accerchiamento

Accerchiamento is a military term designating the action of surrounding an opposing force to prevent withdrawal or resupply and to compel surrender. The encircling maneuver closes the enemy from multiple directions, often from the flanks and rear, isolating the target from reinforcement, logistics, and communications and creating a pocket that can be destroyed or forced to surrender.

Historical usage: The concept appears in antiquity and is central in Hannibal’s double envelopment at Cannae (216 BCE), where Carthaginian forces surrounded a larger Roman army. In modern warfare encirclement occurred in campaigns such as the Kiev pocket and other World War II operations, where large pockets formed through converging axes or enveloping forces.

Strategic considerations: Advantages include cutting off supplies and morale, potentially yielding surrender without costly frontal assaults. Risks include overextension, enemy breakout, or relief by external forces. Successful accerchiamento generally requires tempo, intelligence, and the ability to maintain friendly supply lines while denying them to the foe.

In other contexts, the term may describe political or economic strategies that isolate a state or organization from allies or resources through diplomatic, economic, or informational measures.

See also: encirclement, siege, pincer movement.