Big questions of the Crimean War: into the Valley of Death
HistoryExtra podcast
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The Battle of Balaclava
The battle of Balaclava is the one in Alfred Lord Tennyson's famous poem, The Charge of the Light Brigade. He wrote it having read an initial report of the battle which suggested that the light brigade had been pretty much wiped out. People forget this action because not many people got killed or wounded. They trot into the Russian light cavalry, bulge them aside, drive them off the field and then the royal horse artillery, undlimber, and fire shrapnel at the Russians. This is a physical pushing competition. At this point, the heavy cavalrymen don't kill many Russians because they'd forgotten to sharpen their swords. And the Russians are on very small ponies,
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