The temporary field fortification is obsolete. Field fortifications of the Russian Army at the end of the 19th century. Stages of development of buildings

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Fortification item

The subject of fortification is the study of the properties, rules of location, methods of construction and methods of attack and defense of fortifications. Closures and barriers are very often given by the terrain itself; therefore fortification studies the improvement of local natural closures and barriers and their reinforcement by artificial closures and barriers.

Fortifications for the side using them artificially create favorable conditions for military operations and contribute to inflicting the greatest harm on the enemy with the least losses of their own troops (near Port Arthur, the losses of the attackers were 16 times higher than the losses of the defenders).

By the power of its closures and barriers, fortification, as it were, replaces a certain part of manpower, that is, troops, freeing up a corresponding number of them to move to another point, and thus serves as the principle of concentrating forces at a decisive moment on a decisive point of the battlefield or theater of military operations.

Fortification as a science of artificial closures and barriers is divided into 3 sections: I - field, II - long-term and III - temporary.

fortification

Fortification - a building designed for sheltered placement and the most effective use of weapons, military equipment, command posts, as well as to protect the troops, population and objects of the country's rear from the effects of enemy weapons.

Fortifications are divided into field and long-term. Fortification is engaged in the development of structures, methods of erection and use of field and long-term fortifications.

Field fortification

Field fortification considers closures and barriers that serve for field troops, rarely remaining long in one place and therefore erected immediately before the battle and retaining their significance only for the duration of the battle in a given area. Accordingly, the time during which field fortifications are built and serve is usually measured in hours and rarely exceeds one day; the troops themselves are the labor force in their construction; a tool, the so-called trench, included in the marching equipment of the troops, and the material is mainly earth with the addition of sometimes the simplest forest and some other materials found at the work site. Field fortifications can be divided into:

A) fortifications, representing a combination of closure, positions for action by fire and barriers to assault;
B) trenches, giving closure and position for action by fire;
C) barriers that give only closure;
D) artificial obstacles, giving only an obstacle to the assault,

and finally

E) various kinds of adaptations of local objects for defense as a way of obtaining results characteristic of the previous types of buildings, but with the least expenditure of labor and time.

A) Field fortifications. In every area we occupy for defense, there are several points of particular importance, holding which in our power, we hinder the actions of the enemy and facilitate the actions of our troops. These will most often be commanding heights from which the neighboring sectors of our position are fired upon and access to the front and flanks of our position. For the defense of such especially important points of the terrain, small military units with a force of 1 to 4 companies are usually assigned for the entire duration of the battle. These military units are deprived of the possibility of moving into spaces that are less affected, and meanwhile their losses can reach significant proportions, since the significance of these points draws on them increased enemy fire. In order to paralyze these disadvantages, military units in especially important points of the terrain are provided with the construction of fortifications at such points, which provide better closure, a good shooting position and a serious obstacle to the assault. With little time for their construction (up to 12 hours), field fortifications are called hasty; with a longer time they are improved, the degree of their resistance is increased and is called reinforced.

Parapet

Any field fortification consists of an earthen embankment, called a parapet (from German Brust-wehr - chest cover), adapted for firing from behind it and covering the troops located behind, and an external ditch, giving ground for filling the parapet and serving as an obstacle to the assault. Drawing 1 is a perspective view of a field fortification section cut out of the ground, the shaded part of the drawing makes up the so-called fortification profile, that is, a section with a vertical plane perpendicular to the direction of the parapet in plan. The drawing shows the dimensions of the main parts of the fortification, and the height of the embankments and the depth of the recesses are calculated from the local horizon, depicted on the profiles of the fortifications as a dotted line with a mark = 0.

The height of the parapet should be sufficient to cover the troops located behind it from the eyes and shots from the field. Covering from the eyes is achieved with a height of the parapet in the height of a person, about 2.5 arshins; such a parapet will not protect against shots, because the bullets and fragments of shells aimed at strengthening do not fly horizontally, but with some declination, and, therefore, it is necessary either to increase the height of the parapet, or to arrange an internal ditch. With the existence of an internal moat, the parapet can be relatively lower, the fortification becomes less visible from the field and it is easier to disguise it, that is, make it less visible to the enemy; in addition, the parapet is poured on both sides, due to which the building of the fortification moves faster. Usually field fortifications come with two ditches - external and internal. To adapt the parapet for shooting, a step is sprinkled on it, on which people stand during shooting. This step is called a banquet, or shooting step; it should be below the crest of the parapet to the chest height, taken at 2 arshins, so that the arrow standing at the banquet, the inner crest of the parapet (the line of fire) falls at the height of the chest. If the height of the parapet is less than 2.5 arshins, for example 2 arshins, then the banquet will fall just on the local horizon; with an even lower parapet height, the shooting stage will be below the horizon, in the inner ditch. The lower the parapet, the deeper the inner ditch should be. The size of the fortification depends on the size of the detachment or garrison provided by it. The form of fortification in the plan is determined by the terrain and the intended directions of fire and other actions of friendly troops and the enemy. They usually try to make the fortification area limited by a defensive fence more compressed in the direction of enemy shots in order to reduce the likelihood of shells hitting. With all the variety of sizes and shapes of fortifications, the latter can be reduced to two main types: open fortifications and closed fortifications.

fortifications

Open fortifications do not have a defensive fence from the rear or from the gorge and are arranged when the place occupied by the fortification is secured from an attack from the rear by some natural barrier or troops located behind. Closed fortifications have a defensive fence on all sides and are erected for a stubborn and completely independent defense, when an attack can be expected from all sides. The location of the parapet of the fortification (in plan) is influenced by the terrain to the bends of which the fortification is applied, and the desired direction of fire from the fortification: in which direction they are supposed to shoot, the corresponding section or fracture of the parapet also turns in that direction. In order to avoid the longitudinal defeat of the parapet, which is very dangerous for the defenders, they try to give straight sections of the defensive fence such a direction in which their continuation would fall into points that are little accessible to the enemy; parts of the fence that do not meet these requirements should be as short as possible. Closed fortifications used in field fortification are called redoubts; open - lunette and redan.

Artificial obstacles are designed to hold the enemy under strong and well-aimed fire from a position or fortification and thereby increase his losses from fire. In a particular case, when located near the parapet itself, such as, for example, the outer ditch of the fortification, they upset the attacker before hitting the bayonets. In general, artificial obstacles are located at a distance of 50-150 steps from the line of fire and thus force the enemy, upset by overcoming the obstacle, to stay for some time under the fire of the defender. It is unprofitable to carry artificial obstacles further than 150 paces from the line of fire due to the difficulty of observing them in fog and twilight and the increase in the length of the obstacle along the front. The strength of artificial obstacles lies in their unexpectedness for the enemy and in the impossibility of destroying them from a distance with artillery fire, therefore they must be located secretly from the eyes and, if possible, from shots from the field; they achieve this by erecting an earthen embankment in front of the obstacles - glacis.

Artificial obstacles strengthen the defense of the most important points of the defensive position or place them in the weakest places in order to force the enemy to abandon their attack; such weak points usually turn out to be short fronts or outgoing corners, in general, points from which the terrain ahead is weakly fired upon. The dimensions of artificial obstacles are determined by the requirement for the difficulty of overcoming and destroying them: for horizontal obstacles, the width is at least 2-6 sazhens; for vertical - height not less than 2.5 arsh.; length - not allowing or making it difficult to bypass. The material is predominantly earth, wood, iron, gunpowder and water. With the help of the earth, the outer ditch of the fortifications and wolf pits are arranged (Fig. 7).

Wolf pits do not represent a sufficiently serious obstacle and cannot stand a long service; they are often reinforced with other obstacles or hammered into the bottom of the pits and between them spikes pointed at the top. Chess stakes, notches and palisades are made of wood. Notch (Fig. 8) - one of the most serious and most difficult to destroy obstacles; it settles very soon; sometimes the notch is strengthened by braiding the trees with wire. If there is enough wire, then arrange a wire network (Fig. 9); a wire net is an excellent barrier, better than any other resisting artillery fire; consists of several rows of stakes hammered into the ground, between which a wire is stretched in different directions.

Minefield

With the help of gunpowder, land mines are arranged, which are divided into ordinary, stone-throwing and self-explosive, or torpedoes. Ordinary and stone-throwing landmines, when the enemy approaches them, are blown up by the defender with the help of a fire drive, electric or corded; torpedoes act automatically, under the weight of people passing over them. Water-based obstacles include dams and floods. Any stream that flows parallel to the front of the defensive disposition of our troops or perpendicular to this front, from the enemy to us, is blocked with the help of dams and gets a dam at high banks, that is, an increase in the depth of the stream, and at low - flood. The construction of dams and floods is very time-consuming, and therefore they are rarely used in field warfare. E) The adaptation of local objects to the defense is considered in a special section called "the use of field photographic equipment to the terrain." This applied part considers the application of the general rules derived from the theoretical part to the most characteristic cases in real terrain, always more or less uneven and replete with local objects, such as groves, houses, fences, ditches, ravines, rivers, heights, gorges, etc. The application of field F. to the terrain teaches us how to strengthen their natural defensive properties, how to organize a stubborn defense, and, as far as possible, provides for all cases that occur when occupying defensive positions.

Long term fortification

Long-term F. examines the closures and barriers that serve to strengthen the defense of especially militarily important strategic points of the country, the significance of which is usually clarified many years before the war and is maintained for the entire duration of hostilities. Accordingly, long-term fortifications and the fortresses they form are built for years, serve, retaining their significance, for tens and even hundreds of years, and defend for months; civilian workers and specialists are working on their construction; tool - whatever you need, the material is not only earth, but also stone, brick, concrete, iron.

The goal of long-term F. is to resist with the least effort for as long as possible. To do this, it is necessary to have fortifications that are safe from assault, and to ensure the living forces of the defense from defeat.

The first condition is achieved by the construction of a closed defensive fence with a barrier fired upon by strong fire from buildings that are invulnerable from a distance; such an obstacle is usually an outer ditch, fired by longitudinal grapeshot fire.
The second is the arrangement of rooms that are safe from the most destructive siege artillery shells.

The stronger the fortifications erected to defend a given strategic point, the weaker its garrison can be; the strength of fortifications depends on time and money. Long-term fortifications force the attacker to spend a lot of time bringing up siege weapons to destroy them and in the process of destruction itself, and thus increase the duration of the resistance of the point reinforced by them to limits unattainable without the aid of long-term F., all other things being equal. A one-time expenditure on the construction of long-term fortifications saves manpower for many years, during which these fortifications serve, retaining their significance.

The goal of long-term F. has always remained unchanged, but the methods of achieving it have changed and will continue to change with the development and improvement of technology applied to military affairs. Any increase in the means of destruction immediately caused a corresponding increase in the means of shelter. From this one can see what a close connection there has always existed between artillery and artillery, and it is clear what an irresistible influence the former had on the latter, and especially on the details of its structures. The general arrangement of long-term fortifications was decisively influenced by the methods of defense and the number of garrison, which itself depended on the number of field armies. The most important moments in the development of long-term F. are caused by equally dramatic improvements in artillery and changes in the size of armies, so the history of F. can be divided into the following four periods:

1 period of throwing machines - from the most ancient times to firearms, that is, until the XIV century. ;

2 period of smooth artillery - before the introduction of rifled artillery, that is, until the middle of the 19th century. ;

3 period of rifled artillery - before the introduction of high-explosive bombs, that is, before the city;

4 period of high-explosive bombs - to the present.

A typical representative of the first period of long-term fencing are stone defensive fences in the form of high stone or brick walls with sheer sides and a flat upper surface, on which the defenders of the fortress were placed (Fig. 10).

The walls of the ancient fences were interrupted from place to place by towers, which served as the strongholds of the fence and prevented the enemy that appeared on the wall from spreading throughout the fence; from the towers they fired at the upper surface of the wall and guarded the connection between the interior of the fortress and the field. In this period, long-term F. was in a brilliant state; thick and high stone walls were protected from the escalade and were not afraid of contemporary throwing machines.

14th century

In order to make it difficult to produce collapses with artillery fire, part of the wall was lowered below the horizon, and an outer moat was obtained; for the same purpose, they began to build a small mound near the counterscarp, called glacis. The towers protruding from behind the fence, or, as they were called, bastei and rondels, had the inconvenience that part of the moat in front of their semicircular head remained in dead space, that is, it was not fired upon from neighboring rondels; to correct this shortcoming, from the second half of the 16th century. the protruding parts of the rondels began to be limited by straight lines tangent to the previous curve. The result was a defensive building called a bastion. The part of the enclosure between the two bastions was called the curtain wall. The curtain wall with two semi-bastions adjacent to it made up a section of the fence called the bastion front.

16th century

Concrete

Explosive bombs are the latest modern threat made by technology. Land mines - oblong projectiles stuffed with highly explosive compounds (pyroxylin, melinite, etc.), have terrible destructive power. In experiments in Malmaison in the city, one high-explosive bomb was enough to destroy the caponier and the powder cellar of the former building, with brick vaults covered with earth for 3-5 arsh. I had to resort to a material stronger than brick, and change the dimensions of the walls and especially the vaults of the casemated buildings; that material was concrete. It is composed of cement, sand and crushed stone or gravel; the mixture forms a thick mass, quickly hardening and then representing a remarkable strength and toughness. For an average size of buildings, a concrete vault a sazhen thick should be considered not only unconditionally reliable in the present, but also with a certain margin of safety against future, even stronger means of destruction.

Currently, all protective casemated buildings are built of concrete, and the defensive ones are partly made of concrete, partly combining concrete with armor. Armored closures are very common in Western Europe, but in our country they are resorted to relatively rarely due to the high cost and strength not proven by solid experiments. The invention of explosive bombs brought about the following changes in the profile of permanent fortifications: breastwork thickness increased to 42 ft.; the brick clothes of the outer moat were replaced by concrete ones; more often they began to resort to gratings, which suffered little from the fire of siege artillery; in order to protect the walls from hanging bombs, deepening below the base of the foundation and acting like mines, the bases of the walls began to be covered with concrete mattresses. If technology invents even more powerful means of defeat and destruction, then it will also indicate the means to repel these blows.

The usefulness of fortresses has been constantly disputed: they say that fortresses are expensive, that, by requiring large garrisons, they divert many forces from field armies, often do not take part in the war, that equal forces can be shielded from a fortress, and, finally, that with the modern state of military art the fortress can be captured with small forces and soon. As Professor Cui aptly put it, the cost of a fortress is an insurance premium paid for the security of the state. Fortresses, of course, require many troops for their defense, especially for modern large fortresses; but a lot or a little is a relative concept; with the increase in armies, the garrisons of fortresses naturally increased as well. At the same time, fortresses free the field troops, making it possible to defend the most important points with relatively small forces. If in the course of hostilities the fortress does not take a direct part in the war, then it serves as a center for organizing militias and reinforcements (Lyon in the city) and a warehouse for military and life supplies; and even the mere existence of a fortress, even if not included in the sphere of hostilities, can decisively influence the plan of the campaign.

The high cost of modern fortresses forces them to be erected exclusively at points that are especially important in a strategic sense; it is possible to defend oneself only from a fortress that has no strategic importance, the possession of which is not necessary for the advancing army. Otherwise, such a barrier is usually very expensive, an example of which is the famous Turkish quadrangle of fortresses in the war - g. The ability to capture a fortress quickly and with small forces is usually based on the assumption that the fortress is completely unprepared for defense at the beginning of the siege, on the inability of the garrison to take action , panic, etc., and on such shaky grounds they draft accelerated attacks.

The opponents of the fortresses confirm their arguments by referring to the rapid fall of some French fortresses during the war - r. But these fortresses are special in that criminal negligence with which they resisted. And up to the present time, the only successful attempt to create an accelerated attack must be considered Vauban's attack; his attack was considered, tested, studied and called correct. The opponents of the fortresses forget the brilliant role which the latter played in many campaigns. Almost all recent campaigns are reduced, in essence, to the sieges of fortresses and end with their surrender: the war for the independence of Belgium - the surrender of the Antwerp citadel; the Danish war - by taking the Dyuppel fortifications; American - the fall of Charleston; The Eastern War - the city is reduced to the sieges of Silistria, Sevastopol and Kars. The second period of the war - from the time of the taxation of Metz - is nothing but a serf war on a grandiose scale. During the last Eastern War, the temporary fortifications of Plevna delayed the course of the campaign for a long time; if Plevna had been a fortress, it would not have surrendered so soon from hunger and could have had a more decisive influence. Finally, in the clash with China in the city, the fortresses of Taku and Tien-Tzin play an outstanding role; with their fall, the path to Beijing was opened and a base on the seashore was secured for the operating allied army.

With the modern rapid organization of large armies and their rapid movement along numerous railways, the importance of fortresses as the only means of repelling unexpected attacks in large numbers has increased even more. The peculiar and enormous benefit they bring makes the appeal to long-term fortifications inevitable.

In the First World War, only two fortresses fully completed their task: the large French fortress of Verdun and the small Russian fortress of Osovets.

Long-term fortification is a branch of fortification, which includes the preparation of the territory of the state for war, the construction of fortresses and their elements. Its structures must resist the action of means of destruction, for which the most durable materials (soil, stone, brick, wood, concrete, reinforced concrete, armor) are used in their construction.

Temporary fortification

Fortification in Russia

The most common artificial obstacles were tyn (palisade), part (chess stakes) and garlic (the same part, but iron). Stone fences come into use from the middle of the 11th century. (Kyiv, founded by Yaroslav in the city; Novgorod), and they were often located along with wooden and earthen fences. The walls were built from natural stones or from

Field fortifications of the Russian Army
at the end of the 19th century.

Part 6
Field fortifications.

For stubborn defense of the most important, key positions of the defense line, strongholds were created. Field fortifications were considered the basis of strongholds.

I want to once again draw the attention of readers to the fact that the rifle and gun trenches described in previous articles did not belong to field fortifications. They were considered temporary defensive structures in the event of an attack failure. They were left when it was renewed.

In the event that the command made a decision to stop the offensive and go on the defensive, then under the cover of infantry and guns that were open or in the trenches by that moment, reconnaissance of the area was carried out and the construction of field shelters began, into which the units moved as soon as the structures were ready. In some cases, trenches could be built into fortifications. Or vice versa - the trenches could develop into fortifications.

The main differences between fortifications and trenches are:

1. The thickness of the parapet (embankment) provides protection not only from rifle bullets, but also from direct hits from artillery shells.

2. There is a wide and deep ditch in front of the parapet, which prevents enemy infantry from breaking into the positions of our subunits.

3. The outline of the fortification in terms of not linear, but such as to ensure the defense of the position in case of an attack both from the front and from the flanks, and in some cases, all-round defense.

4. Inside the fortification there are shelters for the fortification garrison (traverses, shrapnel ditches, dugouts).

The unit(s) assigned to defend a field fortification is called a "fortification garrison". The smallest unit assigned to a fortification can be a company. The company commander in this case becomes the "commandant of the fortification." If the fortification garrison consists of two or three companies, then the eldest of the company commanders is appointed commandant of the fortification. Accordingly, if a fortification is occupied by a battalion, then the battalion commander is appointed as the commandant of the fortification.

As a rule, the garrison is divided into two parts:
a. The combat unit of the garrison (from half to 3/4 of the entire personnel of the garrison).
b. Internal reserve of the garrison (from 1/4 to half of the total personnel of the garrison).

In addition, there may be an "external garrison reserve". As a rule, if 2-3 companies of the battalion are assigned to the garrison, then 2 or 1 company remains at the disposal of the battalion commander, which, together with him, are outside the shelter. Their battalion commander can appoint an external reserve. However, the external reserve is not intended to replenish the garrison or bring it into the fortification to support the garrison. The external reserve operates outside the fortification, but in the interests of holding the fortification. Those. conducts counterattacks near the fortification, destroys the enemy bypassing the fortification, etc.

Relative to ground level, fortifications can be:

1. Horizontal profiles.
2. Recessed profiles.
3. Sublime profiles.

AT strengthening horizontal profiles the shooter stands on a banquet about 70 cm wide at ground level and is covered with a parapet to chest level
("chest-height parapet"), i.e. approximately 1.4 meters. The thickness of the parapet (shaft) on the top is 3.6 - 4.2 meters, on the bottom - 5-6 meters. The inner ditch (ditch running behind the parapet), designed for the free movement of personnel inside the fortification and the placement of reserve shooters, has a depth of 1.24 m, a width of 2.14 meters at the top.
As in a shooting trench, a step is arranged at the front wall of the ditch, which here is not a shooting step, but is intended for seating personnel and for a convenient exit up to the parapet. The space between the front edge of the inner ditch and the parapet (shaft) is called the "banquet" and has a width of 70-72 centimeters.
The parapet should be somewhat lowered to the outside so that there would be no impenetrable space ("dead zone") in front of the parapet.
The outer ditch formed when the shaft is poured (from which the soil for the parapet is taken) must have a width of at least 4.3 meters, a depth at the scarp wall (the wall facing the parapet) of at least 3 meters, the depth of the counterscarp wall (the wall facing towards the field), no less than 2.1 meters. Usually, the soil extracted during the passage of the outer ditch is significantly larger than is required for the formation of a parapet. Therefore, after the parapet is poured, the rest of the soil from the ditch is poured out to the outside, forming a very gentle wide embankment called "glacis".
The purpose of the glacis:
1. Difficulty in sighting enemy artillery due to the fact that from a distance it is impossible to determine where the glacis ends and the parapet begins.
2. Taking on part of the shells sent to the parapet and ricocheting them.
3. Difficulty in lowering enemy soldiers into the ditch (due to the fact that, thanks to the glacis, the depth of the ditch, as it were, increases).
The height of the glacis at the moat is made about 70 cm high and gradually decreases to zero in the field.

AT reinforcing recessed profiles the banquet is not made at ground level, but lowered by 35-40 cm, and the parapet is poured lower than in strengthening the horizontal profile.
The height of the parapet here is 1.0-1.05 meters. Accordingly, the inner ditch of the fortification breaks off deeper by 35-40 centimeters.
The advantage of strengthening the in-depth profile is its less visibility from the enemy.

In areas where the terrain is lowered in comparison with the surrounding landscape or where it is necessary to predominate in height over the enemy, fortifications of an elevated profile can be erected.

AT reinforcing elevated profiles the banquet, on the contrary, rises above ground level by 35-40 centimeters. Accordingly, the height of the parapet increases by the same 35-40 cm.
However, this type of fortification is more visible to the enemy and easier to hit. Therefore, the strengthening of an elevated profile can be arranged only in exceptional cases, when its shortcomings are compensated by the given advantage (increase in the range of fire and observation).

From the author. It is worth remembering that at the end of the 19th century, infantry and cavalry of the warring parties mainly fought among themselves. Artillery was not as plentiful as it became during the First World War and its support for attacking infantry was not very significant. All the difficulties of storming the fortifications thus fell on the shoulders of the infantry. Just imagine - first you need to overcome the glacis, and this is an absolutely smooth strip with a width of 30-40 meters without the slightest shelter. Then you need to somehow go down into the ditch from the crest of the glacis along the counterscarp wall. And this is almost two human growth. Then climb the scarp wall. And this is more than 3 meters. You can't do without stairs. Climb up the shaft. And only then you can rush along the shaft with a width of about 4-5 meters with bayonets. And all the while, the attacking soldiers are subjected to merciless rifle fire from the garrison, which is hidden behind the parapet and has the ability to easily find targets and carefully aim. Whereas the attackers, at best, see only the heads of the enemy’s shooters above the parapet and are forced to alternate their fire with movement. And this puts the attackers at a distinct disadvantage.

So in those conditions, field fortifications were a tough nut to crack.

In terms of all field fortifications are divided into:

1. Open, in which the parapet with moats covers only the front and flanks, the back side (gorge)
remains open. Such a fortification cannot withstand an attack from the rear and is usually erected where an enemy attack from the rear is excluded by natural obstacles. Typically, such a fortification is referred to as " lunette".

The dimensions of the lunette in the plan are not stipulated by the Manual. Based on the fact that the infantry company had about 200 riflemen, it can be assumed that the lunette could occupy no more than 200-250 meters along the front.

In plan, the lunette was an open quadrilateral. The left and right front parts of the lunette were called the left and right front, respectively. The faces in relation to each other could be at an angle from 0 to 60 degrees. Those. at an angle of 0 degrees, the left and right faces merged into one front face.
The left and right parts of the lunette, which were rotated in relation to their face by 30-60 degrees, were called, respectively, the left and right flanks ( V.Yu.G.- It's not a typo. It is flan to, not flan G. The left and right flanks are the ends of the unit's formation, and the flanks are parts of the fortification to repel an attack from the flanks)/

The rear open side of the fortification is called "gorge" or "gorge part of the lunette". There may be a trench for reserves in the gorge. In terms of its structure, this is an ordinary trench with a full profile.

From the author. It is curious that the parapet of the trench for reserves faces the front, and not to the rear, which would be more logical. In this case, the lunette garrison would have been able to repel an attack from the rear. However, it is prescribed by the Instruction. Obviously, for the reason that the lunette is not intended for defense from the rear and usually rests its flanks on natural obstacles (river, swamp, steep mountain, settlement, etc.).

The space, bounded in front and on the sides by a moat, and behind the gorges, is called the "courtyard of the lunette". The instruction does not describe the purpose of the courtyard.
In the inner ditch of the lunette, shrapnel ditches, traverses, dugouts, exits to the rear, and latrines can be arranged, as in rifle trenches.
Due to the fact that the lunette is intended for long-term defense, it is considered obligatory to wear the steepness of the inner ditch, the rear wall of the rampart (parapet).

Regarding the placement of field guns in the lunette, as well as the arrangement of various kinds of auxiliary structures (ammunition shelters, commander's shelters and observation posts, etc.), household and utility structures, nothing is said in the Manual. Obviously, all this is decided by the garrison commander, based on the availability of time, forces, materials.

2. Closed, in which the parapet with moats covers the fortification from all sides. vernacular
the name of such fortifications " redoubt".

The difference between a redoubt and a lunette is, first of all, that the redoubt, in addition to the front faces, also has a gorge, facing the rear and designed to repel an enemy attack from the rear.

In the figure, the floor front (i.e. the front facing the field towards the enemy) is shown straight, although it may be the same as that of the lunette shown above (and vice versa).

At the redoubt in the gorge face, two entrances are usually left, each 3-4 meters wide, which are usually covered by two full-profile trenches facing the rear. In addition, a breastwork (also called a traverse) can be poured behind the inner moat (towards the courtyard) of the gorge, which protects soldiers from bullets flying from the front from the side of the floor and flank faces. also because of this parapet, arrows can fire inside the courtyard if the enemy breaks into the courtyard through the floor or flank faces.
If the time and conditions of the defense allow, then full profile trenches can be torn off from the junction points of the flank fronts and the gorge front in both directions parallel to the floor front. The so-called "mustache
redoubt". The mustache is intended not only to strengthen the defensive capabilities of the redoubt. A large part of the personnel can hide in the mustache if the redoubt was subjected to heavy artillery fire.

Also, if there is not enough time, or if the danger of an attack from the rear is small, then the gorge front can also be just a full-profile trench.

From the author. All these names of the elements of the lunette, redoubt today may not have much meaning, but in those days every infantry soldier was obliged to know these terms so that the commander would not have to explain to the soldier where to run for a long time, or vice versa, so that the soldier could clearly and clearly report to the commander what and where happened. Yes, and a person reading today, say, "War and Peace", it becomes clearer why this place on the Borodino field was called "Raevsky's Battery". General Raevsky did not command an artillery unit. He was responsible for the defense of the stronghold, the basis of which was a fortification called "battery".

Usually the garrison of a redoubt is two or three infantry companies. Regarding the placement of artillery in the redoubt, the Manual does not indicate anything. Obviously, it is believed that field artillery should remain the mobile fire reserve of the senior commander, and not be tied to certain fortifications.

The internal reserve of the garrison of the redoubt, as a rule, is located in the inner moat of the gorge front.

Building a redoubt is a costly undertaking. The instruction indicates that the construction of a redoubt with a capacity of two companies with a front of 300 meters (only earthworks with medium soil) requires 16-17 hours of work of 1600 people.

In the inner ditch of the redoubt, as in rifle trenches and with the same requirements, shrapnel ditches, traverses, latrines and dugouts are arranged. At the same time, it is recommended to pour a protective layer of soil about 30 centimeters thick on the wooden roof of the dugouts.

The structures described above in parts 1-6 of this article exhaust all the fortifications of the Russian Army as of 1897. We see that such forts as flushes, ravelins, etc. have disappeared from the list of fortifications. The experience of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 will lead to new changes. There will be single trenches for prone shooting, structures for machine guns, deep shelters, etc.

Sources and literature:

1. Podchertkov, Yakovlev. A sapper hole for infantry and cavalry. Printing house of P.P. Soikin. St. Petersburg. 1897
2..F.Pi.D. Feld-Pionierdienst aller Waffen. Entwurf 1912. Muenhen. 1912
3. Guide to military fortifications. Military publishing house of the USSR Ministry of Defense. Moscow 1962
4. Kalibernov E.S. Handbook of an officer of the engineering troops. Moscow. Military publishing house. 1989

Fortification is the science of artificial barriers and closures that reinforce regimental positions during combat. The theory of this discipline was developed by Albrecht Dürer.

Subject of study

It is the properties, location rules, methods of erecting buildings for defense and attack. Barriers and closures are often created by the terrain itself. Fortification is the study of improving natural local formations and strengthening them with artificial structures. Buildings for the side using them create favorable conditions for combat. The fortification contributes to inflicting the greatest harm on the enemy with minimal own losses.

The dead force of barriers and closures in a certain way replaces living resources - soldiers, freeing up a certain amount of them to move to other points. Thus, buildings provide a concentration of forces at decisive moments on the most important points of the battlefield.

Fortification: a general concept

It is a building that is intended for indoor placement and the most efficient use of weapons, command posts, military equipment, as well as to protect soldiers, rear facilities and the population from enemy attacks. To implement these tasks, a permanent or temporary fortification can be erected. Within the framework of science, its design, method of creation and use are studied.

field buildings

A fortification can be created for units that rarely stay in one location for long. Such structures are erected immediately before the battle and retain their significance only for its period. The time during which a field fortification serves is usually measured in hours and rarely exceeds one day in duration. The construction of buildings is carried out by the soldiers themselves using the tools included in the marching equipment. A field fortification is a construction made of earth with the addition, in some cases, of the simplest forest or other materials that can be found in the area.

Classification

Field buildings can be divided into the following categories:

In addition, in the field, local items can be adapted to create a building. This method also allows you to achieve the same results as from the construction of the above structures, but with the least amount of time and materials.

Key Points

In any area where it is supposed to hold the defense, you can find several points of particular importance. Holding them makes it difficult for the enemy to move and makes it easier for your own soldiers to move. As a rule, commanding heights act as field fortifications. From them, shelling of areas adjacent to the location is carried out, and access to the flanks and fronts of the position is also visible. Ensuring the defense of these points is carried out throughout the battle. For this, 1-4 companies are allocated. These units are deprived of the ability to move in space, are less susceptible to shelling. However, their losses can be quite significant, since the importance of these points brings on them increased enemy fire actions.

To prevent attacks and assaults, a fortification is erected around each such point. This provides better closure, a solid barrier, and a good firing position. With a short battle (up to 12 hours), such fortifications are built hastily. During longer battles, structures are strengthened, improved, increasing their level of resistance. Such structures are called already reinforced.

Extended defense

Depending on the nature of the battle, a permanent or temporary fortification underground structure may be erected. The building can also be created on the surface. Permanent structures are barriers and closures designed to enhance the protection of critical strategic points in the country. The significance of such territories, as a rule, is clarified long before the outbreak of hostilities and is preserved throughout their entire length. That is why any such fortification serves for several tens or even hundreds of years, although it takes months to defend.

Civilian workers are involved in the creation of the structure. During construction, different tools and materials are used (earth, iron, concrete, brick, stone). Such structures are erected to provide long-term defense using the least amount of forces. This requires the presence of a fortified building, protected from assault. This is ensured by erecting a defensive closed fence with an obstacle that will allow shelling from structures that are invulnerable from a distance. A fortification structure of a triangular shape can act as such a fortification. In the fortresses in front of the moat, such a building provided the maximum defense. The shelling was carried out with a canister longitudinal fire.

Ravelin

This building is a fortification of a triangular shape. It is located between the bastions and serves for cross-fire. With the help of it, the approaches to the fortification bypass are protected and neighboring fortifications are supported. The walls that made up the embankment in the fortification had a height of 1-1.5 m lower than in the central building. When capturing a ravelin, thus, its shelling is facilitated.

Design features

The stronger the fortification, the weaker the garrison can be. Strengthening the structure depends on time and financial support. Permanent buildings force the enemy to bring siege weapons to destroy them. All this takes quite a lot of time. This, in turn, allows you to continue active resistance and defense. The purpose of such structures is always the same. Meanwhile, the methods of its implementation are constantly being improved with the development of military equipment. With any strengthening of means of destruction, adjustments are immediately made to the design of fortifications.

Stages of development of buildings

The most important stages are due to a rather sharp increase in the number of the Armed Forces and the improvement of artillery. In this regard, long-term fortification went through the following periods:

Temporary fortifications

According to their structure, they are intermediate structures between long-term and field structures. In peacetime, they are erected at secondary strategic points. In some cases, for example, with insufficient funding, temporary structures are replaced by permanent fortifications. During the period of hostilities, they are erected at the most important sites of the upcoming battles, as well as at points located in already captured territories, the significance of which is clarified directly during the battle.

Construction features

The time that can be spent on erection ranges from several days to months. Various materials, tools and means are used for construction. In this regard, the structures themselves have different reinforcement. If there are several months for the construction, then civilian workers are involved. The material used in such cases is concrete and other raw materials used in the construction of permanent fortifications.

A significant difference is noted in the design of the fences. In temporary fortifications, the number of casemates is very limited, the barriers are horizontal, the defense of the ditches is carried out in an open way. These buildings provide protection against large siege weapons. But, since they are weaker than long-term ones, they require more troops.

General character of the fortifications

Temporary points can be represented in the form of fences, forts, and so on. Their general character is similar to long-term buildings. Most often, forts are built. They are built during the construction of not only reinforced camps, but also weaker fortifications. In some cases, barriers and closures of various types are used to protect one point. Thus, fortresses are surrounded by forts or intermediate points are arranged at large distances between permanent structures. In addition, forward points are being built to increase spare ammo magazines. Large garrisons provide active defense, but in these cases the losses can be significant. So, for example, during the defense of Sevastopol in 1854-55. More than 100,000 people were out of action.

Development of the discipline in Russia

The origin of fortification coincided with the beginning of settled life. The development of science went through the same stages as in Western Europe, but much later. This was due to unfavorable historical events. Defensive earthen fences acted as the first shelters from enemy attacks. Such structures were used until the 9th century. In Western Europe by that time they had already been replaced by stone buildings. Since the 4th century, wooden structures began to be erected in Russia, and parapets appeared at the end of the 11th century. They were first plank, and then log. The fire was fired over the parapet. Wooden fences were reinforced with crowned towers. They were built mainly hexagonal. Loopholes were made in their walls - special windows for cannon and rifle firing.

The defense of Ancient Russia was carried out from numerous separately located fortified points and guard lines. The first were called towns or cities, depending on their size. Any settlement was necessarily fortified to protect against robbers who attacked both during external and internecine wars. Residential areas that were not classified as cities were surrounded by prisons. These fortifications were also placed on the border with states in which military art was poorly developed.

19th century

In this century, military engineering literature appeared and spread quite widely in Russia. The domestic fortification school enjoyed undoubted respect in the West at that time. Outstanding engineering ideas were translated into reality at the beginning of the century. Thus, each fortification during the Patriotic War of 1812 illustrated the talent and originality of the designers' ideas. However, the fortifications were practically not involved in the battles. It depended on the intensity of the battles. Rapid retreats followed by the same surprise attacks and the incompleteness of the main lines of fortifications did not allow either side to conduct a thoughtful and consistent siege. Nevertheless, every existing fortification during World War II fulfilled the task assigned to it.

An example is the battle of the Dinaburg walls. Marshal Oudinot, unable to capture the bridgehead, tried to arrange something like a siege. However, he met resistance actively and skillfully defending the garrison. After that, deprived of engineering detachments and artillery, the marshal was forced to retreat. Such results were given by each fortification during the Patriotic War of 1812. If there were more such buildings, then the course of the struggle would be completely different.