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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ม.ค. 2020
- With millions of horses used on both sides of the Civil War, there is a prevailing school of thought that mentions that both armies could not be picky and used whatever horses they could get. Was this true? What was the ideal horse type? How often did the army stray from what they really wanted? Join us in this video as we dive into the specifications of the "perfect" cavalry horse and compare that to photographic evidence of the period!
For more period documentation and regulations, please visit our research site at www.11thovc.com
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/ 11thohiovolunteercavalry
Also, please check out our friends over at the 6th Ohio Mounted Buglers and 2nd Cavalry Brigade Band at:
6thOhioMount... - บันเทิง
My 3rd great grandfather was a saddler sargent/master saddler for the 14th Kentucky cavalry. He took instructions from the commanding officer of the regiment, and he repaired the horse equipment for the field, staff, and band. He was paid 17 dollars a month.
I was looking for horses used in the English civil war, with no success. However this video has been very helpful, TY. 👍
Another excellent presentation.
I am a cavalry reenactor from the UK
In Leander Stillwell's memoir he mentions seeing a column of Confederate cavalry with a rider on a white horse. When the federals opened fire, they all fired at that rider and "that luckless steed soon went down in a cloud of dust, and that was the end of old Whitey." This is probably why the regs call for dark horses; the light ones attract attention.
Nevertheless, in Henry Calvert's memoir he talks about each troop of his regiment having a certain horse color, and Troop C was mounted on grey (white) horses.
White feet are generally softer (more prone to soundness issues) White faces are more photosensitive along with visibility issues. Almost all militarys ect looked for dark and solid coloured horses. Greys can be fairly dark for years but still maintain the dark skin on their eyes and black feet both attributes the military would look for.
I've read that Winston Churchill's father was upset when he was assigned to cavalry because an "officer and a gentleman" was expected to furnish his own horse, at his (his father's) expense. In the movie, "Young Winston", he arrives to his unit with a white horse - because he wants to stand out - and his commander asks, "Do you know what happened to the previous owner?"
"Bottom" is such a great word. A man with bottom was a rider who could stay in the saddle; a man you could count on. I can see why they wanted a horse which wouldn't throw its rider and dash off. You didn't mention geldings; it was the practice in European armies to geld all male horses. A stud who smelled a mare in heat could destroy the cohesion of a unit. A European officer who came to observe our war was astounded that we just mixed things up. In Europe, horses & men were divided by size into Light (the Light Brigade of Crimean War infamy, often lancers), Medium (dragoons, mounted infantry), and Heavy ("big men, on big horses, with big swords").
My 4th great grandfather was in the 4th Texas Calvary.
My GG GRANDFATHER was in the 3rd Indiana cavalry and an old ten type photo showed him on a white or gray color horse (lighter color anyway) that according to his military record was his own horse. When captured and sent to Andersonville records list " horse and horse equipments captured same day". Service records indicate the government owed him when he was released at war's end. Horse actually looked more like a draft/work horse.
I hate a horse with vice. Nothing worse than a horse with a gambling habit.
Mine likes soiled doves..........
Gamboling?
The regs called for a horse and a quartet for remounts. That is a lot of horses. This was rarely achieved until about 1900. Early in the civil war, union commanders rode their horses into the ground due to lack of experience. They rode daylight to dark for days during a campaign. Never took any remounts with them. In fact, at that time, only captains and above had a remount. Thus cavalry units killed a lot of horses from exhaustion. Around 1864, the union had learned to care for them and have their remounts as part of their supply trains. The south never had that problem as troopers took better care of their mounts as they owned them. Of course units had problems getting replacements as they would only be able to capture them.
Steve, this is another truly fine example, via presentation, of the knowledge, as per experiential living history and from the period regulations of the day to cause your viewers to learn the truth of the matter, if not to purchase wisely our next equine cavalry partner. Thanks for the concise and fact-loaded video, sir.
I won a horsemastership competition which included a test on the cavalry's manual. It started right out with the essential: "There are four bones in the horse's foot, the long pastern bone, the short pastern bone, the coffin bone, and the navicular bone."
Interestingly, there were detailed instructions about spotting anthrax in bison and the drastic measures that must be taken in that case. Are there contemporary records of the bison herds being infected?
Thanks my library teacher recommended this I am doing research on horses in the civil war
There is an old saying when judging a horse. "The horse should be Four Square and a Hand Wide. Sound in Wind and Limb". Very simple: The legs are squarely under the horse, the Hand is the Width between the eyes, (room for a brain) fist between the jaw and width between the breast (room for heart and lungs).
Thanks for the insight as I'm painting up 28mm 7th Cavalry minitures. I thought Cisco from Dances with Wolves would be a good standard, but, realize they probably need to be darker.
The MORGAN HORSE was the shining star of the Union Cavalry! Still bred by the government in Vermont.
Excellent video, thanks !!!
This guy is good in front of the camera. Good teacher.
Surely the mental side of the horse can't be so simplistic. There has to be a distinction between a horse that will charge into an enemy line vs. a horse that will take the rider near the enemy line, but be too shy to deliberately charge into a melee. This is the kind of spirit it takes for an effective heavy cavalry charge in Europe. It's been this way since the middle ages as it took a certain type of horse to line up knee to kneed in a shock charge. A charge of sabres from heavy mounted cuirassiers in Europe would need a horse that will trample men, kick, bite, and get the rider out of the melee safely to reorganize after the charge. Most horses will never ride into an enemy unless trained to do so.
One of your typical great videos.
Great videos, I've read several books ( history ‽?) During civil war many officers rode there own and in the south a huge calvary and home guards had to have there own horses.
At the beginning
Funny, I was wondering what the standard for horses was yesterday.
Those poor horses are wayyyy underweight… 😞 Their bodies have literally consumed their own top line muscle to survive…
Cry, you depressed vegan.
Do you have any information regarding the use of mares for cavalry? Truly appreciate your channel an your work as it's become a great source and primer for my own research. Thanks!
Very Interesting
They never stamped them with U.S. on their flanks?
Officer's could supply their own horses which would not meet the requirements for horses bought by the Army. Super famous example would be Marse Roberts horse, Traveller.
I saw a video a few days ago about a mounted Federal infantry raid into Confederate Georgia that could only find mules. I don't know if this mule story was true, but the Colonel Streight raid did not go well. I admit mounted infantry probably only envisioned these mule mounts for transportation, not cavalry tactics. I suspect this raid's failure had more to do with inept leadership and poorly thought tactics, than horses vs mules. Infantry should have been able to defend themselves from Forrest's cavalry fairly easily.
Good video as always. I’d like to know what the common breeds were in that day and therefore what was likely to be seen most.
I've read many Civil War memoirs, and so far I've found Morgans, Saddlebreds, and Standardbreds in them. The Canadian Horse appears to have been used as well, and a historian even made the ridiculous statement that the North won the war because they used Canadian horses in their cavalry (see Wikipedia's Canadian Horse article).
Beaguins thanks for the info!
Beaguins
How about Mustangs I have read that they were caught, broke and then sold
@@randyfuller7294 I haven't come across that, but it wouldn't surprise me. The demand for horses was great enough. Horses that hardly had any breaking were pushed into service (consider Admiral Porter's mount at City Point!).
Beaguins thanks for reply
Some where I read that one of the 7th companies rode light colored horses.
Check out " Fighting Men of Rhodesia " by John van Zyl excellent enterview with a Mounted Infantry soldier.
Custer's E company had "gray horses"
Oddball question, but gotta know?
What was the length or how tall was the poles for guide on flags.
-Thanks
Pretty good information and pleasant video.....for a damn Yankee! 😁
The band horses are not called white, but gray. Gen. Robert E. Lee's horse Traveler was a gray. Gray horses were preferred by Cavalry because in the fog of war, or as one would say the smoke of black powder cannons, Gray Horses were invisible in the course of their attack.
I know this is about Civil War horses, but didn't Custer's 7th Reg. have a company mounted on gray horses?
Where are they branded or stamped? At the neck or the flank or......?
YOUNG MAN, ON RED LINE # 2:24, IN A DIRECT FROM YOUR LEFT THUMB THERE APPEARS TO BE A SCAR ON THE WITHERS (NECKBONE). WHAT IS IT? WHAT CAUSED IT? JUST ASKING.
Applies to ONLY the Union. CSA, those who wanted to be in the cavalry had to provide their own horses and they could have as many as they could afford. Same applied to "servants" (slaves). Some CSA officers had 3 "servant" but many had only 1 and if killed, they had to buy another, the CSA did not supply the horses or replace them.......and PS. because they brought so many slaves to Gettysburg, it was said that the North had no problems at all in getting inside information on Lee's plans, his troops strengths and weaknesses, etc.
So in short, during war, you rode what you got and you didn’t throw a fit!
btw Just subscribed too.
Check out the Rhodesian mounted infantry the " Grey Scouts " read the book " The Eguus Men " written by Alexandre Binda
Would you say that a lot of these horses were wild Mustangs caught, trained and then sold
Randy, We have not seen much evidence to support that the US Military actively tried to catch, train or buy mustangs in general. We have seen sources talk about it being done but only when nothing else was available. Thanks for watching!
11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry
Thought so you see it all the time in movies. But I never heard it from a historical group. Thank you so much for what you do, I so much wish I could join you!
I don't know about the Civil War period, but after it, during the Indian Wars period until the mid-70s the army bought a lot of horses from Mexico, as well as mustangs. Enough of the latter that they quickly reduced the number available mustangs that met army requirements, and had to look for other sources to meet army needs.
steveH thank you for your information
The horses shown have terrible marks after saddles not fitting, and the they are obviously much much too thin - what is happening here?!?!
Kitt, these horses are neither badly fed or sick. They have full access to as much feed as they would like in addition to nutrition supplements. They have full health checks every year and are quite healthy. They love what they do, have an awesome attitude and we don't ask them to do anything we wouldn't do ourselves. They are definitely "working" horses and live a life of purpose and excitement. We do acknowledge the pressure points indicating poor saddle fit or other similar issues that they have experienced in previous campaigns but have them looked at by a vet frequently. We appreciate the concern, but can assure you they are healthy. Thanks for watching!
@@11thovc aww that’s sad in the civil war horses starved so much they had to buy new horses because they kept dying
@@maryalicesawesomevids I guess he’s keeping it “authentic”. Gotta get some new horses soon as these ones are EMACIATED!
I’ve been riding for over 30 years and these horses are not at all emaciated…. Good grief.
Sounds like Husband Horses. Ever try to find one?
Tin cup 4"
Anything above glue
i would think that officers that supplied their own horses could bypass the quartermasters standards
The best horse I had for Calvary by far was a paint. There was nothing negative I could really say about that horse other than he was a paint
I think you mean "cavalry". Get it right!
@@mikemurphy9290 understand autocorrect and don't be a dick!
Uh, do you have a horse brush?
Clearly, he doesn’t even have enough FOOD for his horses. I doubt he has a brush… so sad 😞
Don’t you think that horses’ photographs were examples of outstanding horses? Inferior horses didn’t get photographed very often.
The paint may have been the owner's own horse or a captured Indian Pony.
Are your horses badly fed or sick? As we are not at war as far as I know there's no excuse (otherwise they are 28 years old and lack teeth like my old buddy in his last year).
Barbara, these horses are neither badly fed or sick. They have full access to as much grass as they would like. They have full health checks every year and are quite healthy. They love what they do, have an awesome attitude and we don't ask them to do anything we wouldn't do ourselves. They are definitely "working" horses and live a life of purpose and excitement. We appreciate the concern, but can assure you they are healthy. Thanks for watching!
That ignoramos doesn't seem to know anything.
Morgan horses were preferred, yodsy most rodeo bucking horses are morgan. The reason was they were strong enough to pull wagons but still could be saddled and rode. I prefer quarter horses due to their intelligence. THIS HAS BEEM A LONG WINDED WASTE OF MY TIME.
Wow… it’s so sad how just anyone can have a horse… these poor horses have no business being worked in their condition. Please do your horses a favor and learn how to properly feed, maintain, and care for them. You are doing it WRONG and your horses are SUFFERING.
You must be a vegan then go cry at your salad. The horses were neither treated with abuse, badly fed or sick. They are treated with proper and respective care.
The horse on the right, has he had his wither rubbed from poor saddle fit?
The regs called for a horse and a quartet for remounts. That is a lot of horses. This was rarely achieved until about 1900. Early in the civil war, union commanders rode their horses into the ground due to lack of experience. They rode daylight to dark for days during a campaign. Never took any remounts with them. In fact, at that time, only captains and above had a remount. Thus cavalry units killed a lot of horses from exhaustion. Around 1864, the union had learned to care for them and have their remounts as part of their supply trains. The south never had that problem as troopers took better care of their mounts as they owned them. Of course units had problems getting replacements as they would only be able to capture them.