Military tactics

Soldiers use plans to fight.

These plans help them move. They also help them stay safe. They use tools to win.

Long ago, soldiers used spears and clubs. Later, they used bows and guns. This is called firepower.

Some soldiers used horses to move fast. Now, they use tanks and planes. This helps them move quickly.

Soldiers also wear armor to stay safe. They use walls and holes in the ground. These help them stay protected.

New tools change how they fight. Tactics help them win the battle.

Military tactics are plans for fighting. They help soldiers use their forces on a battlefield. There are four main parts to these plans.

First is firepower. This is the power of weapons. Long ago, people used clubs and spears. Later, they used bows and guns. Now, armies use tanks and planes for firepower.

Second is mobility. This is how fast a force can move. For a long time, soldiers moved on foot. Some used horses to move faster. Now, tanks and trucks help armies move quickly.

Third is protection. This helps soldiers stay safe. People have worn armor for a very long time. They also use walls or holes in the ground to hide. These are called fortifications.

Fourth is shock action. This uses surprise to win. It can be a fast charge by horses or tanks. It can also be a mental shock to the enemy.

When different groups work together, it is called combined arms tactics. This helps all parts work as one team. New tools like planes change how these plans work every year.

Military tactics are the ways leaders organize and use fighting forces. These plans happen on or near a battlefield. Tactics help answer how to best use soldiers and their tools. They are different from the big plans called strategy. Tactics are the lowest level of warfighting. There are four main parts to any tactical plan. These parts are firepower, mobility, protection, and shock action.

Firepower is the strength of weapons used in a fight. Long ago, people used clubs and spears for this. Later, they used bows and javelins. The Romans introduced artillery to give more firepower. By the mid-19th century, muskets became more common. The rifled musket helped soldiers hit targets from further away. In the 20th century, machine guns added even more power. Today, armies use tanks and aircraft for firepower.

Mobility is how fast a force can move. For most of history, soldiers moved at the speed of walking. Some used animals like horses to move faster. Most armies could not travel much more than 15 miles a day. This changed during World War I with the invention of the tank. World War II brought even more mobility with motorized groups. However, many armies still used horse-drawn transport back then.

Protection and security keep soldiers and tools safe. People have worn personal armor since the classical period. Armor can be heavy and hard to move in. Soldiers also use fortifications to stay safe. These are things like walls, trenches, or barbed wire. Military engineers often build these obstacles. In World War I, soldiers began wearing helmets again. After that war, body armor became common for infantry.

Shock action uses surprise to win a fight. It can be a physical move or a mental one. Charging infantry or cavalry can provide this shock. Even war elephants were used to create momentum. At the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, English longbowmen used arrows to shock French knights. Modern tanks and planes also provide shock action. When all these different parts work together, it is called combined arms tactics. This helps every part of the team succeed.

Military tactics involve the art of organizing and employing fighting forces on or near a battlefield. These methods focus on how to best deploy soldiers and equipment in specific situations. Tactics are considered the lowest of the three levels of warfighting. The higher levels are known as the strategic level and the operational level. While strategy deals with large-scale goals, tactics focus on the immediate actions of units in combat. Effective tactics help leaders answer questions about how to use the ground to their advantage. This includes using heights, rivers, swamps, or passes to gain a better position.

To understand how tactics work, one must look at the four closely related battlefield functions. These functions are kinetic or firepower, mobility, protection or security, and shock action. Throughout history, the balance between these four functions has shifted constantly. These shifts are usually driven by changes in military technology. As new tools are invented, one function often becomes more dominant than the others. This dominance is typically seen in a specific fighting arm, such as infantry, artillery, cavalry, or tanks. The goal of a commander is to use these functions to achieve a specific tactical mission.

Kinetic or firepower refers to the strength and effect of weapons used in combat. In early history, firepower was delivered through melee weapons like clubs or missile weapons like spears. The Romans introduced artillery, which changed how kinetic effects were delivered. For a long time, infantry firepower alone rarely decided a battle. Instead, armies relied on artillery to provide significant force. By the mid-19th century, the development of the rifled musket improved accuracy and range. This technological leap increased casualties and made infantry attacks much harder without support. In the 20th century, machine guns, tanks, and aircraft significantly increased the scale of firepower available to modern armies.

Mobility determines how quickly a fighting force can move across the battlefield. For most of human history, mobility was limited by the walking speed of a soldier. Even with beasts of burden to carry supplies, most armies could not travel more than 15 miles per day. Only specialized units like cavalry could move faster. This restriction remained until the end of World War I, when the tank introduced new possibilities for maneuver. Full tactical mobility was eventually achieved during World War II through armored and motorized formations. However, even then, many large armies still relied on horse-drawn transport, which limited their overall speed. Military engineers can also limit mobility by creating field obstacles.

Protection and security focus on keeping soldiers and equipment safe from harm. Individual protection has existed since the classical period through the use of personal armor. However, armor has always faced the problem of being heavy and bulky. This weight can reduce a soldier's mobility and endurance. Because of these limits, personal armor was largely discarded during the 18th and 19th centuries. It returned during World War I when soldiers needed helmets to survive artillery fire. Modern armies now use various forms of body armor for infantry. Collective protection is also provided through fortifications like entrenchments, roadblocks, barbed wire, and minefields.

Shock action is a function that is both physical and psychological. It relies on momentum and the element of surprise to break an enemy's will. Historically, shock action was provided by charging infantry, cavalry, or even war elephants. A famous example occurred at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. There, English longbowmen used drenching flights of arrows to cause French horses to panic. In modern warfare, tanks and aircraft provide this same sense of overwhelming force. Often, the psychological shock of an attack is even greater than the actual physical casualties caused by the weapons.

When different fighting arms work together in synchronization, it is called combined arms tactics. The goal of combined arms is to integrate various elements, such as infantry, armor, and aviation, to achieve a mission. For these teams to reach their maximum potential, every element needs similar levels of mobility, firepower, and protection. History shows that learning to use combined arms can be a painful process. For example, German commanders in World War II understood this principle early on. In contrast, British commanders were slower to realize its importance. Successful combined arms require different branches of the military to train together and understand each other's capabilities.

Airpower has also fundamentally changed the nature of tactical operations. Starting in the later stages of World War I, aircraft began to influence the battlefield significantly. During World War II, the development of close air support allowed planes to assist ground forces directly. Aviation also improved reconnaissance and the ability to supply ground troops from the air. Following the war, rotary-wing aircraft, such as helicopters, became a major fighting arm. They have provided new ways to move troops and remove casualties quickly. However, troops delivered by air often face challenges with reduced protection and firepower once they land on the ground.