I just finished a book that discussed wristwatches and mentioned that precision timing became important to military maneuvers around the time of the Second Boer War and WWI. The author specifically cited the creeping barrage, but I still don't quite comprehend why the timing was essential beyond an ability to be more discrete in one's military maneuvers and an ability to pilot planes without line of sight. Could anyone help?
The importance of the wristwatch to the Creeping Barrage cannot be understated. Creeping Barrages were an artillery tactic that laid down a wall of shrapnel and high explosive shells across a battlefield just about parallel to the enemy trenches. The barrage would initially be sighted to come down in No Man’s Land and would gradually move forwards towards the enemy positions. Friendly infantry would advance close behind the barrage, just out of the area of effect of the shells. The idea was that as the barrage moved forward and passed over the enemy positions, the enemy infantry manning those positions would be forced to seek cover. The barrage would fall on those positions then lift, moving on to a positions just past the enemy trenches. The infantry following the barrage would then leap into the enemy trenches, catching the defenders unprepared as they recovered from the barrage.
The barrage would then continue on to another line of defences, following a strict timetable of preplanned lifts. The infantry would have to know when the barrage was going to lift so that 1) they didn’t get too close to the barrage and so be hit by friendly fire and 2) so that they moved forward in time with the barrage so that the barrage didn’t get too far away from them and thus lose the protection of that the barrage offered.
As the war went on, these barrages became more and more elaborate this map shows the plan for the creeping barrage for the Battle of Vimy Ridge. Each of the fine lines shows the location of one the pre-planned lifts. As you can see, timing for both the barrage and the infantry was absolutely crucial for success.
By the end of 1917, the Hurricane Barrage was being used to good effect. Advances in locating techniques allowed the Allies to identify enemy artillery batteries and target them accurately without having to fire a shot, giving away that the enemy had been located. By doing so, the Allies could fire a very intense, very short barrage that could completely catch the enemy by surprise. Infantry would then be needed to advance and take advantage of the situation. Again, complete accuracy of timing was critical. Wristwatches provides that accuracy assuming the watches were set correctly.