The Horse at War

We would like to join all those who took part in the creation of the memorial at Brook Gate in Park Lane, London (below) in remembrance of all animals who have been the victims of mankind's conflicts.

During the war the need for horses led to the requisition of privately owned animals and by 1916 there were more than ½ a million on military service in France. In-addition to the requisitioned horses taken from farmers and stables in Britain, horses were constantly being augmented by fresh drafts from allied countries includung Australia and North America.

Such was the use of horses on the Western Front, that over 8 million died on all sides fighting in the war. Two and a half million horses were treated in veterinary hospitals with about two million being sufficiently cured that they could return to duty.

In 1944 and 1945, approximately 14,000 mules were used because they could negotiate jungle or mountainous terrain that no horse or vehicle could traverse. Pack mules were used in Tunisia during the winter of 1942-43 and were employed extensively in the spring of 1945 when 10th Mountain Division used thousands of mules in rugged terrain of northern Italy during its drive through the North Apennines mountains and the Po Valley.