Relief, as a military term, refers to the breaking of a
siege
A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...
or an
encirclement
Encirclement is a military term for the situation when a force or target is isolated and surrounded by enemy forces. The situation is highly dangerous for the encircled force. At the military strategy, strategic level, it cannot receive Milit ...
by an outside force.
It may occur in conjunction with a
breakout and is one of four possible
conclusions of
investment
Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...
, the others being a
breakout,
surrender or
reduction. The force that effects relief is known as the "relieving force" or colloquially "rescue party". Following relief, the town or fortification is said to have been "relieved".
Notable relief forces
*
Immortal 32 (
Siege of the Alamo)
*
Randy Shughart
Randall David Shughart (August 13, 1958 – October 3, 1993) was a United States Army Delta Force operator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Mogadishu (1993), Battle of Mogadishu, during Op ...
/
Gary Gordon (
Battle of Mogadishu)
See also
*
Combat search and rescue
*
Relief in place
References
Military terminology
Military operations
Siege tactics
Sieges
Military strategy
Siege warfare
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