He stood fearless and proud in readiness
for the battle ahead.
He had already braved four years of
warfare, including the battle of the Somme in 1916.
 |
| Canadian cavalry charge: they were led by Warrior |
He had also survived the muddy hell of
Passchendaele.
Now, on 30 March, 1918, Warrior was to face
his toughest assignment. This 20-year-old chestnut-brown gelding was to lead
one of the last great cavalry charges in history.
 |
| Warrior, with General Seely |
His mission was to stop the German Spring
Offensive of 1918 and his adventures were to prove every bit as extraordinary
as those of Michael Morpurgo’s fictional warhorse.
Warrior was one of the million horses sent
to France between 1914 and 1918. Only 62,000 of these ever returned home.
They are forgotten victims of a conflict
that pitted defenceless horses again tanks and machine guns.
Warrior belonged to General John Seely and
both were born survivors. Legend has it that when Seely recommended Warrior for
the Victoria Cross, his reasoning was simple: ‘He went everywhere I did.’
 |
| Great War: deadly for horses |
Warrior had certainly proved his mettle in
four years of bloody conflict on the western front. He had arrived in France in
the summer of 1914: that autumn, he narrowly escaped capture by the advancing
German army.
In the following year, the horse next to
him was killed when a shell ripped him in two. A few days later, Warrior’s
stable was destroyed just seconds after he’d left it.
His most desperate moment had come at
Passchendaele, where he was dug out of mud that was several feet deep.
In February, 1915, Warrior and Seely had
been put in command of the Canadian Cavalry, a rag-bag force of ranchers,
Mounties and Native Americans.
 |
| Gas kills horses, too |
They numbered 1,000 horses and, in 1918,
they were given a vital mission to accomplish. The German war machine had
ripped through the British lines, taking more than 100,000 prisoners - men of
the British Fifth Army. The Germans were making rapid progress westwards.
It was crucial that they should be checked
and the place chosen to halt their advance was at Moreuil Wood on the banks of
the Avre River. Victory here would not only secure the river. It would also
stop the German thrust westwards.
The charge into the woodland was to take
place on 30 March: it was to be led by Warrior and eleven other horses. Their
initial task was to plant a red pennant on the hill above the river. This would
act as a guide for the rest of the cavalry.
 |
| Warrior had already survived Passchendaele |
‘[Warrior] was
determined to go forward,’ wrote Seely, ‘and with a great leap started off. All
sensation of fear had vanished from him as he galloped on at racing speed.
There was a hail of bullets from the enemy as we crossed the intervening space
and mounted the hill, but Warrior cared for nothing.’
Warrior made it to
the hilltop and the pennant was planted. Seconds later, there was a loud
thundering as 1,000 other horses followed him into battle.
Squadron after
squadron rode into the chaos. Shells rained down on them and gunfire came from
every angle.
Warrior and his
fellow horses were supported by the Royal Flying Corps which fired more than
17,000 rounds. But it was to no avail: hundreds of horses were mown down by
German machine gun fire.
 |
| Warrior meets the queen |
The battle continued
into the late afternoon. Rain tipped from the metal-grey sky and the light
began to fade. Warrior continued to lead from the front until the battle slowly
began to turn.
By nightfall, the
wood had been taken and the German advance finally brought to a halt. But
victory came at a heavy price. A quarter of the men - and more than half the
horses - had been killed in the slaughter.
There was no respite
for Warrior. He was to be called back into action on the following day in order
to lead an attack close to the village of Gentelles.
 |
| The fictional war horse: but don't forget Warrior |
But he was injured in
the dark and forced out of action. General Seely, too, was wounded and unable
to continue.
Warrior’s escape from
death on so many occasions was truly remarkable. He lived until 1941, too old
to re-enter service in the Second World War.
Besides, warfare had
changed beyond all recognition in the intervening years. There was no longer a
place for warhorses like Warrior to lead cavalry charges.
He remains one of the
unsung heroes of the Great War - a faithful, devoted and extraordinarily
courageous warhorse who helped to secure victory on the Western Front.
 |
| UK Paperback |
‘Giles Milton has a rare ability – a talent for sifting fine pearls from faraway sands and for transmuting the merely arcane into little literary gems.’ Simon Winchester
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