The article talks about who guerrillas are, when guerrilla military units arise and what tactics they use.
War
People fight almost their entire history of existence. Over the centuries, our ancestors have perfected the methods and tactics of warfare. And one of these tactics is partisan, and those who use it are called partisans. But who is a partisan and how does he differ from a regular army soldier? We will talk about this in this article.
Definition
A partisan is one who engages in armed struggle in a territory that was occupied by the enemy (or hostile political forces) using guerrilla warfare methods.
The word "partisans" is used mainly as a general designation for a person who is a member of non-state military units. Simply put, those who are not part of the regular army. Partisan units are usually formed either spontaneously or in an organized manner. In the first case, they consist of military forces, which during the fighting were torn off from the main part of the army and (or) local residents, who are fighting for their land. And in the second case, a partisan detachment could be formed in advance and deliberately left behind the rear of the advancing enemy. So now we know who the partisans are.
The informal nature of such units is usually associated with the fact that the partisans' goal is to fight against the government in the country or its military and political regime. But most often the partisans fight the occupying forces of the enemy army. To do this, they use various methods of guerrilla war behind enemy lines - terror, sabotage and more. Now we know who the guerrillas are.
Partisan warfare methods
Guerrilla warfare is a form of war that is carried out by members of armed groups hiding in forests or among the local population. Its meaning is to avoid large protracted collisions. Partisan movement methods include:
- Destruction of enemy infrastructure - undermining of railways, motorways, communication lines, electricity, water supply, etc.
- An ideological and information war is the spread among local people of rumors, facts about the real situation at the front or the political situation in the country. Also, these methods are used to win over a doubting population or even enemy soldiers.
- Destruction and capture of enemy manpower.
So now we know who the guerrillas are and what methods of struggle they use.
Support
Typically, partisans receive support from the government and army of that part of the country that is not occupied by the enemy. Or the authorities of sympathetic countries. For example, during the years of World War II, partisans regularly received parcels dropped from the "mainland" by airplanes. They contained weapons, ammunition, food, medicine and everything necessary for life behind enemy lines and the fight against it.
Partisans in Russia and the USSR
In the USSR and Russia, partisan movements made a great contribution to the struggle against foreign invaders, both during the war of 1812 and during the Great Patriotic War. In the post-war period, every boy knew who the partisans were. This word was synonymous with masculinity and courage of people who had long fought against the Nazi invaders in their rear.
Partisan detachments at that time were used to limit the supply of enemy armies, destroy the enemy’s manpower, reduce their morale and reconnaissance.
Term use
The meaning of the word "partisans" is now known to us. And this term is usually not used to refer to different terrorist groups and separatists, although they all have almost the same characteristics with guerrilla groups and methods of warfare. Such unofficial military formations are called bandits, terrorists or the armed opposition. This is due to the fact that during the period of the Russian Empire and the USSR, partisans were those who fought against the common enemy of the country and its people - the French, fascist invaders, White Guard and other forces. Therefore, this word carried a positive connotation. True, it does not have such in all countries. So we figured out what “partisans” mean.