- Source: Defile (geography)
In geography, a defile is a narrow pass or gorge between mountains or hills. The term originates from a military description of a route through which troops can march only in a narrow column or with a narrow front. On emerging from a defile (or something similar) into open country, soldiers are said to "debouch".
Background
In a traditional military formation, soldiers march in ranks (the depth of the formation is the number of ranks) and files (the width of the formation is the number of files), so, if a column of soldiers approaches a narrow pass, the formation must narrow, and so the files on the outside must be ordered to the rear (or to some other position) so that the column has fewer files and more ranks. The French verb for this order is défiler, from which the English verb comes, as does the physical description for a valley that forces this manoeuvre.
Defiles of military significance can also be formed by other physical features that flank a pass or path and cause it to narrow, for example impassable woods and rivers. At the Battle of Agincourt, a defile formed by the woods of Agincourt and Forecourt caused a choke point for the French army and aided the English in their victory over the French.
Some defiles have a permanent strategic importance and become known by that term in military literature. For example, the military historian William Siborne names such a geographic feature in France near the frontier with Germany in his book Waterloo Campaign 1815:
On the following day, General Rapp fell back upon the Defile of Brümath; but this he quitted in the night, and took up a favourable position in the rear of the Suffel, near Strasburg.
See also
Battle of Cerro Gordo – 1847 battle of the Mexican–American War
Battle of Thermopylae – 480 BC engagement of the Greco-Persian Wars
Canyon – Deep chasm between cliffs
Draw (terrain) – Terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between
Gully – Landform created by running water and/or mass movement eroding sharply into soil
Ravine – Small valley, often due to stream erosion
Valley – Low area between hills, often with a river running through it
Water gap – Geological feature formed through a mountain
Wind gap – Topographic gap made by a former waterway
Fulda Gap – Cold War strategically important area
References
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Defile (geography)
- Defile
- Water gap
- Draw (terrain)
- Glossary of geography terms (A–M)
- Iron Gates
- Geography of Ethiopia
- Hanna defile
- Geography of New York (state)
- List of battles by geographic location
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