Nathan Bedford Forrest: Lessons from a Master of the Science and Art of Warfighting

摘要

In conclusion, I wrote this paper for the aspiring Forrests of the 21st century, in the hope it will provide some insights into whatthe art of tactical command looks like in practice. I wrote it to illustrate what an accomplished tactician and combat commander looks like, how he thinks and acts on the battlefield, and the knowledge, abilities, experience, and intuition he must possess. I also tried to show that the requirements and characteristics for a master of the science and art of command at the tactical level have not changed in the least through the centuries, only the conditions. These same abilities, no doubt, will be found in our great combined-arms commanders of the future. In our Army, there are and will continue to be those rare commanders who achieve mastery in the science and art of warfighting. They will be more rare given declining experiential opportunities and inadequate professional development patterns our combat leaders suffer today and will in the years ahead - barring bold intervention and change. I hope this article finds and helps those men achieve it despite these conditions and our Army's unwillingness to change. Our soldiers deserve them and our nation must have them to secure the blessings of freedom and liberty in the 21st century.