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the cavalry being pushed back into the infantry, which has very often caused great defeats, & also to surround the enemy & charge him on the flank & in the back, cutting off his retreat if it happens that he has broken. This is why they separate their foot soldiers into small battalions, so that when they are in small groups, the thickness of the battalion does not cause confusion, & being thus separated, there is more front & more people fighting, & also that if there is disorder in one battalion, the others which are still in their entirety, help it better, than if they were in the same disorder. For the purpose of the disposition of the vanguard, battle, rearguard, he orders in this manner, especially since it is much more expedient to renew the combat three times, than to risk the whole thing at one time: also that a small troop of the vanguard having already shaken the bulk of the enemy, those of the battle who come after, defeat it easily, or if they cannot, those of the rearguard joined to them, have a good march after it. It is the same reason why they do not make battles of more than one, or two thousand men. |
