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BOMBARDMENT

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Originally appearing in Volume V04, Page 182 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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BOMBARDMENT , an attack by See also:

ARTILLERY (the O. Fr. artiller, to equip with engines of war, probably comes from Late Lat. articulum, dim. of ars, art, cf. " engine " from ingenium, or of artus, joint)

artillery See also:

FIRE (in O. Eng. f j'r; the word is common to West German languages, cf. Dutch vuur, Ger. Feuer; the pre-Teutonic form is seen in Sanskrit pu, pavaka, and Gr. irup; the ultimate origin is usually taken to be a root meaning to purify, cf. Lat. purus)

fire directed against fortifications, troops in position or towns and buildings. In its strict sense the See also:

TERM

term is only applied to the bombardment of defenceless or undefended See also:

OBJECTS

objects, houses, public buildings, &c., the See also:

OBJECT

object of the assailant being to dishearten his opponent, and specially to force the See also:

CIVIL

civil See also:

POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

population and authorities of a besieged See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place to persuade the military commandant to capitulate before the actual defences of the place have been reduced to See also:

IMPOTENCE (Lat. impotentia, want of power)

impotence. It is, therefore, obvious that See also:

mere bombardment can only achieve its object when the amount of suffering inflicted upon non-combatants is sufficient to break down their See also:

RESOLUTION

resolution, and when the commandant permits himself, to be influenced or coerced by the sufferers. A See also:

THREAT

threat of bombardment will sometimes induce a place to surrender, but instances of its fulfilment being followed by success are rare; and, in See also:

general, with a determined commandant, bombardments fail of their object. Further, an intentionally terrific fire at a large See also:

target, unlike the slow, steady and minutely accurate " artillery attacks " directed upon the fortifications, requires the See also:

EXPENDITURE

expenditure of large quantities of See also:

AMMUNITION

ammunition, and wears out the guns of the attack. Bombardments are, however, frequently resorted to in See also:

order to test the See also:

TEMPER (from Lat. temperare, to mingle or compound in due proportion, to qualify, rule, regulate, to be moderate, formed from tempos, time, fit or due season)

temper of the See also:

garrison and the civil population, a notable instance being that of See also:

STRASSBURG, or STRASBURG (French Strasbourg)

Strassburg in 1870. The term is often loosely employed to describe artillery attacks upon forts or fortified positions in preparation for assaults by See also:

INFANTRY

infantry.

End of Article: BOMBARDMENT

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