Think like a general

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

These words, familiar to many of us, encompass the 2nd Amendment to the US Constitution. Lest we forget, the American colonists protested for years and years before taking up arms against the British soldiers. It was only when the ruling British moved to seize the colonists’ weapons did they decide to start shooting.

The right of the citizen to self defense, forms the basis of The Castle Doctrine. But owning a weapon, and being proficient in its use, will not be enough in today’s world.

Hypothetically, let’s assume the Zombie Apocalypse happens tomorrow, God forbid. You, being a Patriot, are armed and after years of practicing at the range and hunting, you can hit a deer center mass at 300 yards, no problem. You’re definitely an asset to any Anti-Zombie team. But are you?

After gathering at the Home Depot parking lot with the other like-minded armed citizens, you head off to save the world with 50 of your closest friends that you’ve just met ten minutes ago.

Assuming whomever takes charge has a semblance of training, if they were to look at your group and say, “Hey, you and Fred take up right side security,” would you know what that means? If you do, do you in that moment have time to teach Fred?

This article isn’t intended to train tactics. Tactics are most often situational dependent. Instead, it is to provide an introduction to the Principles of War.

Understanding the Principles of War is a step towards thinking like a general. These principles are the basic framework to strategy. These are like the guiding principles in the understanding and planning of any operation.

Developed in the early 1800s, the Principles of War came about as military theorist attempted to transform war into an science. Beyond that, in a real practical sense, the principles are a great planning tool for the field commander.

There are many factors that must be considered in planning any operation. These include but not limited to such as the strengths, weaknesses and vulnerabilities of your forces and the enemy, logistics, weather and terrain and many more. However, these principles can be the backdrop to guide the military planner to ensure the basic tenets are employed to help guarantee success.

Principles of War:

1. Objective: Clearly define the goal of the military operation to focus efforts.
2. Offensive: Take the initiative to seize and maintain the advantage over the enemy.
3. Mass: Concentrate combat power at the decisive place and time to achieve a breakthrough.
4. Economy of Force: Allocate minimum essential combat power to secondary efforts to maximize effectiveness.
5. Maneuver: Use movement to gain a positional advantage over the enemy.
6. Unity of Command: Ensure all forces operate under a single commander to maintain coherence and coordination.
7. Security: Protect your forces and operations from enemy actions to maintain effectiveness.
8. Surprise: Strike the enemy at a time or place they do not expect to gain an advantage.
9. Simplicity: Keep plans straightforward to ensure clarity and ease of execution.

We’ll discuss each of these in much greater detail in subsequent articles. Just knowing what they are doesn’t begin to demonstrate how to employ them.

I’m launching a school using war movies and historical real-world examples as tools critiqued against the Principles of War to drive these lessons home.

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