Giovanni Scirano (Pacifica)
Giovanni Scirano | |
|---|---|
 Brigadier General Giovanni Scirano shortly before the Weissersteiner Civil War in 1938. | |
| Born | 17 October 1896 Varino, Acerra Province, Catanian Tribunate,  Kingdom of Stoinia |
| Died | 18 July 1987 (aged 90) |
| Buried | Varino Cemetery |
| Allegiance | Stoinia |
| Service/ | Stoinian Royal Army |
| Years of service | 1914 -1972 |
| Rank | Field Marshal |
| Commands held | Chief of Defence Staff Chief of Staff of the Stoinian Royal Army 1st Army III Corps |
| Battles/wars | Marsh Wars Weissersteiner Civil War Great War |
| Awards | 1x Iron Cross 1st Class (Weisserstein) Lion's Order of Gallantry (Stoinia) 2x Red Hearts (Stoinia) |
| Alma mater | Sinaia War College |
| Spouse(s) | Alessia Scirano |
| Children | 5 |
"We couldn't have wished for a finer General to help us in this war."—A Weissersteiner General during the Weissersteiner Civil War.
Giovanni Scirano was a famous Catanian General in the Stoinian Army known primarily for his involvement in the Weissersteiner Civil War and the Great War. He's accredited to have been the military innovator behind the Stoinian Bellica Incessante warfare doctrine and his insights into military theory are still taught to this day. He was the foremost innovator of combined arms warfare in Stoinia throughout Stoinian military history and the father of modern military doctrine. Although revered mostly as a war hero, he's also known for having served as the Chief of Defence Staff from 1964 to 1972 and his support to Sallodesia during the Bush War.
Early Life
Scirano was born in a Pantholic Catanian family in Varino in the Acerra Province. Born as the oldest of seven children, he held additional responsibilities within the household. Although largely growing up in the agrarian landside, Scirano grew more and more ambitious over the years. It was noted he had a huge interest in sports, especially Oina.
Military career
2nd Marsh War
Red Calamity
Weissersteiner Civil War
Great War
Defence Staff
Legacy
To this day, Giovanni Scirano remains perhaps the most famous Stoinian military commander in history. He pioneered modern Stoinian warfare and his insights have even been applied to other fields such as business. Generally, Giovanni Scirano is seen as the perfect war hero with a pure soul by many which he denied throughout the course of his life. The fact he never truly entered politics and leveraged his reputation into power only cemented this fact. Soldiers who served under him held a deep respect for he was an officer who rose through the ranks, spoke the language of the barracks and wasn't afraid to lead offensives from the frontlines despite his high rank. The latter too had served as an example to fellow Stoinian officers during the Great War and mimicked the leadership of Stoinian Kings. Regardless, Scirano remains one the most popular military officers which many new officer graduates aspire to be.
Scirano was also deeply religious and a devout Pantholic Christian. In his retirement years, he could often be seen attending the church in his local village where many revered him, he often rebutted that he too had his sins and doubted if he'd even be allowed into Heaven for taking so many humans lives despite his loyal service to his country. Similarly, he garnered a lot of medals and glory on the battlefield but oftentimes rejected any such commendations in favour of soldiers who died under his command. This humble view on life is believed to have been rooted in his Pantholic beliefs.
Scirano also created funds to rebuild the war-torn nations after the Great War, helping to build schools and hospitals in Cadíz, Castemura, Losavra and Ikaranara. Numerous monuments are raised in his honour after his death across many countries and the military commendation of "Ceaseless Victor" was named after him.
Bellica Incessante
"No plan survives contact with the battlefield. Yet, let us turn the battlefield into literal hellfire for our colleagues on the other side. Leave no moment for them to rest. It'll grow them tired and in turn, will make them make errors. Once an error occurs, our ceaseless barrage will expose it and naturally grant us the opportunity for an offensive. Through chaos, we gain the opportunity. However, it must be noted that in order for this strategy to work, one must master the art of logistics. For without it, one could miss the opportunity and risks becoming fodder at the very brink of victory."—Brigadier General Giovanni Scirano in his memoirs describing his experiences with the Bellica Incessante doctrine during the Weissersteiner Civil War.
Bellica Incessante or 'Ceaseless Warfare' is the doctrine created by Scirano with his expeditionary force in the Weissersteiner Civil War of an overarching strategy of controlled chaos on the battlefield. In essence, the doctrine stipulates the necessity of combined arms and their logistics. Scirano believed that warfare had evolved into a multi-faceted form following the Marsh Wars' successful offensives despite the Wars' known static nature. The doctrine emphasises the use of as many military branches as possible in conjunction or alternately. In Weisserstein, he formulated that mechanised armour, aeroplanes and if available naval elements as well, should serve to support the major offensives of the infantry. By continuously attacking enemy forces through either full frontal coordinated assaults or alternating precise operations such as artillery barrages at dawn or air raids during the night, Scirano believed that this would not grant the enemy the chance to gain the upper hand and be able to launch successful counter-offensives nor allow them recover to mount successful attacks Additionally, he believed that an unending barrage upon the enemy on various fronts would grant the attacker an immediate opportunity to realise an offensive if a puncture in the enemy lines appeared. It has often been compared to Frankist Blitzkrieg, yet the key difference between the two doctrines is that Blitzkrieg actively plans to create a specific puncture in enemy lines, while Bellica Incessante awaits for a possible puncture to reveal itself and be exploited by the permanent assault.
However, this doctrine is not without its criticism. Scirano rightfully worried that the continuous assaults from his own troops without respite would in turn affect his own forces and possibly backfire without the proper infrastructure. It was therefore that Scirano also put a lot of emphasis on good logistical infrastructure as was seen in his numerous pleas to Prime Minister Stegăroiu for additional ammunition. This would prove a major issue in certain offensives throughout his life and has always been a vocal supporter of a unified ammunition system which would eventually form the Bailtemmic Ammunition Standard. Additionally, his doctrine also relies on adequate support from all branches of the armed forces, especially the air force as they played a pivotal role in some of his offensives. Without the proper support of the air force, it was noted that Scirano's doctrine wasn't as effective as expected.