What caused the Mule Shoe salient?
score:5
Accepted answer
You can do a certain amount of analysis of the general causes of salients. Salients exist when there are two conditions:
- One of the sides wants to occupy or continue to occupy a specific piece of ground despite it being in a more advanced position than the troops around it.
- The other side is unwilling or unable to dislodge them from that position.
In the case of Mule Shoe, Wikipedia writes:
There was only one potential weakness in Lee's lineβthe exposed salient known as the "Mule Shoe" extending more than a mile (1.6 km) in front of the main trench line. Although Lee's engineers were aware of this problem, they extended the line to incorporate some minor high ground to Anderson's right, knowing that they would be at a disadvantage if the Union occupied it.
That Mule Shoe was high ground is confirmed by the available battlefield maps.
In other words, for Lee to have conceded the high ground at Mule Shoe would have put them at a disadvantage. Lee was therefore willing to expend resources to keep the enemy from doing that, even though the troops defending it would be exposed.
Secondly the Union side, recognising the weakness of the position, made several assaults on it but were unable to dislodge Lee's troops (until May 12th).
This combination resulted in the salient's continued existence.
More post
- π Why did the Japanese Navy convert Kaga to an Aircraft Carrier?
- π What were the factors that caused the world to move away from the Gold Standard in the 20th century?
- π What sort of temples existed in small Greek villages?
- π Has anyone written Australian history from the perspective of the original inhabitants - the aborigines?
- π What is a good introduction into (western) civilization?
- π Why did the US Navy and Marine Corps use satanic symbolism in WW2?
- π What are good predictors of the construction year of residential buildings?
- π When was the last time a country acquired territory by buying land from another country?
- π What calendar did the Mauryan Empire use?
- π Why did the steam locomotive take so long?
- π What happens if a vassal inherits not under the control of their sovereign?
- π Why is former Portuguese flag similar to Finnish one?
- π Did Brahms really leave Germany because he was dissatisfied with the political realities of that time?
- π How often did kings give land to their sons?
- π Who accompanied CanΓ³nigo FernΓ‘ndez to Mexico City in 1822?
- π Why did Taft write a one cent check on his first day as Chief Justice?
- π Unemployed people in ancient Rome
- π Where was Mao Zedong during the Japanese surrender in Zhijiang (θ·ζ±) at the end of WWII in 1945?
- π When was acne first recorded in human history and how did it develop?
- π Transatlantic Zeppelin Flight Time
- π Did Farmers Survive Communist Famines?
- π What accounts exist of blowpipe vs machine gun and rifle in World War 2?
- π What is the history of the popped collar?
- π How did the British keep Enigma 'snatches' secret?
- π Were there any important spies in modern history who had to conceal their true nationality (or culture)?
- π What was the population of the Parthian Empire around (AD) 1 CE?
- π How much of the Napoleonic wars were paid by the sale of Louisiana?
- π Did the USSR pledge support to Czechoslovakia before the Munich Agreement?
- π Is there any evidence that the US strategy at Midway was deliberate?
- π Did classical Romans wear any sort of swimwear?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- π What caused the Mule Shoe salient?
- π What are the factors that caused the new world civilizations to be less technologically advanced than the old world?
- π What caused the imposition of strict celibacy for Catholic priests during the 11th century?
- π What caused the 1979 Iranian revolution to become Islamic?
- π What were the factors that caused the world to move away from the Gold Standard in the 20th century?
- π What caused the decline of the Spanish empire?
- π What caused the turning point in Hundred Years' War?
- π What caused women to lose their access to resources and become a part of men's possessions with the start of the agriculture era?
- π What caused the long lasting of peace in during the Heian Period?
- π What deaths were caused by weapons deployed during a war long after the war has ended?
- π What were the factors that caused debtors' prison to disappear in most parts of the world in the 20th century?
- π What caused the decline in support for the Protectionist Party of Australia?
- π To what extent was the Cold War caused by post World War 2 economics?
- π What caused the shift from annexation of territory, to colonization of territory?
- π What solar event caused massive aurora borealis in the mid 1960's?
- π What caused the decline of Buddhism in Japan?
- π This is the second time Australia has had 6 PMs in 10 years. What caused it the first time?
- π What caused the increase in world population rate around 1700's?
- π What developments in Jefferson's life caused him to withdraw from the topic of slavery in political discourse?
- π What caused the stagnation in real wage growth in the later half of the 20th century?
- π What caused the rapid African population growth in the last decades?
- π What caused the shift from racially-motivated violence to segregation in the Reconstruction era?
- π What kind of gas caused the end of excavations/tunneling of the "villa of the papyrii" in the 18th century?
- π What had caused Northumbrian to become similar to Old Danish before the Viking invasions?
- π What caused medieval England to be freer than other countries at the time?
- π What caused the rise of international anti-semitism during the early 20th century?
- π Did Adolf Hitler ever address the fact that his own appearance was almost an exact opposite of what he considered the ideal Aryan appearance?
- π What is the origin of 3 meals a day?
- π What is the first recorded dog name?
- π What drugs were used in England during the High Middle Ages?