(This is Part 9 of a series. Go back to Part 8.)
In concentrating strength against weakness, the third sub-principle or method is:
3. Attack when the enemy is against an obstacle.
Most commonly this obstacle is a body of water such as a river or sea. But it can also be a mountain range, the edge of a desert or other things.
A general who has maneuvered an enemy army against an obstacle has a great advantage, because now the enemy has limited options. Since the opposing general's avenue of retreat is blocked, he must either surrender or order a suicidal frontal attack against a prepared defense.
This is what happened to the Persian army at the Battle of Marathon. The Persian army had disembarked from their ships on the Aegean Sea, but had not had time to march elsewhere before the Greek army came upon them.
The Persians could not now try to re-embark on their ships because they would lose their battle formation in doing so and be cut down. On the other hand, if they tried to move sideways they became open to a flank attack.
Thus the option left open to the Persians was a direct frontal attack. As discussed earlier, the Persians did that; they assaulted the Greek center and drove it back only to be surrounded on the flanks and destroyed.
Even when the enemy general can order a retreat—back over a bridge, say, or a pass through the mountains—the retreating troops will be at a severe disadvantage because a) the bridge, pass, etc. will form a bottleneck; b) the army will be out of battle formation; and c) it can be attacked from the flanks & rear while retreating.
Napoleon Bonaparte used this method successfully at the Battle of Friedland in 1807. By adroit maneuver he had backed the Russian army up against the River Alle, which meant that the Russian commander, Benigsen, had to order a fontal attack. He did so, with predictable failure and loss of life.
Now the French attacked Benigsen's weakened army on its left flank. When that flank collapsed the French then turned left and attacked in flank the enemy troops in the center, causing the Russian army to shatter.
A final example is the Battle of Dunkirk in World War II. Hitler's panzer divisions had quickly overrun France and had backed the British against the English Channel at Dunkirk. The British position was all but hopeless. And then Hitler, misinformed and nervous, halted his troops for three crucial days.
The British quickly took advantage of this interruption, of course, and escaped from Dunkirk onto their ships. But had it not occurred, the British army almost certainly would have ceased to exist—so great is the disadvantage of being backed up against an obstacle.
(This is the end of Part 9. Go to Part 10.)
—jim sloman, 8.20.03 for 5.25.04
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