Squares get a melee bonus against cavalry bonus and will in NTW as well but Massed Battlions should as well
especially towards the end of the Napoleonc wars massed battalions became more popular against cavalry mainly because they were much more mobile i.e. you could still move but still was able to defend against cavalry by keeping eyes out and turning round to the exterior if cavalry were approaching
i spose this sort of adds to the case of a column button which i was originally opposed to