The Last German Silver Helmets Cavalry Charge...

5fish

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The German cavalry met the Belgium cavalry and was gun down by the Belgium at the town of Halen. If you read it the Belgium use Forrest move by dismounting and firing at the German's in a saber charge. At least to say the Belgium's carried the day...


By noon, German soldiers had almost completely captured the church square and the surrounding streets in the center of Halen, but they were under heavy fire from Belgian artillery. Von der Marwitz then ordered the cavalry to take out the Belgian artillery in a circumferential movement. In the early afternoon, several squadrons of dragoons launched an attack. The German cavalrymen, overconfident after earlier successes and eager for another easy victory, launched a frontal charge at full gallop with drawn sabers. The rush, however, turned out to be dramatic and the German cavalry died an inglorious death. The Belgians, making the most of their knowledge of the terrain and entrenched behind barricades, welcomed the oncoming horsemen with a relentless barrage of rifle bullets. In no time at all, the battlefield was covered with dead or dying Germans and dozens of horse corpses. Despite the resounding victory, the death toll on the Belgian side was also considerable and, in retrospect, the battle proved only a temporary success.

From a military point of view, the Battle of Halen was of little or no strategic importance. For the Belgian troops, however, it was an enormous morale boost. After all, it was the first action since the outbreak of the war in which Belgian units managed to defeat the enemy under their own steam. In Western European military history, the ‘Battle of the Silver Helmets’ is recorded as the last time a cavalry corps carried out a frontal charge with drawn sabers…
 

5fish

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Here a great open file about the battle with photos and maps... very detailed work....



Nine days after Germany had invaded Belgium and
four days before the fall of the fortifications around
Liège, a remarkable confrontation took place
between German and Belgian forces at Halen (pro-
vince of Limburg, approximately 60 km east of
Brussels). The confronting parties were the German
cavalry corps of General von der Marwitz and the
only cavalry division of the Belgian army, led by
General De Witte. The confrontation, better known
as the ‘Battle of the Silver Helmets’, lasted for an
entire day and at the beginning the outlook seemed
grim for the Belgians. A retarded infantry interven-
tion turned the tide and by dusk the German army
– for the first time during the invasion – was forced
to retreat for a couple of miles. Dozens of killed and
wounded soldiers as well as hundreds of dead horses
were left on the battlefield

Here a video about the battle...

 

rittmeister

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The German cavalry met the Belgium cavalry and was gun down by the Belgium at the town of Halen. If you read it the Belgium use Forrest move by dismounting and firing at the German's in a saber charge. At least to say the Belgium's carried the day...


By noon, German soldiers had almost completely captured the church square and the surrounding streets in the center of Halen, but they were under heavy fire from Belgian artillery. Von der Marwitz then ordered the cavalry to take out the Belgian artillery in a circumferential movement. In the early afternoon, several squadrons of dragoons launched an attack. The German cavalrymen, overconfident after earlier successes and eager for another easy victory, launched a frontal charge at full gallop with drawn sabers. The rush, however, turned out to be dramatic and the German cavalry died an inglorious death. The Belgians, making the most of their knowledge of the terrain and entrenched behind barricades, welcomed the oncoming horsemen with a relentless barrage of rifle bullets. In no time at all, the battlefield was covered with dead or dying Germans and dozens of horse corpses. Despite the resounding victory, the death toll on the Belgian side was also considerable and, in retrospect, the battle proved only a temporary success.

From a military point of view, the Battle of Halen was of little or no strategic importance. For the Belgian troops, however, it was an enormous morale boost. After all, it was the first action since the outbreak of the war in which Belgian units managed to defeat the enemy under their own steam. In Western European military history, the ‘Battle of the Silver Helmets’ is recorded as the last time a cavalry corps carried out a frontal charge with drawn sabers…
i always said cavalry was obsolete after at the latest 1870/71

the german troops involved were the prussian 2. höheres kavalleriekommando - a cavalry corps without corps troops and thusly not called a corps (them prussians took their nomenklatura seriously)

that helmet from your link is a bit strange, though



prussian helmets like thisone sport the prussian king (and emperor)'s initial on the eagle's 'breastplate' - FR stands for friedrich III who died in 1888

the label says 2nd kurrasiers which needs to be kürassier-regiment „königin“ (pommersches) nr. 2. they were certainly in belgium during that time.
 

5fish

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'breastplate'
Here from an earlier link... No silver Helmets ...

Cuppens compared the battle of Halen with the
Battle of the Golden Spurs of 1302, where mainly
Flemish foot soldiers had defeated a French army of
knights on horseback. Afterwards, ‘Golden’ spurs
were collected from the battlefield and according
to Cuppens, the fields in Halen lay strewn with
‘silver’ helmets. In reality, no silver helmets had
been found; if there was any metal in the headgear
of German cavalry, as was normal with cuirassiers,
it would have been steel. Moreover, cavalry attacks
were always carried out with a cloth cap covering
the helmet, in order to make it not too conspicuous.
Only during parades, helmets were worn without
protection (38). Nevertheless, with the poem by

father Cuppens a myth was born and from then
on it would be hallowed as the ‘Battle of the Silver

Helmets’. Even today, some still believe that actual
silver helmets had been found on the battlefiel


It comes from a a Belgium poem called "The Battle of Silver Helmets" the poet was inspired by the other famous battle of the Golden Spurs century earlier... @rittmeister , think you can find the text of the poem for I have not been able to...

August Cuppens (1862–1924), a priest from the neighboring town of Loksbergen, wrote a lyrical jubilant poem after the battle about the Belgian victory. Referring to the many silver pin helmets that gleamed in the sunlight and were left behind on the battlefield strewn with corpses, he was the first to speak of ‘The Battle of the Silver Helmets’.

I think the best part is how the Belgium used our civil war southern cavalry tactic of getting off the horse and then shooting the enemy... @diane is that not what Forrest did.." get there first with the mostest"...
 

rittmeister

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Here from an earlier link... No silver Helmets ...

Cuppens compared the battle of Halen with the
Battle of the Golden Spurs of 1302, where mainly
Flemish foot soldiers had defeated a French army of
knights on horseback. Afterwards, ‘Golden’ spurs
were collected from the battlefield and according
to Cuppens, the fields in Halen lay strewn with
‘silver’ helmets. In reality, no silver helmets had
been found; if there was any metal in the headgear
of German cavalry, as was normal with cuirassiers,
it would have been steel. Moreover, cavalry attacks
were always carried out with a cloth cap covering
the helmet, in order to make it not too conspicuous.
Only during parades, helmets were worn without
protection (38). Nevertheless, with the poem by

father Cuppens a myth was born and from then
on it would be hallowed as the ‘Battle of the Silver

Helmets’. Even today, some still believe that actual
silver helmets had been found on the battlefiel


It comes from a a Belgium poem called "The Battle of Silver Helmets" the poet was inspired by the other famous battle of the Golden Spurs century earlier... @rittmeister , think you can find the text of the poem for I have not been able to...

August Cuppens (1862–1924), a priest from the neighboring town of Loksbergen, wrote a lyrical jubilant poem after the battle about the Belgian victory. Referring to the many silver pin helmets that gleamed in the sunlight and were left behind on the battlefield strewn with corpses, he was the first to speak of ‘The Battle of the Silver Helmets’.

I think the best part is how the Belgium used our civil war southern cavalry tactic of getting off the horse and then shooting the enemy... @diane is that not what Forrest did.." get there first with the mostest"...
  1. i was sure that helmet was kinda fishy evil.gif but i couldn't prove it 'just in passing' at least the picked a regiment that was there for their label
  2. polished steel and silver is kinda okay in my book
  3. that's not your southern cav tactics that is what jäger zu pferde* did for centuries - the first true mounted infantry regiments were the british mounted rifles
---
* they were officially cav but didn't use traditional cav tactics
 

5fish

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which units in the II Cavalry Corps were...

On formation in August 1914, the corps consisted of:[4]






 
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rittmeister

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which units in the II Cavalry Corps were...

On formation in August 1914, the corps consisted of:[4]




click the divisional links and you get the regiments - you forgot hussars
 

rittmeister

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you are kinda derailing your own thread klatschy.gif
 

5fish

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Here is the British last great cavalry charge in WW1... The needed to capture the town for water...

The charge of the 4th Australian Light Horse at Beersheba late in the afternoon of 31 October 1917, is remembered as the last great cavalry charge. The assault on Beersheba began at dawn with the infantry divisions of the British XX Corps attacking from the south and south-west.

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