The engagement at Halen on 12 August 1914 was planned on the previous successes of the cavalry of Frederick the Great. It was expected that the German Fourth Cavalry Division, which was magnificently equipped and trained, would charge to glory with sabers rattling against a belittled Belgian opposition. Instead, 24 German officers, 468 men and 843 horses were lost during no less than eight separate charges mounted that day. The disaster was hushed up by the Germans and largely escaped the notice of the British, who were yet to join the fight. Still, it was a hugely significant moment in the war and modern warfare in general. The Last Great Cavalry Charge is a compelling examination of the little-known Battle of the Silver Helmets, which served as the death knell to the traditional role of cavalry in battlefield tactics.
Eight days after the start of World War I, four German cavalry regiments charged into glory, history, and disaster at the Belgian village of Halen. These eight separate charges would be the last large-scale mounted cavalry charge on the Western Front.
