The battle of today, since the last evolution of the war, is only a succession of assaults. The assault being the hardest and most murderous phase of the combat, before which the attack generally breaks down, we should only undertake it with assaulting troops. All troops are far from being assaulting troops; they need a well established cohesion and a special training.
In nine months of campaign, I have only twice had a company really capable of delivering the assault: that of the active regiment, which was eager to charge at whatever cost at Morhange, and that of Neuville-Saint-Vaast, toward which during the assault, I turned but twice—when we started and when I fell.
THE COHESION.
In order that an organization may be capable of reaching the enemy, it is necessary for each man to be thoroughly convinced that his neighbor will march at his side and not abandon him; he should not have to turn around to see whether his comrade is coming. This requires a solidly established cohesion. Cohesion is very difficult to obtain with the continual renewal of men and noncommissioned officers; to cement it well, the men must have lived long together and have borne the same hardships during which are strengthened the sentiments of solidarity and affection which create in the company invisible bonds, stronger than all discipline and the only ones capable of resisting the fierce egoism of the battlefield.
The company must also have been tried out by experiences severe enough for everyone to be able to estimate what his leaders and neighbors are worth under circumstances where borrowed masks fall off. Thus habit, friendship, and confidence make no difference in the appearance of a company; it is the battle alone that unveils these qualities in their full staunchness and value.
The company of the 9th of May had been in existence at least four months, that is, the last considerable reinforcements had been present about four months. We had indeed received newer recruits, but they were not sufficient to change the spirit of the company. We had lived in the Belgian trench where the material side of the situation could not have been more miserable. Without having suffered serious losses, we had been at times very roughly used, so that all the men had an idea of the trials of war.
Thus trench life is an excellent school for cohesion, but a company which moves forward directly from trench life would not be capable of attacking as we should like. Trench life is deteriorating and destroys in the mind of the man the idea that he belongs to a unit, to an organization. It should be completed by a period of exercises.
During the period of exercises, the work should be toward cohesion by establishing an exact discipline, difficult to obtain in the trenches, by punctually requiring the marks of respect, and by paying close attention to the uniform and personal appearance. All these details have a prime moral importance; nothing is more demoralizing for the soldier than to see around him his comrades badly dressed and negligent in their duty; he evidently finds at times that this is more convenient but at heart he lacks confidence because he well knows that in this troop of Bohemians, without faith or order, everyone will go his own way in the moment of danger. The daily aspect of a company, carefully uniformed and well disciplined, gives him, on the contrary, a feeling of reassurance and confidence.
“... Mais par un prompt renfort
Nous nous vîmes trois mille en arrivant au port