Tactics and duties for trench fighting

by Georges Etienne Bertrand; Oscar N. Solbert

Duties of Watchers. At the moment the assault is launched, part of the enemy’s artillery establishes a barrage on your first line. The rest of the artillery, however, continues the regular bombardment to deceive the defenders as to the exact time of launching the attack. Therefore, the exact moment that the enemy comes over the top can only be determined by the watchers in your first line. It is their duty to give the alarm so that the garrison can reach its place in the firing line before the enemy reaches the same. This is a matter of seconds and not of minutes. Consequently, each dugout has a watcher located at its entrance and machine gun dugouts maintain special watchers. For each watcher at an entrance there is a second watcher within sight and calling distance ready to receive the alarm from the firing trench. If the second watcher is killed, the watcher at the entrance moves up and takes his place while another man from the dugout goes on watch there. These men are on duty only from fifteen to thirty minutes at a time. By a system of relief each occupant of a dugout serves a tour of duty as a watcher. The post of the watcher is protected as far as possible.

The Officer and N. C. O. of the Watch. During this time, the officer and the N. C. O. of the watch constantly make their rounds to see if the watchers are performing their duty efficiently. Instantly the alarm is given, the first duty of the officer of the watch is to set off the rockets calling for the barrage. At the same time, the orderly that accompanies him runs to the command post of the captain where the barrage call is confirmed by telephone and by rocket. Rocket signals are repeated and relayed from the same area until the barrage is obtained.

Defenders of the First Line. Immediately the call to arms is given, the troops of the first line spring out of their shelters and take their places at the parapet of the firing trench. If these parapets and fire trenches have been destroyed, the troops are not in immediate grave danger, because at this moment the enemy’s barrage on your first line has lifted and is progressing toward the second line. Besides this, the assaulting troops can not subject the defenders to fire during the advance. Also, the assaulting column is subjected to the defensive barrage and is more or less in confusion, due to this fire and having to cross the shell-torn area of “No Man’s Land.” Then, too, what is left of your barbed wire entanglements will hold up the enemy’s troops. In short, the advantage at this particular point lies entirely with the defenders if they can occupy the first line in time.

Among all the weapons of defense, the most powerful is the machine gun. The successful repulse of the hostile attack depends to the greatest extent upon the ability to use machine guns after the attack is under way. The opportune fire of one machine gun on the flank of an assaulting column may disorganize it and drive back its troops.

The Captain. As soon as the alarm is given or it is known that the enemy’s attack has started, the captain throws his reinforcing platoons into the first line. These troops, in going forward, employ the boyaux laid down in the plan of defense. The hand grenades that they carry are stored in their dugouts. The chiefs of the reinforcing platoons do not necessarily wait for this order of the captain, but act upon their own initiative in sending forward their units. If, however, the first line has already been taken, the reinforcing platoons automatically carry out the functions of a counterattack by leaving their boyaux and going over the top to retake the captured trench. This last movement of over the top by the counterattacking troops is facilitated by the fact that the hostile artillery barrage has by this time passed to the rear of the first line.

The next duty of the captain is to report to his chief of battalion the alarm, which is done by means of a chain of runners, by signaling, or by use of carrier pigeons, because usually by this time the telephone system has broken down under the artillery bombardment.

III. Fighting in the Interior of the Position

If the hostile assault on the first line is successful, the fight for the occupation of the position, which takes place in the interior, has only begun. Opposing his frontal progression through the position, the enemy will encounter, as we know, a series of defensive lines disposed in depth. Also, for instance, if a nest of resistance holds up the progress of a part of the assaulting troops, the successive overlapping waves will carry on along the flanks of this stronghold. If, then, the position is strongly divided into compartments, the fire of such defenses will take these overlapping troops in the flank and rout them. The defenders may also play an active rôle and the enemy is likely to encounter new troops sent up for the purpose of counterattack.

The division of the ground in support points, centers of resistance and sectors, has precisely for its object the localization of the enemy’s attacks. Each area must be organized to defend itself, independently of any other part of the position. Consequently, the officers must explain this condition to their men, so that they will have no concern if they see that the enemy has penetrated and is attacking them on the flank or rear. On the other hand, if several of these compartments hold their ground, the enemy may find himself surrounded in a certain area and cut off from the rear by barrage fire. Thus abandoned in a part of the position that he has momentarily taken, a vigorous counterattack will drive him out.