At the end of World War I, the United States Army-despite its
recent experience with trenches, machine guns, barbed wire,
airplanes, and even tanks-maintained a horse-mounted cavalry from a
bygone era. From the end of World War I until well into World War
II, senior leaders remained convinced that traditional cavalry
units were useful in reconnaissance, and horses retained a leading
role. Months into World War II, the true believers in the utility
of the horses had their hopes shattered as the last horse cavalry
units either dismounted to fight as infantry or traded their
oat-eating horses for gasoline-guzzling iron ponies. The horse
belonged to the past, and the armored truck was the way of the
future. Morton has examined myriad official records, personal
papers, doctrine, and professional discourse from an era of intense
debate about the future of the U.S. Cavalry. He has captured the
emotion of the conflict that ultimately tore the branch apart by
examining the views of famous men such as George S. Patton, Jr.,
Lesley J. McNair, George C. Marshall, and Adna R. Chaf-fee, Jr.
More importantly, Morton brings new light to lesser-known
figures-John K. Herr, I. D. White, Lucian K. Truscott, Willis D.
Crittenberger, Charles L. Scott, and William S. Biddle-who played
equally important roles in shaping the future of the U.S. Cavalry
and in determining what function it would play during World War II.
At the heart of Men on Iron Ponies are the myriad questions about
how to equip, train, and organize for a possible future war, all
the while having to retain some flexibility to deal with war as it
actually happens. Morton goes beyond the explanation of what
occurred between the world wars by showing how the debate about the
nature of the next war impacted the organization and doctrine that
the reformed U.S. Cavalry would employ on the battlefields of North
Africa, Italy, the beaches of Normandy, and through the fighting in
the Ardennes to the link-up with Soviet forces in the heart of
Germany. Leaders then, as now, confronted tough questions. What
would the nature of the next war be? What kind of doctrine would
lend itself to future battlefields? What kind of organization would
best fulfill doctrinal objectives, once established, and what kind
of equipment should that organization have? The same challenges
face Army leaders today as they contemplate the nature of the next
war.
General
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