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001 - Mountain Warfare Some principles of frontier mountain warfare General considerations Some strength a · Military Strategies Mountain and Naval Warfare

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  Speaker 1: Part one of two essays on military history, strategy and
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  Speaker 1: tactics Mountain Warfare nineteen o nine and Naval Strategy nineteen seventeen.
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  Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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  Speaker 1: the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
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  Speaker 1: visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by David Wales. Two essays
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  Speaker 1: on military history, strategy and tactics Mountain Warfare nineteen o
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  Speaker 1: nine and Naval Strategy nineteen seventeen, by various authors. Part one,
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  Speaker 1: Mountain Warfare. Some principles of frontier mountain warfare. The saying
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  Speaker 1: that there is no new thing under the sun is
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  Speaker 1: as applicable to military affairs as to those of every
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  Speaker 1: day life. For it is fully admitted that the principles
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  Speaker 1: underlying all strategy and tactics, whether of mountain or other warfare,
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  Speaker 1: are immutable. But though the principles of strategy and tactics
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  Speaker 1: are unchanging, organization formations and minor items of procedure must
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  Speaker 1: be continually amended to meet ever varying circumstances. And in addition,
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  Speaker 1: each campaign possesses special characteristic demanding further modification. There are,
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  Speaker 1: in fact no invariable rules in the conduct of war,
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  Speaker 1: and whilst formalism is harmful in all matters, in military operations,
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  Speaker 1: it is disastrous. An army relying on an established code
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  Speaker 1: of rules will often defeat itself in their application. And
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  Speaker 1: even if this disaster is avoided, the enemy will soon
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  Speaker 1: become aware of the methods in vogue and will so
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  Speaker 1: frame his tactics as most advantageously to counteract them. Each problem,
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  Speaker 1: great and small, each set of circumstances must therefore be
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  Speaker 1: considered on its merits. Principles must be applied in the solution,
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  Speaker 1: not room rules and strategy, tactics, organization, equipment, and other
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  Speaker 1: matters arranged accordingly. It is in this spirit that the
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  Speaker 1: problems of Indian Frontier warfare should be approached general considerations.
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  Speaker 1: The strength and organization of a force destined to undertake
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  Speaker 1: operations against the trans border clans of the Indian Frontier
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  Speaker 1: is naturally conditioned by the physical features of the area,
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  Speaker 1: by its fertility, and by the numbers, character, organization, and
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  Speaker 1: armament of its inhabitants. It has been truly said that
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  Speaker 1: in war every available man should be employed, for one
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  Speaker 1: can never be too strong. But this aphorism is always
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  Speaker 1: qualified by the number of men that can be fed
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  Speaker 1: in the district which is to form the seat of war.
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  Speaker 1: The problem of the numbers to be used against the
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  Speaker 1: Pathan tribes is therefore by no means easy of solution. For,
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  Speaker 1: as a great French king said of Spain, in mountainous
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  Speaker 1: countries possessing, as does the Indian borderland few natural resources,
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  Speaker 1: but inhabited by a hardy though scanty population, large armies
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  Speaker 1: risk starvation, small or in danger of defeat. The tribesmen
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  Speaker 1: of the Northwest frontier are brave and inure to fatigue
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  Speaker 1: and hardship. A considerable number have been trained in our
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  Speaker 1: Indian army, and these have some knowledge of tactics and
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  Speaker 1: acquaintance with British methods. The clansmen possess no artillery, but
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  Speaker 1: in other respects are fairly well armed, and, owing to
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  Speaker 1: the cheap sale of rifles and ammunition in Afghanistan, are
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  Speaker 1: daily becoming more formidable in this respect. They suffer, however,
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  Speaker 1: from two grave military faults, lack of discipline and cohesion,
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  Speaker 1: and at present would it is believed, be unable to
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  Speaker 1: mass against Indy one of several columns invading their fastnesses.
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  Speaker 1: They would more probably be content merely to defend their
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  Speaker 1: own valleys and homesteads, rather than attempt to defeat in
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  Speaker 1: detail the divided forces of an invader operating from exterior lines.
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  Speaker 1: It would seem, then, that in a campaign in the
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  Speaker 1: Indian borderland, British troops would be justified in undertaking a
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  Speaker 1: concentric invasion from several localities. Certain advantages may also be
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  Speaker 1: claimed for this policy. The road space occupied in these
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  Speaker 1: pathless regions by a large force moving in one line
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  Speaker 1: is so great that, as was demonstrated in Sir W.
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  Speaker 1: Lockhart's advance from Shunawari in eighteen ninety seven, the rear
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  Speaker 1: of the column will be several days march behind the
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  Speaker 1: leading troops. In these circumstances, not only will risk of
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  Speaker 1: defeat in detail be even greater than in the case
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  Speaker 1: of concentric invasion, for small columns can better exercise me
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  Speaker 1: mutual support than can a large force moving in a
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  Speaker 1: restricted valley, but the length of the convoy train and
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  Speaker 1: the seeming strength of the force will be a direct
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  Speaker 1: temptation to the tribesmen to avoid battle and have recourse
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  Speaker 1: to guerrilla warfare. Besides, if small columns are employed, the
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  Speaker 1: whole country will be in the first instance overrun, and
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  Speaker 1: the enemy may, on account of the apparent weakness of
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  Speaker 1: the various detachments, take heart of grace and fight. This,
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  Speaker 1: after all, is what is most desired for. The aim
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  Speaker 1: is always to attain rapid and decisive victory and so
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  Speaker 1: end the campaign. An argument against convergent invasion is that
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  Speaker 1: since it may be necessary to use more than one
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  Speaker 1: line of communication, not only will the employment of larger
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  Speaker 1: numbers be necessary, but more transport animals, the provision and
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  Speaker 1: care of which really constitutes the main difficulty in frontier warfare,
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  Speaker 1: will be required. This drawback may, however, be mitigated by
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  Speaker 1: opening only one line of communication along the easiest route,
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  Speaker 1: the other detachments moving as flying columns until the heart
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  Speaker 1: of the district is reached, when their surplus animals can
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  Speaker 1: be transferred to line of communication. Duties strength and organization
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  Speaker 1: of columns. In deciding the strength of a column for
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  Speaker 1: an expedition against the Northwest frontier tribesmen, the first requisite,
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  Speaker 1: having regard to the foregoing considerations, is to limit numbers that,
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  Speaker 1: in the topographical conditions likely to be met, the force
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  Speaker 1: can as an entirety make a march of reasonable length,
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  Speaker 1: let us say eight or ten miles, assuming that the
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  Speaker 1: column will move at an average rate of about two
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  Speaker 1: miles per hour, that, in order to avoid risk of disaster,
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  Speaker 1: it is, as a rule desirable for the main force
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  Speaker 1: to march before dawn and to be in camp by dusk,
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  Speaker 1: and that ten twelve hours of daylight are available. It
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  Speaker 1: is clear that the road space occupied must not, for
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  Speaker 1: a ten mile march exceed ten to fourteen miles. That
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  Speaker 1: is to say, the numbers that can fulfill this condition
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  Speaker 1: on a narrow track amount to about forty five hundred
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  Speaker 1: fighting men, carrying three days rations on the person and
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  Speaker 1: five days on transport animals. Suppose that four such columns
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  Speaker 1: are destined to invade the Afridi Tirat. The Afridis are
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  Speaker 1: said to possess twenty five thousand to thirty thousand fighting men,
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  Speaker 1: and if it be assumed that two thirds of these
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  Speaker 1: have breech loading rifles, and that the whole mass is
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  Speaker 1: unlikely to attack any one or even two columns, the
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  Speaker 1: largest hostile gathering that a British detachment may expect to
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  Speaker 1: meet is six to eight thousand men, of whom a
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  Speaker 1: forty five one hundred to fifty five hundred may be
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  Speaker 1: well armed. A column of forty five hundred disciplined troops
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  Speaker 1: need not therefore fear reverse. The composition of a column
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  Speaker 1: is regulated by the topography of the area of operations,
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  Speaker 1: but the following example will show how the allotment of
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  Speaker 1: troops may be determined. As basis for calculation, a mixed
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  Speaker 1: brigade organized for independent action may be taken footnote one
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  Speaker 1: one British infantry battalion, three Native infantry battalions, one half
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  Speaker 1: British field hospital one and one half Native field Hospitals,
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  Speaker 1: one Field Post Office brigade supply column end footnote to
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  Speaker 1: these troops may be added a squadron of scylidar cavalry
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  Speaker 1: if the country is suitable to its action, and a
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  Speaker 1: mountain battery, which together with the infantry, form a handy
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  Speaker 1: force of the three arms. But the column is still
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  Speaker 1: weak in infantry on which the brunt of the fighting
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  Speaker 1: will necessarily fall, and possesses no technical troops for road making,
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  Speaker 1: et cetera. Both requirements may be fulfilled by the addition
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  Speaker 1: of a pioneer battalion, or, since some hold that sappers
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  Speaker 1: and miners are more economical than pioneers. A battalion of
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  Speaker 1: British infantry or of Gurkhas, and a company of sappers
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  Speaker 1: and miners may be included. It now only remains to
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  Speaker 1: give the troops an ammunition column, the necessary staff, certain
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  Speaker 1: additional medical and administrative details, and the force one infantry
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  Speaker 1: brigade organized for independent action, one squadron, one mountain battery,
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  Speaker 1: one British battalion, one company sappers and miners, et cetera,
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  Speaker 1: will be complete and adequate for its purpose marches and protection.
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  Speaker 1: A body of troops moving in an enemy's country is
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  Speaker 1: liable to be attacked at any time and from any direction,
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  Speaker 1: and must therefore always take measures for the protection of
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  Speaker 1: its front, flanks and rear. In warfare and civilized and
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  Speaker 1: highly developed countries, when the enemy's object is rather to
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  Speaker 1: defeat the fighting force than to harry the convoy, and
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  Speaker 1: when troops can march on broad frontages, the protection given
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  Speaker 1: by bodies of cavalry with horse artillery flung far to
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  Speaker 1: front and flanks as supported if necessary by infantry, is
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  Speaker 1: usually adequate. But when the line of march leads along
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  Speaker 1: a single file track winding through narrow valleys and over
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  Speaker 1: rugged mountains. When the column, compared to its strength, occupies
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  Speaker 1: an inordinate length of roadway and is therefore especially vulnerable
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  Speaker 1: to flank attack, and when the enemy, or at any
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  Speaker 1: rate a portion of his warriors prefer plunder of baggage
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  Speaker 1: to pitched battles, other measures to safeguard the force must
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  Speaker 1: be taken. Flank guards can rarely make their way over
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  Speaker 1: the steeply scarped hills enclosing the Northwest Frontier valleys, and
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  Speaker 1: since the advance guard can, in such conditions effect no
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  Speaker 1: more than the clearance of the valley in which it
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  Speaker 1: is moving, it becomes necessary to adopt a sedentary form
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  Speaker 1: of protection for the flanks of the force. This consists
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  Speaker 1: of pickets posted along the route in localities commanding approaches
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  Speaker 1: to the roadway or from which the enemy can fire
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  Speaker 1: on the column. These pickets, together with the advanced and
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  Speaker 1: rear guards, secure the movement of the remaining troops. They are,
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  Speaker 1: as a rule, found by the units composing the advanced guard,
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  Speaker 1: and withdraw under the supervision and if necessary, with the
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  Speaker 1: assistance of the rear guard. Of march of a column
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  Speaker 1: in border, as in other campaigns, is conditioned by the
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  Speaker 1: proximity strength and probable action of the enemy, by the
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  Speaker 1: topography of the district to be traversed, by the object
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  Speaker 1: to be obtained, and by the composition of the force.
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  Speaker 1: The first duty of the staff officer, to which is
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  Speaker 1: confided the drafting of orders for a march, will therefore
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  Speaker 1: be by personal observation and from intelligence and other reports,
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  Speaker 1: to find out as much as possible of the country
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  Speaker 1: and of the enemy's dispositions and probable tactics. Armed with
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  Speaker 1: this information, he will be in a position to arrange
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  Speaker 1: the order of march of his column according to the
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  Speaker 1: circumstances of the case. When the enemy, for instance, is
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  Speaker 1: in force in the vicinity, and his actions, such as
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  Speaker 1: throwing up of intrenchments harassing camp in large numbers, imply
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  Speaker 1: that he will offer vigorous resistance to the advance, it
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  Speaker 1: is probable that the baggage and supply columns will be
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  Speaker 1: best parked under sufficient guard, either in the camp or
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  Speaker 1: in some other locality easy of defense, whilst the remainder
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  Speaker 1: move off in preparatory formation for action. If the clansmen
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  Speaker 1: are reported to be inclined to dispute the advance in force,
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  Speaker 1: but are some distance from the camp, the most suitable
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  Speaker 1: order of march may be deduced as follows. The enemy
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  Speaker 1: being in strength, the column should move in compact formation
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  Speaker 1: and deliberately, the advanced guard being pushed only so far
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  Speaker 1: forward as to secure the troops from surprise, and as
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  Speaker 1: few road pickets sent out as may be, in order
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  Speaker 1: that the fighting force may be reduced as little as possible.
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  Speaker 1: The method of posting and withdrawing pickets will not materially
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  Speaker 1: differ from that which will be described later. The tribesmen
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  Speaker 1: being known to be in force and prepare to resist,
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  Speaker 1: it follows that the bulk of the fighting men must
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  Speaker 1: be at the head of the column, and as the
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  Speaker 1: advanced guard will be near the remainder, it need be
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  Speaker 1: only sufficiently numerous to ensure that the duties of protection
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  Speaker 1: are adequately performed. Suppose the tribesmen five miles distance, and
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  Speaker 1: that as a rough basis for calculation, two companies can
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  Speaker 1: secure about one and a half to two miles of roadway,
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  Speaker 1: then about three companies will be required for picketing. If
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  Speaker 1: three companies be added for other purposes, the advanced guard
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  Speaker 1: infantry should be of sufficient strength. The advanced Guard will
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  Speaker 1: require a proportion of technical troops for roadmaking and repair,
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  Speaker 1: and for this purpose two companies of pioneers or the
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  Speaker 1: bulk of a company of sappers and miners may be
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  Speaker 1: allotted cavalry or not, it is considered in place with
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  Speaker 1: an advanced guard moving in an enclosed and intricate country,
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  Speaker 1: nor since the main body will be close behind, need
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  Speaker 1: any special medical details be included. Whether artillery should be
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  Speaker 1: allotted is a more open question. In favor of placing
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  Speaker 1: guns with the advanced guard, it can be argued that
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  Speaker 1: they may be of assistance in clearing the hills to
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  Speaker 1: be occupied by pickets or vanguard. Against their inclusion, it
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  Speaker 1: may be argued that artillery ammunition will necessarily be scarce
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  Speaker 1: owing to the difficulty of carriage, and should only be
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  Speaker 1: employed when an advantageous opportunity for inflicting loss occurs, but
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  Speaker 1: that advanced guard commanders are prone to make too much
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  Speaker 1: use of their guns on the whole. When the advanced
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  Speaker 1: guard is not far from the main body, it would
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  Speaker 1: seem that the inclusion of guns in the former is unnecessary.
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  Speaker 1: The organization and order of march of the main body
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  Speaker 1: may be as under. It is clear that the numbers
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  Speaker 1: available for action will be those left over after suitable
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  Speaker 1: deduction has been made for baggage and rear guards. These
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  Speaker 1: therefore must first be allotted light duty men, officers, servants, cooks,
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  Speaker 1: et cetera. Should suffice to secure the regimental transport and
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  Speaker 1: for policing the drivers. But the supply column, hospitals and
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  Speaker 1: reserve ammunition requires special escorts, and perhaps one company each
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  Speaker 1: may be adequate for the two first mentioned, and one
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  Speaker 1: or two companies for the ammunition. The strength and composition
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  Speaker 1: of the rear guard is the next item, and this
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  Speaker 1: is regulated by its function of supervision of the retirement
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  Speaker 1: of the pickets. Such being the case, it appears that
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  Speaker 1: in no circumstances should a large force be detailed as
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  Speaker 1: a rear guard. There is not space in a narrow
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  Speaker 1: valley for a strong rear guard to maneuver, so that
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  Speaker 1: it will merely afford the enemy a good target without
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  Speaker 1: corresponding advantage. Besides, the rear guard can, if necessary, be
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  Speaker 1: continually reinforced by incoming pickets. A rear guard then should
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  Speaker 1: rarely include more than four companies of infantry, and in
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  Speaker 1: the circumstances under consideration, may be weaker, though cavalry may
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  Speaker 1: be useful for the delivery of a counter attack. The
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  Speaker 1: horses afford an easy mark, whilst its presence with the
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  Speaker 1: rear guard may cause the enemy to keep to the
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  Speaker 1: hills instead of descending into the valley where they will
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  Speaker 1: be more vulnerable. Cavalry, it seems, should therefore not be
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  Speaker 1: added to the rear guard. Infantry mountain guns may be
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  Speaker 1: of assistance to pickets in distress or in the delivery
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  Speaker 1: of a counter attack, but they should, both for their
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  Speaker 1: own security and to prevent waste of ammunition, be kept
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  Speaker 1: well back. In the present case, the rear guard is
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  Speaker 1: not likely to be harassed, so no artillery need to
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  Speaker 1: be included. A rear guard does not require technical troops,
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  Speaker 1: but some hospital riding mules et cetera may be allotted
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  Speaker 1: for rapid transference of wounded. The total deductions from the
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  Speaker 1: fighting force of the column will therefore be advanced guard
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  Speaker 1: six companies infantry, bulk of one company, s and m escorts,
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  Speaker 1: et cetera, three or four companies infantry, rear guard, two
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  Speaker 1: or three companies with machine guns. In all, about one
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  Speaker 1: and a half battalions one company sappers and miners. There
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  Speaker 1: remain three and a half battalions, one mountain battery, one squadron,
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  Speaker 1: and the administrative services at disposal. The odor of march
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  Speaker 1: of the main body can now be dealt with. Perhaps
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  Speaker 1: half a battalion may move in front, then the Mountain battery,
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  Speaker 1: which should not require a special escort, next the three battalions.
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  Speaker 1: After these may follow the reserve ammunition, the hospitals, the
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  Speaker 1: second line transport with b eschelon first line transport of
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  Speaker 1: all troops except the Advanced and Rear Guards, and then
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  Speaker 1: the supply column at the tail of the main body
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  Speaker 1: may move the b eschalon of the Advanced and Rear Guards,
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  Speaker 1: so as to be readily available in case any troops
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  Speaker 1: belonging to either are obliged to bivouac outside camp. And finally,
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: since they are unlikely to be able to undertake effective pursuit,
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  Speaker 1: may come the cavalry so as to be at hand
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  Speaker 1: in case they are required to assist the rear Guard
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  Speaker 1: to counter attack by charging any tribesmen who have ventured
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  Speaker 1: into the valley. Though b eschelon first line transport of
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  Speaker 1: the Advanced and Rear Guards as placed at the end
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  Speaker 1: of the column, it is considered that all troops should
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: be so equipped that they can be independent of camp
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  Speaker 1: and transport for at least two and better skill for
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  Speaker 1: three days. It is a lesser evil to carry an
• 20:13
  Speaker 1: extra but in some degree decreasing load, even if it
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: prejudices mobility, than to starve or run undue risk of
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  Speaker 1: sickness from cold and damp. The next case to be
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  Speaker 1: considered will be when the enemy is not in great
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  Speaker 1: force and is more likely to harass than to seriously
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: resist the advance of the column. In such circumstances, the
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: main objects will be too complete as rapidly as may
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  Speaker 1: be the proposed march whilst inflicting on the enemy, should
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  Speaker 1: he give the opportunity the greatest possible loss. Since the
• 20:51
  Speaker 1: distance is to be quickly traversed, and because a road
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  Speaker 1: picket takes some time, even as much as an hour
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: to secure and establish it on a hill, it follows that,
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  Speaker 1: unless risk is to be run of the march of
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  Speaker 1: the main body being delayed, the advanced guard must precede
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  Speaker 1: the main body by at least one hour, and may
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  Speaker 1: even move off in the twilight which precedes dawn. This settled,
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  Speaker 1: the composition of the advanced guard may be dealt with
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  Speaker 1: if it is proposed to make a ten mile march. Then,
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  Speaker 1: calculating from the data previously mentioned, about one battalion will
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  Speaker 1: be sufficient to picket the roadway. To this force, some
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  Speaker 1: four companies may be added so as to leave a
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  Speaker 1: good margin for securing the camp site and for unexpected contingencies.
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  Speaker 1: Technical troops will, as before be required, and as the
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  Speaker 1: Advanced Guard will be some way from the main body,
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  Speaker 1: a section of mountain artillery may be included. Neither cavalry
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  Speaker 1: nor special medical units seem necessary. The composition of the
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  Speaker 1: Advanced Guard may therefore be one and a half battalion's infantry,
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  Speaker 1: one section mountain battery, the bulk of one company sappers
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  Speaker 1: and miners. As already stated before deciding on the order
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  Speaker 1: of march of the main column, the deductions to be
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: made for escort and rear guard duties must be fixed.
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  Speaker 1: Light duty men, etc. Should suffice to secure the regimental transport,
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  Speaker 1: three companies to safeguard the reserve ammunition, hospitals and supply column,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: whilst the mountain battery hardly needs a special escort. In
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  Speaker 1: respect of the rear guard. In the case under consideration,
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: it is possible that the pickets may be harassed as
• 22:45
  Speaker 1: they withdraw the strength of the rear guard may therefore
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  Speaker 1: amount to four companies of infantry with machine guns and
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  Speaker 1: one section mountain artillery with some ambulance, writing, mules, etc.
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  Speaker 1: In addition, the total deductions for purposes of protection from
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  Speaker 1: the fighting force of the column therefore amount to infantry
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  Speaker 1: two battalions, three companies artillery, two sections, sappers and miners,
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: one company, and their remains for disposal, infantry two battalions,
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: five companies artillery, one section, cavalry, one squadron, besides various
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: administrative units. No serious opposition being expected to the march
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: of the column, the comfort of the troops may be
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: considered in regulating the order of march. As before, and
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: for the same reasons, the cavalry and b echelon first
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: line transport of the advanced and rear guards and of
• 23:49
  Speaker 1: the picketing troops may march at the tail of the
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: main body. It should hardly be necessary to place, in
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: addition a body of infantry at the end of the column,
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: but if desired, the remaining four companies of the battalion
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: furnishing the rear guard may move immediately in front of
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: or behind the cavalry. The rest of the fighting force
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: can march at the head of the main column, followed
• 24:15
  Speaker 1: by the reserve, ammunition, hospitals, b eschelon, first line transport
• 24:20
  Speaker 1: with a second line transport, and then the supply column.
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: In circumstances where little or no resistance is expected to
• 24:29
  Speaker 1: the forward movement of a column, but serious opposition to
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: the withdrawal of pickets and to the march of the
• 24:35
  Speaker 1: rear guard, the following modification will be necessary. In the
• 24:40
  Speaker 1: order of march just dealt with. The strength, composition, and
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: time of march of the advanced guard need only be
• 24:48
  Speaker 1: altered by the deduction of say one section of sappers
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: and miners, and perhaps two the withdrawal of the mountain guns.
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: The escorts, et cetera. Of the non fighting portions of
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: the main column may remain as before suggested, as may
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: the strength and composition of the rear guard. The order
• 25:09
  Speaker 1: of march of the main column will however, require transposition
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: somewhat as follows. Since the principal opposition will take the
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: form of pursuit by the enemy, the bulk of the
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: fighting troop should move in rear of the main column,
• 25:25
  Speaker 1: so as to be in position to undertake the offensive
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: if required. The units may therefore march as follows. Two
• 25:33
  Speaker 1: companies of infantry, the supply column the b eschalon first
• 25:38
  Speaker 1: line transport except of the advanced and rear guards, with
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: the second line transport the hospitals, the reserve ammunition b
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: eschelon A, first line transport of the advanced and rear guards,
• 25:52
  Speaker 1: the rest of the infantry less four companies, the remainder
• 25:56
  Speaker 1: of the artillery, one section of sappers and miners, the cavalry,
• 26:01
  Speaker 1: and finally four companies Footnote two. First line transport is
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: usually divided into two echelons A and B. The former
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: includes ammunition, reserve, entrenching tools, water signaling, and medical equipment.
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: The latter blankets, rations and cooking pots, et cetera. And
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: note and of Part one