VI.Development and Physiognomy of the Attack.[13]

The artillery preparation, roaring on the horizon like a furious storm, ceases sharply, and a tragic silence falls over the field of battle. The infantry leaves its parallels in a single movement, at a walk, magnificently aligned, crowned with the scintillation of thousands of bayonets. Then the hostile trenches burst out suddenly with fire, the fusillade rattles immediately, madly, dominated by the pitiless rattling of the machine guns. The wave of assailants thins out, entire units disappear, mowed down. Some lie down and advance no further, while others, better commanded, march ahead in spite of all. Some, more favored, find themselves in places where the artillery preparation has cleared the enemy out. They reach the first trench, and hand-to-hand fighting commences.

The second wave arrives in its turn, avoids the zone of destruction, plunges into the parts where the resistance has weakened, and thus the first trench, split up into enveloped sections, is definitely submerged by the second wave. They form beyond the captured trench and start forward again; but it is a disorganized combat by groups in the midst of shots and bullets which cross each other in every direction. The second trench is assaulted, certain parts are conquered through which the flood of assailants spreads out while desperate groups resist stubbornly in some redoubts.

Now in the first line of attack, there is no more order, the dead cover the ground passed over, here mowed down by ranks, there hung in clusters on the wire entanglements, or forming a crown on top of the parapets, or sown here and there by the scattering of the hand-to-hand fights; the wounded flow back in numbers to the rear, isolated soldiers are scattered in all corners for the most diverse reasons; even organizations are stopped in the conquered trenches by their chiefs who find that they have done enough and that it is high time to get out of the trouble. But beyond this immense dispersion, some heroic groups, weak nuclei of many companies, led by ardent leaders, make their way further into thehostile territory. They suddenly appear, urged into a gallop over the trenches; magnified ten times by the imagination of the enemy who loses his head, they run beyond into the open fields, receiving some shots here and there but surprised at the emptiness of the field of battle. Behind them, the combat of extermination continues in places, but nothing follows, only some groups of stragglers and wounded are returning. Then these foremost parties feel their weakness and count their numbers; the emptiness, the silence, the invisible resistance impress them, they scent the ambush and soon stop.

In front of the centers of resistance, the fight is hard and murderous; they have taken one or two trenches, carried the first houses, but the organizations are dissolved in the interminable individual fighting in theboyauxor ruins; here the progress has been inappreciable in spite of enormous losses.

Thus the first line has made its effort; in the centers of resistance, it has scarcely gotten a good hold on the exterior borders; in the intervals, on the contrary, it has expanded widely like a wave which had broken through a dike at one point. But it has been stopped, out of breath, in front of the second line of defense, whose resistance is organizing, or it has been nailed to its place by flanking fire from the still unconquered centers of resistance; it is composed from now on of weak groups of real fighters, just strong enough to mark out here and there the limits of the conquered ground, and of a multitude of isolated individuals and entire units which are scattered over the whole zone of attack.

This has all lasted perhaps less than an hour.

With the enemy all is disorder, the batteries flee at a gallop before the tide which has carried away all the obstacles prepared long ago and judged impregnable; all confidence disappears; the adversary, feeling his resistance giving way around him, no longer dares to hold out desperately, from now on the least thing induces him to turn tail. However, at some points reserves have come up, have manned their positions of the second line, and have attempted some timid offensive returns. Machine guns, rapidly brought up, are installed and fire with utmost rapidity to prevent access to the undefended zones and to gain time. The tottering resistance tries to hold on; now, one more great brutalpush along the whole front like the attack of the first line, and then will come a total rout.

It is then that the second line appears; starting out in its turn from the parallel, it advances by immense and successive waves of thin lines, calm and unshakable among the rafales of shells and random bullets.

Already numerous detachments of machine guns and light cannon have preceded it. Creeping through, following up the first line, they have been able to unravel the situation and to discern the points where the resistance tries to hold out and which must be immediately swept. The light cannon orient themselves directly on the rattling of the machine guns, which they endeavor to overwhelm with a shower of their small shells.

The “accompanying batteries” have started as soon as the first trenches are taken and are soon oriented by the signals of the specialagents de liaison, artillerists who follow the infantry. The remainder of the artillery cuts off the approaches by a barrier of asphyxiating shells and carries its fire on to the second line, marked out according to the directing plan.

Thus the second line arrives close up to the advanced elements of the first line under cover of sufficient fire. The second line pushes straight to the front on the objectives fixed long before and which should claim its whole attention.

Certain of the units have a mission to blind the centers of resistance by finishing up the conquest of their exterior borders, while the great majority are absorbed in the intervals, instead of halting and exhausting themselves by playing the enemy’s game in his inextricable points of support.

To quote an expression of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” modifying it slightly: a center of resistance is a filter into which one can pour battalions and regiments, and it will yield only a few drops.

The organizations passing through the intervals arrive in front of the second line of defense, which is not generally occupied continuously. They run against lively and sudden resistances, orelse encounter empty spaces through which they boldly penetrate, pushing straight on always to the front without being intimidated by the silence or distracted by the resistance on the right or left. The units stopped rapidly organize the assault and attack by main force like the first waves of the attack without trying to maneuver,a temptation of weakness and indecision. Here again there is hesitation: units held up by only a semblance of resistance or trying to avoid it; others, having approached to assaulting distance, dig in and dare not go forward openly into a supreme charge; others are turned away from their objective to get into another combat, which absorbs them.

However, the second line of hostile defense finds itself in its turn disabled; broken in and considerably passed by in certain localities, vigorously assailed on all points where a resistance is hastily improvized, it is soon split up into islands and surrounded on all sides.

The points of support, as in the case of the first trench, are left to one side and merely isolated by the capture of their borders.

We are now nearly in open ground; we must still definitely clear away the last resistance to which the hostile reinforcements now coming up in haste would cling and soon convert into an insuperable barrier if we give them a few hours’ respite.

It is for this purpose that we employ the reserves.

Informed by officers ofliaison, who are not afraid to traverse the battlefield to find out how things are going on and who do not abandon the troops to their own resources until tardy reports come in, the superior commander directs his reserves to the precise points where they are most needed.

Thus the last resistances, which the second attacking line, occupied with marching straight ahead, was not able to encircle, are definitely shattered by the reserves.

Finally, we have arrived in the zone of open country, the gigantic assault of 5 or 6 kilometres is ended. Now it will be the surprise, the rapidity of movements, the skill of maneuver which will gradually produce panic.

The enemy, pushed back, overthrown, broken through in the intervals between the points of support where he tries to hold on, will soon no longer find a position where he dare make a stand; he will be irresistibly drawn into the rout as the menacing cry “the French!” re-echoes in an infinitely increasing volume.

But it will then no longer be a question of breaking through, we must rest after the assault.

DISPOSITIONS OF THE ATTACKING TROOPS ON THE FRONT OF A DIVISION.Pl. I

EXAMPLE OF A GERMAN DEFENSIVE ORGANIZATION.Pl. II

ACTION OF THE FIRST LINE OF ATTACK.Pl. III

ACTION OF THE SECOND LINE OF ATTACK.Pl. IV

ACTION OF RESERVE BATTALIONS.Zone Definitely Cleared.Pl. V

1.Etude sur l’attaque dans la période actuelle de la guerre—Impressions et réflexions d’un commandant de compagnie; Paris, Librairie Blon, 1916.Communicated to the French Army by the Commander-in-Chief. Translated for theInfantry Journalby an officer of infantry.

2. The great French offensive on Neuville-Saint-Vaast north of Arras.—Translator.

3. See Plate II at end of this article.

4. Communicating trenches.

5. The assault commenced at 10 o’clock.—Translator.

6. See Plate I at end of this article.

7. See Plate III at end of this article.

8. The French company has four sections, but no platoons except for administration.—Translator.

9. The word reinforcement (renforts) is defective for designating the second line, but it is the current and popular word that is used among the troops to designate whatever comes after the first line of attack.—See Plate IV at end of this article.

10. The author’s language may not be clear, but the point he wishes to bring out is that the first line of attack, consisting of several waves, will be entirely occupied in taking the first zone of defense; then and not until this is almost accomplished will the second line, complete in itself, like the first line assault over the same ground, each unit as in the first line having a pre-arranged objective; this second line not to be used by the superior commander for any but the preconceived program. Behind this second line are held as reserve other bodies of troops under the direct orders of the superior commander for employment against any resistance that the first and second lines have failed to take. Behind all this are the general reserves, several hours in rear, ready to march through the breach to the pursuit and to new battlefields beyond.—Translator.

11. When an attack is planned, numerous saps are run out to the front from the main firing trenches. The night before the attack, a parallel is broken out connecting the sap heads, and this parallel is amply provided with short ladders. Just before the artillery preparation is to cease, this parallel is filled with the companies detailed for the assault, and as the artillery ceases, the waves rush in succession up the ladders and to the front. Thus the name parallel of departure. Of course, to provide for the successive waves, not only the parallel, but the saps and the main trenches are filled with men who move up into the parallel as fast as room is made.—Translator.

12. Thirty inches, 140 per minute.—Translator.

13. See Plates at end of this article.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTESSilently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling.Retained anachronistic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings as printed.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES

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