The Southerner of the mid-19th century had been bred to ride horses. Men rode horseback wherever they wanted to go. Added to this, the period Southerner had long been used to firearms, whether for hunting for pleasure or food or simply sport. Putting the two together promised that when the Southern states seceded, beginning in December 1860, the cavalry would be a major combat arm: in fact, Robert E. Lee and Albert Sidney Johnston both came from the 2nd US Cavalry just before the war. This title looks at how the men of the Confederate cavalry were recruited, trained, lived and fought. Both routine and campaign life are covered, as well as the weapons and equipment that served them in their combat roles. Key encounters such as the 1863 clash at Brandy Station are also covered.

Author Biography

Philip Katcher served in the U.S. Army in Vietnam. He is the author of over 30 books in the field of American military history, and was named a Fellow of the Company of Military Historians for his work on the Vietnam conflict. He is also a member of the living history Civil War unit, serving with Huckstep's First Fluvanna Battery/24th New York Light Artillery. Gerry Embleton has been a leading historical illustrator since the early 1970s specialising in the medieval period, but with a keen interest in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. An illustrator, and author, of a number of Osprey titles he has lived in Switzerland since the early 1980s.