DEFENSE OF A POSITION
Different Kinds of Hostile Attacks
=Surprise Attacks.= These may be raids or local attacks. A raid is
usually for the purpose of taking prisoners; and a local attack, to
capture a part of the line. These operations may be carried out without
a preliminary bombardment, but are usually preceded by a short intense
bombardment to destroy wire entanglements.
=Attacks in Force.= Such an attack may be made on a larger part of the
line, as a particular sector, or on a considerable length of front in a
general offensive. This kind of attack is, of course, preceded by a
bombardment.
=Special Attacks.= Special attacks are made with gas, liquid fire, and
mine methods. These will be taken up in detail in a later chapter.
Surprise Attacks
=Precautions Against Surprise.= In considering precautions against
surprise attacks, it is not a question of combating patrols or enemy’s
reconnaissance parties whose missions are to search out information of
your intentions and situation. It is a question of raids and little
attacks on your lines. Against such hostile operations the defense of
the sector depends upon the following precautions.
=Maintenance of the Barbed Wire Entanglements.= A surprise attack, to be
successful, must have besides surprise the element of swiftness. The
enemy must make a dash across “No Man’s Land” up to your first line.
This, however, is impossible, if your barbed wire entanglements are
intact. Consequently each captain is responsible for the maintenance of
the wire belt in front of his line.
It is the duty of the observation service to discover breaches or
defects in your wire. To this end, the captain sends out at night
patrols to ascertain the condition of his entanglements. If necessary,
small detachments are sent out at night to make repairs. If this work is
considerable, he calls upon the battalion commander for special working
parties to assist. The captain, in his daily requisitions for material,
provides for the supply of wire, chevaux-de-frise, etc., that he may
need.
=Service of Guard and Observation.= One of the most important duties of
the observers in the first line, and of the sentinels and patrols, is to
locate breaches that the enemy has made in your wire, or to discover
hostile parties in the act of tampering with the same.
Breaches or passages in your wire may be made by such means as
bangalores and petards and detonators. The explosion of such an
arrangement is a sufficient signal of alarm. These are usually poor
methods.
Passages may be made by special hostile patrols using wire cutters.
These wire cutting patrols may precede the attack. Alert sentinels or
your own hourly patrols, that crawl along your wire belt, should
discover such operations.
The usual method, however, is to destroy barbed wire by artillery fire.
The object of hostile shelling of your position is not always easily
detected. The enemy may carry out a general artillery fire on your
position during the day, for example, just before dusk. At the same time
he will concentrate certain batteries for a methodical destruction of
parts of your entanglement. For this reason it is the mission of the
first patrol, sent out at dusk, to ascertain the condition of the barbed
wire belt. The report of this patrol may carry important indications of
the intentions of the enemy.
Sometimes a hostile surprise attack is preceded only by a short and
unexpected bombardment. Registering shots for this artillery fire are
made during the day. These registering shots, however, are fired short
of the wire in “No Man’s Land” to deceive the observers that they are
for the purpose of barrage control. In this case, the only means to
baffle the attack is to have diligent sentinels to give immediate alarm,
and a well-trained garrison to take its place in the fire trenches
quickly.
=“Stand To” Exercises.= A well-trained garrison, accustomed to “stand
to” quickly, without noise and confusion, cannot be easily surprised.
When the call to arms is given by a sentinel, this call is repeated by
all watchers in the successive lines of the support point. The officer
of the watch runs immediately to the place of call. All the men of the
garrison spring out of their niches and shelters, and proceed quickly,
without orders, to their appointed places of combat. This execution must
be automatic, and only a frequent repetition of the “stand to” exercise
can give a unit this result. Besides these exercises, as we know, the
garrison executes “stand to” one hour before dusk and one hour before
daylight. Deep dugouts are prohibited in the first line because they may
become traps in which the defenders are taken prisoners, and they
materially lengthen the time for the garrison to take its place for
combat.
[Illustration: POSITION OF SPECIALISTS AT “STAND TO”]
Only in case of an expected attack and when the garrison is ready for
it, is the alarm signal given by such special means as bells, whistles,
or rockets. This is exceptional. The only practical alarm signal that
will awaken the garrison any time during the night is the cry “to arms”
passed along and taken up by everyone.
Rifle, A. M. R., and grenade fire from the first line will usually stop
a surprise attack. But since it is impossible to ascertain the strength
of the attacking troops, the defensive artillery barrage is called for.
Similarly, the reserve troops located in the cover and support trenches
may be used for the purposes of reinforcement and counterattacks,
depending upon the success of the enemy’s attack.
The captain of a support point must not only keep up the offensive
spirit of his garrison by all the means of trench fighting, but he must
organize and maintain a vigilant guard and patrol service for security.
Attack in Force
Attacks in force are carried out to capture an important position, or
there may be a series of such objectives along a front in a general
offensive. On the other hand, the object of the defense is not only to
repulse the enemy but also to inflict upon him as great a loss as
possible.
The phases of a great attack are: the preparation, of which the final
and most important element is the bombardment; the assault of the first
line; and the exploitation of success by fighting in the interior of the
position. The defending troops must combat each one of these phases by
the most adequate measures. We shall take up these measures in detail.
I. During the Preparation of the Hostile Attack
=Revealing Symptoms of the Attack.= The preparation of the hostile
attack reveals itself by different preparations:
(1) The activity of the enemy:
His infantry will send out more numerous and aggressive patrols and
reconnaissance parties.
His artillery will increase its daily destructive fire.
It will multiply its number of registering shots, establish barrage
fires in the interior of your position, and begin to concentrate on
communication routes.
His air service will take on unusual activities.
(2) Vigilant observation of roads and territory behind the enemy’s lines
may reveal convoys carrying troops and supplies, the assembling of
troops in woods, etc. (smoke from their kitchens), accumulation of
materials in depots (often accompanied by explosions in artillery
dumps).
(3) The observation service may discover new hostile works, such as the
contraction of parallels of departure out in front of his first line.
There may be also successive parallels behind the nearest jumping-off
trench.
(4) Prisoners and deserters, who become more numerous because of the
approaching offensive, may give valuable information concerning the
coming attack.
The task of discovering the enemy’s preparation for an attack is
incumbent upon all ranks, but above all, this duty devolves particularly
upon the information service, balloon and air service, and artillery
observers. In the sector, the intelligence officer must perfect his
system of observation to the highest degree. The information in the
daily reports is carefully sorted and tested.
=Preventive Measures before the Attack.= During this time, each chief of
area takes all preventive measures possible against the coming attack.
The attack is an expected event for which all must be prepared. The
preparation simply consists in perfecting and carrying out of the
original plan of defense.
=Perfecting the Organization of the Position.= New lines are created.
The number of continuous lines between strong points and successive
lines for defense in depth are increased.
Old lines, which are enfiladed by the enemy or which do not give
flanking fire, are rectified or abandoned for new ones. The number of
boyaux and communicating ditches are multiplied to facilitate the
bringing up of reinforcements.
New accessories of defense are constructed and the old ones
strengthened. This is especially done in the interior of the position
with respect to parallel and perpendicular barbed wire belts to divide
the position into compartments capable of all-round defense.
Additional false works are created, to waste the enemy’s artillery fire,
The art of camouflage is extensively used during this phase. New shelter
accommodations and dugouts are constructed for the better protection of
the garrison during the preliminary bombardment.
=Increase of the Control and Discipline of the Defense.= The guard and
observation services are reinforced. Sentinels, observers, and patrols
are held to a stricter account of their duties.
Machine gun leaders are particular to perfect the disposition of their
guns in depth of the position for interior fighting. The sector for each
gun emplacement is carefully verified. Dugouts serving as shelters for
guns during the bombardment are strengthened.
The support artillery must constantly verify the settings of their
barrages. Numerous exercises are carried out for the call of the barrage
with rockets, so as to keep the artillery constantly on the alert.
Liaison must be assured by other means than the telephone as this latter
system usually breaks down under severe and continuous shelling. When
the telephone is out of order, chains of runners must be resorted to. In
the ordinary life of the trenches runners are not used. For this reason,
when an attack is expected, new chains of runners must be established.
[Illustration: _Type of Shelter off Cover Trench_]
Supplies in the depots must be kept up to contemplated requirements.
Besides the regular depots of the sector, numerous small ones are now
established for the better distribution of extra ammunition and for the
supply of reinforcing and counterattack troops. Supply parties are
detailed to carry up ammunition during the battle.
=Moral Preparation of the Troops.= When an attack is expected, this fact
must be told the garrison of each area, so that it can better prepare
for it. The troops must not be left in ignorance, and upon the officers
informing them devolves the responsibility of performing this task in
such a manner as to raise the morale of their troops. The men must be
maintained in the best of physical condition. Their food supply must be
regular, of good quality, and sufficient. The tour of duty of the
interior relief of the first line is shortened.
=Duties during the Preliminary Bombardment.= The most important and
final act in preparation for the attack is a heavy and unusual
bombardment of the position. Concentrated fire is brought to bear upon
all visible points of the sector to demolish trenches, emplacements,
dugouts, routes, and ammunition dumps, and to destroy the barbed wire
entanglements. Certain batteries are detailed for counter-battery work.
Barrages are established to prevent reinforcements from coming up and to
cut communications with the rear. Against this bombardment, the defense
has both a passive and an active rôle to play.
[Illustration: _Deep Dug-out, 2nd Line_]
=Maintenance of the Garrison during the Bombardment.= The violence of
preliminary bombardments is ever increasing and there seems to be no
limit. High explosive shells of every caliber are used against the
position. Any element of your system that is not properly concealed and
can be located by the enemy is subjected to concentrated artillery fire
until it is blown out of existence. Casualties inflicted upon the
garrison are severe—in fact, it would seem from the violence of the
artillery fire that few of the garrison could escape. However, when the
assault develops, a machine gun may be found intact here and there in
the position. One or two of these powerful weapons, by the use of
flanking fire, may be enough to cause the failure of the enemy’s attack.
It is possible to say that upon the use of M. G.’s depends the whole
interior defense of the sector.
The maintenance of the garrison during the bombardment depends, of
course, upon the number and depth of dugouts. The service of defense,
however, requires many of the troops to execute their duties in the open
trenches. The leaders must set the example in this respect by making
their rounds, and taking their posts to observe the area from the
observation posts. In other words, they must not stay in their dugouts.
The bombardment naturally causes a great deal of repair work to be done.
This is executed at night or during lulls in the shelling. Only
emergency works, however, are executed, such as repairing of accessory
defenses, cleaning of trenches and rebuilding of shelters. When this
work becomes too heavy for the garrison, reserve troops are brought up
to assist.
=Reply with Artillery Fire.= The only means to decrease the
effectiveness of the hostile bombardment is to reply with your own
artillery. For this purpose, a certain part of your artillery is
detailed for counter-battery work. The emplacements or approximate
locations of the hostile guns are set down on maps. These are divided
amongst the counter-battery artillery who attempt to silence or
neutralize the same.
In a sector, the commander may ask for what is known as
counter-preparation fire. This fire is similar to the preliminary
bombardment of the enemy. It covers the entire position of the enemy
and is just as methodical in its scope. All the artillery that
is at the disposal of the general is used for this purpose, and
consequently the call for this fire must be through the general.
Similar to the counter-preparation fire, but on a smaller scale, is what
is known as preventive fire which may be called for from the support
artillery. This fire covers the first and second lines and is used to
prevent the enemy from assembling his troops in the first line for the
assault. This fire has been found very efficient. It is called for by
telephone and not automatically by rocket.
II. Defense of the First Line during a Hostile Attack
=Duties of Watchers.= At the moment the assault is launched, part of the
enemy’s artillery establishes a barrage on your first line. The rest of
the artillery, however, continues the regular bombardment to deceive the
defenders as to the exact time of launching the attack. Therefore, the
exact moment that the enemy comes over the top can only be determined by
the watchers in your first line. It is their duty to give the alarm so
that the garrison can reach its place in the firing line before the
enemy reaches the same. This is a matter of seconds and not of minutes.
Consequently, each dugout has a watcher located at its entrance and
machine gun dugouts maintain special watchers. For each watcher at an
entrance there is a second watcher within sight and calling distance
ready to receive the alarm from the firing trench. If the second watcher
is killed, the watcher at the entrance moves up and takes his place
while another man from the dugout goes on watch there. These men are on
duty only from fifteen to thirty minutes at a time. By a system of
relief each occupant of a dugout serves a tour of duty as a watcher. The
post of the watcher is protected as far as possible.
[Illustration: POSITION OF WATCHERS]
=The Officer and N. C. O. of the Watch.= During this time, the officer
and the N. C. O. of the watch constantly make their rounds to see if the
watchers are performing their duty efficiently. Instantly the alarm is
given, the first duty of the officer of the watch is to set off the
rockets calling for the barrage. At the same time, the orderly that
accompanies him runs to the command post of the captain where the
barrage call is confirmed by telephone and by rocket. Rocket signals are
repeated and relayed from the same area until the barrage is obtained.
=Defenders of the First Line.= Immediately the call to arms is given,
the troops of the first line spring out of their shelters and take their
places at the parapet of the firing trench. If these parapets and fire
trenches have been destroyed, the troops are not in immediate grave
danger, because at this moment the enemy’s barrage on your first line
has lifted and is progressing toward the second line. Besides this, the
assaulting troops can not subject the defenders to fire during the
advance. Also, the assaulting column is subjected to the defensive
barrage and is more or less in confusion, due to this fire and having to
cross the shell-torn area of “No Man’s Land.” Then, too, what is left of
your barbed wire entanglements will hold up the enemy’s troops. In
short, the advantage at this particular point lies entirely with the
defenders if they can occupy the first line in time.
Among all the weapons of defense, the most powerful is the machine gun.
The successful repulse of the hostile attack depends to the greatest
extent upon the ability to use machine guns after the attack is under
way. The opportune fire of one machine gun on the flank of an assaulting
column may disorganize it and drive back its troops.
=The Captain.= As soon as the alarm is given or it is known that the
enemy’s attack has started, the captain throws his reinforcing platoons
into the first line. These troops, in going forward, employ the boyaux
laid down in the plan of defense. The hand grenades that they carry are
stored in their dugouts. The chiefs of the reinforcing platoons do not
necessarily wait for this order of the captain, but act upon their own
initiative in sending forward their units. If, however, the first line
has already been taken, the reinforcing platoons automatically carry out
the functions of a counterattack by leaving their boyaux and going over
the top to retake the captured trench. This last movement of over the
top by the counterattacking troops is facilitated by the fact that the
hostile artillery barrage has by this time passed to the rear of the
first line.
The next duty of the captain is to report to his chief of battalion the
alarm, which is done by means of a chain of runners, by signaling, or by
use of carrier pigeons, because usually by this time the telephone
system has broken down under the artillery bombardment.
III. Fighting in the Interior of the Position
If the hostile assault on the first line is successful, the fight for
the occupation of the position, which takes place in the interior, has
only begun. Opposing his frontal progression through the position, the
enemy will encounter, as we know, a series of defensive lines disposed
in depth. Also, for instance, if a nest of resistance holds up the
progress of a part of the assaulting troops, the successive overlapping
waves will carry on along the flanks of this stronghold. If, then, the
position is strongly divided into compartments, the fire of such
defenses will take these overlapping troops in the flank and rout them.
The defenders may also play an active rôle and the enemy is likely to
encounter new troops sent up for the purpose of counterattack.
The division of the ground in support points, centers of resistance and
sectors, has precisely for its object the localization of the enemy’s
attacks. Each area must be organized to defend itself, independently of
any other part of the position. Consequently, the officers must explain
this condition to their men, so that they will have no concern if they
see that the enemy has penetrated and is attacking them on the flank or
rear. On the other hand, if several of these compartments hold their
ground, the enemy may find himself surrounded in a certain area and cut
off from the rear by barrage fire. Thus abandoned in a part of the
position that he has momentarily taken, a vigorous counterattack will
drive him out.
=Defense of an Area.= The defense of each area is made similarly to that
of the first line, as these areas embrace the successive lines of the
position. The areas range in importance from front to rear, the support
point embracing the first line, the center of resistance the first two
lines, and the sector all three lines of the position. The alarm of an
attack is relayed by the area commanders, the captain to the battalion
commander, who in turn communicates it to the colonel of the sector. Not
only the attacked portion of the sector is affected by this alarm, but
the whole sector, so to speak, takes up arms. Let us see what happens as
a result of this.
All defenders of the area who have a special duty, immediately occupy
their posts and remain there awaiting developments of the attack. For
example, telephone men will remain at their instruments, runners will
repair to their relay posts, observers occupy their observatories, and
chiefs and headquarters officers remain at their command posts. And
above all, the machine gun crews will man the guns disposed for interior
fighting.
[Illustration: FUNCTION OF COUNTER ATTACKS IN INTERIOR OF THE POSITION]
At the same time, the different troops held in reserve in the successive
lines are used to hold their own line, to reinforce the line in front,
or to make counterattacks. When the alarm is given, all supporting
reserve troops take their places in their own lines. In each support
point, the platoons held in reserve are sent forward as reinforcements
to, or to make counterattacks against, the firing line. Similarly, in
each center of resistance the companies held in reserve are employed as
reinforcements or to recapture the first line. If, upon arriving at the
first line, these troops receive no orders for particular duty, they
replace the reserve platoons of the support point. Likewise, the sector
reserve of the third line is sent forward to or, in case the enemy has
taken it, against the second line. The static or passive organization of
the defense lies in the series of lines of trenches disposed in depth,
but the active rôle of the defender is carried out in these successive
waves of defense moving forward in definite limits to meet the attack,
not only to repulse it but to inflict as much loss as possible to the
enemy. This transforms the defensive combat into more nearly a fight in
the open ground, with the spirit of the offensive.
=The Counterattack.= It follows that the last and, very often, the most
decisive means of defense of the sector is the counterattack. In each
center of resistance, a counterattack has for its purpose the retaking
of the first line when this is captured by the enemy. It is made by the
battalion reserves located in the reserve line.
The sooner the counterattack is made after its necessity, the more
effective it will be. It should arrive at the first line almost, one
might say, at the same time that the enemy does. At any rate, the
counterattack should strike the enemy by surprise while he is still in a
state of disorganization. Consequently, in the plan of defense of the
battalion, the counterattack must be foreseen and all its details must
be laid down. All these details must be known and practiced by the
troops who are to execute the counterattack, so that when the alarm is
given the counterattack will start automatically without orders and be
carried to a finish like a good piece of team-work.
The counterattack is launched on the initiative of the leader of these
troops, without waiting for the orders of the battalion commander. The
latter may not know the exact situation nor be so located in the area as
to appreciate the opportunity of the counterattack.
=Troops Detailed for the Counterattack.= The company, or companies, held
as reserve of the center of resistance, are divided into half-companies
or platoons under the command of a single leader. Each one of these
detachments is assigned to a support point and is put at the disposal of
the captain commanding the same, to counterattack on his first line if
captured by the enemy. In order to secure the proper liaison between
these two units, the counterattack troops send a messenger to the
command post of the support point which they are assigned to. When the
hostile attack is executed and counterattack troops are needed, the
captain sends this messenger back to call them up.
=Routes or Directions for Counterattacks.= Each detachment of
counterattack troops has a fixed route for its attack laid down in the
plan of defense. Usually a boyau that it employs or along which it
travels, fixes the direction. For this reason, in the interior of the
position gaps are left in the barbed wire entanglements to permit the
passage of these troops in the counterattack. Portable chevaux-de-frise
are employed to fill up these gaps when necessary.
=Form of the Counterattack.= The counterattack may be executed as a
frontal or a flank attack. Frontal counterattacks are, perhaps, not as
effective as the latter, but they are more easily executed, especially
in the case where exact knowledge of the situation in the line in front
is not known. This is the form of advance employed in the support point
where the reinforcing platoons, starting forward to strengthen the line
and finding it captured, change their tactics by leaping over the top
and charging the line with grenades and bayonets.
[Illustration: EXAMPLE OF A COUNTER ATTACK EXECUTED BY TWO PLATOONS OF
CENTER OF RESISTANCE SUPPORT]
A counterattack to the flank usually involves a little maneuvering. The
most successful of these attacks are those executed in two detachments—
for example, a party of grenadiers may attack the enemy occupying a part
of the area either on one or both flanks. Its approach is usually
through a trench or boyau. A second party of riflemen, at the same time,
will make a frontal attack on the enemy over the top with bayonets. To
completely surround the enemy, an artillery barrage is sometimes
established to cut him off from the rear.
The battalion commander works out the plan of counterattack down to the
most minute detail. But when the hostile attack is carried out, he is no
longer the master of it. All the foreseen movements start at the proper
time and are carried out in their workings like a piece of mechanism.
The time of the start of the counterattack is in reality given by the
enemy himself.
=Repair of the Position.= After a hostile attack has been repulsed, the
chief of area must realize that similar attempts may be made without
delay. The first and most important repair work that must be done is to
construct a parapet along the firing line. There may be no trench left
along this line, but a fire parapet of sandbags must be constructed
immediately. At night reserve troops are brought up with tools and
sandbags to put the line in the best state of defense possible.