Feb
The Focal Point
In ancient times, the role of archers had mixed results. Some armies got little effect, while others used them to strategic success.
The difference was in how the different armies used the archers. Those who dispersed them among the lines of infantry got little effect. The armies that concentrated archers into one mass got much better results. By having those archers focus fire on one part of the enemy line, they could weaken it significantly. A breakthrough was possible by launching chariots, cavalry or a “flying wedge” of infantry into the weakened units. The Greeks did it, the Romans did it, the Vikings did it and the English did it.
Concentrating effort on one part of the line is an important tactic. The Germans call the focal point the “schwerpunkt”. They said “A commander without a Schwerpunkt is like a man without character.” This was the point at which most effort would be focused in order to force a breakthrough.
A thousand years earlier, the Vikings understood the idea of a focal point. Rather than arrange units in a single shield wall, they formed flying wedges. These wedges concentrated their force to break through the enemy shield wall.
Think of the Tyr Rune exercise that we described a couple days ago. The spear thrust / bayonet exercise is a very physical, individual application of the schwerpunkt. All of the body motion works to apply all of its force through the spear point, delivering maximum force at a specific target. The target is the schwerpunkt. Just as our spear / bayonet demonstrates the principle as applied in a single fight, so it gives us a feel for applying the idea in other situations.
The schwerpunkt principle is not limited to military or combative applications. It can be applied in many situations. The concept itself is simple. It is a concentration of one’s assets to force success. Consider how you can exploit the focal point in situations that you face. It may very well force an opening when there had been none before.
