Would large masses of cavalry actually charge each other? For

I second this. I've never understood mass cavalry warfare. You should either spread horsemen between groups of footmen, or just horse archers.

It's a waste, in my opinion.

>>2932048
If your cavalry is superior to the enemy's, you might try to wipe out their cavalry with yours giving you undisputed mobility on the battlefield.

The enemy cavalry may just retreat if it's not cut off so it's not that easy, but then if it is pressed into a fight, it's better to charge into charging cavalry than just wait for them take the charge.

A weaker cavalry force may also end up having to defend a vulnerable part of their army, or pin down a superior cavalry force until the rest of the army can assist.

At least this is what Total War taught me

>>2932048
you use em to break through enemy lines

>>2932048
Usually they wouldn't simply smash into each other. They would engage and skirmish.

>>2932109
Yeah but horses are like 4 to what 600 hundred pounds plus armour maybe and the rider

Wouldn't they just like... explode? If they spammed into each other at full speed

>>2932126
Are you just realizing you need money to win a war?

>>2932126
>spammed
I meant slammed*

>>2932132
No I thought you'd need surviving Cavalry and troops for flexibility and morale

>>2932048
sure...lots during the high middle-ages...battle of Bouvines comes to mind. Arsuf and Legnano too.

>>2932126
You don't literally slam the horses into each other, idiot. Your forces charges at them, preferably when their cavalry is standing still. Then you stab their men or their horses with your weapons.

>>2932137
>No I thought you'd need surviving Cavalry and troops for flexibility and morale
And you also need to kill the enemy. What's your point?

>>2932181
>You don't literally slam the horses into each other, idiot.
But they did *Thinking Emoji*
>>2932160

>>2932048
Not ideally. Heavy cavalry, or units employing tactics in which the horse itself is a weapon and often armored, rely on large grain-fed horses rather than much more abundant grass-fed ponies, making them a valuable commodity. During the Crusades knights spent fortunes to ship horses to the Holy Land from Europe.

>>2932048
People with cause will do anything.

Qin was ruthless in its enforcement of laws. Anyone breaking some of the core rules would be punished severely.

Loss of horse isn't the primary concern during this battle and the warring states, the primary concern was unification of China. So at this goal, any expenses is to be paid. Lives of men, women, children, horse, properties, etc.

Also, each one also strifes for their own success as their success means success of their own family.

>>2932048
Yes, pretty frequently depending upon the time and place. In western societies, cavalry typically wasnt as common as infantry because horses were expensive, so it was less common to see massive waves of cavalry engage each other.

In steppe cultures and in many north african/central asian cultures, horses or camels were far more common and made up the greatest part of the army, or at the very least they were expected to carry the battle rather than infantry. Although these societies tended to emphasize horse skirmishing, shock tactics were used. The sarmatians, huns, mongols, scythians, and others used two handed lances built for killing or dismounting enemy riders.

>>2932181

Cavalry loses its purpose if its standing still. It's harder to roll over a cavalry contingent than an infantry formation while on horseback, but it's still possible to scare them away after you annihilate the front line.

File: Scan-209-1024x752.jpg (176KB, 1024x752px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932568
Some images for reference

File: Tabriz_Sasanian_Plate_2.jpg (728KB, 1181x1332px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932574

File: relief-of-a-roman-cavalry-battle-from-30-bc-GD2JC1.jpg (210KB, 1300x945px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932581
Here's a roman one cause why not.

File: 011.jpg (181KB, 1440x473px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932589
Macedonians vs persians

>>2932048
>Kingdom
How historically accurate is this?

Did cavalry charge into and crash against infantry lines like they do in Total War, sending men flying and then stopping to poke at the survivors? Or was it like in Lord of the Rings where they trample and run through gaps hacking as they go?

>>2932784
Not particularly.

>>2932805
A charging horse can knock people down but the horse is gonna get slowed or maybe trip. They had difficulty making it through several tight ranks of men and got bogged down. Full frontal cavalry charges never work against steady infantry in tight formations, even when the numbers were even.

>>2932805
Equal and opposite reaction. Do you really think a charging horse is going to make a man go flying? Does being hit by a car even make a man go flying? Think about things.

>>2932805
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDOIqSKwKMU

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>>2932048
So is there a reason that ancient soldiers didn't just stab the horses while fighting cavalry? Even if it freaks out it'll hurt the rider more than you. No one's ready to parry a blow to the horse. The rider's too busy trying to cut your buddy's head off to block it.

>>2932971
They did. Its why heavy cavalry often had armored horses.

>>2932919
>A charging horse can knock people down but the horse is gonna get slowed or maybe trip.
Not really. They have massive weight advantage, and charge at admirable speed. Just imagine grown man running into bunch of toddlers. Would that stop him? Or more relevant example - car hitting bunch of people.
>Full frontal cavalry charges never work against steady infantry in tight formations
Never say never. Polish cavalry did it on numerous occasions.
>>2932048 (OP)
No, because if two horses charge at each other and crash, that means two horses and 2 riders dead.
Just check it out, how it looks in practice:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujFEBsiwNk0 [Embed]
So he
>>2932118.

File: IMG_1795.jpg (14KB, 193x261px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932574
B-b-bane?

>>2932971
Yes which is why you make Horse go fast before engaging and armour the horse, the coat of arms was typically to make weapons get stuck in it so then you could smash the wooden shaft and run
>>2932048
Yes to wipe out enemy cav so then you alone can charge into the scrum

File: crossbow cavalry must have been a bitch to fight.jpg (203KB, 924x1167px) Image search: [Google]

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>>2932048
Not all cavalry charges resulted in impact. False charges can really fuck with your enemy. False charges with ranged cavalry could result in hundreds of enemy casualties with limited loss on your end if retreat was called at the right time.

>>2934173
is that a lovingly-rendered horse asshole or did they tie horse tails in knots?

>>2934211
Dangling bits are made for grappling.

>>2932048
Never understood it either, specially when depicted in 2 or morel lines. I mean if one of the guys on the front line slows even a bit, like from the impact of a weapon or to avoid riderless horse or any other obstacle, wouldnt the rider behind him crash on him? kinda like single line car crash.

>>2932568
Yes, but horses can't run constantly, and you usually wanted them walking or standing still unless they were getting ready for a point of impact.