78 Pages - The Black Vault

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ABOUTTHE AUTHORMajor General Sir Ernest D. Swinton, K. B. E., C. B,,D. S. O., was a noted English soldier. author and professor.Considered by Field Marshal Earl Wavelias one of the most far-sighted officers the BritishArmy has produced, he wrote before World War Ion the effects of air warfare, mining and of psychologicalwarfare. In 1914, Sir Swinton completelyrevolutionized warfare by his invention of the tank;he, more than anyone else, was responsible for itsintroduction and development.He served as Professor of Militaw History at Oxfordfrom 1925 to 1939, and later as Commandantof the Royal Tank Corps from 1934 to 1938—earningthe rank of Major General.As a Captain, shortly after service in the Boer War,he wrote “The Defence of Duffer’s Drift, ” using thepseudonym, Lieutenant ‘Backs!ght Forethought, orBF. Duffer’s Drift has become a military classic onminor tactics in this century. In addition to Duffer’sDrift, and contributing to many journals, he authoredThe Green Curve in 1909 and The Great Tab Dopein 1915, under the pseudonym O’le Luk-Oie (OlafShut-eye). His other works include The Study OfWar in 1926 and his final publication, An EasternOdyssey written in 1935.
A classic in small unit tacticsin the British and U.S. Army,this book is recommended, withoutqualification, for the modernprofessional soldier.What would you do?Lieutenant Backsight Forethought(BF to his friends) hasbeen left in command of a .SOmanreinforced platoon to holdDuffer’s Drift, the only ford onthe Silliassvogel River avaiIableto wheeled traffic. Here is hischance for fame and glory. Hehas passed his officer coursesand special qualifications.“Now if they had given me ajob, ” says BF, “like fighting theBattle of Waterloo, or Gettysburgor Bull Run, I knew allabout that, as I had crammed itup . . .“While BF’s task appears simpleenough, the Boer enemy causesa multitude of problems, butyou, ,astute reader, with a quickmind and sharp intellect will, nodoubt, solve the problem beforethe first shot is fired.
Page 2: FMFRP 12-33The DefenseofDuffer’sD
Page 8 and 9: BACKGROUNDINFORMATION(THE BOER WAR)
Page 10: “/t was our own fault, and our ve
Page 13 and 14: — ,-
Page 15 and 16: UDUOFFHR’SUDUNIFT.GENERAL PLAN.Ma
Page 17 and 18: I had so often longed for. This was
Page 19 and 20: stores and tools, which had been du
Page 21 and 22: a most loyal Briton, and had been m
Page 23 and 24: silhouetted in the cheerful blaze o
Page 25 and 26: out the following lessons, the resu
Page 27 and 28: men each, one to the top of Waschou
Page 29 and 30: preached the guard of the north fro
Page 31 and 32: amazing alacrity, and looked as if
Page 33 and 34: teeth outside their kraals whilst t
Page 35 and 36: horseshoe bend of the river, as thi
Page 37 and 38: It was astonishing what difficulty
Page 39 and 40: on top of that kop-je on the fur si
Page 41 and 42: at first halted and begun to be sus
Page 43 and 44: Eh’eam‘(0 was some power the gi
Page 45 and 46: Map 5The Dutchmen and Kaffirs were
Page 47 and 48: presence, with a close-range volley
Page 49 and 50: By the time I had gathered what was
Page 51 and 52: “We lay bare as the paunchof the
Page 53 and 54: is frontall round.12. Beware of bei
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ifth &eam“A frif/ing sum of miser
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Map 6vialed with grooves to fire th
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distributed in case of a long and p
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and the road south to see how matte
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we opened fire on the main body som
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True, we were not captured, and had
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sixth!!)ream“Sweet are the uses o
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advantages of the proposal.I resist
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any degree hampered by a fear of hi
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scooped out a little, or a shelf cu
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dream; all we could do meanwhile wa
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and a coat there peeping over the t
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musketry in the distance, and saw a
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78 Pages - The Black Vault

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