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CHAPTER XXiV. 

 Cavalry under Napoleon. 



Napoleon had a very high opinion of the cavalry 

 service, and understood thoroughly tdl the various phases 

 of its duty. No man knew better the importance of 

 good light cavalry for the purpose of covering the move- 

 ments of an army, and for searching out and watching 

 the marches and designs of the enemy. 



He was e(|ually impressed with the value of cavalry 

 used in large masses, to make great attacks upon the 

 battle-field, and knew how to turn the scale of victory 

 by pouring torrents of well-drilled horsemen upon a 

 whole wing of an opposing army, to sweep it from the 

 field by the mere force of numbers and impetuosity. 



He soon changed the system of organisation in the 

 French arm)^ and gathering together the scattered 

 regiments of horse, he formed them into brigades and 

 divisions composed of troops of the same type. He was 

 so impressed with the importance of using the heavy 

 cavalry in large masses, that he went so far as to com- 

 bine the divisions into corps d'armee. In 1805, the 

 cavalry coiys d'armee of Murat reached the enormous 

 number of 22,000 men, composed of cuirassiers and 

 dragoons, with 1,000 horse artillery. In the campaign 

 in Russia, in 1812, on crossing the Niemen, there were 

 in Napoleon's army, in addition to the divisions of light 

 cavalry attached to each corps d'armee of infantry, four 

 corps de reserve of cavalry under Murat, commanded by 

 Nansouty, Montbrun, Grouchy, and Latour Maubourg, 



