How Flanking Actually Works

Flanking is one of the most decisive maneuvers in war, and almost everyone gets it wrong. It has barely anything to do with "sneaking around the side" — what actually wins is fixing the enemy's attention in one direction so you can strike from another. This breakdown covers why a position's greatest strength becomes its fatal weakness, the two forces every flank attack needs, why flanking breaks units psychologically before it destroys them, how to reach the flank without getting caught, and how Hannibal turned the whole principle into the most complete envelopment in history at Cannae.