This monograph considers the utility of constituting both a striking force and a supplemental tactical reserve when conducting a mobile defense. It considers the conclusions of a 1993 Combined Arms Command (CAC) study of the mobile defense which...
This monograph seeks to determine whether the counterattack demands prioritization in the operational defense. It examines the operational defender's force allocation when he confronts a major enemy offensive thrust. The study includes a review of...
This monograph examines the practice of operational art from the perspective of the Kursk Campaign of July-October, 1943. The study begins by presenting the German and Russian campaign plans as examples of two different methods of achieving a...
This thesis is a historical examination of the eastern front battles in southern Russia during February-March 1943. Field Marshal von Manstein, Commander of the German Army Group South, defeated a Soviet two Front offensive with an exceptional...
This monograph investigates that portion of operational art known as "sequencing operations". The purpose of sequencing operations is to determine when, where, how, and for what purpose the available military means will be employed within a theater...
This study examines the evolution of the German Army's defensive doctrine on the Russian Front from 1941 to 1945. It begins by reviewing prewar doctrine as expressed in German field manuals and professional journals. German defensive techniques are...
Blitzkrieg has been variously described as strategy, tactics, and even operational art. This ambiguity, coupled with a misinterpretation of this form of offensive combat, can cause false conclusions when studying the history of World War II and...
This monograph examines the 1914 Marne and 1943 Kursk campaigns to determine, from the operational perspective, the reasons for decision failures and how intelligence influences them. Part I defines operational level intelligence, establishes the...
This monograph explores the role of sequels in the process of operational design. The complexity and resiliency of today's armies has made the design of campaigns to achieve strategic ends an increasingly difficult undertaking. Campaign planners...
This study is a historical analysis of the campaign waged by Field Marshal von Manstein on the Russian southern front during the winter 1942-1943. The study begins just after the 6th Army's encirclement in Stalingrad and describes the four...
Skoglund, Lars A.
Hendon, Milton
Herman, Richard
Hull, David E.
Hyman. William L.
Thesis Statement: Poor analysis of battlefield information, political/ethnic bias, and military tactical errors resulted in the Soviet defeat at Kharkov.
Discussion: In January 1943, Soviet forces defeated the Axis powers occupying Stalingrad....
This thesis explores the topic of operational maneuver by addressing the following research question: What are the characteristics of successful operational maneuver? The thesis uses a combination of descriptive research and case studies to answer...
The Battle of Stalingrad was a disaster. The German Sixth Army consisted of over 300,000 men when it approached Stalingrad in August 1942. On 2 February 1943, 91,000 remained; only some 5,000 survived Soviet captivity. Largely due to the success of...
FM 100-5, Operations, published in May, 1986, contains AirLand Battle doctrine which our Army will use into the next century. The new doctrine is considerably different from the Active Defense doctrine of the 1970's. Supported by the Army's top...
A key theoretical proposition offered by Clausewitz in On War was that the defense was the stronger form of war over the offense. Members of the military, theorists, and historians have intermittently grappled with this proposition and have tended...
Interoperability is the ability of services and allies to commingle systems, units, or forces which will enable them to operate effectively together. Interoperability should provide NATO commanders the necessary flexibility to concentrate...
This monograph discusses the inadequacy of current U.S. Army doctrine for incorporating water barriers into a defensive scheme, and makes recommendations regarding improving that doctrine. The monograph first examines the current status of doctrine...
This monograph inquires into the nature of operational maneuver by addressing the following research question: Can operational maneuver be used to create the decisive point? It uses the following methodology to answer this question. First, it...
This monograph examines the role of initiative in Soviet operational level command. It seeks to answer the question: Do Soviet operational commanders have the personal initiative and latitude to react to unexpected or changed situations on their...