Page:USMC MCDP 1-3 - Tactics.djvu/108

Tactics we have created one advantage by punching through the enemy's position and getting into his rear, we create another by pouring forces through the gap, generating the "expanding torrent" that Liddell Hart wrote about.

Rommel recounts how exploiting each advantage in the battle for Kuk in the Carpathian mountains during World War I led to another opportunity. As his detachment exploited each situation and moved farther behind the enemy lines, it generated more surprise and advantage. During this action, Rommel's detachment captured thousands of enemy soldiers with very little fighting, due largely to his unwillingness to lose momentum. One success led directly to another opportunity, which he immediately seized.

After the battle for Tarawa in November 1943, Major Henry Crowe, Commanding Officer of 2d Battalion, 8th Marines, was asked why he thought the Japanese had been defeated so quickly once the Marines were established ashore. He remarked that it was due to the constant pressure of naval gunfire, bombs, and mortars. The Marines used their advantage in supporting arms to create opportunities for success. CONSOLIDATION, EXPLOITATION, AND PURSUIT

Once we have created leverage, how do we take advantage of it? A decisive result or victory rarely stems from the initial