Bill Doyle's Research Uncovers Genuine 'War Horse'

 

Statue of Field Marshal C.G.E. Mannerheim (1867-1951)
by Aimo Tukianen. Helsinki, Finland.   (Ed. note: The
horse is standing on all four feet which means that
the rider survived the battle. If one of the horse's front legs
is raised  it indicates its rider was injured in battle
and if the horse is rearing on its hind legs it means
the rider perished in battle.)

As Steven Spielberg's fictional, blockbuster motion picture 'War Horse' opens across the nation in an 11th-hour bid for an Oscar, it brings to mind the existence of a real war horse, a less known but prized, combat-tested stallion, Talisman, on whose back Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim of Finland rode into battle in numerous military engagements in the first half of the 20th century.

Bill Doyle, who, with Diana Fieg Monaco, was recently in Helsinki and viewed a statue of the late general atop the vaunted steed, is writing a book centering on the Finnish use of horses in guerrilla warfare against German and Russian invaders during World War II. Bill said that Mannerheim's life story includes a description of his horse in glowing terms, speaking of the animal as though he were human.

"In Finland, Marshall Mannerheim was George Washington, Santa Claus and Batman all rolled into one," Bill says. "He was way bigger than life." 

His horse, ironically, gets the credit for helping to launch Mannerheim's ascent through advanced field ranks during a succession of five wars.

Mannerheim, who died at the age of 96 in 1951, was the military leader of the White Guard in the Finnish Civil War, Commander-in-Chief of Finland's Defense Forces during World War II, Marshal of Finland, Regent of Finland and president from 1944–1946 and is generally considered the father of his country.

His thoroughbred, Tallisman, may not be as well known as Roy Rogers' Trigger, Gene Autry's Champion or Tom Mix's Tony, or even the fictional Joey of  'War Horse,'  but evidence points to an equally remarkable, real-life animal, one that stood head and shoulders above the many horses Mannerheim rode during his lenghty and storied military career.

"Despite his high mettle (spiritedness), he was the quietest horse I have ever ridden under fire,"  Mannerheim wrote as he recalled their final ride as he, then just a major, led a reconnaisance in force.  During the maneuver, Mannerheim instantly knew something was seriously wrong when the horse shuddered with a "severe shock" but remained on his feet.

"The splendid animal had been hit by a bullet but he did his duty until the end," Mannerheim said.

Because he and the mortally wounded horse were able to complete their mission, Mannerheim was elevated to the rank of colonel, the earliest of many field promotions en route to becoming a general then a field marshal.

"This honor could not console me for the loss of wonderful friend Talisman. He was a wonderful horse," the ordinarily stoic Mannerheim said with a highly uncharacteristic expression of sentiment.

In the movie 'War Horse,' the horse Joey is pressed into service during World War I and is depicted as having not only bravery and character, but cognitive reasoning.  Many would scoff at the idea of a horse being intelligent and self-aware but testimonials abound about such animals.

The silent movie star William S. Hart, who, in 1899, played Messala in the stage production of Lew Wallace's "Ben Hur,"  actually drove a Roman chariot at a full gallop on stage in the production.  The wheels were mounted on a rotating track.  He later went on to star in Hollywood westerns with his horse, Fritz, who is credited with being the first motion picture wonder horse.

The little pinto's name appears in the credits of more than a half dozen westerns and his picture hangs in the arena and stable of Fieg cousin Annie Bookhout in Brooktondale, N.Y. near Ithaca.  Annie has raised horses since she was 12 and concedes she has loved more than a few; one wonders how many she thought of as smart.

Ken Maynard's horse Tarzan unties the ropes
binding his master in Wheels of Destiny, 1933.

Cowboy star Ken Maynard's horse Tarzan could even untie ropes, but were Tarzan and Fritz really as smart as depicted in Hollywood?

Consider this: Fritz did falls, jumped over fences, galloped through fire and into rivers and out of and into buildings, to name a few of his stunts.

In his autobiography, Hart recalls 'The Toll Gate,' a film in which he deliberately rode Fritz into a river and became caught in a deep and violently spinning eddy.

"Once the animal got into it, he could neither swim out nor climb out. There was no bottom for his hind legs to reach and he could only get his front hoofs on the ledge which was six feet under water,"  Hart recalled.

"Almighty God! How Fritz did try! He struggled. He screamed. He looked at me with the eyes of a human being. He actually climbed the arched side walls until he turned himself over backwards.

"Twice we went down in those cold, whirling depts and twice we fought our way to the surface again. I knew the next time would be the last. Fritz spoke to me—I know he did. I heard him, and I spoke to him. I said, 'God help us, Fritz.' ...And God did help us!

"...As we were going down for the last time the strong current we had been fighting carried us over the ledge back toward the way we came in, and as we sank we touched the bottom and regained our feet."

Fritz is buried on Hart's charming, 85-year-old California rancho, now a public monument and park maintained by the County of Los Angeles just north of the city on land featuring a herd of buffalo used in Walt Disney movies.  His gravemarker reads: “Bill Hart's Pinto Pony Fritz—Aged 31 Years—A Loyal Comrade."

Doubters aside, Mannerheim's and Hart's deep respect for their horses and recognition of their bravery, cunning, loyalty and devotion demonstrate that many humans know what it means to love and be loved by an animal.

Spielberg's movie is based on a children's novel "War Horse" by British author Michael Morpurgo, first published in London in 1982 and produced as a play in 2007.  The movie comes highly recommended by FFN.