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Around the same time they realize breaking formation and running a half marathon charge against the enemy, while screaming at the top.ofnyour lungs, is a bad ba

by hef19898 3y ago

Around the same time they realize breaking formation and running a half marathon charge against the enemy, while screaming at the top.ofnyour lungs, is a bad battlefield tactic. So never.

defrost 3y ago
FWiW the Australian light horse charged flat out across four miles of open ground (ie. broken formation) into machine gun nests and snipers to take the Battle of Beersheba, the charge was with rifles slung across backs while holding reins and bayonets. As methods go, they took the town with the loss of 31 of their men .. earlier the same day British troops failed to take the town using conventional tactics at the cost of some 171 lives. [1] https://anzac100.initiatives.qld.gov.au/remember/battle-of-beersheba/index.aspx https://anzac100.initiatives.qld.gov.au/remember/battle-of-b... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beersheba_(1917) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beersheba_(1917) [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waler https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waler
- hef19898 3y ago
  There are no absolutes, are there? A pity the Australian light horse wasn't in the field during the great emu wars! That being said, the Battle of Beersheba was a brilliant use of cavalery, because walking in close formation against entreched machine guns is just as stupid as charging an enemy in tight formation. Sometimes, there simply isn't a lot of choice, WW1 showed that problem every day.
  - defrost 3y ago
    Oddly enough there would have been a fair number of Beersheba survivors present. The 1932 "Emu War" took place in the Campion region of Western Australia .. a town (and farming surrounds) cleared and created as Soldier Settlement lots and farms given to discharged veterans. Never forget that the Coolgardie Miner (23 August 1935) reported that although the use of machine guns had been "criticised in many quarters, the method proved effective and saved what remained of the wheat" [1]. [1] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/217998228?searchTerm=emu%20war%20effective&searchLimits= https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/217998228?searchT...
    - hef19898 3y ago
      Everybody tends to laugh at the Emu Wars, but nobody ever comes up with a better idea, myself included. Heck, we constantly fail to get rid of crows at certain places. Smart buggers, those crows... I do love them!
arethuza 3y ago
Well it was a successful tactic until things like better discipline, improved bayonet design and cannister shot came along: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_charge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_charge Edit: I grew up quite close to Culloden and was shown the 1964 TV movie of the same name a few times at school.
- hef19898 3y ago
  No, it wasn't since days of the Phalanx. And propably way before that.
  - arethuza 3y ago
    Sorry - I didn't mean that it was a generally a good idea just that in some contexts it did seem to work.
    - hef19898 3y ago
      It is decent tactic against a breaking enemy. And when your troops keep some cohesion. The risk is, that the enemy doesn't break completely and you find yourself in loose formation, without cover and exposed, facing a tight enemy force.
nottorp 3y ago
If we're talking military tactics in media go to acoup.blog. It deconstructs a lot of movies/games. It's fun.
- hef19898 3y ago
  Totally agree! I think it was there that I saw the analysis of the orc's campaign, logistics and travel time, during the siege of Minas Thirith. Loved it!

Around the same time they realize breaking formation and running a half marathon charge against the enemy, while screaming at the top.ofnyour lungs, is a bad battlefield tactic. So never.

defrost 3y ago

FWiW the Australian light horse charged flat out across four miles of open ground (ie. broken formation) into machine gun nests and snipers to take the Battle of Beersheba, the charge was with rifles slung across backs while holding reins and bayonets. As methods go, they took the town with the loss of 31 of their men .. earlier the same day British troops failed to take the town using conventional tactics at the cost of some 171 lives. [1] https://anzac100.initiatives.qld.gov.au/remember/battle-of-beersheba/index.aspx https://anzac100.initiatives.qld.gov.au/remember/battle-of-b... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beersheba_(1917) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Beersheba_(1917) [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waler https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waler

hef19898 3y ago
There are no absolutes, are there? A pity the Australian light horse wasn't in the field during the great emu wars! That being said, the Battle of Beersheba was a brilliant use of cavalery, because walking in close formation against entreched machine guns is just as stupid as charging an enemy in tight formation. Sometimes, there simply isn't a lot of choice, WW1 showed that problem every day.
- defrost 3y ago
  Oddly enough there would have been a fair number of Beersheba survivors present. The 1932 "Emu War" took place in the Campion region of Western Australia .. a town (and farming surrounds) cleared and created as Soldier Settlement lots and farms given to discharged veterans. Never forget that the Coolgardie Miner (23 August 1935) reported that although the use of machine guns had been "criticised in many quarters, the method proved effective and saved what remained of the wheat" [1]. [1] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/217998228?searchTerm=emu%20war%20effective&searchLimits= https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/217998228?searchT...
  - hef19898 3y ago
    Everybody tends to laugh at the Emu Wars, but nobody ever comes up with a better idea, myself included. Heck, we constantly fail to get rid of crows at certain places. Smart buggers, those crows... I do love them!

arethuza 3y ago

Well it was a successful tactic until things like better discipline, improved bayonet design and cannister shot came along: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_charge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_charge Edit: I grew up quite close to Culloden and was shown the 1964 TV movie of the same name a few times at school.

hef19898 3y ago
No, it wasn't since days of the Phalanx. And propably way before that.
- arethuza 3y ago
  Sorry - I didn't mean that it was a generally a good idea just that in some contexts it did seem to work.
  - hef19898 3y ago
    It is decent tactic against a breaking enemy. And when your troops keep some cohesion. The risk is, that the enemy doesn't break completely and you find yourself in loose formation, without cover and exposed, facing a tight enemy force.

nottorp 3y ago

If we're talking military tactics in media go to acoup.blog. It deconstructs a lot of movies/games. It's fun.

hef19898 3y ago
Totally agree! I think it was there that I saw the analysis of the orc's campaign, logistics and travel time, during the siege of Minas Thirith. Loved it!