Through Mobility We Conquer: The Mechanization of U.S. Cavalry

The U.S. Cavalry, which began in the nineteenth century as little more than a mounted reconnaissance and harrying force, underwent intense growing pains with the rapid technological developments of the twentieth century. From its tentative beginnings during World War I, the eventual conversion of the traditional horse cavalry to a mechanized branch is arguably one of the greatest military transformations in history. Through Mobility We Conquer recounts the evolution and development of the U.S. Army’s modern mechanized cavalry and the doctrine necessary to use it effectively, and explores the debates over how best to use cavalry. Having reviewed thousands of official records and manuals, military journals, personal papers, memoirs, and oral histories – many of which were only recently declassified – George F. Hofmann now presents a detailed study of the doctrine, equipment, structure, organization, tactics, and strategy of U.S. mechanized cavalry during the first half of the twentieth century. Illustrated with dozens of photographs, maps, and charts, Through Mobility We Conquer examines how technology revolutionized U.S. forces in the twentieth century, and demonstrates how perhaps no branch of the military underwent greater changes during this time than the cavalry.