Liddell Hart and the Israel Defence Forces — A Reappraisal

Journal of Contemporary History

Volumn 16, Issue 2, 1981, Pages 369-391

  Ben Moshe, Tuvia ^a  

^a HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM   (Israel)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 84977216440     PISSN: 00220094     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/002200948101600207     Document Type: Article

References (32)

1. For examples, see Gen. Y. Yadin's article in B. H. Liddell Hart, Strategy (New York 1967, first published 1954), Appendix II, 396-401. The first edition, a shorter version, appeared in 1929 under the title, The Decisive Wars of History.
2. and others. Occasional articles by Hart himself were also printed and various inter pretations of his teachings concerning tactical and strategical problems facing the IDF. In researcher B. Bond's interviews in Israel, Generals Rabin, Allon, Laskov, Sharon and A. Yoffe confirmed that they had been influenced by Liddell Hart, though some of them said this with reservations. See B. Bond, Liddell Hart - A Study of his Military Thought (London 1977), Ch. 9, 238-73.
3. M. Handel, Israel's Political-Military Doctrine, Harvard University Center for International Affairs (July 1973), 67. Col. Y. Wallach, 'A Year since Liddell Hart died', Ma'arakhot Shiryon (March 1971.
4. E. Luttwak and D. Horowitz, The Israeli Army (London 1975), 63-64.
5. Liddell Hart, Memoirs, Vol. 2 (London 1965), 183.
6. Liddell Hart, 'Strategy of a War', Encounter (February 1968), 17. Liddell Hart, Memoirs, Vol. 1, 162-164.
7. Liddell Hart, Strategy, 338.
8. Liddell Hart, Strategy, 168-177
9. Liddell Hart, The First World War (London 1975), 40-43, 56-57. This work was first published in 1930 with the title, The Real War.
10. G. Ritter, The Schlieffen Plan, Critique of a Myth (Horsham, England 1958), 9.
11. K. J. Macksey, 'B. Bond, Liddell Hart', a book review, Journal of the Royal United Services Institute (March 1978), 72.
12. On Hart's efforts to establish and collect every scrap of evidence of his in fluence see, M. Howard, 'Liddell Hart', Encounter (June 1970), 41.
13. M. Pa'il, The Structural Development and the Organization of Command of the Hagana Organization, in the years 1945 to 1948, from a territorial militia to a mobile, national Army preparing itself for guerrilla and regular armed encounters of a nationwide scope, Thesis for Doctorate, Tel-Aviv University 1973 (Hebrew), 42.
14. 'Speeding up the Training of Recruits' (September 1939).
15. An article on intelligence problems (July 1943).
16. 'Lawrence's Campaigns and his Ideas' (February 1945).
17. 'Must Britain Keep her Hold on the Middle East?' (July 1946).
18. 'Speeding up the Training of Recruits' (July 1948).
19. In an article by the editor of Ma'arakhot, E. Galili, that appeared on the occasion of the publication of Liddell Hart's Memoirs ('Ideas that were Deeds', Ma'arakhot [1965], 168), the writer pointed out that Hart's main contribution had been made in the period preceding the establishment of the IDF; that the Hagana 'had a great deal of help from him as a penetrating tactician and a talented teacher'…. 'It is worth reminding new IDF soldiers of the role of Liddell Hart's original training doctrines and his flexible tactical concepts in laying the foundations of IDF tactical training capability' (p. 2). Galili did not mention 'Indirect Approach', and it is open to question whether Hart's contribution to tactics was as considerable as Galili affirms — at all events there is no trace of it in the journal of which he was editor.
20. Communication from Prof. Dan Horowitz to the writer. It is in fact almost certain that Hart's book on 'Indirect Approach' was not translated into Russian, a language that Sadeh knew. See P. H. Vigor, 'The Soviet View of Fuller and Liddell Hart', Journal of RUSI (March 1978).
21. See Yitzhak Sadeh, What the Palmach did that was new (Sifriat Ha-Poalim 1950) (Hebrew), 7-12.
22. Liddell Hart, New Methods in Infantry Training (Cambridge 1918). Liddell Hart, The Framework of a Science of Infantry Tactics (London 1921).
23. Y. Yadin, 'For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war', BaMahaneh, 4-5, 1948-49,4.
24. Yadin? It should be pointed out that Yadin left his post as Chief of the Operational Branch of the Hagana General Staff (to which he was appointed in 1943) against the background of differences of opinion with Sadeh on questions of doc trine and organization.
25. Y. Yadin, 'For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war', in Liddell Hart, Strategy, 399. My stress (T.B.-M.).
26. Pa'il, 'Indirect Approach — Preferable', Ma'arakhot Shiryon (January 1973).
27. Pa'il, 'Three Battles for Rafah-el Arish, 1949, 1956, 1967', Ma'arakhot (1968).
28. Lt.-Col. Ayalon, 'The War of Independence, Operation “Kadesh”, the Six- Day War — Lines of Comparison', Ma'arakhot (1968).
29. Liddell Hart, Strategy of War, 17.
30. Liddell Hart, Strategy of War, 18-19.
31. Yitzhak Rabin, 'The Six-Day War, Characteristics and Achievements', Ma'arakhot (June 1977).
32. Liddell Hart, Strategy of War, 19.