Military construction

“ In modern times, however, the application of numerous scientific and engineering devices to warfare has resulted in the creation of many minor branches of military engineering, some of them almost rivalling in importance their primary duty of fortification and siegecraft, such as the field telegraph, the balloon service, nearly all demolitions, the building of pontoon and other bridges, and the construction and working of military roads, railways, piers, &c. ”

“ Battlefield construction was carried out by the infantry regiments to the limit of unit capabilities. The division engineers, one company per frontline regiment, augmented at times by shore party units, supplied the technical know-how and engineering materials and equipment. These combat support troops processed the lumber for bunker construction and built fortifications for forward medical treatment and one bunker for observation of battle action by civilian and military dignitaries, irreverently called VIPs (Very Important Persons) , who frequently visited the division. ”

“ The engineer troops and detachments of workmen being first marched to the dépôts and supplied with all the necessary tools for carrying on the work, now commence their labors under the protection of these guards. By daybreak the construction of the first parallel, and the trenches connecting it with the dépôts, will be sufficiently advanced to cover the men from the fire of the place; the guards will therefore be withdrawn, and the workmen continue their labors during the day to give the trenches the proper size and form. ”

“ And quoting now from the same document, Paragraph 2, II and III—I am quoting directly:
“II. Construction and armament industry.
“ (a) Work units for construction of all kinds, particularly for the fortification of coastal defenses (concrete workers, unloading units for essential war plants) .
“ (b) Suitable armament factories which are to be selected in such a way that their personnel will consist in the majority of prisoners of war under guidance and supervision (upon withdrawal and other employment of the German workers) . ”

“ Considered in a military point of view, as a work of defence, it is well chosen, well guarded, and, with an adequate force, impregnable to any mode of attack practised by a rude, or semi-civilized people. As a natural stronghold, it has few equals; and the p016 degree of skill displayed and the amount of labor expended in constructing its artificial defences, challenge our admiration, and excite our surprise. With all the facilities and numerous mechanical appliances of the present day, the construction of a work of this magnitude would be no insignificant undertaking. ”

“ The duties of the engineer department will comprise the construction and repairs of fortifications, and a general superintendence and inspection of the same, military reconnoitrings, embracing general surveys and examinations of particular sites for fortifications, and the formation of plans and estimates, in detail, for fortifications for the defence of the same, with such descriptive and military memoirs as may be necessary to establish the importance and capabilities of the position intended to be occupied ”

“ Field-Engineering includes the making of military reconnaissances, temporary fortifications, and military roads; the planning and construction of military bridges; the attack and defence of military works;—in fine, all the various duties of engineer troops, either in the operations of a campaign, or in the dispositions on the battle-field. ”

“ They are required to be jack-of-all-trades, and masters of each. The construction of works and bridges, and of military buildings—the planning and direction of the attack and defence of a fortification, and a thousand and one other duties fall to their lot. ”

“ Among the present-day peace-time duties of the Royal Engineers are the construction and maintenance of barracks and military works generally, while for war purposes the corps is organized into mobile units known as field squadrons and companies for general field-work, and into more highly specialized units for mining, heavy bridging, and railway work. ”

“ But the stonework is wonderful, indicating not only a high degree of manual expertness, but the maintenance of a severe standard of efficiency through every part, while the skill shewn in the planning of fortifications so as to strengthen every defensive line and turn to account the natural features of the ground would have done credit to the military engineering of fifteenth-century Europeans. ”

“ More than twenty feet thick at the base and than twelve feet on the top; rising fifteen to thirty feet above the ground with parapets along both faces and towers every two hundred yards rising twenty feet higher, it must have been, for its time and the methods of warfare then practiced, when defended by their thousands, the boldest and most efficient national defense ever constructed. Nor in the economy of construction and maintenance has it ever been equalled. ”

“ Moreover, broad plans commensurate with our national purpose and resources would bring conviction of our power to every soldier in the front line, to the nations associated with us in the war, and to the enemy. The tonnage for material for necessary construction for the supply of an army of three and perhaps four million men would require a mammoth program of shipbuilding at home, and miles of dock construction in France, with a corresponding large project for additional railways and for storage depots. ”

“ And here our trouble begins, for, while civil engineers have constant experience to guide them, their roads, bridges, and other structures being in constant use, the military engineer has only now and then, at long intervals, a war or a siege of sufficient extent to furnish data upon which he can safely plan or build his structures. ”

“ The ground to be attacked lent itself peculiarly to defense, being composed of a succession of ridges, rivers, and canals, which formed natural lines of defense of very great strength. These natural positions, often mutually supporting, had been abundantly fortified. Their organization was the last work in military engineering, and represented years of intensive and systematic labor. Barbed-wire entanglements were formidable, machine-gun positions innumerable, and large tunnels had been provided for the protection of the garrison. ”

“ It means the organizing of an army, bringing troops from distant garrisons, artillery from concentration points, arranging food depots from which provision trains can be run regularly, munition depots to feed the guns, preparation and equipment of hospitals in the field and at the bases, wounded transportation and ambulance systems, stables, forage depots and veterinary stations for the cavalry and artillery horses, repair shops for military machinery, supply depots for uniforms and equipment, and a thousand other things besides. ”

“ The artillery does likewise, and in addition keeps up a staff of artificers to attend to minor needs of the guns—men capable of repairing breakages in the field, as far as this is possible. Wherever horses are concerned, too, saddlers must be trained to keep leather work in repair.
The Engineers, a body of men who seldom get the recognition their work deserves, have to train in telegraphy, bridge-building, construction and demolition of all things, from a regular defensive fortification to a field kitchen, and many other things incidental to the smooth working of an army in the field. ”

“ He bestowed much attention on military engineering and fortification. He set forth as early as 1849, in his "New System of Fortification," the advantages of earthworks as defenses against artillery, which have since been conclusively proved many times in real battle. ”

“ The earth is shaken for miles around, trenches are entirely buried with the débris, while companies of men are engulfed, and immense mine-craters formed.
During the progress of this war there has been a constant increase in the number of engineering troops and development in engineer equipment. While the organization of the German troops at the outset of the war included large numbers of engineer soldiers specially trained for military purposes, the number of engineer units in the British forces as well as those of our other allies was comparatively small. ”

“ In every respect the systems are regarded as, first of all, the means of military transportation, and accordingly, wherever any portion or portions of a given line may appear to be exposed to hostile attack, principles of ordinary fortification are adopted. ”

“ History.—It is difficult to distinguish between military and civil engineers in the earlier ages of modern history, for all engineers acted as builders of castles and defensible strongholds, as well as manufacturers and directors of engines of war with which to attack or defend them. The annals of fortification show professors, artists, &c., as well as soldiers and architects, as designers and builders of innumerable systems of fortification. By the middle of the 13th century there was in England an organized body of skilled workmen employed under a “chief engineer.” ”

“ The system so wisely adopted and so long pursued of constructing fortifications at exposed points and of preparing and collecting the supplies necessary for the military defense of the country, and thus providently furnishing in peace the means of defense in war, has been continued with the usual results. ”

“ Rampart walls, traverses, screen-walls, intricate entrances, narrow and labyrinthine passages, sunken thoroughfares, banquettes, parapets, and other devices of a people thoroughly conversant with military engineering and defence, and not one word, not one line, not one clue as to the identity of the builders nor the object of their colossal labours ”

“ As to the men, there are cities where only trained soldiers are taken as firemen; others where the engines are manned by sailors. In some towns the building trades supply the recruits; in others, all trades are either discriminately or indiscriminately represented. A combination from the army or navy on the one side and the building trades on the other is most satisfactory. The knowledge of building construction in the ranks stands the force in good stead, and has often saved both lives and property. ”

“ Infantrymen would do the simple digging and repairing of trenches under engineer supervision, while the engineer troops would prepare machine gun and trench mortar emplacements and perform major trench work and other construction. ”

“ Half-moons, tenailles, crown and horn-works, and similar constructions, provided they be well fenced with palisades, will answer all the purposes required in such cases. The engineer, by the first glance of his eye, will be able to ascertain the situation of the country, and to fit his plans accordingly. Small lodgments, or wooden recesses, must be made as guard-houses, in which detached parties of men should be stationed to meet the first attacks of the enemy, and to keep him in check while the whole army passes over the river, or is drawn up in order of battle to dispute the passage. ”

“ The First Class make position and road sketches, they lay out field fortifications, and dig trenches. They learn the use of explosives, the placing of mines, and the dynamiting of trees, buildings, and railroads. During the Academic year the Department of Practical Military Engineering gives the Fourth Class a thorough course in surveying that embraces both theory and practical work with the instruments in the field. ”

“ They are also taught to adjust and sod the slopes, to erect palisades, fraises, etc., and to repair the defenses of a place, as also to erect bridges, and throw pontons over rivers, to plant torpedoes, and in fact to perform all the duties appertaining to engineer soldiers. In marching near an enemy, every column should have with its advance-guard a detachment of sappers, furnished with tools to open the way or repair the road. ”

“ There are several things to be well considered in laying the foundation of a military building. We must first examine the bed of the earth upon which we are to build, and then the under fillings or substruction. We are not to rest upon any seeming solidity, unless the whole mould through which we cut has likewise been solid; and in such cases, allow 1⁄6th part of the height of the building for the hollowing or under-digging, unless there be cellars under ground, in which case it may be something less. ”

“ Owing to the facilities for observation that the aeroplanes and other air craft afford, and to the accuracy and effect of modern artillery fire, every possible means should be taken to conceal trenches, gun implacements, and other works. The aim should be to alter the natural surface of the ground as little as possible and to present a target of the smallest possible dimensions. ”

“ Moreover, a number of the works which were constructed by our engineers before that corps was made to feel the influence of the scientific education introduced through the medium of the Military Academy—we say, a considerable number of our fortifications, constructed by engineers who owed their appointment to political influence, are not only wrong in their plans, but have been made of such wretched materials and workmanship that they are already crumbling into ruins. ”

“ The points of particular interest in these Reports, so far as relates to organization, are the inauguration of a great system of field-fortifications for the defence of the national capital, and the preparation of engineer-equipments, particularly bridge-equipage for crossing rivers. These are only sketched, but the outline is drawn by an artist who is master of the subject. The professional engineer, when he examines the immense fortifications of Washington and sees their skilful construction, can appreciate the labor and thought which must have been bestowed on them. ”