Strategy and tactics: . the first attempt fails, renew it again and again, ifnecessary. Such pertinacity often leads to the first effort is successful, the enemy should bevigorously followed up, and no time or opportunityafforded him to recover himself. Attach of heights.—Although it is a rule to attackheights in opening an engagement, it should only bedone when they are attainable, and the troops, uponreaching the high ground, will have room to extendthemselves; for, if such positions can only be ap-proached through narrow defiles and under fire, andthe troops must advanc
Strategy and tactics: . the first attempt fails, renew it again and again, ifnecessary. Such pertinacity often leads to the first effort is successful, the enemy should bevigorously followed up, and no time or opportunityafforded him to recover himself. Attach of heights.—Although it is a rule to attackheights in opening an engagement, it should only bedone when they are attainable, and the troops, uponreaching the high ground, will have room to extendthemselves; for, if such positions can only be ap-proached through narrow defiles and under fire, andthe troops must advance with a very small front, thereis little prospect of success. Such a position must beturned. But it must be recollected that, in seekingto turn a position, the turning party runs the risk ofbeing taken in flank and seeing his own communica-tions cut. Such a movement should, therefore, onlybe attempted when there is no opportunity for theenemy to debouch on the flank. High ground may not always present its front, but. OFFENSIVE BATTLES. 199 may be a chain of hills, perpendicular to the generalline of the two armies, both resting one wing uponthem. In such a case, the attack should proceed fromthe higher to the lower portions. Thus, the twoarmies, A B and C D (figure 18), having each one wingin the plain and theother on the highground, the generaldirection of which isperpendicular to theirfront, the army A Bshould attack by itsright, in order to dis-lodge the left of the enemy, D, before bringing Binto action. The centre, E, follows the right, andserves as a connection between the wings. The attackis thus progressive from right to left, and becomesgeneral only when the right and centre have repulsedthe left and centre of the enemy. The order of battle,from being at first parallel, becomes oblique and inechelon. The enveloping attack.—If the attacking army issufficiently numerous, the enemy may be envelopedupon a single wing, or upon both. If the attempt issuccessful, victory
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjecttactics, bookyear1864
