Cartography and War

Abstract

For most combat, we have no maps. Thereafter mental mapping was the key; fitness is dependent on the need for mapping as well as the opportunities that exist. Not all places were equal in coverage and significance: sites to be fortified attracted mapping attention, and, more particularly, in order to plan how best to defend them. The precise location of the target, and an understanding of the routes there, are both crucial. The development of military cartography is conditioned by geographic theaters and operational capabilities. The essay illustrates the differences between the maps produced by the two world wars and between the British, American and Soviet, as well as the impact of airpower, developing three-dimensional mapping, radio navigation and geo-localization systems.