The Need for Organisational Resilience - Chapter 1

3. To have ground suitable for concealing troop movements between the wings, so that they

can be massed at any desired point.

4. To have a good view of the enemy’s movements.

5. To have an unobstructed line of retreat.

6. To have all flanks well protected, either by natural or by artificial obstacles, so as to

render impossible an attack upon the extremities, and to oblige the enemy to attack the

centre, or at least some point at the front. (Adapted from De Jomini 2008, 137)

Offensive Battles

1. An offensive order of battle should have as its object forcing the enemy from his position

by all reasonable means.

2. The art of war favours manoeuvres that are aimed at overwhelming only one wing; or the

centre and one wing at the same time. An enemy can also be dislodged by manoeuvres

to outflank and turn his position.

3. These manoeuvres have a much greater chance of success if they can be concealed

from the enemy until the very moment of assault.

4. Attacking the centre and both wings at the same time, without having vastly superior

forces, is entirely contrary to the rules of the art of war, unless one of the attacks can be

made very vigorously without excessively weakening the line at other points.

5. The sole purpose of an oblique order 2 is to unite at least half the force of the army in an

overwhelming attack upon one wing, while the remainder retreats to the rear, out of

danger of attack, arranged either as an echelon or in a single oblique line.

6. Every formation − convex, concave, perpendicular, or otherwise − may be varied by

having lines of uniform strength throughout, or by massing troops at one point.

7. As the object of the defence is to defeat the plans of the attacking party, the arrangement

of a defensive order should be such as to make it as difficult as possible to approach a

2 The oblique order is a military tactic whereby an attacking army focuses its forces to attack a single enemy flank. The force commander concentrates the majority of his strength on one flank and uses the remainder to fix the enemy line.

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