People who disagree with my statement that "Blitzkrieg" isn't a thing should probably crack a book open.
Blitzkrieg never existed as a doctrine, as a strategy or as a tactic.
The German military, Wehrmacht, in fact had no formal doctrine. Their military effectiveness was based around the concept Schwerpunkt und Kessel and the ingenuity of individual command.
Schwerpunkt literally translates to "focus" or "center of gravity". The idea is to concentrate force at one location, and to execute that force at that location. German military doctrine had nothing to do with Blitzkrieg. Their planning did not resemble what people think "Blitzkrieg" is. Blitzkrieg is a weasel word, it literally describes nothing.
Unlike the Soviets, British and the USA which had developing doctrines, actual military guidelines on their way of waging war, the Germans never had that. Blitzkrieg is passed off as a doctrine. It was never a doctrine. Blitzkrieg is literally an adjective that the British media used to describe what they saw in France and Poland. They didn't know what it was that they saw, so they couldn't possibly ascribe an actual description, all they knew is that it was fast. Hence lightning war.
The Germans did not plan the invasion of Poland around "blitzkrieg", they planned it around Schwerpunkt und Kessel. They did not plan the invasion of France around Blitzkrieg, they planned it around Schwerpunkt und Kessel. Again, there was no guiding formalized German military doctrine. It was around a basic concept that goes back centuries, the point of focus, and the encirclement. This is why, different German generals followed vastly different styles of command using entirely different strategies and tactics. Rommel was impetuous, always looking to attack, believing the violence of action trumped all else, other commanders had completely different individual approaches. The unifying theme is Schwerpunkt und Kessel. Let's talk about that more.
What the British were describing when they called what they saw the Germans doing "Blitzkrieg" was nothing new. It was the same German concepts they had been using since the Franco-Prussian war and perhaps even before that. What was new, was the marriage of technology AND the concept of the Schwerpunkt. Tanks were made for the Schwerpunkt. Calling what the Germans did "Blitzkrieg" is at best anachronistic, at worst it is just flat out wrong and a gross misunderstanding of German military history, or gross over simplification of German military history.
We can even look at the First World War, the commanders in charge were not idiots who couldn't figure out how to fight a war of movement. They just COULDN'T fight a war of movement. Look at Hague's battle plans, they are sweeping offensives with encirclements and blocking maneuvers that would have been perfectly suitable for WW2. The issue wasn't understanding, it was that offensive technology had not caught up to defensive technology.
When someone says "Blitzkrieg" these days, here is the problem. I know what they are talking about, other people educated in the topic know what they are talking about. They have NO idea what they are talking about. People who are schooled in this topic understand what they mean, even if the person using the term doesn't know what they actually are talking about.
Then again, don't take my word for it, countless German commanders from WW2 have weighed in on this subject and have said exactly as I have illustrated here. There was no concept of Blitzkrieg. There was no Blitzkrieg. There was no doctrine called Blitzkrieg, there was no strategy or tactic called Blitzkrieg. There were unifying concepts, such as concentration of force at a key point or feature, the Schwerpunkt, and there was the encirclement if things went well, the Kessel. This was the unifying principle that existed in the absence of an actual formal military doctrine. Beyond that, it was up to the individual commander to work out how they would get things done.
In conclusion, Blitzkrieg is an adjective, not a military strategy or doctrine. It never was, and never has been. Using the term to describe the German military in WW2 underscores the deep lack of understanding that person has regarding German military history.
Down vote away.
