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Massed tanks were used for the first time in the Battle of Cambrai. The cavalry including the 10th, 11th and 20th Hussars were mounted and withdrawn into reserve so that they could be employed to exploit any breakthrough.
On 20th November 1917, the 20th Hussars, as part of the 5th Cavalry Brigade, moved up to Saulcourt, near Cambrai. At 6.20 am, 400 tanks of The Royal Tank Corps moved across the start line at 5 mph. This was the first time tanks had ever been used in any numbers. The first assault was successful, but the next day a German counter-attack prevented any mounted action and the cavalry were withdrawn. The Brigade then reorganised as 5th Dismounted Battalion, to which the 20th Hussars contributed a company of five officers and 218 men. The company suffered accurate artillery fire, killing 3 officers and 5 other ranks and wounding 24.
