kingdom yugoslavia cavalry formation formed german led axis invasion april peacetime division consisted cavalry brigades commanding total cavalry regiments wartime organisation specified cavalry brigade commanding cavalry regiments divisional level combat supporting units rest began april engaged process days later germans began air campaign series preliminary operations yugoslav end following day division cavalry brigade headquarters division cavalry regiments detached duty formations divisional headquarters divisional level units remained vicinity april given orders establish defensive line southeast river infantry artillery support division begun deploy task german 14th captured divisional headquarters attached units disarmed armed fifth column groups surrendered german troops background formed world war army kingdom country created december defend new kingdom army formed nucleus victorious combined armed formations raised parts austro hungarian empire joined form new state austro hungarian officers soldiers members new army beginning army like aspects public life new kingdom dominated ethnic serbs saw army means secure new kingdom development army hampered poor economy kingdom continued 1920s king alexander changed country time army army budget remained tight tensions rose europe 1930s hard secure weapons munitions countries consequently time world war broke september weaknesses included reliance draught animals transport large size formations example infantry divisions wartime strength men compared contemporary british infantry divisions half strength characteristics resulted slow formations inadequate supply arms munitions meant large yugoslav formations low firepower older generals better suited trench warfare world war combined army equipped trained resist fast moving combined arms approach germans poland france weaknesses strategy structure equipment mobility supply exacerbated significant degree lack unity yugoslavia resulted decades attendant lack political legitimacy achieved central government attempts address lack unity came late ensure cohesive force fifth column activity concern croatian nationalist ethnic german minorities country structure peacetime organisation according regulations issued headquartered peacetime control belgrade located southeastern yugoslavia peacetime comprised headquartered near headquartered north belgrade based river based based based wartime organisation wartime organisation laid regulations issued introduced requirement raise cavalry division war service strength cavalry division men theoretical war establishment fully yugoslav cavalry division headquarters headquarters company cavalry brigade consisting cavalry regiments artillery battalion batteries equipped anti tank guns bicycle mounted infantry battalion rifle companies machine gun company signals squadron squadron equipped chemical platoon divisional cavalry battalion consisting cavalry squadrons machine gun squadron engineer squadron bicycle company logistics units cavalry regiment consist cavalry squadrons machine gun squadron engineer squadron shortly war abortive attempt lack motor transport division largely remained formation existence equipped planned anti tank battery divisional artillery battalion largely equipped world war vintage pieces peacetime components division join formations primary fighting formation commanding 2nd 6th 8th cavalry regiments planned deployment case war yugoslav planners saw forming bulk reserve responsible defence northwestern yugoslavia defending western sector hungarian border 7th army italian borders held 1st reserve left boundary 7th army ran right 2nd army 2nd boundary running east yugoslav defence plan saw armies deployed 4th army river 7th army border region adriatic west east envisaged reserve located planners estimated cavalry formations days operations general called april fear adolf_hitler time invasion commenced begun according yugoslav historian april division proceeding slowly low number reported duty poor provision animals vehicles large portion strength division detached formations commander general divisional headquarters divisional level units near headquarters designated command 6th 8th cavalry regiments divisional artillery battalion allocated formation reduced main fighting elements division single cavalry regiment 2nd rest 1st reserve comprised independent artillery battalion moving distance kilometres northwest early morning april invasion commenced reached kilometres deployment stripped subordinate units remained reserve near days fighting april critical situation division directed command independent artillery battalion defend crossings kilometre stretch river collecting organising resistance orders quickly overtaken rapid advance 14th division broke river hungarian border april lead elements 14th division reached outskirts having covered nearly single day armed fifth column groups german troops disarmed division attached units establish coherent defence books
1st Cavalry Division (Kingdom of Yugoslavia)