Terrain ExercisesWaldron, William H. (William Henry)
History
Terrain Exercises
Waldron, William H. (William Henry)
Tactics
_The Director_: “Captain Harvey, let us assume that you have come to
this point. You have with you the commanders of the machine gun company,
Captain D, and the Howitzer platoon, Lieutenant Z. You decide that the
line of departure for your attack shall be along here (indicating). What
instructions would you give to Captain D and Lieutenant Z?”
_Captain Harvey_: “I would indicate to them where I want the machine
guns, light mortars, and one-pounders to be located to support the
attack.”
_The Director_: “You would tell exactly where to place the weapons,
would you?”
_Captain Harvey_: “Yes, sir.”
_The Director_: “Captain Hodges, do you agree with that solution to the
problem?”
_Captain Hodges_: “No, sir, I do not. It seems to me that it would be
better for Captain C to indicate to Captain D and Lieutenant Z the
dispositions that he proposes to make—where the line of departure is to
be and the direction of the attack. Then to leave it up to those
officers to select the firing positions for the weapons. I think Captain
C would verify the positions selected, but he would at least give the
men who are supposed to be the experts an opportunity to use their
knowledge of the subject.”
_The Director_: “I think you are right. I believe in requiring every man
to do his job. These officers have been ordered to support the attack.
It is up to them to select the position where they can get the best fire
effect with their weapons and to get them into position ready to do
business.”
“What precautions would you take to indicate the place where the platoon
leaders are to assemble, Captain James?”
_Captain James_: “I would send one of my company runners to the assembly
point and order him to tell the platoon leaders to wait there for me.”
_The Director_: “I think that is a wise precaution. You do not want to
take a chance on anything going wrong and failing to effect an assembly
of the platoon leaders.”
“Now, let us consider how the attack is to be made. What would be your
tactical dispositions, Captain James?”
_Captain James_: “I would attack with one Platoon (the first), advancing
directly against the enemy strong point, and another (the second)
working around the enemy’s left flank and enveloping it. I would hold
the remaining platoon (the third) as company support.”
_The Director_: “Where is your line of departure?”
_Captain James_: “My line of departure would be along here. The right of
the first platoon would be (indicate). The left of the second platoon
will be (indicate). Each platoon will cover about 150 yards of front.
The third platoon will follow in rear of the second platoon as company
support.”
_The Director_: “That seems to be a logical disposition. Now having
decided all of this you should give the information to Captain D and
Lieutenant X so they can go about the task of selecting positions for
their weapons. How would you do this, Lieutenant Baker?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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