From Horses to Horsepower: The Mechanization and Demise of the U.S. Cavalry, 1916-1950Following World War I, horse cavalry entered a period during which it fought for its very existence against mechanized vehicles. On the Western Front, the stalemate of trench warfare became the defining image of the war throughout the world. While horse cavalry remained idle in France, the invention of the tank and its potential for success led many non cavalry officers to accept the notion that the era of horse cavalry had passed. During the interwar