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Confidential
For official use only notes on Grenade Warfare Compiled from Data Available on February 15, 1917
Army War College
Lt G. Dyson
Brigadier Grenadier Officer, 99th Infantry Brigade
First Printed London : SIFTON, PRAED & CO., Ltd.
The Map House, 67, St James’s Street, S.W. 1917

NOTE

This pamphlet is subject to periodical revision. It is only intended to present in compact form the principles most recently reported from
the seat of war, and to suggest methods of training for use in camps of instruction. It should not be quoted in official correspondence, nor
should it be used as a textbook for the study of grenade warfare.

Washington Government Printing Office 1917
War Department : Document No. 576 – Office The Adjutant General
CONTENTS

• Introductory
• Part I
• Selection, training, and organization of grenadiers
• General remarks
• Selection of grenadiers
• Training of grenadiers
• Individual instruction
• Scope of individual instruction
• Precautions in handling live grenades
• General principles of detonating explosives
• Method of making and using improvised grenades
• Classification and mechanism of grenades
• Mechanics of throwing
• Construction and use of periscope
• Physical instruction of grenadiers
• Notes on throwing
• Bayonet fighting
• Barricades
• Exercises in trenches
• Instruction of expert grenadiers
• Tests for appointment as grenadiers
• Squad instruction
• Organization of the squad
• Duties of members of the squad
• Squad exercises
• Part II
• Tactical employment of hand grenades
• Defensive
• Defense of a trench by grenades
• Offensive
• General remarks
• Advance in and defense of communication trenches
• Assault of a trench
• Cleaning up a trench
• Sorties
• General remarks
• Preparation
• Attack of a trench by sortie
• Part III
• Mechanical methods of throwing grenades
• Rifle grenades
• Precautions
• Tactical employment of rifle grenades
• Gun grenades
• Projecting apparatus for grenades
• Organization
• Tactical employment
• Location of battery emplacements
• Employment of fire
• Part IV
• Supply of grenades
• Appendixes
• A. Training fields
• B. Protection against grenades
• C. Suggested tactical problem
• D. Suggested syllabus for division bombing school
• E. Bibliography

WAR DEPARTMENT WASHINGTON, April 28, 1917
The following Notes on Grenade Warfare are published for the information of all concerned.

BY ORDER OF THE SECRETARY OF WAR – H. L. SCOTT
Major General, Chief of Staff

OFFICIAL : H. P. McCAIN
The Adjutant General

NOTES ON GRENADE WARFARE

INTRODUCTORY

The exact time of the advent of hand grenades as an instrument of war is uncertain, but is known to date back many centuries. History records their use under the name of grenades as early as 1536 at the siege of Aries. The Germans fired grenades from their muskets at the siege of Stettin in 1677. Up to the close of the eighteenth century soldiers were regularly trained in the throwing of hand grenades, and were called grenadiers.
At first, only a few men of long service and marked courage in each regiment were selected as grenadiers; later entire companies of grenadiers were formed ; and later still every infantry battalion had its company of grenadiers, which, in the different armies had preference over the other companies at parades and ceremonies, even long after they had ceased to use grenades.
After being obsolete for a century, the use of hand grenades was revived by their employment in large quantities by both sides in the Russo-Japanese war, especially in fighting at close quarters and in assaults on the various forts around Port Arthur. Many of the grenades used in the early part of this war were improvised on the field of battle, but the success obtained by their use led to the invention of many new standard types and their subsequent adoption by all modern armies, including that of the United States.

Modern trench warfare is much like a long siege, with frequent sorties. In the present European war the grenade is a regular part of the equipment of all infantry soldiers, and all nations have established special schools in which officers and men are required to receive instruction in their construction and use. In a recent address to his troops on the field of a great victory, after six months of fighting by his army, the commanding general said, in effect, that the modern infantryman is more a grenadier than a rifleman, and added that, in all the glorious fighting on this field, the grenade has done more than the rifle.

One of this general’s division commanders gave it as his opinion that the rifle as an offensive weapon in trench warfare has been entirely supplanted by the hand grenade, the poignard (Trench Knife), and the pistol; and that, in the present methods of attack, the advance should be conducted by well-trained grenadiers, abundantly supplied with hand grenades, the following infantry to be armed with grenades as wall as with rifles and bayonets.

Grenades have come to be universally regarded as indispensable both in attack and defense. The reason for this is to be found not only in the destructive effect of the grenade but also in that feature of modern warfare which may be described as a tendency to get back to primitive methods of fighting, imposed by the close quarters in which trench warfare must of necessity be conducted. At critical moments in the trenches a man will prefer a bomb or hand grenade which he can throw toward his approaching enemy rather than a rifle which he must first aim at his opponent. The effect of a hand grenade is much greater and more widespread than that of a rifle or pistol shot.

A shower of hand grenades thrown at troops advancing to an attack and exploding with much noise and destroying their lines has a very considerable moral as well as physical effect, and may even stop the attack before it can be pressed home.

The attacking troops, in the critical moment just before they reach their opponents, may be thrown into confusion and hence become unable to aim and fire their rifles accurately ; in such cases the hand grenade is for them a most efficient weapon. Again, firing the rifle while marching is often impossible, especially for those in rear of the first files when marching in column, as in an advance through communicating or other trenches ; but hand grenades may always be thrown. It is also to be remembered that the high-angle fire of hand grenades may be used in the trenches when no target for riflemen can be seen. When artillery fire can no longer be used because of the close proximity of the fighting lines, hand grenades may be used to great advantage.

Grenades are not only thrown by hand, where their limiting range is about 50 yards, but are also fired from the ordinary infantry rifle at ranges from 50 to about 320 yards, and from various projecting devices based on such ancient weapons as the onager, ballista, sling, and catapult, known from the earliest antiquity. The Bible tells us that eight centuries before our era that is, about 2700 years ago Ozias provided the walls of Jerusalem with machines constructed by a very wise engineer to throw bolts and large stones.

PART I
SELECTION, TRAINING, AND ORGANIZATION OF GRENADIERS

GENERAL

All officers and men of organizations trained to fight on foot should be instructed in the construction and use of hand and rifle grenades. This instruction must be progressive for individuals as well as for organizations. In the beginning a small number of specially selected officers, non commissioned officers, and privates of each regiment should be sent to the grenade school to take a 15-day course of instruction, in order to fit them to act as instructors for their several organizations. Upon successfully completing the course at the grenade school and receiving their certificates to this effect, this detachment should immediately be returned to their regiments to begin the selection, organization, and training of grenadiers, as prescribed hereafter.

At Aldershot the course is

• 10 days for classes composed of
• 40 officers and
• 40 noncommissioned officers

who, after graduation, are returned to their battalions as instructors. A proposed syllabus for a course of training is given in Appendix E.

The Canadian Grenade School, at Shorncliffe, England, trains

• 60 officers
• 60 non commissioned officers, and
• 300 privates

per month in the handling :

• throwing
• care of grenades
• care and use of explosives
• making of bombs
• use of trench mortars
• use of spring guns
• use of catapults
• use of other appliances
• and the latest methods of trench fighting.

The course of study lasts one month for officers and non commissioned officers ; the first two weeks as pupils and the last two as instructors of the privates in the school. The course for privates is two weeks. Germany is said to have introduced the grenade into the present war, and both in her recruit depots and her rest billets behind the lines the men are constantly trained and exercised in bombing. The German ideal is to have every infantry soldier a trained grenadier.

SELECTION OF GRENADIERS

All efforts should at first be directed to providing one thoroughly trained grenadier squad in each company. Under the supervision of all officers of the company, the men should be assembled and tested in throwing by any straight-arm method the individual chooses to adopt. If no dummy bombs or grenades are available, small sand bags or pebbles weighing about 1.5 pounds may be used as a substitute. The men should be required to throw at a mark, and those who attain the greatest accuracy and distance should be told off for further tests.
This party should then be tested in the prescribed methods of throwing hand grenades, and those showing the greatest aptitude should be selected to the number required from each company for training. This number should be about double that needed for service in order to provide for the inevitable eliminations during training and for substitutes to replace casualties in the early periods of service.

The smallest number of men required to carry out an operation with grenades is 6 :

• 2 riflemen
• 2 carriers
• 2 throwers

The instruction squad should therefore consist of 12 men. There should be :

• 1 non-commissioned officer
• 1 spare man for each 6 men, making a complete grenadier squad of
• 2 non-commissioned officers
• 14 men

Each and every man requires individual instruction and supervision, and larger squads would make this difficult, if not impossible. The number of squads per company must be increased from 1 to about 4, as opportunity offers.
The latest reports (1917) indicate that of the 194 men in a French infantry company :

• 4 non-commissioned officers and
• 28 men use hand grenades, while
• 24 men use rifle grenades

Each company of Canadian infantry has :

• 32 men in its grenadier detachment.

The men finally chosen, as indicated above, should be those showing, the greatest natural aptitude for the service and duties required, which aptitude it is intended to develop by training. They should, in addition :

• be intelligent
• physically fit for the hard manual labor involved
• full of initiative and resource
• and cool in emergencies.

This latter characteristic can only be discovered when a crisis occurs, and any man failing to meet this crucial test should at once be returned to duty with his company. It will often be found that the most unlikely looking men are those who rise to the occasion in emergencies. It must be remembered that grenade fighting in the trenches, often develops into a duel between single squads or even single grenadiers, and the side which shows the most resource and cunning, and whose grenadiers can throw to the greatest distance and with the most accuracy has the best chance of winning.

TRAINING OF GRENADIERS

The training of grenadiers must not be too much restricted by hard and fast rules. Instructors must be constantly on the alert for new methods of training and operation, and nothing contained herein is to be construed as limiting in any way the initiative and originality of any officer or man, so long as safety is secured and satisfactory results are obtained. The general principle to be followed in training grenadiers is to first give the individual a thorough knowledge of his duties and then to teach him by progressive methods to act in combination with his comrades ; that is, the course of instruction is divided Into two parts

• 1. Individual instruction
• 2. Squad instruction

1. INDIVIDUAL INSTRUCTION

The men selected from each company are grouped into squads of

• 14 men and
• 2 non-commissioned officers.

The senior non commissioned officer is in charge of the squad and is responsible for its training, under the supervision of the regimental bombing officer, who is assisted by one of the company officers. All training is carried out under the strictest discipline. A careless grenadier is a source of danger to himself and to his comrades. Slackness leads to indifferent work in the field, and nothing but discipline and courage can bring to success the work of grenadiers in actual fighting. Any display of carelessness should result in the immediate relief of the individual from the grenadier squad. All practice must be conducted under service conditions with the men, except the throwers, fully armed and equipped, less the pack.
The throwers do not ordinarily carry the rifle, but are armed with a pistol and a knife for their personal protection. In the case of carriers or other men who carry special apparatus, such as the periscope or a throwing device, the rifles should be slung vertically over and behind the left shoulder.

The instruction is both theoretical and practical, and these two branches should be carried on simultaneously, the one serving as a relief to the fatigue induced by the other.
The following is taught by lectures, illustrated at first by photographs and later by actually taking apart the service grenades, and by taking the positions and going through the motions indicated as most suitable for throwing :
(a) The precautions to be observed in handling explosives in general, and of grenades in particular.
(b) The general principles of detonating explosives.
(c) The method of making and using an improvised bomb (tin can, bottle, iron pipe).
(d) The classification, mechanism, and use of all the different service models of bombs, hand grenades, and rifle grenades in our own and foreign armies.
(e) The mechanics of the throw which gives the greatest accuracy and distance, with the least fatigue.
(f) The construction and uses of the periscope in grenade warfare.

In these lectures special emphasis should be laid on the fact that, in the hands of an intelligent and careful man, a grenade is a perfectly safe and efficient weapon ; but, in the hands of an ignorant or careless man, it is a danger to himself and to his comrades. Any man doing careless or foolish things with explosives should be returned to his company at once.

The physical condition of the men should be developed to the highest possible degree by suitable exercises related to the work of grenadiers. Among these exercises throwing grenades for distance and accuracy, barricading, and bayonet fighting at close quarters should have a prominent place. At the same time the men should practice correction of the throwing by the use of the periscope, and should be drilled in the movements required in storming and clearing trenches.

SCOPE OF INDIVIDUAL INSTRUCTION

(A) THE PRECAUTIONS TO BE OBSERVED IN HANDLING EXPLOSIVES IN GENERAL AND OF GRENADES IN PARTICULAR

This should be taught by means of simple lectures on the composition, characteristics, uses, packing, shipment, handling, storage, and preservation of all the usual military and commercial explosives, and of grenades, samples of all of which should be shown, with special reference to their advantages for use in improvised and service grenades, and the precautions to be observed in such work. Emphasize the fact that the danger in handling and using explosives and grenades is a direct function of the ignorance or carelessness of the men doing the work.
Instructors are cautioned that the greatest care must be taken in handling explosives, and especially when used in live grenades, and they must use every effort to insure that familiarity with explosives does not lead to carelessness in handling them. Adequate supervision must be insisted upon at all times, and commanding officers will be held ‘responsible that officers competent to act as instructors are present, and that every possible precaution is taken whenever live grenades are being handled.

PRECAUTIONS

The following precautions are among those which must always be observed :

1. Do not permit the use of live grenades until men are thoroughly trained in handling dummy grenades. Untrained men are very erratic and may injure themselves and the bystanders.
2. If the grenade is tossed, swinging in a vertical plane, great care must be taken to see that it does not hit the ground or other object during the swing.
3. Do not permit the throwing of a live grenade unless cover is at hand behind which the thrower and spectators may seek shelter before the grenade strikes tlie ground. It is unsafe to remain in the open when a grenade explodes.
4. In handling live grenades always hold the body of the grenade in the hand, and never lift it by means of the rope or streamer, which sometimes breaks, particularly after the grenade has been thrown.
5. Do not arm the grenade until the moment for firing.

(B) THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF DETONATING EXPLOSIVES

Simple lectures on the various types of military and commercial detonators and firing devices, fuses of all kinds, primers, percussion caps, etc. The instruction should include the method of ignition employed for each class of detonators and their application to the different kinds of explosives described above, together with the precautions to be observed in handling and using each kind of firing device to prevent accidents, as well as failures to fire, especially when used in grenades. Methods of arming and detonating or firing each kind of service and improvised grenades.

(C) THE METHOD OF MAKING AND USING IMPROVISED GRENADES

Explanation and illustration of making grenades on the field of battle, including containers used

• tin cans
• bottles
• iron pipe
• blocks of explosive bound up with nails, etc

the explosives most likely to be found available

• commercial dynamite
• blasting powder
• gun cotton
• trinitrotoluol

and the fuses which will probably be at hand for firing the same

• slow match
• percussion caps
• fire crackers
• toy torpedoes, etc.

Include in this the making of small improvised mines for blowing in trench walls and brief instructions for demolitions.

(D) THE CLASSIFICATION, MECHANISM, AND USE OF ALL THE DIFFERENT SERVICE MODELS OF BOMBS, HAND AND RIFLE GRENADES IN OUR OWN AND FOREIGN ARMIES

This should include a detailed explanation and demonstration of the working of all available models of service grenades, first by showing the photographs and then by taking apart and reassembling the grenade by the instructor and afterwards by each man of the squad. According to range, grenades may be divided into three classes :

1. Hand grenades, with a maximum range of about 50 yards. Among these we find explosive grenades, poison gas grenades, tear-producing grenades, suffocating grenades, incendiary and smoke-producing grenades.
2. Rifle grenades, with a range of 50 to 320 yards, and of the classes indicated above.
3. Trench-gun grenades, with ranges from 200 to 800 yards, depending upon the gun, and of the same classes as indicated above. Hand grenades are in general made up of a body or explosive box containing a certain quantity of explosive and an ignition or detonating device.

On the basis of their tactical employment hand grenades may be divided into two classes

(1) The defensive grenade generally has a cast-iron body, which, when the grenade explodes, breaks up into fragments of sufficient size and weight to seriously or mortally wound a man within a radius of at least 30 yards. With this grenade an impassable barrage can be produced by grenadiers 15 yards apart, but this grenade can only be used when the grenadier is protected by trenches or other cover from the fragments of his own grenades.

(2) The offensive grenade generally has a body made of sheet metal or other material, which, when the grenade explodes, does not produce fragments which will cause injuries at close range. These grenades are effective, due to the force of the explosion or blast, within a radius of about 7 yards. An impassable barrage is established if the grenadiers are about 10 yards apart. This grenade can be thrown far enough so that there is no danger to the grenadier throwing it even when without cover.

The British now use only the defensive type of grenade, while the French have both the offensive and defensive types. On the basis of method of ignition hand grenades may be divided into two types :

(1) The percussion grenade is arranged to explode immediately on striking the ground. This type has the disadvantage in trench warfare of being more dangerous to the thrower and his comrades, since the accidental strike or graze on the trench or the clothing or equipment of the thrower may produce an explosion ; and besides this, unless the grenade strikes directly in the hostile trench, it may explode without doing any damage ; that is, the men in the trench will be protected.
(2) The time-fuse grenade is arranged so that the time train is ignited by the striking of a match or the firing of a primer before the grenade is thrown, or at the instant of its departure from the hand. The advantage of this type of grenade lies in the fact that it is safer to use, and also especially because, even if striking in front of the trench or shelter, it may roll into it before exploding and thus injure the personnel that are under cover. In order to avoid confusion in joint attacks an agreement has recently been entered into by the French and British Armies that none but time-fuse grenades will be used in either service. Percussion grenades are largely used in the Italian service. The instruction under this heading should enable each man to use any grenade without danger to himself or to his comrades and should give him the confidence that he can do so.

Special attention should be given to the following points :

1. Every grenade is very dangerous if handled without precaution.
2. The detonator or firing device is dangerous by itself.
3. If the fuse takes fire accidentally, it should be thrown as far away as possible. As soon as a fuse is fixed to a grenade, all rough handling must be avoided.
4. Precaution with live grenades which fail to explode.

After each exercise in throwing live grenades, those which fail to explode must be disposed of in such a way as to avoid danger to all concerned. In the case of grenades with time fuses, at least 10 minutes must be allowed to elapse before any person is permitted on the range to hunt for unexploded grenades. At the end of this period, time-fuse grenades may be considered harmless and will be carefully collected into a small pit in the ground. A small charge of explosive, primed with about 10 feet of time fuse, will be placed in the center of the pile of grenades in the pit.

A tamping of dirt will be placed over the pile of grenades, and the charge fired, care being taken to see that a complete detonation of all grenades results. When ready to explode the charge, all the personnel should be under cover, and a non commissioned officer should light the fuse.

In the case of grenades with percussion fuses, no attempt will be made to move the unexploded grenades, which must be destroyed where they lie. A small charge of explosive should be placed in immediate contact with each grenade to be destroyed, without disturbing the position of the grenade. The charge is fired with a time fuse, after covering the charge and the grenade with a few shovelfuls of earth, without tamping. In case of a misfire of the explosive charge, a wait of 10 minutes is required before making a second attempt to destroy the grenade.

It is expressly forbidden to try to remove the primer from an unexploded grenade by unscrewing the cap. No grenade which has failed will again be thrown or fired.
The description and methods of handling United States grenades will be found in the pamphlets on the different types issued by the Ordnance Department, and these instructions should be carefully studied and accurately followed by all concerned.

(E) THE MECHANICS OF THE THROW WHICH GIVES THE GREATEST ACCURACY AND DISTANCE

Grenade throwing is the most important branch of grenadier training, and a very high standard of accuracy is required, for, besides the advantage it gives in combat, it diminishes the risks of accidents and the consumption of grenades. The moral effect of a grenade bursting exactly in a hostile trench is added to its destructive effect. Follow accurately the prescribed methods of priming and throwing ; work rapidly but without hurry, calmly and coolly.

Careful practice on sound lines is essential to success, and a considerable portion of the time available for training must be devoted to it. The difficulties in throwing are greatly augmented when, as is usually the case, throwing is to be done under complete cover, and according to directions given by an observer. The men throwing must be made to understand clearly at the beginning of their training that nothing can excuse inaccurate throwing, and instructors must not be satisfied until each man can throw from behind cover and in obedience to the directions of an observer, missiles of varying weight and size into a specified trench from any reasonable distance and in any direction.

In all practice involving the use of cover the men must work in pairs, one observing and the other throwing. The training of the observer is of the greatest importance, as he must be able to give distance and direction quickly and accurately. He must give his corrections in positive terms, in the form of short, sharp, clear words of command, and the thrower must be ready and able to understand and obey. The observer must learn to use the periscope, and should operate it throughout the training.

Simple lectures should be given on throwing under different conditions, beginning on open ground and then in trenches, standing, kneeling, and lying down. Special emphasis should be given to the necessity of taking cover from our own grenades, showing by diagram the radius of action and direction of flight of fragments and balls. Illustrate this talk by moving pictures, photographs, and then by taking up the prescribed positions for throwing ; but permit any safe method of throwing which promises good results in individual cases.

Methods of throwing vary not only with different individuals but also with different types of grenades. Experience has shown that accuracy is harder to obtain at short ranges than at the maximum range obtainable without undue exertion. It has been found that the accuracy of the throw is surprisingly effected by the presence of an actual wall in place of a hypothetical wall such as may be made by a string or a piece of board.

Therefore a large part of the training should be in throwing at ranges of from 15 to 20 yards, and over actual parapets. Include the method of holding the hand grenade, of arming or setting it for firing, and the precautions to be observed for safety to our own forces, and to secure the greatest damage to the enemy. The grenade must never be thrown horizontally. Its fire must be plunging. In case ignition is not apparent, consider the grenade ignited, and throw at once, without delay.

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