British infantry square
E783561
The British infantry square was a defensive battlefield formation used by British troops, especially in colonial and 19th-century warfare, to protect against cavalry and massed attacks by presenting a continuous perimeter of bayonets and gunfire.
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
defensive formation
ⓘ
military formation ⓘ |
| armedWith |
bayonets
ⓘ
muskets ⓘ rifles ⓘ |
| commandRequirement | clear drill and pre-arranged signals ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | United Kingdom ⓘ |
| developedFor | line infantry armed with smoothbore muskets ⓘ |
| doctrineContext | British Army drill manuals of the 18th and 19th centuries ⓘ |
| feature |
ammunition and wounded sheltered in centre
ⓘ
continuous perimeter of bayonets ⓘ continuous perimeter of gunfire ⓘ infantry formed on four sides ⓘ officers and support elements placed in centre ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod |
19th century
ⓘ
early 20th century ⓘ late 18th century ⓘ |
| notableUse |
defence against French cavalry at Waterloo
ⓘ
defence against Zulu attacks at Ulundi ⓘ |
| primaryPurpose |
defence against cavalry
ⓘ
protection against massed attacks ⓘ |
| replacedBy |
dispersed infantry formations
ⓘ
trench warfare tactics ⓘ |
| requires |
disciplined volley fire
ⓘ
high unit cohesion ⓘ steady infantry under pressure ⓘ |
| shape |
hollow square
ⓘ
square ⓘ |
| similarTo |
hollow square formation
ⓘ
infantry square ⓘ |
| tacticalRole |
all-round defence
ⓘ
protection of vulnerable troops and assets ⓘ |
| tacticOf | linear tactics era ⓘ |
| usedBy |
British Army
ⓘ
British infantry NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| usedIn |
19th-century warfare
ⓘ
Anglo-Zulu War NERFINISHED ⓘ Battle of Ulundi NERFINISHED ⓘ Battle of Waterloo NERFINISHED ⓘ Crimean War NERFINISHED ⓘ Napoleonic Wars NERFINISHED ⓘ Peninsular War NERFINISHED ⓘ Sudan campaigns NERFINISHED ⓘ colonial warfare ⓘ |
| vulnerableTo |
artillery fire
ⓘ
concentrated infantry assault ⓘ disruption of formation ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.