The Dynamics Of Doctrine: The Changes In German Tactical Doctrine During The First World War [Illustrated Edition]

The Dynamics Of Doctrine: The Changes In German Tactical Doctrine During The First World War [Illustrated Edition]
Author: Captain Timothy Lupfer
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
Total Pages: 100
Release: 2015-11-06
Genre: History
ISBN: 1786250195

[Includes 4 maps and 3 figures] This latest Leavenworth Paper is a case study in the wartime evolution of tactical doctrine. Previous publications of the Combat Studies Institute have examined the peacetime development of doctrine and have increased our knowledge of how doctrine has been applied. With the publication of Captain Lupfer’s study, “The Dynamics of Doctrine,” the Combat Studies Institute adds another dimension to the history of the processes of doctrinal change. Besides providing a summary of German infantry tactics of the First World War, this study offers insights into the crucial role of leadership in facilitating doctrinal change during battle. It once again reminds us that success in war demands extensive and vigorous training calculated to insure that field commanders understand and apply sound tactical Principles as guidelines for action and not as a substitute for good judgment. It points out the need for a timely effort in collecting and evaluating doctrinal lessons from battlefield experience. Finally, this study reminds us of yet another fundamental lesson from the past-that tendencies toward accepting the battlefield as a routine can be a deadly error. Altering previously accepted tactics in the middle of a struggle, as the author points out, is a very urgent and serious matter. As members of the Profession of Arms, we must be sensitive to the demands of change, visionary in our examination of their implications, and creative in our adaptation of combat organizations, tactics, and techniques.

The German 1918 Offensives

The German 1918 Offensives
Author: David T. Zabecki
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 433
Release: 2006-09-27
Genre: History
ISBN: 1134252250

This is the first study of the Ludendorff Offensives of 1918 based extensively on key German records presumed to be lost forever after Potsdam was bombed in 1944. In 1997, David T. Zabecki discovered translated copies of these files in a collection of old instructional material at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He presents his findings here for the first time, with a thorough review of the surviving original operational plans and orders, to offer a wealth of fresh insights to the German Offensives of 1918. David T. Zabecki clearly demonstrates how the German failure to exploit the vulnerabilities in the BEF’s rail system led to the failure of the first two offensives, and how inadequacies in the German rail system determined the outcome of the last three offensives. This is a window into the mind of the German General Staff of World War I, with thorough analysis of the German planning and decision making processes during the execution of battles. This is also the first study in English or in German to analyze the specifics of the aborted Operation HAGEN plan. This is also the first study of the 1918 Offensives to focus on the ‘operational level of war’ and on the body of military activity known as ‘the operational art’, rather than on the conventional tactical or strategic levels. This book will be of great interest to all students of World War I, the German Army and of strategic studies and military theory in general.

Underground Warfare, 1914–1918

Underground Warfare, 1914–1918
Author: Simon Jones
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 440
Release: 2010-06-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1844684709

Simon Joness graphic history of underground warfare during the Great War uses personal reminiscences to convey the danger and suspense of this unconventional form of conflict. He describes how the underground soldiers of the opposing armies engaged in a ruthless fight for supremacy, covers the tunneling methods they employed, and shows the increasingly lethal tactics they developed during the war in which military mining reached its apotheosis. He concentrates on the struggle for ascendancy by the British tunneling companies on the Western Front.But his wide-ranging study also tells the story of the little known but fascinating subterranean battles fought in the French sectors of the Western Front and between the Austrians and the Italians in the Alps which have never been described before in English. Vivid personal testimony is combined with a lucid account of the technical challenges and ever-present perils of tunneling in order to give an all-round insight into the extraordinary experience of this underground war.

Command Legacy

Command Legacy
Author: Raymond A. Millen
Publisher: Potomac Books, Inc.
Total Pages: 409
Release: 2011-07
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1612343937

PRAISE FOR THE FIRST EDITION: "Millen reminds me of Erwin Rommel, George Patton, and Dwight Eisenhower, who also put their concentration as junior officers on the small units." --Stephen E. Ambrose, author of Band of Brothers and Citizen Soldiers "Command Legacy is a first-class primer on company-level command. Wish I'd had a copy when I took over my first company as its skipper. . . . Must reading for pros." --Col. David Hackworth, USA (Ret.), author of About Face "One of the most important soldier's manuals developed in modern Army times." --Lt. Col. Dominic J. Caraccilo, USA, in Military Heritage The burden of fighting wars, large or small, often rests on the soldiers and junior leaders of small infantry units. Command Legacy, the definitive source on small-unit tactics, presents one combat officer's conclusions about how to approach tactical problems and missions and about the links among tactical theory, doctrine, and practice. It is meant to prime junior leaders for tactical operations, team building, and professional development and explains in detail what needs to be done, why, when, and by whom. It attempts to reconcile both what to think and how to think, providing a voice of experience to readers. Newly returned from a tour in Afghanistan, Lt. Col. Raymond Millen has updated the book with fresh information to reflect lessons learned in Iraq and Afghanistan, new equipment, and new methods of counterinsurgency and urban combat. From developing company doctrine, preparing for a mission, and conducting assaults to addressing such concerns of the individual soldier as supply, terrain, and weather, any leader--officer or enlisted--tasked to conduct tactical operations needs this valuable book.

Artillery in the Great War

Artillery in the Great War
Author: Paul Strong
Publisher: Grub Street Publishers
Total Pages: 296
Release: 2011-05-18
Genre: History
ISBN: 1844682463

A year-by-year examination of key WWI battles and how the ongoing advances in artillery shaped strategy, tactics, and oprations; includes battlefield maps! World War I is often said to have been an artillery war, yet the decisive role artillery played in shaping military decisions—and therefor the war itself—has rarely been examined. Artillery in the Great War traces the development of this all-important technology, the differing approaches to its use, the many innovations it underwent on both sides, and how those approaches and innovations in turn effected key battles such as the Battle of the Somme. This highly readable and informative history is perfect for any reader interested in understanding the legacy of World War I, or the evolution of modern warfare.

The Road Past Monchy

The Road Past Monchy
Author: Terence Loveridge
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Total Pages: 444
Release: 2024-03-05
Genre: History
ISBN: 0253068622

Terence Loveridge offers a unique look at the land and air operations around the strategic village of Monchy-le-Preux at the center of the western front during World War I. The story of the Great War is usually one of condemnation or rehabilitation of strategists and consecration of the common soldier, while the story of those who planned, directed, and led operations on the ground has generally been overlooked. Loveridge uses experiences of junior leaders fighting around the key terrain of Monchy-le-Preux to challenge the currently accepted views and reveal that the Great War, despite subsequent impression, was a surprisingly dynamic effort conducted in an arena of constantly evolving practices, techniques, and technology. Less well known than its contemporary campaigns at the Somme, Verdun, or Passchendaele, Monchy also carries less preconceived baggage and thus offers a prime opportunity to reevaluate the accepted wisdom of the events, personalities, and understandings of the Great War. The Road Past Monchy offers readers a unique chance to uncover the "lost" perspective of junior war leaders in a theater of war that saw almost continuous operations from 1914 through to 1918.