Was the flexibility of German army a big contributor to their success?
score:12
Yes. The Germans developed the concept of "Auftragstaktik", or "mission tactics", whereby officers and even non-coms were given their missions and objectives, but left to their own devices as to how to achieve those goals, based on their reading of local field conditions. This was in contrast to "top down" Allied tactics, which relied more on logistics and the concentration of man- and fire-power at critical points.
The Allies never did achieve that superiority of force in France, even locally. Meanwhile, the German "opportunism" against basically equal forces, at Sedan and later in the race to the English Channel stood them well, and later led to their having superior forces.
German flexibility also reflected itself in "combined arms," of airpower, armor, artillery, and infantry, with each arm having its own specialized functions; airpower for disrupting, armor for encircling, artillery and infantry for reducing enemy forces, instead of the (early war) Allied model of every arm for every task. This served the Germans well in France, and particularly at the start of the war in Russia. This is what the Allies called the "Blitzkrieg," because it allowed the faster-moving air and armored units to operate deeper inside enemy lines.
Upvote:5
I'm not to sure about both world wars. Certainly not for the better part of the first one. In documentaries I've watched, German military leadership after WW1 did give much flexibility to all ranks, including the lower ones. Given the very small size of the Reichswehr between the wars and using the during WW1 developed storm trooper tactics it was a necessity and an innovation.
This was unique for the German army, as far as I know no other army did it in this time period.
Between the wars only the very best veterans and later most promising recruits were allowed in the Reichswehr. (A certain lance corporal Adolf H. wasn't, for example.) All ranks were trained to replace their immediate commander and the rank above him. For several reasons:
- Flexibility on the battlefield
- Building up a new cadre for when the Reichswehr would expand
Be aware that the German army from the armistice onwards planned to regain its old size, stature and position. The German army trained (secretly) officers and tactics in the USSR between the wars. The German navy developed (illegally) submarines in Holland and Sweden. Long before this lance corporal H. comes into play. All he actually did was turn the switch from 'covert' to 'full production'.
When that happened, it paid off. Germany reintroduced the draft again in 1935. All existing ranks were bumped up one level. Corporals became sergeants, lieutenants captains, colonels brigadiers, etc. It's very difficult to grow a force of 100.000 man into a force of 3 million, but the Germans did it almost overnight. Not without problems, though. Enough and capable non commissioned officers was always a big problem during WW2.
Over all, the flexibility of the German army was far superior to that of the allies. The Allies won because they out produced Germany in every field. They had far more tanks. More, not better. With the exception of the T 34. Much higher mechanization (most German divisions had horse drawn supply carts), and from mid 1944 total air supremacy. Even so, it took them almost 3 months to fight from the beaches of Normandy to Paris. At a huge cost of life (on both sides). Despite being commanded by a lance corporal making not very sensible decisions, the flexibility of the German army was what it kept going.
More post
- 📝 When Louis I of Hungary died in 1382, why did Polish lords choose Jadwiga instead of Mary as the monarch?
- 📝 Napoleon's exploits in 1785
- 📝 Why were there no increases in the train speed records between 1854-1934?
- 📝 What was the largest ancient theatre?
- 📝 Which was the last war in which swords were used?
- 📝 I'm trying to find a primary source (or some historical authentication) for John Quincy Adams' Toledo War quote.
- 📝 Why didn't every nation commit genocides against every other nation when they conquered land?
- 📝 Was the US's pre-emptive bombardment of Iwo Jima insufficient?
- 📝 Were the Bonus Wars in the USA during WWI about unpaid salaries?
- 📝 Barbarian Army sizes and how they compare to Medieval times
- 📝 How did people distinguish slaves from free people in Ancient Rome?
- 📝 Which forts did the British keep in the Northwest Territory after the American Revolution?
- 📝 How did Poland avoid partition in the 17th century, but not the 18th century?
- 📝 Why was Japanese Unit 731 immune from War Crime trials?
- 📝 Correspondence between the modern and the antique calendar
- 📝 How harmful was the Tea Act of 1773 to the American colonies?
- 📝 What were the characteristics of the earliest varieties of European cattle, "bos tauros", and how were they kept?
- 📝 What is this hallmark on silverware?
- 📝 Why was Scipio the Younger accused of wishing to abolish Tiberius Gracchus laws?
- 📝 How did Greeks make greek fire?
- 📝 Why did so many ruling European families hold on to Catholicism during the Reformation?
- 📝 Why was fellatio considered so horrible during the XIX century in Europe?
- 📝 Was the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age violent?
- 📝 What happened to the Swiss troops in French service after August 10, 1792?
- 📝 What is the oldest road in the world that has been in continuous use?
- 📝 Does anyone recognize this uniform?
- 📝 How did US anti-Irish sentiment decline?
- 📝 Did viking longboats in fact have shields on the side of the ships?
- 📝 Why were so many of the earliest banks founded by cloth merchants?
- 📝 In medieval England was heresy dealt with in the king's courts or church courts?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Was the flexibility of German army a big contributor to their success?
- 📝 Was von Manstein's Lack of Success at Leningrad (and later Stalingrad) due to the failure of German military intelligence?
- 📝 Was the attempt to take Stalingrad a distraction to the original objectives of the German Sixth Army during Case Blue in 1942?
- 📝 In the 1920's, why did the German government fire working women if their husband was employed?
- 📝 What was the extent of military conscription by the German Army during World War 2?
- 📝 Where did Hitler get the funds to invest in economic development programs such as the autobahn when the German economy was in a depression?
- 📝 Why did the German army execute so few soldiers in World War I compared to most other armies?
- 📝 Historically, why did the US station their nuclear weapons in Germany for delivery through German pilots?
- 📝 What was the ratio of German to Soviet losses on Eastern front during different stages of the war?
- 📝 What was the state of the German rail system in 1944?
- 📝 Who was the most successful German spy against Great Britain in WWII, from the contemporary German perspective?
- 📝 Why was the Red Army successful against the Japanese in 1939 but perform poorly against Finland 1939-40 and early part of WW2?
- 📝 What was the "Favorable result" that the German admiralty was expecting from the naval attack on the Royal Navy in 1918?
- 📝 Why was the shape of German states pre-WWII (especially Prussia) so complicated?
- 📝 Did the poor performance of the Red Army in the Winter War significantly contribute to German underestimation of the USSR's military capacity?
- 📝 Why did the German air force lose experienced pilots faster than the Allies, even though they were defending their home airspace?
- 📝 Was the British Army a millionaire factory in the early 20th century?
- 📝 Was German ever an official language in the USSR?
- 📝 What was the legal status of an East German once he had reached West Germany?
- 📝 What was the contemporary German public opinion on the Herero Genocide?
- 📝 Why was Stalin surprised by the German attack in June 1941?
- 📝 Why was the Israeli army strong enough to win the 1948 war?
- 📝 If salt was scarce and expensive, how did people "salt the earth" to ensure their enemies would stay defeated?
- 📝 After the fall of the Roman Empire, where did their armor go? Was it used by any dark ages forces?
- 📝 Was the act of servicemen exchanging their weapons for enemy weapons common during WWII?
- 📝 Why was the British army so short of rifles after Dunkirk?
- 📝 Was the Soviet Union in 1945 seeking to capture German soldiers and civilians, or drive them west?
- 📝 Did the Red Army and German Army clash in Poland in 1939?
- 📝 Why did Operation Market Garden go ahead when the allies knew German armor was in the area?
- 📝 What was the attitude of English knights towards their longbowmen counterparts?