Resting cavalry horses on the march

[pvtbordonaro]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Friends,
Here's a link to a fellow who can make your dream of a "Custer Ride" become reality. I'm hoping to go next year.
- Joe Bordonaro

http://www.great-american-adventures.com/Custer%27s%20Ride%20to%20Glory.htm

[1sgtscot]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

I found this in the 1862 Army Officer’s Pocket Companion (Manual for staff officers)

Pg 93. Cavalry movement…

Begin at 6:00 and travel 45 minutes covering 2.5 miles (walk). Halt for 10 minutes and adjust tack.

Next trek: cover 6-7 miles in 100 minutes (alternate walk and trot). Halt for 30 minutes to eat breakfast.

Remaining treks: divided in two (about 5-6 miles each) and cover each section in one hour. (5 miles/hour walk and trot). Halt in between and rest 5-10 minutes.

Should be complete around 11:00 (by noon anyway)

Scouts should be spread continuously and picket when stopped. (advanced guard, flank guard, and rear guard—sgt’s guard with cprl’s guard)

Total covered is 20 miles per day. 5-6 hours in the saddle.

Hope this helps. I rode in Morgan's raid in Ohio a few years back and found that there was a strong accordian effect toward the back of the line. The troopers back there were continually changing from a slow walk to a brisk trot just to stay with the troopers in front. I guess this happened a lot back then as well, but maybe got better as the troopers learned to follow the book.

Sgt Scott

[Andrew German]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Greetings:

This has turned into a combined review of Civil War practice and present-day wish list. I'm there for a ride in Custer's tracks, down Miss., across east Tenn., up Ohio, or anywhere in Va. The Unison event only covers about 12 miles, but with all the mounted and dismounted skirmishing, saber charges, and maneuvering across country it feels like 50. I second Tom's enthusiastic invitation to try it.

Interestingly, for the "century" endurance rides Tom mentions, the McClellan saddle is highly regarded, at least in its '04 configuration.

Regarding horses on the march, a useful source is Frederick Whittaker's Volunteer Cavalry: Lessons of a Decade (1871), which I believe is available as a Google book or a reprint. Another rare source is William S. Abert's, Notes From Various Sources on Cavalry and the Management of the Horse (n.p.: n.d., ca. 1864), copy in Boston Public Library, Boston, Massachusetts.

Those sources suggest that, when trained to a fast walk at a pace of 3.75 miles per hour, a horse could go for hours, but simply trotting a loaded horse at 7.5 miles per hour for six miles was likely to break it down. Wise troopers would learn to swallow their pride, dismount, and lead their mounts up or down hills to save them. On a march, a stop after a half hour to tighten the saddle girth, then a short stop every hour, would keep a horse going all day.

Andrew German

[IowaYank]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

What I understand is that there is a group of Indians who own the rest of the battlefield that isn't NPS property. The reenactment is held on the indian owned original battlefield. According to what I found out, the only way to ride that land not as part of the annual show is to contract with the Indians to allow you to ride on their land. The catch is that they allegedly can and do hit you up forblots of cash at short notice, or you can't ride etc.

Tom, I did this event in 2006. In fact, Joe, I am the guy riding right behind the first guideon in the picture of us crossing the Little Bighorn River at the bottom of the page of the link you posted.It is four days long and there is a battle everyday. The battle's were farby as hell (although the 16-18 year old Native Americans riding bareback as our enemy were pretty cool!) The best part of those four days was getting to go out and ride on the field!! NPS doesn't own that much of the battlefield. I believe they only own Reno Benteen Hill and Last Stand Hill. We got to go charging through the Medicine Tail Coulee at a full gallop and do all sorts of cool stuff on the land owned by the RealBird family.

Dan

[Mark Choate]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Gentlemen,

I have been enjoying this thread tremendously as it covers one of the topics that I appreciate the most in this hobby in that it is the blend between our research/study and the practicality of "why they did it." We have all studied things in this hobby, in our pursuit of accuracy, and after figuring it out wondered, "Why did they do it that way?"

I've been fortunate over the years to have been able to participate in several of these long distance campaigns that cover many miles over several days while engaging in battles and skirmishes all along the way. Of every type of event possible, none drive home the purpose of why the men carried certain things and why they did certain things more than these type of events. It is one thing to read it out of a book (which is a good thing) but it is entirely another to experience it.

I have ridden raids in Alabama, Ohio, Mississippi and Tennessee, but the granddaddy of them all was the early Red River Campaigns of the mid-nineties. In the northwestern portion of Louisiana, not too far from the Texas border we covered over 150 miles in 7 1/2 days. I had read ad nauseum of CW officers changing the tempo, the gaits, the pace and the insertion of breaks. While Mike is correct that the circumstances of what is going on at the moment will drastically change what the officer has the luxury of doing, the fact is that the vast majority of the time movement was just that, a method to get from point A to point B and you can be assured that the rhythm of riding your mount with gait changes at certain intervals and then dismounting and leading your mount for ten minutes or so, is extremely restful and even refreshing to both man and beast. Prior to my first long raid, I never thought I would say that I looked forward to dismounting and leading him for a bit, but that changed after Red River. We rode in the woods, on old roads, down creek beds, in the sun and in the dark, but it was wonderful to learn why certain things are done. It drove the point of "packing light" home like nothing else could. We often forget that the men of the 19th century (and before) were men of the horse. Horses were not just transportation, but they were at the core of everything (ie. where you lived, what your vocation may have been, your level of wealth, etc.). They knew how to use them and how not to.

I have so enjoyed your varied ideas and descriptions and particularly Ken's description of Selma, Al. It brought back such memories. I love reading and researching the minutiae of our hobby and interest, but I would not trade the learning experience of pushing me and my mount to our limits for a stack of books that a show dog could not jump over.:wink_smil

Sadly, politics, money and a bunch of other things have chipped away at the frequency of really good campaigns and properly putting one together would be a logistical nightmare...........but, by golly they are wonderful.

Thanks for reviving the memories, fellas.

Mark

[pvtbordonaro]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Dan, You looked good splashing across the Little Bighorn! - Joe

[Ken Knopp]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Gents,

A good historic march would be a huge undertaking today but it can be done. Pick a campaign or battle, find the ground (historic is best), ride the roads, plan, advertise, charge a fee, set up strict guidelines for authenticity, preparation, etc. Then execute. Who here would not be up to it?
Tom, Gary, Andrews, et’all.... Custer/LBH Events: I know this is a bit off topic but it is cavalry, many of Custer’s officers and some troopers were CW veterans and of course, Custer was using largely CW surplus equipment ...(so there, I just rationalized it).
The Custer reenactment is (or used to be) the ultimate farb fest. In the old days it was a lot of drunk Indians wanting to kick white @$$. I am told they have cleaned it up a bit. The rides were a lot different- actually better. I have done two different ones on the battlefield and three weeks at the ABC mini series Custer movie (1990- Evan S Connell’s “Son of the Morning Star). The link you offer sounds very similar to one of the rides we did. Your right! Most of the Indians we dealt with were fine people (especially at the movie) but on one ride we had two run-ins with some cocky Indian gentlemen wanting to get free ride on a white guilt trip. Twice while on the march they would show up and insist on getting paid to ride across “their sacred land”. Of course, we were ready for this. After citing the “real” land owners names and showing them our contracts (with payment made) they had little more to say. The second time it happened we went through the same ritual. However, the “wanna be thug” would not take "get lost" for an answer. Arguing whose land it really was and telling us we could go no farther without enumerating him. (I have always thought this strange he would stand and argue with 30 heavily armed men but anyway...) It was a hoot to see his face when we told him where to go then turned and rode off with several of us giving him those “hand gestures of universal sign language” he did not have to be an Indian to understand. Sorry to digress.
On both rides we did some correct marching but mostly it was a mob due to discipline issues and no chain of command. (Sgt. Scott, The "accordian" effect is hard to stop. It is very much reduced however, with the aforementioned correct marching.) Still, the scenarios, terrain (on one- skirmishing with Indians with excellent impressions themselves), the hallowed ground, etc. was worth the real experience. (Gary, no we could not ride on the NBP property but like someone said there is little of actually owned by the NPS). We did the Medicine Tail Coulee thing then had a really pleasant pow-wow with the Crows (?) On the site of the actual Souix village sit. At the Custer movie the interaction with the Indians was fun & interesting. The braves were attired in very accurate Warrior Society garb and really got into (yes, enjoyed) kicking our tails in the hand to hand scenes. Strangely, the Indians had a lot of trouble hearing the Director say “cut” until he yelled it at least ten times on a bull horn. Every mounted scene was a battle to keep the Indians from counting coup on us and I had my hair pulled out of my head getting scalped more than once. These things got to be fun too. My favorite scene was Reno’s charge on the village. We did it with over 80 guys (Reno had 115) in a full company front (over and over) from a walk, trot, gallop and charge- then to a halt and dismount to fight on foot. It was exciting and it shows well in the movie. OOPS! Did it again. Sorry. Now, I know I am old....all this reminiscencing!
Anyway, back to topic: If someone wanted to tackle the CIVIL WAR campaign event I am sure they would get a lot of support from this AC crowd and elsewhere with some advertisement. Dennis Landry still has the research from the Selma event. The ground is still rural-mostly. Maybe that could be planned again for the 150th? In our area, the first leg of the Grierson Raid from Lagrange to central Miss is still very rural. So is the area of the Okalona Battlefield and up to Brices Cross Roads. Tennessee is also central. Is there anything in north Ga. or Va. not paved yet? Who is up to it?

Ken R Knopp

https://www.confederatesaddles.com

[Mike Ventura]

Re: Resting cavalry horses on the march

Keeping with the "off topic" of Custer and LBH, if you have nay interest at all in this (Custer / LBH) you just have to read the just out (this spring) "The Last Stand - Custer, Sitting Bull and the Battle of Little Big Horn" by Nathaniel Philbrick (Viking). Fantastic research and telling of the "story."