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
- 📝 What do the last four digits of this postal cancellation stamp mean?
- 📝 Who was Richard of York at the Battle of Grunwald?
- 📝 How were heavily armored Cataphracts killed?
- 📝 Why was the North willing to go to war over Slavery?
- 📝 Why does Japan use the same type of AC power outlet as the US?
- 📝 Since when were the US the strongest military power?
- 📝 Were there any specific laws/treaties enshrining the Principle of Distinction in the 18th century?
- 📝 What was the Tang Dynasty definition of imperial 嫡子?
- 📝 How extensive was the slighting of castles in the English Civil War?
- 📝 Initial Japanese success in WWII?
- 📝 Did Post-Marian Republic or Imperial Legion cohorts have specific skill levels?
- 📝 Did the Roman testudo protect the sides of the formation?
- 📝 Was Pericles the only famous loss from the plague in Athens?
- 📝 What language was the Charter of Liberties written in?
- 📝 What were the rights of various classes of people in the Roman Republic?
- 📝 Was Antarctica a factor in the Falklands war?
- 📝 Why didn't Hitler invade Middle East for resources first before invading Soviet Union?
- 📝 Was writing material for to-do list accessible in medieval Europe?
- 📝 Was the UN critically involved in defusing the Cuban Missile Crisis?
- 📝 Has there ever been a non-rectangular banknote?
- 📝 Had the Chinese leadership considered the famine in Soviet Union in 1930s before starting the Great Leap Forward?
- 📝 Japanese prostitution in 1940s
- 📝 Why did the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and Statute of Westminster (1931) only deal with Dominions?
- 📝 Has Nursing Always Been Female Dominated Like Today (90+%)?
- 📝 Was there any official affirmation from the US government that they would win the Vietnam War?
- 📝 How were political borders marked during the Middle Ages?
- 📝 What will be the regnal number of the next Queen Mary in the UK?
- 📝 Has an heir ever made the country believe the current ruler died in order to take over the throne?
- 📝 First-hand sources for medieval urban life in central Europe
- 📝 Why was being divided a boon for Europeans, but not for anyone else?
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?