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Charge of the Light Brigade
🕑 Added 2025-06-23 17:00:05 +0000 UTCThe Charge of the Light Brigade was a military action undertaken by British light cavalry against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War, resulting in many casualties to the cavalry. On 25 October 1854, the Light Brigade, led by Lord Cardigan, mounted a frontal assault against a Russian artillery battery which was well-prepared with excellent fields of defensive fire. The charge was the result of a misunderstood order from the commander-in-chief, Lord Raglan, who had intended the Light Brigade to attack a different objective for which light cavalry was better suited, to prevent the Russians from removing captured guns from overrun Turkish positions. The Light Brigade made its charge under withering direct fire and reached its target, scattering some of the gunners, but was forced to retreat immediately.
Comments
Lucinda Dixon
Really enjoyed the episode! My 3x great grandad fought in the Crimean War and I’ve been able to find his war records. He wasn’t as fancy as the people mentioned in the episode - he was just a former labourer who was a Private in the British Army. He fought in the battles of Alma, Balaklava, Inkerman and finally Sevastopol where he was hit by a shell in the trenches and had to have his leg amputated.
Kevin
The US version of this (Pickett's charge) is somehow almost the exact same but dumber. Dumber in two senses. One, that dumb order was actually intentional, and two, it is still celebrated by racists everywhere due to being the furthest North that the Confederates reached.
