Company Officer's Handbook Of The German Army - All Gauge Page

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2 COMPANY OFFICER'S HANDBOOK In all attacks a German commander will select a point of main effort (Schwerpunkt), where he will employ the bulk of his forces in order to force a decision. (See fig. 2.) A German maxim is-"A commander without a Schwerpunkt is like a man without character." In selecting the point of main effort the Germans consider the following factors: (a) Weaknesses in the enemy's defensive position. (b) Suitability of the terrain, especially for tanks, and for cooperation of all arms. (c) Approach routes. (d) Possibilities for supporting fire, especially by artillery. The Germans allot sectors and objectives to attacking units, but this does not mean that a unit must cover with troops the whole ground within its boundaries. The unit will choose the best line or lines of advance within its area and dispose its troops accordingly. The battalion making the assault at the point of main effort may be allotted a front of about 450 yards, while a battalion in another area may be assigned a front of 1,000 yards or more. In actual practice, unit frontages may vary considerably. During the Tunisian Campaign, General Jiirgen von Arnim, the German commander, stated that 11/2 battalions might well attack on a front of 2,000 yards. An attack on a narrow front, according to German doctrine, must have sufficienit forces at its disposal to widen a penetration, maintain its impetus, and protect the flanks of the penetration. Once it is launched, the attack must drive straight to its objective, regardless of opposition. The Germans maintain that it is wrong for the foremost elements of the attacking forces to turn aside to deal with threats to their flanks. This is a task which is assigned to the troops that follow. An effort is made by the Germans to push a break-through sufficiently deep to prevent the enemy from establishing new positions in the rear. The attacking forces attempt to reduce individual enemy positions by encircling and isolating them. They do not consider a break-through successful until they capture the enemy's artillery positions; usually this is the special task of tanks. Where enemy resistance weakens at any point, all available fire and forces are concentrated to ensure the success of the break-through. The artillery is kept well forward.
OFFENSIVE PRINCIPLIES 45 460 o00 1,000 ., ',, s .arcads Yards - k Figure 2.---Germant Shwerpunkt: frontages and objective. The Germans regard their self-propelled assault guns as decisive weapons which are employed particularly at the point of main effort. In cooperation with infantry, they facilitate the penetration and break-through with a; minimum of casualties. These weapons, the Germans believe, complement artillery fire by their ability to follow the infantry right up to an objective. Their use for small actions before an attack is forbidden so as not to betray their presence. Surprise is sought by bringing them into position by night and camouflaging their assembly area. Used primarily to neutralize enemy support weapons at short ranges over open sights, assault guns are employed in concentrations; to employ them singly or in comparatively small number is frowned upon.by the Germans. German assault guns advance with or just behind the infantry;
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Section V. COMBAT TEAMS 27. GENERAL
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Section VI. ORGANIZATION DATA 30. I
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