“BEST TRAINED TROOPS IN EUROPE”

Evening Star, Issue 16409, 27 April 1917, Page 8

“BEST TRAINED TROOPS IN EUROPE”

[Written for the New York ‘Tribune’ by a British Officer.] At the beginning of the Napoleonic wars it was the fashion among Continental soldiers—forgetting Blenheim and Malpluquet and Fontenoy and Minden—to despise the British Army. Tho war in Spain taught Napoleon’s marshals one after another to revise this opinion, until one of them wrote that “ the British infantry' is the finest in the world. It is fortunate there is so little of it.” German soldiers have been going through the same painful experience. They’, too, had forgotten the lessons of history. The Emperor William genially remarked, in reply to an inquiry whether tho military reputation of England had suffered by r the South African War, that England had no military reputation. If the British Army had no reputation in the eyes of German soldiers in July, 1914, it rapidly acquired one in the course of the next three months. Bv November 11, 1914, the German generals in the north-west had cause to congratulate themselves that there were few British in the field. Now, two y’cars later, this comforting consolation no longer exists. It is not always understood among neutrals, and oven among our Allies, how these things came about. Before 1914 the established doctrine in England was that if wo ever should take part in a European war (which no one desired and few expected), onr participation would not go beyond the work of onr fleet, and the contribution of at most six divisions of infantry, with their corresponding proportion of guns and cavalry—say. 153.0C0 men in all. It was conrideivd that «”> should have done onr share in nroviding the strongest, navy, while a s:ra'! but highlytrained hind force mi-lit turn the scale between the more nr 1 >-? equ.allv-babir.cod armies of the Continent. —Expect'd Ontrilri’-i m Sent.— V.’hn! war actually broke nut. and (he violation of Belgian nenlrr.litv f:;:\c.l ns into it, th : s fcmhibi-liiut ;<i the comm n cause v.— ,; prompt!-.- forJicaming. The Navy did it a v, v i( :i a. conn' Ici.-n:-s ni'd .effirionev which Wi many • unappreciative ot iri i>>-.aK.n«o 'ex’.cnt and mu.crta'uo Tho •• <r'.:<miVT force (iu-i----divisions at Mens, li e at Le Ga and the, Marne, six on Mae -a•. and n af Ynio.-d hero He l.t'iri 0; trie ■ io,ri firman cncirrii-'g m :'-ca-.-'-; in N/Tb-c ■ t France, lock its p-vi T iT ;• ? cornier™ t.” k> of the riT■ ■ re.:■e. rnd in the dcfta rate bailie of Y-.w- 1.-::-,,- ! I to lim Channel |r-t ■. •>; V f -h four rime; if, e-w’:-’;-. T ’ - 'd •o’ ■ I far that M;T L -/•• ■■■ i V-l ' trained !'■■■n:i the t • Vri I •-avre, years' ■. ■' • lor three of < ’oirii: t'-r :•■■■■ could smtrrnllv vri-h a hi ri:r ,-i d of efih Tre-v, and in :r.« ■!:, < •••• ;>• lor. which \]r Uv,! 1 had lime (o la; -,:’. M; ■ ..p. twenikih mbiirv dm ,- / • ’ ■i- • 1 r.r>- : /l bv the a- r-r- in iV- : - -.-5 tee-!:-. To liarir ■” ’■ ■ r’ r -I’; I: ’ rowdy ram ;■! A I „ .. , , •> there w.'r■ pras'i'My rd:bri rie;r nu-rr, ■' 1 tfigetl’er from v,;:ri:w- p-ri • ■■ > M".' v. one of which, the 2'"':. c. -rued i'i;M :r fame at the Rmlor,' 'I”?. Vev-- -Mica !-d ■e'-cr be n-, premised c,- c-.ir-ir- I hj ' ’• -n (Tire; 1.-rt a f<'-.v men. of •; 1 I■■ ; - choncr war the mo«t !”nin”-d .sod tlr's-M arc! Rc'-ria coni] imf fir ’; iim wee loml encce??fnllv by tiir-ea Ivrs. and that England most he prni'red in f-vir-'h an c.nnv on the Conrin-nt:; 1 ■-ffi. in e-'dd , to the greatest navy and the largest chare of expenditure. —Territorials Wen Prnmc.— Tlie Second British A-jr.y was provided by the Territorial force, {he officer.-, and men oi’ whicii bad bud wwi? often a considerable amfoint, l-ware l’ 1 ' w:ir. ami therefore coma i;e nm-’.e lit tor war in a shorter period than was raqiured for the new armies which had only bee;; raised since August. 1914. in the spring of 1915 the Territorials began to gn out in numbers. By the autumn they could stand comparison with the regulars, and no troops earned higher praise than the London Division at the battle of Loos. But the bulk of the British armies as they now arc is composed of the new levies which began (o be raised in 1914. in response to Lord Kitchener's appeal, and those, contingents from overseas which Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and fiouth Africa bad sent. It is on these new armies and their quality that the reputation of England’s contribution to the laud war in its later stages must rest. If they had failed, however excellent had been the work of the small regular army, however creditable The performance of the Territorials, England could not have borne a. part in the war on land proportionate to her strength and population. It was the fashion in Germany to cultivate contempt of the now British armies and to say that they could never be of serious value, though it is to be observed that, even at the height of the fighting before Verdun, the great General Staff never ventured to weaken their forces in the front of these armies which they affected, to despise. Yet sober reflection would show that there is no reason why these armies should not be efficient, and much reason why they should. In peace time two years has been accepted ns sufficient to give a thorough training to the German soldier. Under stress of war, and when the fighting is of a specialised kind, new to all parties, a much shorter period should suffice if the material is good. When the fighting on the Somme began the troops composing the new British armies had probably had from 12 to 20 months’ strenuous training, much of it in tho trenches, and the overseas contingents had already proved their splendid metal, the Canadians at Ypres. tho Ncw_ Zealanders in Gallipoli, end South Africans in South-west Africa. The material was that which had proved itself so formidable on many fields of battle, from _ Crecy to Inkorman, and it is not surprising that these now armies have shown themselves tho equals of tho best troops. —Trained Troops Going Out.— So it will bo to the end of the war. Not new levies, but trained soldiers are going out, month by month, a- they are required: and only by depreciating'their own troops can German writers now say that the British armies are of no value. From tho summer of 1916 onward the British armies in the field have been on tho Continental scale, as fully trained as any other tro/ros now engage!. Fighting in France, in Macedonia, in’Mesopotamia’ in Egypt, in Africa, and in China, they cannot ho said not to bo doing thair full share. Great Britain’s contribution to the allied causo has been a navy that controls the seas, an army of millions, money and munitions commensurate to her wealth and strength, and a determination to see this war. begun at the call of honor, carried through to its end.