Hard riding no saddles or stirrups

[Felix]

I fully agree with the general principles. Steady, formed infantry cannot be broken by horsemen on any reliable basis, only by some freak event. The discussion of cavalry engagements is a fair example of typical events, but there are clearly documented cases where the two forces actually did collide. One case, which du Picq should have known about, was the charge of the Heavy Brigade at Balaclava in the Crimea. See http://www.britishbattles.com/crimean-war/balaclava.htm

Nine hundred British cavalry unexpectedly encountered 3000 Russian horsemen:

"As the Heavy Brigade charged, the Russian cavalry force halted so that it received the Heavy Brigade charge stationary. The Russian commander appeared to be seeking to extend his line after crossing the Causeway Heights. The first line of Scots Greys and Inniskillings struck the Russian cavalry, followed by the second line of Inniskillings and 5th Dragoon Guards.
The wings of the Russian formation closed in behind the two lines and the Royal Dragoons charged the wings in the rear. The two forces struggled on the hillside until the 4th Dragoon Guards came up and delivered a further charge into the Russian flank. In Hamley’s words “Then -almost as it seemed in a moment, and simultaneously- the whole Russian mass gave way, and fled, at speed and in disorder, beyond the hill, vanishing behind the slope some four or five minutes after they had first swept over itâ€