Forward in the Saddle: Unique World War II Missions of Mechanized Cavalry

General Dwight Eisenhower’s ground assault from the sea during his “crusade in Europe” officially began on 6 June 1944, with the landing on five beaches in the French province of Normandy. Little known, however, is that the first ground troops to land on French soil were not infantrymen but troopers of the 4th Cavalry Group. Two detachments, one which included 3 officers and 63 soldiers from A Troop, 4th Cavalry Squadron (Mechanized), and another also of 3 officers and 63 men from B Troop, 24th Cavalry Squadron (Mechanized), were the first to go ashore on the Saint Marcouf Islands lying close off the Normandy coast. Two hours before the infantry struggled ashore at Omaha Beach and literally walked onto Utah Beach from the English Channel, the assault force led by four troopers who swam ashore armed only with knives, became the first ground force occupiers.1 Thus began what could be termed the innovative employment of mechanized cavalry during Eisenhower’s campaign. The exposition of several additional unique examples demonstrates how the horseless cavalry was nevertheless “forward in the saddle,” conducting missions other than their traditional roles of screening, reconnaissance, combat, and security. The detachments of the 4th Cavalry landed on the Saint Mar-couf Islands, which flanked the proposed Utah Beach landing sites, because in May allied reconnaissance revealed that Germans might have been active in defending the islands. The reasons for possible enemy occupation were unclear, but thought to be for observation or control of minefields in the off-shore islands. Therefore, an enemy presence could have represented a potential threat to U. S. troops landing on Utah Beach and had to be eliminated.

The cavalrymen made almost-forgotten history early that sixth day in June when they stormed ashore. The versatility of the troopers was rewarded by finding the islands unoccupied but heavily mined; however, the cavalrymen did not accomplish their unique mission of neutralizing the islands without casualties. Unfamiliar with German land-mining techniques and subjected to a concentration of enemy artillery fire later that same day, 2 soldiers lost their lives and 17 others were wounded.2 On that rather sad note, the mechanized cavalry entered combat in northwest Europe and subsequently joined the infantry divisions of Major General Lawton Collins’ VII Corps in attacking up the Cotentin Peninsula to capture the port of Cherbourg. The 4th Cavalry Group was followed onto the European continent by the 102d Cavalry Group, which landed in V Corps’ lodgment area. The 4th Cavalry Group was soon engaged in combat with the 38th and 102d Cavalry Squadrons (Mechanized) as subordinate units. The 102d Cavalry Squadron screened the advance of the 1st Infantry Division on 12 June. During one of its patrols, the 102d discovered enemy positions to the front of the 2d Infantry Division on 15 June; however, later that summer, it was the 38th Cavalry Squadron that was charged with the unique mission of protecting a special task force. On 26 August, the 38th Cavalry was formally attached to Twelfth Army Group’s Target (T) Force, which had been activated and organized on 15 August. T Force’s mission was to enter the French capital city of Paris and “immediately after its liberation, secure and make available for exploitation, important intelligence, counterintelligence, and other targets, including civil and military records, cultural treasures, and public utilities whose preservation and security was essential.”3 According to Breakout and Pursuit, U. S. Army in World War II: European Theater of Operations, the 38th Cavalry Squadron, however, was ostensibly, just “to accompany Leclerc [commander of the 2d French Armored Division] to ‘display the [American] flag upon entering Paris.’”4 In actuality, T Force was to guard the perimeter area of headquarters (T Force Paris) and also perform reconnaissance and “target” missions.5 Such target missions were to investigate the whereabouts of critical enemy personnel and sympathizers, apprehend critical personnel and sympathizers for interrogation, occupy key installations, and recover critical items from different facilities. The T Force entered Paris close on the heels of the 2d French Armored Division on 25 August while there was still sniping in the streets. Teams of intelligence personnel quickly sought out key people for interrogation, and along with the cavalry troopers, occupied various building complexes in search of critically important material. Not only were enemy documents sought, but items, such as a large cache of maps of Eastern France, that could expedite combat operations were found.6 The 15 deployed target teams sought out information of special interest such as chemical warfare, jet propulsion, including jet-propelled airplanes, submarines, radar, and metallurgy.7 Because the troopers of the 38th Cavalry Squadron lacked the investigative capability of the specialized intelligence teams, the cavalryman’s investigative activity was rudimentary. Most often, the troopers assisted the French in guarding installations that were vulnerable to sabotage attacks, such as telephone exchanges, post offices, and telegraph stations, within the city. Outside the city, protecting electrical power plants, waterworks, and gas-producing plants required trooper protection.8 Because the provisional French government quickly assumed responsibility for, and control of, most installations important to the functioning of required city services, the role of the 38th Cavalry lasted for only a few days. The squadron suffered no casualties during the execution of their various tasks, and on 1 September, it was released back to the 102d Cavalry Group.9 No doubt, the cavalrymen were glad to leave their static guard duties behind; however, they had the opportunity to see some of Paris while participating in a mission unique to mechanized cavalry. While the 38th Cavalry Squadron briefly sojourned in Paris, the 6th Cavalry Group was racing across France executing another unique mission. The 6th Cavalry was assigned to the newly committed Third Army in August 1944, but initially did not operate as a corps asset, unlike most mechanized cavalry groups. The Group eventually joined the newly activated III Corps and fought in the Battle of the Bulge; however, the 6th Cavalry initially did the exclusive bidding of Army commander Lieutenant General George S. Patton Jr. One of the principal reasons the 6th Cavalry was chosen to do Patton’s special bidding was that its radio operators were recognized as an exceptionally talented group of technicians. The troop radio nets operated on what was termed an “18-word-per-minute basis.” However, radio net operators on the troop-to-squadron and echelons above nets were capable of flawlessly transmit- “On 26 August, the 38th Cavalry was formally attached to Twelfth Army Group’s Target (T) Force, which had been activated and organized on 15 August. T Force’s mission was to enter the French capital city of Paris and ‘immediately after its liberation, secure and make available for exploitation, important intelligence, counterintelligence and other targets, including civil and military records, cultural treasures, and public utilities whose preservation and security was essential.’ ” — 7 ting up to 30 words per minute. In a rapidly changing situation these capabilities were very important and were skills that operators of the signal battalion in direct support of Third Army headquarters, on its commitment to operations in late July 1944, just did not have.10 In the swift and unrelenting charge across France, General Patton, who was, “... prone to give his subordinates free rein... [and] expected them to exercise independent judgment and tactical daring,” nevertheless eagerly sought information about not only the enemy situation but the changing locations of his attacking divisions.11 He wanted the most current information, which might often take hours and even days to make its way up through the regular chain of command’s communications channels. Combat commanders, busy “pushing the envelope” in the dash through France, tried their best to keep Patton informed through regular channels, but Patton had a unique idea to expedite the flow of information. Soon after the 6th Cavalry appeared on the continent in Normandy, the Group became the “Army Information Service,” better known as Patton’s “Household Cavalry,” after the appellation of the Queen of England’s “own” mounted regiments. Operating as an independent formation, the 6th Cavalry Group’s intelligence and communications personnel bypassed regular reporting channels and reported directly to Third Army’s advance command post, where Colonel Oscar Koch, the Third Army G2, and Colonel Halley G. Maddox, the G3, could quickly apprise General Patton of fast evolving situations.12 The 6th Cavalry Squadron, 6th Cavalry Group, posted a reconnaissance platoon at every division headquarters. Each platoon usually consisted of a couple of officers and 28 troopers equipped with six armored cars and six quarter-ton trucks.13 At each corps headquarters, a company (troop) was present, and the squadron headquarters was located at Third Army headquarters.14 The 6th Cavalry performed a valuable, although unconventional, role as it accumulated information, coordinated its receipt, and condensed the results before forwarding it directly to Patton’s advanced command post.15 Often, Patton knew more about a local situation than his corps commanders, who may have been unaware of information that the “Household Cavalry” was gathering in their areas and sending directly to Third Army’s forward headquarters command element. General Patton’s very current knowledge allowed him to not only gage progress, but also to change plans quickly or prod a commander he thought was not acting aggressively enough.16 At the division level, indeed, the cavalry troopers had to be careful how they reported information because some of the divisions’ headquarters initially regarded the 6th Cavalry unit personnel as spies.17 George S. Patton Jr. was General Eisenhower’s only commander whose military career had been as an armor and cavalry officer. His staff was always “forward in the saddle” and worked as an efficient and well-oiled team. The staff was constantly looking beyond the horizon of ongoing combat operations and sought opportunities to exploit developing situations. Sometimes, however, imagination would overtake reality. Such was a case in September 1944 when the shortage of gasoline forced the Third Army to halt along the line of the Moselle River in eastern France. Cavalrymen had not yet given up the idea that there was a place for the horse in modern warfare. With a staff of key personnel, who, if not all, thought and operated like cavalrymen, relished the thought of the horse reclaiming its rightful place on the battlefield. So, the occasion arose where the horse-mounted soldier again entered combat and was warmly greeted — or so it appeared. One of Patton’s premier cavalry leaders, Colonel Charles Reed, commanded the 2d Cavalry Group, the XII Corps’ mechanized cavalry formation. During the autumn campaign to capture the fortress of Metz in eastern France, the 2d Cavalry is purported to have accomplished a particular mission under horrible weather conditions. The group was ordered to advance on the French town of Dieuze, which is located on the perimeter of a large lake and marsh. In the autumn of 1944, the area was a sea of mud, which made mechanized operations extremely difficult. Regardless, Colonel Reed was ordered to clear the enemy area. Reed adopted the unique method of organizing a troop of horse cavalry to accomplish the mission. He rounded up approximately 60 German artillery horses and had a troop commander improvise saddles and other horse furniture. The horse cavalry troop purportedly operated for about a week and captured several nearby towns and a number of German soldiers who were reportedly astonished to encounter the horse-mounted troopers. General Patton was purportedly so elated about Colonel Reed’s initiative that he sent a detailed report on the operation to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force.18 “The T Force entered Paris close on the heels of the 2d French Armored Division on 25 August while there was still sniping in the streets. Teams of intelligence personnel quickly sought out key people for interrogation, and along with the cavalry troopers, occupied various building complexes in search of critically important material. Not only were enemy documents sought, but items, such as a large cache of maps of Eastern France, that could expedite combat operations were found.” 8 —

There is, however, a problem with the authenticity of this example of a unique method of combat by the 2d Cavalry. A young modern historian, an avid student of General Patton, sought to authenticate the horse cavalry story to use in a lecture during a battlefield tour. After consulting any number of sources, both original and secondary, to include after-action reports in the National Archives, he found no evidence that the story had any basis. But for soldiers, still enamored with the utility of the horse on the battlefield, it was a good tale indeed. Colonel Reed’s 2d Cavalry Group, however, did execute a thoroughly documented unique mission involving horses toward the end of hostilities in late April 1945. His troopers rescued the mares and foals of the famous Lippizaner horses, which traditionally performed intricate maneuvers at the Spanish riding school in Vienna, Austria. The horses were being kept in a remount depot in the Czechoslovakian town of Houstoun (Hostau) just across the border from Germany. When Patton learned that the horses were in danger of being captured by the Russians, who were advancing rapidly through Czechoslovakia, he gave Reed a simple order to rescue the horses, “Get them!”19 “Getting them” turned out to be easier said than done; it was a race against time into apart of Czechoslovakia where fanatical German soldiers were still ambushing American infantrymen using subterfuge.20 The Russians had also learned of the herd of prized horses and quickly advanced to cut the 2d Cavalry’s rescue attempt; however, by astute maneuvering, the Americans succeeded in driving the horses out of Czechoslovakia and into Austria where the recovered stallions were safely in American hands.21 Austrian equestrians have never forgotten the successful rescue — and with it the name of George S. Patton Jr. Members of another nation will never forget that mechanized cavalry units liberated thousands of Nazi prisoners, as did many other allied formations, so it was not an unusual mission for rapidly advancing troops to perform. Among the liberated prisoners were many who enjoyed high stations in their homelands, including being part of a country’s nobility. However, it was unique that the 121st Cavalry Squadron (Mechanized), 106th Cavalry Group, the XV Corps cavalry unit, was the only unit to liberate a king — King Leopold of the Belgians. The 106th Cavalry had just participated in the capture (some would say “liberation”) of Salzburg, Austria, and established its headquarters there early in May, just before the end of the war. Troop B, 121st Cavalry Squadron, moved into the nearby Austrian town of Saint Gilgen, a little resort town on the shore of Lake Wolfgangsee. Two other scenic resorts were the nearby towns of Strobl and Saint Wolfgang. Having set up billets in Saint Gilgen, a reconnaissance party from the troop and squadron headquarters set out to investigate the surrounding territory. The history of the 106th Cavalry Group in Europe spells out the results of the expedition: “At [the town of] Strobl the party found one Prince Georg Furstenberg, a well known anti-Nazi, from whom they learned that King Leopold was under guard in a nearby villa. The villa was located. It was a comfortable structure guarded by SS troops. The guards at the gate were waved aside by Lt [sic] Moore. While the party “Because the troopers of the 38th Cavalry Squadron lacked the investigative capability of the specialized intelligence teams, the cavalryman’s investigative activity was rudimentary. Most often, the troopers assisted the French in guarding installations that were vulnerable to sabotage attacks, such as telephone exchanges, post offices, and telegraph stations, within the city. Outside the city, protecting electrical power plants, waterworks, and gas-producing plants required trooper protection.” “Members of another nation will never forget that mechanized cavalry units liberated thousands of Nazi prisoners, as did many other allied formations, so it was not an unusual mission for rapidly advancing troops to perform. Among the liberated prisoners were many who enjoyed high stations in their homelands, including being part of a country’s nobility.” — 9 was dis arming the unresisting guards, Major Howard was announced to the King. Thus was Leopold, King of the Belgians liberated.”22 King Leopold III had surrendered the Belgian armies to the Germans during the invasion of Belgium during May 1940. He and his family were then taken prisoner and incarcerated in Austria near Salzburg where they were guarded by the Schutzstaffel (SS). Naturally, the liberation of the king and his family was greeted with relief and great joy. King Leopold went on to express his gratitude in a letter he wrote to the officers and men of the 106th Cavalry Group on 23 July 1945. He stated in part, “The 7th of May, 1945 is a date which I shall never forget, for it was on that day that my family and I had the good fortune to be delivered from the enemy by your unit. I am especially happy to be able to express here my profound gratitude for this act. For a number of weeks you have maintained my Guard of Honor and I wish to compliment you upon the distinction with which you have performed this assignment.”23 The last sentence of the cited part of the king’s letter refers to another unique mission performed by cavalry troopers, this time just after victory in Europe. Because King Leopold could not be immediately repatriated to Belgium, he and his family continued to reside in Auhof, a villa in Saint Wolfgang. Security for him and his family in the form of a “guard of honor” was performed by mechanized cavalrymen of the 106th Cavalry Group. Truly there were other unique missions performed by mechanized cavalrymen during World War II, but for the most part, the cavalry groups (mechanized) operated according to doctrine, embellishing it where ever possible and expedient. Often, cavalrymen were out in front of the attacking American divisions; but just as often, they were engaged in economy-of-force operations or screening flanks. On one unfortunate occasion at the beginning of the Battle of the Bulge, the 14th Cavalry Group was nearly wiped out by a horde of German panzers in the so-called Losheim Gap on the German border. The group was performing a mission for which it was ill armed and equipped in comparison to the immensity of its foe. After spending many years on the east-west German border, the 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry, was given anew mission as a reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA) squadron. The unit fought in Iraq as a battalion element of the 3d Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2d Infantry Division, presently based at Fort Lewis, Washington. The 2d RSTA Squadron, 14th Cavalry, was also resurrected from its time on the German border and is a component of the 2d Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. As the examples cited above denote, unique missions are not something unusual for cavalrymen; they were not during World War II, and certainly throughout history, there were many occasions when cavalry troopers were called on to perform flexible and versatile missions. One thing is certain — the best mounted horse soldiers, regardless of steed, have always been “forward in the saddle.” Notes 1National Archives, Box 17981: 4th Cavalry Group CAVG-4-0.1, Organization History; Record Group 407, Washington, D. C. The history states, “Outstanding service was performed in the operation by Corporal Harvey S. Olson and Private Thomas C. Killoran, Troop A, 4th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, and Sergeant John Z. Zander and Corporal Melvin F. Kinzie, Troop B, 24th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron. These four men, each armed with only a knife, courageously swam to what was supposedly an enemy-held shore to mark the beaches for those who followed. They were thus the first American soldiers of the ground forces to land on French soil on D-day.” 2Ibid., Sergeant John Zander of Troop B, one of the swimmers, was among those wounded as were two officers from Troop A. Those killed in action were Sergeant John C. F. Onken of Troop A and Private First Class Anton J. Elvasaater of Troop B. 3“‘T’ Force Report on Target ‘Paris,’ October 1944,” Declassified Draft, Headquarters T Force, Twelfth Army Group, APO 655, U. S. Army, p. 1. 4Martin Blumenson, Breakout and Pursuit, U. S. Army in World War II: European Theater of Operations, Center for Military History, Publication 7-5, Washington, D. C., 1961, p. 607. 5“‘T’ Force Report on Target ‘Paris,’ p. 2. 6“Report of Operations,” Final After-Action Report, 12th Army Group, Vol. IV, Part V, G2 Section (Parts V through VII), p. 10. 7“‘T’ Force Report on Target ‘Paris,’” p. 16. 8Ibid., p. 10. 9Ibid., p. 7. 10James H. Polk, World War II Letters and Notes of Colonel James H. Polk, 1944-1945, Elderberry Press, Oakland, OR, February 2005, p. 51. 11Blumenson, Breakout and Pursuit, p. 349. 12Ibid., p. 353. In the race around the French province of Brittany, communications up and down the chain of command were very inadequate. The 6th Cavalry Group helped assuage the problem: “One armored car with a high-powered SCR-506 radio, as well as several armored jeeps, accompanied each armored division. The radio car possessed choice and workable frequencies, and the armored jeeps, often entrusted with situation reports, were able to shoot their way through small roadblocks. Even though the cavalrymen were burdened with their own radio traffic and could absorb only a small part of the division communications, they sometimes relayed division messages.” 13Ibid., p. 350. 14Polk, World War II Letters and Notes, p. 51. 15Blumenson, p. 350. See also Mary Lee Stubbs and Stanley Russell Connor, Army Lineage Series: Armor-Cavalry Part I, Office of the Chief of Military History, United States Army, Washington, D. C., 1969, p. 73. 16Blumenson, Breakout and Pursuit, p. 377. Patton also pressed his Army Information Service for action. In the attempt to swiftly capture the port of Brest, he “instructed his Household Cavalry to get busy and tell him whether Brest had or had not been taken.” 17Polk, World War II Letters and Notes, p. 51. 18Robert S. Allen, Lucky Forward, The Vanguard Press, Inc., New York, 1947, p. 169. 19Fred Ayer Jr., Before the Colors Fade, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1964, p. 223. 20On 5 May, just a few days before the end of the war, a platoon of the 2d Cavalry Group was ambushed and captured by fanatical Germans. Using the captured 2d Cavalry vehicles, the Germans set up another ambush in the Czech town of Zhuri, and advancing members of the 90th Infantry Division’s I Company, 357th Infantry Regiment began to enter the town unaware it was occupied by the enemy. When they approached the town, which appeared to be occupied by other Americans, they were taken under fire and suffered many casualties. The surprised infantrymen launched a vicious counterattack and wiped out the Germans. Today there is no trace of the town in what is now a national park, but an historical marker commemorates the event on the town’s former site. See John Colby, War from the Ground Up, Nortex Press, Austin, TX, 1991, p. 456, for a slightly different version of this incident. 21National Archives, Box 17945: 2d Cavalry Group CAVG-2-0.3 Operation Report, 2d Cavalry Group (Mechanized), 1 Mar-8 May 1945, Section II, Narrative, Report of Operations, 1 March-8 May 1945; RG 407 NA. Item 108 reports the deed of Captain Thomas M. Stewart on 28 April at Hostau, Czechoslovakia, in rescuing the famous horses: “An opportunity arose to capture a valuable horse-breeding depot intact. Stewart, accompanied by a German guide, proceeded on horseback through the mountains at night, evaded outposts of SS troops along the border, made contact with the commandant of the depot, and by a tactful presentation of the strength of American forces, persuaded the depot commander to surrender if the border outposts of SS troops could be overrun. Later, with great personal danger, Stewart returned with a task force, attacked and dispersed the outposts, and received the surrender of the depot.” Captain Stewart was awarded an oak leaf cluster to the Bronze Star Medal. 22Thomas J. Howard, et al., Eds., The 106th Cavalry Group in Europe, J. P. Himmer KG, Augsburg, Germany, 1945, p. 131. 23Ibid., p. 152 Brigadier General Raymond E. Bell Jr., U. S. Army, Retired, is a 1957 graduate of the United States Military Academy. He received an M. A. from Middlebury College and a Ph. D. from New York University. His military education includes the U. S. Army War College and the National War College. As an armor officer, he served in the 3d Armored Cavalry Regiment, 32d Armor, 15th Armor in Korea, and 5th Cavalry in Vietnam. His last two assignments included the U. S. Army Reserve’s 5th Psychological Operations Group and its 220th Military Police Brigade. 10 —