Counterinsurgency for Dummies: Or How NOT To Win A Guerilla War

A new write-up from the students!  The blog prompt this time:

Help write the Idiot's Guide to a Successful Counterinsurgency Campaign.  List one tip, then give us an example of a successful (or mostly successful) operation that did it right, and an example of where an operation went wrong in regards to this tip.

We think the student who wrote the post below perfectly captured this theme!

---

Congratulations! You’ve found an excerpt from Counterinsurgency for Dummies! Read on to learn more.

So, you were sitting in a pub, having a nice cold pint, when another country bumped into you and knocked your drink over. You demanded they pay for a new one, they refused, one thing led to another and now you’re in the middle of a guerilla-style war. Want to come out of this on top, and with a fresh pint? Use this handy tip to gain a hand up on your enemies: don’t have long supply trains.

Now, when fighting a guerilla war, chances are good you won’t be on your home turf. You’ll be out in difficult terrain, most likely, far from any strongholds you may have in this country. You’ll need a steady stream of supplies coming to keep your army well-fed, well-rested, and heavily armed. It may be tempting, while winning, to move your troops farther and farther away from your stronghold, but here’s where the advice comes into play – don’t do it.

 

Image source: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/significance-and-
important-facts-about-the-boer-wars.html 

Long supply trains have historically been bad for the British army. Take, for instance, the Second Boer War, which occurred between 1899 and 1902 in South Africa. The British had one stronghold in South Africa – Cape Town. As the map demonstrates, the front was a great distance away from Cape Town, which created a problem – the British had to get their supplies to the front lines. Lengthy supply trains were excellent targets for guerilla forces, and the Boers frequently attacked them, as this infamous story shows. The British had to come up with a good plan to defend their supply trains.

Unfortunately, their response was… less than perfect. The British created “blockhouses”, cheap houses that housed 8 to 10 troops, lined up for miles of open territory. The idea was to make it impossible to attack the trains. This worked in theory, but not in practice. Many times, the troops would wait months without seeing a single battle; other times, entire block houses would be destroyed easily, as the Boer troops overwhelmed the small force. Ultimately, the blockhouses were altered into a fence, which kept the Boers from moving across the land as easily. In this, they were extremely successful, but they did fail their original purpose.

Even though the British won the Second Boer War, they remembered the blockhouses’ failure and resolved to do better. They succeeded in the First and Second World Wars. At the start of WWI, the Britannic, a famous sister ship to the infamous Titanic, ran into a mine and consequently sank. While 1,035 passengers survived out of 1,065, this was only the most famous ship sunk – many more sank from torpedoes and mines. Other supply ships travelling alone across the Atlantic, British or not, were prime targets for German U-Boats.

However, the British were fast to notice their ships being attacked and responded responsibly – by having their supply ships travel in packs, escorted by military vessels. This drastically reduced the loss of life and supplies.

So remember: when fighting a guerilla war, always keep your supply trains close by. Don’t stretch yourself too thin – but if you must, surround the supply train with a large military group as an escort, discouraging any attempts to take or destroy the supplies. Just remember this one tip, and your campaign is sure to succeed!*

*Disclaimer: This tip alone is not enough to guarantee a successful military campaign. We hold no responsibility for any other reasons your military campaign may have failed.