THE ROYAL ARTILLERY INSTITUTION. 
117 
other hand, cavalry away from an army ought not to fight without a special 
object in view. It would seem that one battery to a division of four regi¬ 
ments is the proper proportion of guns to cavalry. 
If it be intended to make a great reconnaissance in force, after the manner 
of what was done by the Germans on the 15th and 16th of August to cut 
the line of the French retreat from Metz, horse artillery should be taken 
from the nearest division or divisions and lent to the cavalry. Batteries so 
taken should not delay to return into line. Batteries permanently attached 
to cavalry divisions should, as a rule, not be brought into line; they should 
be left intact. 
VI. 
In regular order of march, two batteries should march with the advanced 
guard of the division, two batteries should march in rear of the first battalion 
of the main body, and the remainder of the artillery between the two infantry 
brigades. The place of the artillery brigade commander would be at the head 
of the artillery of the main body. 
Whenever it is practicable and safe, the artillery of the main body, pre¬ 
ceded by a troop or a squadron, should march by themselves, on a line 
sufficiently parallel to or convergent with the line of advance of the infantry. 
Under certain circumstances, all the artillery, preceded by cavalry, may go 
before the infantry, as the artillery of the 5th and 11th German Corps passed 
on to go into action at Sedan. 
VII. 
If the old idea, still prevalent in our service, of making the artillery 
conform with the movements of the infantry, could be forgotten, and if 
artillery officers were to accustom themselves to think of a brigade of many 
batteries, it would not be too difficult for an artillery brigade commander to 
command his brigade in battle. The main guiding principles are these :— 
That artillery begin a battle; that all the artillery should be placed in action 
as soon as possible; that artillery should be massed ; that artillery advances 
and changes of position should generally b#covered by horse artillery; and 
that although artillery, and especially artillery massed, must generally be 
reduced to fire over their own infantry, the best support for infantry is 
artillery fire across their front. 
A great battle is the attack and the defence of a position. On coming, 
into contact with the enemy in position, the commander of the division and 
the artillery brigade commander should find themselves with the advanced 
guard. It might sometimes be considered advisable to wait for more troops 
to come into line; but in nearly all cases the advanced guard would attack 
at once. The two leading batteries of the main body should'pass as quickly 
as possible to the front. The remaining batteries of the division would follow 
the main body of the leading infantry brigade, or pass more rapidly to the 
front, as should be ordered. There would always be the three battalions and 
the cavalry of the advanced guard to protect the four batteries first brought 
into action : whether the remainder of the artillery should first be brought 
up, or more infantry, would depend upon circumstances at the time. The 
