Shock troops,assault troops, orstorm troops are special formations created to leadmilitary attacks. They are often better trained and equipped than other military units and are expected to take heavier casualties even in successful operations.
"Shock troop" is a loose translation of theGerman wordStoßtrupp (literally "thrust squad" or "push squad").[a] Assault troopers are typically organized for mobility with the intention that they will penetrate enemy defenses and attack into the enemy's vulnerablerear areas. Any specialized, elite unit formed to fight an engagement via overwhelming assault (usually) would be considered shock troops, as opposed to "special forces" orcommando-style units (intended mostly forcovert operations). However, both types of units could fight behind enemy lines, by surprise if required.
TheCompanion cavalry ofAlexander the Great (356-326 BC) are described as being the first example of shock cavalry being used in Europe.[1]
During theParaguayan War (1864–1870), in whichParaguay fought againstBrazil,Argentina, andUruguay, the Paraguayans deployed shock troops (composed of a mixture of dismounted cavalry and fit men who could row and swim) armed with sabres, cutlasses, knives, bayonets, pistols, and hand grenades. They attacked small fortified positions and boarded Brazilian river steamers.[2]
During theFirst World War, many combatants faced the deadlock oftrench warfare. On the Western Front in 1915, the Germans formed a specialized unit called the Rohr Battalion to develop assault tactics. During theBrusilov Offensive of 1916, the Russian generalAleksei Brusilov developed and implemented the idea of shock troops to attack weak points along the Austrian lines to effect a breakthrough, which the main Russian Army could then exploit. The Russian Army had also formedhunter commando units in 1886 and used them in World War I to protect against ambushes, to perform reconnaissance and for low-intensity fights in no-man's-land.[3]
The von Hutier tactics (infiltration tactics) called for special infantry assault units to be detached from the main lines and sent to infiltrate enemy lines, supported by shorter and sharper (than usual for WWI) artillery fire missions targeting both the enemy front and rear, bypassing and avoiding what enemy strong points they could, and engaging to their best advantage when and where they were forced to, leaving decisive engagement against bypassed units to following heavier infantry. The primary goal of these detached units was to infiltrate the enemy's lines and break their cohesion as much as possible. These formations became known asStoßtruppen, or shock troops, and the tactics they pioneered were the basis of post-WWI infantry tactics, such as the development offire teams.
The same sort of tactical doctrine was widely espoused in British and French service in late 1917 and 1918, with variable results.[citation needed] The British Army standard training manual for platoon tactics, SS 143, was used from February 1917 onwards and contained much of what was standard for German shock troops.[4]