answer, as presumably her transmitter is out of order (see 22.10).
After going into the question of keeping losses down again, I have decided only to order the boats to keep a sufficient distance in gun actions, and not to go all out. I do not think it necessary or justifiable to restrict the use of guns further, e.g.
a) to order the boats to avoid all gun actions, i.e. to leave the enemy as soon as opposition is encountered, or
b) to renounce the use of guns altogether.
Commanding officers must be required not to go all out for the enemy, but to keep at a range which makes it impossible for the enemy to use his guns effectively, or to break off the action if they are faced with superior guns.
U 31 reported: “Operation carried out”. (Loch Ewe). U 37’s report of experiences off Gibraltar received:
1) Patrol by Q ships, motor vessels and a/c. Cooperation between these.
2) Air patrol in the area Cape Spartel, Trafalgar, St. Vincent Larache. Hunts apparently only with hydrophones, no location.
3) Traffic: ships making 9 knots and over are routed independently, more than 10 miles south of the usual steamer routes.
This report gives valuable information for the operation of U 25, U 26 and U 53, which are to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean.
A conference was held between B.d.U. and the General Staff of the G.A.F. on the problem of getting more information on the Channel.The G.A.F. agreed to fly an extensive photographic reconnaissance of the whole Dover-Calais area. It remains to be seen whether pictures taken of the surface of the sea from such a height can provide any practical clues as to mines and net barrages and other details of navigational importance. The only experiences are of much smaller sea areas.
I am of the opinion however, that every means of reconnaissance must be used. Even if the results cannot be analyzed accurately from a navigational standpoint, they will still be of great value.
OCTOBER 29, 1939:
From Tokyo... Reflecting the rising number of Chinese defections to the Japanese, the US military attache reports that there are 100,000 armed Chinese serving as Huang Hsieh Chun (Imperial Assisting Troops).
From Berlin... OKH issues a revision to Fall Gelb (Operation Yellow) with the main thrust shifted slightly south and less strength being sent against Holland. There is an ongoing debate as to how it should be modified further. Also, German warships and U-boats are given permission to attack passenger ships in convoys.
In Latvia... The first contingent of Soviet troops begin occupation of bases allotted by the Latvian-Soviet agreement.
In Paris... An official French communique reports all quiet generally during the day.
On the Western Front... An increasing number of British heavy artillery is moved into position.
Convoy HG05 Departs Gibraltar for the UK, with 40 Merchant ships
Aircraft Loss:
Date: 29-OCT-1939
Type: Gloster Gladiator Mk.I
Operator: RAF 607 Sqn.
Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: 5 miles W of Acklington, Northumberland
Narrative:
Stalled while doing aerobatics & spun into ground.
Pilot:F/O Alan Otho Glover RAF killed.
The square indicates a unit. The Xs denote the size. “X”=brigade, “XX”=Division, “XXX=Corps, “XXXX”=Army, “XXXXX”= Army Group. If you see a “l”[a straight line], it’s a Company.”ll” would be a Bn., “LLL” would be a regiment.
Inside the square [rectangle], if there’s an elongated X from the corners, it’s infantry. Something that looks like a gelcap on its side= Armor or Pz. X superimposed on ther gelcap=Pz. Gren. or mexch. One diagonal line from upper left to lower right=Cav. Something that looks like stylized bird wings from the front=airborne. Dot=arty. Number to the right of rectangle=specific unit. Thus gelcap with “XX” above the rectangle, and “2 SS” to its right= Second SS Pz. Div., “Das Reich”. of rec
90% of German transport and artillery was horsedrawn. Maybe 10-20% tops of the Heere and the Waffen SS was mechanized or motorized [including the Luftwaffe’s “Hermann Goering Panzer and Parachute Div.”].
Given your screen-name, it seems like you should know. But... the Germans used the panzers for troop transport, did they not? You can pretty much put a whole squad on a single tank, can’t you?
The Germans tended to use much more ad hoc combat groups [Kampfgruppe] in battle. They seldom fought fought at Battalion/ Regt. [as formal units]. They’d throw togehter what they had for any particular mission, except armored offensives. They usually tried to concentrate the unitsin Divisions, Corps, and preferably Panzer Groups, for that [except in Africa, and before 1943.
There was at least one Waffen SS Cavalry Division, the 8th SS ‘Florian Geyr”. I believe there was another [probably never more than a Regt.] at the end of the war, called “Maria Theresa”. Believe it fought in Hungary.
Carrying infantry has some pluses. Your infantry support is with you, easily coordinated with, and capable of rapid response.
The downside, however, is not so good, if you're the Germans. Crunchies on the hull can interfere with tank operations [swinging the main gun comes to mind]. Plus, while the close support is needed in urban combat, the Germans preferred to keep armor OUT of urban areas [learned that at Warsaw,relearned it at Stalingrad], and German doctrine preferred engaging tank targets at distance, where close support wasn't needed.
SS-Kavallerie-Division participated in the Invasion of Poland.
The SS Cavalry Brigade (Another unit) also participated in Poland, and was reconstituted into the 8th SS Cavalry Division “Florian Geyr”, in 1942, after being nearly destroyed in anti-partisan operations in the Pripet Marshes.
Got anything on “Maria Theresa”?
Mostly from FELDGRAU:
22. SS-Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division Maria Theresa
formed May 1944 in the area around Kisber, Hungary, with SS-Kavallerie Regiment 17 (from Florian Geyer) as nucleus. The bulk of the soldiers in the division were Hungarian volksdeutsche originally drafted by the Hungarian Armed Forces who were transferred to the Waffen-SS following an agreement between Germany and Hungary.
Sep 1944 a kampfgruppe from Maria Theresa consisting of SS-Kavallerie-Regiment 52 along with supporting troops, commanded by SS-Hauptsturmführer Toni Ameiser and entitled SS-Kampfgruppe Ameiser was sent to Romania.
There, it failed to link up with LVII Panzerkorps and instead fought alongside Hungarian troops.
The advance of the Red Army led to the encirclement of the Kampgruppe 2 Oct and soon after it was split in two. One part of it was led by SS-Haputsturmführer Harry Vandieken and managed to fight its way to the Harmas river where they managed to swim across to join the German forces on the other side.
The other part was led by Ameiser was not so lucky, but managed to survive behind enemy lines until it could reach the German lines south of Budapest 30 Oct.
The battle ready parts of the division, which was still in training, were sent into Budapest Nov 1944. There it was encircled along with the rest of the Axis troops in the Hungarian capital and was destroyed, only some 170 men making it out of the encirclement.
General der Kavallerie Gustav Harteneck, commander of I Kavallerie-korps, later wrote:
“While the Corps was still in the process of being transferred, we were once again ordered to take up stationary positions, to our great disappointment. The cavalry divisions of the Waffen-SS were fighting in the metropolis of Budapest.
Every cavalryman knows that no good could come of that, and, as it turned out, nothing did. The SS divisions were encircled ... My Cavalry Corps launched a night attack in an attempt to relieve them, but it was too late, and the Russian forces were too powerful.
Although we managed to fight out way to the city limits, only 100 or so cavalrymen, under the command of the famous rider Staff Colonel von Mitzlaff, were able to break through to us.
The subsequent battles, in the course of which my Corps was under the command of 6th SS Panzer Army, might have turned out quite differently had the two SS cavalry divisions been deployed to full advantage as cavalry divisions, instead of being ordered to hold Budapest. “
The survivors, along with those who had not been sent into Budapest were used to form 37. SS-Freiwilligen-Kavallerie-Division Lützow, with the remnants of the Flak units being transferred to 32. SS-Freiwilligen-Grenadier-Division 30 Januar.
Still, hard to imagine a cavalry charge in the age of the machine gun.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.