Strongpoint

A strongpoint is a key point in a defensive fighting position which the rest of the positions rely on.^[1] Its primary requirement is that it should not be easy to defeat by the enemy.^[2] In general, high ground is preferred. But any good tactically important terrain can be used as a strongpoint.^[3] Examples from history include Battle of Thermopylae, where 300 Spartans held off an entire Persian army at a narrow pass in the mountains.^[4] In the Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy in World War II, the area around the abbey of Monte Cassino was used by the German army as a strongpoint until it was destroyed by American bombers.^[5]

1. ↑ Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, ed. Barry Leonard (Washington, DC: United States Department of Defense, 2001), p. 450
2. ↑ Brett A. Stoneberger (2004), Combat Leader's Field Guide, Stackpole Books, p. 21, ISBN 9780811731959
3. ↑ Command and General Staff School Military Review (Fort Leavenworth, KS: Command and General Staff School, 1963), p. 55
4. ↑ John M. Kistler, War Elephants (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2007), p. 143
5. ↑ Rudolf Bohmler, Monte Cassino: A German View (Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Military, 2015), p. 175