The Marine Corps split into two camps: the maneuverists and the attritionists. Napoleon's principal strategy was to move fast to engage before the enemy had time to organize, to engage lightly while moving to turn the flank that defended the main resupply route, to envelop and deploy blocking forces to prevent reinforcement, and to defeat those contained in the envelopment in detail. Maneuver Warfare: Can Modern Military Strategy Lead You to Victory? During his time as a general and indeed his power base to become the head of France, Napoleon's reputation was based on a powerful and fluent campaign in northern Italy, opposing the numerically superior Austrians. How could attrition inflicted on an enemy possibly be bad? Each one is a self-contained combined arms force. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have gone through major modernization efforts since the collapse of the Soviet Union, but those efforts have accelerated under President Vladimir Putin, especially after the 2008 invasion of Georgia. Thirty years of subsequent experience has reduced the need to rely on German examples, and the controversy has largely blown over. While many new capabilities and concepts are unfamiliar, the situation is not. Maneuver and attrition are not a matter of either/or, but that is how proponents came to frame the issue. In the past, Marine forces have used deception to force enemies to commit forces to defend points that never get attacked and to obscure intended amphibious landings that do happen. [5], The war theorist Martin van Creveld identifies six main elements of maneuver warfare:[6]. Maneuver warfare is an ideal that we have yet to reach. Out-maneuvering our opponents will increasingly require us to divorce the concept of maneuver from maneuver units. In retrospect, the issue is what you choose as the mechanism by which you propose to impose defeat on the enemy. The rediscovery of Clausewitzian theory, made much more accessible by the Michael Howard and Peter Paret translation of On War in 1976, was foundational to maneuver warfare theory. Both wars in Iraq proved that beyond a doubt. The retreat of the center of the Athenian and Platean citizen-soldiers (Hoplites) at the battle of Marathon against the forces of Datis in 490 BC, and subsequent pincer movements by Athenian forces on the flanks, used a similar tactic. Matthew Hipple, China: Leap-Frogging U.S. Last, but not least, the controversial Lind was an unabashed Germanophile (Prussophile is probably more accurate), and this alone produced antibodies. Forces then concentrateeither effects or unitsto strike a strong blow against a decisive point or when necessary to secure key terrain. The 'Maneuver Warfare' Concept. That technological overmatch is quickly eroding and studies have shown that a technological advantage is a poor determinant of success in warfare.25 Russia is reversing that trend, streamlining both decision making and increasing flexibility and responsiveness, especially in fire support. There is no question Marines can meet the challenge. It provides a force with the aggression required to overwhelm an adversary. The question is whether the Marine Corps as an organization is structured, trained, equipped, and educated to execute maneuver warfare effectively in the modern context. Decentralized command structures allows "on the ground" unit leaders but still works within the guidelines of the commander's overall vision, to exploit enemy weaknesses as they become evident, which is also called "recon-pull" tactics or directive control. His concepts were an embryonic version of the modern MAGTF, and Gen John A. Lejeune reformed the Marine Corps along those lines. A warfighting philosophy that seeks to shatter the enemy's cohesion through a variety of rapid, focused, and unexpected actions which create a turbulent and rapidly deteriorating situation with which the enemy cannot cope. Amphibious Operations. "[11], "This is not to imply that firepower is unimportant. After the Vietnam War, the Marine Corps underwent a period of institutional introspection. While the above examples demonstrate that maneuver warfare remains relevant in the 21st century, they also show that the character of warfare has changed since MCDP 1 was released. Maneuver war relates directly to the probable main mission of the Corps during the remainder of this century, supporting the United States friends in the Third World. This remains effective, but the conception of maneuver must broaden even beyond the examples included in MCDP 1, Warfighting. Perhaps the most important changes in the realm of fires. Discussion: The Marine Corps has embraced maneuver warfare philosophy since the release of FMFM 1, Warfighting in the late 1980s when it shifted from an attritionist style of fighting to maneuver warfare. Germany attempted to repeat the "knock-out blow" against the French armies in the Schlieffen Plan. Intelligence, as ever, will drive operations. The habitual relationships that are supposed to be the foundation of every MAGTF have all but disappeared.12 Our philosophy is that doctrine should not be viewed as prescriptive, but our premier exercise, the integrated training exercise, ignores the recommendation for free play and even features officers assigned to no other duties but mandating doctrine and punishing transgressions. (More about the German influence shortly.) We will concentrate fires and forces at decisive points to destroy enemy elements when the opportunity presents itself and when it fits our larger purposes. Russia has purposefully designed reforms that support exactly those tenants and can execute them in conventional and irregular operations. We must abide by and execute maneuver warfare as the character of warfare changes. Napoleon I used preemptive movements of cavalry and fast infantry to interrupt the initial deployment of enemy forces. Civilian Bill Lind was chief provocateur and proselytizer. As the ISR and firepower capabilities of our opponents increase, so will our need to master the principle of mass. Third, it will describe instances of maneuver warfare during current operations. MCDP 1 defines maneuver warfare as, a warfighting philosophy that seeks to shatter the enemys cohesion through a variety of rapid, focused, and unexpected actions which create a turbulent and rapidly deteriorating situation with which the enemy cannot cope.26. Recently, the concepts behind maneuver war have been organized and expanded into an overall theory of conflict. The Germans and the Marine Corps succeeded in combining existing technologies and ideas in unique and innovative ways to produce something larger than the sum of the parts. ", In the early stages of the 2022 Ukraine war, Russia's advances were stalled by Ukraine widespread deployment of man-portable anti-tank missiles. The attritionists thought the maneuverists were unnecessarily complicating what should be a straightforward proposition: find the enemy, destroy the enemy. Specialized landing craft, for example, were proposed as early as 1798 and were used in North Carolina during the Civil War. This theory was developed by Col John Boyd, USAF (Ret.) For all of these changes, maneuver warfare as the Marine Corps institutional philosophy not only remains sound but also continues to offer insights. That dominance, however, merely means that adversaries are incentivized to fight in other ways. This section discusses the interplay of the offense and the defense as well as initiative and response. Maneuver warfare, of course, encourages such methods and is built around being able to make and implement decisions faster than the enemy. First, deception is a potent force that is not necessarily linked with surprise. During the interwar period, the British developed ideas for fully-mechanized all-arms warfare with the Experimental Mechanized Force. In recent years, China has stepped up its efforts to bolster and enforce its claim over the South China Sea, bringing it into conflict with many of its neighbors such as Vietnam and the Philippines. 'Warfighting' Risks Becoming Irrelevant | Proceedings - October 2020 Rather than seeking victory by applying superior force and mass to achieve physical destruction, maneuver uses preemption, deception, dislocation, and disruption to destroy the enemy's will and ability to fight. The 1997 revision acknowledges the possibility of nonstate belligerents but offers no additional insights into nonclassical warfare. As a reflection of the Marine Corps maneuver warfare philosophy, MCDP 1, Warfighting achieved this cohesion for the Marine Corps of the late 20th century. A key requirement for success in maneuver warfare is up-to-date accurate intelligence on the disposition of key enemy command, support, and combat units. But no matter how cohesive a unit is on the moral level, enough trepidation, defeat, attrition, frustration, and fear can overcome that cohesion. Maneuver warfare is a war tactic that focuses on catching the enemy by surprise, making it impossible to organize a defense or seek out reinforcements. It either contributes to or detracts from achieving the strategic aim. Some adversaries have already mastered the use of information. Russian General Aleksei Brusilov used similar tactics in 1916 on the Eastern Front during the Brusilov Offensive. Lower levels of command must understand overall intent so as to adapt to a changing environment. The US Marine concept of maneuver, however, is a "warfighting philosophy that seeks to shatter the enemy's cohesion through a variety of rapid, focused, and unexpected actions which create a turbulent and rapidly deteriorating situation with which the enemy cannot cope. G I Wilson; Michael D Wyly; William S Lind; B E Trainor. PDF A Critique of The Boyd Theory - Is It Relevant to the - DTIC Although inflicting heavy damage, Israel was unable to locate and destroy Hezbollah's diluted force dispositions or to neutralize key command centers. Many of these ideas were ahead of their time in terms of organizational theory and mechanics. John Boyd, Maneuver Warfare, and the Marine Corps' Search for Meaning It had the effect of turning attrition into a dirty word. This admittedly cursory review of the major maneuver warfare precepts as defined by MCDP 1 lays out how the Marine Corps is supposed to fight, but is that ideal suitable for the current and future strategic environment? What does combined arms mean in the 21st century? The cognitive level is an important part of maneuver warfare because, as MCDP 1 says when discussing surprise, Surprise is not what we do, it is the enemys reaction to what we do.11 This is key because, as maneuverists, we do not just take into account what physical destruction our actions cause but also the mental effect our actions have on the enemys mind. The English terms are problematic because they are practically synonymous. Discussion: Maneuver warfare is a philosophy for "fighting smart" to ensure success in war. "Maneuver warfare is a warfighting philosophy that seeks to shatter the enemy's cohesion through a series of rapid, violent, and unexpected auctions which create a turbulent and rapidly deteriorating situation with which he cannot cope."1 Maneuver warfare has become the doctrine of choice for both The chapter is essentially a roadmap for how to apply our maneuver warfare philosophy to the Supporting Establishment of the Marine Corps. Maneuver warfare suggest that strategic movement can bring the defeat of an opposing force more efficiently than simply contacting and destroying enemy forces until they can no longer fight. All was strictly coordinated by radio and contributed to new tactics during the Battle of France in 1940. Maneuver is the modern term for an ancient concept of war. Despite claims to the contrary, we continue to struggle friction and the uncertainty in war. The maneuver warfare philosophy articulated in Warfighting, however, is incomplete. The 'Maneuver Warfare' Concept - MCA They are built around three battalions of motorized infantry, much like our MEB, but include much more firepower: two battalions of self-propelled howitzers, a rocket artillery battalion, an electronic warfare company, a tank battalion, an anti-tank battalion, and two air defense battalions, plus maintenance, communications, logistics, and engineering units.24 All of these capabilities are organic to the brigade rather than attached. We must seek to do what the Marine Corps, starting with Pete Ellis, has done time and time again: integrate new technologies in innovative combinations with our storied traditions of excellence and Marines. Every major combatant attempted to integrate the new weapons but few successfully sustained those efforts after the war. Stagnation is perhaps the antithesis of maneuver warfare. The misunderstanding is exacerbated by the fact that maneuver is a doctrinal . Fueling the debate was the 1982 publication of Martin van Crevelds Fighting Power: German and U.S. Army Performance, 1939-1945 (although it was available several years earlier as a DOD-funded study). 6 This argument has been in plain view for the past two years; the Marine Corps Gazette has given the most vocal critics front-page attention through the series. This advantage is not just spatial but must include out maneuvering the enemy on the cognitive level. To regain some of that unity, the next three concepts are key: commanders intent, main effort, and surfaces and gaps. The most important factor in this philosophy is the importance of continuous learning throughout our careers for warfighting. The important concept of defeat mechanism was not explicitly recognized at the time. In the cumulative destruction of the forces ranged against one another which characterizes an attrition contest, the inferior force will inevitably be defeated. But unlike the Army, the Marine Corps can develop a strategically responsive force to fight maneuver war in Third World areas. , the Marine Corps finds itself in an environment of increasing strategic uncertainty and rapid introduction of new technology. Maneuver means moving and acting consistently more rapidly than the opponent. Equipment includes T-62 and AMX-30 tanks, BMPs multiple rocket launchers and ZSU-23-4 antiaircraft guns-equipment equal or superior to that possessed by Marines. One hundred years ago, new technologies like the airplane, radio transmission, automatic weapons, and the tank were being introduced on battlefields all over the world. 22. The maneuver warfare tactic has been used throughout history. This means the main effort will not always be a ground combat unit. In the end, Warfighting intentionally avoided the use of German terminology. With maneuver warfare, the precept is to create for the enemy as many unanticipated and threatening situations as possible, while at the same time seeking out tactical advantages on the battlefield. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Or, more fundamentally, has warfare changed sufficiently that the Marine Corps should reconsider its basic doctrine? More recently he has devoted himself to studying the nature of conflict in general. The results of that review were seen in the Franco-Prussian War. Physical deployments of course matter, but maneuver warfare stresses not just the aspect of our physical tactics but the mental effects that those tactics cause. The Marine Corps has participated in two major wars on land and countless other operations around the globe, all while maintaining a presence on the seas. How can the Marine Corps more quickly cycle through collection, analysis, and dissemination to drive the kind of rapid, dynamic operations required? The maneuverists, some more than others, were fond of using German historical examples and terminology. Decentralized command: rapidly changing situations may outpace the orders of a centralized command, leaving personnel with instructions that no longer apply. Still, a few refinements are necessary to ensure a better strategic fit. Active Defense met with immediate and widespread criticism within the Army as being too defensive and mathematical. The concept is essentially an expression of whether or not an organization is well adapted to its environment. The aim of The Maneuverist Papers is to energize that conversation. Cyber warfare especially offers many opportunities for this, but even properly planned kinetic fires can play a part. The Germans presented the French with a succession of new and unexpected situations at a pace too rapid for the French observation-decisionaction cycle. Neither manual directly mentioned Europe or the Soviets, but it was clear that was the problem space. To provide strategic responsiveness, equipment for substantial mechanized units should be prepositioned at sea in potential trouble areas, probably on rollon, roll-off (RO-RO) ships. No matter what physical and mental forces assail the enemy, his morale and the moral cohesion of his unit will keep him in the fight unless it is shattered. These combined arms brigades have proven to be extremely potent in Eastern Ukraine, where the units work alongside Russian-sponsored insurgents. [original research?] Maneuver warfare does not stop at inflicting physical stress on the enemy but also takes into account the mental effects that our tactics have on the enemy. This should not be confused with the word morality. As a result, any primary source documents tended to be German. Fuller had proposed Plan 1919 to use tanks to break through the lines and then to wreak havoc on the German lines of supply and communication. Similar strategies are also possible using suitably trained infantry. Some aspects of MCDP 1 need a refresh. If anything, global trends toward agile, combined arms units and decentralized C2 means that maneuver warfare is more relevant than it was two decades ago. Defining Maneuver Warfare for the Marine Corps - MCA After pushing into Iraq, ISIS fighters waged a shaping campaign against the Iraqi Seventh Division around Mosul prior to taking the city. . In fact, most American readers were probably introduced to the terms in Russell Weigleys 1973 classic The American Way of War, in which, the author later acknowledged, he had got the terms confused. For the maneuverists, both arguments made the Germans worth studying. Conventional warfare doctrine identifies a spectrum with attrition warfare and maneuver warfare on opposite ends. It is important to understand that the maneuver warfare movement emerged at a particular moment in history. Or never having truly embraced it in the first place, as some have argued? Maneuver. Just as we seek to always fight from a position of advantage so too will our enemies. Gray, of course, was the leading exponent of maneuver warfare, providing impetus and top cover. and is appropriately known as the Boyd Theory.. Strategic Maneuver: Defined for the Future Army Next, it will examine MCDP 1, Warfighting against the backdrop of the strategic environment. Maneuver warfare - Wikipedia Here, deception is the key method as China masked its construction of offshore oil rigs and artificial islands built to achieve de facto control over the area. Firepower is a servant of maneuver, used to create openings in enemy defenses and, when necessary, to annihilate the remnants of his forces after their cohesion has been shattered. But then the Army would become another Marine Corps, and few force planners think we need two. 3 (SUMMER 1997), pp. This is a false conception. Firepower, primarily used to destroy as many enemy forces possible in attrition warfare, is used to suppress or destroy enemy positions at breakthrough points during maneuver warfare. The idea of using rapid movement to keep an enemy off balance is as old as war itself. In both cases, no new capabilities were developed. MCDP 1 was written to remain timeless and has succeeded in doing so. Marine Corps Gazette. Other early thought leaders included then-Capts Stephen Miller, G.I. Germany introduced new tactics with infiltration and stormtrooper "shock troops" toward the end of World War I to bypass resistance. Maneuver warfare is a systemic doctrine, which was a hard sell in 1989. The point of this repetition is to remind Marines that their actions serve a larger purpose for the Nation: The policy aims that are the motive for any group in war should also be the foremost determinants of its conduct.7 This is why rules of engagement are so vital: they ensure that the tactical conduct of a war contributes to its policy aim. The conflict is more physical than mental. ", The possibility of a massive Soviet offensive in Western Europe led to the creation of the US Army's AirLand battle doctrine. But if the enemys cohesion is our target, what exactly is it? Lastly, the United States does retain dominance on land, sea, and in the air when it comes to high-end combat. The Germans' battle plans for World War I were similar. Under the leadership of Commandant Gen Alfred M. Gray, the Marine Corps first codified maneuver warfare as Service doctrine with the 1989 publication of Fleet Marine Force Manual 1 (FMFM 1), Warfighting, although the significant intellectual effort that produced the underlying concepts had begun well over a decade earlier. When the bonds of trust and loyalty within an organization are broken, it can no longer function as a whole. PDF Learning - Marines.mil It exploits maneuver to bring to bear firepower to destroy enemy forces. This is a lesson that Marines had to viscerally relearn in recent years. In contrast, maneuver war is warfare on the model of Genghis Khan, the German blitzkrieg and almost all Israeli campaigns. Modern fire support systems have proliferated, too many non-state actors and peer adversaries retain large stocks of artillery and missiles, especially North Korea. Why the Maneuver Warfare Movement Succeeded. An artillery barrage does not just kill and wound, but also shocks and overpowers the human mind. Hammes, USMC(Ret), describes a modern insurgency as essentially a strategic communications campaign supported by military action rather than a military campaign supported by effective strategic communications.5 Marines are used to operating in a mode where maneuver is the main effort, for friendly and enemy forces. When faced with a maneuverable opponent capable of redeploying key forces quickly and discreetly or when tempered, the capacity of maneuver warfare strategies to deliver victory becomes more challenging. These capabilities are most relevant for Marines as they can perform fires-like missions. Likewise, the language and concepts of complexity theory helped us to realize that Boyds thinking had been even farther ahead of its time than we had previously appreciated.) (The German literally means taking-down strategy, as in a take down in wrestling. Since maneuver warfare remains a sound approach to both war and warfare, the deficit between the status quo and strategic fitness is the Marine Corps collective ability to embrace its ideals in peacetime and in war. Achieving a cohesive whole does not just require the acquisition of emerging and maturing capabilities, but also necessitates the development of concepts and doctrine that guides use and coordination as well as the training and education methods that support the concepts. 2. Although often associated with conventional operations, the fighters of the Islamic State (also known as ISIS and ISIL) have proven that maneuver warfare concepts do not just apply to professionals. The recently released Joint Staff study of global trends, Joint Operating Environment 2035, has identified a strategic environment characterized by the same fracturing state authority, ideological violence, weapons proliferation, and complexity that Marines are now used to operating in. More than likely, it will increase. Fires. Maneuver warfare | Military Wiki | Fandom If one can divine the enemys offensive plan and decide where to defend against it or, better yet, induce the enemy to attack you where you planned a devastating defense, you have both the initiative and the strength of the defense. It is the structure of those brigades, however, that is key. Some. 30 Nov 2015 | SSIC 05000 General Admin & Management, Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. This is one of the fundamental principles of the German army and is central to their concept of mission orders tactics (Auftragstaktik). Col Boyd was the father of energy management air combat tactics. Or is the mixed record the result of some completely external factors, such as the growing ineffectiveness of combat as a decisive factor in resolving conflict in general? If an inferior force remains tied by tradition and attitude to low-risk or low-payoff attrition methods, it must be defeated. The goal is set in terms of destroying the enemys forces not seizing terrain seen a priori as key. A defender places only a tripwire forward and relies on counterattacks into the flanks and rear of enemy penetrations. Battlefield success throughout history is not necessarily achieved by military organizations that invented new technology but rather by those that best integrated them into a cohesive whole. The maneuver warfare canon thus was filled with titles like Mellenthins Panzer Battles, Guderians Panzer Leader, Mansteins Lost Victories, Rommels Attacks, and Schells Battle Leadership. This page was last edited on 2 July 2023, at 22:06. Kinetic, indirect fire is obviously still a threat, but that threat is made much more potent by the ubiquity of unmanned aerial ISR platforms. [10], According to the US Marine Corps, one key concept of maneuver warfare is that maneuver is traditionally thought of as a spatial concept, the use of maneuver to gain positional advantage. Such methods will continue to be important, but any measures that deceive the enemy pollute his decision-making process and situational awareness. However, technology evolved significantly in the preceding four decades; both the machine gun and more powerful artillery shifted the balance of power toward the defense. MCDP 1 connects the initiative most often with the offense, but we should remember this is not always so. Our Warfighting Philosophy - MCA Synthesizing history, philosophy, and science, he determined that successful commanders won through a combination of tempo, unpredictability, and rapid decision-making. [7], An example of his usage of maneuver warfare was the defeat and annexation of the Khwarazmian Empire between 1219 and 1221 CE, which wielded an army nearly three times the Mongol army, in just a few months of fighting. The point of evaluating both physical and mental effects of our plans is to direct the battle in such a way that it shatters the moral cohesion of the opponent. Within the Marine Corps, maneuver warfare manages to be four things at once: an identity, a philosophy, a movement, and a dogma. Another dichotomy discussed in this section is attrition versus maneuver warfare. In contrast, during the same period of time, U.S. Army doctrine has evolved from AirLand Battle to Full-Dimensional Operations to Full Spectrum Operations to now Unified Land Operations over a span of nine capstone field manuals. The Marine Corps was not alone in reforming. This enhances everything from morale to courage and teamwork.