Colonel Péchot and the animals of war

We know that Prosper Péchot was fond of horses. In his officer training, many hours were devoted to equestrianism; it is not just a romantic supposition, but he rode in the woods above Fontainebleau every day while he was at the school for artillery officers. Photos taken during his career show him habitually on a horse - it gave him gravitas.

He came out of retirement to serve his county during the First World War and saw many animals pressed into service, much to his regret. His Système Péchot was devised to save horses from being used for army transport - a locomotive hauled train of 4 bogie wagons could carry as much as 60 to 80 horse-drawn carts, keeping double that number of horses out of the battle-field. Unfortunately, his superiors didn't absorb the message until the War had started and then had hastily to commisson material, following this up with the field trials they ought to have performed years before.

Gallant horses pull a machine-gun under fire. But are they galloping forward or retreating? This painting by Georges Scott appeared in Illustration magazine on October 31st 1914. Shortly afterwards, it appeared in the German press, with the caption 'Headlong retreat!' Georges Scott/Illustration/Courtesy Malcolm Wright

During the Champagne offensive (summer-autumn 1915) the French Army was still poorly prepared in matters of transport. Colonel Plassiard, chief transport officer for the Champagne network, recalled some of the problems. Temporary track had been laid on chalk subsoil. After months of war and coming into a wet autumn, it needed reballasting; they had left matters until locomotives could no longer use the track.

'We started using horses again, which led to poor operations. There were discrepancies in working new lines, lack of maintenance and repairs, worse still, lines which had been demanded urgently were not being worked at all. Finally the Army put locomotives back to work, but by now, the track was so churned up by the passage of horses' hooves that they had to be completely relaid.
Horses had given us many problems. We needed no less than three billeting officers (maréchaux des logis) to find them quarters. Food supplies, veterinary care and black-smiths to keep them shod were supposed to be the responsibility of their own units but gradually. more and more man power was sucked in. In fact, the way things were going, all available transport would be devoted to fetching fodder from greater and greater distances.
Worst of all the replacement of tired horses (for that read horses at the end of their tether) was not happening... To add to everything, winter had come on quickly and horses had to work in deep mud; it is not surprising that they suffered terribly'

All in all, it is surprising how the myth of the gallant mule, no doubt with brandy cask at his throat, supplying the whole Front has persisted. There was a happy end for the remaining horses on this particular Front. As Colonel Plassiard said, 'By January 1916, the situation had improved' There was proper housing for them  and locomotives back on the job.

The Rumanian retreat. Oxen pull a French 120L gun through a village in the Transylvanian Alps. Picture from Illustration/Courtesy Malcolm Wright

Away from the Western Front, oxen were usual. In the Balkans, they hauled Serbian refugees during the horrific retreat from the invasion. The human and animal army suffered much. In Rumania, which entered the War against the Central Powers on  27th August 1916. A French military mission under General Bethelot helped to arm them. Von Mackensen, with Turkish and Bulgarian troops, successfully attacked Transylvania from the southern border with Bulgaria. As can be seen from the photograph, oxen were common draught animals.

Worst of all was to see soldiers being used as draught animals as on the Italian Front. L'Illustration recorded 600 soldiers hauling a 149 gun at 2000 metres above sea-level, to arm a battery above Rovertero, June 1915.

Yum yum! Percy the pigeon would have made a tasty treat! Picture Illustration/ Courtesy Malcolm Wright

And finally let's not forget the carrier pigeons! Theirs was a dangerous job. As well as dodging stray bullets and shrapnel in the battlefield, the enemy would be happy to 'down' a messenger and thereby disrupt allied communications. There was also the risk of 'friendly fire'.