Steeds of Steel: A History of American Mechanized Cavalry in World War II - Tapa dura

In World War II the U.S. Armys mechanized cavalry force served in an astounding variety of ways. Mechanized cavalrymen scouted and fought in tanks, armored cars, and jeeps; battled on and from the sea in tracked amphibians; stormed beaches from landing craft; slipped ashore in rubber rafts from submarines; climbed mountains; battled hand-to-hand; and even occasionally rode horses.

This work follows the mechanized cavalry from its earliest days--landing in North Africa during Operation Torch and fighting on the jungle-clad slopes of Guadalcanal--through the campaigns in the Mediterranean, Europe, and the Pacific. Drawing on official after-action reports, contemporary combat records, personal recollections, and interviews conducted by the Army with soldiers shortly after battle, Steeds of Steel provides a vivid picture of what the war was like for the men of the mechanized cavalry.

When World War II broke out in 1939, the U.S. Cavalry was still mainly the proud, horse-mounted force it had been since the nations founding; within a year, the cavalry branch had lost its horses and very nearly its mission. Steeds of Steel tells how the cavalrymen carved out a new and critical role on the modern battlefield. Harry Yeides narrative shows us troopers learning to outwit the enemy in the African desert, on Italian peaks, along European hedgerows, and through Pacific jungles.

We see cavalrymen working alone, miles ahead of the nearest friendly units. And we witness the heroic efforts of the mechanized cavalry troop, joining the battle wherever an American infantry division serves. The mechanized cavalrys brilliant legacy has lived on in the armored cavalry for more than half a century. As the U.S. Army debates its role on the battlefield, this volume (illustrated with over two dozen photos and diagrams) reminds us of our enduring debt to this incomparable fighting force.

From the book:

“Two men in a jeep . . . spotted the [German] gun crew hightailing it into an olive grove about 175 yards away. The jeep stopped with its hood under the muzzle of the disabled gun, and one man jumped out with his carbine to fire on the gun crew. At that moment, a camouflaged 88mm in the olive grove opened up and destroyed the jeep. The recon troops replied with everything they had. A direct hit from an 81mm mortar round knocked out the second gun.

“Under covering fire from some Sherman tanks, Troop B rolled into Ferryville with the loss of two soldiers killed. The overjoyed French citizenry mobbed the troops, shoving flowers and wine into the men’s hands.”

The U.S. Army’s mechanized cavalry force served in an astounding variety of ways in World War II—certainly a greater variety in one three-year period than any other cavalry force in human history. Mechanized cavalrymen drove tanks, armored cars, jeeps, and landing craft. This new cavalry even occasionally rode horses. The troopers learned to outwit the enemy in African desert, Italian peaks, European hedgerows, and Pacific jungles. They battled hand-to-hand like any GI, often working alone, miles ahead of the nearest friendly units. Steeds of Steel is their story.