United States Army Cavalry School

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For over a century, the United States Army maintained a series of training programs and centers for its cavarly branch.

In the 1838, a Cavarly School of Practice was established at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvainia, which in time was also the Army's recruiting center for new mounted recruits. Commanded by Edwin Vose Sumner, the program was started from scratch.

The close association between field artillery and mounted units began with the location of the Army's light artillery, also Carlisle in 1839. Captain Samuel Ringgold training his recruits and tested equipment for the "flying artillery," as it was called and gained fame during the Mexican War.

Beginning in the 1880's, the U.S. Army restablished schools to give intensive training in military specialties. The first of these was the School of Application for Infantry and Cavalry founded at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas in 1881.

The School of Application for Infantry and Cavalry and the Cavalry and Light Artillery School was set at Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley with a training responsibility added. While not otherwise employed the garrisons at the posts formed the basis for practical instruction that enabled the officers and men who participated to study the duties of the soldier in garrison, in camp, and on the march. The school troops came from the four companies of infantry and four of cavalry, plus the one light battery of artillery, which garrisoned the post.

For graduates of the United States Military Academy, the school allowed practical application the theories they had learned at the Academy. Here, also, student officers detailed from the field, improved the knowledge of their profession. Twenty years later the school was expanded into the General Service and Staff College and opened to officers of all branches; today it is the Command and General Staff College.

In 1887, the U.S. Congress appropriated $200,000 for a school at Fort Riley, Kansas, to instruct enlisted men of cavalry and light artillery, but five years went by before the Cavalry and Light Artillery School was formally established and moved from Fort Leavenworth. The Fort Riley post hospital, built in 1855 was remodeled in 1890 and became the headquarters and home for the school.

In the years that followed, the school changed names. In 1907 the school was called the Mounted Service School until World War I when instruction was ended for the duration of the war. In 1919, the Cavalry School took its place and continued until October 1946. With the final dispostion of tactical cavarly horses taking place in March 1947, the Army ended all training and educational programs dealing with mounted troops.

With the closure of the cavalry school, a new educational function continued on November 1, 1946 at Fort Riley with the Ground General School, training newly commissioned officers in basic military subjects. After 1950, it continued as the Army General School until May 1955 when Fort Riley's education and training mission ended as it became headquarters for the 1st Infantry Division.

In 1957, Building 205, the former home of the Cavalry School was became the U.S. Cavalry Museum, telling the story of this branch of service from the American Revolution to the 1950s.

[edit] References

Stubbs, Mary Lee & Connor, Stanley Russell, Armor-Cavalry, Part I: Regular Army and Army Reserve, Army Lineage Series, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Army Office of Chief of Military History, <http://www.army.mil/cmh/books/Lineage/arcav/arcav.htm>. Retrieved on 22 October 2007 .