Budenny was a huge peasant-Cossack N.C.O,, veteran of two wars, more at home on a horse than off. In a few weeks he organized the almost legendary First Mounted Army '~20,000 reckless Mghters, united only their love of horsemanship and hatred for the landlords. With Voroshiloff and Budenny at the head, the First Mounted whooped and slashed lis way through the opposition and a bitter cold, on the snow-swept Salsky steppes, "delivered the blow that put an end to their hopes in south' Russia, In the spring of 1920 the Mounted Ammy started' on a 1,400-mile trek toward Europe, to the gates of saw, In June came the first clash with tie Polish legionnaires, and before the end of the month, Voroshilof and Budenny. made an 60- Kkllometre breach in the Polish defences. Up to the walls of Warsaw galloped the Reds, but there the canny General Weygand, sent by France to save Europe from the Russian moujik, defeated the Army Of Hvesin, a barber turned military. The Red army's retreat was as rapid fas was its advance, In October, 1920, Budenny and his. First Mounted attacked General Wrangel, entrenched in the Crimea. With the ald of Bela Kun, who gained notoriety in the Hungarian Red revolution, Crimea was taken and all European Russia came under the control of Moscow. Budenny returned to the Capital to become the chief of Soviet cavalry, the post he SULL occupies.
Voroshiloff, meanwhile, was made the head of the North Caucasian
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.