« Here's wishing you die slowly of a gut shot and burn in hell for eternity | Main | Interesting Miscellany about the Corps »
May 26, 2005
More on The Importance of the Reserve
Yesterday, we discussed the concept of reserves in a post about Operation New Market. (Be sure to read all the comments for further discussion). Well here's something I dug up from the bookshelf: An essay entitled, "Defeating the Enemy's Will: The Psychological Foundations of Maneuver Warfare," by David A. Grossman, who I believe is also the author of the book, On Killing. Here's a portion of the essay subtitled, "The criticality of the reserve,":
--------
The criticality of the reserve
"He, general or mere captain, who employs every one in the storming of a position can be sure of seeing it retaken by an organized counterattack of four men and a corporal." -- Ardant du Picq
Napoleon stated that the moment of greatest danger was the instant immediately after victory, and in saying so he demonstrated a remarkable understanding of the way in which soldiers become physiologically and psychologically incapacitated by the parasympathetic backlash that occurs as soon as the momentum of the attack has halted and the soldier brieflly believes himself to be safe. During this period of vulnerability, a counterattack by fresh troops can have an effect completely out of proportion to the number of troops attacking.
It is basically for this reason that the maintenance of an "unblown" reserve has historically been essential in combat, with battles often revolving around which side can hold out and deploy their reserves last. The reserve has always played a vital role in combat, but du Picq was one of the earliest advocates not only of "holding out a reserve as long as possible for independent action when the enemy has used his own," but he also insisted on the revolutionary concept that this process "ought to be applied downward" to the lowest levels. He also perceived the technological process of increasing lethality on the battlefield which continues today. "There is more need than ever today, for protecting . . . the reserves. The power of destruction increases, the morale [of human beings] stays the same." Clausewitz further understood and put great emphasis on the danger of reserve forces becoming prematurely enervated and exhausted when he cautioned that the reserves should "always be maintained out of sight of the battle."
These same psycho-physiological principles explain why successful military leaders have historically maintained the momentum of a successful attack. Pursuing and maintaining contact with a defeated enemy is vital in order to completely destroy the enemy (the vast majority of the killing in historical battles occurred during the pursuit, when the enemy turned his back), but it is also valuable to maintain contact with the enemy as long as possible in order to delay that inevitable pause in the battle which will result in the "culmination point." The culmination point is usually caused as much by logistical processes as anything else, but once the momentum of the pursuit stops (for whatever reasons) there are severe physiological and psychological costs to be paid, and the commander must realize that his forces will begin to immediately slip into a powerful parasympathetic backlash and become vulnerable to an enemy counterattack. An unblown reserve force ready to complete the pursuit is a vital aspect of maneuver warfare and can be of great value in ensuring that this most destructive phase of the battle is executed.
------
Now that certainly bears some discussion.
Posted by Chester at May 26, 2005 10:42 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.theadventuresofchester.com/MT/mt-tb.cgi/693