Indian Army lancers charging, 1916 circa (b/w photo)

Indian Army lancers charging, 1916 circa. Photograph, World War One, Western Front, 1916 circa. Cavalry duties consisted largely of protection: forming a screen some 1.5-3km ahead of the advancing infantry and making first contact with the enemy, then discovering and reporting his dispositions and movements. Cavalry could also be moved quickly to a threatened point to strengthen the firing line, or to occupy a position before the enemy could do so and hold it until the infantry arrived. Most of this was mounted infantry work in which the horse was used for mobility only. From a group of 550 photographs, compiled by Lord Henry Seymour Rawlinson while Commander in Chief in India, 1916 circa-1919.