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A last stand is a military situation on which a normally-small defensive force holds a position against a powerful entity.
The defending force usually takes heavy casualties. That can take the form of a rearguard action, holding a defensible location, or simply refusing to give up a position. A last stand is a last-resort tactic that is used if retreat or surrender is impossible or fighting is essential to the success of the cause. The defending force is most likely defeated, but it sometimes survives long enough for reinforcements to arrive that force the retreat of the attackers; it can even occasionally force the enemy away by itself.
At various times in history, last stands have ended with a defeat in the strict immediate military sense, but they have become moral victories by creating a heroic myth, which can be a great political asset to the cause for which the last stand had been fought.
A last stand is a military situation on which a normally-small defensive force holds a position against a powerful entity.
The defending force usually takes heavy casualties. That can take the form of a rearguard action, holding a defensible location, or simply refusing to give up a position. A last stand is a last-resort tactic that is used if retreat or surrender is impossible or fighting is essential to the success of the cause. The defending force is most likely defeated, but it sometimes survives long enough for reinforcements to arrive that force the retreat of the attackers; it can even occasionally force the enemy away by itself.
At various times in history, last stands have ended with a defeat in the strict immediate military sense, but they have become moral victories by creating a heroic myth, which can be a great political asset to the cause for which the last stand had been fought.
Land-based last stands
Naval last stands
}). Shortly thereafter, ''Moskva'' and the patrol boat '' Vasily Bykov'' began a naval bombardment, followed by a landing of Russian soldiers who took control of the island. The island's detachment were initially reported as killed in action by the bombardment; however, later reports confirmed they had survived and were being held asprisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
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, Russian victory
* State Border Guard detachment taken prisoner, all 13 awarded Hero of Ukraine ''in absentia''
Last stands in aviation
Last stands with few defenders
See also
* Battle off Samar * Polish Thermopylae *They shall not pass
In Modern English, ''they'' is a third-person pronoun relating to a grammatical subject.
Morphology
In Standard Modern English, ''they'' has five distinct word forms:
* ''they'': the nominative (subjective) form
* ''them'': the accusati ...
References
Bibliography
* * * * * * *{{cite book , last=Stühring , first= Henning , title=Von Stalingrad bis Kursk: Als der Osten brannte, Teil II , date=2014 , publisher= epubli , isbn= 978-3844276091 *''The Memoirs of General Grivas'' by George Grivas, edited by Charles Foley. Longmans. London. 1964. *Last stands
A last stand is a military situation in which a body of troops holds a defensive position in the face of overwhelming and virtually insurmountable odds. Troops may make a last stand due to a sense of duty; because they are defending a tactic ...