Editing Horse (section)

== History ==
Like dogs, horse have been bred by humans into a wide variety of breeds for specialized purposes in different areas. Some are meant for racing, others are meant to carry large loads, and others are intended to carry people (including soldiers).
An extensive list of horse breeds can be found [[wikipedia:List of horse breeds|here]].

More than any other non human animal (except maybe dogs) the horse has been a direct aide to humans at war as a beast of burden, draft animal and as a mount. While they can travel quickly over short distances, most horses which move faster than an infantryman tire if they are forced to march for too long, which can be lethal for them.  As persistence hunters, humans have greater endurance than horses over extremely long distances; this is how horses were domesticated in the first place, by simply following them at a walking pace for hours until they were too tired to resist having a rope tied to them.  For horse travel to be significantly faster than walking, they need to be supported by a network of stables so the horses can be used in relay.  

At first, they were mainly used to pull chariots: small, lightly built carriages which could carry one or more guys into battle. Usually this would be a driver who had the reigns and either an [[Bows and Arrows|archer]] or a guy with a spear. They were fast, but expensive to produce. Two major changes shifted chariots to Cavaliers. First, horse breeding produces larger animals, such that a team of horses and a set of wheels were no longer needed to carry a rider forward. Secondly, the stirrup was brought over to Europe. Priorly, difficulties with riding a horse on its own made chariots the only reliable way to use horses in battle. 

When the stirrup did reach Europe, the chariot fell out of use in favor of mounted warriors such as knights. A combination of heavy armor, mobility, and devastating charges made knights on horseback dangerous foes.  Even after the advent of firearms mounted soldiers were valued for their ability to outflank foes; in one famous incident during the Civil War, General Stuart's cavalry rode 126 miles in 60 hours, [[Internet Troll|circumnavigating the Union army]].  Cavalry of all types remained a major part of military units worldwide until the end of World War I, and served in a logistical role until ww2. Even today, horses still see some use by modern militaries as they're the only way to bring more than a man can carry through mountainous terrain.