What was the last use of cavalry in war?

Question

Was it Poland against German infantry in 1939, or did other countries use cavalry in an battlefield, not as transport, role in war after 1939?

Answer 1

The last Cavalry charge in history took place on 23 August 1942, at Izbushensky on the River Don. The Italian Savoia Cavalry Regiment, and consisting of 600 mounted Italian troops, charged against 2,000 Soviet troops. The Italian Lancers destroyed a pair of Soviet Infantry armored vehicles before being forced to withdraw with thirty-two casualties.

Reports of Polish cavalry charges against German tanks in 1939 are pure fiction, as attested to by survivors of the Polish Lancers, and official Polish historical reports. These stories were reported by the Italian press and used as propaganda by the Germans to prove the "backwardness" of the Polish Army and people.

Answer 2

On March 21, 1942, 60 Sikh sowars (Indian cavalry soldiers of the British colonial army) led by Captain Arthur Sandeman attacked Japanese infantry near Toungoo airfield in central Burma by charging through its ranks wielding their sabers. Most were killed. But there might have been later episodes as well... The Red Army maintained some Cossak cavalry throughout World War II; one of the few Italian units fighting in the Eastern Front against Russia was Savoia Cavalleria, a cavalry regiment reported to have made at least one successful charge at the Russian infantry.

Answer 3

On 19 September 1918, British infantry, cavalry, and air forces under command of Gen Edmund H. H. “Bull” Allenby stormed through Turkish defenses at the battle of Megiddo. It was one of the greatest exhibitions of mobility and pursuit in the history of World War I. The British missed a rare opportunity to learn what Megiddo might hold for the future of warfare. They focused on the romanticism of the “last cavalry charge” instead of on the efficacy of combined arms operations. The last Cavalry charge in history took place on 23 August 1942, at Izbushensky on the River Don. The Italian Savoia Cavalry Regiment, and consisting of 600 mounted Italian troops, charged against 2,000 Soviet troops. The Italian Lancers destroyed a pair of Soviet Infantry armored vehicles before being forced to withdraw with thirty-two casualties. Reports of Polish cavalry charges against German tanks in 1939 are pure fiction. These stories were reported by the Italian press and used as propaganda by the Germans.

Answer 4

The US used horse cavalry in World War II in the Asian theater although I'm not aware of the tactics used. Keep in mind that cavalry charges were never too effective after the invention of the machine gun and the major advantage of cavalry was getting the troopers where they needed to be at greater speeds than infantry (what you call transport).

By the way, none of the horses that went overseas with American troops during WWII were brought back. The surviving horses were sold to locals as they were now obsolete.

Answer 5

"The last substantive cavalry charge of [WWII] was probably that made by the Italian regiment Savoia Cavalleria on the Eastern Front and this time the charge was successful since it was against infantry, not armoured vehicles."

"By the final stages of the war only the Soviet Union was still fielding mounted units in substantial numbers, some in combined mechanised and horse units. The advantage of this approach was that in exploitation, mounted infantry could easily keep pace with advancing tanks. This approach was also taken because of the high quality of Russian Cossaks as cavalry."

"Romanian, Hungarian and Italian cavalry had been dispersed or disbanded following the retreat of the Axis forces from Russia. Germany still maintained some mounted (mixed with bicycles) SS and Cossack units until the last days of the War. 18th Indian Cavalry Regiment (later 18 Cavalry of Indian Army), fought in a dismounted role, in Tobruk as part of 9th Australian Division. The US 26th Cavalry Regiment (PS), a small mounted regiment comprised of Philippine Scouts fought the Japanese during the retreat down the Bataan peninsula, until it was effectively destroyed by January, 1942. All British cavalry had been mechanised since 1942 and the last horsed US Cavalry (the Second Cavalry Division) were dismounted in March 1944."

"The final cavalry charge by British Empire forces occurred on 21 March 1942 when a 60 strong patrol of the Burma Frontier Force encountered Japanese infantry near Toungoo airfield in central Burma. The Sikh sowars of the Frontier Force cavalry, led by Captain Arthur Sandeman, charged in the old style with sabres and most were killed."

"Some engagements in late twentieth and early twenty first century guerrilla wars involved mounted troops, particularly against partisan or guerrilla fighters in areas with poor transport infrastructure. Such units were not used as cavalry but rather as mounted infantry. Examples occurred in Afghanistan, Portuguese Africa and Rhodesia. The French Army used existing mounted squadrons of Spahis to a limited extent for patrol work during the Algerian War (1954-62) and the Swiss Army maintained a mounted dragoon regiment for combat purposes until 1973. There were reports of Chinese mounted troops in action during frontier clashes with Vietnam in the mid 1970s."

"Cavalry : World War II, Post World War II to present day" : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavalry#World_War_II

And in some way, the Janjaweed ("Devils on Horseback") in Darfur, western Sudan, and now eastern Chad, are just the most recent example of irregular/paramilitary cavalry troops/militia.

"Janjaweed" : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janjaweed

Answer 6

Your close, it was polish cavalry against german tanks,very brave men, they were.

answerki, I stand corrected, however, there was also russian cavalry after 1942, the cossacks.

there' a good book about it called "the History of Cavalry" by Z. Grasic, V. Vuksic, however it only goes up to 1922.

Answer 7

The Soviets and Germans each had cavalry formations on the Eastern front.

Answer 8

Light cavalry was used by the Afghans against the Russians for a while and are still used limitedly against the US today. They are still the best mode of travel and attack in the mountains.

Answer 9

The modern "cavalry" are helicopter units and are in use today. If you mean horses in battle, I believe you may be correct...