Charge of the Savoia Cavalleria at Isbuscenskij

Charge of Izbushensky
Part of Case Blue, Eastern Front (World War II)
Date 24 August 1942 Location Izbushensky, Soviet Union Coordinates: 49°56′12″N 42°33′24″E / 49.93667°N 42.55667°E / 49.93667; 42.55667 Result Italian victory
Belligerents
Italy	Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Alessandro Bettoni Cazzago	Avksentiy L'vovič
Strength
700	2,500
Casualties and losses
32 dead 52 wounded 100+ horses killed	150 dead 300 wounded 600 captured 4 cannons 10 mortars

The charge of the Savoia Cavalleria at Izbushensky was a clash between the Italian cavalry regiment Savoia Cavalleria and the Soviet 812th Siberian Infantry Regiment, part of the Soviet 304th Infantry Division, that took place on August 24, 1942, near the hamlet of Izbushensky (Избушенский), close to the junction between the Don and Khopyor rivers.

Though a minor skirmish in the theatre of operation of the Eastern Front, the Izbushensky charge had a great propaganda resonance in Italy and it is still remembered as one of the last cavalry charges in history.

On 20 August, the Soviets launched an offensive on the Don river. The Sforzesca division couldn't withstand the enemy attack and in two days it was routed. The Savoia Cavalleria regiment, under command of colonel Alessandro Bettoni Cazzago, was sent as a relief force in the area, with orders to occupy "spot height 213,5". During the evening of 23 August, it set camp 1,000 meters short of its objective ready to occupy it the next morning. During the night, two battalions of the 812th Siberian Infantry Regiment deployed on the objective. They entrenched themselves in an arc facing the Italian camp about 1,000 meters wide and waiting sunrise to attack.

On August 24 at 3:30AM an Italian mounted exploring patrol, sent to recon s.h.213,5, made contact with the enemy. The Soviets, having lost the element of surprise, opened fire on the entire line.

With the camp under fire, Col. Bettoni Cazzago had no choice but to order, as a last resort, a cavalry charge with drawn sabers and hand grenades against entrenched infantry.

While the horse drawn artillery (so called "flying batteries" or voloire in Piedmontese language) quickly deployed its four pieces and opened fire, the machine guns deployed at the front of the Italian camp and started firing back.

Col. Bettoni Cazzago ordered then the 2nd squadron (over 100 horsemen) to attack the enemy on the left flank. Under command of Cpt. De Leone, the squadron began a winding maneuver through a gorge, succeeding in engaging the enemy at the left end of the front, outflanking it and storming it longitudinally with drawn sabers and hand grenades.

Corporal Lolli, unable to draw, as his saber was frozen in its sheath, charged holding high a hand grenade; Trumpeter Carenzi, having to handle both trumpet and pistol, shot by mistake his own horse in the head.

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Wikipedia