Poinsettes Cavalry Tactics

Definitions

Before beginning to understand the formations used by the cavarly, it is important to know a few terms.

A Rank is a row of horses arranged side by side in close order.

A File is a row of horse arranged one behind the other.

Falling in

The first formation to know is the line. Under Poinsettes cavalry tactics, this consists of two lines of horses (called ranks) with horses side by side as in figure 1.

Figure 1

Generally to get in this formation at the beginning of the day, the commander will ask a certain trooper to "post" at a certain location. That horse is the front "Number 1" on the right of the line. The commander will then give to order to fall in on that trooper (eg. "Fall in on Corporal Smythe"). On that order, all other troopers form the two ranks.

After you are in the approximate position the commander will give the order to "Dress... Right". On this command all the troopers clean up the formation by looking to the right and get the horse to side pass to the right until there is no space between you and the horse on the right of you. (The Number 1s on the extreme right do not move.) At the same time position the horses so their shoulders are in line with the one to the right. (This is the shoulder to shoulder contact that I will speak of, frequently). The rear rank should have enough space between the front rank to see the rear feet of their filemates horse( Roughly 1 horse length). Later while in motion, the commander may call out to "dress it up". This means to close up the relative positions of the horses to these distances. The trooper must remain looking to the right until the commander gives the order "Front"... if he remembers.

Each rank is divided into groups of four by counting off (1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,...) from right to left. Once in the formation, the commander will give the order "Attention company......in each rank, by file, count four" on the word four the first trooper in each rank calls out "One" the next trooper immediately calls out "Two" and so on up through "Four" where the next trooper starts again at "One" and so on. The front rank Number 1 and the rear rank Number 1 are called Filemates. The front and rear number twos are filemates as are the threes and fours. Remember your number and, if your in the rear rank, your filemate. The filemates will always, always, always, ALWAYS stay together. This makes it easier for new recruits. Put them in the rear rank and they ALWAYS follow the same horse.

Moving out

Once the commander has organized his troops, made any adjustments to the formation, or made any announcments, it will be time to move out. Depending on the terrain and the mood of the commander, he may want you to move by file, by twos, by fours, or as a front. The command will begin with "By File...","By Twos...", or "By Fours...". This is his way of letting you know how he wants you to move. If the command is not prefaced by any of these, he wants you to move out while remaining in the current formation. So the command may be "By Twos...forward at a walk.......march!". As soon as he says "...march!" the number 1s and 2s move forward at a walk. The number 3s and 4s remain in place until the rear rank number 1s and 2s have passed. The 3s and 4s then fall in behind the rear rank. The next two files would then fall in behind them and so on.

Figure 2

If the command had been "By Fours....forward at a walk....march!" The first 4 files (both front and rear rank) would move out at the same time. The next 4 files would fall in behind them after they had passed. (See Figure 2) The result is seen in Figure 3

Figure 3

If the command had been "By files...forward at a walk....march!" The first file (both front and rear rank) would move out. The second file would fall in behind them after they had passed and then the third file and so on until the formation seen in Figure 4 is achieved. (Can you see that the filemates are still together?)

Figure 4

The Turn

The first command for changing directions is the turn. The basic turn is a 90 degree change of direction. On the command "Left.......turn!" the front rank (1s and 2s if still in the formation of Figure 4) will begin a 90 degree turn the the left. The horse on the left is the pivot horse. The left trooper looks outward to the trooper on the right to maintain shoulder to shoulder contact. The outside horse picks up the pace very slightly until the turn is complete and then returns to the original pace. The next rank continues moving forward until they reach the exact spot that the previous rank made their turn and then execute the turn in the exact same way. All following ranks then do it too.

"Right....turn!" The turn to the right is done in the same manner. The horse on the right is the pivot horse. The trooper on the right looks outward to the trooper on the left, again to maintain shoulder to shoulder contact. The outside horse picks up the pace until the turn is complete.

Turns must be done in all fronts. We have discussed the turn "by twos" but it is done similarly "by file", "by fours", or when moving in battle formation. They key point for the outside trooper is to watch the inside horse to keep enough spacing for the formation to make the turn and pick up the pace. The pace must increase more for larger fronts. Remember that the next rank is still moving forward at the original pace so the inside troopers cannot slow down. Your rank must be out of the way. The outside trooper controls the rate of the turn. All troopers except the outside trooper must continue to look outwards to maintain shoulder to shoulder contact for the duration of the turn. Their speed is determined by the speed of the outside trooper.

The turn can also be performed at a walk or at a trot. It can be done at faster paces if the front is smaller but the trot is as fast as want to do it when in battle formation.

The About Turn

The about turn is performed in the same manner as the basic turn except it is continued past 90 degrees to 180 degrees. The command would be "Left about....March!" or "Right about....March!"

The Wheel

The wheel is a turn that is done for as long as the commander wants his troops to turn. This can be done to get a turn of any direction other than 90 degrees or 180 degrees. The command might be "Left.......wheel!" at which point you begin turning and continue turning until the commander gives the command "Forward!"

The Oblique

The oblique is used to achieve a slight shift of position to the left or to the right. The oblique is performed in whatever formation you are currently in. All troopers at the same time face their horses 30 degrees off from the direction of travel.

Left into line

Left on into Line

Right into Line

Right on into Line

The Mounted Skirmish Line

The Sabre Charge

Dismounting to Fight on Foot

The Dismounted Skirmish Line

The commander could also want you to turn to the left or to the right immediastely after moving forward. The command may be "By twos...forward to the right...march!" At this the first two files move forward approximately two horse lengths and then turn to the right and continue moving. The 3s and 4s begin to move forward after the rear rank 1s and 2s have passed them by. (Turning will be covered shortly).

If the commander gives the order "By twos...forward to the left...march!" the movement is similar. The number 1s and 2s still move out first and after advancing the two horse lengths turn to the left. The 3s and 4s begin to move, once again, after the rear rank has moved in front of them. But not too soon. Since they are cutting in front of the 3s and 4s they have farther to go. Time the beginning of your movement so the rear rank has made its turn and will be clear of your front just as the 3s and 4s are beginning to make their turn.

The actual words of the command may be slightly different but the order should be clear and how it is executed should be the same.