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“[The] Expeditionary Warfare School is the career-level
school for the Marine Corps, sister services and
international officers,” said Col. Jason Bohm, the director
of the school. “Our student body right now consists of 183
Marines, 22 soldiers, 16 sailors, six airmen and 22
international officers.” (The school was opened in 1921 as
the Amphibious Warfare School.)
The Expeditionary Warfare School's purpose is
providing career-level professional military education to
military officers in subjects such as combined arms
operations, warfighting skills, tactical decision-making and
the Marine Air-Ground Task Force in amphibious operations.
The educational process for Marines includes learning from
history ... like Marines did with a visit to the American
Revolution War Battle of Saratoga site, April 5, 2016.
The Marines with the
Expeditionary Warfare School battle site study group visited the
Battle of Saratoga battlefield during their trip to Saratoga
Springs, New York, April 5, 2016. The Marines post for a photo
during their trip to the Battle of Saratoga as part of the EWS
Enrichment Program. (U.S. Marine Corp photo by Sgt. Cuong Le) |
The Marines surveyed the site of the Battle of Saratoga and
discussed the different types of tactics used during the war
and different types of strategies military officers at the
time used. The Battle of Saratoga was notable for convincing
France to help the Colonial Americans fight against British
forces. This alliance between American and France lead to
the victory at Yorktown, which ended the Revolutionary War.
“The biggest thing I think I got from this trip is a
appreciation for the terrain of Saratoga and that is
something that you cannot learn off of a map or a book. It's
something you need to physically walk to really appreciate,”
said Capt. Shawn Conner, a student from EWS. “It is
important that we learn about the past because it builds our
knowledge base and we are essentially able to gain knowledge
and experience without having fought the battle ourselves.
“This gives us a better understanding of what
questions to ask, what actions possibly to take, and gives
us a better idea of how to operate.”
The Marines
began their visit with a detailed video of the Battle of
Saratoga followed by a miniature display of the battlefield
and its battles. After which the Marines hiked the site of
the second Battle of Saratoga, also known as the Battle of
Bemis Heights. Here the Marines observed the strategic
layout of the land and how both sides used their occupied
spaces to their advantage.
During their hike, they
visited strategic points on the battlefield and discussed
how and why these points would help ether side win the
battle. This gave the Marines insight as to why decisions
were made by the military officers of the time.
The
second visit was to the site of the first Battle of
Saratoga, more commonly know as the Battle of Freeman's
Farm. Here the Marines talked about how the American forces
used the battlefield to move the British troops into a less
favorable position by using cannon fire and elevated
positions.
“Some of the tactical lessons we were able
to talk about in Saratoga are just as applicable on today's
battlefield as they were back then,” said Bohm. “For
example, the use of terrain, the use of lines of
communication, the difference between cover and concealment,
and reserve slope defense versus forward slope defense.
“It has often been said that those who do not learn from
history are apt to repeat it,” said Bohm. “There are a
number of poor lessons that people learned over the years
from their tactical actions both good and bad. Ideally what
we do is we learn from the mistakes of others. We learn what
worked for others in the past so we do not repeat those same
bad lesson again.”
More photos available below
By U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Cuong Le
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2016
Note: Minor editing of the
article was done by USA Patriotism! without impacting any
informational aspects.
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