Cavalry in the Bocage

This chapter covers corps cavalry operations from D-Day to the beginnings of the breakout in Operation COBRA. It highlights the difficulties of fighting in the hedgerows as well as how the cavalry had to improvise while fighting in constricted terrain.

Sabers through the Reich

This chapter covers operations from each army crossing the Rhine until the end of the war in May 1945. It highlights the encirclement of the Ruhr Pocket as well as the fighting in the Harz Mountains. It also discusses the role of cavalry in protecting the truck-mounted infantry, allowing very mobile operations. It shows how cavalry led the U.S. First and Ninth Armies to the Elbe, and the Seventh and Third Armies to Czechoslovakia and Bavaria.

The Bitter Fall

This chapter covers operations from the end of September 1944 to the beginning of the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944. It highlights fighting in the Vosges Mountains, the conclusion of the seige of Metz, fighting in the Saar River valley, actions around the battle of Aachen, as well as the fighting in the Hürtgen Forest. It discusses the challenges of cavalry fighting in positional warfare against an entrenched enemy, as well as fleshing out an often-overlooked portion of the war.

Background

This chapter briefly summarizes the development of American mechanized cavalry doctrine and organization from the First World War to the Second. It highlights the tension in the cavalry branch over how best to incorporate new technology while still maintaining the core skill sets required of cavalry. It shows how mechanized cavalry doctrine became stunted by the creation of the armored force, as well as by ideological differences across the branch and Army Ground Forces.

Conclusions

This chapter summarizes the points of the book, highlighting the areas where the cavalry proved valuable, as well as those times when the cavalry failed. It also provides a short discussion on the relationship between combat, security, and reconnaissance, and how they are inextricably linked. It also argues that the army needs a balance of different kinds of forces to succeed, and that cavalry is an absolutely critical member of that team. It agrees that the doctrine of the cavalry was inadequate, but that that mattered less than has often been argued.

A Desperate Winter

This chapter covers not only the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes, but the lesser known Operation NORDWIND against the Sixth Army Group in the Vosges Mountains. Spanning December 1944 and January 1945, this chapter covers corps cavalry operations as part of both battles, as well as their contributions on the forgotten flanks of these famous events. Moreover, this chapter tells the whole story of both campaigns, from beginning to end, highlighting the vicious fighting that continued well after both battles were considered over.

To the Rhine

This chapter covers from February 1945 to approximately March 1945. It highlights corps cavalry contributions to Operations GRENADE and LUMBERJACK, involving the U.S. Ninth and First Armies driving across the Cologne Plain. It also discusses the seizure of the Remagen Bridge and the role of cavalry in that action. Finally, it also details the offensives of both Patton's U.S. Third Army and Patch's U.S. Seventh Army across the Saar-Palatinate.

Race to Glory

This chapter covers corps cavalry operations from Operation COBRA to the slowdown of operations in late September and early October 1944. It highlights how corps cavalry enabled Patton's freewheeling attack across France, led the liberation of Paris, and helped leap the Seine and Marne rivers. It also details the heavy fighting around Metz and the siege of Brest, as well as the fighting through Belgium and the Netherlands. Finally, it highlights Operation ANVIL, the invasion of southern France. It details operations throughout the Rhone River valley, including the Battle of Montélimar.

Introduction

This chapter introduces the reader to the key military terms in the book, such as security operations, reconnaissance, and economy of force. It also summarizes the previous scholarship and historiography of American World War II cavalry and places the work in the context of those previous works. Finally, the chapter lays out the argument that corps cavalry were highly successful despite their equipment and doctrinal challenges.