11-25-2016, 06:42 PM
Interesting about the TLs in the US Army. Not how we do it in the UK, the first man through the door is normally a Private, as is the point man. Team leaders are normally one or two men back where they can see what is happening and control their team. From the time I have spent with the USMC they seem to operate the same way.
Scenario 1 - Easier from the back. When you are talking about centuries around you being driven back how does a man in the front rank see that or make sure his century is withdrawing in parallel with everyone else? How do you think a centurion in the front rank knew where other centuries were in relation to his own? Or perhaps a better question, when some centuries were being pushed back who was moving the other centuries back? Or were the centuries not being driven back left there to become isolated and surrounded? If I saw an opportunity to stop moving back and move forward into a gap to exploit it instead I (using the modern words of command we teach) would shout 'hold' followed by 'forward', if they needed to move left or right slightly to get into the gap I had identified I would say 'push left' or 'push right' once they were moving forward.
Scenario 2 - Crastinus would have had no idea if all of his own century had come with him, never mind the rest of the army. From the rear the word of command I would give now if needed my platoon or company to run towards the 'enemy' is 'rapid advance' or more commonly 'in open order, rapid advance'. If as they are running forward I can see the situation has changed I shout 'hold' and they stop.
The Caesar scenario sounds a lot more like what I am used to. At the back where he can see, communicate and command, moving to the front to lead by personal example when it has all gone wrong and desperate measures are needed.
Scenario 1 - Easier from the back. When you are talking about centuries around you being driven back how does a man in the front rank see that or make sure his century is withdrawing in parallel with everyone else? How do you think a centurion in the front rank knew where other centuries were in relation to his own? Or perhaps a better question, when some centuries were being pushed back who was moving the other centuries back? Or were the centuries not being driven back left there to become isolated and surrounded? If I saw an opportunity to stop moving back and move forward into a gap to exploit it instead I (using the modern words of command we teach) would shout 'hold' followed by 'forward', if they needed to move left or right slightly to get into the gap I had identified I would say 'push left' or 'push right' once they were moving forward.
Scenario 2 - Crastinus would have had no idea if all of his own century had come with him, never mind the rest of the army. From the rear the word of command I would give now if needed my platoon or company to run towards the 'enemy' is 'rapid advance' or more commonly 'in open order, rapid advance'. If as they are running forward I can see the situation has changed I shout 'hold' and they stop.
The Caesar scenario sounds a lot more like what I am used to. At the back where he can see, communicate and command, moving to the front to lead by personal example when it has all gone wrong and desperate measures are needed.
Adam
No man resisted or offered to stand up in his defence, save one only, a centurion, Sempronius Densus, the single man among so many thousands that the sun beheld that day act worthily of the Roman empire.
No man resisted or offered to stand up in his defence, save one only, a centurion, Sempronius Densus, the single man among so many thousands that the sun beheld that day act worthily of the Roman empire.
