Counterattack
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A counterattack is a military tactic used by defending forces when under attack by an enemy force. During their assault, the attackers may have become vulnerable through exhaustion or complacency. At the right moment, the defenders aggressively charge out of their fortifications, meeting and stunning their attackers directly, and gain the initiative. This can break a siege or change the tide of a battle. However, if the wrong moment is chosen, or a counterattack is poorly executed, a military disaster could result for the defending side, since the defenders are no longer protected by their fortifications.
Historical examples
In the history of warfare, the counterattack has been both used effectively and ineffectively.During the Sicilian expedition from 415 to 413 BC, the Athenians were about to be victorious. However, one Syracusan line held, and pressed the attack, scattering and defeating the invading forces of the Athenian Empire.
At the Battle of Poltava in 1712, Swedish infantry charged across a frozen lake, and were about to defeat the Russians, but an error in communication stopped the attack. Russian troops had time to regroup and execute a counterattack, saving them from defeat.
Colonel Joshua Chamberlain commanded the Twentieth Maine Regiment on Little Round Top on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. The elite Rebel troops of John Bell Hood charged, but Chamberlain refused his lines, and then ordered a right wheel across the hill, with the result of a large destruction of the Confederate lines.
At the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, German Panther tanks exhausted themselves against Soviet anti-tank artillery. As soon as the Germans ended their advance, Russian T-34 tanks flooded down a nearby ridge "like rats", according to General Heinz Guderian. The Wehrmacht was scattered in the battle, with much of their lines destroyed. The Germans would never launch an assault of that scale on Russia after the battle, and were on the defensive against Russia from then on.
Value of the counterattack
The consequence of the counterattack has been decisive throughout history. If the Athenians had won at Syracuse, the Greeks, not the Romans, might have dominated the ancient Mediterranean basin. Had the Russians not won the Battle of Kursk, the Nazis would have dominated the Eastern Front for probably at least a year longer, delaying pressure on the 3rd Reich and most likely having a substantial effect on the war, if not it's eventual outcome. Other decisive battles, as well, have been won or lost by counterattacks.
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