Organization: How Armies are Formed for WarFoster, Hubert
History
Organization: How Armies are Formed for War
Foster, Hubert
Armies -- Organization
The size of the armies, and the area covered by them, made it
impossible for the Commander to exercise personal control over his
whole force, especially as the absence of a system of supply entailed
wide dispersion for subsistence on the country invaded. It became
necessary to appoint independent Generals to command the scattered
fractions of the Army, often operating at a distance from each other.
This arrangement was instituted by Carnot in the early wars of the
Revolution.
It thus came about that the Army was _divided_ into separate portions,
which were naturally termed its _Divisions_, a designation which was
retained when they became permanent organizations, and exists in all
armies to this day.
These _Divisions_ consisted mainly of Infantry, but some Light Cavalry
and Artillery were attached to them, so as to make them capable of the
independent action demanded by the increased extent of the theatre of
war and of the battlefields.
The Division comprised generally 12 Battalions of Infantry, 4 to
8 Squadrons, and 8 to 12 guns, with the necessary administrative
services, making a total of some 10,000 to 12,000 in all, under command
of a General Officer.
The Infantry was formed in what were termed _Demi-Brigades_ of 3
Battalions, which reverted to the name of _Regiments_ in 1803. These
comprised one Battalion of regulars from the old Royal Army, and two
of Volunteers. Each Battalion had 9 Companies, each about 120 strong;
one being of Grenadiers, and two of Light Infantry. The Battalions were
numbered, their old army name being dropped. The Cavalry Regiments
were of 4 Squadrons, each 150 to 200 strong. The practice of living
on the country allowed the transport train to be greatly reduced,
especially as tents were discarded, and the troops always bivouacked,
when not billeted. Company officers were allowed no bât animals for
their baggage. By these measures the mobility of the army was greatly
increased.
This divisional organization was adopted by Austria in 1805, by Prussia
in 1806, and by Russia in 1807; we find it in the British Army in the
Peninsula in 1808, when the Divisions were formed of 2 Brigades of 3 or
4 Battalions each, with 1 or 2 Batteries, and often a Rifle Battalion.
CORPS D’ARMÉE (ARMY CORPS)
The power of independent action thus conferred on these Divisions,
which were in fact miniature armies, led to a want of concert in their
movements, and of co-ordination in their action, while at the same
time, as Armies increased in size, the number of Divisions became too
great for the Commander-in-Chief to control properly.
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