Posted on 10/13/2008 4:49:43 PM PDT by sig226
The repeating magazine rifle firing the new cartridges at velocities in excess of 2,000 fps proved it’s worth in countless engagements ranging from Spion Kop in Natal, to San Juan Hill in Cuba, to Mukden in Manchuria. The repeating magazine rifle became king of the battlefield. The trained British regulars of the “Old Contemptibles” could fire an estimated 12 to 15 rounds per minute of accurate rifle fire. Their sustained rate of fire during the Battle of Mons and during the constant rear guard actions during the retreat towards Le Cateau was so daunting it lead the German high command to reach the conclusion each British Battalion was equipped with 20 to 30 machineguns, when in fact they were only issued four.
The wide open tactics employed in Germany’s Schliefen plan and Frances counterstroke, Plan 17, called for maneuver and combined arms attacks, with both light cavalry performing in the traditional scouting roll and heavy cavalry, some still wearing archaic steel breastplates and helmets, sporting lances and heavy sabers in addition to their carbines, poised to ride in and exploit the “breakthrough.”
Infantry and field artillery were to operate in support of one another depending on the circumstances, while the cavalry waited in the wings. The “galloping batteries” of light field artillery were still riding hell bent for leather in order to unlimber their guns in open fields in direct sight of the enemy. Firing over open sights, the gunners braved accurate rifle fire unheard of when their tactics were first developed. While the war of maneuver lasted, the rifle was indeed king of the battlefield, with the small number of machineguns employed in the opening months of the war providing the occasional demonstration of horrors to come.
The battle sight setting of the rifles carried by the major combatant nations in 1914 provides some insight into the type of combat the militaries expected to encounter during the next war. The “battle setting” represents the closest possible range at which the rifles sights were set to aim directly at the target. At any range closer than this, the soldier had to hold low. This was the reason sergeants in most armies of the day stood on the firing line repeatedly screaming, “Aim at their knees!”
The prevailing military wisdom at the beginning of the 20th Century was war would be fought in open order at the substantial distance favoring newly introduced high-velocity smokeless powder cartridges. Maneuver, as had been the basic tenet of both strategy and tactics from time immemorial would remain wide open, which explains the continued preeminence of cavalry in every army of the day, in spite of the lessons learned to the contrary in numerous small wars fought towards the close of the 19th Century.
In a war of maneuver, the machinegun was considered of limited advantage being too cumbersome it was believed, to keep up with the rapid advance of the infantry. In many armies of the era, machine guns were still relegated to the artillery rather than the infantry. In addition, the ordnance boards fought the adoption of the machinegun tooth and nail as they had with the introduction of the repeating rifle two decades earlier! How could the already over burdened supply columns ever successfully feed such a wasteful weapon as the machinegun with enough ammunition once the fighting commenced? These same logistics officers believed the average infantryman would empty all of his cartridge pouches within 20 minutes of battle being joined! Small arms fire was to be tightly controlled by the NCOs in every army, another reason why archaic magazine cut-offs survived into the early 20th Century.
The old adage, “The military is always prepared to fight the last war over again” was very much the case in 1914, despite recent evidence the nature of weapons technology had forever changed the face of war. Since the advent of the rifled musket, proponents of defensive warfare from prepared positions, such as Confederate General George Longstreet, had argued well-trained riflemen behind earthworks could not be taken in direct assault by the devil himself!
This was repeatedly proven during the American Civil War prior to the widespread use of single-shot cartridge rifles, let alone repeating rifles. Throw in high-velocity repeating rifles with an effective range of over 1,000 yards when fired at massed targets, and it should have been back to the drawing board for the high command in order to develop new tactics better suited to the effectiveness of the new weaponry.
But the real precursors to WWI were to be found in the siege of Petersburg during the American Civil War and on a much larger scale during the Russo-Japanese War of 1905. In both instances, rapid long-range accurate defensive fire forced the attackers to go to ground. The spade became the soldier’s best friend rather than the rifle. Modern rapid firing field artillery, epitomized by the famous and revolutionary French 75, throwing air-bursting shrapnel or HE shells at the rate of 15 rounds per minute only heightened the need to dig even faster! The transition from the open warfare envisioned by the high command to the importance of digging in the moment a unit halted under fire is most graphically and brilliantly described in Erwin Rommel’s great work, Infantry Attacks. This is a must read for anyone interested in military history, small unit command, leadership, inspired tactics or WWI in general. This excellent treatise on small unit tactics is based on Rommel’s experiences during the Great War as a junior officer in the Elite Wurttemberg Mountain Battalion. It was written after the war and published in 1937. The book chronicles Leutnant (and later Captain) Rommel’s experiences throughout the war, including his participation in the Battle of the Frontiers that preceded the Race to the Sea, which in turn culminated in the ultimate stalemate in the trenches once there were no more flanks to be turned!
After only 17 days in the field, Lt. Rommel made the following observation. “In contrast to this, (the 3rd Battalion which had suffered heavy casualties) the 2nd Battalions pick-and-shovel work on the barren hill paid large dividends. In spite of an artillery bombardment lasting for hours, our casualties were very small.” The handwriting was already on the wall and what was to come should have been apparent to someone other than this lone 23-year-old junior officer!
He has very clearly stated otherwise. While it is true that his 82nd Division was equipped with the M1917, he clearly stated on several occasions that he had obtained an M1903, and that it was what he had used during the action of 08 October 1918 near Chatel-Chehery, France, during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive:
While records indicate that the 82nd Division was wholly issued with the M1917, York disliked that rifle. A couple of years ago his sons Andrew and George, then in their eighties, were interviewed at their home in Pall Mall, Tennessee, for an article in the American Rifleman magazine. Both men emphatically and repeatedly stated that York somehow managed to swap his Enfield for a Springfield.
Andrew: “Daddy knew the difference and didn’t like the sights on the Enfield.”
The M1917 had a peep sight, with which York had difficulty leading his target. He far preferred the open rear sight of the Springfield.
-more-
York continued his training, and established himself as the company's best shot with his issue .30-'06 Model 1903 Springfield. Later commenting that the rifle was not as good as his hog gun out to 100 yds., he did admit that it was probably better at greater ranges. After the nasty job of cleaning the cosmoline out of his rifle he wrote in his diary, "Well, they give me a gun and oh my that old gun was jes full of Greece [sic] and I had to clean that old gun for inspection. So I had a hard time to get that gun clean."
Following training, York's unit was moved to Camp Upton, NY, in preparation to be sent overseas. After several days of drilling, the men were put aboard a freighter bound for Le Havre, France, after a stop in England.
Upon arriving at Le Havre, the 82nd was issued 30-'06 Sprg. U.S. Model of 1917 Enfield rifles. According to York's son Andrew, his father didn't much cotton on to the M1917 as it had a peep sight with which York had difficulty leading a target. Somehow he finagled to swap his issue rifle out for a Model 1903 Springfield - a gun he had found much more comfortable.
After more training, his unit was finally ordered to the front lines. York kept his Bible close at hand, just to assure himself that he was doing the right thing. All during his overseas duty, he kept up a continual correspondence with his sweetheart, Gracie, filling her in on the exotic sights and scenes of Europe, as well as with details of his training and subsequent action.
Promoted to corporal, York saw his first fighting in the Montsec region where he was in charge of a squad armed with French Chauchat machine guns. His comment seems to echo those of many other Americans to whom the things were issued, "They were big and clumsy. They were too heavy. They were not accurate or silent. You could never be sure what you fired at no matter how good a shot you were. All you could do with them was make a lot of noise."
Eventually his outfit was sent to the Argonne Forest. Large areas had been continuously pounded by German guns and the area was a quagmire of mud, dead horses and battlefield litter. York described the area as a scene of Abomination and Desolation.
Following spirited action, the soldiers were eventually assigned to Hill 223 which was to be the staging area for an attack on the Decauville Railroad, about three kilometers away.
For his exploit, York was awarded, among other decorations, the Medal of Honor, the Tennessee Medal of Valor, the Croix de Guerre (France) and the Croce de Guerra (Italy.)
After making the rounds of Allied bases in Europe, York was sent back home where, upon his arrival in New York, he was given a lavish ticker tape parade and was put up in a suite at the Waldorf Astoria. Besieged with offers to go on lecture tours and appear in movies, he declined them all, summing up his objections by noting, "Wouldn't I look funny in tights?" Unfortunately his 1903 Springfield and .45 ACP M1911 were lost or stolen enroute to the United States and remain missing to this day. ... .
Probably the gun he used more than even his percussion long rifle - which is on display in Nashville - was his Remington Model 11 semi-automatic 12-ga. shotgun. York's son Andrew remembers going duck hunting with Daddy and watching his father pick the ducks off from rear to front, in the same manner he shot Germans in the Argonne. York also owned a 10-ga. Winchester Model 1901 lever-action shotgun, but it was presumably retired when he got his Model 11.
Andrew tells of how his father was able to shoot doves on the wing using a Winchester Model 74 .22 auto loading rifle - another of his favorite guns. During my visit with the York family, I also was able to view a Winchester Model 92 in .25-20 Win., as well as a .32 ACP CZ Model 24 semi-automatic pistol. The former was presumably used for larger game such as deer and hogs, while the latter, according to Andrew, was carried by York occasionally for self-protection. He has no idea where the CZ came from.
- Garry James
The rifle he used that day was a M1917 Enfield. That rifle is at MTSU. You can call and talk to the university if you like (Professor Tom Nolan)... They went back to the battle location to find brass from York's rifle and pistol...They did find brass, believed to be from Alvin York's rifle...They didn't find the brass from the M1911 45 and plan to go back and search again...
I do concur that he disliked the sights of the 1917 Enfield and that he did obtain a M1903. But on the day in question, it was indeed a 1917 Enfield.
Regards,
Raven6
No, I don't think the flamethrower was even developed until sometime into the war. He left Germany a couple of days before WWI started. He does talk about the possibility of Zeppelins "throwing down explosives" and "Aeroplanes".
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