THE EVOLUTION OF MODERN WARFARE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11047, 26 February 1898, Page 2

THE EVOLUTION OF MODERN WARFARE.

The secret oE war, Baid Napoleon, is in the secret of thecommunicationsl 'It follows,'then, that the establishment of a base and the security of the lines. by which an army communicates with its base are. among the primary laws o£ the art of modern warfare, and it is impassible to follow the progress of a campaign unless theoe laws are well understood. The conditions which'govern' the movements of ah army and limit its powers are-very stringentj and among them are these: that when;a campaign.' is opened for either offensive or defensive; purposes, a base of operations shall be established, from which,a constant stream of- suppliesmen, munitions, and food—may be sent forward to-the army alo^g a line of coinmunicationi, which must always ba kept ppea and. free from attack by the enemy. These conditions, however (says the Pall Mftll Gazette), have been brought, about by what may be " termed the evolution of ths art of war. '.- ' ■

, In the middle ages a military campaign could be undertake.n without any great preparation; The nobles and chiefs of the feudal system called their, retainers ftom. the workshop and • ; farm to take their pkces.in an army of bow- r. men and pikemen, which entered the field without any of those elaborate preparations . and precautions which, are so indispensable in the present day. Such a force on entering the ' ! enemy's territory .spread itself out and sub- . sisted by pillage. It could not remain, in a .compact naaes or if would haveVstarved. It was only when it met the; 'enemy that it'concentrated, and, after the battle ,i(i gp:eadoUt again to obtain fresh ■ supplies..: As the defending fptce 'adopted the ' same system of - obtaining food the theatre of "war was ■;» I scene of horrors. Indeed, the niere fact of a city or district being rich and yieldiag abundant supplies wag sufficient reason to afEord a/pretext for. its invasion, for the feudal chiefs and their retainers merely took the field as the vassals; aßd allies of'kingß when ifc suited their purpose to do so. Not could kings in those days dispense with Vshch assistance, their resources being insufficient to' stand the strain of maintaining standing armies. In time, however, as the royal power grew-and States besame : consolidated, sovereigns : surrbuodea themselves witb. standing armies, and competition between rival States led to a modification of the conditions under which military expeditions were undertaken. The advance of civilisation and the development, of artillery also ' contribated to render those conditions more stringent; for when/artillery, became formidable aud means oE transport improved, the art of the engineer was. called into play, and cities and frontiers protected; by huge fortresses ■ capable of-standing prolonged sieges, -and the . "requirements of troops engaged in sach undertakings led to the elaboration of a system o£ ! supply. The further advance of civilisation— the improvement of roads and vehicles, the cultivation of wider tracts of land, arid the . greater mobility of military foroeß — led to furthes, changes in; the arb of war, and , campaigns came, to be; decided less by sieges and '.'more..../by ■' battles, in which victory rested with the_ side whose leaders displayed the greatest skill in -tactibg and whose troops possessed the power ■of manoeuvring with ea«« - and rapidity. • Now ',- however, the• importance of supply as a system became greater than ever, ■ • for; an army hsd to be prepared at all times to form up in the face of the enemy ..when once it was launched in the theatre.of war. To do this it had to be accompanied by every requisite; and, ~as it could not carry .tnroughout a, protracted • cHmpaigpi all tfije aminnnition; fodd, stores, a'u«i recruits it. would require, baseg had to be eStab^ ( 'lished and depots and magazines'provided along 0 the lines of communication, so that a constant stream ot supplies couli be maintaiaed. Ie wili therefore be seen that, as armies have ad- • vxucsd in dißcipline and organisation, the con-: ■ ditions under which military, operations may ba undertaken have become more and more stringent, and that among those conditions none is j more indispensable than Napoleon's.