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Column (formation)
In military terminology, a column is a tactical formation of fighters moving together in one or more files in which the file is significantly longer than the width of ranks in the formation. The column formation allows the unit rapid movement and a very effective charge (due to weight of numbers), and it can quickly form square to resist cavalry attacks, but by its nature only a fraction of its muskets are able to open fire. The line formation offers a substantially larger musket frontage than the column, allowing for greater shooting capability, but requires extensive training to allow the unit to move over ground as one while retaining the line. It is also applied by modern armies to vehicles, troops and naval vessels. Napoleonic Wars During the early stages of the French Revolutionary Wars, the French Army often attacked in column formation in an attempt to drive through enemy lines by sheer weight of numbers. Against enemy units already weakened by the fire from sk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Carr Beresford, 1st Viscount Beresford
William Carr Beresford, 1st Viscount Beresford, (; 2 October 1768 – 8 January 1854) was a British army officer and politician. A General (British Army), general in the British Army and a Marshal of Portugal, Marshal in the Portuguese Army, he fought alongside the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Duke of Wellington in the Peninsular War and held the office of Master-General of the Ordnance in 1828 in the First Wellington ministry. He led the 1806 failed British invasions of the River Plate, British invasion of Buenos Aires. Early life William Beresford was born on 2 October 1768, the illegitimate son of George Beresford, 1st Marquess of Waterford, George Beresford, 2nd Earl of Tyrone. Beresford received his early education in Yorkshire before in 1785 he was sent to Strasbourg, where he attended a French military academy. Early campaign experience Having spent several months at the military academy, on 27 August the same year Beresford joined the British Army as a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mixed Order
The Mixed Order () was a tactical formation originally used by ''demi-brigades'' of the French Revolutionary Army and then later by Napoleon's Grande Armée to great effect. First proposed by the French theorist Comte de Guibert, the Mixed Order could be adapted to be used by companies or battalions and involved two or more of these units using a combination of Line and Column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ... formations. Its origins were in the revolutionary wars where massed French militias lacked the training and experience to complete complicated manoeuvres and by necessity adopted a mixed order of veteran trained units and newly recruited/conscripted units. The regular troops moving in line along with the recruits moving in column, which required far le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human Wave Attack
A human wave attack, also known as a human sea attack, is an offensive infantry tactic in which an attacker conducts an unprotected frontal assault with densely concentrated infantry formations against the enemy line, intended to overrun and overwhelm the defenders by engaging in melee combat. The name refers to the concept of a coordinated mass of soldiers falling upon an enemy force and sweeping them away with sheer weight and momentum, like an ocean wave breaking on a beach. Definition According to U.S. Army analyst Edward C. O'Dowd, the technical definition of a human wave attack tactic is a frontal assault by densely concentrated infantry formations against an enemy line, without any attempts to shield or to mask the attacker's movement. The goal of a human wave attack is to maneuver as many people as possible into close range, hoping that the shock from a large mass of attackers engaged in melee combat would force the enemy to disintegrate or fall back. The human w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Attrition Warfare
Attrition warfare is a form of military strategy in which one side attempts to gradually wear down its opponent to the point of collapse by inflicting continuous losses in personnel, materiel, and morale. The term ''attrition'' is derived from the Latin word , meaning "to wear down" or "to rub against", reflecting the grinding nature of the strategy. Strategic considerations Attrition warfare seeks to erode an opponent’s capacity to wage war by systematically destroying their military resources, morale, and logistics over time. This may involve guerrilla warfare, people's war, scorched earth tactics, or prolonged engagements short of a decisive battle. It contrasts with strategies such as blitzkrieg or force concentration, which aim to achieve rapid victory through overwhelming power in a single decisive engagement. As Clausewitz described, it is a strategy of exhausting the adversary’s will and capability to fight. A combatant facing a significant disadvantage may ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Squad
In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of Military organization, military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and United States, U.S. doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a fireteam, team, but smaller than a Section (military unit), section", while United States Army, U.S. Army doctrine further defines a squad as a "small military unit typically containing two or more Fireteam#United_States, fire teams". In American usage, a squad consists of eight to fourteen soldiers, and may be further subdivided into fireteams. Organization NATO The standard NATO symbol for a ''squad'' consists of one single dot (●) placed above a framed unit icon. United States United States Army Historically, a "squad" in the US Army was a sub-unit of a Section (military unit)#United States Armed Forces, section, consisting of from as few as two soldiers to as many as 9–10 soldiers and was originally used primarily for drill and adminis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Platoon
A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can be composed of 20–50 troops, although specific platoons may range from 10 to 100 people. A platoon is typically the smallest military unit led by a Officer (armed forces), commissioned officer. The platoon leader is usually a junior officer—a Second lieutenant, second or first lieutenant or an equivalent rank. The officer is usually assisted by a platoon sergeant. Rifle platoons normally consist of a small platoon headquarters and three or four sections (Commonwealth) or squads (United States). In some armies, platoon is used throughout the branches of the army. In a few armies, such as the French Army, a platoon is specifically a cavalry unit, and the infantry use "section" as the equivalent unit. A unit consisting of several platoon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Korean War
The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was supported by China and the Soviet Union, while South Korea was supported by the United Nations Command (UNC) led by the United States. The conflict was one of the first major proxy wars of the Cold War. Fighting ended in 1953 with an armistice but no peace treaty, leading to the ongoing Korean conflict. After the end of World War II in 1945, Korea, which had been a Korea under Japanese rule, Japanese colony for 35 years, was Division of Korea, divided by the Soviet Union and the United States into two occupation zones at the 38th parallel north, 38th parallel, with plans for a future independent state. Due to political disagreements and influence from their backers, the zones formed their governments in 1948. North Korea was led by Kim Il S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infantry Square
An infantry square, also known as a hollow square or square formation, was a musket-era historic close order formation used in combat by infantry units, usually when threatened with cavalry attack. To deploy its weapons effectively, a traditional infantry unit would generally form a line; but the line was vulnerable to more nimble cavalry, which could sweep around the end of the line, or burst through it, and then attack the undefended rear or simply sweep along the line attacking the individual footsoldiers successively. By arranging the unit so that there was no undefended rear or flank, an infantry commander could organise an effective defense against cavalry attack. With both the development of modern repeating firearms and the demise of cavalry in warfare, the square formation is considered obsolete and is effectively never used in modern day warfare. Early history The formation was described by Plutarch and used by the Ancient Romans; it was developed from an earlier ci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Company (military Unit)
A company is a Military organization#Commands, formations, and units, military unit, typically consisting of 100–250 soldiers and usually commanded by a Major (rank), major or a Captain (armed forces), captain. Most companies are made up of three to seven platoons, although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure. Usually several companies are grouped as a battalion or regiment, the latter of which is sometimes formed by several battalions. Occasionally, ''independent'' or ''separate'' companies are organized for special purposes, such as the Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, 1st Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company or the 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company. These companies are not organic to a battalion or regiment, but rather report directly to a higher level organization such as a Marine Expeditionary Force headquarters (i.e., a corps-level command). Historical background The modern military company became popularized during the reorganization of the S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Craufurd's Light Division
The Light Division is a light infantry division of the British Army. It was reformed in 2022, as part of Future Soldier reforms. Its origins lay in "Light Companies" formed during the late 18th century, to move at speed over inhospitable terrain and protect a main force with skirmishing tactics. These units took advantage of then-new technology in the form of rifles, which allowed it to emphasise marksmanship, and were aimed primarily at disrupting and harassing enemy forces, in skirmishes before the main forces clashed. Formed in 1803, during the Napoleonic Wars, the Light Division was raised thereafter: during the Crimean War, the First World War, from 1968 to 2007, and from 2022 to the present day. Some light infantry units remained and remain outside of the Light Division. Origins of the Light Division The British Army's first three "Rifle Battalion" was raised by the 60th (Royal Americans) in 1797–99. The command of this first rifle battalion was given to Francis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Journal Of The Society For Army Historical Research
The Society for Army Historical Research is a learned society, founded in 1921 to foster "interest in the history and traditions of British and Commonwealth armies, and to encourage research in these fields." It is one of the oldest societies of its kind. Past members include notable British Field Marshals Wavell, Auchinleck and Templer. The current president is Lieutenant-General Sir Edward Smyth-Osbourne and Brigadier James Cook is chairman of its council. The patron of the society is Field Marshal HRH the Duke of Kent. The society's interests embrace both army and regimental history, military antiquities and pictures, uniforms, badges and medals, arms and equipment and the history of land warfare in general. The study of campaigns, commanders and the political aspects of war are covered from the sixteenth century to the recent past. From 2022, the society has conferred a small number oFellowships allowing the holder the use of the postnominals FSAHR. Journal The society's m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
