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Yep @oriskany tankettes will remain a friendly point of total disagreement between us. We are both entrenched in our point of view and neither of us are going to give an inch. However if we agreed on everything it would be extremely boring and I would not be hanging around. Agreement does not equate to friendship, so I am happy for us to agree to disagree.
For future however it is pointless stating to me military terms as they are transient in specific meaning in times of charge and in Poland 39 warfare is in a state flux.
Take the term cavalry in 1938 in means you ride a horse. In 44 it describes a form and function of light AVFs or for the US cavalry it meant you ride a tank destroyer. Even today I have to use both the US and British dictionary of military terms for specifics as they use different meanings for the same word or the other way a around. Very broad definitions at least similar. Thankfully we can agree what infantry means.
Please don’t take this as an attack. I am just in all openness stating my position in as much clarity as possible. I am happy with your stance. I don’t thick your wrong I accept your opinion is different to mine.
What I stated about recon in defence was straight out of German doctrine of 1936 and as amended in 1938. The play book they took to Poland. Lacking true experience back in 1936 most units were assigned a role in the attack and a role in defense. However here the kicker. Those in power were firmly in the school of attack. You could use the defense role but if you stated you were on the defense you were considered to not suitable as a field officer. That is why you get silly terms from the Germans in later war such as advancing backwards. Yes I have read translated battlefield reports using this term.
For me Poland is Germany’s Kasserine but because they won they took less away from it than the Americans did. The Germans did take it as a wake up call to that they did not get everything right and changes were needed and to their credit most changes were in place by the time of France. What really shocked the Germans about the real Kasserine is the US had its lessons learned in place by the next major battle.
Your point about tank vs horses completely accepted in fact already implied. I opened the discussion with @yavasa stated my preferred Polish unit was the cavalry brigade as they were most suited to take on a German panzer or light division. While mentioning them the German light division was supported to be the modern version of traditional horse cavalry, however a number of the high command disagreed with it stating horses were still the only viable vehicle for the East.
Now back on topic. We were talking about the myth created by the propaganda. In the time of horse and musket in Europe the Polish Lancer was consider to be by far the best cavalry in the world. In typical Nazi fashion they mocked this and tried to say look at how stupid they are, they have not learned a thing since and don’t have the right to be in a modern world. This pay back if you like stems from the fact that Germany got a good sleep across the face given them by the Poles in the boarder wars back in the 1920’s. This is another topic rarely talked about today.
Even before WW1 the Australian Light Horse had relegated the lance to a ceremonial parade ground device just like the officers sword is today. At country carnivals today the skill is still alive today and was used for some time to impress the mums and dads that their defence were in good hands. Most movies made up to the late 50’s if they showed the Australian Light Horse have them carrying the lance. Coming from a Light Horse family it annoys me to no end setting it. Yet in the Australian film 40,000 Horse
Men, the title is a play on 40,000 thieves, there they are carrying lance. The issue is the story teller relies heavily on public perception rather than fact. It saves them pages of descriptions. They also use devices that go all the way back to Greek humor and tragedy. One such device is the tragic or doomed hero excepting his fate and going valiantly to their doom none- the- less. In the Polish film the director used the lance charging tanks as a tragic hero device. The only issue act the time the population took what they saw on screen as fact. It is a human failure that still here today. E.g. there are plants growing on Mars. That’s rubbish. No it is true I read it on the internet. Ooh so it must be true.
My dropping the ball statement was a carry on to your apology and an acknowledgement to your efforts of putting something up at a time when your full attention would have been taken up. Such as having a hurricane parked on your front lawn not knowing which way it was going next.
