In the late 19th century, during the Boer Wars, the Boer guerrillas used breech-loading big-caliber rifles, such as the Remington Rolling Block, Mauser M1871, Martini-Henry, and Winchester rifles; the Remington Rolling Block was an American .50-caliber, bolt-action rifle that was manufactured since 1867; the Mauser was an accurate 11mm bolt-action weapon in service with the [...]

German squad defensive tactics stressed the importance of integration with larger plans and the principle of posts scattered in depth. The individual Schützengruppe (squad) was expected to dig in on a frontage 30 or 40 meters, this being the maximum that a squad leader could effectively oversee in a defending battle. Major landmarks, such as [...]

The basic aggressive infantry squad tactics of all nations were devised with similar ends in mind: they were solutions to the problems of how to advance by means of fire and movement, and dislodge the enemy from his position. In World War II, the German squad would play its part by winning its Feuerkampf or [...]

German strategy in World War II combined two concepts: the traditional "Decisive Maneuver", developed by Prussian General von Moltke in the 1850s, and the "Armored Concept", usually known as Blitzkrieg, proposed by Heinz Guderian in the late 1920s. Both required rapidly mobilized forces to attack on consecutive fronts, mounting a concentrated surprise attack on one [...]

In the 1790s, the French army pioneered the use of the division, a self-contained unit of several regiments combining infantry, cavalry, and artillery. As part of his new military tactics, Napoleon developed this concept further, establishing a system of army corps, each made up of several divisions. The corps system meant that parts of the [...]

The English tactics against Napoleon entailed the massive use of light infantry, specially from the late 1790s, and in 1800 an experimental corps was set up armed with new rifled muskets, more accurate than the prevailing smooth-bores. The defensive tactics of the English, led by the Duke of Wellington, were almost unmatched. They realized the [...]