In the United States, Memorial Day is set apart as a day to honor those who died in service to their country. For one day, we are called to remember those who gave all they had to give so that others might live and flourish in freedom. Their gravestones stand as memorials to sacrifice and heroism, and they call us to remember that principles truly worth living by and lives truly worth having come at a personal price in selflessness and self-control. Virtuous deaths should be remembered through virtuous lives.
On the world’s battlefields, horses have suffered and died alongside humans. Their sacrifices were involuntary and not imbued with the same meaning that attends the human cost of war. Yet they, too, are worthy of remembrance. From the fleet sons of Lexington that served and died as mounts for cavalrymen and raiders during the Civil War to the tens of thousands of animals bred by the Cavalry Bureau and Army Remount Service for use during the Indian Wars and the two World Wars, Thoroughbreds served alongside animals of many other breeds who bore soldiers into battle, carried messengers and supplies across rough country, and pulled artillery and supply wagons. Their innocent deaths bear witness to our failure to steward God’s creation as He intended and to love our fellow human beings; yet they also bear witness to the close bond between horse and man that held firm even in the horrors of war.
Today, a few scattered memorials have been raised to the memory of the legions of horses that served in America’s wars. Perhaps the most famous is that of Korean War veteran and decorated Marine sergeant Sgt. Reckless—the only horse to hold official rank as a Marine—who gained fame for resupplying her platoon with ammunition while making dozens of riderless trips through gunfire and up and down a 45-degree incline. Her statue stands in honor at the Kentucky Horse Park, preserving the memory of a remarkable friend and battle comrade and, through her, paying tribute to the unnumbered thousands of gallant horses who also served with America’s soldiers.
On the world’s battlefields, horses have suffered and died alongside humans. Their sacrifices were involuntary and not imbued with the same meaning that attends the human cost of war. Yet they, too, are worthy of remembrance. From the fleet sons of Lexington that served and died as mounts for cavalrymen and raiders during the Civil War to the tens of thousands of animals bred by the Cavalry Bureau and Army Remount Service for use during the Indian Wars and the two World Wars, Thoroughbreds served alongside animals of many other breeds who bore soldiers into battle, carried messengers and supplies across rough country, and pulled artillery and supply wagons. Their innocent deaths bear witness to our failure to steward God’s creation as He intended and to love our fellow human beings; yet they also bear witness to the close bond between horse and man that held firm even in the horrors of war.
Today, a few scattered memorials have been raised to the memory of the legions of horses that served in America’s wars. Perhaps the most famous is that of Korean War veteran and decorated Marine sergeant Sgt. Reckless—the only horse to hold official rank as a Marine—who gained fame for resupplying her platoon with ammunition while making dozens of riderless trips through gunfire and up and down a 45-degree incline. Her statue stands in honor at the Kentucky Horse Park, preserving the memory of a remarkable friend and battle comrade and, through her, paying tribute to the unnumbered thousands of gallant horses who also served with America’s soldiers.
RSS Feed