World War I: Military Communications--Communications Technology
Figure 1.--Here a British despatch rider, we believe eraly in the War, is making some adjustments to his Triumph 1914 Model H Roadster at Nesle, France. Some French girls wearing smocks look on. If they had been boys they wiukd ahve been more impressed. Notice the blackened headlight. Nesle in nortwestern France close to the Somme where the British fought a huge, costly battle in 1916. The village is just south of the trench line. Notice the background. The village was cleerly in range of German shelling, but as only one or two homes have been destroyed apparently beyond effective range.
Communications is vital to any military organization and camaign. Communications is how command and control is exercized over time and distance. Military communications were largely unchanged since ancient times until the mid-19th century. Banners, pennants, fire signals, music, and messengers (horns and trumphets) were the primary methods used. Ceasar used them and so did Napoleon. The telegram revolutionized military communications and was fairly secure. Despite all the modern technical innovations, battlefield command an control during World War I was not greatly different than that of that of the 19th century and earlier periods. There were various methods used by commanders in rear areas to keep in contact with their various units. Runners and couriers were used with the motor cycle replacing the horse. Signal flags, mirrors, flashing lights, and other metods were used. Dogs were also used, but the tendency of front line units to adopt them as pets meant they often were not returned to headqurters. Telephone lines could be string to the trenches. The problem occurred when offensives were launched. Once an offensive was set in motion, the commanders in the rear in the chaos of battle essentially lost contact with their advancing forward elements. Innovations were attempted such as dropping messages by air, but this was not the same as two-way messaging. The telegraph and telephone had been invented (mid-19th century) and these these instruments were very effective in establishing contact between army commanders and unit commanders, but not front line units especially those on the move. Lines had to be strung. And radios were to heavy by advancing combat troops. World War I armies had a half century to adjust to the telegram. While national cable systems were relartively secure. International cables were a different matter and outside Europe largely controlled by the Allies, especilly the British. The wireless was a different matter. It had enormous military potential far beyound the telegtam. But it was very new and still being developed. It was also very insecure. World War I armies and navies operated largely independently in World War I. This is one reason that navies formed infantry forces (marines). The codes used by combatant armies and navies were different. A naval ship could have a small easily secured wireless abnd coding message center. Army field units, especially mobile units, faced a more difficult challenge. And there was a need to develop new codes with the deployment of the new wireless. Telegraph codes were relarively secure. While little progress was made in battle-field commsnd and control, the appearance of radio sets just before the War did revolutionize military communications, both art sea and on land. The fact that signals naval and and army commanders were transmitted for the first time meant that interception was possible on a large scale for the first time. Wireless communications were insecure because they could be easily picked up by the enemy. It took some time for the military forces to adjust to this new reality through several years of fighting. The American Expeditionary Force (AEF) was unprepared for this when it arrived in France.
Importance
Communications is vital to any military organization and camaign. Communications is how command and control is exercized over time and distance. Command and control since the development of armies of any size. There are cpuntless batlles in which commnd and control has affected the outcome. The Persian loss of comtrol at Gaugamela (331) resulted in the defeat of their huge army. Alexabder victoirues were cinnonly ba matter of maibtaining command and control. This is true of many imprtant commanders. This has continued to the moder day. The great Germsn vicyory in the West (May-June 1949 was in large measure achieved by destoying French command and control. There were significant differences between army and naval communications at the time of World War I which have to be considered.
Army/Land Communications
Historical Methods
Military communications were largely unchanged since ancient times until the mid-19th century. Banners, pennants, fire signals, music, and messengers (horns and trumphets) were the primary methods used. Ceasar used them and so did Napoleon. But all these various nethods involved a narrow range of messages. Despite all the modern technical innovations, battlefield command and control during World War I was not greatly different than that of that of the 19th century and earlier periods. There were various methods used by commanders in rear areas to keep in contact with their various units. Runners and couriers were vital with armies on the move.
Signal flags, smole, mirrors, flashing lights, and other metods were used. Dogs were also used, but the tendency of front line units to adopt them as pets meant they often were not returned to headqurters. Noting really substituted fir verbal or written messages.
Battlefield communications were at first based on runners. This changed with the dometication of the horse. So that duruing the Bronze Age the horse had significantly increased battlefielld comnmunications. Then for over two millenia, the speed of battlefield communications remained unchanged. Armies themselves moved slowe, basically the marching speed of the foot soldier and horse drawn carts with their supplies. This finally began to change in the mid-19th century. This began wilth railways, but railroads were very primitive until the 1850s. And it is at this same time that telegraphy was invented. Samuel F.B. Morse sent his first telegraph message from Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, Maryland (1844). Soon afret the telepjone was invented (1878). These were not, however, battkefiekd communication systems. They permitted communications to headquaters units. And to some degree to commuicate to units in fixed positiions. Once the units were on the move, however, communications were severed as the connectionx were were dependent on wires. Naval commuications were different bcause ships were large enough thst they coula accodate wireless systems. Something that land units could not do. This did not chnge until the end if the War when mobile commuication trucks appeared in U.S. Army units.
Combat and Movement Problem
The problem occurred when offensives were launched. Once an offensive was set in motion, the commanders in the rear in the chaos of battle essentially lost contact with their advancing forward elements. Also imprtant were the associated units on the two flanks. It was vital to remain in contact when moving. In the trenches there was no problem, but when moving, contact was absolutely vital. Innovations were attempted such as dropping messages by air, but this was not the same as two-way messaging. The telegraph and telephone had been invented (mid-19th century) and these these instruments were very effective in establishing contact between army commanders and unit commanders, but not front line units especially those on the move. Lines had to be strung. And radios were to heavy by advancing combat troops. Armies were only beginning to slove this problen by the end of the War. We note an American mobil stations (1919).
Messengers/Runners
Way before when Pheidippides delivered the message of the Greek victiry at Maralon to Athens (490 BC), the messenger has been was vital in military communications. Messengers commonly delivered vital military messages on horseback. All of this had not changed at the time of World War I. Wireless communication was still primitive, radio sets were bulky and front line units had no access to them. They were for headquarters commanders communicating with other headquarters units and overall commanders. For frontline units, the runner was still used for communications--just like Pheidippides. The horse back messenger was gone, replaced by motorcyvcle riders, but not at the front. Any one above ground and not below ground n the trenches was a target. And this meant runners. Delivering messages at the front was one of the most dangerous assignments of the War. Runners were more dependable than inreliable phoine connection. Runners ould memorize complicated messages or carry detailed messagfes. And they could locate and deliver to hard-to-find places. And they were vital in keeping contact with flanking units. The men were mostly low-ranking non-commissioned officers, often corporals. Qualification involved physical fitness and stamina. They had to be able to read maps. They needed to be resourceful enough to reliably reach their assigned destination even in terrible wearger conditions. And it is not just eneny fire they had to be worried about. When they moved beyond their own unit, the roblem of friendly fire surfaced. We don't read much about runners. We mostly read about battlefield heoics. In fact, the only runner really known to history besides Pheidippides was Cpl. Adolf Hitler who was awarded an Iron Cross by his Jewish commander.
World War II
All the major combatant armies in World War I used similar communications systems with messengers and runners. espcially on the Wesrern Friont. We suspect that the Russians and Ottomans had fewere motorcycles. The situation was different in World War II. During the unter-War years, radio had developoed significantly bith technologiucally and commercially. Despite the Depression, Ameruca's free marjet capitalist economy meant most American families had radios in their homes. In Germany, MAZI Propaganda and Enlightenment Minister Josef Goebbels thought that it was vital that every Gernan citizen be regaled by the thoughts and musings of the inafalable Führer Adolf Hitler in their homes. So a major project was kaunched to create a low-cost radio that even the poorest worker could afford--one of many programs that turned many skeptical Germans into NAZI supporters. The result was the Volksempfänger Radio Set. This not only put a radio in every German home, but made possible a huhe expamsion of the German electronics industry. And thge engenious minds in the Wehrmacht hit upon the idea of installing radios throughout the military chain of command which they could do at low cost. (The American electronics industry was still much larger, but until 1940 the American Army was tiny, still only capable of quelling indian uprisings in the West. We are not entirely sure about the British Army, but the French Army was still using World War I communicatiins systems. They dis not even have radios in their tanks. Much has been written about Herman aircraft and tanks , but in 1940 the numbers do not reveal a major German advantage in the West, it wsas tghe tactics of Bkitzkrieg made possible by a much more modern communicatiins system that made the victory in the Frenbch campaign possible.
Naval/Sea Communications
Communications was a huge prionlem for naval commanders thoughout history. Once a ship had left port it was out of contact with higher command until it rached another port or with goodluck came across another ship at sea. Even reaching a port did not always solve the problem as the ship may have been the first to reach a port whuich was as out of touch as the ship itself. There was also a problem of shio to ship communication at sea such as when operation as part of a squadron or fleet. This problem was partially solved by signal flags. Primitive systens date to abtiquity. The Maritime Flag Semaphore is relatively moder (15th century). The most famous such message was Nelson's signal to the fleet at Trafalgar, England expects that every man will do his duty." (1805) Electronics revolutionized nacal communications. Before electrical comminication you have major battles being fought after the end of war, such as the Battle of New Orleans (1815). The first major technological step was the the telegram (1840s) followed shortly by undersea cables (1850s). This meant by the late-19th century, once ships reached most ports, even an isolated port, they were instantly back in contact with the admiralty. The British in particular with their vast Empire including isolated islands in the South Atlantiv, Indian, and Pacufic Oceans covered the world with its cable network. The All Red Line was a system of electrical telegraphs that covered most of the British Empire. It was inaugurated (1902). The name resulted from the convention of coloring the British territories pink on maps. At this time, Italian inventor developed radio telelegraphy (1894). This was quickly adopted by navies around the world. It was the reason that some of the Titanic passengers were saved (1912). It was especially important to navies because ships had the electrical capacity to have radio stations. Army units in World War I difd not have mobil radio stations, although thery were being developed by the end of the War. But radio communication had a limited range. Here the Royal Navy had a huge advantage. With all the British territories, Royal Navy ships were rarely out of contact with the Admiralty. This all led to the Cable Wars. And British victory in the Canle wars led to the the interception of the Zimmerman Telegram which played a key role in brining America into the War. The imprtance of radio telegraphy created a new priblem, the pssibility of eneny interceotion. Sendin messages by radio meant that the enemy as well as your own forces could receuve them. Thus code breaking becme a major factor in war. During Workd War I, this was oprimarily a naval issue. Another problem remained--ship to ship communication. For tatical use you needed telephones to be used. This had begun to develop at the end of World War I.
