Opening
Transcriber’s Notes
Text in italics has been transcribed between underscores, bold text between =equal signs= and underlined text between ~tildes~. Small capitals have been changed to ALL CAPITALS. ^{text} and _{text} represent super- and subscript text, respectively.
More Transcriber’s Notes can be found at the end of the text.
A MILITARY DICTIONARY AND GAZETTEER.
COMPRISING
ANCIENT AND MODERN MILITARY TECHNICAL TERMS, HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS OF ALL NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, AS WELL AS ANCIENT WARLIKE TRIBES; ALSO NOTICES OF BATTLES FROM THE EARLIEST PERIOD TO THE PRESENT TIME, WITH A CONCISE EXPLANATION OF TERMS USED IN HERALDRY AND THE OFFICES THEREOF.
THE WORK ALSO GIVES VALUABLE GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION.
COMPILED FROM THE BEST AUTHORITIES OF ALL NATIONS.
WITH AN APPENDIX CONTAINING THE ARTICLES OF WAR, ETC.
BY THOMAS WILHELM, CAPTAIN EIGHTH INFANTRY.
REVISED EDITION.
PHILADELPHIA: L. R. HAMERSLY & CO. 1881.
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1880, by THOMAS WILHELM, U.S.A., In the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington.
TO BREVET MAJOR-GENERAL AUGUST V. KAUTZ, COLONEL EIGHTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY, U.S.A.,
BY WHOSE SUGGESTIONS, ENCOURAGEMENT, AND AID THE WORK WAS UNDERTAKEN, PERSEVERED IN, AND COMPLETED,
THIS COMPILATION IS, WITH RESPECT AND GRATITUDE, DEDICATED BY HIS OBEDIENT SERVANT, THE COMPILER.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
It is with no small degree of relief that the compiler of this work now turns from a self-imposed task, involving some years of the closest application, to write a brief preface, not as a necessity, but in justice to the work and the numerous friends who have taken the warmest interest in its progress and final completion.
It is inevitable that in the vast amount of patient and persistent labor in a work of this kind, extending to 1386 pages, and containing 17,257 distinct articles, there should be a few errors, oversights, and inconsistencies, notwithstanding all the vigilance to the contrary.
Condensation has been accomplished where it was possible to do so, and repetition avoided to a great extent by reference, where further information was contained in other articles of this book.
The contributions to the Regimental Library, which afforded the opportunity for this compilation, of standard foreign works, were of infinite value, and many thanks are tendered for them.
To G. & C. MERRIAM, Publishers, for the use of Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary; J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO., Publishers, Philadelphia; D. VAN NOSTRAND, Publisher, New York; Maj. WILLIAM A. MARYE, Ordnance Department, U.S.A.; Maj. W. S. WORTH, Eighth Infantry, U.S.A.; Maj. D. T. WELLS, Eighth Infantry, U.S.A.; Lieut. F. A. WHITNEY, Adjutant Eighth Infantry, U.S.A.; Lieut. C. A. L. TOTTEN, Fourth Artillery, U.S.A.; Lieut. C. M. BAILY, Quartermaster Eighth Infantry, U.S.A.; and Lieut. G. P. SCRIVEN, Third Artillery, U.S.A., the compiler is indebted for courteous assistance in the preparation of this volume.
OCTOBER, 1879.
PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION.
In submitting this volume to the public it is deemed proper to say that the design of the work is to bring together into one series, and in as compact a form as possible for ready reference, such information as the student of the science and art of war, persons interested in the local or reserve forces, libraries, as well as the editors of the daily press, should possess. In short, it is believed that the work will be useful to individuals of all ranks and conditions.
The compiler has labored under some disadvantages in obtaining the necessary information for this volume, and much is due to the encouragement and assistance received from accomplished and eminent officers, through which he was enabled to undertake the revision of the first issue of this work with greater assurance; and among the officers referred to, Lieut. WILLIAM R. QUINAN, of the Fourth Artillery, U.S.A., deserves especially to be mentioned. It may not be out of place here to state that the compiler takes no credit to himself beyond the labor contributed in the several years of research, and bringing forward to date the matter requiring it, with such changes as the advance of time and improvements demand.
As it was thought best to make this work purely military, all naval references which appeared in the first edition have been eliminated.
MAY, 1881.
AUTHORITIES CONSULTED IN THE COMPILATION OF THIS WORK.
ENGLISH AND AMERICAN WORKS.
A HANDY DICTIONARY OF MILITARY TERMS--Knollys.
AIDE MEMOIRE TO THE MILITARY SCIENCES--Originally edited by a Committee of the Royal Engineers in England (Revised and Enlarged).
ANALYTICAL DIGEST OF THE MILITARY LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES--Scott.
A TREATISE ON THE LAW OF EVIDENCE--Greenleaf.
BEETON’S DICTIONARY OF UNIVERSAL BIOGRAPHY.
BEETON’S DICTIONARY OF UNIVERSAL GEOGRAPHY.
CHAMBERS’S ENCYCLOPÆDIA.
CUSTOMS OF SERVICE FOR NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS OF THE ARMY--Kautz.
CUSTOMS OF SERVICE FOR OFFICERS OF THE ARMY--Kautz.
CLASSICAL DICTIONARY--Smith.
DIGEST OF OPINIONS OF THE JUDGE-ADVOCATE-GENERAL--Winthrop.
DICTIONARY OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY--Gardner.
DICTIONARY OF GREEK AND ROMAN ANTIQUITIES--Smith.
DICTIONARY OF GREEK AND ROMAN BIOGRAPHY AND MYTHOLOGY--Smith.
DICTIONARY OF GREEK AND ROMAN GEOGRAPHY--Smith.
DICTIONARY OF ARTS, MANUFACTURES, AND MINES--Ure.
DICTIONARY OF EVERY DAYS DIFFICULTIES--Shilton.
DICTIONARY OF SCIENCE, LITERATURE, AND ART--Brande.
ELEMENTS OF THE ART AND SCIENCE OF WAR--Wheeler.
ELEMENTS OF MILITARY ARTS AND SCIENCES--Halleck.
ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA.
FRENCH AND ENGLISH PRONOUNCING DICTIONARY--Spiers and Surenne.
FIELD EXERCISE (English), 1870.
FIELD-BOOK OF THE REVOLUTION--Lossing.
HAND-BOOK OF ARTILLERY--Roberts.
HAYDN’S DICTIONARY OF DATES--Payne.
HAYDN’S DICTIONARY OF SCIENCE--Payne.
HAYDN’S DICTIONARY OF THE BIBLE--Payne.
HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES--Bancroft.
HISTORY OF THE WAR IN THE PENINSULA AND IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE--Napier.
HISTORY OF ENGLAND--Knight.
HISTORY OF THE REBELLION--Tenney.
INFANTRY, CAVALRY, AND ARTILLERY TACTICS, U.S.A.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR FIELD ARTILLERY.
JOMINI’S ART OF WAR--Translated from the French by Captains Mendell and Craighill, U.S.A.
JOMINI’S TREATISE ON GRAND MILITARY OPERATIONS, OR A CRITICAL AND MILITARY HISTORY OF THE WARS OF FREDERICK THE GREAT--Translated by Colonel S. B. Holabird, U.S.A.
JOHNSON’S NEW UNIVERSAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.
JUDGE-ADVOCATE AND RECORDER’S GUIDE--Regan.
LAW DICTIONARY--Bouvier.
LIPPINCOTT’S PRONOUNCING GAZETTEER OF THE WORLD--Thomas.
MANUAL FOR ENGINEER TROOPS--Duane.
MAXIMS OF WAR--Napoleon.
MILITARY BRIDGES--Haupt.
MILITARY CATECHISM AND HAND-BOOK--Walshe.
MILITARY DICTIONARY--Duane.
MILITARY DICTIONARY--Scott.
MILITARY ENGINEERING--Mahan.
MILITARY LAW AND COURT-MARTIAL--Benet.
MILITARY MISCELLANY--Marshall.
MILITARY SCHOOLS AND COURSES OF INSTRUCTION IN THE SCIENCE AND ART OF WAR--Barnard.
NATIVE RACES OF THE PACIFIC SLOPE--Bancroft.
NAVAL AND MILITARY TECHNICAL DICTIONARY OF THE FRENCH LANGUAGE--Burns.
ORDNANCE AND GUNNERY--Benton.
PICTORIAL FIELD-BOOK OF THE WAR OF 1812--Lossing.
PRACTICAL TREATISE ON ATTACK AND DEFENSE--Jebb.
QUEEN’S REGULATIONS AND ORDERS FOR THE ARMY (British).
REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, 1870.
REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF ORDNANCE, 1878.
SHIFTS AND EXPEDIENTS OF CAMP-LIFE--Lord and Baines.
THE ARMIES OF EUROPE--McClellan.
THE LAST CENTURY OF UNIVERSAL HISTORY, 1767-1867--Fiwald.
THE MILITARY LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES--Callan.
THE SOLDIER’S POCKET-BOOK FOR FIELD-SERVICE--Major-General Sir G. Wolseley.
UNITED STATES ARMY REGULATIONS.
UNITED STATES BRIDGE EQUIPAGE--Prepared by a Board of Engineer Officers--Lieutenant W. R. Quinan, 4th U. S. Artillery.
UNITED STATES REVISED STATUTES.
WEBSTER’S DICTIONARY--G. & C. Merriam.
GERMAN WORKS.
DIENST-VORSCHRIFTEN DER KÖNIGLICH PREUSSISCHEN ARMEE--Karl von Helldorff.
DIE LEHRE VOM NEUEREN FESTUNGSKRIEG--W. Rüstow.
GRUNDZÜGE DER TAKTIK DER DREI WAFFEN, INFANTERIE, KAVALLERIE, UND ARTILLERIE--Dr. H. v. Brandt.
HEERWESEN UND INFANTERIEDIENST DER KÖNIGLICH PREUSSISCHEN ARMEE--A. v. Witzleben.
KRIEGSFEUERWERKEREI ZUM GEBRAUCH FÜR DIE KÖNIGLICH PREUSSISCHEN ARTILLERIE--A. Bath.
KRIEGSWÖRTERBUCH--Carl Ad. Loehr.
MILITAIR CONVERSATIONS-LEXIKON--Hans Eggert Willibald von der Lühe.
FRENCH WORKS.
ENCYCLOPÉDIE MILITAIRE ET MARITIME.
GÉOGRAPHIE PHISIQUE, HISTORIQUE ET MILITAIRE--Théophile Lava.
LÉGISLATION ET ADMINISTRATION MILITAIRES--M. Léon Guillot.
SUR LA FORMATION DES TROUPES POUR LE COMBAT--Jomini.
IMPORTANT MAXIMS.
Misfortune will certainly fall upon the land where the wealth of the tax-gatherer or the greedy gambler in stocks stands, in public estimation, above the uniform of the brave man who sacrifices his life, health, or fortune in the defense of his country.
Officers should feel a conviction that resignation, bravery, and faithful attention to duty are virtues without which no glory is possible, no army is respectable, and that firmness amid reverses is more honorable than enthusiasm in success.
It is not well to create a too great contempt for the enemy, lest the morale of the soldier should be shaken if he encounter an obstinate resistance.
It would seem to be easy to convince brave men that death comes more surely to those who fly in disorder than to those who remain together and present a firm front to the enemy, or who rally promptly when their lines have been for the instant broken.
Courage should be recompensed and honored, the different grades in rank respected, and discipline should exist in the sentiments and convictions rather than in external forms only.--Jomini.
An army without discipline is but a mob in uniform, more dangerous to itself than to its enemy. Should any one from ignorance not perceive the immense advantages that arise from a good discipline, it will be sufficient to observe the alterations that have happened in Europe since the year 1700.--Saxe.
If the first duty of a state is its own security, the second is the security of neighboring states whose existence is necessary for its own preservation.--Jomini’s “Life of Napoleon.”
A good general, a well-organized system, good instruction, and severe discipline, aided by effective establishments, will always make good troops, independently of the cause for which they fight. At the same time, a love of country, a spirit of enthusiasm, a sense of national honor, will operate upon young soldiers with advantage.
The officer who obeys, whatever may be the nature or extent of his command, will always stand excused executing implicitly the orders which have been given to him.
Every means should be taken to attach the soldier to his colors. This is best accomplished by showing consideration and respect to the old soldier.
The first qualification of a soldier is fortitude under fatigue and privation. Courage is only the second; hardship, poverty, and want are the best schools for a soldier.
Troops, whether halted, or encamped, or on the march, should be always in favorable position, possessing the essentials required for a field of battle.
Some men are so physically and morally constituted as to see everything through a highly-colored medium. They raise up a picture in the mind on every slight occasion, and give to every trivial occurrence a dramatic interest. But whatever knowledge, or talent, or courage, or other good qualities such men may possess, nature has not formed them for the command of armies or the direction of great military operations.--Napoleon’s “Maxims of War.”
MILITARY DICTIONARY.
A.
=Aachen.= See AIX-LA-CHAPELLE.
=Aar.= A river in Switzerland, flows into the Rhine opposite and near Waldshut, in Aargau. Prince Charles, while crossing the river, August 17, 1799, was repulsed by the French generals Ney and Heudelet.
=Aarau.= A city in Switzerland. Peace was here declared, July 18, 1712, ending the war between the cantons Zurich and Berne on one side, and Luzerne, Uri, Schuyz, Unterwalden, and Zug on the other.
=Abad= (Abadides). A line of Moorish kings who reigned in Seville from 1026 to 1090.
=Abaisse.= In heraldry, when the fesse or any other armorial figure is depressed, or situated below the centre of the shield, it is said to be abaisse (“lowered”).
=Abandon.= In a military sense, used in the relinquishment of a military post, district, or station, or the breaking up of a military establishment. To abandon any fort, post, guard, arms, ammunition, or colors without good cause is punishable.
=Abase, To.= An old word signifying to lower a flag. Abaisser is in use in the French marine, and both may be derived from the still older abeigh, to cast down, to humble.
=Abatement.= In heraldry, is a mark placed over a portion of the paternal coat of arms, indicating some base or ungentlemanly act on the part of the bearer.
=Abatis=, or =Abattis=. A means of defense formed by cutting off the smaller branches of trees felled in the direction from which the enemy may be expected. The ends of the larger branches are sharpened and the butts of the limbs or trees fastened by crochet picket, or by imbedding in the earth, so that they cannot be easily removed. Abatis is generally used in parts of a ditch or intrenchment to delay the enemy under fire.
=Abblast.= See ARBALEST.
=Abblaster.= See ARBALIST.
=Abdivtes.= A piratical people descended from the Saracens, who lived south of Mount Ida (Psilorati), in the island of Crete (Candia), where they established themselves in 825.
=Abduction= (Fr.). Diminution; diminishing the front of a line or column by breaking off a division, subdivision, or files, in order to avoid some obstacle.
=Abencerrages.= A Moorish tribe which occupied the kingdom of Granada. Granada was disturbed by incessant quarrels between this tribe and the Zegris from 1480 to 1492. They were finally extinguished by Abou-Abdoullah, or Boabdil, the last Moorish king of Granada, and the same who was dethroned by Ferdinand and Isabella in 1492.
=Abensburg.= A small town of Bavaria, on the Abens, 18 miles southwest of Ratisbon. Here Napoleon defeated the Austrians, April 20, 1809.
=Aberconway=, or =Conway=. A maritime city of the Gauls in England, fortified by William the Conqueror, and taken by Cromwell in 1645.
=Abet.= In a military sense it is a grave crime to aid or abet in mutiny or sedition, or excite resistance against lawful orders.
=Abgersate.= Fortress of the Osrhoene, in Mesopotamia. The Persians took it by assault in the year 534.
=Abii.= A Scythian tribe which inhabited the shores of the Jaxartes, to the northeast of Sogdiana. They were vanquished by Alexander the Great.
=Abipones.= A tribe of Indians living in the Argentine Confederation, who were formerly numerous and powerful, but are now reduced to a small number.
=Able-bodied.= In a military sense applies to one who is physically competent as a soldier.
=Ablecti.= Ancient military term applied to a select body of men taken from the extraordinarii of the Roman army to serve as a body-guard to the commanding general or the consul. The guard consisted of 40 mounted and 160 dismounted men.
=Abo.= A Russian city and seaport, on the Aurajoki near its entrance into the Gulf of Bothnia. It formerly belonged to Sweden, but was taken with the whole of Finland by the Russians in the war begun by Sweden in 1741. By a treaty of peace concluded hero in 1743 the conquered possessions were restored to Sweden. They were ceded to Russia in 1809.
=Abolla.= A warm kind of military garment, lined or doubled, worn by both Greeks and Romans.
=Abou-girgeh.= A city of Upper Egypt where the French defeated the Egyptians in 1799.
=Aboukir= (anc. Canopus). A village of Egypt on a promontory at the western extremity of the bay of the same name, 15 miles northeast of Alexandria. In the bay Nelson defeated the French fleet, August 1, 1798. This engagement, which resulted in a loss to the French of 11 line-of-battle ships, is known as the “battle of the Nile.” In 1801 a British expedition under Sir Ralph Abercromby landed at Aboukir, and captured the place after an obstinate and sanguinary conflict with the French (March 8). Here also a Turkish army of 15,000 men was defeated by 5000 French under Bonaparte, July 25, 1799.
=Aboumand.= Village of Upper Egypt, near the river Nile, where the French fought the Arabs in 1799.
=About.= A technical word to express the movement by which a body of troops or artillery carriages change front.
=Abraham, Heights of.= Near Quebec, Lower Canada. In the memorable engagement which took place here September 13, 1759, the French under Gen. Montcalm were defeated by the English under Gen. Wolfe, who was killed in the moment of victory.
=Abri= (Fr.). Shelter, cover, concealment; arm-sheds in a camp secure from rain, dust, etc.; place of security from the effect of shot, shells, or attack.
=Absence, Leave of.= The permission which officers of the army obtain to absent themselves from duty. In the U. S. service an officer is entitled to 30 days’ leave in each year on full pay. This time he may permit to accumulate for a period not exceeding 4 years. An officer, however, may enjoy 5 months’ continuous leave on full pay, provided the fifth month of such leave is wholly distinct from the four-year period within and for which the 4 months’ absence with full pay was enjoyed. An officer on leave over this time is entitled to half-pay only.
=Absent.= A term used in military returns in accounting for the deficiency of any given number of officers or soldiers, and is usually distinguished under two heads, viz.: Absent with leave, such as officers with permission, or enlisted men on furlough. Absent without leave; men who desert are sometimes reported absent without leave, to bring their crimes under cognizance of regimental, garrison, or field-officers’ courts; thus, under mitigating circumstances, trial by general court-martial is avoided. Absence without leave entails forfeiture of pay during such absence, unless it is excused as unavoidable. An officer absent without leave for three months may be dropped from the rolls of the army by the President, and is not eligible to reappointment.
=Absolute Force of Gunpowder.= Is measured by the pressure it exerts on its environment when it exactly fills the space in which it is fired. Various attempts have been made to determine this force experimentally with widely different results. Robins estimated the pressure on the square inch at 1000 atmospheres, Hutton at 1800, and Count Rumford as high as 100,000 atmospheres. While Rodman, by experiments upon strong cast-iron shells, verified the accuracy of Rumford’s formulas, he found that his estimate of the force was greatly in error. According to Rodman the pressure is approximately 14,000 atmospheres. Dr. Woodbridge, another American philosopher and inventor, has shown that, fired in small quantities, the force of gunpowder does not exceed 6200 atmospheres. This agrees closely with the conclusion arrived at by the English “Committee on Explosives,” 1875, who found that even in large guns the force did not exceed 42 tons.
=Absorokas.= A tribe of North American Indians. See CROWS.
=Absterdam Projectile.= See PROJECTILE.
=Abydus.= An ancient city of Mysia on the Hellespont nearly opposite Sestus on the European shore. Near this town Xerxes placed the bridge of boats by which his troops were conveyed across the channel to the town of Sestus, 480 B.C.
=Abyssinia.= A country of Eastern Africa, forming an elevated table-land and containing many fertile valleys. Theodore II., the king of this country, having maltreated and imprisoned some English subjects, an expedition under Lord Napier was sent against him from Bombay in 1867. On April 14, 1868, the mountain fortress of Magdala was stormed and taken with but little trouble, and Theodore was found dead on the hill, having killed himself. The country is at present governed by Emperor John of Ethiopia, who was crowned in 1872.
=Academies, Military.= See MILITARY ACADEMIES.
=Accelerator.= A cannon in which several charges are successively fired to give an increasing velocity to the projectile while moving in the bore. See MULTI-CHARGE GUN.
=Accessible.= Easy of access or approach. A place or fort is said to be accessible when it can be approached with a hostile force by land or sea.
=Accintus.= A word in ancient times signifying the complete accoutrements of a soldier.
=Accolade.= The ceremonious act of conferring knighthood in ancient times. It consisted of an embrace and gentle blow with the sword on the shoulder of the person on whom the honor of knighthood was being conferred.
=Accord.= The conditions under which a fortress or command of troops is surrendered.
=Accoutre.= To furnish with accoutrements.
=Accoutrements.= Dress, equipage, trappings. Specifically, the equipments of a soldier, except arms and clothing.
=Accused.= In a military sense, the designation of one who is arraigned before a military court.
=Acerræ= (now Acera). A city in the kingdom of Naples, taken and burned by Hannibal in 216 B.C. In 90 B.C. the Romans defeated under its walls the allied rebels commanded by Papius.
=Acerræ.= A city of the Gauls, taken by Marcellus in 222 B.C.
=Achæan League.= A confederacy which existed from very early times among the twelve states of the province of Achaia, in the north of the Peloponnesus. It was broken up after the death of Alexander the Great, but was set on foot again by some of the original cities, 280 B.C., the epoch of its rise into great historical importance; for from this time it gained strength, and finally spread over the whole Peloponnesus, though not without much opposition, principally on the part of Lacedæmon. It was finally dissolved by the Romans, on the event of the capture of Corinth by Mummius, 147 B.C. The two most celebrated leaders of this league were Aratus, the principal instrument of its early aggrandizement, and Philopœmen, the contemporary and rival, in military reputation, of Scipio and Hannibal.
=Achern.= A city in the grand duchy of Baden, on the river Acher. Near this place a monument marks the spot where Marshal Turenne was killed by a random shot in 1675.
=Acheron.= A small stream in ancient Bruttium. In 330 B.C., Alexander, king of Epirus, was killed while crossing it.
=Acinaces.= A short sword used by the Persians.
=Aclides.= In Roman antiquity, a kind of missile weapon with a thong fixed to it whereby it might be drawn back again.
=Acoluthi.= In military antiquity, was a title given in the Grecian empire to the captain or commander of the body-guards appointed for the security of the emperor’s palace.
=Aconite.= A poisonous plant. Several ancient races poisoned their arrows with an extract from this plant.
=Acontium.= In Grecian antiquity, a kind of dart or javelin resembling the Roman spiculum.
=Acquereaux= (Fr.). A machine of war, which was used in the Middle Ages to throw stones.
=Acqui.= A walled town of the Sardinian states on the river Bormida in the division of Alessandria. It was taken by the Spaniards in 1745, retaken by the Piedmontese in 1746; it was dismantled by the French, who defeated the Austrians and Piedmontese here in 1794.
=Acquit.= To release or set free from an obligation, accusation, guilt, censure, suspicion, or whatever devolves upon a person as a charge or duty; as, the court acquits the accused. This word has also the reflexive signification of “to bear, or conduct one’s self;” as, the soldier acquitted himself well in battle.
=Acquittance Roll.= In the British service, a roll containing the names of the men of each troop or company or regiment, showing the debts and credits, with the signature of each man, and certificate of the officer commanding it.
=Acre=, or =St. Jean d’Acre=. A seaport town of Palestine (in ancient times the celebrated city of Ptolemais), which was the scene of many sieges. It was last stormed and taken by the British in 1840. Acre was gallantly defended by Djezzar Pacha against Bonaparte in July, 1798, till relieved by Sir Smith, who resisted twelve attempts by the French, between March 16 and May 20, 1799.
=Acre=, or =Acre-fight=. An old duel fought by warriors between the frontiers of England and Scotland, with sword and lance. This dueling was also called camp-fight.
=Acrobalistes= (Fr.). A name given by the ancients to warlike races, such as the Parthians and Armenians, who shot arrows from a long distance.
=Acropolis.= In ancient Greece, the name given to the citadel or fortress of a city, usually built on the summit of a hill. The most celebrated was that of Athens, remains of which still exist.
=Acs.= A village in Hungary on the right bank of the Danube, noted as the scene of several battles in the Hungarian revolution, that of August 3, 1849, being the most important.
=Acting Assistant Surgeons.= See SURGEONS, ACTING ASSISTANT.
=Action.= An engagement between two armies, or bodies of troops. The word is likewise used to signify some memorable act done by an officer, soldier, detachment, or party.
=Actium= (now Azio). A town of ancient Greece in Arcanania, near the entrance of the Ambracian Gulf. It became famous for the great naval engagement fought near here in 31 B.C. between Octavius and Antony, in which the former was victorious.
=Active Service.= Duty against an enemy; operations in his presence. Or in the present day it denotes serving on full pay, on the active list, in contradistinction to those who are virtually retired, and placed on the retired list.
=Activity.= In a military sense, denotes attention, labor, diligence, and study.
=Acto=, or =Acton=. A kind of defensive tunic, made of quilted leather or other strong material, formerly worn under the outer dress and even under a coat of mail.
=Act of Grace.= In Great Britain, an act of Parliament for a general and free pardon to deserters from the service and others.
=Actuarius.= A name given by the Romans to officers charged with the supplying of provisions to troops.
=Adacted.= Applies to stakes, or piles, driven into the earth by large malls shod with iron, as in securing ramparts or pontons.
=Adda.= A stream in Italy. The Romans defeated the Gauls on its banks in 223 B.C.
=Addiscombe Seminary.= An institution near Croydon, Surrey, England, for the education of young gentlemen intended for the military service of the East India Company; closed in 1861.
=Aden.= A free port on the southwest corner of Arabia. It was captured by England in 1839, and is now used as a coal depot for Indian steamers.
=Aderbaidjan= (Fr.). A mountainous province of Persia, celebrated for raising the finest horses in the province for army purposes.
=Adige= (anc. Athesis). A river in Northern Italy formed by numberless streamlets from the Helvetian Alps. In 563 the Romans defeated the Goths and Franks on its banks. Gen. Massena crossed it in 1806.
=Adis.= A city in Africa. Xantippe, chief of the Carthaginians, defeated under its walls the Romans commanded by Regulus.
=Adit.= A passage under ground by which miners approach the part they intend to sap.
=Adjeighur.= A fortress in Bundelcund, which was captured in 1809 by a force under the command of Col. Gabriel Martindell.
=Adjourn.= To suspend business for a time, as from one day to another; said of military courts. Adjournment without day (sine die), indefinite postponement.
=Adjutant= (from adjuvo, “to help”). A regimental staff-officer with the rank of lieutenant, appointed by the regimental commander to assist him in the execution of all the details of the regiment or post. He is the channel of official communication. It is his duty to attend daily on the commanding officer for orders or instructions of any kind that are to be issued to the command, and promulgate the same in writing after making a complete record thereof. He has charge of the books, files, and men of the headquarters; keeps the rosters; parades and inspects all escorts, guards, and other armed parties previous to their proceeding on duty. He should be competent to instruct a regiment in every part of the field exercise, should understand the internal economy of his corps, and should notice every irregularity or deviation from the established rules or regulations. He should, of course, be an officer of experience, and should be selected with reference to special fitness, as so much depends upon his manner and thoughtfulness in the exercise of the various and important duties imposed upon him. Unexceptionable deportment is especially becoming to the adjutant.
=Adjutant-General.= An officer of distinction selected to assist the general of an army in all his operations. The principal staff-officer of the U. S. army. The principal staff-officers of generals of lower rank are called assistant adjutant-generals.
=Adjutant-General’s Department.= In the United States, consists of 1 adjutant-general with the rank of brigadier-general; 2 assistant adjutant-generals, colonels; 4 lieutenant-colonels, and 10 majors; also about 400 enlisted clerks and messengers. The officers are generally on duty with general officers who command corps, divisions, departments, etc. “They shall also perform the duties of inspectors when circumstances require it.” The lowest grades must be selected from the captains of the army.
=Administration.= Conduct, management; in military affairs, the execution of the duties of an office.
=Administration, Council of.= A board of officers periodically assembled at a post for the administration of certain business.
=Admissions.= In a military sense, the judge-advocate is authorized when he sees proper to admit what a prisoner expects to prove by absent witnesses.
=Adobe= (Sp.). An unburnt brick, dried in the sun, made from earth of a loamy character, containing about two-thirds fine sand mixed intimately with one-third or less of clayey dust or fine sand.
=Adour.= A river in the southwest of France, which Lord Wellington, after driving the armies of Napoleon Bonaparte across the Pyrenees, passed in the face of all opposition, on the 26th of February, 1814.
=Adrana.= A river in Germany, at present called Eder. Germanicus defeated the Germans on its bank in 15.
=Adrianople.= A Turkish city named after the Emperor Adrian; unsuccessfully besieged by the Goths in the 4th century; the army of Murad I. took the city in 1361; unconditionally surrendered to the Russians in August, 1829; peace was declared in this city between Russia and Turkey, September 14, 1829, and the city relinquished to the Turks.
=Adrumetum=, or =Hadrumetum=. An ancient African city, now in ruins, situated on the Mediterranean, southeast from Carthage. The Moors took this city from the Romans in 549, but it was retaken soon after by a priest named Paul.
=Advance.= Before in place, or beforehand in time; used for advanced; as, advance-guard, or that before the main guard or body of an army; to move forward.
=Advanced Covered Way.= Is a terre plein on the exterior of the advanced ditch, similar to the first covered way.
=Advanced Ditch.= Is an excavation beyond the glacis of the enceinte, having its surface on the prolongation of that slope, that an enemy may find no shelter when in the ditch.
=Advanced Guard.= A detachment of troops which precedes the march of the main body.
=Advanced Guard Equipage.= See PONTONS.
=Advanced Lunettes.= Works resembling bastions or ravelins, having faces or flanks. They are formed upon or beyond the glacis.
=Advanced Works.= Are such as are constructed beyond the covered way and glacis, but within range of the musketry of the main works.
=Advancement.= In a military sense, signifies honor, promotion, or preferment in the army, regiment, or company.
=Advantage Ground.= That ground which affords the greatest facility for annoyance or resistance.
=Adversary.= Generally applied to an enemy, but strictly an opponent in single combat.
=Advising to Desert.= Punishable with death or otherwise, as a court-martial may direct. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 51.
=Advocate, Judge-.= See JUDGE-ADVOCATE.
=Adynati.= Ancient name for invalid soldiers receiving pension from the public treasury.
=Ægide= (Æges). A name, according to Homer, for a protecting covering wound around the left arm in the absence of a shield; used by Jupiter, Minerva, and Apollo.
=Ægolethron= (Gr.). A plant. This word means goat and death. It was believed by the ancients that this plant would kill goats only, if eaten by them. Xenophon reports that the soldiers of the army of the “Ten Thousand” tasted of some honey prepared from this plant which caused them to be affected with hallucinations.
=Ægospotamos= (“Stream of the Goat”). A small river flowing into the Hellespont, in the Thracian Chersonese; is famous for the defeat of the Athenian fleet by the Lacedæmonians under Lysander, which put an end to the Peloponnesian war, and to the predominance of Athens in Greece, 405 B.C.
=Æneatores.= In military antiquity, the musicians in an army, including those who sounded the trumpets, horns, etc.
=Ærarium Militare.= In Roman antiquity, the war treasury of Rome, founded by Augustus; in addition to other revenues, the one-hundredth part of all merchandise sold in Rome was paid into it.
=Æro.= A basket used by the Roman soldiers to carry earth in to construct fortifications.
=Ærumnula.= A wooden pole or fork, introduced among the Romans by Consul Marius. Each soldier was provided with one of these poles, which had attached thereto a saw, hatchet, a sack of wheat, and baggage; and he was compelled to carry it on a march.
=Affair.= An action or engagement, not of sufficient magnitude to be termed a battle.
=Affamer= (Fr.). To besiege a place so closely as to starve the garrison and inhabitants.
=Affidavit.= In military law is an oath duly subscribed before any person authorized to administer it. In the U. S. service, in the absence of a civil officer any commissioned officer is empowered to administer an oath.
=Afforciament.= An old term for a fortress or stronghold.
=Afghanistan.= A large country in Central Asia, at war with England 1838, and 1878-79.
=Afrancesados= (Sp.). Name given to the Spaniards who upheld the oath of allegiance to king Joseph Bonaparte; also called Josephins (in the Peninsular war).
=Aga.= Rank of an officer in the Turkish army; the same as a general with us.
=Age.= In a military sense, a young man must be 14 years old before he can become an officer in the English army, or be entered as a cadet at Woolwich, in the English military academy. For admission to the military academy at West Point, U. S., the age is from 17 to 22 years. Men are enlisted for soldiers at from 17 to 45 in the English army, and in the U. S. army at from 18 to 35. Officers in the U. S. army may be retired, at the discretion of the President, at 62 years of age.
=Agema= (Gr.). In the ancient military art, a kind of soldiery, chiefly in the Macedonian army. The word is Greek, and denotes vehemence, to express the strength and eagerness of this corps.
=Agen.= Principal place of the department Lot-et-Garonne, France, on the right bank of the river Garonne, which has a city of the same name, and was the scene of many battles.
=Agency.= A certain proportion of money which is ordered to be subtracted from the pay and allowances of the British army, for transacting the business of the several regiments comprising it.
=Agent, Army.= A person in the civil department of the British army, between the paymaster-general and the paymaster of the regiment, through whom every regimental concern of a pecuniary nature is transacted.
=Agger.= In ancient military writings, denotes the middle part of a military road raised into a ridge, with a gentle slope on each side to make a drain for the water, and keep the way dry; it is also used for a military road. Agger also denotes a work or fortification, used both for the defense and attack of towns, camps, etc., termed among the moderns, lines. Agger is also used for a bank or wall erected against the sea or some great river to confine or keep it within bounds, and called by modern writers, dam, sea-wall.
=Agiades.= In the Turkish armies are a kind of pioneers, or rather field engineers, employed in fortifying the camp, etc.
=Agiem-clich.= A very crooked sabre, rounded near the point; an arm much in use in Persia and Turkey.
=Agincourt=, or =Azincourt=. A village of France, celebrated for a great battle fought near it in 1415, wherein Henry V. of England defeated the French.
=Agmen.= Roman name for an army on the march.
=Agminalis.= Name given by the ancients to a horse which carried baggage, equipments, etc., on its back; now termed pack-horse.
=Agnadello.= Village in the duchy of Milan, on a canal between the rivers Adda and Serio, celebrated by the victory of Louis XII., king of France, over the Venetian and Papal troops in 1509, and by a battle between Prince Eugene and the Duke of Vendôme in 1705.
=Agrigente= (now Girgenti). City in Sicily, situated on the Mediterranean; sacked by the Carthaginians under Amilcar in 400 B.C., and taken twice by the Romans in 262 and 210 B.C.
=Aguebelle.= City in the province of Maurienne, in Savoy. The French and Spaniards defeated the troops of the Duke of Savoy in 1742.
=Aguerri= (Fr.). A term applied to an officer or soldier experienced in war.
=Agustina.= See SARAGOSSA, MAID OF.
=Ahmednuggur.= A strong fortress in the Deccan, 30 miles from Poonah, which was formerly in the possession of Scindia, but fell to the British arms during the campaign conducted by Gen. Wellesley.
=Aidan= (Prince). See SCOTLAND.
=Aid-de-camp.= An officer selected by a general to carry orders; also to represent him in correspondence and in directing movements.
=Aid-major= (Fr.). The adjutant of a regiment.
=Aigremore.= A term used by the artificer in the laboratory, to express the charcoal in a state fitted for the making of powder.
=Aiguille= (Fr.). An instrument used by engineers to pierce a rock for the lodgment of powder, as in a mine, or to mine a rock, so as to excavate and make roads.
=Aiguillettes.= A decoration, consisting of bullion cords and loops, which was formerly worn on the right shoulder of general officers, and is now confined to the officers of household cavalry; also worn in the U. S. army by officers of the adjutant-general’s department, aids-de-camp, and adjutants of regiments.
=Aiguillon.= A city in France; while in the possession of the English in 1345, it was besieged by the Duke of Normandy, son of Philip de Valois. According to some authors, cannons were used on this occasion for the first time in France.
=Aile= (Fr.). A wing or flank of an army or fortification.
=Ailettes= (Fr.). Literally “little wings,” were appendages to the armor worn behind or at the side of the shoulders by knights in the 13th century. They were made of leather covered with cloth, and fastened by silk laces. They are supposed to have been worn as a defense to the shoulders in war.
=Aim.= The act of bringing a musket, piece of ordnance, or any other missive weapon, to its proper line of direction with the object intended to be struck.
=Aim-frontlet.= A piece of wood hollowed out to fit the middle of a gun, to make it of an equal height with the breech; formerly made use of by the gunners, to level and direct their pieces.
=Aiming Drill.= A military exercise to teach men to aim fire-arms. Great importance is justly attached to this preliminary step in target practice.
=Aiming-stand.= An instrument used in teaching the theory of aiming with a musket. It usually consists of a tripod with a device mounted upon it, which holds the gun and allows it to be pointed in any direction.
=Ainadin.= Name of a field near Damas in Syria, celebrated by a battle on July 25, 633, in which Khaled, chief of the Saracens, defeated Verdan, a general of the Roman army. Verdan lost 50,000 men and was decapitated.
=Ain-Beda= (Africa). An engagement at this place between the French and Arabs in October, 1833.
=Ain Taguin.= “Spot of the little desert,” in the province of Algiers; here the Duke d’Aumale surprised and dispersed the troops of Abd-el-Kader.
=Air-cylinder.= A pneumatic buffer used in America to absorb the recoil of large guns. For 10-inch guns, one cylinder is used; for the 15-inch, two. They are placed between the chassis rails, to which they are firmly secured by diagonal braces. A piston traversing the cylinder is attached to the rear transom of the top carriage. When the gun recoils the piston-head is drawn backwards in the cylinder, and the recoil is absorbed by the compression of the air behind it. Small holes in the piston-head allow the air to slowly escape while the gun is brought to rest. The hydraulic buffer largely used abroad operates in the same way, water being used in place of air.
=Air, Resistance of.= The resistance which the air offers to a projectile in motion. See PROJECTILES, THEORY OF.
=Aire.= A military position on the Adour, in the south of France, where the French were defeated by the English under Lord Hill, on March 2, 1814.
=Air-gun.= An instrument resembling a musket, used to discharge bullets by the elastic force of compressed air.
=Aix.= A small island on the coast of France between the Isle of Oleron and the continent. It is 12 miles northwest of Rochefort, and 11 miles from Rochelle. On it are workshops for military convicts.
=Aix-la-Chapelle= (Ger. Aachen). A district in the Prussian province of the Lower Rhine. Here Charlemagne was born in 742, and died in 814. The city was taken by the French in 1792; retaken by the Austrians in 1793; by the French 1794; reverted to Prussia 1814. Congress held by the sovereigns of Austria, Russia, and Prussia, assisted by ministers from England and France, at Aix-la-Chapelle, and convention signed October 9, 1818.
=Akerman= (Bessarabia). After being several times taken it was ceded to Russia, 1812. Here the celebrated treaty between Russia and Turkey was concluded in 1826.
=Aketon.= Another name for a portion of armor, used in the feudal times, called the gambeson (which see).
=Akhalzikh= (Armenia). Near here Prince Paskiewitch defeated the Turks Aug. 24, and gained the city, Aug. 28, 1828.
=Akindschi.= A sort of Turkish cavalry, employed during the war between the Turks and the German emperors.
=Aklat.= A small town in Asiatic Turkey, taken by Eddin in 1228, and by the Turks in the 14th century.
=Akmerjid.= A city in the Crimea; an ancient residence of the khan of Tartary; taken by the Russians in 1771.
=Akoulis.= A city in Armenia, often pillaged by the Persians and Turks; taken in 1752 by the Persian general Azad-Khan, by whom the majority of the inhabitants were put to the sword.
=Akrebah.= At this place, about the year 630, Khaled, general of the Mussulman troops, fought the army of a new prophet named Mosseilamah, who perished in the combat.
=Ala.= According to Latin authors, this word signifies the wing of an army, i.e., the flanks, on which were placed troops furnished by the allied nations; also sometimes used to designate a brigade of cavalry occupying the same position in battle.
=Alabama.= One of the Southern States of the American confederacy, is bounded on the north by Tennessee, east by Georgia, south by Florida and the Gulf of Mexico, and west by Mississippi. The celebrated exploring expedition of De Soto in 1541 is believed to have been the first visit of the white man to the wilds of Alabama. In the beginning of the 18th century the French built a fort on Mobile Bay, but the city of that name was not commenced till nine years later (1711). In 1763, the entire French possessions east of the Mississippi (except New Orleans) fell into the hands of the English. Alabama was incorporated first with Georgia, afterwards, in 1802, with the Mississippi Territory; but finally, in 1819, it became an independent member of the great American confederacy. In 1813 and 1814 the Creek Indians waged war on the settlers and massacred nearly 400 whites who had taken refuge at Fort Mimms, on the Alabama River. They were, however, soon reduced to subjection by Gen. Jackson, and after their defeat at Horseshoe Bend, March, 1814, the greater portion of their territory was taken from them, and they were subsequently removed to the Indian Territory. On the outbreak of the civil war in 1861, the temporary capital of the Confederate States was established at Montgomery, Ala., but it was soon afterwards removed to Richmond, Va.
=Alabanda= (Bour Dogan, or Arab Hissar). A city in Asia Minor; destroyed by Labienus, a Roman general, in 38 B.C.
=Alacays.= Name given by the ancients to a kind of soldiery, and afterwards to servants following an army.
=Alage.= A mounted guard of the Byzantine emperors, doing duty in the palace of Constantinople, and defending, in case of danger, the person of the emperor.
=Alaibeg.= A Turkish commander of regiments of levied troops.
=Alamo, Fort=, or =The Alamo=. A celebrated fort in Bexar County, near San Antonio, Texas, where a small garrison of Texans bravely resisted a body of Mexicans ten times their number, and perished to a man, March 6, 1836. This spot has hence been called the Thermopylæ of Texas, and “Remember the Alamo!” was used as the battle-cry of the Texans in their war of independence.
=Alanda.= Name of a legion formed by Julius Cæsar from the best warriors of the Gauls.
=Aland Isles= (Gulf of Bothnia). Taken from Sweden by Russia, 1809. See BOMARSUND.
=Alani.= A Tartar race; invaded Parthia, 75; were subdued by the Visigoths, 452, and eventually incorporated with them.
=Alarcos= (Central Spain). Here the Spaniards under Alfonso IX., king of Castile, were totally defeated by the Moors, July 19, 1195.
=Alares.= Name given by the Romans to troops which were placed on the wings of an army; these troops were generally furnished by allies.
=Alarm.= A sudden apprehension of being attacked by surprise, or the notice of such attack being actually made. It is generally signified by the discharge of fire-arms, the beat of a drum, etc.
=Alarm Gun.= A gun fired to give an alarm.
=Alarm Post.= In the field, is the ground appointed by the quartermaster-general for each regiment to march to, in case of an alarm. In a garrison, it is the place allotted by the governor for the troops to assemble on any sudden alarm.
=Alaska.= A large territory forming the northwest part of North America, which was purchased by the United States from Russia in 1867, and was annexed as a county to Washington Territory in 1872. The native inhabitants are Esquimaux, Indians, and Aleuts, with a few persons of Russian descent.
=Alba de Tormes.= A city in Spain, where the French defeated the Spaniards in 1809.
=Albana.= A city in ancient Albania, situated on the coast of the Caspian Sea; a wall was constructed to the west of the city for the purpose of staying the progress of the Scythians, by Darius I., or by Chosrois.
=Albania.= A province in European Turkey, formerly part of the ancient Epirus, a scene of many battles; a revolt in Albania was suppressed in 1843.
=Albanians=, or =Albaniers=. The inhabitants of the Turkish territory of Albania, are a very brave and active race, and furnish the best warriors for the Turkish army.
=Albans, St.= (Hertfordshire, Eng.). Near the Roman Verulam; first battle of St. Albans took place in May, 1455, between the Houses of Lancaster and York, wherein the former were defeated, and King Henry VI. taken prisoner; second battle took place in February, 1461, wherein Queen Margaret totally defeated the Yorkists and rescued the king.
=Albe.= A city in Naples, situated near the Lake Celano; in ancient times it was an important city in Samnium.
=Albeck.= A village in Würtemberg where 25,000 Austrians, under the command of Gen. Mack, were defeated by 6000 French in 1805.
=Alberche.= A river of Spain, which joins the Tagus near Talavera de la Reyna, where, in 1809, a severe battle was fought between the French army and the allied British and Spanish troops, in which the former were defeated.
=Albe-Royale.= A city in Lower Hungary, which sustained several sieges.
=Albesia.= In antiquity, a kind of shield, otherwise called decumana.
=Albi.= A city in the department of Tarn, France; pillaged by the Saracens in 730, and taken by Pepin in 765.
=Albigenses.= A sect of heretics, who were in existence during the 12th and 13th centuries, and inhabited Albi, France; fought many battles; went to Spain in 1238, where they were slowly exterminated.
=Albuera.= A small village near the river Guadiana, in Spain, where the French army under Marshal Soult was defeated by the British and Spanish forces under Marshal, afterwards Lord, Beresford, March 16, 1811.
=Albufera= (Spain, East Central). A lagoon, near which the French marshal Suchet (afterwards Duke of Albufera), defeated the Spaniards under Blake, January 4, 1812; this led to his capture of Valencia, January 9.
=Alcacsbas= (Portugal). A treaty was concluded here between Alfonso V. of Portugal and Ferdinand and Isabella of Castile.
=Alcantara.= A creek near Lisbon, on the banks of which a battle was fought between the Spaniards under Alva and the Portuguese under Antonio de Crato (prior of the Maltese order).
=Alcantara, Order of.= Knights of a Spanish military order, who gained a great name during the wars with the Moors.
=Alcassar=, or =Alcacar=. A fortified city in Morocco, situated between Ceuta and Tangier; the narrowest point of the Strait of Gibraltar. The Portuguese seized this city in 1468.
=Alcazar-Quiver.= A city near Fez, Northwest Africa, where the Moors totally defeated the Portuguese, whose gallant king, Sebastian, was slain August 4, 1578.
=Alcmaer.= A city in Holland; besieged by the Spaniards in 1573 without success; here the British and Russians were defeated by the French in 1799.
=Aldenhofen.= A village of the Prussian Rhenish province, where the French, under Gen. Miranda, were defeated by Archduke Charles, March 1, 1793; the Austrians were defeated March 18, 1793.
=Aldershott, Camp.= A moor near Farnham, about 35 miles from London. In April, 1854, the War Office, having obtained a grant of £100,000, purchased 4000 acres of land for a permanent camp for 20,000 men; additional land was purchased in 1856. The camp is used as an army school of instructions.
=Aldionaire= (Aldionarius). A sort of equerry, who in the army was kept at the expense of his master. Under Charlemagne, the aldionaires were of an inferior rank.
=Alem.= Imperial standard of the Turkish empire.
=Alemanni= (or all men, i.e., men of all nations, hence Allemannen, German). A body of Suevi, who took this name; were defeated by Caracalla, 214. After several repulses they invaded the empire under Aurelian; they were subdued in three battles, 270. They were again vanquished by Julian, 356-57. They were defeated by Clovis at Tolbiac (or Zulpich), 496. The Suabians are their descendants.
=Alemdar.= An official who carries the green banner of Mahomet (Mohammed), when the sultan assists in ceremonies of solemnity.
=Alençon= (Northern France). Gave title to a count and duke. Martel, count of Anjou, seized this city, which was retaken by William the Conqueror in 1048. It was the scene of many battles.
=Aleppo= (Northern Syria). A large town named Berœa Seleucus Nicator about 299 B.C. It was taken by the Turks in 638; by Saladin, 1193, and sacked by Timur, 1400. Its depopulation by the plague has been frequent; 60,000 persons were computed to have perished by it in 1797; and many in the year 1827. On October 16, 1850, the Mohammedans attacked the Christians, burning nearly everything. Three churches were destroyed; five others plundered, and thousands of persons slain. The total loss of property amounted to about a million pounds sterling; no interference was attempted by the pasha.
=Aleria.= An important city in Corsica, at the mouth of the river Tavignano; was taken in 259 B.C. by the Romans under Consul Cornelius.
=Alert.= Watchful; vigilant; active in vigilance; upon the watch; guarding against surprise or danger.
=Alesia=, or =Alisia=. Now called Alise-Sainte-Reine, a city in the department of Cote-d’Or. This city was besieged and taken by the Romans in 52 B.C.; it was one of the greatest events of Cæsar’s war in Gaul.
=Alessandria.= A city of Piedmont, built in 1168, under the name of Cæsarea by the Milanese and Cremonese, to defend the Tanaro against the emperor, and named after Pope Alexander III. It has been frequently besieged and taken. The French took it in 1796, but were driven out July 21, 1799. They recovered it after the battle of Marengo, in 1800, and held it until 1814, when the strong fortifications erected by Napoleon were destroyed. They have been restored since June, 1856.
=Alet=, or =Aleth=. A small city in the department of Ande, France; was taken by the Protestants in 1573.
=Aleut.= An inhabitant of the Aleutian Islands. These people differ both from the Indians of the neighboring continent and the Esquimaux farther north. They are expert hunters of the seal and other animals. They are industrious and peaceful, but addicted to drunkenness.
=Aleutian Islands.= A number of islands stretching from the peninsula of Alaska in North America to Kamtschatka in Asia. The greater number belong to the territory of Alaska.
=Alfere=, or =Alferez=. Standard-bearer; ensign; cornet. The old English term for ensign; it was in use in England till the civil wars of Charles I.
=Alford= (Northern Scotland), =Battle of=. Gen. Baillie, with a large body of Covenanters, was defeated by the Marquis of Montrose, July 2, 1645.
=Alfuro.= A city in Navarre, Spain. The British proceeded against the city in 1378, the garrison being absent; they found the women ranged on the ramparts disposed to defend the place. Capt. Tivet, commander of the English forces, would not attack the brave women, but retreated and did not molest the place.
=Algebra.= A peculiar kind of mathematical analysis allied to arithmetic and geometry.
=Algidus.= A mountain-range in Latium, Italy, where Cincinnatus defeated the Æqui in 458 B.C.
=Algiers= (now Algeria, Northwest Africa). Part of the ancient Mauritania, which was conquered by the Romans, 46 B.C.; by the Vandals, 439; recovered for the empire by Belisarius, 534, and subdued by the Arabs about 690. The city of Algiers was bombarded a number of times, and finally taken by the French in 1830. Algeria at present belongs to France.
=Algonkins=, or =Alogonquins=. One of the two great families of Indians who formerly peopled the country east of the Mississippi. The Chippewas are at present the most numerous race descended from this stock.
=Alhama.= A city in Spain, in the province of Granada. It was a most important fortress when the Moors ruled Granada, and its capture by the Christians in 1482 was the most decisive step in the reduction of their power.
=Alhambra.= The ancient fortress and residence of the Moorish monarchs of Granada; founded by Mohammed I. of Granada about 1253; surrendered to the Christians in November, 1491.
=Ali Bey.= Colonel of Turkish cavalry; also the rank of a district commander.
=Alibi= (Lat. “elsewhere”). An alibi is the best defense in law if a man is innocent; but if it turns out to be untrue, it is conclusive against those who resort to it.
=Alicante.= A fortified city and seaport in Spain, where the French defeated the Spaniards in a naval battle, April 1, 1688.
=Alidade.= The movable arm or rule carrying the sights of an angle-measuring instrument.
=Alien.= In law, implies a person born in a foreign country, in contradistinction to a natural born or naturalized person.
=Alife= (Alifa). A city in the kingdom of Naples, where Fabius defeated the Samnites in 307 B.C.
=Alighur.= See ALLYGHUR.
=Align.= To form in line as troops; to lay out the ground-plan, as of a road.
=Alignment.= A formation in straight lines, for instance, the alignment of a battalion means the situation of a body of men when drawn up in line. The alignment of a camp signifies the relative position of the tents, etc., so as to form a straight line from given points.
=Aliwal.= A village on the banks of the Sutlej, contiguous to the Punjab, where a British division, commanded by Maj.-Gen. Sir Henry Smith, on the 29th of January, 1846, encountered and defeated a superior body of Sikhs.
=Aljubarrota= (Portugal). Here John I. of Portugal defeated John I. of Castile, and secured his country’s independence, August 14, 1385.
=Alkmaer.= See BERGEN-OP-ZOOM.
=Allahabad= (Northwest Hindostan). The holy city of the Indian Mohammedans, situated at the junction of the rivers Jumna and Ganges; founded by Akbar, in 1583; incorporated with the British possessions in 1803. During the Indian mutiny several Sepoy regiments rose and massacred their officers, June 4, 1857; Col. Neil marched promptly from Benares and suppressed the insurrection. In November, 1861, Lord Canning made this the capital of the northwest provinces.
=Allecrete.= Light armor used by both cavalry and infantry in the 16th century, especially by the Swiss. It consisted of a breastplate and gussets, often reaching to the middle of the thigh, and sometimes below the knees.
=Allecti Milites.= A name given by the Romans to a body of men who were drafted for military service.
=Allegiance.= In law, implies the obedience which is due to the laws. Oath of Allegiance is that taken by an alien, by which he adopts America and renounces the authority of a foreign government. It is also applied to the oath taken by officers and soldiers in pledge of their fidelity to the state.
=Allegiant.= Loyal; faithful to the laws.
=Allia= (Italy). A small river flowing into the Tiber, where Brennus and the Gauls defeated the Romans, July 16, 390 B.C. The Gauls sacked Rome and committed so much injury that the day was thereafter held to be unlucky (nefas), and no public business was permitted to be done on its anniversary.
=Alliage= (Fr.). A term used by the French to denote the composition of metals used for the fabrication of cannon, mortars, etc.
=Alliance.= In a military sense, signifies a treaty entered into by sovereign states for their mutual safety and defense. In this sense alliances may be divided into such as are offensive, where the contracting parties oblige themselves jointly to attack some other power; and into such as are defensive, whereby the contracting powers bind themselves to stand by and defend one another, in case of being attacked by any other power. Alliances are variously distinguished according to their object, the parties in them, etc. Hence we read of equal, unequal, triple, quadruple, grand, offensive, defensive alliances, etc.
=Alligati.= A name given by the Romans to prisoners of war and their captors. A chain was attached to the right wrist of the prisoner and the left wrist of the warrior who captured him.
=Allobroges.= A powerful race in ancient Gaul; inhabited a part of Savoy; vanquished by Fabius Maximus, 126 B.C.
=Allocutio.= An oration addressed by a Roman general to his soldiers, to animate them to fight, to appease sedition, or to keep them to their duty.
=Allodial.= Independent; not feudal. The Allodii of the Romans were bodies of men embodied on any emergency, in a manner similar to our volunteer associations.
=Allonge.= A pass or thrust with a rapier or small sword, frequently contracted into lunge; also a long rein used in the exercising of horses.
=Allowance.= A sum paid periodically for services rendered. The French use the word traitment in this sense. The allowances of an officer are distinct from his pay proper, and are applicable to a variety of circumstances.
=Alloy.= Is a composition by fusion of two or more metals. The alloy most used for gun-making is bronze (which see).
=Allumelle.= A thin and slender sword which was used in the Middle Ages, to pierce the weak parts or joints of armor.
=Ally.= In a military sense, implies any nation united to another,--under a treaty either offensive or defensive, or both.
=Allyghur.= A strong fortress on the northwest of India, which was captured, after a desperate conflict, by Lord Lake, in 1803. The French commander-in-chief, Gen. Perron, surrendered himself after the siege.
=Alma.= A river in the Crimea, near which was fought a great battle on September 20, 1854, between the Russian and Anglo-French armies; the Russians were defeated with great loss.
=Almadie.= A kind of military canoe or small vessel, about 24 feet long, made of the bark of a tree, and used by the negroes of Africa. Almadie is also the name of a long boat used at Calcutta, often from 80 to 100 feet long, and generally 6 or 7 broad; they are rowed with from 10 to 30 oars.
=Alman-rivets=, =Almain-rivets=, or =Almayne-rivets=. A sort of light armor derived from Germany, characterized by overlapping plates which were arranged to slide on rivets, by means of which flexibility and ease of movement were promoted.
=Almaraz, Bridge of.= In Spain, which on the 18th of May, 1812, was captured by Lord Hill, when he defeated a large French corps d’armée, which was one of the most brilliant actions of the Peninsular war.
=Almeida.= A strong fortress of Portugal, in the province of Beira. The capture of it by the Duke of Wellington, in 1811, after it had fallen into the hands of the French, was deemed a very brilliant exploit.
=Almenara=, or =Almanara=. City in Spain, in the province of Lerida, where, in 1710, Gen. Stanhope, with 4 regiments of dragoons and 20 companies of grenadiers, defeated a Spanish corps, composed of 4 battalions and 19 escadrons.
=Almeria.= City and seaport in Andalusia, Spain; captured from the Moors in 1147, by the united troops of Alfonso VII., king of Castile, Garcias, king of Navarre, and Raymond, count of Barcelona.
=Almexial, Battle of.= Between the Spaniards and Portuguese in 1663. The Portuguese were commanded by Sanctius Manuel, count of Vilaflor, and the celebrated Count Frederick von Schomberg, the latter being the veritable hero of the day. The Portuguese gained a great victory; the Spanish army was commanded by Don Juan of Austria, son of Philip IV.
=Almissa= (Dalminium). City in Dalmatia, Austria; it was the ancient capital of Dalmatia, but was ruined by Scipio Nasica in 156 B.C.
=Almogavares.= See CATALANS.
=Almohades.= Mohammedan partisans, followers of El-Mehedi in Africa, about 1120. They subdued Morocco, 1145; entered Spain and took Seville, Cordova, and Granada, 1146-56; ruled Spain until 1232, and Africa until 1278.
=Almonacid-de-Zorita.= A town in the province of Guadalaxara, Spain, where the French defeated the Spaniards in 1809.
=Almora.= City in Bengal, which the English captured in 1815, and still hold.
=Almoravides.= Mohammedan partisans in Africa, rose about 1050; entered Spain by invitation, 1086; were overcome by the Almohades in 1147.
=Alney.= An island in the Severn, Gloucestershire, England. Here a combat is asserted to have taken place between Edmund Ironside and Canute the Great, in the sight of their armies. The latter was wounded, and proposed a division of the kingdom, the south part falling to Edmund. Edmund was murdered at Oxford shortly after, it is said, by Aedric Streon, and Canute obtained possession of the whole kingdom, 1016.
=Alnwick= (Sax. Elnwix). On the river Alne in Northumberland, England, was given at the Conquest to Ivo de Vesco. It has belonged to the Percies since 1310. Malcolm, king of Scotland, besieged Alnwick in 1093, where he and his sons were killed. It was taken by David I. in 1136, and attacked in 1174, by William the Lion, who was defeated and taken prisoner. It was owned by King John in 1215, and by the Scots in 1448. Since 1854 the castle has been repaired and enlarged with great taste and at unsparing expense.
=Alost.= A city in Belgium, captured and dismantled by Turenne in 1667, then abandoned to the allies after the battle of Ramillies, in 1706.
=Alps.= European mountains. Those between France and Italy were passed by Hannibal, 218 B.C.; by the Romans, 154 B.C., and by Napoleon I., May, 1800.
=Alsace.= See ELSASS.
=Altenheim.= A village on the banks of the Rhine, grand duchy of Baden, where the French under Count de Lorges fought the Imperials, July 30, 1675, neither side being victorious; the French army retreated after the death of Turenne.
=Altenkirchen.= A town in the Prussian Rhine province, where several battles were fought during the war of the Republic, in one of which Gen. Marceau was killed, while protecting the retreat of Gen. Jourdan, September 20, 1796.
=Altiscope.= A device which enables a person to see an object in spite of intervening obstacles. In gunnery it is used to point a piece without exposing the person of the gunner. The simplest form consists of a small mirror set in the line of the sights, which reflects the sights and the object aimed at to the eye of the gunner. This form of reflecting sight is used with the Moncrieff counterpoise carriage, and has been recently proposed by Col. Laidley (U. S. Ordnance Corps) for small-arms.
=Altitude.= Height, or distance from the ground, measured upwards, and may be both accessible and inaccessible. Altitude of a shot or shell, is the perpendicular height of the vortex of the curve in which it moves above the horizon. Altitude of the eye, in perspective is a right line let fall from the eye, perpendicular to the geometrical plane.
=Alumbagh.= A palace with other buildings near Lucknow, Oude, India, taken from the rebels and heroically defended by the British under Sir James Outram, during the mutiny, September, 1857. He defeated an attack of 30,000 Sepoys on January 12, 1858, and of 20,000 on February 21.
=Aluminium Bronze.= An alloy of copper and aluminium, having great strength and hardness. See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Alure.= An old term for the gutter or drain along a battlement or parapet wall.
=Alveda.= An ancient city in Spain, where a battle was fought between Ramire I., king of the Austurias, and the Moors under the famous Abdolrahman, or Abd-el-Rahm; according to Spanish history, the Moors lost 60,000 men.
=Amantea=, or =Amantia=. City and seaport in Naples; sustained a siege against the French in 1806. It is believed that this city is the ancient Nepetum.
=Amazons.= Female warriors. Tribes, either real or imaginary, belonging to Africa and Asia, among which the custom prevailed for the females to go to war; preparing themselves for that purpose by destroying the right breast, in order to use the bow with greater ease. According to Greek tradition, an Amazon tribe invaded Africa, and was repulsed by Theseus, who afterwards married their queen. Hence all female warriors have been called Amazons.
=Amberg.= A town in Bavaria, where the French were defeated by the Austrians in 1796.
=Ambit.= The compass or circuit of any work or place, as of a fortification or encampment, etc.
=Ambition.= In a military sense, signifies a desire of greater posts or honors. Every person in the army or navy ought to have a spirit of emulation to arrive at the very summit of the profession by his personal merit.
=Amblef.= Ancient residence of the kings of France on the river of the same name, in Germany. Here Charles Martel defeated Chilperic II. and Rangenfroi, mayor of the Neustrians, 716.
=Ambulances.= Are flying hospitals, so organized that they can follow an army in all its movements, and are intended to succor the wounded as soon as possible; a two- or four-wheeled vehicle for conveying the wounded from the field; called also an ambulance-cart.
=Ambuscade.= A snare set for an enemy either to surprise him when marching without precaution, or to draw him on by different stratagems to attack him with a superior force.
=Ambush.= A place of concealment where an enemy may be surprised by a sudden attack.
=Ame.= A French term, similar in its import to the word chamber, as applied to cannon, etc.
=Amende Honorable= (Fr.). In the old armies, of France, signified an apology for some injury done to another, or satisfaction given for an offense committed against the rules of honor or military etiquette, and was also applied to an infamous kind of punishment inflicted upon traitors, parricides, or sacrilegious persons, in the following manner: The offender being delivered into the hands of the hangman, his shirt stripped off, a rope put about his neck, and a taper in his hand; then he was led into the court, where he begged pardon of God, the court, and his country. Sometimes the punishment ended there; but sometimes it was only a prelude to death, or banishment to the galleys. It prevails yet in some parts of Europe.
=Amenebourg.= A place in Hanover which was captured from the English by the French in 1762.
=Amentatæ.= A sort of lance used by the Romans, which had a leathern strap attached to the centre of it.
=Amentum.= A leathern strap used by the Romans, Greeks, and Galicians, to throw lances. It was fastened around the second and third fingers, a knot was tied on it, which at the throwing of the lance loosened itself.
=America.= One of the great divisions of the earth’s surface, so called from Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine navigator, who visited South America in 1499. It is composed of two vast peninsulas called North and South America, extending in a continuous line 9000 miles, connected by the Isthmus of Panama or Darien, which is only 28 miles wide at its narrowest part. The physical features of this large continent are on a most gigantic scale, comprising the greatest lakes, rivers, valleys, etc., in the world; and its discovery, which may be said to have doubled the habitable globe, is an event so grand and interesting that nothing parallel to it can be expected to occur again in the history of mankind. Upon its discovery, in the latter half of the 15th century, colonists, settlers, warriors, statesmen, and adventurers of all nations began to flock to its shores, until after a lapse of nearly four centuries of wars, struggles, civilization, progress, and amalgamation of the more powerful races, and weakness and decay of the effete, it ranks in wealth and enlightenment as the first of the great divisions of the earth. Of the different races, governments, etc., occupying its area, it is not necessary here to speak; events of importance in their histories will be found under appropriate headings in this work.
=Ames Gun.= The rifled guns made by Mr. Horatio Ames, of Falls Village, Conn., are made of wrought iron on the built-up principle. See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF.
=Amiens.= A city in Picardy (Northern France). It was taken by the Spaniards March 11, and retaken by the French September 25, 1587. The preliminary articles of the peace between Great Britain, Holland, France, and Spain were signed in London by Lord Hawkesbury and M. Otto, on the part of England and France, October 1, 1801, and the definitive treaty was subscribed at Amiens, March 27, 1802, by the Marquis of Cornwallis for England, Joseph Bonaparte for France, Azara for Spain, and Schimmelpennick for Holland. War was declared in 1803.
=Amisus.= A city in the ancient kingdom of Pontus, fortified by Mithridates, and captured by Lucullus in 71 B.C.
=Ammedera.= An ancient city in Africa, where the rebel Gildon was defeated by Stilicho in 398.
=Ammunition.= Is a term which comprehends gunpowder, and all the various projectiles and pyrotechnical composition and stores used in the service. See ORDNANCE, AMMUNITION FOR.
=Ammunition Bread.= That which is for the supply of armies and garrisons.
=Ammunition-chest.= See ORDNANCE FOR CAISSON.
=Ammunition Shoes.= Those made for soldiers and sailors in the British service are so called, and particularly for use by those frequenting the magazine, being soft and free from metal.
=Ammunition, Stand of.= The projectile, cartridge, and sabot connected together.
=Amnesty.= An act by which two belligerent powers at variance agree to bury past differences in oblivion; forgiveness of past offenses.
=Amnias.= A stream in Asia near which the army of Nicomedes, king of Bithynia, was defeated by the troops of Mithridates in 92 B.C.
=Amorce= (Fr.). An old military word for fine-grained powder, such as was sometimes used for the priming of great guns, mortars, or howitzers; as also for small-arms, on account of its rapid inflammation. A port-fire or quick-match.
=Amorcer= (Fr.). To prime; to decoy, to make a feint in order to deceive the enemy and draw him into a snare; to bait, lure, allure.
=Amorcoir= (Fr.). An instrument used to prime a musket; also for a small copper box in which were placed the percussion-caps.
=Amoy.= A town and port in China, which was taken by the troops under Sir Hugh Gough, assisted by a naval force, in August, 1841.
=Ampfing.= A village in Bavaria, where Louis, king of Bavaria, defeated Frederick of Austria in 1322; here Gen. Moreau was attacked by a superior force of Austrians in 1800, and accomplished his celebrated retreat.
=Amphea.= A city of Messenia, captured by the Lacedæmonians in 743 B.C.
=Amphec.= A city in Palestine where the Philistines defeated the Israelites in the year 1100 B.C.
=Amphictyonic Council.= A celebrated congress of deputies of twelve confederated tribes of ancient Greece, which met twice every year. The objects of this council were to insure mutual protection and forbearance among the tribes, and for the protection of the temple of Delphi.
=Amphipolis= (now Emboli). A city situated on the Strymon in Macedonia; was besieged in 422 B.C., by the Athenians, where Cleon their chief was killed. Philip of Macedon captured the city in 363.
=Amplitude.= In gunnery, is the range of shot, or the horizontal right line, which measures the distance which it has run.
=Ampoulette= (Fr.). A wooden cylinder which contains the fuze of hollow projectiles.
=Amsterdam.= The capital of Holland. It was occupied by the French general Pichegru on January 19, 1795, and by the Prussians in 1813.
=Amstetten.= A village on the highway between Ems and Vienna, where the Russians were defeated by the French under Murat, November 5, 1805.
=Amusette= (Fr.). A brass gun, of 5 feet, carrying a half-pound leaden ball, loaded at the breech; invented by the celebrated Marshal Saxe. It is no longer used.
=Amyclæ.= An ancient town of Laconia, on the right bank of the Eurotas, famous as one of the most celebrated cities of the Peloponnesus in the heroic age. It is said to have been the abode of Castor and Pollux. This town was conquered by the Spartans about 775 B.C.
=Anabash.= In antiquity, were expeditious couriers, who carried dispatches of great importance in the Roman wars.
=Anacara.= A sort of drum used by the Oriental cavalry.
=Anacleticum.= In the ancient art of war, a particular blast of the trumpet, whereby the fearful and flying soldiers were rallied to the combat.
=Anah.= A city in Asiatic Turkey, which was captured and devastated in 1807 by the Wahabites, who were a warlike Mohammedan reforming sect.
=Anam=, or =Annam, Empire of=. Also called Cochin China, an empire in Southeastern Asia, which became involved in a war with France (1858-62), concluded by a treaty by which the emperor of Anam ceded the provinces of Cochin China, Saigon, Bienhoa, and Mytho to France. Subsequently three other provinces were annexed to France in 1867.
=Anapa.= A city in Circassia which was fortified by the Turks in 1784; stormed and taken by the Russians in 1791.
=Anarchy.= Want of government; the state of society where there is no law or supreme power, or where the laws are not efficient, and individuals do what they please with impunity; political confusion; hence, confusion in general.
=Anatha.= A fort on an island of the Euphrates; taken by Julian the Apostate in 363.
=Anatolia=, =Nadoli=, or =Natolia=. The modern name of Asia Minor, a peninsula in the most western territory of Asia, extending northward from the Mediterranean to the Euxine, or Black Sea, and eastward from the Grecian Archipelago to the banks of the Euphrates. It is a part of the Turkish dominions, and was in ancient times the seat of powerful kingdoms and famous cities.
=Anazarba=, or =Anazarbus=. A city in Asia Minor, where the Christians were defeated by the Saracens in 1130.
=Anazehs.= Nomadic Arabs, who infested the desert extending from Damas to Bagdad; they often laid under contribution the caravans on the way to Mecca.
=Ancile.= In antiquity, a kind of shield, which fell, as was pretended, from heaven, in the reign of Numa Pompilius; at which time, likewise, a voice was heard declaring that Rome would be mistress of the world as long as she should preserve this holy buckler.
=Ancona.= An ancient Roman port on the Adriatic. In 1790 it was taken by the French; but was retaken by the Austrians in 1799. It was occupied by the French in 1832; evacuated in 1838; after an insurrection it was bombarded and captured by the Austrians, June 18, 1849. The Marches (comprising this city) rebelled against the papal government in September, 1800. Lamoriciere, the papal general, fled to Ancona after his defeat at Castelfidardo, but was compelled to surrender himself, the city and the garrison, on September 28. The king of Sardinia entered soon after.
=Ancyra.= A town in ancient Galatia, now Angora, or Engour, Asia Minor. Near this city, on July 28, 1402, Timur, or Tamerlane, defeated after a three days’ battle and took prisoner the sultan Bajazet, and is said to have conveyed him to Samarcand in a cage.
=Andabatæ.= In military antiquity, a kind of gladiators who fought hoodwinked, having a kind of helmet that covered the eyes and face. They fought mounted on horseback, or on chariots.
=Andaman Islands.= A group of small islands in the Bay of Bengal, which has been used by Great Britain as a penal colony for Hindoos. The Earl of Mayo, governor-general of India, was assassinated here by a convict, February 8, 1872.
=Anderlecht.= A town near Brussels, in Belgium, where the French under Gen. Dumouriez defeated the Austrians, November 13, 1792.
=Andernach.= A city in Rhenish Prussia; near here the emperor Charles I. was totally defeated by Louis of Saxony, on October 8, 876.
=Andersonville.= A post-village of Sumter Co., Ga., about 65 miles south-southwest of Macon. Here was located a Confederate military prison in which Union soldiers were confined during the civil war. So severe was the treatment which they received here (nearly 13,000 having died), that a general feeling of horror was excited against the superintendent, Capt. Henry Wirz; and after the close of the war he was tried for inhuman treatment of the prisoners, found guilty, and executed November, 1865. The place is now the site of a national cemetery.
=Andrew, St.=, or =The Thistle, Order of=. A nominally military order of knighthood in Scotland. The principal ensign of this order is a gold collar, composed of thistles interlinked with amulets of gold, having pendent thereto the image of St. Andrew with his cross and the motto, Nemo me impune lacessit.
=Andrew, St., Knights of.= Is also a nominal military order instituted by Peter III. of Muscovy in 1698.
=Andrussov, Peace of.= This peace was ratified (January 30, 1667) between Russia and Poland for 13 years, with mutual concessions, although the latter power had been generally victorious.
=Anelace=, or =Anlace=. A kind of knife or dagger worn at the girdle by civilians till about the end of the 15th century.
=Anemometer=, or =Wind-gauge=. An instrument wherewith to measure the direction and velocity of wind under its varying forces,--used in the Signal service.
=Aneroid Barometer.= A pocket instrument indicating variations in atmospheric pressure. Used in military surveys to obtain the height of mountains. It consists of a circular metallic box, hermetically sealed, from which the air has been extracted. The play of the thin, metallic cover under atmospheric pressure, is made to operate a hand pointing to a scale on the dial-face.
=Angaria.= According to ancient military writers, means a guard of soldiers posted in any place for the security of it. Angaria, in civil law, implies a service by compulsion; as, furnishing horses and carriages for conveying corn and other stores for the army.
=Angeliaphori.= Reconnoitring parties of the Grecian army.
=Angel-shot.= A kind of chain-shot. See CHAIN-SHOT.
=Angers.= Principal city of the department of Maine-et-Loire, France. It was sacked by the Normans during the 9th century; taken and retaken several times by the Bretons, English, and French.
=Anghiari.= A city of Tuscany, where the Florentines under Berardino Ubaldini were defeated by the Milanese general Torello, in 1425, and in 1440 the Florentine general Orsini defeated the Milanese general Piccinino.
=Angle.= In geometry, is the inclination of two lines meeting one another in a point, or the portion of space lying between two lines, or between two or more surfaces meeting in a common point called the vertex. Angles are of various kinds according to the lines or sides which form them. Those most frequently referred to in fortification and gunnery are:
ANGLE, DIMINISHED, is that formed by the exterior side and the line of defense.
ANGLE, FLANKED, or SALIENT, is the projecting angle formed by the two faces of a bastion.
ANGLE, INTERIOR FLANKING, is that which is formed by the meeting of the line of defense and the curtain.
ANGLE OF ARRIVAL. The angle of arrival is the angle which the tangent to the trajectory at the crest of the parapet makes with the horizon.
ANGLE OF DEPARTURE, or ANGLE OF PROJECTION, is the angle which the tangent makes with the horizontal at the muzzle.
ANGLE OF ELEVATION, or ANGLE OF FIRE, in gunnery, is that which the axis of the barrel makes with the horizontal line.
ANGLE OF FALL, in gunnery, is the angle made at the point of fall by the tangent to the trajectory with a horizontal line in the plane of fire.
ANGLE OF FIRE, in gunnery, is the angle included between the line of fire and horizon; on account of the balloting of the projectile, the angle of fire is not always equal to the angle of departure, or projection.
ANGLE OF INCIDENCE is that which the line of direction of a ray of light, ball from a gun, etc., makes at the point where it first touches the body it strikes against, with a line drawn perpendicularly to the surface of that body.
ANGLE OF REFLECTION is the angle intercepted between the line of direction of a body rebounding after it has struck against another body, and a perpendicular erected at the point of contact.
ANGLE OF SIGHT, in gunnery, is the angle included between the line of sight and line of fire. Angles of sight are divided into natural and artificial angles of sight, corresponding to the natural and artificial lines of sight, which inclose them. See POINTING.
ANGLE OF THE CENTRE is the angle formed at the centre of the polygon by lines drawn thence to the points of two adjacent bastions.
ANGLE OF THE EPAULE, or SHOULDER, is formed by one face and one flank of the bastion.
ANGLE OF THE FACE is formed by the angle of the face and the line of defense produced till they intersect each other.
ANGLE OF THE FLANK is that formed by the flank and curtain.
ANGLE OF THE LINE OF DEFENSE is that angle made by the flank and the line of defense.
ANGLE OF THE POLYGON is that formed by the meeting of two of the sides of the polygon; it is likewise called the polygon angle.
ANGLE OF THE TENAILLE, or FLANKING ANGLE, is made by two lines fichant,--that is, the faces of the two bastions extended until they meet in an angle towards the curtain, and is that which always carries its point towards the outworks.
ANGLE, RE-ENTERING. An angle whose vertex points inward, or towards the place. A re-entering angle which is not defended by a flanking fire is said to be dead.
=Angles.= An ancient German tribe from which England derives its name. They occupied a narrow district in the south of Sleswick, whence some of them passed over in the 5th century, in conjunction with other Saxon tribes, into Britain, where they conquered the native Britons, and established the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. See HEPTARCHY.
=Anglou.= A place in Armenia where a Persian army 4000 strong defeated and cut to pieces a Roman army of 30,000, in 543.
=Angon.= In ancient military history, was a kind of a dart of modern length, having an iron beaded head and cheeks; in use about the 5th century. This sort of javelin was much used by the French. The iron head of it resembled a fleur-de-lis.
=Angora.= See ANCYRA.
=Angouleme.= A city in the department of Charente, France. It was ruined by the Normans during the 9th century, and devastated several times during the 16th century.
=Anguis.= A flag adopted by the Romans, which was carried at the head of a cohort (the tenth part of a Roman legion, consisting of 600 men); this flag resembled a serpent in shape, and was more commonly called draco.
=Angusticlave.= A robe or tunic embroidered with purple studs or knobs, and with narrow purple stripes, worn by Roman knights, to distinguish them from members of the senatorian order, who wore a garment with broad stripes, called latus clavus.
=Anholt, Island of= (Denmark). Was taken possession of by England, May 18, 1809, in the French war, on account of Danish cruisers injuring British commerce. The Danes made an attempt to regain it with a force which exceeded 1000 men, but were gallantly repulsed by the British force, not amounting to more than 150, March 27, 1811.
=Animate, To.= In a military sense, is to encourage, to incite, to add fresh impulse to any body of men who are advancing against an enemy, or to prevent them from shamefully abandoning their colors in critical situations.
=Anime= (Fr.). A sort of ancient cuirass, also called brigandine; was used in Italy until the 17th century, under the name of anima, or animetta.
=Anio= (now Teverone). A river of ancient Italy, an affluent of the Tiber. On its banks the Romans gained two great battles over the Gauls, one by Camillus about 367 B.C., and the other about sixty years afterwards.
=Aniocrater.= The highest military rank of the Lacedæmonians; one who commanded the whole army during the absence of the king.
=Anippus.= Name of the light cavalry of the Grecians.
=Anisocycle.= An ancient machine of a spiral form, like the spring of a watch, used for throwing arrows to a great distance.
=Anitorgis.= A city in Spain, near which Asdrubal, general of the Carthaginians, gained a memorable battle over the Romans under Scipio and his brother Publius, in 212 B.C.
=Anjou=, or =Beauge, Battle of=. Between the English and French; the latter commanded by the Dauphin of France, March 22, 1421. The English were defeated; the Duke of Clarence was slain by Sir Allan Swinton, a Scotch knight, and 1500 men perished on the field; the Earls of Somerset, Dorset, and Huntingdon were taken prisoners. Beauge was the first battle that turned the tide of success against the English.
=Annals.= A species of military history, wherein events are related in the chronological order they happened. They differ from a perfect history, in being only a mere relation of what passes every year, as a journal is of what passes every day.
=Annatinæ.= Were transport-ships (so called by Julius Cæsar) in which were transported provisions, etc., to armies and fleets. Also called Corbitæ.
=Anneau d’Or= (Fr.). A gold ring. In accordance with the example of the ancients, Francis I. of France instituted a military recompense in the shape of an anneau, for all who distinguished themselves in any military enterprise.
=Annee de Corbie= (Fr.). Name given to the year 1636, when the capture of Corbie (by the Austrians), a small city of the department of the Somme, France (during the war which Richelieu had decided to undertake against the Austrian house), nearly caused the overthrow of France.
=Anne, St., Order of.= An order of knighthood, originally established in Holstein, and carried with the princes of that country into Russia. It was made a Russian order in 1796, and is now widely diffused.
=Annihilate.= To reduce to nothing; to destroy the existence of; to cause or cease to be; as, the army was annihilated.
=Annoy.= To injure or disturb by continued or repeated acts; to incommode or molest; as, to annoy an army by impeding their march, or by a continued cannonade.
=Annuity.= A sum of money payable yearly, to continue for a given number of years, for life or forever; an annual allowance. The U. S. government furnishes annuities and annuity goods to certain tribes of Indians.
=Annul.= To make void, or of no effect; to abrogate; to rescind;--used of laws, decisions of courts, or other established rules, permanent usages, and the like, which are made void by competent authority.
=Annunciada.= An order of military knighthood in Savoy, first instituted by Amadeus I. in the year 1409; their collar was of fifteen links, interwoven one with another, and the motto “F. E. R. T.,” signifying fortitudo ejus Rhodum tenuit. Amadeus VIII. changed the image of St. Maurice, patron of Savoy, which hung at the collar, for that of the Virgin Mary, and instead of the motto above mentioned, substituted the words of the angel’s salutation. Now extinct.
=Anse des Pieces= (Fr.). A term for the handles of cannon. Those of brass have two, those of iron seldom any. These handles serve to pass cords, handspikes, or levers through, the more easily to move so heavy a body, and are made to represent dolphins, serpents, etc.
=Antandros= (now St. Dimitri). A city of Troas, inhabited by the Leleges, near which Æneas built his fleet after the destruction of Troy.
=Antecessores=, or =Antecursores=. Light cavalry of the Romans, which formed the advance-guard of an army while on the march.
=Antemuraille.= In ancient military art, denoted what now the moderns generally call the outworks.
=Antepilani.= Soldiers of a Roman legion who composed the first and second ranks in line of battle, and who were accordingly placed in front of the third rank. The first rank was called hastati, the second principes, and the third pilani, or triarii.
=Antequera.= A city in Spain, formerly fortified; besieged and captured from the Moors by Ferdinand of Castile, September 16, 1410; he also defeated under the walls of this city the Moorish king of Toledo, who had an army of 100,000 men.
=Antesignani.= A name given to the soldiers of the Roman army who protected the colors, etc.; according to some authorities they were the hastati or principes, and according to others they were a select detachment consisting of picked soldiers.
=Antestature= (Fr.). A small intrenchment or work formed of palisades or sacks of earth.
=Anthony, St., Knights of.= A military order instituted by Albert, Duke of Bavaria, Holland, and Zealand, when he designed to make war against the Turks in 1382. The knights wore a collar of gold made in the form of a hermit’s girdle, from which hung a stick like a crutch, with a little bell, as they are represented in St. Anthony’s pictures.
=Antibes.= A city in the department of Alpes Maritimes, France. It was ruined some time after the capture of Marseilles by Cæsar. This city was fortified by Francis I. and Henry IV.; besieged without success by the Imperials in 1746.
=Anti-corrosion.= A lacker applied to iron traversing platforms, gun-carriages, and the outside of guns. See LACKER.
=Antietam.= A small, deep river in Maryland, which empties into the Potomac about 6 miles above Harper’s Ferry. Here was fought a terrible battle on September 17, 1862, between the Federals, under Gen. McClellan, and the Confederates, under Gen. Lee. After his victory at Bull Run, August 30, Lee invaded Maryland, and was immediately followed by McClellan. On September 16, Lee was joined by Jackson. The battle on which was staked “the invasion of Maryland,” in the view of the Federal government, but in reality the sovereignty of the Union, was near at hand. On the night of the 15th the greatest part of McClellan’s troops were in bivouac behind the heights on the left bank of the Antietam, sheltered from, but within range of, the enemy’s batteries. The morning of the 16th was occupied in reconnoissance of the enemy’s position, in rectifying the position of the Federal troops, and perfecting the arrangements for the attack. At about 3 o’clock P.M. Gen. Hooker crossed the Antietam by the bridge in the village on the Hagerstown road, and an adjacent ford, and soon gained the crest of the height on the right bank of the stream. He then turned to his left and followed down the ridge under a strong opposition, until brought to a standstill by the darkness. Gen. Mansfield was ordered to follow Gen. Hooker, so as to be in a position to support him at daybreak.
At daybreak on the 17th, Gen. Hooker attacked the forces in his front, and for a time drove them before him. The enemy, however, rallying, and strengthened from their supporting columns, repulsed him. Gen. Mansfield’s corps was then drawn to Hooker’s support, and the two masses repelled the enemy. Gen. Mansfield was killed and Gen. Hooker wounded at this crisis, and obliged to withdraw from the field. Gen. Sumner’s corps soon reached this portion of the field and became hotly engaged. This corps suffered greatly at this period of the contest, Gens. Sedgwick and Crawford being wounded, and portions of the line were compelled to fall back. The enemy, however, were checked by the Federal artillery. Sumner’s corps was soon reinforced, and the lost ground was recovered. The contest in the mean time on the right was most obstinate, and the losses in this part of the field were very heavy. Gen. Burnside’s corps, on the left, was ordered early in the day to carry the bridge across the Antietam and to attack the enemy’s right. The approaches to the bridge being in the nature of a defile, and being swept by batteries of the enemy, the opposite bank of the Antietam was only reached after a severe struggle. It was afternoon before the heights were in his possession. The enemy were driven back, and a portion of their line in disorder. By the most desperate efforts, however, the enemy rallied their retreating regiments, strengthened their lines with all their available fresh troops, and opened batteries on the hills.
Gen. Burnside could not maintain his advantage, and was obliged to withdraw from the extreme position which he had gained to one slightly in rear. He, however, held his bank of the river completely, and maintained much ground beyond it which he had taken from the enemy. During the advance on the left Gen. Rodman was wounded.
Notwithstanding substantial and decided successes of the day, the Federal forces had suffered so severely during the conflict, having lost 11,426 killed and wounded, and among them many general and superior officers, that it was deemed prudent by Gen. McClellan to reorganize and give rest and refreshment to the troops before renewing the attack. The 18th was accordingly devoted to those objects. On the night of the 18th, however, Gen. Lee withdrew his forces hastily across the Potomac, abandoning further contest with the Union forces, and yielding all hopes of further remaining on Maryland soil. The Confederate army is supposed to have lost nearly 30,000 men during its brief campaign in Maryland. The Federal forces captured 39 colors, 13 guns, more than 15,000 small-arms, and more than 6000 prisoners.--Extracts from D. Appleton’s “History of the Rebellion,” by Tenney, “Lippincott’s Gazetteer,” and Haydn’s “Dates.”
=Antioch.= A city in Syria, built by Seleucus 300 B.C.; after the battle of Ipsus it acquired the name “Queen of the East.” Here the disciples were first called Christians, A.D. 42. Antioch was taken by the Persians, 540; by the Saracens about 638; recovered from the Eastern emperor, 966; lost again in 1086; retaken by the Crusaders in 1098, and held by them till 1268, when it was captured by the sultan of Egypt. It was taken from the Turks in the Syrian war, Aug. 1, 1833, by Ibrahim Pasha, but restored at the peace.
=Antium.= A maritime city of Latium, now Porto d’Anzio, near Rome; after a long struggle for independence it became a Roman colony at the end of the great Latin war, 340-38 B.C. The treasures deposited in the Temple of Fortune here were taken by Octavius Cæsar during his war with Antony in 41 B.C.
=Antonia.= A fortress in Jerusalem on the north side of the area of the temple, originally built by the Maccabees under the name of Baris, and afterwards rebuilt with great strength and splendor by the first Herod. The fortress communicated with the northern and western porticoes of the temple area, so that the garrison could at any time enter the courts of the temple and prevent tumults. Josephus describes it as standing on a rock 50 cubits high, and having everything necessary within itself.
=Antustriones.= A body-guard of the kings or chiefs of the ancient Germans, which was composed of volunteers.
=Antwerp= (Fr. Anvers). The principal port of Belgium; is mentioned in history in 517; it was pillaged and burnt by the Spaniards and the inhabitants massacred, November 4, 1576. This event has been termed the “Spanish Fury.” After Marlborough’s victory at Ramillies, Antwerp surrendered at once, June 6, 1706; the Barrier treaty concluded here, November 16, 1715; taken by Marshal Saxe, May 9, 1746; occupied by the French, 1792-94 and 1814. The Belgian troops, having entered Antwerp, were opposed by the Dutch garrison, who, after a dreadful conflict, being driven into their citadel, cannonaded the town with hot shot and shells, October 27, 1830; the citadel was bombarded by the French, December 4; surrendered by Gen. Chasse, December 23, 1832. The exchange burnt, archives, etc., destroyed, August 2, 1858; fortification completed, 1865.
=Anvil.= An archaism for the handle or hilt of a sword. Also, a little narrow flag at the end of a lance.
=Anvil.= The resisting cone, plate, or bar against which the fulminate in a metallic cartridge is exploded. See PRIMER.
=Aosta.= A town in Piedmont, which was captured by the Romans in 24 B.C.
=Aous=, or =Aeas= (now the Voyussa). A river in Epirus, Greece, which flows into the Adriatic Sea; on the banks of this river Philip of Macedon was twice defeated by the Romans.
=Apaches.= A warlike tribe of savage Indians who infest New Mexico and Arizona. Until within a few years they were hostile, making frequent raids into the neighboring Mexican states of Sonora and Chihuahua, and robbing and murdering the settlers. They are now peaceable, and settled on reservations (with the exception of a few renegades); but being entirely uncivilized, their peaceful condition is uncertain. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Aparejo.= A kind of pack-saddle used in the American military service. See PACK-SADDLES.
=Apex.= The tip, point, or summit of anything. The Romans so named the crest of a helmet, or the part whereon the horse-hair plume was attached.
=Aphracti.= In the ancient military art, open vessels, without decks or hatches, furnished only at head and stern with cross-planks, whereon the men stood to fight.
=Apobates.= A name given by the ancients to warriors who fought mounted on chariots; they were also called Anabates, or Paraebates; they were generally leaders who fought in this manner; their armor and arms consisted of helmet, breast-armor, lance, javelin, sword, and shield. These warriors occasionally alighted from the chariots to attack their adversaries on foot.
=Apology.= In a military sense, when made and accepted, debars the officer who accepts from bringing forward the matter as a substantive accusation. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 25.
=Apomaque.= This word, with the Grecians, signified those soldiers who were disqualified for military service from physical disability or other causes.
=Appalachee Indians.= A tribe of Indians once powerful in West Florida. In 1700 a part of them removed into what is now Alabama, and the tribe soon ceased to exist.
=Apparatus.= Ammunition and equipage for war.
=Appareilles.= Are those slopes that lead to the platform of the bastion.
=Appastis=, or =Pactis=. A war-tax, which was levied in ancient times upon the inhabitants of conquered countries.
=Appeal.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 29, 30.
=Appel= (Fr.). A smart stroke with the blade by a fencer on the sword of his antagonist on the opposite side to that which he engaged, generally accompanied with a stamp of the foot, and used for the purpose of procuring an opening.
=Appian Way.= A Roman road, made by Appius Claudius Cæcus, while censor, 312 B.C.
=Appointe= (Fr.). This word was applicable to French soldiers only, during the old monarchy of France, and meant a man who for his service and extraordinary bravery received more than common pay. There were likewise instances in which officers were distinguished by being styled officers appointes.
=Appointing Power.= It has been contended by advocates of executive discretion, that army appointments are embraced in the power granted to the President in the 2d section of the Constitution, to nominate, and, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint “all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which may be established by law. But the Congress may, by law, vest the appointment of such inferior officers as they think proper in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments.” If due regard, however, be paid to the words “whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for,” the pretension set up in favor of executive power will receive no support from the terms of the Constitution. The powers granted to Congress to raise and support armies, and to make all rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces, are necessarily so comprehensive in character, as to embrace all means which Congress, according to circumstances, may deem proper and necessary in order to raise armies, or govern them when raised. Rules of appointment to office, rules of promotion,--another form of appointment,--and all rules whatever in relation to the land and naval forces, save the appointment of the commander-in-chief of those united forces, who is designated by the Constitution, are hence within the competency of Congress.
=Appointment.= Office, rank, or employment.
=Appointment.= The equipment, ordnance, furniture, and necessaries of an army.
=Appointments, Military.= The accoutrements of an officer.
=Appointon= (Fr.). A sort of poniard which was used in ancient times.
=Apprehend.= In a military sense, implies the seizing or confining of any person; as, to apprehend a deserter, etc.
=Apprenti= (Fr.). Apprentice. Formerly in the French service they had apprentices or soldiers among the artillery, who served for less pay than the regular artillerymen, until they became perfect in their profession, when they were admitted to such vacancies as occurred in their respective branches.
=Approach.= The route by which a fortified place or military position can be approached by an attacking force.
=Approaches.= The trenches or covered roads by which the besiegers convey ordnance, ammunition, and stores, and march troops to and from the parallels; also the trenches by means of which the successive parallels are established.
=Appropriations.= For the support of the U. S. army are made annually; the bill for the same must originate in the lower house of Congress. The English army is raised by the queen, and maintained by annual appropriations by Parliament; the system for the support of armies is much the same throughout Europe. In the United States, the term is also used by post and regimental councils of administration in the expenditure of funds.
=Appui.= See POINT D’APPUI.
=Apri=, or =Apros=. A small town in Thrace, on the river Melas, where the daring leader of the Catalonians, Berengar de Rocafort, defeated the Greeks under the Emperor Michael, 1307.
=Apron.= A piece of sheet-lead used to cover the vent of a cannon.
=Apulia.= A province in Southeast Italy, conquered by the Normans, whose leader, Guiscard, received the title of Duke of Apulia from Pope Nicholas II. in 1059. After many changes of masters, it was absorbed into the kingdom of Naples in 1265.
=Aqueduct.= A channel to convey water from one place to another. Aqueducts in military architecture are generally made to bring water from a spring or river to a fortress, etc.; they are likewise used to carry canals over low ground, and over brooks or small rivers; they are built with arches like a bridge, only not so wide, and are covered by an arch, to prevent dust or dirt from being thrown into the water,--there are also subterranean aqueducts, such as pipes of wood, lead, or iron.
=Aquila= (Southern Italy). Near here the Aragonese, under the condottiere Braccio Fortebraccio, were defeated by the allied Papal, Neapolitan, and Milanese army under Jacob Caldora, June 2, 1424. Braccio, a wounded prisoner, refused to take food, and died, June 5.
=Aquila.= The principal standard of a Roman legion. The standard of Romulus is said to have consisted of a handful of hay, straw, or fern, affixed to a pole or spear; whence the company of soldiers who served under it was called Manipulus. This primitive standard was soon superseded by the figures of animals. In 104 B.C. the eagle was permanently adopted; it was made of silver or bronze, and was represented with expanded wings.
=Aquilifer.= A name given by the Romans to the officers who carried the eagles of the legions.
=Aquitaine.= A province in the southwest of France; conquered by the Romans in 28 B.C.; by the Visigoths, 418; taken from them by Clovis in 507. Henry II. of England obtained it with his wife Eleanor, 1152. It was erected into a principality for Edward the Black Prince in 1362; but was annexed to France in 1370. The title of duke of Aquitaine was taken by the crown of England on the conquest of this duchy by Henry V. in 1418. The province was lost in the reign of Henry VI.
=Arabia.= A tract of land in Western Asia; the terms Petræa (stony), Felix (happy), and Deserta are said to have been applied to its divisions by Ptolemy, about 140. Arabia was unsuccessfully invaded by Gallus, the Roman governor of Egypt, 24 B.C. In 622, the Arabians under the name of Saracens (which see), followers of Mohammed, their general and prophet, commenced their course of conquest. The Arabs greatly favored literature and the sciences, especially mathematics, astronomy, and chemistry. To them we owe our ordinary (Arabic) numerals and arithmetical notation.
=Aracillum.= A city in Spain. The Cantabrians being besieged in this city by the Romans, killed each other rather than surrender.
=Aradus= (now Ruad). A city of Phœnicia; captured by the Roman general Ventidius, 38 B.C.
=Aragon.= Part of the Roman Tarraconensis, a kingdom, Northeast Spain, was conquered by the Carthaginians, who were expelled by the Romans about 200 B.C. It became an independent monarchy in 1035.
=Aranjuez= (Central Spain). Contains a fine royal palace, at which several important treaties were concluded. On March 17, 1808, an insurrection broke out here against Charles IV. and his favorite, Godoy, the Prince of Peace. The former was compelled to abdicate in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII., March 19.
=Aransas.= A small river of Texas, which empties into a bay of the same name, immediately north of Corpus Christi Bay. The Confederate works near this place were captured by the Federal troops November 20, 1864.
=Arapahoe Indians.= A tribe of Indians associated with the Cheyennes, who inhabit the country between the South Fork of the Platte River and the head-waters of the Arkansas. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Arapiles.= A village of Spain, 4 miles southeast of Salamanca. It was the scene of the sanguinary engagement called the battle of Salamanca, in which the allies under Wellington defeated the French under Marmont, July 22, 1812.
=Arausio= (now Orange, Southeast France). Through jealousy of the Roman proconsul Q. Servilius Cæpio, who would not wait for the arrival of the army of the consul C. Manlius, both were here defeated by the Cimbri with much slaughter, 105 B.C.
=Arbalest.= In the ancient art of war, a cross-bow made of steel, set in a shaft of wood, with a string and trigger, bent with a piece of iron fitted for that purpose, and used to throw bullets, large arrows, darts, etc.
=Arbalestina.= In the military system of the Middle Ages, was a small window or wicket through which the cross-bow men shot their quarrels or arrows at an enemy besieging a fortified place.
=Arbaletrier d’une Galere= (Fr.). That part of a galley where the cross-bow men were placed during an engagement.
=Arbalist=, or =Arblast=. A cross-bow man.
=Arbela= (now Erbil). A city in Asiatic Turkey; near here was fought the third and decisive battle between Alexander the Great and Darius Codomanus which decided the fate of Persia, October 1, 331 B.C., on a plain in Assyria, between Arbela and Gaugamela. The army of Darius consisted of 1,000,000 foot and 40,000 horse; the Macedonian army amounted to only 40,000 foot and 7000 horse. The gold and silver found in the cities of Susa, Persepolis, and Babylon, which fell to Alexander from this victory, amounted to £30,000,000 sterling; and the jewels and other precious spoil belonging to Darius sufficed to load 20,000 mules and 5000 camels.
=Arbourg.= A city in Switzerland, whose citadel, which was constructed in 1600, is an important depot for military stores.
=Arbrier= (Fr.). Stock of a cross-bow.
=Arc= (Fr.). A bow; an arch in building.
=Arc à Jalet= (Fr.). A small cross-bow, used to throw bullets, etc.
=Arc, Elevating.= In gunnery, is an arc attached to the base of the breech parallel to the ratchets and graduated into degrees and parts of a degree. A pointer attached to the fulcrum points to the zero of the scale when the axis of the piece is horizontal. Elevations and depressions are indicated by the scale. Besides the graduations on the arc, the ranges (in yards) and the charges for shot and shells are given.
=Arch.= In military architecture, is a vault or concave building, in form of a curve, erected to support some heavy structure, or passage.
=Archers.= In military history, a kind of militia or soldiery, armed with bows and arrows. They were much used in former times.
=Archery.= The use of the bow and arrow; the practice, art, or skill of archers; the art of shooting with a bow and arrow.
=Arch-gaye=, or =Lance-gaye= (Fr.). A lance used by the Gauls and Franks, which consisted of a sharp-pointed piece of iron attached to a light wooden handle.
=Architonnerre= (Fr.). A machine made of copper, which threw iron bullets with great force and noise; it was used in ancient times, being an invention of Archimedes.
=Architrave.= The master-beam, or chief supporter, in any part of subterraneous fortification.
=Arch, Triumphal.= In military history, is a stately monument or erection, generally of a semicircular form, adorned with sculpture, inscriptions, etc., in honor of those heroes who have deserved a triumph.
=Arcis-sur-Aube.= A small town in the French department of Aube; here a battle took place on March 20, 1814, between Napoleon and the allied forces under Prince Schwartzenberg. The battle, beginning with several skirmishes on the first day, and ending in a general engagement on the second day, when the French retreated over the Aube, was not in itself very important. But Napoleon now formed the plan of operating in the rear of the allies, and left the road to Paris open; assuming that they would not venture to proceed without attempting first to secure their rear. The allies marched, nevertheless, on the capital, and thus decided the campaign.
=Arco.= A metal composed of 70 parts of pure copper, 27 of zinc, and 3 of lead; used for the brass-work of small-arms.
=Arcola= (Lombardy). The site of battles between the French under Bonaparte, and the Austrians under Field-Marshal Alvinzi, fought November 15-17, 1796. The Austrians lost 18,000 men in killed, wounded, and prisoners, 4 flags, and 18 guns. The French lost about 15,000, and became masters of Italy.
=Arcot= (East Indies). This city (founded 1716) was taken by Col. Clive August 31, 1751; was retaken, but again surrendered to Col. Coote, February 10, 1760; besieged and taken by Hyder Ali, when the British under Col. Baillie suffered severe defeat, October 31, 1780. Arcot has been subject to Great Britain since 1801.
=Arcubalist.= See ARBALEST.
=Ardalion.= A river in Algeria. On the banks of this river in 398, Mascezil, a Roman general, defeated Gildo, a Moorish chieftain, then in rebellion against Rome.
=Ardebil.= A city in Persia; its citadel was constructed by French officers; captured by the Turks in 1827.
=Ardres.= A city in the department of Pas-de-Calais, France, it was dismantled in 1850. This city was captured by the Duke of Burgundy, brother of Charles V., from the English in 1377; a treaty was concluded here between Francis I. of France and Henry VIII. of England June 7, 1546; captured by the Spaniards in 1596; returned to France in 1598.
=Area.= In a military sense, is the superficial contents of any rampart or other work of a fortification.
=Areoscope.= An instrument used for analyzing the air of rooms; used in English medical corps.
=Ares.= The god of war in Greek mythology, corresponding to the Roman Mars (which see).
=Argaum.= A village in the Deccan, near to which Gen. Wellesley (afterwards Duke of Wellington) totally defeated the army of Dawlut Rao Scindia in October, 1803.
=Argelinos=, or =Algerinos=. The Spaniards so named the foreign legion, which was sent to them from Algiers by France, during the reign of Louis Philippe.
=Argent.= This word means silver in French, and is always used in heraldry to designate that metal. In engraving English shields the part designated as argent is left white.
=Argentaria= (now Colmar, Northern France). Where the Roman Emperor Gratian totally defeated the Alemanni and secured the peace of Gaul, 378.
=Argentine Republic.= Formerly the Confederation of La Plata, a South American federal republic, consisting of 14 provinces extending over an immense area of country. Buenos Ayres, one of its provinces, with the city of the same name, now the capital, seceded from the confederation in 1853, and was reunited in 1860. The country is remarkable chiefly for its internecine wars, revolutions, and struggles, incident to all the countries colonized by the Spanish race. See BUENOS AYRES.
=Argives.= The inhabitants of Argos, a state of ancient Greece of which Mycenæ was the capital, and which was ruled by Agamemnon at the time of the Trojan war. The name is frequently used by Homer to signify the whole body of the Greeks.
=Argos= (now Panitza). An ancient city of Greece; near here, in 272 B.C., Antigonus Gonatas, king of Macedon, defeated the army of Pyrrhus, king of Epirus; the latter was killed.
=Argoulet= (Fr.). An ancient dragoon. Also an inferior sort of a musket made at Liege for trading with the negroes.
=Arich= (anc. Rhinocolura). A fortress in Lower Egypt. The French occupied this place in 1793, but were obliged to surrender it in 1800.
=Aries= (Lat. “a ram”). An ancient battering-ram. See BATTERING-RAM.
=Arizona.= A Territory of the United States, originally part of New Mexico, organized February, 1803. For many years known for its Indian hostilities, and conflicts between the Indians and U. S. troops; also for frequent terrible massacres of whites.
=Arkansas.= One of the Southwestern States of the Union. It was settled by the French in 1685, and formed a part of the great tract purchased from the French in 1803 under the name of Louisiana Territory. It was organized as a Territory in 1819, and admitted as a State in 1836. Arkansas passed an ordinance of secession March 4, 1861; was the scene of several engagements during the civil war, and suffered its share of the hardships of that eventful period. The battles of Pea Ridge and Fayetteville were fought in its territory; Arkansas Post was captured in 1863; and Helena and Little Rock were taken the same year.
=Arkansas Indians.= A tribe of Indians allied to the Dakotas, who formerly resided on the Ohio. At present they number about 200, and live in the Indian Territory.
=Arkansas Post.= A village in Arkansas, on the Arkansas River, about 40 miles from its mouth, garrisoned by the Confederates during the civil war. The combined forces of Admiral Porter and Gen. McClernand made an attack upon the place January 11, 1863, and carried it by storm.
=Arklow.= A town in Ireland, where a battle was fought between the insurgent Irish, amounting to 31,000, and a small regular force of British, which signally defeated them, June 10, 1798.
=Arles.= A city in the department Mouths-of-the-Rhone, France; said to have been founded 2000 B.C.; was formerly a powerful Roman city; sustained four memorable sieges against the Visigoths, in 425, 429, 452, and 457; besieged by Clovis I., king of the Franks, 508. The Count of Barcelona took possession of it in 1156, and Alfonso II., king of Aragon, in 1167.
=Arlon.= A town in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. Here the French, commanded by Jourdan, defeated the Austrians in April, 1793, and again in April, 1794.
=Arm.= In a military sense, signifies a particular species of troops,--thus the artillery is an arm, and the cavalry, and infantry, etc., are each called an arm of the service. The word is also used to denote an instrument of warfare; a weapon of offense or defense.
=Arm.= To be provided with arms, weapons, or means of attack or resistance; to take arms.
=Armament.= A body of forces equipped for war;--used as a land force. All arrangements made for the defense of a fortification with musketry and artillery.
=Armamentary.= An armory; a magazine or arsenal.
=Arm a Shot, To.= Is to roll rope-yarns about a cross-bar shot in order to facilitate ramming it home, and also to prevent the ends catching any accidental inequalities in the bore.
=Armatoles.= A Grecian militia of Thessaly, instituted by Selim I. at the beginning of the 16th century, to oppose the raids of the mountaineers called klephtes, or brigands. Later the Armatoles and Klephtes united against the Turks.
=Armatura.= In ancient military history signified the fixed and established military exercises of the Romans. Under this word is understood the throwing of the spear, javelin, shooting with bows and arrows, etc. Armatura was also an appellation given to the soldiers who were light-armed; and was a name also given to the soldiers in the emperor’s retinue.
=Armature.= Armor; whatever is worn or used for the protection and defense of the body.
=Arm-chest.= A portable locker for holding arms, and affording a ready supply of pistols, muskets, or other weapons. Also used in the military service for the transportation of rifles, revolvers, etc.
=Arme Courtoise= (Fr.). This arm was used in tilts or tournaments during the Middle Ages; it was a kind of sword with a ring or knob placed at the tip of the blade to prevent it causing a dangerous wound.
=Armed.= Furnished with weapons of offense or defense; furnished with the means of security or protection; furnished with whatever serves to add strength, force, or efficiency. Armed neutrality, the condition of affairs when a nation assumes a threatening position, and maintains an armed force to repel any aggression on the part of belligerent nations between which it is neutral.
=Armentiers.= A city of the department of the North, France; captured and burned by the English, 1339; pillaged by the French, 1382; destroyed by the Calvinists in 1566; occupied by Marshals de Gassion and de Rantzan, 1645; by Archduke Leopold, 1647; by the French in 1667, and remained a city of France in accordance with the peace treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1668.
=Armes de Jet= (Fr.). Missive weapons; offensive arms or instruments which act by propulsion, whether by the force of powder, steam, wind, or mechanism.
=Armet= (Fr.). A helmet or head-piece much in use in the 16th century, and worn with or without the beaver.
=Armgaunt.= Worn by military service; as, an armgaunt steed.
=Armiger.= Formerly an armor-bearer, as of a knight; an esquire who bore his shield and rendered other services. In later use, one next in degree to a knight, and entitled to a coat of arms.
=Armilausa.= A military uniform coat, worn by the Romans over their armor.
=Armiludia.= A name given by the Romans to the exercises of arms, and also applied to the day on which these exercises took place.
=Armilustrium.= This name was given by the Romans to a military festival which took place on the 19th of October annually. After review the soldiers offered up sacrifices for the success of the Roman arms.
=Armipotent.= Powerful in arms; mighty in battle.
=Armisonous.= Rustling in arms; resounding with arms.
=Armistice.= A cessation of hostilities between belligerent nations for a considerable time. It is either partial and local, or general. It differs from a mere suspension of arms, which takes place to enable the two armies to bury their dead, their chiefs to hold conferences or pourparlers, and the like. The terms truce (see TRUCE) and armistice are sometimes used in the same sense.
=Armless.= Without arms or armor.
=Armlet.= The name of a piece of armor for the arm, to protect it from the jar of the bow-string.
=Armor.= Defensive arms for the body; any clothing or covering worn to protect one’s person in battle. In English statutes, armor is used for the whole apparatus of war, including offensive as well as defensive arms. The statutes of armor directed what arms every man should provide. Armor has also been extensively used in England in plating important fortifications as those of Portsmouth, and also in Germany for the forts along the frontier.
=Armor-bearer.= One who carries the armor of another; an armiger; an esquire.
=Armorer.= The person who makes, cleans, or repairs arms.
=Armorial.= Belonging to armor, or to the arms or escutcheon of a family.
=Armor Plates.= From experiments of the effects of shot and shell on armor plates in England, the following results have been obtained: Where it is required to perforate the plate, the projectile should be of hard material, such as steel, or chilled iron, and the form best suited for this purpose is the pointed ogeeval. The resistance of wrought-iron plates to perforation by steel projectiles varies as the squares of their thickness. Hitting a plate at an angle diminishes the effect as regards the power of perforation in the proportion of the sine of the angle of incidence to unity. The resistance of wrought-iron plates to perforation by steel shot is practically not much, if at all, increased by backing simply of wood, within the usual limits of thickness; it is, however, much increased by a rigid backing either of iron combined with wood, or of granite, iron, brick, etc.
Till quite recently armor plates have been made of wrought iron only, as numerous experiments in England had served to show that notwithstanding the enormous resistance of steel to penetration it was unfit for armor plating,--the damage from the impact of shot not being localized as in wrought iron. The Italians were led, however, by the experiments with the 100-ton gun on targets of both metals at Spezzia, 1876, to adopt steel for their new ships, the “Duilio” and “Dandolo.” Since that time an armor compounded of steel and wrought iron has been introduced in England which bids fair to supersede all others. It is made by casting a heavy facing of steel upon wrought-iron plates. A section of this compound armor exhibits a gradual change of structure from the hard steel face to the soft iron backing. Its resistance to penetration is equal to steel, while in toughness and endurance under the blows of shot it resembles wrought iron.
To glance at some of the heaviest armor plating afloat, the English “Inflexible” carries a maximum thickness of 24 inches of iron, the Italian frigates mentioned above 21.5 of steel, the French “Admiral Duperré” 21.6 of iron, the Russian “Peter the Great” 14 inches of iron. In regard to the power of some of the most noted of modern guns, the 12-inch calibres used now by all leading nations will penetrate, at 1000 yards, 16 to 18 inches of iron. The 38-ton English gun of this calibre has penetrated (at shorter range) 22 inches of iron and 6 inches of teak backing. The 80-ton Woolwich gun will penetrate 23 inches of iron at 1000 yards. The largest Krupp, 72 tons, will penetrate 26 inches, and the 100-ton Armstrong 30 inches at the same distance. None of the guns mentioned would penetrate at a single shot the steel armor of the Italian ships, but any of them would destroy it in a number of rounds.
=Armory.= A manufactory, or place of deposit for arms. See ARSENAL.
=Armory, National.= The U. S. government establishment for the manufacture of small-arms at Springfield, Mass.
=Arm-rack.= A frame or fitting for the stowage of arms (usually vertical) out of harm’s way, but in readiness for immediate use. In the conveyance of troops by sea arm-racks form a part of the proper accommodation. Arm-racks are also used in soldiers’ barrack-rooms.
=Arms.= In a general sense, comprehend weapons both of an offensive and defensive character, but in the usual restricted sense they only embrace the former, and in modern warfare include the gun and bayonet, the rifle, the pistol, the carbine, the sword, the lance, cannon, etc., all of which are noticed under their respective heads. For punishment inflicted upon soldiers who sell or otherwise dispose of their arms, see APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 17.
=Arms.= This term is used in heraldry to designate the devices borne on shields, and includes all the accompaniments, such as the crest, helmet, supporters, etc.
=Arms, Bells of.= Are tents, used in the English service, mostly of a conical shape, for containing the small-arms for each company in a regiment of infantry. The tent is frequently painted with the color of the facings of the regimental uniforms.
=Arms, Stand of.= A complete set for one soldier, as a rifle and bayonet, cartridge-box and belt, frequently the rifle and bayonet alone.
=Armstrong Gun.= The Armstrong gun as a breech-loading field-piece first attracted attention in England about 1850. About 1858 it was adopted by the British government. This gun was made of wrought iron, and consisted of a single coiled tube reinforced at the breech with two thin tubes, the outer one being a coiled tube, the inner being formed by bending a plate and welding the edges. The coiled tubes were formed by bending square bars of iron around a mandrel and welding the coils together. Tubes made in this way offer great resistance to tangential strains. The intermediate tube was designed to take up the longitudinal strain near the breech, and for this reason was made differently. The breech was closed with a vent-piece, slipped by the band into a slot cut in the piece near the breech, and held in its place by a breech-screw, which supported it from behind. This screw was made in the form of a tube, so that its hollow formed a part of the bore prolonged, when the vent-piece was drawn. Through the hollow screw the charge was passed into the chamber. The vent was formed in the breech-piece. This gun was a 3-inch 12-pounder, firing a lead-coated projectile. It was followed by the 40-pounder, 110-pounder, and other calibres. Muzzle-loaders were also made. The breech-loading apparatus did not prove entirely successful in large guns, and was accordingly discarded except for small calibres. The method of construction was changed for larger guns, and a plan adopted which has been adhered to ever since, and is that now used. The barrel or part surrounding the bore is made of steel tempered in oil; that portion at and in rear of the trunnions is enveloped by several layers of wrought-iron tubes, the number of layers depending upon the size of the gun. These tubes, instead of being joined at their ends by welding, are hooked on to each other by a system of shoulders and recesses. There are also projections fitting into corresponding recesses, which serve to prevent the tubes from slipping within each other. The tube which immediately surrounds the barrel opposite to the seat of the charge is called the breech-piece. It is made with its fibres and welds running longitudinally, so as to resist the recoil of the barrel against the head of the breech-plug, which is screwed into the breech-piece. The shunt system of rifling was first applied to muzzle-loading Armstrong guns, which have fewer grooves than the breech-loaders. The method of manufacturing originally proposed by Sir William Armstrong has been greatly modified by Mr. Fraser, of the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich. (See ORDNANCE, ARMSTRONG CANNON). For some years large numbers of Armstrong guns were made at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, under the supervision of the inventor. His works are now located at Elswick, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and are known us the Elswick Ordnance Works. To distinguish the system of gun-construction from the “Woolwich,” which it closely resembles, it is frequently called the “Elswick” system. The largest, as well as the most powerful guns ever made, are the 100-ton guns manufactured at Elswick for the Italian navy. See CANNON AND ORDNANCE, MODERN HISTORY OF.
=Armstrong Projectile.= See PROJECTILE.
=Army.= A large and organized body of soldiers, consisting of infantry, cavalry, and artillery, completely armed, and provided with the necessary stores, etc., the whole being composed of companies, battalions, regiments, brigades, divisions, and corps, under proper officers, and the entire force being under the direction of one general, who is called the general-in-chief, and sometimes the generalissimo. Armies are distinguished by different appellations; as, a covering army, a blockading army, an army of obstruction, an army of reserve, a flying army, etc. An army is said to cover a place when it is encamped or in cantonments for the protection of the different passes which lead to a principal object of defense. An army is said to blockade a place when, being well provided with heavy ordnance and other warlike means, it is employed to invest a town for the direct and immediate purpose of reducing it by assault or famine. An army of obstruction is so called because by its advanced positions and desultory movements it is constantly employed in watching the enemy. A flying army means a strong body of horse and foot, which is always in motion, both to cover its own garrisons and keep the enemy in continual alarm. For method of providing for armies, see APPROPRIATIONS.
=Army Corps.= See CORPS D’ARMÉE.
=Army Regulations.= This is the name of a work published by the War Department embodying all the acts of Congress, and the rules laid down by the President for the management of the army, both in peace and war. See REGULATIONS.
=Arnaouts=, or =Arnouts, Corps des=. Militia of Greece organized during the war of Russia against the Porte in 1769.
=Arnheim.= A fortified city in Holland; it was captured by the French in 1672; taken by storm by the Prussians under Gen. Von Bulow in 1815.
=Arnott’s Pump.= An ingeniously arranged machine for forcing pure air into buildings.
=Arquebusade.= Shot of an arquebuse. Also distilled water from a variety of aromatic plants, as rosemary, millefoil, etc., applied to a bruise or wound; so called because it was originally used as a vulnerary in gunshot wounds.
=Arquebuse=, or =Harquebuse=. An old fire-arm resembling a musket, which was supported on a rest by a hook of iron fastened to the barrel. It was longer than a musket, and of large calibre, and formerly used to fire through the loop-holes of antique fortifications.
=Arquebusier.= A soldier armed with an arquebuse.
=Arques= (Northern France). Near here the league army, commanded by the Duc de Mayenne, was defeated by Henry IV., September 21, 1589.
=Arracan.= A province of Northeast India. Arracan, the capital, taken by the Burmese, 1783; was taken from them by Gen. Morrison, April 1, 1825. The subjugation of the whole province soon followed.
=Arrah.= A town in British India, in the presidency of Bengal, the scene of several exciting incidents in the Indian mutiny. The English troops gained a victory here over the mutinous Sepoys in 1857.
=Arras= (Northeast France). The ancient Atrebates; conquered by Cæsar in 50 B.C.; captured and sacked by the Vandals in 407; captured by the Normans in 880; besieged by Charles VI. in 1414; captured by Louis XI.; held by the Austrians from 1493 till 1640, when it was taken by Louis XIII.; besieged by the Spaniards in 1654.
=Arrawak Indians.= A race or collection of tribes of Indians in Guiana, who were formerly numerous and powerful.
=Array.= Order; disposition in regular lines; hence, a posture for fighting; as, drawn up in battle array.
=Arrayer.= In some early English statutes, an officer who had care of the soldiers’ armor, and who saw them duly accoutred.
=Arrest.= The temporary confinement of officers in barracks, quarters, or tents, pending trial by court-martial, or the consideration of their imputed offenses previous to deciding whether they shall or shall not be tried. (See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 65.) Private soldiers are usually placed under guard; by the custom of the service non-commissioned officers may be simply placed in arrest in quarters.
=Arrest= (Old Fr., now arret). A French phrase, similar in its import to the Latin word retinaculum; it consisted of a small piece of steel or iron, which was formerly used in the construction of fire-arms, to prevent the piece from going off. A familiar phrase among military men in France is, Ce pistolet est en arret, “this pistol is in arrest or is stopped.”
=Arreste of the Glacis.= Is the junction of the talus which is formed at all the angles.
=Arretium.= A city of the Gauls, now in the department of the Yonne, France, where the Gauls defeated the Romans in a bloody battle in 284 B.C.
=Arrow.= In fortification, a work placed at the salient angles of the glacis, communicating with the covert way.
=Arrow.= A missile weapon of defense, straight, slender, pointed, and barbed, to be shot with a bow.
=Arrow-head.= The head of an arrow.
=Arrow-wood.= A species of Viburnum, from the long straight stems of which the Indians dwelling between the Mississippi and the Pacific make their arrows.
=Arrowy.= Consisting of arrows.
=Arroyo del Molinos.= A small town in Estremadura, Spain, near the river Guadiana, where Lord Hill, on the 28th of October, 1811, surprised and defeated the French under Gen. Gerard. Nearly 1500 prisoners were taken, including Prince d’Aremburg, Gen. Brun, one colonel, two lieutenant-colonels, a commissaire de guerre, and no less than 30 captains and inferior officers. It was altogether a most brilliant achievement.
=Arsenal.= A public establishment for the storage or for the manufacture and storage of arms and all military equipments, whether for land or naval service. In the United States there are 17 arsenals and 1 armory (Springfield, Mass.), situated at different points throughout the whole country convenient for the distribution of materiel, as follows: Alleghany arsenal, at Pittsburg, Pa.; at Augusta, Ga.; Benicia, Cal.; Fort Monroe, Va.; Fort Union, N. M.; Frankford arsenal, Philadelphia, Pa.; Indianapolis, Ind.; Kennebec arsenal, Augusta, Me.; New York; Pikesville, Md.; Rock Island, Ill.; Jefferson Barracks, Mo.; San Antonio, Texas; Vancouver, W. T.; Washington, D. C.; Watertown, Mass.; and Watervliet arsenal, West Troy, N. Y.
=Arsouf= (Syria). At a battle here Richard I. of England, commanding the Christian forces, reduced to 30,000, defeated Saladin’s army of 300,000 and other infidels on September 6, 1191. Ascalon surrendered, and Richard marched to Jerusalem, 1192.
=Art, Military.= Military art may be divided into two principal branches. The first branch relates to the order and arrangement which must be observed in the management of an army, when it is to engage an enemy, to march, or to be encamped. This branch is called tactics. The same appellation belongs to the other branch of military art, which also includes the composition and application of warlike machines. See LOGISTICS, STRATEGY, STRATAGEM, TACTICS, and WAR.
=Arta=, or =Narda=. A town in Albania. The Greek insurgents against the Porte were defeated here, July 16, 1822.
=Artaxata.= The ancient capital of Armenia; burned by the Roman general Carbulo, about 59.
=Artemisium.= A promontory in Eubœa, near which indecisive conflicts took place between the Greek and Persian fleets for three days, 480 B.C. The former retired on hearing of the battle of Thermopylæ.
=Articles of War.= Are known rules and regulations, fixed by law, for the better government of an army. The articles of war of the United States consists of 128 articles. (See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR.) All that relates to the army not comprehended therein is published in general orders or in established regulations, issued from time to time from the War Department, copies of which are furnished and read to the troops. In England they may be altered and enlarged at the pleasure of the sovereign, but must be annually confirmed by Parliament under the Mutiny Act.
=Artifice.= Among the French, is understood as comprehending everything which enters the composition of fire-works, as the sulphur, saltpetre, charcoal, etc. See PYROTECHNICS.
=Artificer.= One who makes fire works, or works in the artillery laboratory, and prepares the shells, fuzes, grenades, etc. It is also applied to military mechanics, such as carpenters, blacksmiths, masons, etc.
=Artificial Line of Sight.= Is the right line from the eye to the object to be hit, passing through the front and rear sights. See POINTING.
=Artillery.= In a general sense, signifies all sorts of great guns or cannon, mortars, howitzers, petards, and the like, together with all the apparatus and stores thereto belonging, which are not only taken into the field, but likewise to sieges, and made use of both to attack and defend fortified places; also the officers and men of that branch of the army to which the care and management of such machines have been confided. (See ORDNANCE.) Artillery, in a particular sense, signifies the science of artillery or gunnery, which art includes a knowledge of surveying, leveling, geometry, trigonometry, conic sections, laws of motion, mechanics, fortifications, and projectiles. See BATTERY, FIELD BATTERY, FIELD ARTILLERY, SIEGE ARTILLERY.
=Artillery Company, Honorable.= A band of infantry, rifles, and artillery, forming part of the militia, or city guards of London, England. It was instituted in 1585; having ceased, was revived in 1610. In the civil war, 1641-48, the company took the side of the Parliament, and greatly contributed towards its success. The company numbered 1200 in 1803, and 800 in 1861. Since 1842 the officers have been appointed by the queen. On the decease of the Duke of Sussex, in 1843, the prince consort became colonel and captain-general. He died December 14, 1861, and the Prince of Wales was appointed his successor, August 24, 1863.
=Artilleryman.= A man who manages, or assists in managing, large guns in firing.
=Artillery-park.= The camp of one or more field batteries; the inclosure where, during a siege, the general camp of foot artillery, and depots of guns, materiel, etc., are collected.
=Artillery, Royal Regiment of.= Is the collective name for the whole of the artillery belonging to the British army. There was no regular regiment or corps of artillery soldiers in the British army till the time of Queen Anne, when the present royal regiment was formed. Since that period, from some anomaly which is not easily explained, all the additions have been made to the same regiment, instead of forming new regiments, to be combined into a division or corps. The regiment is now almost an entire army in itself, and to increase the anomaly, it comprises horse as well as foot. Formerly the foot was divided into battalions and companies, and the horse into troops, but these terms have been abolished, in favor of brigade and battery, which apply both to horse and foot artillery. The regiment now consists of 33,500 men, thus distributed:
6 brigades, horse artillery, 30 batteries. 8 „ field artillery, 62 „ 14 „ garrison art., 103 „ 3 „ mixed artillery, 19 „ --- 214
1 „ coast artillery not in batteries. 1 „ depot artillery „ „
Of the above, the field, garrison, and mixed are foot artillery. This force represents from 1200 to 1300 guns fully equipped for action. Of the foot artillery, the garrison batteries are readily converted to field batteries by the addition of a few drivers.
=Artillery Schools.= Are special schools for instruction and training in artillery, which are organized through all civilized countries. In the United States, an artillery school was established at Fort Monroe, Va., 1867. Its object is to train both officers and enlisted men in the construction and service of all kinds of artillery and artillery material, and in gunnery and mathematics as applied in the artillery service. For artillery schools in other countries, see MILITARY ACADEMIES.
=Artillery, Systems of.= See SYSTEMS OF ARTILLERY.
=Artillery-train.= A number of pieces of ordnance mounted on carriages, with all their furniture, fit for marching.
=Arx.= In the ancient military art, a fort, castle, etc., for the defense of a place.
=Arzegages= (Fr.). Batons or canes with iron at both ends. They were carried by the Estradiots, or Albanian cavaliers, who served in France under Charles VIII. and Louis XII.
=Asapes.= An inferior class of Turkish soldiers employed in sieges to work in intrenchments and perform other pioneer duty.
=Asaraouas.= A tribe in Algeria against whom the French undertook an expedition in 1837.
=Ascalon= (Syria). A city of the Philistines which shared the fate of Phœnicia and Judea. The Egyptian army was defeated here by the Crusaders under Godfrey of Bouillon, August 12, 1099; it was besieged by the latter in 1148, taken in 1153, and again in 1191. Its fortifications were destroyed through fear of the Crusaders, by the sultan, in 1270.
=Aschaffenburg.= On the Maine, Bavaria, Southwestern Germany; here, on July 14, 1866, the Prussians defeated the German Federal army, captured the town, and took 2000 prisoners.
=Asculum= (now Ascoli, Apulia, Southern Italy). Near it Pyrrhus of Epirus defeated the Romans 279 B.C. Asculum, a city of the Piceni, with all their country, was conquered by the Consul Sempronius 268 B.C. Andrea, general of the Emperor Henry VI., endeavoring to wrest Naples from Tancred, was defeated and slain in 1190.
=Ashantees.= Warlike negroes of West Africa. In 1807 they conquered Fantee, in which the British settlement of Cape Coast Castle is situated. On the death of their king, who had been friendly to the English, hostilities began; and on January 21, 1824, the Ashantees defeated about 1000 British under Sir Charles McCarthy at Accra, and brought away his skull with others as trophies. They were totally defeated August 27, 1826, by Col. Purdon. The governor of Cape Coast Castle began a war with them in the spring of 1863; but the British troops suffered much through disease, and the war was suspended by the government in May, 1864.
=Ashburton Treaty.= Concluded at Washington, August 9, 1842, by Alexander, Lord Ashburton, and John Tyler, President of the United States; it defined the boundaries of the respective countries between Canada and Maine, settled the extradition of criminals, etc.
=Ashdod=, or =Azotus=. An ancient city of Judea, identified with the site of the modern Asdood, about 12 miles northeast of Ascalon. It is celebrated by Herodotus as having stood a siege of 29 years from Psammatichus, king of Egypt (about 630 B.C.). It was taken by the Assyrians under Tartan, the general of Sennacherib (713 B.C.); taken and destroyed by Judas Maccabæus and his brother Jonathan; restored by Gabinius, and given by Augustus to Salome.
=Ashdown=, or =Assendune=. Now thought to be Ashton, Berks, England, where Ethelred and his brother Alfred defeated the Danes in 1171.
=Asia Minor.= See ANATOLIA.
=Askeri Mohammedize.= A name given to the Turkish regular troops organized according to modern tactics.
=Aslant.= Formed or placed in an oblique line.
=Asow.= An old fortified city in Southern Russia. Towards the end of the 14th century it fell into the hands of Timur; the Turks took possession of it in 1471; captured by the Cossacks in 1637; besieged without success by the Turks in 1641, they returned the following year with a large army to attack the city, when the Cossacks, thinking it impossible to hold the city against such a force, plundered and burned it; the Turks then rebuilt the city and fortified it; it was surrendered to Peter the Great in 1696; the city again came into the Turkish possession after the peace treaty on the Pruth. In the war between Turkey and Russia, Asow was besieged by Field-Marshal Munich; it surrendered to Gen. Lascy, July 4, 1736.
=Aspe.= A village in the department of the Lower Pyrenees, France, where a small detachment of the French army defeated 6000 Spaniards in 1792.
=Aspect.= An army is said to hold a menacing aspect, when by advanced movements or positions it gives the opposing enemy cause to apprehend an attack. A country is said to have a military aspect, when its general situation presents appropriate obstacles or facilities for an army acting on the offensive or defensive. An army is said to have an imposing aspect, when it appears stronger than it really is. This appearance is often assumed for the purpose of deceiving an enemy, and may not improperly be considered as a principal ruse de guerre, or feint in war.
=Aspern, Great.= A town near the Danube and Vienna, where a series of desperate conflicts took place between the Austrian army under the Archduke Charles, and the French under Napoleon, Massena, etc., on May 21-22, 1809, ending in the retreat of Napoleon on May 22. The loss of the former exceeded 20,000 men, and of the latter 30,000. The daring Marshal Lannes was mortally wounded on May 22, and died May 31. The bridge of the Danube was destroyed and Napoleon’s retreat endangered; but the success of the Austrians had no beneficial effect on the subsequent prosecution of the war.
=Aspic= (Fr.). An ancient piece of ordnance which carried a 12-pound shot; the piece itself was 11 feet long, and weighed 4250 pounds.
=Aspis.= A large, round, or oblong shield which was used by the heavy infantry of the ancient Grecians.
=Aspromonte= (Naples). Here Garibaldi was defeated, wounded, and taken prisoner, August 29, 1862, having injudiciously risen against the French occupation of Rome.
=Assagai=, or =Assegai=. An instrument of warfare among the Kaffirs.
=Assail.= To attack with violence, or in a hostile manner; to assault, etc. See ATTACK.
=Assailable.= Capable of being assailed, attacked, or invaded.
=Assas-Bachi.= A superior officer of janissaries, who was also administrator of the police department in Constantinople, and presided over public executions.
=Assassins=, or =Assassinians=. Fanatical Mohammedans, collected by Hassan-ben-Sabah, and settled in Persia about 1090. In Syria they possessed a large tract of land among the mountains of Lebanon. They murdered the Marquis of Montferrat in 1192, Louis of Bavaria in 1213, and the Khan of Tartary in 1254. They were extirpated in Persia about 1258, and in Syria about 1272. The chief of the corps was named “Old Man of the Mountain.” They trained up young people to assassinate such persons as their chief had devoted to destruction. From them the word assassin has been derived.
=Assault.= A furious but regulated effort to carry a fortified post, camp, or fortress by personal attack, uncovered and unsupported. While an assault during a siege continues, the batteries of the besiegers cease, lest the attacking party should be injured. The party which leads the assault is sometimes called “the forlorn hope.”
=Assaye.= A small town in the province of Bahar, in the Deccan, celebrated for a battle fought in 1803, between the British army, 4500 strong, under the Duke of Wellington, then Gen. Wellesley, and the confederated armies of India, numbering 50,000 troops; the latter were completely routed, leaving 1200 dead on the field, with nearly the whole of their artillery. Such was the battle of Assaye, which established the fame of the greatest commander of the age, and fixed the dominion of Britain over prostrate India.
=Asseerghur.= A strong hill fortress, situated about 12 miles northerly and easterly from Burhampoor, India. It was taken from the Mahrattas by the British on two occasions; the first time in 1803, and finally in 1819.
=Asseguay.= The knife-dagger used in the Levant.
=Assembly.= A beat of the drum or sound of the bugle as a signal to troops to assemble.
=Assens.= A maritime town of Denmark on the island of Funen; here Christian III. defeated his insurgent subjects in 1535.
=Asser.= An instrument of warfare used by the Romans on their war ships; it consisted of a heavy pole with an iron head, and was used as a battering-ram against hostile ships. Other authorities assert that it was used to destroy the rigging only.
=Assessment of Damages.= In the English army, is the determination by a committee of officers of the value of the injury done to the barracks each month, in order that stoppages in liquidation may be made from men who have committed the damage.
=Assidui Milites.= Roman soldiers who served in the army without receiving pay.
=Assignment.= If, upon marches, guards, or in quarters, different corps of the army shall happen to join or do duty together, the officer highest in rank of the line of the army, marine corps, or militia, by commission, there on duty or in quarters, shall command the whole, and give orders for what is needful to the service, unless otherwise specially directed by the President of the United States, according to the nature of the case. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 122.
=Assignment of Pay.= By a non-commissioned officer or private, previous to discharge, is invalid. A transfer subsequent to the discharge is valid.
=Assinaries=, or =Assinaires=. Festivals which were instituted at Syracuse, in commemoration of the destruction of the Athenian fleet commanded by Nicias and Demosthenes.
=Assinarus= (now Falunara). A small river in Sicily, near which the army of Nicias and Demosthenes was defeated 413 B.C.
=Assistant.= In the English army, is the third grade in any particular branch of the staff, such as the quartermaster-general’s or adjutant-general’s. After the principal comes the deputy and then the assistant. In the United States it is the second grade in the staff branches of the army.
=Assyria.= A name which is usually appropriated to the first of what are known as the four great empires of the world, but which in geography nearly corresponds with the modern Koordistan. Its capital was Nineveh, of which the ancient ruins may still be traced. In 625 B.C., Nineveh was destroyed by Cyaxares the Mede, and Assyria became a province of Media.
=Astapa= (now Estepa). A city in the province of Seville, Spain; it was besieged by the Romans under Marius; the besieged slew their women and children and allowed themselves to be cut down to a man before they would surrender to the Romans.
=Asta-Regia.= A city of Spain (now in ruins); near here the prætor Caius Atinius gained a victory over the ancient Lusitanians, in 186 B.C.
=Asti=, or =Asta=. A city in Piedmont, Italy. Chevert took its fortress in 1745.
=Astorga= (anc. Asturica Augusta). A city in Spain, which was taken by the French in 1810.
=Astragal and Fillets=. Are the mouldings at the front end of the chase, used in the ornamental work of ordnance.
=Astrakhan= (Southeast Russia). Capital of a province of the same name; it was captured by the Russians in 1554; besieged by the Turks in 1569, who were defeated with great slaughter; seized by the rebel Stenko Razin in 1670, who was soon dispossessed of it by his uncle Jacolof. The province was visited and settled by Peter the Great in 1722.
=Astrolabe.= An instrument for observing the position of the stars, now disused. A graduated ring with sights for taking altitudes at sea was also formerly so called.
=Asturias.= An ancient principality in Northwest Spain. Here Pelayo collected the Gothic fugitives, about 713, founded a new kingdom, and by his victories checked Moorish conquests. In 1808 the junta of Asturias began the organized resistance to the French usurpation.
=Asylum, Royal Military.= A benevolent institution erected at Chelsea, Middlesex, England, for the reception and education of the children of soldiers of the regular army. The first stone was laid by the Duke of York, June 19, 1801. The direction and control of the institution are placed in the hands of commissioners appointed by her majesty, the principals of which are the commander-in-chief, the secretary of war, the master-general of the ordnance, and other high officials connected with the government. In the selection of children for admission preference, in general, is given:--First, to orphans; second, to those whose fathers have been killed, or have died on foreign service; third, to those who have lost their mothers, and whose fathers are absent on duty abroad; fourth, to those whose fathers are ordered on foreign service, or whose parents have other children to maintain. There is also a branch establishment at Southampton, for the maintenance and education of girls.
=Asylum, Military.= See SOLDIERS’ HOMES.
=As You Were.= A word of command corresponding to the French remettez vous, frequently used by drill instructors to cause a resumption of the previous position, when any motion of the musket or movement of the body has been improperly made.
=Atabal.= A kettle-drum; a kind of tabor, used by the Moors.
=Ataghan.= See YATAGHAN.
=Ataman.= A hetman, or chief of the Cossacks.
=Atchevement.= In heraldry, is a term nearly equivalent to arms, or armorial bearings, and is often used in its abbreviated form of hatchment when speaking of the arms of a deceased person as displayed at his funeral or elsewhere.
=Ategar.= The old English hand-dart, named from the Saxon aeton, “to fling,” and gar, “a weapon.”
=Ategna.= An important city of ancient Italy. It was taken from the Republicans by Julius Cæsar, in 45 B.C.
=Atella= (now San Arpino). A place in Italy, where the French under the Duke of Montpensier, general of Charles VIII., had to capitulate and surrender to Ferdinand II. of Naples, in 1496. The prisoners were transported to the island of Procida, where the majority of them, including the Duke of Montpensier, perished by contracting an infectious disease.
=Ath.= A fortified town in Belgium; it was ceded to France in 1668; fortified by Vauban; restored to the Spaniards in 1678; captured by the French under Marshal Catinat in 1697, but was restored in the same year by the peace of Ryswick. The allies under Field-Marshal d’Auvergne took it October 1, 1706. It remained in the possession of the Dutch till 1716, when it was given up to the emperor of Austria, with the remainder of the Spanish Netherlands. Louis XV. of France captured it in 1745. France lost it by the treaties of 1814-15.
=Athanati.= A corps of picked soldiers belonging to the ancient Persian army, 10,000 strong, which were called the “Immortals,” for the reason that, as soon as one of the corps died, another was put in his place.
=Athenry.= A town in Galway, Ireland; near here the Irish were totally defeated, and a gallant young chief, Feidlim O’Connor, slain in 1316.
=Athens.= A celebrated city, the capital of the modern kingdom of Greece, situated in the plain of Attica, about 4 miles northeast of the Gulf of Ægina. It was for several ages the centre of European civilization. The city is said to have been founded by Cecrops, and afterwards enlarged by Theseus, who made it the capital of the new state which he formed by uniting into one political body the 12 independent states into which Attica had previously been divided. A new era in the history of the city commences with its capture by Xerxes, who reduced it almost to a heap of ashes, 480 B.C. This event was followed by the rapid development of the maritime power of the city and the establishment of her empire over the islands of the Ægean Sea. Her increasing wealth afforded her ample means for the embellishment of the city, and during the half century which elapsed between the battle of Salamis and the commencement of the Peloponnesian war, the Athenians erected those masterpieces of architecture which have been the wonder of succeeding ages. The city was captured by the Lacedæmonians in 404 B.C., and was conquered by Sulla, the Roman general, 86 B.C., after which it dwindled into insignificance as a maritime city. Its prosperity continued, however, under the Roman sway, and it continued to be famous as the centre of philosophy, literature, and art, many famous buildings having been erected there by foreign rulers after the decline of its power. During the Middle Ages it sunk into insignificance. It has successively belonged to the Goths, Byzantines, Bergundians, Franks, Catalans, Florentines, Venetians, and Turks. In 1687 the buildings of the Acropolis suffered severe injury in the siege of Athens by the Venetians under Morosini. In 1834 Athens was declared the capital of the kingdom of Greece.
=Athlone.= A town in Roscommon, Ireland, which was burnt during the civil war in 1641. After the battle of the Boyne, Col. R. Grace held Athlone for James II. against a besieging army, but fell when it was taken by assault by Ginkel, June 30, 1691. See AUGHRIM.
=Atilt.= In the manner of a tilter; in the position or with the action of a man making a thrust. “To run a tilt at men.”
=Atlanta.= A city of Fulton Co., Ga., and the capital of the State. In its vicinity a battle was fought between the Federal forces under Gen. Sherman and the Confederates under Gen. Hood, July 22, 1864. The city was taken by Gen. Sherman on September 2, and held by him until November 15, when he set out on his famous “march to the sea.”
=Atmidometer=, or =Admometer=. An instrument for measuring the rate of evaporation, used in English medical corps.
=Atrebates.= A Belgic people subdued by Cæsar, 57 B.C.
=Attach.= To place, to appoint. Officers and non-commissioned officers are said to be attached to the respective army, regiment, battalion, troop, or company with which they are appointed to act.
=Attache= (Fr.). The seal and signature of the colonel-general in the old French service, which were affixed to commissions of officers after they had been duly examined.
=Attack.= Any general assault or onset that is given to gain a post or break a body of troops. False attack, a feigned or secondary movement in the arrangements of an assault, intended to divert the attention of an enemy from the real or principal attack. Such a movement has been sometimes converted into a real attack, and succeeded when the main assault, to which it was intended to be subsidiary, had failed. Attack of a siege is a furious attack made by the besiegers by means of trenches, galleries, saps, breaches, or mines, etc., by storming any part of the front attack. To attack in front or flank, in fortifications, means to attack the salient angle, or both sides of the bastion.
=Attack and Defense.= A part of the sword exercise drill.
=Attacking.= The act of making a general assault or onset for the capture of a post, fort, etc., or the breaking of a body of troops. Previous to an assault on a fortified position, the artillery ought to support the other troops by a combined fire of guns, howitzers, and small mortars, so that, if possible, the fire may be simultaneous, as such diversity of projectiles would tend to distract the defenders, and prevent them from extinguishing any fires among buildings, besides throwing them into confusion at the moment of assault. In cases of surprise, when immediate action is required, this method cannot, of course, be practicable.
=Attention.= A cautionary command addressed to troops preparatory to a particular exercise or manœuvre. Gare-a-vous has the same signification in the French service.
=Attestation.= In the English service, is a certificate which is granted by a justice of the peace within four days after the enlistment of a recruit. This certificate bears testimony that the recruit has been brought before the justice in conformity to the Mutiny Act, and has declared his assent or dissent to such enlistment, and that (if according to the said act he shall have been duly enlisted) the proper oaths have been administered to him by the magistrate, and the sections of the articles of war against mutiny and desertion read to the said recruit.
=Audenarde.= See OUDENARDE.
=Auditor, Second.= An official connected with the Treasury Department, whose duties consist in examining all accounts relating to the pay and clothing of the army, the subsistence of officers, bounties, premiums, military and hospital stores, and the contingent expenses of the War Department, etc., and transmitting them with vouchers, etc., to the Second Comptroller for his decision.
=Auditor, Third.= To him is assigned the duty of examining all accounts relative to the subsistence of the army, the quartermaster’s department, and generally all accounts of the War Department other than those provided for; also all accounts relating to pensions, claims for compensation for loss of horses and equipments of officers and enlisted men in the military service of the United States, etc.
=Auditor, Fourth.= Examines all accounts accruing in the Navy Department, or relative thereto, and all accounts relating to navy pensions.
=Auerstadt= (Prussia). Here and at Jena, on October 4, 1806, the French signally defeated the Prussians. See JENA.
=Auget.= A kind of small trough used in mining, in which the saucisson or train-hose is laid in straw, to prevent the powder from contracting any dampness.
=Aughrim.= Near Athlone, in Ireland, where, on July 12, 1691, a battle was fought between the Irish, headed by the French general St. Ruth, and the English, under Gen. Ginkel. The former were defeated and lost 7000 men; the latter lost only 600 killed and 960 wounded. St. Ruth was slain. This engagement proved decisively fatal to the interests of James II., and Ginkel was created earl of Athlone.
=Augusta.= A city and capital of Richmond Co., Ga., on the Savannah River. It was an important place at the time of the Revolution, and was captured by the English and Tories in 1779, but surrendered to Col. Henry Lee, of the Revolutionary army, June 5, 1781.
=Augusta=, or =Agosta=. A well-built and fortified city in the intendancy of Catania, in Sicily; near here, on April 21, 1676, a naval battle was fought between the French under Duquesne, and the Dutch and Spanish fleet under Ruyter, the advantage remaining with the French. Ruyter was wounded at this battle, and died a few days after at Syracuse.
=Augusticum.= A bounty that was given by the Roman emperors to their soldiers upon the latter taking the oath of allegiance for the first time, or upon a renewal of the oath.
=Aulic Council.= A term applied to a council of the War Department of the Austrian empire, and the members of different provincial chanceries of that empire are called aulic councillors.
=Aumacor.= A title similar to general-in-chief, which was given to the chief of the Saracens during the Crusades.
=Ausen.= A name given by the Goths to their victorious generals. This word in their language signifies “more than mortal,” i.e., demi-gods.
=Aussig.= A village in Prussia, where, in 1426, the army of the margrave Frederick von Meissen was defeated by the Hussites and Poles under Jakubko von Wrezezowecez and Prince Sigismund Koribut. The city was plundered and burned the same night by the Hussites.
=Austerlitz= (Moravia). Here a battle was fought between the French and the allied Austrian and Russian armies, December 2, 1805. Three emperors commanded: Alexander of Russia, Francis of Austria, and Napoleon of France. The killed and wounded exceeded 30,000 on the side of the allies, who lost 40 standards, 150 pieces of cannon, and thousands of prisoners; the French loss amounted to about 12,000 men. The decisive victory of the French led to the treaty of Presburg, signed December 26, 1805.
=Austria, Empire of= (Ger. Oesterreich, “eastern kingdom”). One of the most extensive and most populous of European kingdoms, comprising the southeast part of Central Europe and more than half the territory of the Danube. It is composed of a union of different states, some of them at one time forming independent kingdoms, inhabited by races of people differing from each other in descent, language, customs, laws, and religion, held together as one empire by being united under one sovereign and one central government. This territory, which was comprised in Noricum and part of Pannonia, was annexed to the Roman empire in 33, was overrun by Huns, Avars, etc., in the 5th and 6th centuries, and taken from them by Charlemagne, who united it to Germany as the “eastern kingdom,” 791-96. In 1156 the country was made a hereditary duchy by the emperor Frederick I., and in 1453 was raised to an archduchy. Rodolph, count of Hapsburg, elected emperor of Germany in 1273, acquired Austria in 1278, and from 1493 to 1804 his descendants were emperors of Germany. On August 11, 1804, Francis II. became hereditary emperor of Austria. Vienna, the capital, was entered by a French army November 14, 1805, and evacuated January 12, 1806, Austria losing Venice and the Tyrol by the treaty of Presburg. Francis renounced the title of emperor of Germany August 6, 1806. Vienna was again taken by the French May 13, 1809, but was restored at the peace, October 14 following. In 1848 Lombardy revolted, and Milan and other disaffected towns formed an alliance with Charles Albert, king of Sardinia, who then invaded the Austrian territory at the head of a large army, victory seeming for a time to favor the Italians. In the following year, however, both the insurgents and their Sardinian ally were repeatedly defeated by the Austrian forces under Marshal Radetzky, and Lombardy was again brought under the Austrian sway, but was ceded to Sardinia in 1859. Prussia and Italy declared war against Austria in 1866; but, through the intervention of Napoleon, peace was concluded the same year, Austria losing Venice and the Quadrilateral.
=Authority.= In a general acceptation of the term, signifies a right to command and a consequent right to be obeyed. For the appointment of officers of the U. S. army, see APPOINTING POWER. It appears that the sovereigns of Great Britain and other nations have the power to appoint and dismiss officers at pleasure.
=Autocrat.= A person vested with an absolute independent power, by which he is rendered unaccountable to any other for his actions. The power of the Athenian generals or commanders was usually limited, so that, at the expiration of their office, they were liable to render an account of their administration. But, on some extraordinary occasions, they were exempted from this restraint, and sent with a full and uncontrollable authority; in which sense they were styled autocrats. Somewhat similar was the Roman dictator. This term is sometimes applied to the czar of Russia.
=Automatic Fire.= A mixture of combustibles used by the Greeks. It was exploded by the rays of the sun.
=Autonomy.= The power or right of self-government. This was a privilege jealously preserved in all the important cities of ancient Greece, nearly every one of which was an independent state. The right to make their own laws and elect their own magistrates was also granted by the Romans to some of their cities, and was regarded as a mark of honor.
=Autun= (anc. Bibracte, Augustodunum). A town in France, department of the Saöne-et-Loire. Here, in the year 21, two Roman legions under Silius gained a victory over Sacrovir, chief of the Ædui, who had assembled a considerable force to oppose Silius. The Germans besieged it in 355; captured by the Burgundians in 414; devastated by the Saracens in 731; burned by the Normans in 888 and 895. This city was besieged without success by Marshal d’Aumont in 1591. It was also the scene of hostile operations between Garibaldi and the Germans in the winter of 1870-71.
=Auxerre.= Chief town of the department of Yonne, France. It is supposed to be on the site of the ancient Autissiodorum, which was a flourishing town before the Roman invasion of Gaul. It successfully resisted the Huns under Attila, was taken from the Romans by Clovis, and after his death became a part of the kingdom of Burgundy. The English took it in 1359, but it was retaken by Du Guesclin. It was finally united to the kingdom of France by Louis XI. John, “Sans Peur,” duke of Burgundy (reigned from 1404-19), caused the assassination of Louis, duke of Orleans, in 1407, which gave rise to a civil war between the Burgundians and the dukes of Orleans and their allies, which was ended by the treaty of Auxerre, August 10, 1412.
=Auxiliary.= Foreign or subsidiary troops which are furnished to a belligerent power in consequence of a treaty of alliance, or for pecuniary considerations. Of the latter description may be considered the Hessians that were employed by Great Britain to enslave America.
=Auxiliary War.= See WAR, AUXILIARY.
=Auximum= (now Osimo). A town in Italy, 9 miles from Ancona, which Belisarius (a great general of the Byzantine empire) captured from the Goths in 539.
=Avallon= (anc. Aballo). A town in the department of Yonne, France, which sustained a long siege and was dismantled during the reign of King Robert in the 10th century. It was sacked by the Saracens in 731, and by the Normans in 843; taken by Charles VII. in 1433, retaken by Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, in 1455, and pillaged by the troops of the League in 1593.
=Avant= (Fr.). Foremost, most advanced towards the enemy; as, Avant-chemin couvert, the advanced covered way which is made at the foot of the glacis to oppose the approaches of an enemy. Avant-duc, the pile-work which is formed by a number of young trees on the edge or entrance of a river. They are driven into the ground with battering-rams or strong pieces of iron, to form a level floor by means of strong planks being nailed upon it, which serve for the foundation of a bridge. Boats are placed wherever the avant-duc terminates. The avant-duc is had recourse to when the river is so broad that there are not boats sufficient to make a bridge across. Avant-ducs are made on each side of the river. Avant-fosse, the ditch of the counterscarp next to the country. It is dug at the foot of the glacis. Avant-garde, advance-guard. Avant-trains, the limbers of field-pieces on which are placed boxes containing ammunition enough for immediate service.
=Avars.= Barbarians who ravaged Pannonia and annoyed the Eastern empire in the 6th and 7th centuries; subdued by Charlemagne about 799, after an eight years’ war.
=Avein=, or =Avaine=. A village in Luxembourg, where, on May 20, 1635, the French and Dutch, under Marshals de Chatillon and de Brere, defeated the Spaniards under Prince Thomas of Savoy. The prince lost 4000 men killed and wounded, 900 prisoners, and 14 pieces of cannon.
=Aventaile.= The movable part of a helmet.
=Averysborough.= A village of North Carolina, on Cape Fear River, about 40 miles south of Raleigh. During Gen. Sherman’s South Carolina campaign, in 1865, this place was the scene of an engagement between his forces and about 20,000 Confederates under Gen. Hardee, who were intrenched in a swampy neck between Cape Fear and South Rivers in order to check Sherman’s progress, and gain time for the concentration of Gen. Johnston’s forces in the rear at Raleigh, Smithfleld, or Goldsboro’. The position of the Confederates was a strong one to carry by reason of the nature of the ground, which was very soft; but after four hours’ fighting they were driven back to a second line better and more strongly held, losing 3 guns and 217 prisoners. Here the fighting was continued until late in the afternoon, when the entire Federal line advanced and drove the Confederates within their intrenchments, pressing them so hard that during the night of March 16, which was stormy, they retreated towards Smithfield. The Union loss was 12 officers and 65 men killed and 477 wounded.
=Avesnes.= A city in the department of the North, France; ruptured by Louis XI.; recaptured by the Spaniards in 1559; returned to France in 1659; occupied by the Russians in 1814, and by the Prussians in 1815.
=Avesnes le Sec, Battle of.= The French were defeated by the Austrians in this battle, September, 1793.
=Avigliana.= A city in Italy where the French defeated the Piedmontese in 1630.
=Avignon.= A city in Southeastern France; besieged and captured by Louis VIII. of France in 1226; ceded by Philip III. to the pope in 1273. The papal seat was removed by Clement V. to Avignon in 1309. In 1348, Clement VI. purchased the sovereignty from Jane, countess of Provence and queen of Naples. In 1408 the French, wearied of the schism, expelled Benedict XIII., and Avignon ceased to be the seat of papacy. Here were held nine councils (1080-1457). This city was seized and restored several times by the French kings; the last time in 1773. It was claimed by the National Assembly, 1791, and was confirmed to France by the congress of sovereigns in 1815. In October, 1791, horrible massacres took place here.
=Avis=, or =Aviz=. An order of knighthood in Portugal, instituted by Sancho, the first king of Portugal, in imitation of the order of Calatrava, and having, like it, for its object the subjugation of the Moors. The king of Portugal is grand-master of the order.
=Avranches= (anc. Abrancæ). A city in the department of La Manche, France. It was a place of importance during the Roman period. Charlemagne fortified it, but it was taken by the Normans in 865. It was captured by Geoffrey Plantagenet in 1141; by Guy de Thouars in 1203; by the English in 1418; by the Calvinists in 1562; besieged by the royal troops in 1591.
=Award.= A judgment, the result of arbitration. In a military sense, the decision or sentence of a court-martial. To award medals of honor.
=Awkward Squad.= See SQUAD.
=Axel.= A town in the province of Zealand, Holland; captured by escalade from the Spaniards August 20, 1586, by Prince Maurice of Saxony, who was then but twenty years of age; captured by assault on May 16, 1747, by Marshal Maurice de Saxe.
=Axis.= A straight line, real or imaginary, about which a body revolves is called the axis of rotation. In gunnery, the axis of the piece is the central line of the bore of the gun.
=Axum=, or =Axoum=. A town in Abyssinia, said to have been the capital of a kingdom whose people were converted to Christianity by Frumentius, in the 4th century, and to have been the allies of Justinian, 533; captured and burned by the Arabs in 1532.
=Aya-Bassi=, or =Bachi=. A non-commissioned grade in the corps of janissaries, corresponding to that of corporal in modern armies.
=Ayacucho.= A city in Peru; here the Peruvians finally gained their independence by defeating the Spaniards, December 9, 1824. The Spaniards lost 6 generals killed, and General Lascerna wounded and taken prisoner; 700 men under Canterac and Valdez, who tried to escape, were forced to surrender.
=Aylesbury.= A town in Buckinghamshire, England; was reduced by the West Saxons in 571. St. O’Syth, beheaded by the pagans in Essex, was buried there, 600. William the Conqueror invested his favorites with some of its lands, under the tenure of providing straw for his bed-chambers, three eels for his use in winter, and in summer, straw, rushes, and two green geese, thrice every year.
=Aylesford.= A town in Kent, England; here, it is said, the Britons were victorious over the Saxon invaders, 455, and Horsa was killed.
=Azaine= (Fr.). A name formerly applied to a trumpet in the French army.
=Azapes.= Auxiliary troops which were levied by the Turks among the Christians (under their dominion), whom they exposed to the first attack of the enemy.
=Azay-le-Rideau.= A small town in the department of Indre-et-Loire, France, formerly fortified; it sustained several sieges during the reign of Charles VI.
=Azaz.= A fortress which was situated between Aleppo and Antioch; captured by the Saracens in 688 B.C.
=Azmooz.= A village in Switzerland, where the French under Massena defeated the Austrians and took 3000 prisoners.
=Azoe=, or =Azov=. A town in Russia in Europe, captured by Tamerlane in 1392, by the Turks in 1471, by the Russians in 1696; returned to the Turks in 1711; ceded to Russia in 1774. It was bombarded and destroyed by an allied English and French squadron in 1855.
=Azof, Sea of.= The Palus Mæotis of the ancients, communicates by the Strait of Yenikale, or Kertch (the Bosphorus Cimmerius), with the Black Sea, and is entirely surrounded by Russian territory. An expedition composed of British, French, and Turkish troops, commanded by Sir G. Brown, arrived at Kertch, May 24, 1855, when the Russians retired, after blowing up the fortifications. On the 27th the allies marched upon Yenikale, which also offered no resistance. On the same evening the allied fleet entered the sea of Azof, and in a few days completed their occupation of it, after capturing a large number of merchant vessels, etc. Immense quantities of stores were destroyed by the Russians to prevent them falling into the hands of the allies.
=Azotus.= See ASHDOD.
=Aztecs.= The ruling tribe in Mexico at the time of the Spanish invasion, 1519.
=Azure.= A French word used in heraldry to signify blue. In engraving arms it is always represented by horizontal lines.
B.
=Baalbec.= An ancient city of Syria. From the accounts of Oriental writers, it was a place of importance down to the time of the Moslem invasion of Syria. After the capture of Damascus, it was regularly invested by the Moslems, and after a courageous defense at length capitulated; sacked and dismantled by the caliph of Damascus, and the principal inhabitants put to the sword, 748; pillaged by Timour Bey, 1400; afterwards subjected to Turkish supremacy; pillaged August 8, 1860, and the Christian inhabitants massacred by the Mohammedans.
=Bab-el-Thaza.= A place in Algeria where the French fought the Arabs, April 22, 1842.
=Babylon.= One of the oldest and most celebrated cities in the world, the ancient capital of the Babylonio-Chaldean empire, was situated in an extensive plain on the Euphrates, about 60 miles south of Bagdad. The modern town of Hillah is supposed to occupy a portion of its site. About 588 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, captured Jerusalem, burned the great temple of Solomon, and carried away the Jews as captives to Babylon. Cyrus besieged Babylon, took it by stratagem in 538, and put to death the king Belshazzar, after which the kingdom of Babylon ceased to exist. The city was occupied by Darius in 518, and taken by Alexander the Great in 331. Alexander having selected it as the capital of his empire, died there in 323 B.C.
=Bacchi.= Two ancient warlike machines; the one resembled a battering-ram, the other cast out fire.
=Bachelier= (Fr.). A young squire, or knight, who has passed through his first campaign, and received the belt of the order.
=Bachevaleureux.= A term which, in the old French language, signified warrior, brave, valiant, etc.
=Backing.= The heavy plating of wood, or of wood and iron, used to support and strengthen iron plates.
=Back-plate.= A piece of armor for covering the back.
=Back-sight.= See SIGHT, REAR.
=Back-step.= The retrograde movement of a man, or a body of men, without changing front.
=Backsword.= A sword with one sharp edge. In England, a stick with a basket handle, used in rustic amusements; the game in which it is used; called also “single stick.”
=Backwards.= A technical word made use of in the British service to express the retrograde movement of troops from line into column, and vice versa. Also a word of command in the U. S. service, to cause a man, or body of men, to march to the rear without changing front.
=Bactria= (now Bokhara). A province of the Persian empire; it was inhabited by a rude and warlike people, who were subdued by Cyrus or his next successors. It was included in the conquests of Alexander, and formed a part of the kingdom of the Selucidæ until 255 B.C., when Theodotus, its governor, revolted from Antiochus II., and founded the Greek kingdom of Bactria; overthrown by the Parthians 134 or 125 B.C.
=Bacule.= A kind of portcullis or gate, made like a pitfall, with a counterpoise. See BASCULE BRIDGE.
=Badajos= (Southwest Spain). An important barrier fortress, surrendered to the French, under Soult, March 11, 1811; was invested by the British, under Lord Wellington, on March 16, 1812, and stormed and taken on April 6, 1812. The French retreated in haste.
=Badaleers.= Musket-charges of powder in tin or copper tubes, worn dangling from a shoulder-belt, before the introduction of cartridges.
=Baddesdown Hill=, or =Mount Badon=. Near Bath, England, where Bede says the Britons defeated the Saxons, 493; others say in 511 or 520.
=Badelaire=, or =Bandelaire= (Fr.). A short, broad, curved, and double-edged pointed sword.
=Baden= (Southwest Germany). A grand duchy; broke out in insurrection and joined by the free city of Rastadt, May, 1849; the Prussians entered it, and defeated the insurgents commanded by Mierolawski, June 15, 1849. Noted as the place where the Emperor Napoleon III., the prince regent of Prussia, and the German kings and princes held an interview, June 16, 1860.
=Badge.= A distinctive mark, token, or sign, worn on the person. Corps badges were worn to distinguish the army corps during the civil war, 1861-65. Marksmen’s badges are given to good shots in most armies.
=Badon, Mount.= The scene of a battle said to have been fought by King Arthur against the Saxons who invaded his kingdom, and in which the latter were signally defeated. By some writers Badon has been identified with Bath, by others in Berkshire.
=Bæcula.= An ancient town in Hispania Tarraconensis, west of Castulo, where the Romans under Scipio defeated the Carthaginians under Hasdrubal, 209 B.C.
=Bagaudes.= A name given to the peasants of Gaul, who revolted against the Romans in 270; they pillaged cities and villages and massacred the Roman officers; two of the insurgent chiefs, Aliandus and Amandus, were elected emperors; their reign was of short duration; besieged in their camp near the confluence of the Seine and Marne, where Saint-Maur is now situated, they died in arms. This place was named for a long time “Camp des Bagaudes.”
=Bagdad.= In Asiatic Turkey, built by Al Mansour, and made the seat of the Saracen empire about 762; taken by the Tartars, and a period put to the Saracen rule, 1258; often taken by the Persians, and retaken by the Turks, with great slaughter; the latter took it in 1638, and have held it since.
=Baggage.= The clothes, tents, utensils of divers sorts, and provisions, etc., belonging to an army, or part of an army.
=Baggonet.= The old term for bayonet.
=Bagpipe.= The name of a musical warlike instrument, of the wind kind, used by the Scotch regiments, and sometimes by the Irish. Bagpipes were used by the Danes, by the Romans, and by the Asiatics. The Greeks also had an instrument composed of a pipe and blown-up skin. The bagpipe has been a favorite instrument among the Scots. There are two varieties, the one with long pipes, sounded with the mouth; the other, with short pipes, filled with air by a bellows, and played on with the fingers. The first, the loudest and most ear-piercing of all music, is the genuine Highland pipe, and was suited to the warlike genius of that people. It formerly roused their courage to battle, alarmed them when secure, and collected them when scattered, solaced them in their long and painful marches, and in time of peace kept up the memory of the gallantry of their ancestors by the tunes composed after signal victories. The other is the Irish bagpipe.
=Bags.= Articles used in field fortifications, and in works to cover a besieging army. Sand-bags, which are generally 16 inches in diameter, and 30 high, are filled with earth or sand, to repair breaches and embrasures of batteries, when damaged by the enemy’s fire or by the blast of the guns. They are also placed on parapets, so arranged as to form a covering for men to fire through. Earth-bags contain about a cubical foot of earth, and are used to raise a parapet in haste, or to repair one that is beaten down. They are only employed where the ground is rocky, or too hard for the pickaxe and spade, and does not afford ready material for a temporary parapet.
=Bags, Cartridge-.= See CARTRIDGE.
=Bags of Powder.= Are used to blow down gates, stockades, and slight obstructions. In future wars the higher explosives will probably be used for such purposes.
=Bahama Isles= (North America). Were the first points of discovery by Columbus. New Providence was settled by the English in 1629. They were expelled by the Spaniards in 1641; returned in 1666; again expelled in 1703. These isles were formally ceded to the English in 1783. The Bahamas profited by blockade-running during the American civil war, 1861-65.
=Bahar.= A province in Northern India; conquered by Baber in 1530. Bahar, Bengal, and Orissa, a princely dominion, became subject to the English East India Company in 1765, by the treaty of Allahabad.
=Baiclaklar.= A color-bearer in the Turkish army.
=Baiky.= The ballium, or inclosed plat of ground in an ancient fort.
=Bail.= A stout iron yoke placed over heavy guns and fitting closely over the ends of the trunnions, to which it is attached by pins in the axis of the trunnions; used to raise or lower the gun by means of the gin.
=Baille= (Fr.). A term formerly used to designate a work or fortification which served as an outpost or exterior defense.
=Baionnier= (Fr.). A name formerly given to soldiers who were armed with a bayonet.
=Baker, Post.= The person who bakes bread for a garrison. In the U. S. service an enlisted man, who receives additional pay for his labor.
=Bakery=, or =Bakehouse=. See OVENS.
=Balaklava.= A small town in the Crimea, with a fine harbor, about 10 miles from Sebastopol. Near here about 12,000 Russians, commanded by Gen. Liprandi, were repulsed by a furious charge of heavy English cavalry, led by Brig.-Gen. Scarlett, under the orders of Lord Lucan, October 25, 1854. After this, from an unfortunate misconception of Lord Raglan’s order, Lord Lucan ordered Lord Cardigan, with the light cavalry, to charge the Russian army, which had reformed on its own ground, with its artillery in front. This order was most gallantly obeyed, and great havoc was made on the Russians; but of 670 British horsemen only 198 returned (termed by Tennyson “The Charge of the Six Hundred”). On March 22, 1855, a sortie from the garrison of Sebastopol led to a desperate engagement here, in which the Russians were vigorously repulsed, with the loss of 2000 men killed and wounded; the allies lost about 600.
=Balance-step.= An exercise in squad drill, a preliminary to marching.
=Balbec.= See BAALBEC.
=Baldrick=, or =Baudrick=. A girdle, or richly ornamented belt, worn pendent from one shoulder across the breast, and under the opposite arm.
=Bale=, or =Basel=. One of the largest towns in Switzerland; captured and burned by the Hungarians in 917. In 1444 there was a bloody battle fought about a quarter of a mile beyond its gates, called the battle of St. Jacob, between the Swiss, 1600 strong, and a French army that was twenty times their number, commanded by the dauphin, afterwards Louis XII. For ten hours the brave Swiss band kept this large army in check; but nearly all the Swiss fell, not more than 10, according to some accounts, escaping alive. This exploit first spread the fame of Swiss valor, and led to the enrollment of the Swiss body-guard of France. The treaties of peace between France and Spain, and France and Prussia, were signed here, July 22, 1795.
=Balearic Islands.= A group of islands in the Mediterranean; conquered by the Romans 123 B.C.; by the Vandals about 426 B.C., and formed part of Charlemagne’s empire, 799. They were conquered by the Moors about 1005, and held by them till about 1280, when they were annexed by Aragon. See MAJORCA and MINORCA.
=Balista.= A machine in ancient warfare used for throwing stones, burning objects, leaden balls, and even dead and putrefied bodies. The latter were thrown to cause sickness in besieged cities.
=Balistarium.= A store-room or arsenal in which the Romans stored their balistas.
=Balister.= A term applied in ancient times to a cross-bow.
=Balistrier.= A name applied to cross-bow men in ancient times.
=Balkan.= The ancient Hæmus, a range of mountains extending from the Adriatic to the Euxine. Their passage, up to that time deemed impracticable, was completed by the Russians under Diebitsch during the Russian and Turkish war, July 26, 1829. An armistice was the consequence, and a treaty of peace was signed at Adrianople, September 14, following. The Balkan was again crossed by the victorious Russians in the face of all opposition during the Russian and Turkish war, 1877.
=Balks.= Joist-shaped spars, which rest between the cleats upon the saddles of two pontons, to support the chess or flooring.
=Ball.= Is a general term applied to every kind of spherical shot fired from a musket, rifle, or cannon. Leaden balls are chiefly used for the small-arms and iron for the artillery. See CARTRIDGE, SHOT, SHELLS.
=Ball and Chain.= For serious offenses soldiers are sometimes sentenced to wear a 6- or 12-pounder ball attached by a chain to the leg.
=Ball-cartridge.= A cartridge containing a ball.
=Ballinamuck.= A town in the county of Longford, Ireland. Here, on September 8, 1798, the Irish rebels and their French auxiliaries were defeated and captured.
=Ballistea.= In antiquity, songs accompanied by dancing, used on occasions of victory.
=Ballistic=, or =Electro-ballistic Machine=. Is a machine designed to determine by electricity the initial velocity of a projectile. The West Point ballistic machine, devised for use at the Military Academy by Col. Benton, of the ordnance department, and since adopted by that department, consists of a bed-plate of metal supporting an arc placed in a perpendicular position, and graduated. Suspended perpendicular to the plane of this arc are two pendulums, having a common axis of motion passing through the centre. Two electro-magnets are attached to the horizontal limb of the arc to hold up the pendulums when they are deflected through angles of 90°. There is also an apparatus which records the point at which the pendulums pass each other, when they fall by the breaking of the currents which excite the magnets, two targets being placed so as to support the wires in a position to be cut by the projectile. The velocity of the electric currents being considered instantaneous, and the loss of the power of the magnets simultaneous with the rupture of the currents, it follows that each pendulum begins to move at the instant that the projectile cuts the wire, and that the interval of time corresponds to the difference of the arcs described by the pendulums up to the time of meeting.
=Ballistic Pendulum.= A machine consisting of a massive block of wood suspended by a bar. It was devised for experiments on the initial velocities of cannon-shot. The shot being fired into the block, the velocity is calculated from the vibrating effect on the pendulum.
=Ballistics.= Is that branch of gunnery which treats of the motion of projectiles.
=Ballistraria.= Cruciform apertures in the walls of a stronghold, through which the cross-bow men discharged their bolts. It also signified a projecting turret, otherwise called a bartizan, such as is commonly seen in old castles.
=Ballium.= A term used in ancient military art, and probably a corruption of vallium. In towns, the appellation “ballium” was given to a work fenced with palisades, and sometimes to masonry covering the suburbs; but in castles, it was the space immediately within the outer wall.
=Ballon.= A town in the department of the Sarthe, France, formerly fortified; captured by the English in 1417; retaken by Charles VII. of France.
=Balloon.= A bag or hollow vessel, made of silk or other light material, and filled with hydrogen gas or heated air, so as to rise and float in the atmosphere; called for distinction an air-balloon. Balloons were used extensively as a means of observation during the American civil war, 1861-65, and in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870.
=Balloting.= A bounding movement of a spherical projectile in the bore of a cannon. See INJURIES TO CANNON.
=Ball-proof.= Incapable of being penetrated by balls from fire-arms.
=Ball’s Bluff.= In Virginia, on the banks of the Potomac. On October 21, 1861, by direction of the Federal general C. P. Stone, the heroic Col. Baker crossed the river to reconnoitre. He attacked the Confederate camp at Leesburg, and was defeated with great loss. The disaster was attributed to mismanagement, and in February, 1862, Gen. Stone was arrested on suspicion of treason, but was afterwards discharged, and at a later period again given a command. The Federal loss in killed, wounded, and drowned was probably 1000 men.
=Ballynahinch.= A town in Ireland where a sanguinary engagement took place between a large body of the insurgent Irish and the British troops, under Gen. Nugent, June 13, 1798. A large part of the town was destroyed, and the royal army suffered very severely.
=Balots= (Fr.). Sacks or bales of wool, made use of in cases of great emergency, to form parapets or places of arms. They are likewise adapted for the defense of trenches, to cover the workmen in saps, and in all instances where promptitude is required.
=Baltic Sea= (Ger. Ostsee, or “Eastern Sea”). Separates Sweden and the Danish Isles from Russia, Prussia, and Germany. Declared neutral for commerce by treaty between Russia and Sweden, 1759, and Denmark, 1760. It is often partially frozen. Charles X. of Sweden with an army crossed the Belts in 1658. Several Baltic expeditions were undertaken by the British and French against Denmark and Russia.
=Baltimore.= The chief city in Maryland, situated at the head of navigation on the Patapsco River; it was founded in 1729. On September 12, 1814, the British army under Col. Ross advanced against this place. He was killed in a skirmish, and the command was assumed by Col. Brooke, who attacked and routed the American army, which lost 600 killed and wounded, and 300 prisoners. The projected attack on the town was, however, abandoned.
=Baltimore= (Ireland). A decayed town; early in the 17th century, the Algerine pirates plundered the town, carrying away 200 prisoners.
=Baltinglass.= A town in the county of Wicklow, Ireland. Here an action took place in 1798 between the royalists and the insurgents, in which the latter were defeated.
=Bamberg.= A town in Bavaria, said to have been founded by the Saxons in 804; taken and pillaged by the Prussians in 1759.
=Bampton.= A town in Devonshire, England. A great battle was fought here, 614, between the West Saxons and Britons, in which the former were defeated.
=Ban= (Fr.). A sort of proclamation made at the head of a body of troops, or in the several quarters or cantonments of an army, by sound of trumpet or beat of drum, either for observing martial discipline, or for declaring a new officer, or punishing a soldier, or the like. At present such kind of proclamations are given out in the written orders of the day.
=Ban.= In the former days of France, when the feudal barons, who held their estates and honors from the king, were summoned to attend him in time of war, they were called the ban, or the levy first called out; while the tenants, subordinate to these barons, formed the Arrière ban, or secondary levy.
=Banbury.= A town in Oxfordshire, England. The castle erected by Alexander de Blois, 1125, has been frequently besieged; in 1646 it was taken by the Parliamentarians and demolished. At Edgecote, or Danesmore, near Banbury, Edward IV. defeated the Lancastrians under the Earl of Pembroke, July 26, 1469, and their leader and his brother were soon after taken prisoners and executed.
=Bancal= (Fr.). A curved sabre, which was used in France during the Republic and the Empire.
=Band, Military.= Consists of a body of musicians attached to each army regiment or battalion. The law provides for a band at the Military Academy at West Point, and for each artillery, cavalry, and infantry regiment. A chief musician, who shall be instructor of music, and for each artillery and infantry regiment two principal musicians; each cavalry regiment to have one chief trumpeter. Musicians for regimental bands are enlisted as soldiers, and formed under the direction of the adjutant, but are not permanently detached from their companies, and are instructed in all the duties of a soldier.
=Banda Isles.= Eastern Archipelago, visited by the Portuguese (1511), who settled on them 1521, but were expelled by the Dutch about 1600. Rohun Island was ceded to the English in 1616. The Bandas were taken by the latter in 1796; restored in 1801; retaken, 1811, and restored in 1816.
=Banded-mail.= A kind of armor, which consisted of alternate rows of leather or cotton and single chain-mail.
=Banderet.= In military history, implies the commander-in-chief of the troops of the canton of Berne, in Switzerland.
=Banderol.= A small flag used in marking out a camp, etc.; a camp color.
=Bandes= (Fr.). Bands, bodies of infantry. Bandes Françaises; the French infantry was anciently so called; the term, however, became less general, and was confined to the Prevôt des Bandes, or the judge or provost-marshal that tried the men belonging to the French guards.
=Banditti.= Bands of robbers who infest the mountainous parts of Italy and Greece. Formerly they frequently attacked travelers, hurried them off into their mountain fastnesses, and held them captive until ransomed.
=Bandoleer.= In ancient military history, a large leathern belt worn over the right shoulder, and hanging under the left arm, to carry some kind of warlike weapons.
=Bandoleer.= A little wooden case covered with leather; every musketeer used to wear 12 of them hanging on a shoulder-belt; each case contained the charge of powder for a musket. Bandoleers are now superseded by the cartridge-box.
=Banffshire.= A maritime county in the northeast of Scotland; it was the scene of many bloody conflicts between the Scots and their Danish invaders, and was the theatre of almost incessant struggles from 1624 to 1645.
=Bangalore.= A fortified town of Hindostan, in Mysore, which was taken from Tippoo Saib by Lord Cornwallis in 1791.
=Baniwas.= A tribe of South American Indians living on the Amazon and the Rio Negro.
=Banner.= Originally a small square flag borne before a banneret, whose arms were embroidered on it; hence, a military ensign; the principal standard of a prince or state; a pennon; a streamer.
=Bannered.= Furnished with or bearing banners.
=Banneret.= Was originally a military rank conferred only on such as were able to bring a certain number of vassals into the field; hence, a rank corresponding to this; also, a small banner.
=Bannockburn.= In Stirlingshire, Scotland; the site of two battles: 1. Between Robert Bruce of Scotland and Edward II. of England, June 24, 1314. The army of Bruce consisted of 30,000; that of Edward of 100,000 men, of whom 52,000 were archers. The English crossed the rivulet to the attack, and Bruce having dug and covered pits, they fell into them and were thrown into confusion. The rout was complete; the English king narrowly escaped, and 50,000 were killed or taken prisoners. 2. At Sanchieburn, near here James II. was defeated and slain on June 11, 1488, by his rebellious nobles.
=Banquette.= Is the step of earth within the parapet, sufficiently high to enable the defenders, when standing upon it, to fire over the crest of the parapet with ease.
=Banquette Slope.= Is a slope of earth or timber, placed in rear of the banquette when the top cannot be reached by an ordinary step.
=Bantam.= In Java; here a British factory was established by Capt. Lancaster in 1603. The English and Danes were driven from their factories by the Dutch in 1683. Bantam surrendered to the British in 1811, but was restored to the Dutch at the peace in 1814.
=Bantry Bay.= In the south of Ireland, where a French fleet bringing succor to the adherents of James II. attacked the English under Admiral Herbert, May 1, 1689. A French squadron of 7 sail of the line and 2 frigates, armed en flute, and 17 transports anchored here for a few days, but without effect, December, 1796. Mutiny of the Bantry Bay squadron took place in December, 1801.
=Banyuls-de-Aspres.= A town in the department of the Eastern Pyrenees, France, which is memorable for the defense which its inhabitants made in 1793, when they compelled 7000 Spaniards, who had attacked them, to surrender.
=Bapaume.= A fortified town of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. A portion of the allied troops advanced to this place after compelling the French to abandon their fortified position, and to retreat behind the scarpe, in August, 1793.
=Baptism of Blood.= As the name implies, is the act of being baptized with blood, and was used specially with reference to soldiers who fought on their first battle-field. In the old French service, baptism of blood equalized all grades, and military services, not rank, were the recognized claims for promotion.
=Baptism of Fire.= A figurative term applied to soldiers who have passed through their first fire in battle.
=Bar.= A long piece of wood or iron. Bars have various denominations in the construction of artillery-carriages, as sweep- and cross-bars for tumbrils, fore, hind, and under cross-bars for powder-carts, shaft-bars for wagons, and dowel-bars, used in mortar-beds.
=Bar.= In heraldry, is one of those important figures or charges known as ordinaries. It is formed by two horizontal lines passing over the shield like the fess, but it differs from it in size,--the fess occupying a third, the bar only a fifth part of the shield. The fess is also confined to the centre, while the bar may be borne in several parts of the shield.
=Barb.= The reflected points of the head of an arrow. The armor for horses was so called.
=Barbacan=, or =Barbican=. In fortification, a watch-tower for the purpose of descrying an enemy at a distance; advanced works of a place or citadel, properly the boulevards of the gates and walls; a fort at the entrance of a tower or bridge, with a double wall; or an aperture or loop-hole in the walls of a fortress through which to fire upon an enemy.
=Barbary.= A country in North Africa, considered to comprise Algeria, Morocco, Fez, Tunis, and Tripoli, with their dependencies (all of which see). Piratical states (nominally subject to Turkey) were founded on the coast by Barbarossa about 1518.
=Barbets.= Were peasants of Piedmont, who abandoned their dwellings when an enemy had taken possession of them. They formed into bodies and defended the Alps.
=Barbette.= An earthen terrace, raised within a parapet, so high as to enable guns to be fired over the latter, and therefore with a freer range than when worked at an embrasure.
=Barbette Carriage.= Is a carriage of the stationary class, on which a gun is mounted to fire over a parapet; and a barbette gun is any gun mounted on a barbette carriage.
=Barbette Centre-pintle Carriage.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, SEA-COAST CARRIAGES.
=Barbette Front-pintle Carriage.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, SEA-COAST CARRIAGES.
=Barbole= (Fr.). A heavy battle-axe, used in ancient times.
=Barboursville=, or =Cabell Court-house=. The capital of Cabell Co., W. Va. It was the scene of a brilliant action between the Confederate and Federal forces, in which the latter were victorious, July 18, 1861.
=Barce=, or =Berche= (Fr.). A small gun, shorter and thicker than a falconet, which was formerly used on board ship.
=Barcelona.= An ancient maritime city in Northeastern Spain, said to have been rebuilt by Hamilcar Barca, father of the great Hannibal, about 233 B.C. The city has suffered much by war. The siege by the French, in 1694, was relieved by the approach of the English fleet commanded by Admiral Russell; but the city was taken by the Earl of Peterborough in 1706; bombarded and taken by the Duke of Berwick and the French in 1714; taken by Napoleon in 1808, and retained till 1814. It revolted against the queen in 1841, and was bombarded and taken in December, 1842, by Espartero.
=Bard.= A fortress and village of Piedmont on the bank of the Dora Baltea, 23 miles south-southeast of Aosta. The fortress is situated on an impregnable rock, and arrested for some time Napoleon’s march in the valley of the Dora, at the outset of his campaign of 1800, almost compelling him to abandon it. The garrison consisted of 400 men, and was finally passed only by stratagem. It was subsequently razed by the French (1800), but has since been restored.
=Bardewick.= A town in Hanover, which was dismantled by Henry the Lion in 1189.
=Bareilly.= A province of Delhi, Northwest India, ceded to the East India Company by the ruler of Oude, 1801. A mutiny at Bareilly, the capital, was suppressed in April, 1816; on May 7, 1858, it was taken from the cruel Sepoy rebels.
=Barezim.= A small town in Poland, where the Russians were defeated by the Poles in 1675.
=Barfleur.= An ancient seaport town in the department of Manche, France, where William the Conqueror equipped the fleet by which he conquered England, 1066. Near it Prince William, duke of Normandy, son of Henry I., in his passage from Normandy, was shipwrecked November 25, 1120. Barfleur was destroyed by the English in the campaign in which they won the battle of Crécy, 1346. The French navy was destroyed near the cape by Admiral Russell after the victory of La Hogue in 1692.
=Bari= (Southern Italy). The Barium of Horace was in the 9th century a stronghold of the Saracens, and was captured by the emperor Louis II., a descendant of Charlemagne, in 871. In the 10th century it became subject to the Eastern empire, and remained so till it was taken by Robert Guiscard, the Norman, about 1060.
=Baril Ardent= (Fr.). Fire-barrel; a barrel filled with layers of tarred chips intermixed with powder and primed at each end with a shell-fuze; it had holes bored in it for the purpose of admitting air to the burning contents; formerly used for illuminating purposes.
=Baril Foudroyant=, or =D’artifice= (Fr.). Of the same nature as the baril ardent, with the addition of grenades placed between the layers of chips. Barils foudroyants were used at the defense of a breech, by rolling them upon the assailants.
=Barkam.= A fortress on the banks of the Danube. Near here John Sobieski, king of Poland, was defeated by Pasha Ka-Mehemed, October 7, 1683.
=Barking-irons.= Large dueling pistols.
=Barnacles.= In heraldry, resemble what are now called twitchers, or instruments used by farriers to curb unruly horses. They are frequently introduced into coats of arms as a charge.
=Barnet.= A town in Hertfordshire, England. Here, at Gladsmore Heath, Edward IV. gained a decisive victory over the Lancastrians on Easter-day, April 14, 1471, when the Earl of Warwick and his brother, the Marquis of Montacute, or Montague, and 10,000 men were slain.
=Barometer.= An instrument for measuring the weight of the atmosphere. The form ordinarily used was invented in 1643, by Torricelli. It consists of a glass tube filled with mercury inverted in an open cup.
=Baron.= In England a title of nobility,--the grade between the baronet and viscount,--the lowest grade in the House of Lords.
=Barons’ War.= Arose in consequence of the faithlessness of King Henry III. and the oppression of his favorites in 1258. The barons, headed by Simon de Montfort, earl of Leicester, and Gilbert de Clare, earl of Gloucester, met at Oxford in 1262, and enacted statutes to which the king objected. In 1263 their disputes were in vain referred to the decision of Louis IX., king of France. War broke out, and on May 14, 1264, the king’s party were totally defeated at Lewes, and De Montfort became the virtual ruler of the kingdom. Through treachery the war was renewed, and at the battle of Evesham, August 4, 1265, De Montfort was slain, and the barons were defeated. They, however, did not render their final submission till 1268.
=Barrackpore.= A native town and military cantonment on the river Hoogly, 16 miles from Calcutta, India. In 1857 it became famous as the cradle of the formidable mutiny or rebellion of that year. Several regiments of native troops were stationed at Barrackpore. The men objected to bite off the ends of the cartridges for the Enfield rifle, believing the paper to be polluted by animal fat. The troubles connected therewith--a mere prelude to the fatal outbreak at Meerut in May--commenced about the beginning of February, and continued to assume various degrees of intensity, till at last two regiments of Bengal native infantry had to be disbanded. An intoxicated Sepoy of one of the disbanded regiments attacked and wounded his officer, Lieut. Baugh, with sword and pistol. This fellow, whose name was Mungal Pandy, would seem to have had the equivocal honor of giving the local designation of Pandies to the entire body of insurgents.
=Barrack-allowance.= In the British army, is a specific allowance of bread, beef, wood, coals, etc., to regiments stationed in barracks.
=Barrack-guard.= When a regiment is in barracks the principal guard is called the barrack-guard, the officer being responsible for the regularity of the men in barracks, and for all prisoners duly committed to his charge while on that duty.
=Barrack-master.= The officer who superintends the barracks of soldiers.
=Barracks.= Are permanent structures for the accommodation of soldiers, as distinguished from huts and tents, which have usually a square or open place in front, for the purpose of drill and parade.
=Barrack-sergeants.= In the British army, are faithful old sergeants who are selected from the line and placed in charge of barracks, under the superintendence of the barrack-masters.
=Barrel.= A round vessel or cask, of more length than breadth, and bulging in the middle, made of staves and headings and bound with hoops. Powder-barrels are made to contain 100 pounds each, the barrels being large enough to allow sufficient space for the powder to move when rolled, to prevent its caking. Also any hollow cylinder or tube, as the barrel of a gun. See FIRE-BARREL.
=Barricade.= An obstruction formed in streets, avenues, etc., so as to block up access to an enemy. They are generally formed of overturned wagons, carriages, large stones, breastworks, abatis, or other obstacles at hand.
=Barrier.= In a general sense means any fortification or strong place on the frontiers of a country. It is likewise a kind of fence composed of stakes and transoms, as over-thwart rafters, erected to defend the entrance of a passage, retrenchment, or the like. In the middle of the barrier is a movable bar of wood, which is opened or shut at pleasure. It also implies a gate made of wooden bars, about 5 feet long, perpendicular to the horizon, and kept together by two long bars going across and another crossing diagonally. Barriers are used to stop the cut made through the esplanade before the gate of a town.
=Barrier Treaty.= A treaty by which the Low Countries were ceded to the emperor Charles VI., and which was signed by the British, Imperial, and Dutch ministers November 15, 1715.
=Barritus=, or =Bardites=. A word which not only signified the battle-cry of the ancient Germans, but all battle-cries were formerly so called.
=Barrosa=, or =Barosa=. In Southern Spain, where a battle was fought on March 5, 1811, between the British army, commanded by Maj.-Gen. Sir Thomas Graham, afterwards Lord Lynedoch, and the French under Marshal Victor. After a long conflict, the British achieved one of the most glorious triumphs of the Peninsular war. Although they fought at great disadvantage the British compelled the French to retreat, leaving nearly 3000 dead, 6 pieces of cannon, and an eagle, the first that the British had taken. The loss of the British was 1169 men killed and wounded.
=Bar-shot.= An obsolete projectile, consisting of two shot connected by a bar of iron.
=Bar-sur-Aube.= An ancient town of France, on the Aube, in the department of Aube, where the French under Oudinot and MacDonald were defeated by the allies, February 27, 1814.
=Bar-sur-Seine.= A town in the department of Aube, France; often ruined and sacked during the wars of Burgundy. It was the scene of a severe engagement between Napoleon and the allies, May 25, 1814.
=Bartholomew, St.= The massacre of St. Bartholomew commenced at Paris on the night of the festival of this saint. According to Sully 70,000 Huguenots, or French Protestants, including women and children, were murdered throughout the kingdom by secret orders from Charles IX., at the instigation of his mother, the queen-dowager, Catherine de Médicis, August 24, 1572.
=Bartholomew, St.= A West India island held by Sweden. It was colonized by the French in 1648; and has been several times taken and restored by the British. It was ceded to Sweden by France in 1785.
=Bartizan.= A small stone closet thrown out upon corbels over doorways and on other parts of mediæval castles, generally for defensive purposes, but sometimes for the convenience of the inmates.
=Bascinet.= A light helmet, generally without a visor; so called from its resemblance to a basin.
=Baschi.= A Turkish title, signifying a superior commander, officer, chief, etc.; this title is only used in connection with the office title; the most prominent are:
TOPTSCHJY-BASCHI, general of artillery and inspector of forts, etc.
SOLACKI-BASCHI, sub-commander of the archers.
SANDSCHJACK-DARLARS-BASCHI, chief of the 50 color-bearers.
KONADSCHJY-BASCHI, quartermaster-general.
BOLUCK-BASCHI, colonel of a regiment (Boluck) of 1000 militia.
ODA-BASCHIS, company officers who superintend drill.
=Bascule Bridge.= A kind of draw-bridge with a counterpoise swinging up and down, and usually a pit behind it, in which the counterpoise falls or rises as the bridge rises or falls. Bascule is the arrangement of the counterpoise in bascule bridges.
=Base.= In fortifications, is the exterior side of the polygon, or that imaginary line which connects the salient angle of two adjacent bastions.
=Base.= In heraldry, denotes the lower part of the shield.
=Base-line.= In gunnery, is a line traced around the gun in rear of the vent; also the measured line used to obtain ranges by triangulation.
=Base of Operations.= That secure line of frontier or fortresses, or strong country occupied by troops, or of sea occupied by fleets, from which forward movements are made, supplies furnished, and upon which a retreat may be made, if necessary.
=Base of the Breech.= In gunnery, is the rear surface of the breech of a gun.
=Basel, Treaty of.= This place gives its name to two important treaties of peace, concluded here on April 5 and July 22, 1795, between the representatives of the French Republic, Prussia, and Spain, by which Prussia withdrew from the coalition against France, took under her protection all the states of Northern Germany which should like herself relinquish the war in which the German empire was engaged, and also give up to the victorious republic her possessions beyond the Rhine; whilst Spain gave up her portion of St. Domingo, and prepared the way for that alliance with France which was afterwards productive of consequences so important.
=Base-ring.= In gunnery, is a projecting band of metal adjoining the base of the breech, and connected with the body of the gun by a concave moulding.
=Bashaw.= See PASHA.
=Bashi-Bazouks.= Are irregular troops in the pay of the sultan. Very few of them are Europeans; they are mostly Asiatics, from some of the pashalics in Asiatic Turkey; they are wild, turbulent men, ready to enter the sultan’s service under some leader whom they can understand, and still more ready to plunder whenever an opportunity offers. During the Russo-Turkish war of 1854, etc., they had many encounters with the enemy in that kind of irregular warfare which the Russians intrust to Cossack horsemen; but the peaceful villagers had almost as much distrust of the Bashi-Bazouks as of the Russians. They were also partially employed by the British during the Crimean war.
=Bashkirs.= A race supposed to be descended from the Nogay Tartars, who inhabit the Russian provinces of Ufa and Yekaterinboorg, in the governments of Orenburg and Perm respectively. They are but partially civilized, and are generally employed by Russia as guards on the frontier of Asia.
=Basientello= (Southern Naples). Here the army of Otto II., in an ambuscade, was nearly cut to pieces by the Greeks and Saracens, July 13, 982; the emperor barely escaped.
=Basilisk.= An ancient piece of ordnance, which was 10 feet long and weighed 7200 pounds; so called from its supposed resemblance to the serpent of that name, or from its size.
=Basillard.= An old term for a poniard.
=Basket-hilt.= The hilt of a sword, so made as to contain and guard the whole hand.
=Basket-hilted.= Having a hilt of basket-work.
=Baskets.= See GABION.
=Baslard.= A short sword or dagger, worn in the 15th century.
=Basnet.= See BASCINET.
=Basque Provinces= (Northwest Spain, Biscay, Guipuzcoa, and Alva). The Basques, considered to be descendants of the ancient Iberi, were termed Vascones by the Romans, whom they successfully resisted. They were subdued with great difficulty by the Goths about 580, and were united to Castile in the 13th and 14th centuries.
=Basque Roads= (Western France). Four French ships of the line, riding at anchor here, were attacked by Lords Gambier and Cochrane (the latter commanding the fire-ships), and all, with a great number of merchant and other vessels, were destroyed, April 11-12, 1809. Cochrane accused Gambier of neglecting to support him, and thereby allowing the French to escape. At a court-martial Lord Gambier was acquitted.
=Bassée, La.= A town in the department of the North, France, formerly fortified. It sustained several sieges. Louis XIV. captured it from the Spaniards and caused it to be dismantled.
=Basseterre Roads=, St. Christopher’s, West Indies. Here the French admiral, the Comte de Grasse, was repulsed with loss in three desperate attacks on the British fleet, commanded by Sir Thomas Graves, January 25-26, 1782.
=Basson= (Northern Italy). Here the Austrians under Wurmser were defeated by the French under Massena, September 8, 1796.
=Bassorah=, =Basrah=, or =Bussorah= (Asia Minor). A Turkish city, founded by the Caliph Omar about 635. It has been several times taken and retaken by the Persians and Turks.
=Bass Rock.= An isle in the Frith of Forth, Southern Scotland; granted to the Landers in 1316; purchased for a state prison, 1671; taken by the Jacobites, 1690; surrendered, 1694; granted to the Dalrymples, 1706.
=Bastard=, or =Batarde= (Fr.). An ancient piece of ordnance of about 8 pounds calibre, 9¹⁄₂ feet long, and weighing 1950 pounds. It was invented by Jean Maurique de Lard, master-general of ordnance under Charles V. of France in 1535. He also had several bastards cast of a larger calibre. This term was also applied to guns of an unusual make or proportion, whether longer or shorter.
=Bastarnæ=, or =Basternæ=. A warlike German people who migrated to the country near the mouth of the Danube. They are first mentioned in the wars of Philip and Perseus against the Romans, and at a later period they frequently devastated Thrace, and were engaged in wars with the Roman governors of the province of Macedonia. In 30 B.C. they were defeated by Marcus Crassus, and driven across the Danube, and we find them, at a later period, partly settled between the Tyras (now Dniester) and Borysthenes (now Dnieper), and partly at the mouth of the Danube, under the name of Peucini, from their inhabiting the island of Peuce, at the mouth of the river.
=Bastia.= A fortified seaport town, and formerly capital of Corsica, on its northeast coast, and 67 miles from Ajaccio; besieged without success by the Piedmontese in 1748; captured by the English, 1794.
=Bastide= (Fr.). In ancient times, a bastion, block-house, fortress, or outer fortifications.
=Bastile.= Originally, a temporary wooden tower used in warfare; hence, any tower or fortification.
=Bastile=, or =Bastille= (Paris). A castle built by Charles V., king of France, in 1369, for the defense of Paris against the English; completed in 1383, and afterwards used as a state prison. Henry IV. and his veteran army assailed it in vain in the siege of Paris during the war, 1587-94. On July 14-15, 1789, it was pulled down by the populace, the governor and other officers seized, conducted to the Place de Grève, their hands and heads were cut off, and the heads carried on pikes through the streets.
=Bastinado.= A punishment among the Turkish soldiers, which is performed by beating them with a cane or flat of a sword on the soles of their feet.
=Bastion.= A work consisting of two faces and two flanks, all the angles being salient. Two bastions are connected by means of a curtain, which is screened by the angle made by the prolongation of the corresponding faces of two bastions, and flanked by the line of defense. Bastions contain, sheltered by their parapets, marksmen, artillery, platform, and guards. They are protected by galleries of mines, and by demi-lunes and lunettes outside the ditch, and by palisades, if the ditch is inundated. The faces of the bastion are the parts exposed to being enfiladed by ricochet batteries, and also to being battered in breach.
BASTION, COMPOSED, is where two sides of the interior polygon are very unequal, which makes the gorges also unequal.
BASTION, CUT, is that which, instead of a point, has a re-entering angle.
BASTION, DEFORMED, is when the irregularity of the lines and angles puts the bastion out of shape; as, when it wants a demi-gorge, one side of the interior polygon being too short.
BASTION, DEMI, is that which has only one face and one flank, cut off by the capital,--like the extremities of horn- and crown-works.
BASTION, DOUBLE, is that which is raised on the plane of another bastion.
BASTION, FLAT, is a bastion built in the middle of the curtain, when it is too long to be defended by the bastions at its extremes.
BASTIONS, HOLLOW, are those surrounded only with a rampart and parapet, having the space within unoccupied where the ground is so low that no retrenchment can be made in the centre in the event of the rampart being taken.
BASTION, REGULAR, is that which has true proportion of faces, flanks, and gorges.
BASTIONS, SOLID, are those which have the void space within them filled entirely, and raised of an equal height with the rampart.
=Bastioned Fort.= A fort having bastions.
=Baston.= A staff or cudgel formerly used in tournaments. In heraldry, a staff or cudgel generally borne as a mark of bastardy, and properly containing one-eighth in breadth of the bend-sinister.
=Bat de Mulet= (Fr.). A pack-saddle used on service when mules are employed to carry stores. Aparejos in the United States service are used for a similar purpose. See PACK-SADDLES.
=Batage= (Fr.). The time employed in reducing gunpowder to its proper consistency. The French usually consumed 24 hours in pounding the materials to make good gunpowder. Supposing the mortar to contain 16 pounds of composition, it would require the application of the pestle 3500 times each hour. The labor required in this process is less in summer than in winter, because the water is softer.
=Bataillon de la Salade= (Fr.). A name formerly given in France to old corps which wore a peculiar kind of helmet called salade. See SALADE.
=Batardeau= (Fr.). A wall built across a ditch or fortification, with a sluice-gate by which the height of the water in the ditch on both sides may be regulated. To prevent this wall being used as a passage across the ditch, it is built up to an angle at the top, and armed with iron spikes; and to render the attempt to cross still more difficult, a tower of masonry is built on it.
=Batavia and Batavian Republic.= See HOLLAND.
=Bateau= (Fr.). A light boat.
=Bateau-bridge.= Is a floating bridge supported by bateaux or light boats. See PONTONS.
=Bateau d’Avant-garde= (Fr.). A small light boat attached to the advance-guard of an army. It is 33 feet in length by 5 feet 6 inches in breadth.
=Bate Isle.= An island of Hindostan, belonging to the province of Guzerat, situated at the southwestern extremity of the Gulf of Cutch. It was formerly a rendezvous for pirates, who were the dread of all traders on the western coast of India. In 1803 a naval force, consisting of a British frigate and two Bombay cruisers, succeeded in destroying several of the pirate boats and vessels; but an attack upon the castle, though conducted under the fire of the ships, was repulsed with some loss. In 1807 a treaty was entered into with the chiefs of the island, whereby they consented to relinquish their piratical practices.
=Bath, Knights of the.= See ORDER OF KNIGHTS OF THE BATH.
=Bat-horse.= A baggage horse which bears the bat or pack.
=Bat-man.= A servant in charge of the bat-horses. The term is now applied in the English service to a soldier who acts as servant to an officer.
=Baton.= A truncheon borne by generals in the French army, and afterwards by the marshals of other nations. Henry III. of France before he ascended the throne was made generalissimo of the army of his brother Charles IX., and received the baton as the mark of the high command, 1569.
=Baton.= A staff used by drum-majors of foot regiments.
=Baton Rouge.= A city of Louisiana. It was captured by the Federals August 5, 1862, after a fierce conflict.
=Batourin.= A town of Russia, 63 miles east of Tcheringov, on the Seim. It was the residing place of the hetman of the Ukraine Cossacks from 1699 to 1708; captured and sacked by the Russians in 1708.
=Batta.= An allowance made to military officers in the service of the East India Company in addition to their pay. See HALF-BATTA.
=Battalia.= The order of battle; disposition or arrangement of troops, brigades, regiments, battalions, etc., as for action. Formerly the term applied to the main body of an army in array, as distinguished from the wings.
=Battailant.= Equipped for battle; warlike; a combatant. This word is now obsolete.
=Battalion.= A body of troops, so called from being originally a body of men arranged for battle; consisting in European armies of about 800 or 1000 men; in the U. S. service, an aggregation of from two to twelve companies.
=Battard.= An early cannon of small size.
=Batten.= The sloping of a wall which brings the perpendicular from the top inside the base.
=Batter.= A cannonade of heavy ordnance, from the first or second parallel of intrenchment, against any fortress or works. To batter in breach implies a heavy cannonade of many pieces directed to one part of the revetment from the third parallel.
=Batterie en Rouage= (Fr.). Is an enfilading battery, when directed against another battery.
=Battering.= In military affairs, implies the firing with heavy artillery on some fortification or strong post possessed by an enemy, in order to demolish the works.
=Battering Charge.= The charge of powder used in battering. The heaviest charge used in a gun.
=Battering-pieces.= Are large pieces of ordnance, used in battering a fortified town or post.
=Battering-ram.= In antiquity, a military engine used to batter and beat down the walls of places besieged. There were two different kinds of battering-rams, one rude and plain, the other compound. The former seems to have been no more than a great beam, which the soldiers bore on their arms and shoulders, and with one end of it, by main force, assailed the walls. The compound ram was a large beam with a head of iron, which was sometimes made to resemble the head of a ram. It was suspended by ropes to a beam supported by posts, and balanced so as to swing backwards and forwards, and was impelled by men against the wall. These rams were sometimes 120 feet in length.
=Battering-train.= A train of artillery used solely for besieging a strong place, inclusive of mortars and howitzers. See SIEGE-TRAIN.
=Battery.= A battery consists of two or more pieces of artillery in the field. The term battery also implies the implacement of ordnance destined to act offensively or defensively. It also refers to the company charged with a certain number of pieces of ordnance. The ordnance constitutes the battery; men serve it; horses drag it, and epaulments may shelter it.
AMBULANT BATTERY, heavy guns mounted on traveling carriages, and moved as occasion may require, either to positions on the coast or in besieged places.
BARBETTE BATTERIES are those without embrasures, in which the guns are raised to fire over the parapet.
BATTERY D’ENFILADE is one that sweeps the whole length of a line, or the face or flank of any work.
BATTERY DE REVERSE is one which plays upon the rear of the troops appointed to defend a place.
BATTERY EN ECHARPE is that which plays obliquely.
BREACHING BATTERY. See BREACH.
COVERED, or MASKED BATTERY is when the cannon and gunners are covered by a bank or breastwork, commonly made of brushwood, fagots, and earth.
CROSS-BATTERIES are two batteries which play athwart each other upon the same object, forming there an angle, and battering with more effect, because what one battery shakes the other beats down.
FACINE and GABION BATTERIES are batteries constructed of those machines where sods are scarce, and the earth very loose and sandy.
FLOATING BATTERIES are such as are erected either on rafts or on the hulls of ships.
GUN-BATTERY is a defense constructed of earth faced with green sods or fascines, sometimes of gabions filled with earth. It consists of a breastwork, epaulment, or parapet; the open spaces through which the muzzles of the cannon are pointed are called embrasures, and the solid masses between the embrasures, merlons; the genouilleres are those parts of the parapet which cover the carriage of the gun. The platforms are plank floors made to prevent the cannon from sinking into the ground; they are made with a slope to check the recoil of the guns, and to render it more easy to bring them forward again when loaded.
HALF-SUNKEN BATTERY. This term is applied to a battery in which the earth to form the parapet is derived partly from a ditch in front and partly from the excavation of the terre-plein. See ARTILLERY, also CAVALIER.
MORTAR-BATTERIES differ from gun-batteries in this, that the parapets have no embrasures, and the platforms have no slope, but are exactly horizontal; the shells being fired quite over the parapet, commonly at an elevation of 45°.
OPEN BATTERY is a number of cannon, commonly field-pieces, ranged in a row abreast on some natural elevation of ground, or on an artificial bank raised for that purpose.
RAISED BATTERY, one whose terre-plein is elevated considerably above the ground.
REDAN BATTERIES are such as flank each other at the salient and re-entrant angles of a fortification.
RICOCHET BATTERY, so called by its inventor Vauban, was first used at the siege of Aeth in 1697. It is a method of discharging cannon with a very small charge of powder, and with just elevation enough to fire over the parapet. When properly managed its effects are most destructive; for the shot, rolling along the opposite rampart, dismounts the cannon and disperses or destroys the troops. Ricochet practice is not confined to cannon alone; small mortars and howitzers may be effectually employed for the same purpose.
SUNKEN BATTERY, where the sole of the embrasures is on a level with the ground, and the platforms are consequently sunk below it.
=Battery-boxes= are square chests or boxes, filled with earth or dung; used in making batteries, where gabions and earth are not to be had. They must not be too large, but of a size that is governable.
=Battery-wagon.= It consists, besides the limber, of a long-bodied cart with a round top, which is connected with the limber in the same way as all other field-carriages. The lid opens on hinges placed at the side; and in the rear is fixed a movable forage-rack for carrying along forage. One of these wagons accompanies each field battery, for the purpose of transporting carriage-maker’s and saddler’s tools, spare parts of carriages, harness, and equipments, and rough materials for replacing different parts. Both it and the forge are made of equal mobility with the other field-carriages, in order to accompany them wherever they may be required to go. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Battery, Electric.= The apparatus used to generate a current of electricity.
=Battery=, or =Traveling Forge=. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Battery Gun.= A gun capable of firing continuously a great number of shots in a short time. Applied to guns mounted upon tripods, stands, swivels, or carriages. A magazine cannon in contradistinction to a magazine small-arm. Also called machine gun and mitrailleur. Guns of this kind existed as early as the 14th century. From the arrangement of the barrels they were called killing organs. They have always been used in various forms, but were comparatively inefficient till recent times, when the introduction of the metallic cartridge gave the subject a new importance.
Puckle’s revolver, 1718, was ingeniously mounted upon a tripod with good elevating and traversing arrangements. It had one barrel and a movable rotating breech containing nine charges. These were fired in succession, and a new breech, ready charged, was slipped on. Two kinds of bullets were used,--round bullets against Christians and square ones for Turks.
Winans’s steam gun, invented about 1861 by the celebrated American inventor and engineer Thomas Winans, of Baltimore, was a battery gun of large calibre. The shot fell from a hopper into a breech-chamber, and were projected through the barrel by the sudden admission behind it of steam under enormous pressure.
The infernal machine with which Fieschi killed Marshal Mortier and a large number of others in his attempt to assassinate Louis Philippe, in 1835, was a crude form of battery gun, consisting of a row of gun-barrels fired by a train of powder. Many battery guns are of this type.
The Requa battery--American--used in the civil war, 1861-65, consisted of a row of 24 barrels on a wheel-carriage, so arranged as to give either parallel or divergent fire. It was breech-loading, the cartridges being forced into the barrels by a transverse bar worked by levers. It was capable of seven volleys a minute.
One of the forms of mitrailleur used in the Franco-Prussian war was very much the same. The loading-bar was rotating, and had two sets of chambers. One set was fired while the other was being loaded.
The Abbertini gun used in Europe has 10 barrels arranged as in the Requa battery. It is worked by a crank. The cartridges are conveyed by mechanical devices from a box magazine to the rear of the barrels.
The form in which a cluster of barrels is used was probably first introduced in France, and was made by inserting 25 gun-barrels into the bore of a brass field-piece, into the breech of which a slot was cut, the open rear ends of the barrels being flush with the front wall of the slot. A cylinder-case containing cartridges being placed in the slot, a set of plungers pushed the cartridges into the barrels. The case was then replaced by a firing-block containing a lock and pin for each cartridge.
This was improved by mounting the barrels (37) without the casing and replacing the cartridge-case by a steel block in which the cartridges were fired without being pushed into the barrels.
The first successful gun in which the cluster of barrels was made to revolve was the Gatling. (See GATLING GUN.) In this both the barrels and the locks revolve. The Gatling gun in its various forms is used by all the leading nations of Europe. It is used in a variety of ways for field service, mountain service, flank defense of fortifications, in the main-tops of ships, etc. It has been mounted upon the backs of camels, on tripods, swivels, and field-carriages. In Europe its principal rival is the Nordenfelt, in which the barrels are stationary and the breech mechanism works horizontally. It is probably superior to the Gatling in the amount of metal thrown in a given time. In mechanism and accuracy it is inferior. Its principal claim to superiority is that it fires either volleys or single shots. The recoil, which is always great in volley-guns, requires a very heavy stand, making it clumsy and unwieldy compared to the Gatling. Accidents have also happened in its use from defective mechanism. Among other American battery or machine guns are the Lowell and Gardner, both of which have won enviable reputations. A late form of the Gardner consists of two barrels fixed in a brass casing, giving it the external appearance of an ordinary field-piece. It has less rapidity of fire (its maximum being about 357 shots a minute) than some other guns, but it is simple, strong, and efficient.
The Taylor gun was something like the Nordenfelt in principle, having a fixed cluster of barrels and a sliding breech mechanism, firing volleys or single shots at discretion. A later form of Taylor gun has the barrels in a horizontal row. The improvement consists in rapidity of loading. The cartridges are carried in the ordinary paper or wooden cases, exposing the heads. The gun has a number of upright pieces at the breech with grooves between them. By drawing the cartridge-case downward over these uprights the cartridges are caught in the grooves by their flanged heads. They fall by gravity, and are conducted by suitable devices in grooved channels to the barrels. This gun, it is believed, fires more shots a minute than any other, but its mechanism is not so perfect as several of its rivals.
The Hotchkiss revolving cannon has the largest calibre of the modern machine guns. It differs from the Gatling in having but one lock for all the barrels. It is worked by a crank like the Gatling, but the mechanism is such that during a part of the revolution of the crank the barrels are stationary. It is during this time that one cartridge is fired and another case extracted. The rapidity of fire is much less than the Gatling and most others, but in perfection of mechanism, accuracy, and other qualities, it is unsurpassed. A peculiar form of brake is fitted to the wheels of the field-gun to prevent the recoil from moving the carriage. For the larger sizes both shells and canister are used. The metallic cartridge-case is of brass. This gun is the invention of B. B. Hotchkiss, an American, now residing in Paris. His guns are made at the Hotchkiss Works, near that city, and have been adopted for flank defense of fortifications and for naval use by several of the continental powers.
=Battle.= An action or engagement between the forces of two armies. A battle is either general or partial; general, where the whole or the greater part of each army is brought into action; and partial, where only brigades, divisions, or corps d’armée are engaged. But, however the numbers may vary, the great principles to be applied in delivering battle are in almost every case the same. Palamedes of Argos is said to have been the first who ranged an army in order of battle, placed sentinels round a camp, and excited the soldier’s vigilance by giving him a watch-word.
BATTLES may be arranged into three general classes, defensive, offensive, and mixed battles. In a purely defensive battle, an army chooses a position in which to await the enemy, and there to give battle with no other end in view than to hold this position and repulse the enemy. In a purely offensive battle, an army seeks the enemy and attacks him wherever he is to be found. A mixed battle, is a combination of these two. The most common case of this last class is that in which a position is selected beforehand, where the army awaits the attack of the enemy, and, at a suitable moment, moves from it, and attacks the assaulting columns. This case is sometimes known as a defensive-offensive battle. Details of particular battles and engagements are given under their respective headings in this work.
=Battle-Abbey.= In Sussex, England; founded by William I. 1067, on the plain where the battle of Hastings was fought, October 14, 1066. It was dedicated to St. Martin, and given to Benedictine monks, who were to pray for the souls of the slain. The original name of the plain was Hetheland. After the battle of Hastings, a list was taken of William’s chiefs, amounting to 629, and called the Battle-Roll; and among these chiefs the lands and distinctions of the followers of the defeated Harold were distributed.
=Battle-array.= Array or order of battle; the disposition of forces preparatory to a battle.
=Battle-axe.= A weapon much used by the early northern nations, Celtic and Scandinavian, requiring great strength in its use. Some were held with one hand, some with two; the former kind could be wielded equally by horse and foot, but the latter was for foot soldiers only. The battle-axe has a longer handle, and a broader, stronger, and sharper blade than the common axe. During the Middle Ages and somewhat earlier, it was much used in sorties, and to prevent the escalading of a besieged fortress. The pole-axe differed but little from the battle-axe. The black-bill and brown-bill were a sort of halbert, having a cutting part like a woodman’s bill, with a spike projecting from the back, and another from the head. The glaive was a kind of pole-axe or bill used by the Welsh.
=Battle-cries.= See WAR-CRIES.
=Battle-ground.= A village of Tippecanoe Co., Ind., where the battle of Tippecanoe was fought, November 7, 1811, between Gen. Harrison and the Indians under the chief Tecumseh and his brother the “Prophet.”
=Battlements.= The indentations in the top of old castles, or fortified walls, in the form of embrasures, for the greater convenience of firing or looking through.
=Battle of the Giants.= See MARIGNANO.
=Battle of the Herrings.= A name given by historians to an engagement which took place February 12, 1429, in which Sir John Fastolfe, an English general at the head of 1500 men, gained a victory over 6000 Frenchmen near Orleans, and brought a convoy of stores in safety to the English camp before that place. The stores comprised a large quantity of herrings.
=Battle of the Nations.= See LEIPSIC.
=Battle of the Spurs.= A name given to the battle of Courtrai (which see); also to that of Guinegate. See GUINEGATE.
=Battle of the Standard.= A name given to a battle between the English and Scotch at Northallerton (which see).
=Battle of the Thirty.= A name given in English and French history to a celebrated engagement which took place at a spot known as Midway Oak, half-way between the castles of Josselin and Ploermel, in France, March 27, 1351. The French general Beaumanoir, commanding at the former place, being enraged at the English general Bemborough, occupying the latter position, challenged him to fight. Upon this it was agreed that 30 knights of each party should meet and decide the contest. At the first onset the English were successful, but Bemborough having been killed, the French renewed the struggle with redoubled courage, and finally won the victory.
=Battle-range.= The range corresponding to the maximum “dangerous space” for the trajectory of any fire-arm. This range is somewhat greater for such fire-arm employed against mounted troops than against foot troops. For instance, it is 262 yards for the Springfield rifle (calibre .45) when used against foot troops, and represents the extreme range for which the rear sight may be set so as to cover such foot troops continuously between that point and the firer. There is also a “dangerous space” of 75 yards behind that point for the foot soldier; hence the maximum “dangerous space” is 337 yards, and is a continuous one. For the same arm and against cavalry, the “battle-range” is 291 yards, corresponding to a maximum continuous “dangerous space,” front and rear, of (291 + 95 =) 386 yards. For the carbine (cal. .45) against infantry, this range is 204 yards, and the maximum “dangerous space” is 300 yards. Upon the latest model sights (1879) for these two fire-arms, the letter “B” is placed opposite the “battle-range” elevation, and indicates the most suitable one for firing at an enemy’s line of battle; with this elevation and the aim taken at the foot, the enemy will be hit wherever he may be within a range of about 400 yards. The most effective fire, and one covering the greatest zone of continuous “dangerous space,” can be secured by causing troops to lie down, to fire at the feet of the opposing line, and to use the “battle” elevation. The zone then swept will be round about 500 yards for troops armed with the service rifle. See DANGEROUS SPACE.
=Battle, The Fearless.= An engagement between the Lacedæmonians under Archidamus III. and the Arcadians.
=Battre= (Fr.). To direct one or more pieces of ordnance in such a manner that any given object may be destroyed or broken into by the continued discharge of cannon-ball, or other warlike material; it likewise means to silence an enemy’s fire.
=Battre de Front= (Fr.). To throw cannon-balls in a perpendicular or almost perpendicular direction against any body or place which becomes an object of attack. This mode of attack is less effectual than any other unless battering in breach.
=Baulois.= A piece of punk stuff, used by miners for firing the saucision, or train.
=Bavaria.= A kingdom in South Germany; conquered from the Celtic Gauls by the Franks, between 630 and 660. The country was afterwards governed by dukes subject to the French monarchs. Tasillon II. was deposed by Charlemagne, who established margraves in 788. Henry the Lion, duke of Saxony, Bavaria, and Brunswick, was dispossessed in 1180 by the emperor Frederick Barbarossa (who had previously been his friend and benefactor.) Bavaria supported Austria in the contest with Prussia in June, 1866, and took part in the war; made peace with Prussia August 22. Took part with Prussia against the French in the Franco-Prussian war, 1870.
=Bavier.= The beaver of a helmet.
=Bavin.= The old word for fascine.
=Bayberry Tallow.= A product of the wax myrtle, used as lubricant for bullets.
=Bayeux.= A city in the department of Calvados, France, 17 miles west-northwest of Caen; captured and sacked by Henry I. of England in 1106; by Philip of Navarre in 1356; the English took possession of it, 1450; the Protestants in 1561; Lamoricière for the League in 1589, and the Duke of Montpensier in 1590.
=Baylen.= A town in Southern Spain, where on July 20, 1808, the French, commanded by Gens. Dupont and Wedel, were defeated by the Spaniards under Reding, Coupigny, and other generals, whose force amounted to 25,000.
=Bayonet.= A triangular dagger, made with a hollow handle and a shoulder, to fix on the muzzle of a rifle, so that its presence does not impede either the charging or firing of the piece. It is said to have been invented at Bayonne, in France, about 1647, 1670, or 1690. It was used at Killiecrankie in 1689, and at Marsaglia by the French in 1693, “with great success against the enemy, unprepared for the encounter with so formidable a novelty.” Bayonets are sometimes made in other shapes. See SWORD-BAYONET and TROWEL-BAYONET.
=Bayonet Exercise.= A drill in fencing with the bayonet fixed on the gun.
=Bayonet Scabbard.= A leather or metallic case for carrying the bayonet suspended from the belt.
=Bayonne.= An ancient city in Southern France, at the confluence of the Adour and Nive; held by the British from 1295 till it was taken by Charles VII. The queens of Spain and France met here in 1565 the cruel Duke of Alva, it is supposed to arrange the massacre of St. Bartholomew. Charles IV. of Spain abdicated here in favor of his “friend and ally,” the emperor Napoleon, May 4, 1808. In the neighborhood of Bayonne was much desperate fighting between the French and English armies, December 10, 11, and 13, 1813; invested by the British January 14, 1814; on April 14, the French made a sally and attacked the English with success, but were at length driven back. The loss of the British was considerable, and Lieut.-Gen. Sir John Hope was wounded and taken prisoner.
=Bayou.= A long and narrow place; a branch of a trench in fortification; a hose or leathern pipe; the outlet of a lake; a channel for water.
=Baza.= A city in Andalusia, Spain; it was taken by the Spaniards under Ferdinand V. from the Moors in December, 1489, after a siege of nearly seven months; in 1810 the Spaniards under Gens. Blake and Freire were defeated by the French under Marshal Soult.
=Bazar.= The sutler establishment which accompanies a native regiment in the India service wherever it goes.
=Bazeilles.= A village in the Ardennes, Northeast France. During the dreadful battle of Sedan, September 1, 1870, Bazeilles was burnt by the Bavarians, and outrages committed. Of nearly 2000 inhabitants scarcely 50 remained alive, and these indignantly denied having given provocation. The cause of provocation appears to have been that an old woman whose husband and sons had been killed had fired upon and killed two Bavarians.
=Bazoche-des-Hautes.= Near Orleans, Central France. Here a part of the army of the Loire, under Gen. d’Aurelle de Paladines, was defeated after a severe action by the Germans under the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg, December 2, 1870.
=Beach-master.= Formerly a superior officer, appointed to superintend the disembarkation of an attacking force, who holds plenary powers, and generally leads the storming-party. His acts when in the heat of action are unquestioned.
=Beachy Head.= A promontory, Southeast Sussex, England, near which the British and Dutch fleets, commanded by the earl of Torrington, were defeated by a superior French force under Admiral Tourville, June 30, 1690; the allies suffered very severely. The Dutch lost 2 admirals, 500 men, and several ships,--sunk to prevent them from falling into the hands of the enemy; the English lost 2 ships and 400 men. The admirals on both sides were blamed,--the English for not fighting, the French for not pursuing the victory.
=Beacon.= A signal-fire to notify the approach of an enemy.
=Bear.= In a military sense, a piece of ordnance is said to bear, or come to bear, or is brought to bear, when pointed directly against the object; that is, pointed to hit the object.
=Bear, Order of.= Was a military order in Switzerland, instituted by the emperor Frederick II. in 1213, by way of acknowledgment for the service the Swiss had done him, and in favor of the abbey of St. Gall. To the collar of the order hung a medal, on which was represented a bear raised on an eminence of earth.
=Beard.= The reflected points of the head of an ancient arrow, particularly of such as were jagged.
=Beat.= In a military sense, to gain the day, to win the battle, etc.
=Beating the Wind.= Was a practice in use in the ancient method of trial by combat. If one of the combatants did not appear in the field at the time appointed, the other was to make so many flourishes with his weapon, by which he was entitled to all the advantages of a conqueror.
=Beaucéant=, or =Beaucent= (Fr.). Standard of the Knights Templar; it was white on one side and black on the other.
=Beaugency.= An ancient town of France, in the department of Loiret, and situated on the right bank of the Loire. It was at one time surrounded by walls, flanked with towers and bastions, and defended by a strong castle, now ruined. In the history of the wars of France Beaugency occupies a conspicuous place; it was successively in the hands of the Huns, Saxons, Normans, and English, but the town sustained most damage during the religious wars of the 16th century.
=Beaumont.= A town in the department of the Somme, France; here the French routed the allies, June 16, 1815.
=Beaumont.= A village near Sedan, department of Ardennes, Northeast France. Near here a part of the army of Marshal MacMahon, under De Failly, which, after vainly endeavoring to reach Metz, was retreating before the Germans under the crown prince of Prussia, was surprised, defeated, and driven across the Meuse at Mouzon, August 30, 1870. The French loss included about 7000 prisoners, many guns, and much camp equipage. The victory was chiefly gained by the Bavarians.
=Beaune-la-Rolande.= A village in the Loiret, France. Here the French army of the Loire under Gen. d’Aurelle de Paladines was defeated by the Germans under Prince Frederick Charles, in an attempt to march in the direction of Fontainebleau, to relieve Paris, November 28, 1870. The French loss was reported by the Germans to be 1000 dead and 4000 wounded, with more than 1700 prisoners. Their own loss was also heavy.
=Beauvais= (Northern France). The ancient Bellovaci, formerly capital of Picardy. When besieged by Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, with 80,000 men, the women under Jeanne Fourquet or Lainé, also called de la Hachette, from her using that weapon, particularly distinguished themselves, and the duke raised the siege, July 10, 1472. In memory of this, the women of Beauvais walk first in the procession on the anniversary of their deliverance.
=Bebra.= A sort of javelin, used by the ancient Germans; it was an imitation of the pilum of the Romans.
=Bec de Corbin= (Fr.). A kind of halbert formerly used by the body-guards of the kings of France.
=Bechlis.= Light cavalry of the Turks, composed of picked men and horses.
=Bedaines= (Fr.). Stone bullets which were thrown from catapults during the Middle Ages.
=Bednore=, or =Nuggur=. A large city of Mysore, India. In 1763 it was taken and pillaged by Hyder Ali, who subsequently made it the seat of his own government. It was taken by the British under Gen. Matthews in 1783, but was soon retaken by Tippoo, at the head of a vastly superior force, when Gen. Matthews and all the principal British officers were put to death.
=Bedouins.= Wandering tribes of Arabs, living on the plunder of travelers, etc. They profess a form of Mohammedanism, and are governed by sheikhs. They are said to be descendants of Ishmael.
=Beds.= Are receptacles for ordnance of large calibre,--mortar-beds serve the same purpose as gun-carriages. They are made of solid timber, consisting generally of two pieces fastened together with strong iron bolts and bars. Their sizes depend on the kind of mortar they carry. The beds for the smaller mortars are made of one solid block only. The reason that a bed is used for a mortar instead of a wheel-carriage is on account of the high elevation at which a mortar is usually fired, when the recoil, instead of forcing the piece backwards, tends to force it downwards, and this tendency becomes so great at the higher angles that no wheel-carriage could long sustain the shock.
=Beeren, Gross.= A village of Prussia, 11 miles east-southeast of Potsdam, well known as the scene of a great victory gained by the Prussians over the French on August 22-23, 1813.
=Beetles.= In a military sense, are large wooden hammers for driving down palisades, and for other uses.
=Beetlestock.= The stock or handle of a beetle.
=Befort=, or =Belfort=. A fortified town in the department of Haut-Rhin, France; sustained several sieges; taken by the Austrians in 1814. Its citadel was constructed by Vauban.
=Beg=, or =Bey=. A Turkish title, rather vague in its import, and commonly given to superior military officers, ship-captains, and distinguished foreigners. More strictly, it applies to the governor of a small district, who bears a horse-tail as a sign of his rank. Beglerbeg, or more correctly Beilerbegi (“lord of lords”), is the title given to the governor of a province who bears three horse-tails as his badge of honor, and has authority over several begs, agas, etc.
=Begkos=, or =Beikos=. A large village of Anatolia, on the Bosphorus, 8 miles north-northeast of Scutari, said to be the locality of the contest between Pollux and Amycus, in which the latter was killed. At the commencement of the Crimean war, the allied fleets anchored in Begkos Bay, prior to their entering the Black Sea, in January, 1854.
=Behourd=, =Bihourt=, or =Bohourt= (Fr.). This name was given during the Middle Ages, to a combat on horseback, lance in hand; also a tilting of cavaliers, which took place at public amusements.
=Beilan.= A town and mountain-pass of Syria at its northern extremity, on the east side of the Gulf of Iskanderoon. Here the Egyptian troops totally defeated the Turks in 1882.
=Belbeys=, or =Belbeis=. A town of Lower Egypt, on the eastern arm of the Nile, 28 miles north-northeast of Cairo; it is inclosed by earthen ramparts, and is a station on the route from Egypt to Syria. During the expedition of the French into Egypt, Gen. Bonaparte had the ancient fortifications repaired.
=Beleaguer.= To invest a town or fortress, so as to preclude escape; to besiege; to blockade.
=Belem.= A town of Portugal, on the right bank of the Tagus, near Lisbon. It is historically interesting as the place from whence Vasco de Gama set sail on his voyage of oriental discovery; it was taken in November, 1807, by the French, the royal family of Portugal embarking from its quay for Brazil as they entered; in 1833, it was occupied by Don Pedro’s troops.
=Belemnon.= A dart used by the ancient Grecians.
=Belfry=, or =Beffroi=. Among military writers of the Middle Ages, a movable tower, often several stories high, erected by besiegers for purposes of attack and defense.
=Belgian-fuze.= See BORMANN-FUZE.
=Belgium.= Late the southern portion of the kingdom of the Netherlands, and anciently the territory of the Belgæ, who were finally conquered by Julius Cæsar, 51 B.C.; a revolution commenced at Brussels, August 25, 1830; Antwerp taken (except the citadel), December 23, 1830. The king of the Netherlands commenced war August 3, 1831, but France sent 50,000 troops to assist Belgium, which effected an armistice. Antwerp was taken by the French, December 23, 1832, and the French army returned to France immediately after. For previous history, see FLANDERS.
=Belgrade.= An ancient city in Servia, on the right bank of the Danube. It was taken from the Greek emperor by Solomon, king of Hungary, in 1086; gallantly defended by John Huniades, against the Turks under Mahomet II., July to September, 1456, when the latter was defeated with the loss of 40,000 men; it was taken by Sultan Solyman, 1521, and retaken by the Imperialists in 1688, from whom it was again taken by the Turks, 1690; besieged in May, 1717, by Prince Eugene. On August 5, of that year, the Turkish army, 200,000 strong, approached to relieve it, and a sanguinary battle was fought at Peterwardein, in which the Turks lost 20,000 men; after this battle Belgrade surrendered. In 1739 it was ceded to the Turks, after its fine fortifications had been demolished; retaken in 1789, and restored at the peace of Reichenbach in 1790. The Servian insurgents had possession of it in 1806; in 1815, it was placed under Prince Milosch, subject to Turkey; the fortifications were restored in 1820; the fortress was surrendered by the Turks to the Servians about August, 1867.
=Belier= (Fr.). A battering-ram, invented by the Carthaginians about 441 B.C.; used in ancient times for siege purposes. Also a wooden machine for driving wedges under a ship’s bottom.
=Bellair.= In North America; this town was attacked by the British forces under Sir Peter Parker, who, after an obstinate engagement, were repulsed with considerable loss; their gallant commander was killed August 30, 1814.
=Belle-Alliance.= A farm-house on the field of Waterloo, Belgium; it is situated on the right side of the high-road to Brussels and about two miles from Mount-Saint-Jean. Here Napoleon marshaled his guards for their last effort at Waterloo; and here Wellington and Blücher met after the battle was gained by the allies.
=Bellegarde.= A hill fortress of France, in the department of the Pyrénées Orientales. Here the French under Philip III. were defeated by Peter III. of Aragon, in 1285; captured by the Spaniards in 1674, and again by the French under Marshal Schomberg, in 1675; blockaded and taken by the Spaniards under Ricardos, but was retaken by the French in the following year.
=Belleisle.= An isle on the southeast of Brittany, France, erected into a duchy for Marshal Belleisle in 1742, in reward of his military and diplomatic services, by Louis XV. Belleisle was taken by the British forces under Commodore Keppel and Gen. Hodgson, after a desperate resistance, June 7, 1761; restored to France in 1763.
=Belley=, =Bellica=, =Bellicum=, or =Bellicium=. A town in the department of Ain, France, 39 miles east from Lyons, formerly fortified. Belley served as a place of arms to Cæsar against the Allobroges; burned by Alaric in 390; it was in the possession of the dukes of Savoy; it was ceded to France in 1601.
=Belligerent.= In a state of warfare. Hence any two or more nations at war are called belligerent powers.
=Bellinzona.= A town in the Swiss canton of Ticino, on the river Ticino. It has several castles, and was captured and recaptured several times by the Germans, Swiss, and French.
=Bellipotent.= Powerful or mighty in war.
=Bell-metal.= An alloy of about 78 parts copper and 22 of tin, used in making bells. It is harder and more sonorous than gun-metal, but much more brittle.
=Bellovaci.= The most powerful of the Belgæ, dwelt in the modern Beauvais, between the Seine, Oise, Somme, and Bresle. In Cæsar’s time they could bring 100,000 men into the field, but they were subdued by Cæsar with the other Belgæ.
=Bellows-house.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, TRAVELING FORGE.
=Bells of Arms.= In the British service, are tents in front of the quarters of each company of infantry, in which the arms are piled. In Indian cantonments, the bells of arms are of masonry.
=Beloochistan=, Southern Asia. The ancient Gedrosia. The capital, Kelat, was taken by the British in the Afghan war, in 1839; abandoned in 1840; taken and held for a short time in 1841.
=Belt, Great.= A strait forming the central communication between the Baltic and the Cattegat; it separates the island of Funen from that of Seeland. In the winter of 1658, while frozen, it was crossed by Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, and his army, on his way to besiege Copenhagen.
=Belts.= Leathern suspenders of different sorts and for various purposes, viz.: sword belts, to which swords hang; shoulder or cross belts, broad leathern belts, crossing from the right shoulder, and to which the pouch is affixed; and leathern straps fixed round the waist, by which a sword or bayonet is suspended.
=Benares.= A holy city of the Hindoos in India; it was ceded by the nabob of Oude to the English in 1755; the scene of an insurrection in 1781, which nearly proved fatal to the British interests in Hindostan. In June, 1857, Col. Neil succeeded in suppressing attempts to join the Sepoy mutiny.
=Ben-Azzedin.= A place in Algiers, where the French fought the Kabyles, September 9, 1848.
=Benburb.= Near Armagh (Northern Ireland). Here O’Neill totally defeated the English under Monroe, June 5, 1646. Moore says that it was “the only great victory since the days of Brian Boru achieved by an Irish chieftain in the cause of Ireland.”
=Bend.= In heraldry, is one of the ordinaries, or more important figures. It is formed of two parallel lines drawn from the dexter to the sinister base, and consequently passing athwart the shield. It is supposed to represent a shoulder-belt, or scarf worn over the shoulder.
=Bender= (Bessarabia, European Russia). Was the asylum of Charles XII. of Sweden after his defeat at Pultowa by the czar Peter the Great, July 8, 1709. The peace of Bender was concluded in 1711; it was taken by storm, by the Russians, in September, 1770; again taken by Potemkin in 1789; and again stormed in 1809. It was restored at the peace of Jassy, but retained at the peace of 1812.
=Benevente.= A small town of the province of Alentejo, Portugal, where Lord Paget, afterwards Marquis of Anglesea, in 1808, greatly distinguished himself by a brilliant cavalry action, against the French under Marshal Soult; when Gen. Lefebre Desnouettes, who commanded the advanced guard of the French forces, was taken prisoner.
=Benevento= (anc. Beneventum). An ancient city in South Italy, said to have been founded by Diomedes the Greek, after the fall of Troy; Pyrrhus of Macedon, during his invasion of Italy, was totally defeated near Beneventum, 275 B.C. At a battle fought here, February 26, 1266, Manfred, king of Sicily, was defeated and slain by Charles of Anjou, who thus became virtually master of Italy. It was seized by the king of Naples, but restored to the pope, 1773; it was taken by the French in 1798, and restored to the pope in 1814.
=Bengal.= Chief presidency of British India, containing Calcutta, the capital. Its governors were delegated by the sovereigns of Delhi till 1340, when it became independent. It was added to the Mogul empire by Baber about 1529.
=Beni-Abbes.= An Algerian tribe who fought the French, May 16, 1847.
=Beni-Achour.= An Algerian tribe who were defeated by the French, September 22, 1848.
=Benicke.= A kind of military fête among the Turks, similar to a tournament, but without the presence of ladies.
=Beni-Mered.= An Algerian tribe who were defeated by the French, May 27, 1836.
=Beni-Yala.= An Algerian tribe who were chastised by the French, May 31, 1847.
=Ben-Nahr.= A place in Algeria where the French defeated the Arabs, February 7, 1846.
=Bennington.= A post-township of Bennington Co., Vt., 117 miles southwest of Montpelier. Here a detachment of the English army under Gen. Burgoyne were defeated by the Americans under Gen. Stark, August 16, 1777, and 600 prisoners captured.
=Ben-Tijour.= A place in Algeria where the French engaged the Arabs, September 22, 1848.
=Bentonville.= A village in Johnston Co., N. C. Here part of the army of Gen. Sherman encountered a Confederate army (40,000 strong) under Gen. Johnston, March, 1865. The attack was made by Gen. Johnston on the left wing of the Federal army with the intention of overwhelming it before it could be relieved. Six assaults were gallantly sustained by the Federals against the combined forces of Gens. Hoke, Hardee, and Cheatham. During the night Gen. Slocum received reinforcements which rendered his position impregnable. On March 21, Gen. Sherman ordered a general attack by his skirmish-line, and the ensuing night Johnston retreated towards Smithfield, leaving his pickets to fall into Gen. Sherman’s hands. The Federal loss was 1646; the Confederate loss is unknown, but about 1300 prisoners were taken by the Union forces.
=Beraun.= A walled town of Bohemia, capital of a circle, on the Beraun River. Here the Austrians defeated the Prussians in 1744.
=Berbers.= The general name usually given to the tribes inhabiting the mountainous regions of Barbary and the northern portions of the Great Desert. They were conquered in succession by the Phœnicians, Romans, Vandals, and Arabs. They are of middle stature, sparely but strongly built; complexion varies from a red to a yellow brown; hair is, in general, dark, and eyes dark and piercing. Their manners are austere, and in disposition they are cruel, suspicious, and implacable. They are usually at war with their neighbors or among themselves.
=Beresina=, or =Berezina=. A river in Russia, crossed by the French main army after its defeat by the Russians, November 25-29, 1812. The French lost upwards of 20,000 men, and their retreat was attended by great calamity and suffering.
=Bereung.= A description of Swedish militia, consisting of every man in the kingdom, from 20 to 25 years of age, capable of bearing arms.
=Bergamo.= A fortified city of Lombardy, Italy; captured by the French in 1698. During the height of the Venetian power, Bergamo was a dependency on its territory; under Napoleon, it was the capital of the department of Serio.
=Bergedorf.= A town of North Germany; it was taken from the Duke of Saxe-Lauenberg in 1736 by the cities of Hamburg and Lubeck; recaptured in 1412; and again taken by the same two cities in 1720.
=Bergen.= A small town in Germany, about 5 miles from Frankfort. Here the French, under the Duke of Broglie, defeated the allies under the Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick, April 13, 1759. The allies lost 2500 killed and wounded, and the French lost about 1800.
=Bergen.= A town in Holland. Here the allies under the Duke of York were defeated by the French, under Gen. Brune, with great loss, September 19, 1799. In another battle fought October 2, the same year, the duke gained the victory over Brune; but on the 6th, the duke was defeated before Alkmaer, and on the 20th entered into a convention, by which his army was exchanged for 6000 French and Dutch prisoners in England.
=Bergen-op-Zoom=, or =Berg-op-Zoom=. A strongly-fortified town of Holland, in North Brabant, on the river Zoom. In 1586 it was unsuccessfully besieged by the famous Duke of Parma, and afterwards, in 1622, it defied the utmost attempts of Spinola, who was forced to abandon the enterprise after a siege of ten weeks, with the loss of 12,000 men. It was taken by the French under Count Lowendahl in 1747, and in 1795 was again occupied by them. An attempt made by the British under Gen. Sir T. Graham (afterwards Lord Lynedoch) to carry the fortress by storm was defeated; after forcing an entrance, their retreat was cut off, and a dreadful slaughter ensued; nearly all were cut to pieces or made prisoners, March 8, 1814.
=Bergerac.= A town in the department of Dordogne, France; it was formerly fortified, and sustained many sieges; taken by the English in 1345, and retaken by the Duke of Anjou in 1370. Its fortifications were razed by Louis XIII. in 1621.
=Bergfried, Combat of.= A combat which took place between the French and Russians, February 3, 1807, in which the latter were repulsed.
=Bergues.= A fortified town in the department of the North, France; it was captured and recaptured by the Spaniards and French; the last time by Turenne in 1658.
=Berlin.= Capital of Prussia, in the province of Brandenburg; alleged to have been founded by the margrave Albert the Bear, about 1163. It was taken by an army of Russians and Austrians in 1760, but they were obliged to retire in a few days. On October 26, 1806, after the battle of Jena (October 14), the French entered Berlin; and from this place Napoleon issued the famous “Berlin decree” or interdict against the commerce of England, November 20. On November 5, 1808, Napoleon entered into a convention with Prussia by which he remitted to Prussia the sum due on the war-debt and withdrew many of his troops to reinforce his army in Spain. An insurrection commenced here in March, 1848; a treaty of peace between Prussia and Saxony was signed on October 21, 1866.
=Berme.= A narrow path round fortifications between the parapet and the ditch, to prevent the earth from falling in.
=Bermuda Hundred.= In Chesterfield Co., Va., on the right bank of the James River, just above the mouth of the Appomattox. Here on May 16, 1864, the Federal forces under Gen. Butler were attacked by the Confederates under Beauregard, and after several hours’ severe fighting Butler was compelled to fall back to his first line of intrenchments, with a loss of about 2500.
=Bermuda Islands=, or =Bermudas=. A group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, discovered by Juan Bermudez, a Spaniard, in 1527, but not inhabited until 1600, when Sir George Somers was cast away upon them. The Bermudas are garrisoned by British troops.
=Bernard, The Great St.= A famous mountain-pass of the Pennine Alps, so called from a monastery founded on it by Bernardine de Meuthon in 972. Velan, its highest peak, is about 8000 feet high, covered with perpetual snow. Hannibal, it is said, conducted the Carthaginians by this pass into Italy, 218 B.C.; and by the same route, in May, 1800, Bonaparte led his troops to Italy before the battle of Marengo, June 14, 1800.
=Berne.= The sovereign canton of Switzerland; joined the Swiss League in 1352; the town of Berne was made a free city by the emperor Frederick, May, 1218; it successfully resisted Rudolph of Hapsburg, 1288. It surrendered to the French under Gen. Brune, April 12, 1798; the town was made capital of Switzerland in 1848.
=Berry= (anc. Biturigum regis), Central France; held by the Romans since the conquest by Cæsar, 58-50 B.C., till it was subdued by the Visigoths; from whom it was taken by Clovis in 507.
=Bersaglieri.= The sharpshooters of the Sardinian army; first employed about 1848.
=Berserker.= A legendary Scandinavian hero of the 8th century, celebrated for his strength and valor. He fought without a coat of mail or helmet, whence his name. The name Berserkers was also applied to a class of warriors who, under the influence of a sort of demoniac possession, fought naked, performing marvelous feats of valor, unmindful or insusceptible of wounds.
=Berwick-on-Tweed.= A fortified town on the northeast extremity of England; the theatre of many bloody contests while England and Scotland were two kingdoms; it was claimed by the Scots because it stood on their side of the river; annexed to England in 1333; and after having been taken and retaken many times, was finally ceded to England in 1482; in 1651 it was made independent of both kingdoms; the town surrendered to Cromwell in 1648, and afterwards to Gen. Monk in 1659.
=Besançon.= A fortified city of France, capital of the department of Doubs; sacked by Attila; captured and ruined by the ancient Germans; rebuilt by the Burgundians; it was ceded to Spain by the peace of Westphalia; taken by Louis XIV. on May 15, 1670; united to France in 1678; in 1814 the Austrians besieged it without success.
=Besiege.= To lay siege to or invest any fortified place with armed forces.
=Besieged.= The garrison that defends the place against the army that lays siege to it.
=Besiegers.= The army that lays siege to a fortified place.
=Bessarabia.= A frontier province of European Russia, part of the ancient Dacia. After being possessed by the Goths, Huns, etc., it was conquered by the Turks in 1474, and ceded to Russia in 1812.
=Bessemer Steel.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Bessi.= A fierce and powerful Thracian people, who dwelt along the whole of Mount Hæmus as far as the Euxine. After the conquest of Macedonia by the Romans, 168 B.C., the Bessi were attacked by the latter, and subdued after a severe struggle.
=Bethoron.= A village of Palestine. Near here Judas Maccabæus gained advantages on two different occasions over the generals of Antiochus.
=Bethsur.= An ancient city of Palestine, now extinct. The Syrian general Lysias captured it, 163 B.C., after a severe combat in which Eleazar, a brother of Judas, perished.
=Béton.= French term for concrete. Much used in permanent fortifications. See CONCRETE.
=Béton Aggloméré.= A species of concrete invented by M. Coignet. Used in building arches, aqueducts, cellar walls, etc. It differs from ordinary béton, having much greater strength and hardness,--qualities derived from the ramming to which it is subjected.
=Betray.= To deliver perfidiously any place or body of troops into the hands of the enemy. To discover that which has been intrusted to secrecy.
=Betty.= A machine used for forcing open gates or doors. See PETARD.
=Bey.= See BEG.
=Beyroot=, or =Beyrout= (anc. Berytus). A seaport of Syria, colonized from Sidon; alternately possessed by the Christians and Saracens; and after many changes, fell into the power of Amurath IV., since when it remained with the Ottoman empire up to the revolt of Ibrahim Pasha in 1832. The total defeat of the Egyptian army by the allied British, Turkish, and Austrian forces, and evacuation of Beyroot (the Egyptians losing 7000 in killed, wounded, and prisoners, and 20 pieces of cannon), took place October 10, 1840. Sir C. Napier was the English admiral engaged. Beyroot suffered greatly in consequence of the massacres in Syria in May, 1860.
=Béziers.= A city of France, department of Hérault; sacked by the Vandals in the 5th century; by the Visigoths in the 5th, 6th, and 7th centuries; by the Saracens in 720; by Charles Martel in 737; in 1209, this city was taken by the Catholics under Simon de Montfort and Arnaud, abbé of Citeaux, and was the scene of a barbarous massacre of the Albigenses; 60,000 inhabitants were slain without consideration of sex or age (7000 were found dead in the church de la Magdeleine, where they sought refuge from their relentless slayers).
=Bhootan.= A country north of Lower Bengal. Invaded by the British in December, 1864, in consequence of injurious treatment of an envoy.
=Bhurtpoor= (India). Capital of Bhurtpoor, was besieged by the British, January 3, 1805, and attacked five times up to March 21, without success. The fortress was taken by Gen. Lake, after a desperate engagement with Holkar, the Mahratta chief, April 2, 1805; this led to a treaty on April 17. On the rajah’s death, during a revolt against his son, Bhurtpoor was taken by storm, by Lord Combermere, January 18, 1826.
=Biacolytes.= A military organization in the Grecian empire, whose duty was to prevent the committal of any excesses against life or property. Their service was analogous to that of the French gendarmes.
=Biagrasso=, or =Abbiategrasso=. A city on the Ticinella, in Lombardy; here, in 1524, the French were defeated by the Imperialists.
=Bibans=, or =Bibens=. “The Gates of Iron.” A dangerous defile of the Atlas Mountains, between Algiers and Constantine; it is traversed by a number of currents. The French, led by the Duke of Orleans and Marshal Valée, passed through it in 1839.
=Bibaux=, or =Petaux= (Fr.). In ancient times, were soldiers who fought on foot, with cross-bow and lance.
=Biberach= (Würtemberg). Here Moreau twice defeated the Austrians,--under Latour, October 2, 1796, and under Kray, May 9, 1800.
=Bicker.= A word formerly used in the sense of to skirmish; to fight off and on; to make repeated attacks.
=Bicocca= (Northern Italy). Lautrec and the French were here defeated by Colonna and the Imperialists, April 29, 1522, and Francis thereby lost his conquests in Milan.
=Bicoque= (Fr.). A term used in France to signify a place ill fortified and incapable of much defense. It is derived from a place on the road between Lodi and Milan, which was originally a gentleman’s country-house surrounded by ditches. In 1522, a body of Imperial troops were stationed in it, and stood the attack of the whole French army, during the reign of Francis I. This engagement was called the battle of Bicoque.
=Bicorneurs= (Fr.). Name given to the militia of Valenciennes.
=Bidarkee.= A skin boat used by the Aleuts.
=Bidassoa.= A river of the Pyrenees, which forms one of the boundaries of France and Spain, the passage of which is memorable as completing the endeavors of Lord Wellington to drive the French, under Marshal Soult, out of the Peninsula into France. In 1808, Marshal Junot crossed the Bidassoa with the armies of France to invade the Peninsula, and in 1813, Lord Wellington crossed it, after driving the French out of Spain.
=Bidauts=, or =Bidaux= (Fr.). An ancient French corps of infantry; according to some authorities they were armed with two javelins.
=Bien-Hoa.= A fortified seaport town of the French colony in Cochin China; it was taken from the Annamites by the French under Rear-Admiral Bonard, December 15, 1861.
=Bienne.= A town of Switzerland; it was captured and burned by the bishop of Basel in 1367.
=Biga.= A Roman term applied in ancient times to vehicles drawn by two horses abreast, and commonly to the Roman chariot used in processions or in the circus. In shape it resembled the Greek war-chariot,--a short body on two wheels, low, and open behind, where the charioteer entered, but higher and closed in front.
=Big Bethel.= A village of York Co., Va., near Back River, about 12 miles northwest of Fortress Monroe, on the road from Hampton to Yorktown, and about 3 miles beyond Little Bethel, on the same road. In June, 1861, the main body of the Confederate army, under Gen. Magruder, being in the vicinity of Yorktown, an outpost of considerable strength was established at Little Bethel, which Gen. Butler, who was in command at Fortress Monroe, determined to dislodge. Accordingly, on the night of June 9, two New York regiments were ordered to gain the rear of the enemy’s position, while a battalion of Vermont and Massachusetts troops and a New York regiment were to attack in front at break of day. Before daybreak, through some error, these forces approached and fired into each other, and thus betrayed their projected movements to the enemy, who retreated to Big Bethel, where there was another outpost, with works of some strength in process of erection. Gen. Pierce, who was in command of the Federal expedition, determined to carry these works. An attack was ordered, and after nearly three hours’ fighting, the Federals being exposed to a heavy fire, while the Confederates were almost entirely protected, Gen. Pierce determined to retreat, which he did in good order, the enemy falling back the same day to Yorktown. The number of Federal troops was between 3000 and 4000, while that of the enemy was nearly 1500. The Federal loss was about 60, that of the Confederates was small in comparison.
=Big Horn.= A navigable river of the United States, near Fremont’s Peak, in the Rocky Mountains. It has a northeast course of about 400 miles, being the longest affluent of the Yellowstone, which, again, is the largest affluent of the Missouri. A desperate battle was fought on the Little Big Horn, between the 7th U. S. Cavalry and the Sioux Indians, June 25, 1876.
=Bigles.= A military corps of Rome, whose particular duty was to furnish sentinels; the bread which these troops received was called bigliaticum.
=Bihach=, or =Bichacz=. One of the strongest fortress-towns of Croatia, European Turkey; it has been the scene of frequent contests during the Turkish wars.
=Bilbo.= A rapier, a sword; so named, it is said, from Bilboa, in Spain, where the best are made.
=Bilboa=, or =Bilbao= (Northeast Spain). Founded about 1300; taken by the French in 1795; captured and recaptured during the invasion of the French in 1808; delivered from the Carlists by Espartero, aided by the British, December 24, 1836.
=Bilboquet.= A small 8-inch mortar, whose bore is only half a caliber in length. It throws a shell of 60 pounds about 400 toises.
=Bill.= A weapon much used by infantry, in the 14th and 15th centuries, for defense against cavalry, consisting of a broad, hook-shaped blade, having a short pike at the back and another at the summit, and attached to the end of a long staff.
=Billet= (Fr. Billet de logement). In England, is a ticket for quartering soldiers on publicans and others, which entitles each soldier, by act of Parliament, to candles, vinegar, and salt, with the use of fire and the necessary utensils for dressing and eating his meat. In the United States, no soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in the manner to be prescribed by law (Art. 3, Amendments to the Constitution of the United States).
=Bill-hook.= A small hatchet used in European armies in cutting wood for fascines and other military purposes. The pioneers of the infantry are always provided with them, and a sufficient supply is issued to regiments engaged on active service.
=Binche.= A town in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. The French drove the Austrians out of this place in 1794.
=Bipennis.= A double-headed axe, the weapon which, according to ancient historians and authors, particularly distinguished those fabulous female warriors, the Amazons.
=Biporus.= With the ancients this word signified a double-prowed boat, so that it could change its course to the opposite direction without turning.
=Bir=, or =Biridjek=. A walled town of Asiatic Turkey, on the Euphrates, which was ruined by Tamerlane.
=Birse.= A small river in Switzerland, on the banks of which, on August 26, 1444, 1500 Swiss fought an army of about 20,000 men, commanded by the dauphin of France, afterwards Louis XI. There were but 11 of the Swiss who survived the day, while their enemy left 8000 men and 1100 horses on the battle-field. On the same river 6000 confederate Swiss gained a splendid victory over 15,000 Austrians, July 22, 1499.
=Birtha.= See TEKRIT.
=Biscaïen= (Fr.). A name formerly given to a long-barreled musket, the range of which was greater than the ordinary musket. Now this appellation is given to a leaden ball about the size of an egg, which is used for canister or case-shot.
=Bisceglia.= A fortified seaport town of Naples, on the Adriatic, 21 miles northwest of Bari. Here a celebrated combat took place between 13 Spaniards and the same number of French. Among the latter was the Chevalier Bayard.
=Biskara=, or =Biskra=. A town of Algeria, on the Kantara, taken by the French, March 3, 1844.
=Bistritz.= A fortified town of Transylvania, situated on the Bistritz River. Forming, as it does, the last strong position in the northeast of Transylvania, it was repeatedly, during 1848-49, the scene of hot strife between the Hungarian and Austrian generals.
=Bitche.= A town of France, in the department of the Moselle, in a wild and wooded pass of the Vosges. The Prussians, under Colonel Count von Wartensleben, attempted to surprise it in 1793, but failed.
=Bithynia.= An ancient division of Asia Minor, separated from Europe by the Propontus (Sea of Marmora) and the Thracian Bosphorus (Strait of Constantinople). It contained the famous Greek cities or colonies of Chalcedon, Heraclea, etc., and at later periods, Nicomedia, Nicæa, and Prusa. The inhabitants were supposed to be of Thracian origin. The country is said to have been subdued by Crœsus of Lydia (560 B.C.), and five years later fell under the Persian dominion. About 440 or 430 B.C. it became an independent kingdom, under a dynasty of native princes, who made Nicomedia their capital. It afterwards fell into the hands of the Romans, and was governed as a province. In 1298, Osman the Turk broke into the country, and in 1328 Prusa, or Brusa, then its chief town, became the capital of the kingdom of the Osmanli.
=Bitonto.= A town of Naples where Mortemar and the Spaniards defeated the Germans, on May 26, 1734, and eventually gained the kingdom of the Two Sicilies for Don Carlos.
=Biturritæ= (now Bedarrides). In the department of Vaucluse, France. It was a city of the Allobroges, who were totally defeated in its environs by Domitius Ahenobarbus in 122 B.C.
=Bivouac.= A night-watch in open air. Troops bivouac when they make the best of it for the night, encamping in the open air. The term was also applied to a night-guard of the whole army, when apprehensive of surprise. The word comes from the German bei, “near,” and wache, “watch.” In recent times it is common for soldiers on the march to use the tente d’abri, or shelter-tent.
=Bizerta=, or =Benzerta=. The most northern town of Africa, and a fortified seaport of Tunis. It is defended by two castles, which, however, are commanded by adjacent heights. Though its port now only admits small vessels, it was formerly one of the best in the Mediterranean. This city was noted for the piracy of its inhabitants.
=Black.= In blazonry, sable denotes constancy, wisdom, and prudence.
=Black-book.= An ancient book of English admiralty law, compiled in the reign of Edward III. It has always been deemed of the highest authority in matters concerning the admiralty in England.
=Blackfeet.= A once powerful and ferocious tribe of American Indians of Algonkin stock, who infest the country between the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers, and are also found in British America. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Blackheath= (Kent, near London). Here Wat Tyler and his followers assembled, June 12, 1381, and here also Jack Cade and his 20,000 Kentish men encamped, June 1, 1450. Here the Cornish rebels were defeated and Flannock’s insurrection quelled, June 22, 1497. The cavern on the ascent to Blackheath, the retreat of Cade and the haunt of banditti in the time of Cromwell, was rediscovered in 1780.
=Black Hole.= The appellation familiarly given in England to the dungeon or dark cell of a prison. The name is associated with a horrible catastrophe in the history of British India, namely, the cruel confinement of a party of English in an apartment called the “Black Hole of Calcutta,” on the night of June 19, 1756. The garrison of a fort at Calcutta having been captured by the nabob Surajah Dowlah, he caused the whole of the prisoners taken, 146 in number, to be confined in an apartment 20 feet square, having only two small windows, which were obstructed by a veranda. After a night of excruciating agony from heat, thirst, and want of air, there remained in the morning but 23 survivors.
=Black Rod, Usher of the.= An officer of the English House of Lords, whose emblem of authority is the wand or rod, with a gold lion on top. He belongs to the order of the Garter, and keeps the door when the chapter of that order is in session. His principal duty is to summon the Commons to the House of Lords when royal assent is given to bills, etc., and to take into custody any peer guilty of breach of privilege.
=Black Sea=, or =Euxine=. Pontus Euxinus of the ancients; a large internal sea between the southwest provinces of Russia and Asia Minor, connected with the Sea of Azof by the Straits of Yenikalé and with the Sea of Marmora by the Bosphorus. This sea was much frequented by the Greeks and Italians till it was closed to all nations by the Turks after the fall of Constantinople, in 1453. The Russians obtained admission by the treaty of Kainavdji, July 10, 1774. In 1779 it was partially opened to British and other traders, since which time the Russians gradually obtained the preponderance. It was entered by the British and French fleets, January 3, 1854. A dreadful storm in this sea raged from November 13 to 16, 1854, and caused great loss of life and shipping, and valuable stores for the allied armies. By the treaty of 1856 the Black Sea was opened to the commerce of all nations, the Russians and Turks not being allowed to keep ships of war on it. In 1871 the Russians were again permitted to have men-of-war on this sea.
=Black Watch.= Armed companies of the loyal clans (Campbells, Munros, etc.) employed to watch the Highlands from about 1725 to 1739, when they were formed into the celebrated 42d Regiment, which was formerly enrolled “The Royal Highland Black Watch.” Their removal probably facilitated the outbreak of 1745. They wore dark tartans, and hence their name.
=Blackwater, Battle of.= In Ireland, August 14, 1598, when the Irish chief O’Neal defeated the English under Sir Henry Bagnall. Pope Clement VIII. sent O’Neal a consecrated plume, and granted to his followers the same indulgences as to Crusaders.
=Bladensburg.= A village of Prince George Co., Md., memorable for the battle which was fought here August 24, 1814, between the British and Americans, and which resulted in the capture of Washington.
=Blair-Athol.= A village in Perthshire, Scotland; it was occupied by the Marquis of Montrose in 1644; stormed by a party under the command of one of Cromwell’s officers in 1653; and gallantly defended by Sir Andrew Agnew, in 1746, when besieged by a portion of the Highland army, until he was relieved by the Hessians under the Earl of Crawford. The pass of Killekrankie, about two miles from Blair Castle, is famous for the battle which was there fought in 1689, between the Highlanders under Viscount Dundee, and King William’s troops under Gen. Mackay.
=Blaise.= A military order instituted by the kings of Armenia, in honor of St. Blaise the Martyr, anciently bishop of Sebasta, and the patron saint of Armenia. Justinian calls them Knights of St. Blaise and St. Mary, and places them not only in Armenia, but in Palestine. They made a vow to defend the Church of Rome, and followed the rule of St. Basil. This institution appears to have commenced about the same time with the Knights Templar and Hospitallers.
=Blakely Gun.= See ORDNANCE, BUILT-UP GUNS.
=Blakely Projectiles.= See PROJECTILE.
=Blamont.= A small town of France, department of Doubs. This small place was protected by an ancient fortress, which was ruined by the allies in 1814.
=Blanch-Lyon.= A title of one of the English pursuivants-at-arms. See PURSUIVANT.
=Blank.= The point of a target at which aim is taken, marked with a white spot; hence, the object to which anything is directed.
=Blank Cartridge.= See CARTRIDGE.
=Blanket-boats.= A practical and highly useful plan for crossing streams is by means of boats constructed of a single rubber blanket, capable of carrying a soldier, knapsack, arms, and accoutrements, with only 4 inches of displacement. The size of some of the ordinary blankets is 6 feet long and 4 feet 9 inches wide; but 7 feet by 5 feet would be preferable. If the height of the boat be made 1 foot, the length will be 4 feet, and the width 2 feet 9 inches, so as to be completely covered by the blanket. The frame may be made of round sticks, 1 inch and 1¹⁄₂ inch in diameter, in the following manner:
For the bottom the two end-sticks are 2 feet 9 inches long, and the side-pieces 3 feet 9 inches long. They are connected by boring a ¹⁄₂-inch hole through the end-pieces, and into the ends of the side-pieces, into which pins are driven. The top is formed in the same manner, and both top and bottom of 1¹⁄₂-inch sticks. The side-pieces of the bottom, and the top and bottom frames are connected by 1-inch round sticks inserted in ¹⁄₂-inch holes, in the same manner as the upright pieces are fastened in a chair. To keep the frame from falling apart, loops of cord are passed from top to bottom, and from side to side, and twisted with a stick. The rubber blanket is then spread upon the ground, the frame placed upon it, the sides and eyes turned up and lashed to the top rail by twine passed through the eyelets. Loops of cord are passed over these projecting ends, and twisted with a stick, which binds the parts together. One of these boats having a horizontal area of 11 square feet, would require 687 pounds to sink it 1 foot, and the average weight of a man would displace less than 4 inches.
In using these blanket-boats it will be convenient to lash several together, side by side, upon which soldiers can be transported. The float can be paddled or a rope may be stretched across, supported by floats, and the men can pull themselves across. If used for cavalry, some of the men can hold the bridles of the horses, while the others can pull, paddle, or pole across the stream, the saddles being placed in the boats. The frames are abandoned, or used for fuel, when the army has crossed over.
Several of these boats lashed together, and covered with poles, would form a raft on which wagons could be carried over; but for artillery, rafts of wagon-bodies, or something possessing greater powers of flotation, should be employed. The bill of materials for the frame of a blanket-boat is: 4 end-pieces, 1¹⁄₂ inches round or square, 2 feet 9 inches long; 4 side-pieces, 1¹⁄₂ inches round or square, 3 feet 9 inches long; 30 uprights, 1 inch round or square, 1 foot long; 10 pieces across bottom, 1 inch round or square, 2 feet 9 inches long; 8 double pins, ¹⁄₂-inch in diameter, 3 inches long; 4 pieces of cord or strong twine, each 9 feet long; 6 pieces of cord or strong twine, each 3 feet long; 1 india-rubber blanket, 6 feet long, 4 feet 9 inches wide, with eyelet holes around all sides, not more than 6 inches apart, and 30 feet of twine to lash the blanket to the frame.
=Blanketeers.= A number of operators who, on March 30, 1817, met in St. Peter’s Field, near Manchester, England, many of them having blankets, rugs, or great-coats rolled up and fastened to their backs. This was termed the “blanket meeting.” They proceeded to march towards London, but were dispersed by the magistracy. It is stated that their object was to commence a general insurrection. Eventually the ringleaders had an interview with the cabinet ministers, and a better understanding between the working-classes and the government ensued.
=Blasting.= The displacement of earth or rock by the use of an explosive. One of the most important parts of the art of mining in its various branches of tunneling, shaft-boring, well-digging, submarine mining, etc. The explosive is ordinarily placed in a bore hole, but in submarine mining this is sometimes dispensed with when a high explosive like nitro-glycerine is used.
=Blasting Powder.= An explosive in the form of powder used for blasting. The most powerful blasting powders in common use are made by adding certain substances to nitro-glycerine, which, by absorbing it, reduce it to the form of powder, and thus render it comparatively safe against the shocks and jars of use. (See GIANT POWDER, DYNAMITE.) The term blasting powder is also specially applied to a powder analogous to gunpowder, but which contains sodium nitrate in place of potassium nitrate, or saltpetre.
=Blaubeuren.= A town of Würtemberg, on the Blau; here the French defeated the Austrians in 1800; the fortress was razed in 1806.
=Blayle= (anc. Blavia). A fortified seaport of France, in the department of Gironde, 20 miles north-northwest of Bordeaux. The Duchess de Berry was imprisoned in the citadel in 1833. This city was captured by the French, from the English, in 1339; the Protestants took possession of it in 1568, and the English tried in vain to take it in 1814.
=Blazonry= (from the German Blasen, “to blow”). The art of describing in technical language the objects or charges borne in a coat of arms, and the manner of arranging them on a shield. The term originated from the custom of blowing a trumpet to announce the arrival of a knight, or his entrance into the lists at a joust or tournament. The blast was answered by the heralds, who described aloud and explained the arms borne by the knight.
=Blechstreifen=, or =Blechschienen= (Ger.) (Les laisches, Fr.). Thin metal plates which the ancient Gauls placed upon the buff coats of infantry; they were placed between the buff and the lining.
=Bleneau.= A village of France, in the department of the Yonne, about 29 miles west-southwest of Auxerre, celebrated as the place where Turenne gained a victory over the Prince of Condé in 1652.
=Blenheim= (Ger. Blindheim). A village of Bavaria, 23 miles north-northwest of Augsburg, memorable in connection with Marlborough’s great victory over the French and Bavarians, August 13, 1704. The battle, though known in English history by the name of “Blenheim,” did not occur here, but at the neighboring village of Hochstädt, by which name it is known to the French and Germans. The French and Bavarian army consisted of 56,000 men, commanded by Tallard, Marsin, and the Elector of Bavaria, and opposed to it was the allied army 52,000 strong, commanded by the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene. The loss of the French and Bavarians was estimated at from 30,000 to 40,000. Near here, also, in 1800, the French defeated the Austrians.
=Bleus, Les= (i.e. “The Blues”). A name given to the soldiers of the Republic, by the Royalists, during the wars of La Vendée, on account of their uniform.
=Blidah.= A considerable town of Algeria, on the border of the Metidjah Plain; taken by the French in 1830, and permanently occupied by them since 1838.
=Blieskastel.= A small town of Rhenish Bavaria; near here, on November 19, 1793, 7000 Prussians and Saxons under Gen. Kalkreuth fought the French, about 20,000 strong, under Gen. Hoche, neither side gaining the victory. The Prussians held their ground without any great loss until dark, when, deeming their position untenable, they evacuated it during the night.
=Blindage.= A temporary bomb-proof or splinter-proof roofing, constructed of timber and the like, to give cover to magazines, batteries, hospitals, etc. See BLINDS.
=Blinds.= In military affairs, are wooden frames, composed of four pieces, either flat or round, two of which are 6 feet long, and the others 3 or 4 feet, which serve as spars to fasten the two first together: the longest are pointed at both ends, and the two others are fastened towards the extremities of the former, at about 10 or 12 inches. Their use is to fix them either upright, or in a vertical position against the sides of the trenches or sap, to sustain the earth. Their points at the bottom serve to fix them in the earth, and those at the top to hold the fascines that are placed upon them; so that the sap or trench is formed into a kind of covered gallery, to secure the troops from stones and grenades.
=Blind-shell.= A shell, the bursting charge of which is exploded by the heat of impact. Used in modern ordnance against armor.
=Blistered Steel.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Block.= See IMPLEMENTS.
=Blockade.= In military art, is an operation for capturing an enemy’s town or fortress without a bombardment or regular siege. The attacking party throws up works on the neighboring heights and roads, and part of the besieging force remains under cover in villages, or in a temporary camp, ready to repel any sortie attempted by the besieged. The whole purpose in view is to prevent the besieged from receiving supplies of any kind, in order that, when food or ammunition is exhausted, they may be compelled to surrender. Fortresses situated on steep and rocky eminences, difficult to conquer by bombardment or assault, may often be reduced by blockade, because the roads or paths for the reception of supplies are few, and can be guarded by a small number of troops.
=Blockade.= In international law, is the means in time of war of rendering intercourse with an enemy’s port unlawful on the part of neutrals; and it is carried into effect by an armed force (ships of war), which blocks up and bars export or import to or from the place blockaded. To be valid, a blockade must be accompanied by actual investment of the place, and it may be more or less rigorous, either for the purpose of watching the operations of the enemy, or to cut off all excess of neutral vessels to that interdicted place. To be binding on neutrals, it ought to be shown that they have knowledge, or may be presumed to know of the blockade, for which reason a formal notification of the fact is usually made by the blockading power. The breach of blockade, which may be effected by coming out of a blockaded port, or going in, subjects the property so employed to confiscation. On the proclamation of peace, or from any political or belligerent cause, the continuance of the investment may cease to be necessary, and the blockade is then said to be raised. The blockading force then retires, and the port is open as before to all other nations. In the present century recourse has been had to this means of cutting off supplies from the enemy on several occasions. The Elbe was blockaded by Great Britain, 1803; the Baltic, by Denmark, 1848-49 and 1864; the Gulf of Finland by the allies, 1854; and the ports of the Southern States by President Lincoln, April 19, 1861.
=Blockader.= One who blockades.
=Block Battery.= In gunnery, a wooden battery for two or more small pieces, mounted on wheels, and movable from place to place; very ready to fire en barbette, in the galleries and casements, etc., where room is wanted.
=Block-house.= An edifice or structure of heavy timber or logs for military defense, having its sides loop-holed for musketry, and often an upper story projecting over the lower, or placed upon it diagonally, with projecting corners, to facilitate a firing downward, and in all directions; the sides and ends are sometimes much like a stockade, and the top covered with earth; there may also be a ditch around it. Formerly much used in Germany and America, and used extensively in the United States as a defense against Indians, and during the civil war, 1861-65, for the protection of important places on railroads, such as bridges, etc. If exposed to the fire of artillery, block-houses should be formed of double rows of logs 3 feet apart, with well-rammed earth between them.
=Bloodhound.= A name given to certain species of the dog, distinguished for their keenness of scent, and the persistency with which they follow the track of game. They have been frequently employed during wars to track partisans, and even in the American civil war, 1861-65, were employed by the Confederates to track Union prisoners who escaped from their prisons. In time of peace they are sometimes employed to hunt felons, fugitive slaves, etc. When they are thus employed they acquire a peculiarly bloodthirsty and ferocious character.
=Bloreheath.= In Staffordshire, England; here on September 23, 1459, the Earl of Salisbury and the Yorkists defeated the Lancastrians, whose leader, Lord Audley, was slain with many Cheshire gentlemen. A cross commemorates this conflict.
=Bludgeon.= A short stick, with one end loaded, or thicker and heavier than the other, used as an offensive weapon.
=Blue-light.= A composition, burning with a blue flame, used as a night signal in ships, or for military purposes. See PYROTECHNY.
=Blunderbuss.= A short gun or fire-arm, with a large bore, capable of holding a number of balls, and intended to do execution without exact aim.
=Blyde=, =Bly=, or =Blude= (Ger.). A kind of a war machine which was used in ancient times to throw stones; some authors compare it to the catapult. In the year 1585, at the siege of the castle of Rucklingen, Albert, duke of Saxony and Lüneburg, was killed by a stone thrown by a blyde.
=Board of Officers.= A number of officers assembled by military authority for the transaction of business.
=Board of Ordnance.= A government department, which formerly had the management of all affairs relating to the artillery and engineering corps of the British army. This board was abolished after the Crimean war.
=Board, Pointing.= In gunnery, this is a piece of wood 1 foot long, 2 or 3 inches wide, and 1 inch thick, having a notch cut in the middle of one side to fit on the stake, and graduated into equal divisions from its middle. When not in use the pointing cord may be wound on it. This board is used for directing mortars.
=Boards of Examination.= In the army, are instituted to determine upon appointments in regiments, and for appointments and promotion in the medical staff, engineer corps, and ordnance department. They are composed of army officers.
=Boards of Survey.= In the army, are convened for the purpose of fixing the responsibility for public property lost, damaged, or destroyed, of ascertaining what articles of public property may have been lost or abstracted whenever a soldier deserts, and of taking an inventory of the public property in charge of a deceased officer.
=Boats, Blanket-.= See BLANKET-BOATS.
=Bobruisk.= A fortified town of Russia, in the government of Minsk. It is situated on the right bank of the Beresina, and is a station for the steam-packets navigating the Dnieper and Beresina. It was besieged ineffectually by the French in 1812.
=Boccacci.= The Italians have a peculiar kind of fire-arm which they call by this name; it is enlarged towards the muzzle in the shape of a trumpet. This gun is principally used by the Calabrians.
=Bocchetta.= A celebrated pass of the Apennines, the key of the route from Novi to Genoa. Redoubts were constructed here by the Imperialists in 1746 for the defense of the pass. The French traversed this pass when they entered Italy in 1796.
=Bodegraven.= A fortified town of Holland. On November 28, 1672, it was captured by the Duke of Luxemburg, who tarnished his victory by authorizing the town to be pillaged.
=Bodkin.= A dirk or dagger; a word still in use, though Johnson says it is the oldest acceptation of it.
=Body.= In the nomenclature of modern ordnance, is the part of the piece in rear of the trunnions.
=Body.= In the art of war, is a number of forces, horse or foot, united and marching under one commander. Main body of an army, sometimes means the troops encamped in the centre between the two wings, and generally consists of infantry. The main body on a march, signifies the whole of the army exclusive of the van- and rear-guards.
=Body of the Place.= The enceinte of a fortress, or main line of bastions and curtains, as distinguished from outworks.
=Body-guard.= A guard to protect or defend the person; a life-guard.
=Bœotia.= One of the political divisions of ancient Greece, lying between Attica and Megaris on the south, and Locris and Phocis on the north, and bounded on the other side by the Eubœan Sea and the Corinthian Gulf. The tribes of greatest importance who appear as rulers of Bœotia in the heroic age were the Minyæ and the Cadmeans, or Cadmeones,--the former dwelling at Orchomenus, and the latter at Thebes. About 60 years after the Trojan war the Bœotians, an Æolian people who had hitherto dwelt in Thessaly, having been expelled from that country, took possession of the land then called Cadmeis, to which they gave their own name of Bœotia. At the commencement of the historic period all the ancient tribes had disappeared, and all the cities were inhabited by Bœotians, the most important forming a political confederacy under the presidency of Thebes. After the battle of Chæronea (338 B.C.) and the destruction of Thebes by Alexander three years after, Bœotia rapidly declined, and so low had it sunk in the time of the Romans, that of all its great cities there remained only two, which had dwindled into insignificant towns; of the other great cities nothing remained but their ruins and their names. The people are represented as a dull and heavy race, with little susceptibility and appreciation of intellectual pleasures.
=Bohain.= A small town of France, in the department of Aisne, which fell into the hands of the Imperialists in 1537, and was recaptured a short time afterwards.
=Bohemia.= A political and administrative division of the Austrian empire, bounded on the north by Saxony and Prussian Silesia, east by Prussia and Moravia, south by Lower Austria, and west by Bavaria. It derives its name from the Boii, a Celtic people who settled in the country about 600 B.C., and who were expelled by the Marcomanni in the time of Augustus. About the middle of the 6th century a numerous army of Czechs entered the country and subdued it. In 1310 the crown came to the house of Luxemburg, when Charles IV. united Bohemia with the German empire. After many vicissitudes it fell to the house of Austria in the person of the Archduke Ferdinand, brother of Charles V., and brother-in-law of Louis II., king of Hungary and Bohemia, who was killed in battle with the Turks near Mohacs, in 1526. In 1619 the Bohemians revolted against the house of Austria, and offered the crown to Frederick V., elector palatine, but Frederick was defeated at the battle of White Mountain in November, 1620, and the country has ever since remained under the sway of the emperors of Austria.
=Bohmisch-Brod.= A small town of Bohemia. Here the emperor Sigismund defeated the Hussites in 1434.
=Boii.= An ancient Celtic people who emigrated into Italy, where they waged war for several centuries against the Romans. They were defeated at the Vadimonian Lake, 283 B.C. They were finally subdued by Scipio Nasica, 191 B.C., and expelled front Italy. A portion of them founded the kingdom of Boiohemum (Bohemia), from which they were expelled by the Marcomanni in the time of Augustus.
=Bois-le-Duc.= A fortified city of Holland, capital of North Brabant; besieged and captured by the Dutch in 1629, and by the French in 1794; surrendered to the Prussian army, under Bulow, in January, 1814.
=Bojano.= A town in the province of Molise, Naples. The site of Bojano has been identified as that of the famous Samnite city of Bovianum, which played so conspicuous a part in the Samnite, Punic, and Social wars. Unsuccessfully besieged by the Romans in 314 B.C., it was taken by them in 311 B.C., and yielded immense spoils. Passing out of their hands, it was retaken by them in 305 B.C., and once more reverting to its original owners, was a third time captured by the Romans in 298 B.C. During the second Punic war it formed the headquarters of the Roman army on more than one occasion. In the great Social war the confederates made it their capital. It was surprised by Sulla, and retaken by the Marsic general, Pompædius Silo. Cæsar established a military colony, and it afterwards throve under the Roman empire.
=Bojeleschti.= A village of Wallachia, where, in 1828, the Russians under Gen. von Geismar defeated the Turks, although the latter were superior in force. The Russians captured 7 guns, 24 ammunition- and 400 bread-wagons, 24 colors, and guns enough to arm 10,000 men. The Cossacks took 507 prisoners.
=Bokhara.= The ancient Sogdiana, a state of Central Asia in Independent Toorkistan. It was conquered by the Turks in the 6th century, by the Chinese in the 7th, and by the Arabs about 705. After many changes of masters it was subdued by the Uzbek Tartars, 1505. The British envoys, Col. Stoddart and Capt. Conolly, were murdered at Bokhara, the capital, by the khan in 1843. In the war with Russia, beginning in 1866, the emir’s army was defeated several times in May and subsequent months during that year. Peace was made July 11, 1867. The Russians were again victors, May 25, 1868, and occupied Samarcand the next day. Further conquests were made by the Russians, and Samarcand was secured by treaty November, 1868.
=Bolade= (Fr.). A weapon of the shape of a mace.
=Bologna.= The ancient Felsina, afterwards Bononia. A distinguished city of Italy, capital of the province of the same name; besieged and taken by Pope Julius II., 1506; taken by the French, 1796; by the Austrians, 1799; again by the French after the battle of Marengo, in 1800; restored to the Pope in 1815; a revolt suppressed by Austrian interference, 1831; rebellion in 1848; taken by the Austrians, May, 1849; provisional government formed June 15, 1859; Victor Emmanuel entered Bologna as sovereign, May 2, 1860.
=Bolster.= A block of wood on the carriage of a siege-gun, and on the mortar-wagon upon which the gun rests when moving it from place to place. The first is a breach-, the second a muzzle-bolster.
=Bolster.= A cushioned or padded part of a saddle.
=Bolt.= A pointed shaft or missile intended to be shot from a cross-bow or catapult; an arrow; a dart.
=Bolt.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, NOMENCLATURE OF ARTILLERY CARRIAGE.
=Bolt, Palliser.= A screw-bolt for securing armor plates. The end upon which the screw-thread is cut is larger than the shank.
=Bomarsund.= A strong fortress on one of the Aland isles in the Baltic Sea, taken by Sir Charles Napier, commander of the Baltic expedition, aided by the French military contingent under Gen. Baraguay d’Hilliers, August 16, 1854. The governor Bodisco and the garrison, about 2000 men, became prisoners, and the fortifications were destroyed.
=Bomb.= A hollow ball or shell of cast iron filled with explosive materials, and furnished with a fuze, which being ignited when the missile is discharged from a mortar or howitzer, burns during its flight, and causes it to explode with destructive violence when it falls. They are now commonly called shells.
=Bombard.= An ancient piece of ordnance, very short, thick, and wide at the bore. Some of the bombards used in the 15th century propelled stones weighing from 200 to 500 pounds each.
=Bombard.= To assault a town or fortress by projecting into it shells, etc., from mortars, in order to set fire to and destroy the houses, magazines, and other buildings.
=Bombardelle= (Fr.). A small bombard which was used in ancient times. In 1830, one was disinterred near Laon, France; it is the opinion of some that this bombardelle was manufactured during the reign of Charles VII., from 1436-40.
=Bombardier.= Is an artilleryman versed in that department of arms which relates especially to bombs and shells, mortars and howitzers, grenades and fuzes. In some foreign armies, the bombardiers form a separate corps. In the British service a bombardier is a non-commissioned grade in the artillery below that of corporal.
=Bombardment.= Is an attack upon a fortress or fortified town by means of shells, red-hot shot, carcasses, rockets, etc., to burn and destroy the buildings, and kill the inhabitants, and by this means compel its surrender. A bombardment requires little engineering skill; whereas a regular siege requires the aid of engineers to direct the attack against fortifications, guns, and soldiery, leaving the inhabitants and buildings untouched. It is generally regarded by military engineers as a cruel operation, and in modern times is mostly adopted as an adjunct to a siege. The stores required for a vigorous bombardment are immense. Thus, in 1759, Rodney threw 20,000 shells and carcasses into Havre; in 1792, the Duke of Saxe Teschen threw 36,000 shot and shell into Lille in 140 hours; in 1795, Pichegru threw 8000 shells into Mannheim in 16 hours; and in 1807, the English threw 11,000 shot and shell into Copenhagen in three days. Of the bombardments recorded in history may be mentioned that of Algiers by Duquesne in 1682-83, by the Venetians in 1784, and by the English in 1816; of Genoa in 1684; of Tripoli in 1685, 1728, and 1747; of Barcelona in 1691; of Brussels in 1694; of Toulon by the English in 1707; of Prague in 1744, 1759, and 1848; the bombardment of Lille by the Austrians in 1792; of Le Quesnoy, Breda, Lille, Lyons, Maestricht, and Mayence in 1793; of Menin, Valenciennes, and Ostend in 1794; of Copenhagen by the English in 1807; of Glogau, Breslau, and Schweidnitz by the French in 1806-7; of Saragossa by the French in 1808; of Flushing by the English in 1809; of Antwerp in 1832; of St. Jean d’Ulloa by the French in 1838; of Beyrout and St. Jean d’Acre by the English in 1840; of Barcelona by Espartero in 1842; of Mogador by the French in 1844; and of Odessa by the English and French fleets in 1854. Vera Cruz was bombarded by Gen. Scott for three days before its surrender, March 27, 1847. During the civil war recourse was had several times to this method of reducing fortified places. Among the most noted were the bombardment by Admiral Farragut for six days, April 18, 1862, of Forts Jackson and St. Philip (after which they surrendered); the bombardment of Fort Pulaski, Ga., by Gen. Gillmore, in April, 1862; the first bombardment of Fort Sumter in August, 1863, which effectually disabled the fort for immediate defense of Charleston harbor, although the works remained in the possession of the Confederates; and the second bombardment, which took place in October following, leaving the place in ruins. During the Franco-German war Strasburg was bombarded by the Prussians on August 18, 1870, and after an immense number of shells were thrown into it with ruinous effect the city surrendered on September 27. During the siege of Paris it was estimated that for two weeks in January, 1871, about 500 shells a day were thrown into the city, to the great destruction of life and property.
=Bomb-chest.= A chest filled with bombs, or only with gunpowder, placed under ground, to cause destruction by its explosion.
=Bomb-proof.= A term applied to military structures of such immense thickness and strength that bombs cannot penetrate them.
=Bomb-shell.= A hollow globe of iron, filled with powder, and thrown from a mortar; a bomb.
=Bone=, =Bona=, or =Bonah=. A fortified seaport town of Algeria, 85 miles northwest of Constantine; it is surrounded by a wall with square turrets which has four gates. Fort Cigogne is its chief defense; the French occupied this place in July, 1830.
=Bonn.= A town on the Rhine (the Roman Bonna) was in the electorate of Cologne; it has been frequently besieged, and was assigned to Prussia in 1814.
=Bonnet.= In fortification, is a small defense work constructed at salient angles of the glacis or larger works. It consists of two faces only, with a parapet 3 feet high by 10 or 12 feet broad. There is no ditch. A larger kind, with 3 salient angles, is called a priest’s bonnet, or bonnet à prêtre. The use of the bonnet is to check the besiegers when they are attempting to make a lodgment.
=Bonneval.= A town of France, formerly fortified; it was partially destroyed by the English during the 15th century.
=Bontchouk.= A lance ornamented with a horse’s tail. When the kings of Poland led their armies, boutchouks were carried before them.
=Boomerang.= A very singular missile weapon used by the natives of Australia. It is made of hard wood, usually from 20 to 30 inches in length, from 2 to 3 inches wide, and ¹⁄₂ or ³⁄₄ of an inch thick. It is curved or bent in the middle at an angle of from 100° to 140°. When thrown from the hand with a quick rotary motion, it describes very remarkable curves, according to the shape of the instrument and the manner of throwing it, often moving nearly horizontally a long distance, then curving upward to a considerable height, and finally taking a retrograde direction, so as to fall near the place from which it was thrown, or even very far in the rear of it.
=Booneville.= A river-port, capital of Cooper Co., Mo., situated on the right bank of the Missouri River, 48 miles northwest of Jefferson City. During the civil war a Confederate force of about 2500 raw troops was here attacked by the Federals under Gen. Lyon, June 17, 1861. After a short conflict the Confederates were routed, abandoning their guns and camp equipage, which fell into the hands of the Union forces.
=Boothauk.= A fortified pass of Afghanistan, 12 miles to the east of Cabul. It runs for 5 miles between cliffs 500 feet high, and in some places only 50 yards wide.
=Boots and Saddles.= In cavalry tactics, a trumpet call which is the first signal for mounted drill, and for all other formations mounted; it is also the signal for the trumpeters to assemble.
=Booty.= Is the victors’ share in property captured from the vanquished. It is generally a military term, the word prize being more frequently used in the navy.
=Bordeaux=, or =Bourdeaux= (Southwest France). This city was sacked by the Visigoths, who were driven from it by Clovis; it was ravaged by the Saracens and Normans in the 8th and 9th centuries. It came into the possession of the Duke of Gascoyne in 911; in 1653 the city rebelled, but was taken by the royal troops; Bordeaux was entered by the victorious British army after the battle of Orthes, fought February 27, 1814.
=Bordure=, or =Border=. In heraldry, coats of arms are frequently surrounded with a bordure, the object of which is to show that the bearer is a cadet of the house whose arms he carries. Its character often has reference to the profession of the bearer; thus a bordure embattled is granted to a soldier, and a bordure ermine to a lawyer.
=Bore.= Of a piece of ordnance includes all the part bored out, viz., the cylinder, the chamber (if there is one), and the conical or spherical surface connecting them.
=Borghetto.= A town of Italy, on the Mincio, 15 miles southwest of Verona; it has a castle and a vast fortified causeway. The French here defeated the Austrians in 1796.
=Borgo Forte.= A town of Italy, in Lombardy, on the Po, 7 miles south of Mantua. The Austrians were here defeated by the French in 1796.
=Bori.= A Turkish term for military trumpets.
=Boring Cannon.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF.
=Borissov.= A town of Russia, on the left bank of the Berezina. A conflict took place here November 23, 1812, between the French and Russians; near this town, at the village of Studienka, the disastrous passage of Berezina was effected by the French army, November 26-27, 1812.
=Bormann-fuze.= A fuze which is used for spherical case-shot. The fuze-case is made of metal (a composition of lead and tin), and consists of a short cylinder, having at one end a horseshoe-shaped indentation, one end only of which communicates with the magazine of the fuze placed in the centre by a channel filled with rifle powder. This horseshoe indentation extends nearly to the other end of the cylinder, a thin layer of the metal only intervening. This is graduated on the outside into equal parts representing seconds and quarter-seconds. In the bottom of this channel a smooth layer of the composition is placed, with a piece of wick or yarn underneath it. On this is placed a piece of metal, the cross-section of which is wedge-shaped, and this, by machinery, is pressed down upon the composition, sealing it hermetically. The cylindrical opening is filled with musket powder and covered with a sheet of tin, which is soldered, closing the magazine from the external air. Before using the fuze several holes are punched through this sheet of tin, to allow the flame to enter the shell. On the side of the fuze the thread of a screw is cut which fits into one cut on the inside of the fuze-hole, and the fuze is screwed into the shell with a wrench. The thin layer of metal over the composition is cut through with a gouge or chisel, or even a penknife, at the interval marked with the number of seconds which we wish the fuze to burn. To prevent the metal of this fuze, which is soft, from being driven into the shell by the explosive force of the charge, a circular piece of iron, with a hole through its centre, and the thread of a screw on the outside, is screwed into the fuze-hole before the fuze is inserted. The most important advantage of this fuze is, that the shells can be loaded, all ready for use, and remain so any length of time, perfectly safe from explosion, as the fuze can be screwed into its place, and the composition never exposed to external fire until the metal is cut through.
=Borneo.= An island in the Indian Ocean, the largest in the world except Australia; discovered by the Portuguese about 1520; the pirates of this island were several times chastised by the British government; incorporated with the British empire, December 2, 1846.
=Bornhoevede.= A village of Holstein, where a battle was fought on July 22, 1227, between Woldemar II., king of Denmark, and Adolphus IV. of Holstein; the Danes were totally defeated.
=Borodino.= A Russian village on the Moskwa, near which a sanguinary battle was fought, September 7, 1812, between the French under Napoleon, and the Russians under Kootoosof, 240,000 men being engaged. Each party claimed the victory; but the Russians retreated, leaving Moscow, which the French entered September 14. The French name it the battle of Moskwa, and it gave Marshal Ney his title of Prince of Moskwa.
=Boroughbridge.= A town in Yorkshire, England, the site of a battle between the Earls of Hereford and Lancaster and Edward II., March 16, 1322. The latter at the head of 30,000 men pressed Lancaster so closely that he had not time to collect his troops together in sufficient force, and being defeated and made prisoner, was led, mounted on a lean horse, to an eminence near Pontefract, and beheaded by a Londoner.
=Boscobel.= Near Donington, Shropshire, England, where Charles II. concealed himself after his defeat at Worcester.
=Bosnia.= In European Turkey, formerly part of Pannonia, was governed by chiefs till a brother-in-law of Louis, king of Hungary, was made king, 1376. He was defeated by the Turks in 1389, and became their vassal. Bosnia was annexed to the Ottoman empire in 1522. Many efforts have been made by the Bosnians to recover their independence; they rebelled in 1849, and were subdued by Omar Pasha in 1851.
=Bosniaken.= Formerly light cavalry of the Prussians, resembling the present Uhlans. Frederick I. formed this cavalry in 1745.
=Bosphorus=, or =Bosporus, Thracian= (now Strait of Constantinople). The ancient name of the strait which connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmora. Darius Hystaspes threw a bridge of boats over this strait when about to invade Greece, 493 B.C.
=Bosporus.= The country on both sides of the Bosporus Cimmerius, or Strait of Yenikalé, formed in ancient times the kingdom of Bosporus. The Scythians conquered Bosporus, 285 B.C.; conquered by Mithridates VI., 80 B.C.; conquered by Cæsar, 47 B.C.; Polemon conquered Bosporus, 14 B.C. A list of obscure kings given by some writers ends with Sauromates VII., 344.
=Boss.= The apex of a shield.
=Bosse=, =Bosse à Feu= (Fr.). A term used in the French artillery to express a glass bottle which is very thin, contains 4 or 5 pounds of powder, and round the neck of which 4 or 5 matches are hung after it has been well corked. A cord 2 or 3 feet in length is tied to the bottle, which serves to throw it. The instant the bottle breaks the powder catches fire, and everything within the immediate effects of the explosion is destroyed.
=Bostanji.= The first Turkish foot-guards, about 12,000 strong; they guard the imperial castles and accompany the sultans to the field. They were originally employed as gardeners, guards for the seraglio, etc. Their number is now greatly reduced.
=Boston.= A city and capital of Massachusetts, situated on the west side of Massachusetts Bay, at the mouth of Charles River. It was built about 1627. Here originated that resistance to the British authorities which led to American independence. The act of Parliament laying duties on tea, papers, colors, etc. (passed June, 1767), so excited the indignation of the citizens of Boston, that they destroyed several hundred chests of tea, December 16, 1773. Boston seaport was shut by the English Parliament, until restitution should be made to the East India Company for the tea lost, March 25, 1774. The town was besieged by the British next year, and 400 houses were destroyed. A battle between the royalist and independent troops, in which the latter were defeated, took place June 17, 1775; the city was evacuated by the king’s troops, April, 1776. The inhabitants were very zealous against slavery in 1861.
=Boston Massacre.= A name popularly given to a disturbance which occurred in the streets of Boston on the evening of March 5, 1770, when a sergeant’s guard belonging to the British garrison fired upon a crowd of people who were surrounding them and pelting them with snowballs, and killed 3 men besides wounding several others. The leader of the townspeople was a black man named Crispus Attucks. The affair is of historical importance, as it prepared the minds of men for the Revolutionary struggle which followed.
=Bostra=, or =Bozrah=. A city of Arabia, in an oasis of the Syrian Desert, 76 miles south of Damascus; it was besieged, captured, and sacked by the Saracens, who were commanded by Khaled.
=Bosworth Field.= In Leicestershire, England, the site of the thirteenth and last battle between the houses of York and Lancaster, August 22, 1485, when Richard III. was defeated and slain by the Earl of Richmond, afterwards Henry VII. Sir William Stanley at a critical moment changed sides, and thus caused the loss of the battle. It is said that Henry was crowned on the spot with the crown of Richard found in a hawthorn bush near the field.
=Bothwell Bridge.= In Lanarkshire, Scotland. The Scotch Covenanters, who took up arms against the intolerant government of Charles II., and defeated the celebrated Claverhouse at Drumclog, June 1, 1679, were totally routed at Bothwell Bridge, June 22, 1679, by the Earl of Monmouth, and many persons were tortured and executed.
=Botoné=, or =Bottony=. In heraldry, a cross-botoné is a cross of which the ends are in the form of buds or buttons.
=Bottle Cartridge.= See CARTRIDGE, BOTTLE.
=Bottoming.= The foundation of a roadbed.
=Botzen=, or =Bolzana= (anc. Pons Drusi). The capital of the circle of Etsch in Tyrol. This town was captured by the French in 1809.
=Boucanier= (Fr.). A long, heavy musket, used by the American buccaneers, and with such skill as to give the weapon a high degree of celebrity.
=Bouchain.= A small strongly fortified frontier town of France, in the department of the North; besieged and captured by Louis XIV. in 1673; by the Duke of Marlborough in 1711; retaken by the French in 1712, and ceded to France by the treaty of Utrecht.
=Bouche= (Fr.). Means the aperture or mouth of a piece of ordnance, that of a mortar, of the barrel of a musket, and of every species of fire-arms from which a ball or bullet is discharged.
=Boufarik=, or =Boofareek=. A place in Algeria where the French encountered the Arabs, October 2, 1832.
=Bouge=, or =Boulge= (Fr.). An ancient war-club, the head of which was loaded with lead, also called plombée.
=Bougiah= (anc. Salvæ). A seaport town of Algeria, which was captured by the French, October 19, 1833, and successfully defended against the Arabs, August 25, 1842.
=Bouillon= (Belgium). Formerly a duchy, was sold by Godfrey, its ruler, to Albert, bishop of Liège, to obtain funds for the crusade, 1095; it was seized by the French in 1672, and held by them till 1815, when it was given to the king of the Netherlands, as duke of Luxemburg. It was awarded to Belgium after the revolution of 1830.
=Boulaf.= A kind of baton or very short mace, formerly used by the Polish generals.
=Boulak=, or =Boolak=. A town of Lower Egypt, on the right bank of the Nile; burned by the French in 1799; since rebuilt by Mohammed Ali.
=Boulanger Chronograph.= See CHRONOSCOPES.
=Boulanger Telemeter.= See RANGE FINDERS.
=Boulevard= (Fr.). An ancient bastion, bulwark, or rampart.
=Boulogne.= A seaport in Picardy, Northern France; was taken by the British under Henry VIII., September 14, 1544, but restored at the peace, 1550. Lord Nelson attacked this city, disabling 10 vessels and sinking 5, August 3, 1801; in another attempt he was repulsed with great loss. In 1804, Bonaparte assembled 160,000 men and 10,000 horses, and a flotilla of 1300 vessels and 17,000 sailors, to invade England; it is supposed that this French armament served merely for a demonstration, and that Bonaparte never seriously intended the invasion. Sir Sidney Smith unsuccessfully attempted to burn the flotilla with fire-machines called catamarans, October 2, 1804. Congreve rockets were used in another attack, and they set the town on fire, October 8, 1806. The army was removed on the breaking out of the war with Austria in 1805. Louis Napoleon, afterwards emperor, made a descent here with about 50 followers, August 6, 1840, without success.
=Bounty.= A premium offered or given to induce men to enlist into the public service.
=Bourbon, Isle of= (in the Indian Ocean). Discovered by the Portuguese about 1545. The French here formed a colony in 1653 (according to others, 1642, 1646, 1649). In 1810, after a gallant resistance, it fell into the hands of the British, who retained it till the general peace, 1814. In 1815, before the downfall of Napoleon, it was once more besieged by the English, and along with the Mauritius again fell into their hands. After the general pacification of Europe, Bourbon was restored to France, in whose possession it now is; but the adjoining island has since been retained by its English conquerors.
=Bourdonnante= (Fr.). A name formerly given to a kind of bombard of a heavy caliber.
=Bourg-en-Bresse.= A town of France, capital of the department of Ain. The town was captured by the allies in 1814.
=Bourges.= The capital of the department of the Cher, in France; captured by Cæsar, 52 B.C.; destroyed by Chilperic, 583; carried by assault by Pepin, 762; sustained a siege during the reign of Charles VII., in 1415; captured by the Protestants, 1562; by Henry IV., 1594; by the Protestants, 1615, and by Marshal Matignon in 1616.
=Bourguignote=, or =Bourgignotte= (Fr.). A helmet worn by the Burgundians, from whom it was named. It was of polished iron, with a visor. Under Louis XIV. their head-dress was changed to a kind of bonnet.
=Bourlette= (Fr.). In antiquity, a mace which was garnished with iron points.
=Bournous=, =Burnoose=, or =Burnos=. A kind of cloak or overcoat, used by the Arabs, and which constitutes a part of the military clothing of some corps of the French army.
=Bouton=, or =Boutoou= (Fr.). A kind of war-club, formerly used by the Caribs of the Antilles.
=Bovianum= (now Bojano). A town of Italy, 10 miles southwest of Campobasso. It was sacked by the Romans in 311, 305, and 298 B.C. During the second Punic war it was several times the headquarters of the Roman army.
=Bouvines= (Northern France). The site of a desperate battle, July 27, 1214, in which Philip Augustus of France was victorious over the emperor Otho and his allies, consisting of more than 150,000 men. The Counts of Flanders and Boulogne were taken prisoners.
=Bow.= A weapon made of a strip of wood, or other elastic material, with a cord connecting the two ends, by means of which, when drawn back and suffered to return, an arrow is propelled.
=Bow, Cross.= An ancient weapon of offense of the 11th century. Philip II., surnamed the Conqueror, introduced cross-bows into France. In this reign Richard I. of England was killed by a cross-bow at the siege of Chalus.
=Bowie-knife.= A knife from 10 to 15 inches long, and about 2 inches broad, worn as a weapon in the Southern and Southwestern States of the United States,--so named from its inventor, Col. James Bowie.
=Bowman.= A man who uses a bow; an archer.
=Bow-shot.= The space which an arrow may pass when shot from a bow.
=Bowstring.= The string of a bow. Also a string used by the Turks for strangling offenders.
=Bowyer.= The man who made or repaired the military bows was so called.
=Boxer-cartridge.= The metallic cartridge used in the service rifle of England. See CARTRIDGE.
=Boxtel= (in Dutch Brabant). Here the British and allied armies, commanded by the Duke of York, were defeated by the French republicans, who took 2000 prisoners and 8 pieces of cannon, September 17, 1794.
=Box Pontons.= See PONTONS.
=Boyaca.= A village of the republic of New Granada, South America, celebrated for the victory gained by Bolivar over the Spaniards, August 7, 1819, which secured the independence of Colombia.
=Boyau.= In military engineering, is a winding zigzag or trench, made by besiegers to enable them to approach a town or fortified place under cover. These trenches are also called zigzags, or approaches.
=Boyne.= A river in Kildare, Ireland, near which William III. defeated his father-in-law, James II., July 1, 1690. The latter lost 1500 (out of 30,000) men; the Protestant army lost about a third of that number (out of 30,000). James fled to Dublin, thence to Waterford, and escaped to France. The Duke of Schömberg was killed, shot by mistake by his own soldiers as he was crossing the river.
=Brabançons= (Fr.). Soldiers of fortune, adventurers, freebooters of Brabant, who, during the Middle Ages, hired their services to those chiefs who paid them best.
=Bracelet.= In ancient times, a piece of defensive armor for the arm; a part of a coat of mail.
=Bracket.= The cheek of a mortar-carriage, made of strong plank.
=Braconnière=, or =Bragonnière= (Fr.). In antiquity, a mail-armor, of the shape of a petticoat, which was attached to the cuirass, and reached from the hips to the middle of the thigh, and sometimes below the knee.
=Braga= (anc. Bracara Augusta). The capital of the province of Minho, in Portugal; it is fortified and defended by a citadel. The Suevi were here vanquished by the Goths in 585.
=Brailoff=, =Brahilow=, or =Ibraila=. A fortified town and the principal port of Wallachia, European Turkey. In 1770 the town was taken by the Russians, and almost razed to the ground; rebuilt, and again taken by the Russians in 1828, after a brave defense. It was restored to Turkey by the treaty of Adrianople in 1829. During the war of 1854-56, it was occupied by Russian troops.
=Brake.= That part of the carriage of a movable battery or engine which enables it to turn.
=Brake.= An ancient engine of war analogous to the cross-bow and balista.
=Bramham.= In Yorkshire, England; near here the Earl of Northumberland and Lord Bardolf were defeated and slain by Sir Thomas Rokeby, the general of Henry IV., February 19, 1408; and Fairfax was defeated by the royalists under the Duke of Newcastle, March 29, 1643.
=Brand.= The Anglo-Saxon for a burnished sword.
=Brandenburg.= A city in Prussia, founded by the Slavonians. Henry I., surnamed the Fowler, after defeating the Slavonians, fortified Brandenburg, 926, as a rampart against the Huns, and bestowed the government on Sigefroi, count of Ringelheim, with the title of Margrave, or protector of the marches or frontiers. Occupied by the French, October 25, 1806.
=Branding.= Was a mode of punishment, in nearly all armies, inflicted on soldiers who were convicted of the crime of desertion,--the branding or marking being with ink, or other similar preparation. This practice is now discontinued in the American, and several European armies.
=Brandschwaermer= (Ger.). A small rocket which contained a bullet; it was fired out of a gun and used for the purpose of setting fire to straw-thatched buildings.
=Brandywine.= A river in Pennsylvania and Delaware, near which a battle took place between the British and Americans, in which the latter (after a day’s fight) were defeated with great loss, and Philadelphia fell into the possession of the victors, September 11, 1777.
=Brass.= See BRONZE.
=Brassar.= A piece of defensive armor for the arm.
=Brassart.= In plate-armor, joined plates of steel which protected the upper part of the arm, from the elbow to the shoulder. When the front of the arm only was shielded, the pieces were called demi-brassarts.
=Brasset.= A casque or head-piece of armor.
=Braunau.= A town of Bohemia, Austria; captured by the French, October 28, 1805.
=Bray.= A small town in the department of Seine-et-Marne, France; it was occupied by the allies, February 12, 1814.
=Brazil.= An empire in South America, was discovered by Vincent Pinzon in February, and Pedro Alvarez de Cabral, a Portuguese, driven upon its coasts by a tempest, in 1500. The French having seized Portugal in 1807, the royal family and nobles embarked for Brazil, and landed March 7, 1808. Brazil declared war against Uruguay in February, 1865; entered into a treaty with Uruguay and the Argentine Republic against Paraguay, governed by Lopez, in May, 1865, and war was waged with varying results up to 1870.
=Breach.= Rupture made in a fortification to facilitate the assault. The operation by which the opening is produced is called breaching, and the guns used for this purpose are breaching batteries. To repair a breach, is to stop or fill up the gap with gabions, fascines, etc., and prevent the assault. To fortify a breach, is to render it inaccessible by means of chevaux-de-frise, crow’s feet, etc. To make a lodgment in the breach. After the besieged are driven away, the besiegers secure themselves against any future attack in the breach. To clear the breach, that is, to remove the ruins, that it may be better defended.
=Breach of Arrest.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 65.
=Bread and Water.= A diet used as a military punishment.
=Break Ground.= Is to commence the siege of a place by opening trenches, etc.
=Breast-height.= In fortification, the interior slope of a parapet.
=Breastplate.= A plate worn upon the breast as a part of defensive armor.
=Breastwork.= In fortification, a defensive work breast-high, hastily thrown up, of earth or other material.
=Brechin.= A place in Scotland; sustained a siege against the army of Edward III., 1333. The battle of Brechin was fought between the Earls of Huntly and Crawford; the latter was defeated, 1452.
=Breech.= In ordnance, is the mass of solid metal behind the bottom of the bore, extending to the cascabel. The base of the breech is its rear surface.
=Breech-block.= The block of metal which closes the bore in breech-loading arms.
=Breech-loader.= A fire-arm that receives its load at the breech.
=Breech-loading.= Receiving the charge at the breech instead of the muzzle. A feature of modern small-arms. The principle, however, is very old, as some of the earliest guns were breech-loaders. A gun of the time of Henry VIII. still extant is substantially the same as the modern Snider. Puckle’s revolver of 1718 was mounted on a tripod, and was very much like the Gatling gun in its general features. The first American patent was to Thornton & Hall, of Massachusetts, 1811. These guns were extensively issued to U. S. troops. There is a specimen in the West Point Museum. Prior to 1861 the best known breech-loading small-arms were Sharps’, Burnside’s, Maynard’s, Merrill’s, and Spencer’s. See SMALL-ARMS.
In modern times the breech-loading principle for heavy ordnance has gained and lost favor at different epochs. On the continent of Europe it is generally accepted. Italy, however, has committed itself in the largest calibers to the enormous 100-ton muzzle-loaders of Sir William Armstrong. The same inventor introduced his breech-loading field-piece in England about 1850. His principle was approved and adopted for various calibers about 1858, but partial failures in his system led to an investigation by a committee of the House of Commons, 1862-63, and after a tedious discussion, the breech-loading principle was officially discarded (1866), though many of the guns were retained in the service. The successful application of hydraulic machinery in handling and loading heavy guns (1876) confirmed the government in its choice of muzzle-loaders. The difficulty of muzzle-loading in a turret and the impossibility of employing the great length of bore necessary to obtain the best results was, up to this time, the strong argument in favor of breech-loaders. Loading by hydraulic machinery from beneath the deck through a trap-door outside the turret obviated these objections to muzzle-loaders, and gave the gunners ample protection by closing the port, thus placing these guns for the time being on a par with breech-loaders. The bursting of the 38-ton gun on the “Thunderer” (1878), however, which has been generally attributed to double loading, has shaken confidence in hydraulic ramming, and now there is a strong current in favor of a return to breech-loaders. The splendid performance of Krupp guns on the practice-ground at Meppen, 1879, and the numerous misfortunes which have recently befallen the Woolwich and Elswick systems, have doubtless had their weight in this change of opinion.
=Breech Mechanism.= The mechanism used for opening and closing the breech of a fire-arm and securing it against the escape of the gas. In small-arms this is readily accomplished. The use of the metallic cartridge-case renders any special gas-check unnecessary, as the case itself by being expanded against the walls of the chamber serves the purpose. The various mechanisms used in small-arms have been classified as follows: 1st, Fixed chamber; 2d, Movable chamber. The second class is now obsolete. The fixed chamber class is subdivided into--1st, Barrel moves; 2d, Breech-block moves. The first class comprises many of the shot-guns in use, the second, the best known of military arms. Under this latter class are the following subdivisions: 1st, Sliding block; 2d, Sliding and rotating; 3d, Rotating about an axis. We find excellent guns under each of these classes which are further subdivided as to the direction of the motions. The Sharps’ may be taken as typical of the first of these classes, the Hotchkiss magazine gun of the second, and the Springfield of the third.
A similar classification may be made for breech-loading devices in heavy ordnance, but the problem here is not so simple. The pressure is much greater, the masses of metal much larger, and the cartridge must be used without a case to check the gas. Breech-loaders were impossible until the problem of checking the gas had been solved. The inventor of the first successful gas-check was an American, L. W. Broadwell, now residing abroad. The term Broadwell ring has been applied to all similar devices. This is a steel ring which fits in a recess reamed out in the rear of the chamber and abutting upon the breech-block. The inside of the ring is so shaped as to be pressed by the gas outwards and backwards, thus closing both the space outside of the ring and between it and the block. Broadwell is also the inventor of a breech mechanism which, with a few modifications, is that used by Krupp for all of his guns. The breech-block slides horizontally through a rectangular slot in rear of the chamber. In the Armstrong breech-loader, the block called the vent-piece is taken out and put in through a rectangular orifice on the top of the gun. It is locked in place by a hollow breech-screw. The French use a breech-screw with the threads cut away in longitudinal rows. The female-screw being similarly arranged, a very small rotation enables it to be entirely withdrawn. Among American devices are Thompson’s, a breech-block which rolls to the side and opens or closes the bore. Sutcliffe’s, a cylindrical block, with its axis parallel to the one hanging on a pin projecting from the front periphery of the hollow screw. The block is raised and locked by turning the screw, and falls into a recess below when the screw is half turned back. Mann’s, in which the gun rotates upwards about the trunnions something like a shot-gun, and many others.
=Breech-pin.= A strong plug firmly screwed in at the breech of a musket or other fire-arm.
=Breech-sight.= In gunnery, an instrument having a graduated scale of tangents by means of which any elevation may be given to a piece. Correctly speaking, the breech-sight gives the angle made by the line of aim or sight with the axis of the piece. The base of the breech-sight is a plate of brass curved to fit the base-ring or line, the scale and slides are similar to those of the pendulum hausse except that a hole is made in the plate, instead of a notch to sight through. Breech-sights are graduated for no disparts, a front-sight equal in height to the dispart being screwed into the top of the muzzle; in the Rodman guns, into the seat provided for the purpose between the trunnions. Breech-sights are also frequently held in sockets, and when the front-sight is placed on the trunnion, the socket is on the side of the breech. The pendulum hausse (see HAUSSE) is a breech-sight used for field-guns to correct the error arising from difference of level in the wheels of the carriage. The Quinan breech-sight (invented by Lieut. W. R. Quinan, 4th U. S. Artillery) is an improvement on the pendulum hausse. It is fixed in a socket on the right side of the breech. The scale has a spirit-level, by means of which it is made vertical. The front sight is a short tube with cross-hairs fixed in it. The advantages claimed over the hausse are increased steadiness and accuracy.
=Bregenz=, or =Bregentz=. A town of Tyrol, Austria; it was occupied by the French in 1799.
=Breisach, Old.= A very old town of the grand duchy of Baden; taken by Ariovistus when he invaded Gaul. Being regarded as the key to the west of Germany, it was a prominent scene of action during the Thirty Years’ War, at the conclusion of which it was ceded to the French. During the next century it frequently changed masters, now belonging to France and now to Austria; its fortifications were destroyed by the French in 1744, and during the war of the Revolution, in 1793, part of the town was burned by them. In 1806 the French handed it over to the house of Baden.
=Breitenfeld.= A village and manor of Saxony, about 5 miles north of Leipsic. It is historically remarkable for three battles, fought on a plain in its neighborhood. The first of these, between the Swedes and the Imperialists, which was fought September 7, 1631, was of the highest importance to Europe, as it secured the permanency of Protestantism and the freedom of Germany. Tilly’s pride had reached its highest point after the fall of Magdeburg, which took place on May 20, 1631; and in the early part of September of the same year he advanced against the Saxons with an army of about 40,000 men for the purpose of forcing the elector, John George I., into an alliance with the emperor. Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, joined by the Saxons, advanced towards Leipsic, where Tilly lay, the latter advancing into the plain of Breitenfeld. The Imperial forces were completely defeated, and their three most distinguished generals, Tilly, Pappenheim, and Fürstenberg, wounded. The second battle which Breitenfeld witnessed again, resulted in the triumph of Swedish valor: it took place on October 23, 1642, between the Swedes, headed by Torstenson, one of the pupils of Gustavus, who had invested Leipsic, and the Archduke Leopold, with Gen. Piccolomini, who were advancing from Dresden to its relief. The Swedes gained a complete victory over the Imperialists, who fled into Bohemia, leaving behind them 46 cannon, 121 flags, 69 standards, and the whole of their baggage. The third battle of which Breitenfeld was the scene was fought on October 16-18, 1813. See LEIPSIC.
=Bremen= (Northern Germany). Said to have been founded in 788; in 1648 it was erected into a duchy and held by Sweden till 1712; it was taken possession of by Denmark in 1731, by whom it was ceded to Hanover; it was taken by the French in 1757, who were expelled by the Hanoverians in 1758; annexed by Napoleon to the French empire in 1810; its independence restored in 1813; its old franchises in 1815 It became a member of the North German Confederation in 1866.
=Brenneville= (Northwest France). Here Henry I. of England defeated Louis VI. of France, who had embraced the cause of William Clinton, son of Robert, duke of Normandy, August 20, 1119.
=Brenta.= A river which rises in Tyrol and flows, after a course of 90 miles, into the Adriatic Sea, at Porto di Brondolo. On the banks of this river the French twice defeated the Austrians in 1796.
=Brentford.= A county town of Middlesex, England. Here Edmund Ironside defeated the Danes, May, 1016. It was taken by Charles I., after a sharp fight, November 12, 1642.
=Brescelia=, or =Bregelia= (anc. Brixellum). A town on the right bank of the Po, in North Italy. Here the emperor Otho put himself to death in 69. On May 20, 1427, an army under Duke Philip Maria Visconti, of Milan, was here defeated by an army sent against him by the republic of Venice, under Francis Carmagnola.
=Brescia.= A town in Northern Italy (the ancient Brixia), became important under the Lombards, and suffered by the wars of the Italian republics, being attached to Venice. It was taken by the French under Gaston de Foix in 1512, when it is said 40,000 of the inhabitants were massacred. It surrendered to the Austrian general Haynau, March 30, 1849, on severe terms; annexed to Sardinia in 1859.
=Breslau.= Capital of the province of Silesia, Prussia; it was burnt by the Mongols in 1241, and conquered by Frederick II. of Prussia in January, 1741. A fierce battle took place here between the Austrians and Prussians, the latter under Prince Bevern, who was defeated November 22,1757. Breslau was taken, but was regained, December 21, the same year; besieged by the French, and surrendered to them January, 1807, and again in 1813.
=Bressuire.= A small town of France, department of Deux-Sèvres; it was fortified during the Middle Ages, and was captured from the English by the celebrated Du Guesclin in 1373; it was nearly destroyed during the wars of La Vendée.
=Brest.= A seaport in Northwestern France; besieged by Julius Cæsar, 54 B.C.; possessed by the English in 1378; given up to the Duke of Brittany in 1390. Lord Berkeley and a British fleet and army were repulsed here with dreadful loss in 1694. The magazine burnt to the value of some millions of pounds sterling, 1744; marine hospital, with 50 galley-slaves, burnt, in 1766; the magazine again destroyed by fire, July 10, 1784. England maintained a large blockading squadron off the harbor from 1793 to 1815, but with little injury to France. It is now a chief naval station of France, and from the fortifications and other vast works of late construction it is considered impregnable.
=Bretigny, Peace of.= Concluded with France, May 8, 1360, by which England retained Gascony and Guienne, and acquired other provinces; renounced her pretensions to Maine, Anjou, Touraine, and Normandy; was to receive 3,000,000 crowns, and to release King John, long a prisoner. The treaty not being carried out, the king remained and died in London.
=Breuci.= A powerful people of Pannonia, near the confluence of the Savus and the Danube, took an active part in the insurrection of the Pannonians and Dalmatians against the Romans, 6 A.D.
=Brevet.= An honorary rank conferred upon an officer, for meritorious services, above the rank he holds in his own corps. In the U. S. army rank by brevet is conferred, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, for “gallant actions or meritorious services.” A brevet rank gives no right of command in the particular corps to which the officer brevetted belongs, and can be exercised only by special assignment of the President. Officers while so serving under assignment are said to have local rank (which see).
=Brevet.= To confer rank or title upon by brevet.
=Brevetcy.= The rank or condition of a brevet.
=Bricole.= An improved kind of traces used by the French in drawing and manœuvring artillery; analogous to the old drag-rope, but having the addition of a leather strap or girdle with a buckle, to which the drag is affixed, and an iron ring and hook at the end to drag by.
=Bridge.= A structure usually of wood, stone, brick, or iron, erected over a river or other water-course, or over a ravine, railroad, etc., to make a continuous roadway from one bank to the other.
=Bridge.= In gunnery, two pieces of timber which go between the two transoms of a gun-carriage. Not used in the U. S. service.
=Bridge, Flying.= See PONTONS.
=Bridge, Trail.= See PONTONS.
=Bridge, Train.= See EQUIPAGE.
=Bridge, Trestle.= See TRESTLE BRIDGE.
=Bridges.= When a river is more than 4 feet in depth, or when its bottom is of mud or quicksand, recourse must be had either to ferrying by means of boats, rafts, etc., or to military bridges. The latter are always to be preferred when circumstances will permit their establishment.
Military bridges are composed of a roadway and its supports; the first consists of beams or balks reaching across the adjacent supports, and covered with plank called chess.
The supports, from which the bridge takes its name, may be either fixed, as trestles, gabions, carriages, piles, or floating, as pontons, boats of commerce, rafts, etc.
Ponton bridges are preferable to all others when a passage by main force or surprise is to be undertaken. They may be constructed on any stream of sufficient depth; they may be replaced by rafts when the velocity of the stream does not exceed 6 feet per second. In swifter currents the latter are unmanageable, drag their anchors, and are liable to destruction from floating bodies.
Trestle bridges may be constructed in rivers whose depth does not exceed 9 feet, and whose velocity is not more than 6 feet. They may be employed with advantage in rivers of moderate depth and gentle current, with hard, even bottoms. When the bed of the river is uneven the adjustment of the trestles to the bottom is very tedious, and if the current is rapid, almost impossible. When the bed is of mud or fine sand, the settlement of the legs is liable to be irregular.
Gabion bridges are used over marshes and shallow streams. They consist of gabions constructed in the ordinary way, and of a height necessary to give a level road; these are placed in rows perpendicular to the axis of the bridge, are filled with stones, or gravel, and are capped with a piece of timber on which the balks rest.
Pile bridges are superior in point of stability to all other military bridges, but requiring much labor and time in their construction; they are usually restricted to securing the communications in rear of the army.
=Bridge-head.= A fortification covering the extremity of a bridge nearest the enemy. The French term for the same is tête du pont.
=Bridle.= An instrument with which a horse is governed and restrained, consisting of a head-stall, a bit and reins, with other appendages, according to its particular form and uses.
=Bridle.= In gunnery, the piece in the interior of a gun-lock, which covers and holds in place the tumbler and sear, being itself held by the screws on which they turn.
=Bridle, Arm Protect.= The term for a guard used by the cavalry, which consists in having the sword-hilt above the helmet, the blade crossing the back of the head, with the point of the left shoulder, and the bridle-arm; its edge directed to the left and turned a little upwards, in order to bring the mounting in a proper direction to protect the hand.
=Bridoon.= The snaffle rein of a military bridle, which acts independently of the bit, at the pleasure of the rider.
=Brieg.= A town of Silesia, Prussia, about 27 miles from Breslau; it was taken by Frederick II., April 4, 1741; dismantled by the French in 1807.
=Briel=, =Brielle=, or =The Brill=. A fortified seaport town on the north side of the island of Voorne, Holland. It was the nucleus of the Dutch republic, having been taken from the Spaniards by William de la Marck in 1572. This event was the first act of open hostility to Philip II., and paved the way to the complete liberation of the country from a foreign yoke. Briel was the first town of Holland which, without extraneous aid, expelled the French in 1813. The celebrated admirals De Witt and Van Tromp were natives of this place.
=Brienne=, or =Brienne le Château=. A town of France, department of the Aube. It has a fine castle, but it is chiefly celebrated as the place where Napoleon received the rudiments of his military education, and where, in 1814, a bloody battle was fought between the French and the allied forces of Russia and Prussia.
=Brier Creek.= In Warren Co., Ga. An American force 2000 strong, under Gen. Ashe, was defeated on this creek by the English under Prevost, March 4, 1779.
=Brigade.= A body of troops, whether cavalry, artillery, or infantry, or a mixed command, consisting of two or more regiments, under the command of a brigadier-general. Two or more brigades constitute a division, commanded by a major-general; two or more divisions constitute an army corps, or corps d’armée, the largest body of troops in the organization of the U. S. army.
=Brigade.= To form into a brigade, or into brigades.
=Brigade.= In the British service the artillery is divided into brigades, which consist of seven batteries each, under the command of a colonel. The Household Brigade is composed of the Horse Guards, Life Guards, and Foot Guards.
=Brigade-Inspector.= An officer whose duty it is to inspect troops in companies before they are mustered into the service.
=Brigade-Major.= An officer appointed to assist the general commanding a brigade in all his duties.
=Brigadier-General.= An officer in rank next above a colonel and below a major-general. He commands a brigade; and this officer is sometimes called simply brigadier.
=Brigand.= A species of irregular foot soldiers, frequently mentioned by Froissart. From their plundering propensities comes the modern use of the term.
=Brigandine=, or =Brigantine=. A coat of mail, consisting of thin, jointed scales of plate, pliant and easy to the body.
=Brigantes.= The most powerful of the British tribes, inhabited the whole of the north of the island from the Abus (now Humber) to the Roman wall, with the exception of the southeast corner of Yorkshire. They were conquered by Petilius Cerealis in the reign of Vespasian. There was also a tribe of this name in the south of Ireland.
=Brignais= (anc. Priscinniacum). An ancient fortress in France, department of the Rhone; it was captured in 1361 by bodies of adventurers, called Grandes Compagnies. Prince Jacques de Bourbon made an effort to dislodge them, but was completely defeated, and died of wounds received upon this occasion.
=Brihuega.= A town of New Castile, Spain; it was formerly surrounded by walls, of which traces still exist. Here, in 1710, during the War of the Succession, the English general Stanhope, owing to the dilatoriness of his allies in affording him support, was defeated by the Duke of Vendôme, and compelled to surrender with all his force, amounting to about 5500 men.
=Brindisi= (anc. Brundisium). A fortified seaport of Italy, on a small bay of the Adriatic; it was the usual place of embarkation for Greece and the East; taken by the Romans from the Sallentines in 267 B.C., and was afterwards the principal naval station of the Romans on the Adriatic. During the civil war between Cæsar and Pompey, this place was invested by Cæsar in 49 B.C.
=Brins d’Est= (Fr.). Large sticks or poles resembling small pickets, with iron at each end. They were used to cross ditches, particularly in Flanders.
=Brise-mur= (Fr.). A heavy piece of ordnance which was used during the 15th century to batter down walls, etc.
=Brissarthe.= A village of France, department of Maine-et-Loire. Here the Normans were defeated in 886 by Robert the Strong.
=Bristol= (West England). Built by Brennus, a British prince, 380 B.C.; is mentioned in 430 as a fortified city; taken by the Earl of Gloucester in his defense of his sister Maud, the empress, against King Stephen, 1138; taken by Prince Rupert, 1643; by Cromwell, 1645.
=Brisure.= In fortification, any part of a rampart or parapet which deviates from the general direction.
=Britain= (called by the Romans Britannia, from the Celtic name Prydhain). The Celts, the ancestors of the Britons and modern Welsh, were the first inhabitants of Britain; it is referred to by Herodotus, 450 B.C.; invaded by Julius Cæsar, 55-54 B.C.; Aulus Plautus and Vespasian reduced South Britain, 47. Romans defeated by Boadicea; 70,000 slain, and London burnt; she is defeated by Suetonius; 80,000 slain, 61. Agricola, governor, conquers Anglesea, and overruns Britain in seven campaigns, and reforms the government, 78-84. He defeats the Caledonians under Galgacus; surrenders the island, 84. The Romans held sway in Britain down to about 420, soon after which time the Saxons invaded South Britain, and ultimately subdued it. It was merged into the kingdom of England about 829. See ENGLAND.
=Britain, Great.= The name given in 1604 to England, Wales, and Scotland.
=Briteste.= A small town of France, in the old province of Guienne; besieged by the Duke of Vendôme in 1622, who was compelled to retreat, without accomplishing his object, after firing 2000 shots; he made five assaults and lost 1500 men.
=British Legion.= Raised by Lord John Hay, Colonel De Lacy Evans, and others, to assist the queen of Spain against the Carlists in 1835; defeated them at Hernani, May 5, 1836, and at St. Sebastian’s, October 1.
=Brittany=, or =Bretagne= (Northwest France). The ancient Armorica. Conquered by Julius Cæsar, 56 B.C. Brittany was formerly united to the monarchy, 1532; held by the Spaniards, 1591; recovered by Henry IV., 1594. The Bretons took part in the Vendean insurrection in 1791.
=Brixham.= A seaport town in the county of Devon, England. Here William III. (of Orange) landed in England on November 6, 1688.
=Brizure=, =Brizé=, or =Brisé=. Terms used in heraldry to indicate that a charge is bruised or broken.
=Broad-axe.= A military weapon used in ancient times.
=Broadsword.= Is a sword with a broad blade, for cutting only, not for stabbing, and therefore not sharp at the point like a sabre.
=Broadwell Ring.= A gas-check for use in heavy breech-loading guns, invented by L. W. Broadwell. See BREECH MECHANISM.
=Brod= (Slavonian). A military frontier fortress of Austria, on the Save, defended by a fort. Here Ziska defeated the emperor Sigismund in 1422.
=Broke.= Sentence of a court-martial depriving an officer of his commission, or a non-commissioned officer or warrant-officer of his warrant. Also said of a non-commissioned officer being reduced by order.
=Brondolo.= A fortified village of Northern Italy, on the Brenta-Nuova; it was formerly a flourishing town; destroyed by the Genoese in 1380.
=Broni.= A town of Redmont, in the province of Alessandria, about 11 miles southeast of Pavia. In its vicinity is the castle of Broni, celebrated in history as the place where Prince Eugène obtained a victory over the French in 1703.
=Bronnitza.= A town of Russia, in the government of Novgorod, on the Masta. Here the Swedes defeated the Russians in 1614.
=Bronze.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR, BRONZE.
=Bronze.= Gun-barrels are bronzed by acting upon them with the chloride or butter of antimony, or with hydrochloric or nitric acids, when the surface of the iron gets partially eaten into, and covered with a thin film of oxide, after which the gun-barrel is thoroughly cleaned, oiled, and burnished. A brownish shade is thus communicated to the barrel, which protects it from rust, and at the same time renders it less conspicuous to an enemy.
=Brooke Gun.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF.
=Brooklyn.= A city and seaport of the United States, at the extremity of Long Island, opposite New York City. In 1776 this part of Long Island was one of the principal localities of the war of independence. Here on August 27, 1776, was fought the first great battle of the Revolutionary war after the Declaration of Independence. The American army occupied Manhattan, Governor’s, and Long Islands, a large force being placed by Washington under the command of Gen. Greene in a fortified camp extending from Wallabout Bay to Gowanus Cove. Unfortunately, Gen. Greene was taken sick, and four days before the battle the command was given to Gen. Putnam. On August 22 the British forces under Lord Howe landed and encamped at the western point of Long Island. About midnight on the 26th the British attacked the American left, and about daybreak on the 27th the Hessians under Von Heister attacked the centre, and were met bravely by the American forces; but an important pass through the hills on their right, called the Jamaica Pass, being left unguarded, a select body of English troops poured through, followed by Percy and Cornwallis with the main army, and, attacking them from the flank and rear, drove the patriots in confusion with heavy loss. On the night of the 29th, Washington succeeded, under cover of a dense fog, in withdrawing all his troops from Brooklyn to New York, and finding it impossible to defend that city, he removed his forces to the heights of Harlem. During the civil war Brooklyn was not surpassed by any city in her zeal for the cause of the Union.
=Brother Officers.= Those of the same regiment.
=Brother Soldier.= See SOLDIER.
=Brownbill.= The ancient weapon of the English foot soldiers, resembling a battle-axe.
=Browning.= See BRONZE.
=Bruges.= A city in Belgium. In the 7th century it was the capital of Flanders, and in the 13th and 14th centuries had become almost the commercial metropolis of the world. It suffered much through an insurrection in 1488, and the consequent repression. It was incorporated with France in 1794, with the Netherlands in 1814, and with Belgium in 1830.
=Brumaire.= A division of the year in the calendar of the French Republic. It is derived from the Latin bruma, “winter,” and included the time from October 23 to November 21. The celebrated 18th Brumaire, which witnessed the overthrow of the Directory and the establishment of the sway of Napoleon, corresponds with November 9, 1799, of the Gregorian calendar.
=Brunanburg= (supposed by some to be near Ford, Northumberland, England). Anlaf, with an army of Northmen from Ireland, and Constantine III., king of Scots, landed at the mouth of the Humber, and were defeated with very great slaughter at Brunanburg by Athelstan in 937.
=Brunette, La.= An ancient fortress of Piedmont; dismantled by the French in 1798.
=Brünn.= Capital of Moravia. Its citadel was blockaded by the Hungarians in 947; the town was besieged by the Swedes in 1645, and by the Prussians in 1742; entered by the French under Murat, November 18, 1805, and by the Prussians, July 13, 1866.
=Brunswick.= A city of Germany, the capital of a duchy of the same name. It was formerly fortified; besieged in 1761, and a combat took place under its walls in 1813.
=Brunt.= The troops who sustain the principal shock of the enemy in action are said to bear the brunt of the battle.
=Bruttium= (now Calabria Ultra). In Southern Italy; the Bruttians and Lucanians defeated and slew Alexander of Epirus at Pandosia, 326 B.C. They were conquered by Rome 277 B.C.
=Brüx=, or =Brix=. A town of Bohemia, on the river Bila. Here the Prussians defeated the Austrians in 1759.
=Bruyeres-sous-Laon.= A town of France, in the department of the Aisne. It was captured and pillaged by the Normans in 882; sacked by the English in 1358 and 1373; Jean de Luxembourg took possession of it in 1433, and the Calvinists in 1567.
=Brzesc Litewski.= A fortified town of Russia, in the government of Grodno. Here the Russians defeated the Poles in 1794. The Poles were 13,000 strong, out of which 500 were taken prisoners, 300 escaped, and the remainder fell on the field of battle.
=Buccellarii.= An order of soldiery under the Greek emperors, appointed to guard and distribute the ammunition bread, though authors are somewhat divided as to their office and quality.
=Bucephalus.= The celebrated horse of Alexander the Great, which no one could ride except that monarch, and which is said to have carried Alexander through all his Indian campaigns. He died about 327 B.C., and Alexander built the city of Bucephala, on the Hydaspes, in his honor.
=Bucharest.= The capital of Wallachia; preliminaries of peace were ratified at this place between Russia and Turkey, May 28, 1812. The subsequent war between these powers altered many of the provisions of this treaty. Bucharest was occupied by the Russians, Turks, and Austrians successively in the Crimean war. The last quitted it in 1856.
=Buck and Ball.= A cartridge for small-arms. See CARTRIDGE, BUCK-AND-BALL.
=Buck-board.= A simple four-wheeled vehicle, consisting of a board resting on the axle-trees, forming a spring seat by its elasticity.
=Buckler.= A kind of shield or piece of defensive armor, anciently used in war. It was often 4 feet long, and covered the whole body.
=Buckshot.= A small leaden bullet, weighing about 165 to the pound.
=Buda=, or =Ofen=. A free city of the Austrian empire, on the west bank of the Danube, opposite Pesth, and with it the capital of Hungary. It was taken by Charlemagne in 799; and sacked by Solyman II. after the battle of Mohatz, when the Hungarian king, Louis, was killed, and 200,000 of his subjects carried away captives, 1526. Buda was sacked a second time, when the inhabitants were put to the sword, and Hungary was annexed to the Ottoman empire, 1541. Retaken by the Imperialists, under the Duke of Lorraine, and the Mohammedans delivered up to the fury of the soldiers, 1686. It suffered much in 1848, and was entered without resistance by the Austrians, January 5, 1849. Here the emperor Francis Joseph was crowned king of Hungary, June 8, 1867. See PESTH.
=Buderich.= A town of Rhenish Prussia, on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite Wesel. Here the Duke of Lorraine was defeated by the emperor Otho I. It was taken by the French in 1672; burned by the French in 1813.
=Budge-barrel.= A small barrel with only one head; on the other end a piece of leather is nailed, which is drawn together with a string, like a purse. It is used for carrying powder from the magazine to the battery, in siege or coast service.
=Buena Vista.= A celebrated battle-field of Mexico, situated about 90 miles southwest of Monterey and 7 miles from Saltillo, famous for the victory gained there by an American force not 5000 strong, under Gen. Zachary Taylor, over a Mexican army four times their number under Santa Anna, February 22-23, 1847. Gen. Taylor, on the way from Victoria to Monterey, having learned that Santa Anna was threatening him with an overwhelming force, decided to withdraw his troops from their camp at Agua Nueva to a position more favorable for withstanding a superior force, which had been selected a little south of the small village of Buena Vista, at a point where the road passed through a mountain gorge called Angostura. Accordingly, on the afternoon of February 21, the camp at Agua Nueva was broken up, and Santa Anna, believing the American forces were retreating, eagerly pursued them until he was drawn into their chosen position. After a useless summons to surrender, on the afternoon of the 22d the Mexicans opened the attack on the American left, but they made no impression, while they suffered severe loss. During the night the Mexicans occupied a position on the heights to the east of the American lines with the intention of forcing their left flank, and it was here that the fighting commenced on the 23d, and continued during the day with varying success, finally resulting in the repulse of the enemy. Meanwhile a force of Mexican cavalry had been detached to attack the American camp at Buena Vista, but was gallantly repulsed. The final attack was made against the American centre--where Gen. Taylor commanded in person--by Santa Anna himself, with his entire reserve, but he was met with such a deadly fire from the American batteries that he was obliged to draw off his much-diminished forces, and during the night he fell back to Agua Nueva. The American loss in killed and wounded was about 700; the Mexicans lost about 2000.
=Buenos Ayres.= A province of the Argentine Republic, with a capital of the same name. A British fleet and army took the city with slight resistance, June 27, 1806; retaken August 12, 1806. Gen. Whitelock and 8000 British entered Buenos Ayres, and were severely repulsed, July 5, 1807; independence of the province declared July 19, 1816; a prey to civil war for many years. It seceded from the Argentine Republic in 1853, and was reunited to it in June, 1860.
=Buffalo.= See PACK AND DRAUGHT ANIMALS.
=Buffalora.= A town of Italy, on the river Ticino. In its environs in 1636, the French and Spanish armies met in combat, in which the former were victorious. There is a bridge at this place crossing the Ticino, over which a division of the invading army of Austria marched, April 29, 1859. This was the first act of overt hostility in the war between Austria and Sardinia.
=Buff Coat.= A close military outer garment, with short sleeves, and laced tightly over the chest, made of buffalo-skin, or other thick and elastic material, worn by soldiers in the 17th century as a defensive covering.
=Buffer, Pneumatic.= See AIR CYLINDERS.
=Buffers.= See HURTER.
=Buff Jerkin.= Originally a leathern waist-coat; afterwards one of a buff color, worn as an article of dress by sergeants and catchpoles; used also as a dress.
=Buff Leather.= A sort of leather prepared from the buffalo, which, dressed with oil, makes what is generally called buff-skin. In European armies, troopers’ breeches, shoulder-belts, and sword-belts are made of this leather.
=Buff Stick.= A wooden stick covered with buff leather, used by soldiers in cleaning their equipments.
=Bugle-horn=, or =Bugle=. The old Saxon horn, now used by all infantry regiments. By its soundings their manœuvres are directed, either in advancing, skirmishing, or retreating.
=Bugler.= One who plays a bugle.
=Built-up Guns.= See ORDNANCE.
=Bukors.= Kettle-drums of the Swedish cavalry.
=Bulgaria.= Anciently Mœsia, now part of European Turkey. The Bulgarians were a Slavonian tribe, who harassed the Eastern empire and Italy from 499 to 678, when they established a kingdom. They defeated Justinian II., 687; but were subdued, after several conflicts, by the emperor Basil in 1018. After defeating them in 1014, having taken 15,000 Bulgarian prisoners, he caused their eyes to be put out, leaving one eye only to every hundredth man, to enable him to conduct his countrymen home. The kingdom was re-established in 1086; but after many changes, was annexed to the Ottoman empire, 1396.
=Bull.= A fort which the English possessed in Canada, and which constituted one of their military depots; it was captured by the French, March 27, 1756.
=Bulletin.= A brief statement of facts respecting some passing events, as military operations, etc.
=Bullet-mold.= An implement containing a cavity of the proper shape into which lead is poured to form a bullet.
=Bullet-proof.= Capable of resisting the force of a bullet.
=Bullets.= Are projectiles of lead to be discharged from various kinds of small-arms. The first bullets used were round, and were designated by the number weighing one pound. The sizes employed were very large. Until quite recently the round ball still held its place with rifles and smooth-bores. Various devices were used for making it take the grooves of the rifle,--a guard-patch being among the best. (See SMALL-ARMS.) It was with this that the early settlers of America won their reputation as marksmen. Robins, in 1742, showed the superiority of the conical form, but it was not till about 1840 that round balls were generally discarded. The conical bullet was often used in grooves with an increasing twist, and gave wonderfully accurate results at short range. For long ranges, long bullets are necessary, and these require uniform twists, which are now generally used in military arms. Various forms of the elongated bullets were used. Most of these bullets had an expansive base, either hollow or plugged with wood; the design being to force the soft lead outward, so as to cause it to fit the grooves of the rifle, and thus give the bullet a rotation around its long axis during the motion forward. (See SMALL-ARMS.) This rotation, as is well known, increases the range and precision. Bullets were formerly cast, but now they are more frequently stamped in steel dies, and, as in breech-loading arms, the bullet takes the grooves by compression; the exploding base is omitted. The form of bullet now used in military arms is the cylindrical conoidal. The tendency recently has been to reduce the caliber. (See PROJECTILES.) Copper bullets are used by the Circassians. Bullets of stone were used in 1514; iron ones are mentioned in the Fœdera, 1550, and leaden ones were made before the close of the 16th century.
=Bullets, Explosive.= Oblong bullets carrying a percussion-cap on the front end and sometimes containing a small charge of powder in a cavity, used to blow up caissons and magazines. There is a strong sentiment against the use of these bullets in firing at troops.
=Bullets, Express-.= An explosive bullet of great killing power, used in hunting large game. It is of large caliber but quite light, being much shorter than the ordinary rifle-bullet. A cylindrical cavity bored in at the point carries a small metallic cartridge-case filled with powder. It is fired with a large charge of powder, which, owing to its lack of weight, gives it a high initial velocity and a very flat trajectory up to about 200 yards, obviating the necessity for an elevating sight. The Winchester Express-bullet (a good type of those made in America) has a caliber of .50, weighs 300 grains, and is fired with 95 grains of powder, giving an initial velocity of 1640 feet. It is made of pure lead, the softness of which increases its deadliness. The shock from this bullet will bring down the largest game. See EXPRESS-RIFLE.
=Bullets, Grooved.= Bullets having grooves, or cannelures. These grooves were originally used to increase the relative resistance of the air on the rear of the bullet, thus assisting the rotation in keeping the point to the front. In muzzle-loading arms they also increased the setting up of the bullet to take the grooves. They are now used to hold the lubricant, and to facilitate the swaging action of the grooves and lands in breech-loading guns. For the other form of modern bullets, see BULLETS, PATCHED.
=Bullets, Patched.= One of the forms of modern rifle-bullets. The bullet has wrapped around its cylindrical portion a layer of thin paper called the patch. The bullet is perfectly smooth. The other form has grooves, or cannelures. (See BULLETS, GROOVED.) The lubricant for the patched bullet is a greased wad or disk of wax, placed between powder and bullet. The grooved bullet, carrying its own lubricant, is best adapted to shallow lands and grooves. The patched bullet to sharp lands. The grooved bullet would seem to be the best for military service, as the cartridge-case can be tightly crimped upon it, making the case waterproof. For very long range the best shooting has been done with patched bullets.
=Bullets, Percussion-.= See BULLETS, EXPLOSIVE.
=Bullock.= See PACK AND DRAUGHT ANIMALS.
=Bull Run Battles.= See MANASSAS.
=Bull’s-eye.= In gunnery and archery, is the centre of a target.
=Bulwark.= In fortification, a rampart or bastion; an outwork for defense; that which secures against an enemy; a shelter or means of protection.
=Bunker Hill.= A hill in Charlestown, now part of Boston, Mass., which gave its name to the first important battle of the American Revolution. The Americans learning that Gen. Gage, who was in command of the British forces in Boston, intended to fortify Bunker Hill, determined to forestall his design, and for this purpose a detachment of 1000 men under Col. Prescott was ordered on the night of June 16, 1775, to throw up a breastwork on the hill. After a consultation, however, it was decided to fortify instead another eminence which was nearer to Boston, known as Breed’s Hill. During the night they worked with such activity that by daybreak a strong redoubt was nearly completed. Upon its discovery by the British on the morning of the 17th, they opened fire on it from the ships in the harbor, and Gen. Gage sent about 3000 men under Howe and Pigot to attack it. They landed under cover of the fire from the guns, and setting fire to Charlestown, advanced to the attack. The Americans awaited their approach in silence until the whites of their eyes could be seen, then poured a deadly fire into their ranks, causing them to retreat in disorder. They were rallied by Howe, and again advanced over the same ground with a like result as on the first attack. Clinton now arrived with reinforcements, and an attack was made on three sides of the redoubt at once. The ammunition of the Americans being now exhausted they met their assailants with clubbed muskets, but the superiority of the British in numbers being so great, Col. Prescott ordered a retreat. This was effected across Charlestown Neck, where they were exposed to a galling fire from the ships in the harbor. During the retreat Gen. Warren was killed, and the Bunker Hill monument erected to commemorate this engagement now stands near the spot where he fell. The British loss was over 1000 killed and wounded; the Americans lost less than half that number.
=Bureaux.= See Military Departments throughout this work under appropriate headings.
=Buren.= A town of Switzerland, canton of Berne. It was the scene of several combats. The Spaniards under Gilles de Barlemont took possession of it in 1575.
=Burford.= A town in the county of Oxford, England. It is celebrated for a battle fought between Cuthred, king of the West Saxons, and Ethelbald, king of the Mercians; and for a victory by Fairfax in 1649 over the army of Charles I. at Edgehill, in its vicinity.
=Burganet=, or =Burgonet=. A kind of helmet used by the French.
=Burgos.= A city of Spain, capital of the new province of the same name, was founded in 844; sacked by the French in 1808; in 1812 the castle was four times unsuccessfully besieged by Wellington, who, however, took it in the following year, when the French blew it up, as well as the fortifications.
=Burguete.= A town of Navarre, Spain. Here the army of Charlemagne was defeated in 778.
=Burgundy.= A large province in France, derives its name from the Burgundians, a Gothic tribe who overran Gaul in 275, but were driven out by the Emperor Probus; they returned in 287, and were defeated by Maximin. In 413 they established a kingdom, comprising the present Burgundy, large parts of Switzerland, with Alsace, Savoy, Provence, etc., Gondicaire, their leader, the first king. It was conquered by the Franks, 534. Annexed to France, 1477.
=Burhampoor.= A town of Hindostan, in the province of Bengal. It is one of the military stations of the British government; and the cantonments, consisting of a grand square inclosing a fine parade ground, command the notice of the traveler. It was captured by the English troops under Col. Stevenson in 1803.
=Burial Honors.= See FUNERAL HONORS.
=Burich.= A small town in the circle of Lower Rhine; its fortifications were burned by the French in 1672.
=Burkersdorf.= A village of Austria, where a combat took place between the Prussians and Austrians, July 21, 1762, in which the former were victorious.
=Burley.= The butt end of a lance.
=Burlington Heights.= Here a fierce contest took place between the British and the U. S. forces, June 6, 1813. The British carried the heights.
=Burmah=, =Burma=, or =Birmah=. Also called the Burmese empire, or kingdom of Ava, formerly the most extensive and powerful state in Farther India. The most celebrated ruler of the country was Alompra, the founder of the present dynasty, who reigned about the middle of the 18th century. The Burmese became involved in a war with the English 1824-26, which terminated in the curtailment of their power and the loss of several provinces.
=Burning, Quickness of.= The relative quickness of two different powders may be determined by burning a train laid in a circular or other groove which returns into itself, one-half of the groove being filled with each kind of powder, and fire communicated at one of the points of meeting of the two trains; the relative quickness is readily deduced from observation of the point at which the flames meet.
=Burnish.= In a military sense, is to give a peculiar lustre to a gun-barrel or other part of a rifle by rubbing it with a piece of steel. It is generally forbidden as injurious to the gun.
=Burque= (Fr.). A kind of cuirass which was worn with the brigantine.
=Burr.= In gunnery, a round iron ring, which serves to rivet the end of the bolt, so as to form a round head.
=Burrel-shot.= Small shot, nails, stones, pieces of old iron, etc., put into cases to be discharged from any piece of ordnance. Very seldom used.
=Bursting.= The simplest method of bursting open strong gates is, to explode a bag of gunpowder containing 50 or 60 pounds suspended near the middle of the gate upon a nail or gimlet, by means of a small piece of port-fire inserted at the bottom, and well secured with twine.
=Busaco.= A hamlet in the province of Beira, Portugal. Here the British under Wellington repulsed an attack of the French under Masséna, September 27, 1810. The French lost about 4000 killed and wounded; the English loss did not exceed 1300.
=Busby.= A military coiffure, or cap, or bear-skin; the French colbach.
=Bushiere= (on the Persian Gulf). Attacked by sea by Sir H. Leeke, and by land by Gen. Stalker, was taken December 10, 1856. The place proved stronger than was expected, and was bravely defended.
=Bushing a Gun.= Inserting a piece of metal about an inch in diameter (near the bottom of the bore) through the centre of which the vent has been previously drilled. It is screwed in. The object of bushing a piece is to prevent deterioration of the vent, or provide a new one, when this has already occurred. In bronze pieces pure copper is always used in bushing, as it is not so liable to run from heat as gun-metal. Only rifled and bronze pieces are bushed.
=Bushwhackers.= This term was used during the civil war to designate a class of men who claimed to be non-combatants in the presence of a superior force, and who, to outward appearance, pursued their peaceful avocations, but who did not hesitate, when an opportunity offered, to slay stragglers, and pick off soldiers from ambush. When caught in the commission of such acts they were treated with merciless severity.
=Buskins.= A kind of shoe, or half-boot, adapted to either foot, formerly part of the Roman dress. They are now worn by some European armies.
=Butin= (Fr.). Booty or pillage. At the beginning of the French monarchy, and for a long time after its establishment, a particular spot was marked out by the prince or general, to which all persons belonging to the victorious army were directed to bring every species of booty that might have fallen into their hands. This booty was not divided, or appropriated according to the will and pleasure of the prince or general, but was thrown into different lots, and drawn for in common. The soldiers who distributed these spoils were called Butiniers.
=Butler Projectile.= See PROJECTILE.
=Butrinto.= A fortified maritime town of European Turkey, opposite Corfu. The town and fortress are of Venetian construction; taken by the French from the Venetians in 1797.
=Butt.= In gunnery, is a solid earthen parapet, to fire against in the proving of guns, or in practice.
=Butt=, or =Butt-end=. That extremity of a musket which rests against the shoulder when the piece is brought up to a position of firing.
=Button.= In gunnery, is a part of the cascabel, in either a gun or howitzer, and is the hind part of the piece, made round in the form of a ball.
=Buttress.= A sustaining wall at right angles to the main wall, which it is intended to strengthen.
=Buxar.= A town in Bengal near which, on October 23, 1764, Major, afterwards Sir Hector, Munro (with 857 Europeans and 6215 Sepoys) gained a great victory over the troops of the nabob of Oude, 40,000 in number; 6000 of these were killed, and 130 pieces of cannon taken.
=Byblos.= An ancient town of Egypt, on the Delta of the Nile. Here the Athenians sustained a memorable siege against the Persians, 456 B.C.
=Byrnie.= Early English for body-armor.
=Byssa.= An ancient cannon for throwing stones.
=Byzantium.= See CONSTANTINOPLE.
C.
=Cabas= (Fr.). A basket made of rushes, used in ancient Languedoc and Rousillon, for the purpose of conveying stores and ammunition.
=Cabasset=, =Cabacet=, or =Capacète=. A kind of helmet, lighter than the morion, terminating in a rounded top. It was also called Cervelière, because it only covered the upper part of the head.
=Cabeira= (Asia Minor). Here Mithridates, king of Pontus, was defeated by Lucullus, 71 B.C.
=Cabell Court-house.= See BARBOURSVILLE.
=Cabezon de la Sal.= A town of Spain, in the province of Valladolid. It is celebrated as the scene of one of the first battles of the Peninsular campaign, in which the Spaniards were signally defeated by the French.
=Caboched=, or =Cabossed=. A heraldic term from the old French word caboche, “head.” When the head of an animal is borne without any part of the neck, and exhibited full in face, it is said to be caboched.
=Cabrera.= One of the Balearic Islands, 10 miles south of Majorca. Celebrated in the annals of war for the number of French prisoners who were there decimated by hunger, disease, and other physical and mental tortures.
=Cabul=, or =Cabool=. A city of Afghanistan, taken by Subuctajeen, grandfather of Mohammed, founder of the Gaznevide dynasty, and by Nâdir Shah in 1738. In 1809, the sovereign Shah Soojah was expelled by Futleh Khan; and in 1818, Cabul came into the hands of Dost Mohammed, a clever and ambitious chieftain. In 1839, the British restored Shah Soojah; but in November, 1841, a dreadful outbreak took place. The British civil officer, Sir William McNaughten, was massacred, and the British commenced a most disastrous retreat. Of about 3849 soldiers, and about 12,000 camp-followers, only one European, Dr. Dryden, and four or five natives escaped. In the same year (September 16), General, afterwards Sir George, Pollock retook the town, and rescued Lady Sale and many of the prisoners. After destroying many public buildings he left Cabul, October 12, 1842.
=Cabule= (Fr.). A machine of war, used during the 12th century to throw stones, etc.
=Cache.= A hidden reservoir of provision (to secure it from bears) in Arctic travel. Also, a deposit of dispatches, etc.
=Cadence.= A uniform time and pace in marching, indispensable to the correct movements of bodies of troops.
=Cadency, Marks of.= In heraldry, are marks on the shields of younger members of families, by which they are distinguished from the elder and from each other.
=Cadet, Military= (Fr. cadet, “younger,” “junior”). Is a youth studying for the military service in a school established for military training, such as the Military Academy at West Point, N. Y., the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, England, the Polytechnic School at Paris, etc. (See MILITARY ACADEMIES.) There are also medical and engineer cadets, who are youths undergoing special instruction for the public service in the several professions implied by their names.
=Cadetship.= The rank or commission of a cadet; as, to get a cadetship.
=Cadiz= (anc. Gades). A fortified maritime city of Spain, in the province of the same name. The Carthaginians became masters of Cadiz during the first Punic war, but the Romans obtained possession of it in 206 B.C. It was taken and pillaged by the Earl of Essex in 1596, and was blockaded in 1656 by Admiral Blake, who captured two rich galleons. It was besieged by the French from February, 1810, until August, 1812. Captured by the Duc d’Angoulême, October 3, 1823, and held till 1828; declared a free port in 1829.
=Cadore.= A town of Venice, 22 miles northeast from Belluno. This place stands on the Piave, and is distinguished as the birthplace of Titian. In 1797 the French obtained a victory over the Austrians near this town.
=Caen.= A city of France, in Normandy. A place of importance before 912, when it became the capital of the possessions of the Normans, under whom it flourished. It was taken by the English in 1346 and 1417; but was finally recovered by the French, July 1, 1450. Here were buried William the Conqueror (1087) and his queen (1083).
=Caernarvon.= A town in North Wales. In the castle (founded in 1283 or 1284) Edward II. was born, April 25, 1284; and the town was chartered by Edward I. in the same year. The town suffered by the civil war of Charles, but was finally retained for the Parliament.
=Caffa=, =Kaffa=, or =Theodosia=. A town in European Russia, in the Crimea, at the end of a large bay on the northern shore of the Black Sea. In 1770 the Russians took this place by assault, and in 1774 it was ceded with the rest of the Crimea to the khan of Tartary, who made it his residence.
=Caffraria=, and =Caffre War=. See KAFFRARIA.
=Cahors.= A town of France, capital of the department of Lot. It is supposed to have been the capital of the Cadurca, before the conquest of Gaul. It was captured by assault in 1580, by Henry IV.
=Caic.= See CAIQUE.
=Caiffa.= See KAIFFA.
=Cai-fong.= In China, capital of Honan, on the right bank of the Hoang-ho. It was besieged by 100,000 rebels in 1642. The commander of the relieving forces, in order to drown the enemy, broke down the embankments of the river. It is said all the besiegers and 300,000 of the citizens perished.
=Cairo=, or =Grand Cairo=. The modern capital of Egypt, partially built by the Saracens in 969; it is surrounded by stone walls which are surmounted with antique battlements; taken by the Turks from the Egyptian sultans, 1517; taken by the French under Napoleon Bonaparte; they entered the city July 23, 1798; captured by the British and Turks, when 6000 French capitulated, June 27, 1801; massacre of the Mamelukes, March 1, 1811.
=Caisson.= In gunnery, is a carriage used for conveying ammunition for a field battery. It is a four-wheeled carriage, consisting of two parts, one of which is a limber similar to that of a gun-carriage, and connected in a similar way by a wooden stock and lunette. On the axle-body of the rear part, and parallel to the stock, are placed three rails upon which are fastened two ammunition-boxes, one behind the other, and similar to the one on the limber; so that the caisson has three ammunition-boxes, which will seat nine cannoneers. The interior compartments of the ammunition-boxes vary according to the nature of the ammunition with which they are loaded. In the rear of the last box is placed a spare wheel-axle of iron, with a chain and toggle at the end of it. On the rear end of the middle rail is placed a carriage-hook similar to a pintle-hook, to which the lunette of a gun-carriage whose limber has become disabled may be attached, and the gun carried off the field. The caisson has the same turning capacity and mobility as the gun-carriage, so that it can follow the piece in all its manœuvres, if necessary. It also carries a spare wheel, spare pole, etc. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, THE CAISSON.
=Cake-powder.= See GUNPOWDER.
=Caking.= To prevent powder caking, the barrels should be taken outside the magazine and rolled on boards.
=Calabozo.= A town of Venezuela, South America; it was captured by Bolivar, 1820.
=Calabria= (anc. Messapia). A region of Southern Italy; it was conquered by the Romans 266 B.C. It formed part of the kingdom of the Ostrogoths under Theodoric, 493; was reconquered (for the Eastern empire) by Belisarius, 536; subdued by the Lombards and joined the duchy of Benevento, 572. After various changes, it was conquered by Robert Guiscard, the Norman, 1058.
=Calabuss.= An early kind of light musket with a wheel-lock. Bourne mentions it in 1578.
=Calagurris= (now Calahorra, Spain). A town of the Vascones and a Roman municipium in Hispania Tarraconensis, near the Iberus (Ebro), memorable for its adherence to Sertorius and for its siege by Pompey and his generals (78 B.C.), in the course of which mothers killed and salted their children.
=Calais.= A fortified seaport town of France, department of Pas-de-Calais, on the Strait of Dover. The town and harbor are defended by a castle and several forts, and can be rendered inaccessible by land by flooding the adjacent ground, which is low and marshy. It was taken by Edward III. after a year’s siege in August, 1347; retaken by the Duke of Guise, January, 1558. It was taken by the Spaniards, April, 1596; restored, 1598. Louis XVIII. landed here in 1814, after his exile.
=Calasiries=, or =Calosires=. One of the two divisions (the other being the Hermotybii) of the warrior-caste of Egypt. Their greatest strength was 250,000 men, and their chief abode in the western part of the Delta. They formed the king’s body-guard.
=Calatafimi.= A town of Sicily, province of Trapani. Here, in May, 1860, Garibaldi defeated the royalist troops under Gen. Landi.
=Calatañazor.= A small town of Spain in Old Castile. Here Al-Mansoor gained a great victory over the Christians in 1001.
=Calatayud.= A town of Spain, province of Saragossa. It was captured from the Moors by Alfonso of Aragon in 1118; taken from the descendants of Alfonso by the king of Castile in 1362.
=Calatrava, The Order of.= Was founded in 1158 by Sancho III. of Castile. For a long period the war against the Moors was carried on almost entirely by the knights of Calatrava. The knights bear a cross gules, fleur-de-lised with green, etc.
=Calcans.= The bucklers of the Turks were so called during the Middle Ages.
=Calcinato.= A town of Italy, on the river Chiese. The Duke of Vendôme here defeated the Austrians under Count de Reventlau in 1706.
=Calcium-light.= A brilliant light produced by projecting the oxyhydrogen flame upon a surface of lime. Called also the Drummond-light.
=Calcutta.= Capital of Bengal and British India; the first settlement of the English here was made in 1689. The town was attacked and taken by an army of 70,000 horse and foot and 400 elephants (146 of the British were crammed into the “Black-Hole prison,” a dungeon about 16 feet square, from whence 23 only came forth alive next day), June 20, 1756; it was retaken by Clive, January 2, 1757.
=Caldiero.= A village of Northern Italy. Here, just before the battle of Arcola, the French under Napoleon I. were repulsed by the Austrians under Alvinzi in 1796, and in 1805 were beaten under Masséna by the Archduke Charles.
=Caledonia.= The name given by the Romans to that part of Britain north of the Wall of Antoninus, and afterwards applied to the whole of the country now known as Scotland. The inhabitants were called Caledonii until about the beginning of the 4th century, when they began to be spoken of as Picts and Scots. In 84 they were defeated under their chief Galgacus by the Roman general Agricola, and a great part of the country was overrun by the Romans, who formed many encampments there; but the country was never reduced to a Roman province.
=Caliano.= A town of the Tyrol, Austria, on the left bank of the Adige. Here the Venetians were defeated by the Austrians in 1487.
=Caliber=, or =Calibre=. From the Latin qua librâ, “what pound,” applied first to the weight of a bullet, then to the diameter, which determined the diameter of the gun, now signifies the diameter of the bore of a cannon or any fire-arm, and is expressed in inches or fractional parts of an inch, as a 15-inch gun; a Springfield rifle, caliber .45. Cannon are sometimes also designated by the weight of metal which they throw, as a 24-pounder.
=Caliber-rule.= A gunner’s calipers; having two scales, to determine the weight of a ball from its diameter, and conversely.
=Calicut= (now Kolikod). A town in Southwestern India; the first Indian port visited by Vasco de Gama, May 20, 1498. It was seized by Hyder Ali, 1766, and taken by the English, 1790.
=California= (from the Spanish Caliente Fornalla, “hot furnace,” in allusion to the climate). Was discovered by Cortez in 1537; others say Cabrillo in 1542; and visited by Sir Francis Drake, who named it New Albion in 1579. The Spaniards established missionary and military stations in California, 1698; it became subject to Mexico in 1823; became independent in 1836; occupied by the army of the United States in 1846; ceded to the United States, 1848; admitted into the Union as a sovereign State, 1850.
=Caligæ.= A kind of half-boots worn by the Roman soldiers. These soldiers were sometimes called Caligati.
=Caliper-compass.= An instrument by which the bore of cannon, small-arms, etc., is measured; said to have been invented by an artificer of Nuremberg, 1540.
=Caliver.= A hand-gun or arquebuse; probably the old name for the match-lock or carabine.
=Call.= A military musical term, signifies a signal given by a trumpet, bugle, or drum.
=Callao.= A fortified seaport of Peru. Lord Cochrane gallantly cut out the “Esmeralda,” a Spanish ship-of-war, from under the guns of the fort in 1821. Its roadstead (the best on the Peruvian coast) was the scene of a combat between the Spaniards and the Independents; the Colombians took it in 1826. The attempt of the Spanish admiral Nuñez to bombard Callao on May 2, 1866, was defeated by the Peruvians.
=Calle, La.= A seaport on the coast of Algeria. The French, who possessed it before the revolution of 1789, lost it during that epoch; again occupied it in 1815, but lost it in 1827. It has been in the possession of the French since the conquest of Algeria.
=Callinger.= One of the hill-forts of Bundelcund. From its position and size, Callinger must at one time have been a place of great strength. It was stormed by the British in 1812.
=Calmar.= See KALMAR.
=Calones.= A term applied to menials of the Roman armies; also slaves belonging to the Roman soldiers, who followed their masters to the wars.
=Calore.= A river in Italy; on its banks the Romans (composed of slaves), commanded by Tiberius (Gracchus), defeated the Carthaginian general Hanno in 215. After the battle each Roman (slave) who could present the head of an enemy slain by him was granted his freedom.
=Calpee=, or =Kalpee=. A city of India, in Bundelcund, on the right bank of the river Jumna. It was conquered by the British in 1803, and in May, 1858, was captured by Gen. Rose from the mutinous Sepoys, it being the headquarters of the Gwalior contingent.
=Caltrop=, or =Crow’s-foot=. An instrument with 4 iron points, so disposed that, three of them being on the ground, the other projects upward. They are scattered on the ground where an enemy’s cavalry are to pass, to impede their progress by endangering the horses’ feet.
=Calumet.= A kind of pipe used by the North American Indians for smoking tobacco, having the bowl usually of soft red stone, and the tube a long reed ornamented with feathers. The calumet is used as a symbol or instrument of peace. To accept the calumet is to agree to the terms of peace, and to refuse it is to reject them. The calumet is used to seal or ratify contracts and alliances, and to receive strangers kindly.
=Calvi.= A seaport on the island of Corsica, situated on a peninsula in the Gulf of Calvi. It is strongly fortified and has a good port. It was captured by the English in 1794, after a siege of 51 days.
=Calvi.= A decayed town of Naples. Here the French gained a victory over the Neapolitans, December 9, 1798.
=Cam.= A river in England. On its banks was fought a battle between the Saxons and Danes during the reign of Edward I.
=Camail.= Ancient armor, consisting of a guard for the throat made of chain-mail coming down from the helmet.
=Cambrai=, or =Cambray=. A fortified city of France, department of the North. It was fortified by the Romans; besieged and captured by Childebert in 535; taken by Edward III., king of England, in 1337; in 1544 by Charles V.; by the Spaniards in 1595; captured by the French and annexed, 1667; taken by Clairfait, the Austrian general, on September 10, 1798. The French were defeated at Cæsar’s camp, in the neighborhood, by the allied army under the Duke of York, April 24, 1794. Cambray was seized by the British under Sir Charles Colville, June 24, 1815. Several important treaties were entered into at this place.
=Cambria.= See WALES.
=Cambridge.= The Roman Camboricum and the Saxon Granta; a town of England, in Cambridgeshire. It was burned by the Danes in 870 and 1010. Roger de Montgomery destroyed it with fire and sword, to be revenged of King William Rufus. During Wat Tyler’s and Jack Straw’s rebellion, the rebels entered the town, seized the University records and burned them in the market-place, 1381.
=Cambuskenneth= (Central Scotland). Here Wallace defeated the English under Warrenne and Cressingham, September 10, 1297.
=Camden.= A village in Kershaw Co., S. C. Gen. Gates was defeated here August 16, 1780, by Lord Cornwallis, and April 25, 1781, Gen. Greene was here defeated by Lord Rawdon. During the civil war this place was captured, February 24, 1865, by the Federal forces under Gen. Sherman, and the bridge over the Wateree, the railroad depot, and a considerable quantity of stores, etc., burned by the 15th Corps.
=Camel.= See PACK AND DRAUGHT ANIMALS.
=Camelford.= A town of England, in Cornwall. It was the scene of a famous battle between King Arthur and his nephew Modred in 543, in which the former was victorious. The West Saxons, under Egbert, had a battle with the Britons here in 823.
=Cameron Highlanders.= The designation given to the 79th Regiment of Infantry in the British service, in consequence of the corps having been raised by Allan Cameron of Erroch in 1793. This gallant regiment, which wears the Highland garb, performed distinguished services in the Peninsula and at Waterloo, and has been engaged in the principal warlike struggles of more recent times.
=Camisado.= A shirt formerly worn by soldiers over their uniform, in order to be able to recognize one another in the darkness, in a night attack.
=Camisado.= An attack by surprise at night, or at break of day, when the enemy is supposed to be in bed, by soldiers wearing the camisado.
=Camouflet= (Fr.). A small mine containing about 10 pounds of powder, sufficient to compress the earth all around it without disturbing the surface of the ground. It is sometimes formed in the wall or side of an enemy’s gallery, to blow in the earth and cut off the retreat of the miner.
=Camp.= From the Latin word campus, a “plain”; is the whole extent of ground covered by an army when under canvas. Its breadth should not exceed the line occupied by the troops when drawn out in order of battle. As a general rule, camps should be located in a position convenient to wood and water, with the front close and well covered, and the rear perfectly open.
=Campaign.= A connected series of military operations, forming a distinct stage or step in a war. Formerly, when troops kept the field only during the summer months, the term was used to include all that was done from the time an army took the field until it went again into winter quarters. In modern times, when no ordinary degree of cold is allowed to arrest military operations, the term is frequently used to include all steps taken to accomplish one immediate object.
=Campaigner.= One who has served in an army several campaigns; an old soldier; a veteran.
=Camp and Garrison Equipage.= All the tents, fittings, utensils, etc., carried with an army, applicable to the domestic rather than to the warlike wants of the soldier. The allowance of camp and garrison equipage to U. S. troops is prescribed in general orders from the War Department.
=Campania= (Southern Italy). Was occupied by Hannibal and various cities declared in his favor, 216 B.C.; conquered by the Romans, 213. Its capital was Capua (which see).
=Camp-bedstead.= A bedstead made to fold up within a narrow space, as used in war; a trestle bedstead.
=Campbell’s Station.= A post-village of Knox Co., Tenn. Here on November 16, 1863, Gen. Burnside, marching from Knoxville to meet the Confederate forces under Gen. Longstreet, was attacked by them, and after several hours’ fighting succeeded in repulsing them. Burnside then withdrew to the neighborhood of Knoxville and fortified his position.
=Camp-boy.= A boy that serves in camp.
=Campeachy.= A city of Central America, and the principal seaport of Yucatan. The country was discovered about 1517, and settled in 1540. This city was taken by the English in 1659; by the buccaneers in 1678, and by the freebooters of St. Domingo in 1685. These last burnt the town and blew up the citadel.
=Campestre.= A kind of girdle or apron worn by Roman soldiers around their waists at certain exercises, where the rest of their bodies remained naked.
=Camp-followers.= The sutlers, traders, and dealers generally; also civilian employés, servants, and women who follow troops, and are amenable to the regulations and restrictions of the service.
=Camp-guard.= A camp-guard consists of one or two rows of sentinels placed around a camp, and relieved at regular intervals. The number of rows of sentinels, and the distance between each man, will depend upon the character of the ground and the degree of danger apprehended.
=Campidoctores.= Officers who drilled the Roman soldiery.
=Camp, Intrenched.= Is a position fortified by field-works, which may be selected by an army in the field, for important operations during a campaign or a war,--such as to secure itself while covering a siege, or in winter quarters to accommodate a corps of observation, while the active army is engaged elsewhere, or to defend a position near a fortified place.
=Camp of Instruction.= Is an encampment of troops in the field to habituate them to the duties and fatigues of war. They may be either temporary or permanent. Of the latter description are the camps at Aldershott, England, and the Curragh of Kildare, Ireland.
=Campo Formio.= A town of Northern Italy; here a treaty was concluded between France and Austria, the latter yielding the Low Countries and the Ionian Islands to France, and Milan, Mantua, and Modena to the Cisalpine Republic, October 17, 1797. By a secret article the emperor gained the Venetian dominions.
=Campo Mayor.= A stronghold which covers the district between the Guadiana and the Tagus, where the French, retreating from this place in March, 1811, were suddenly confronted by a large British force under Marshal Beresford, and a combat ensued which was disastrous to the French.
=Campoos.= Regiments of infantry in the service of the Mahratta confederates.
=Campo Santo.= A town of Northern Italy, situated on the Panaro. In 1743 a sanguinary battle was fought here between the Spanish and Austrian forces.
=Camp Out, To.= To rest for the night without a standing roof; whether under a light tent, a screen of boughs, or any makeshift that the neighborhood may afford.
=Camprodon.= A fortified town of Catalonia, Spain. This town was taken by the French in 1689, and again in 1794.
=Camp-stool.= A portable seat used on campaigns. It is usually made with crossed legs, so as to fold up, and with a full-sized seat of leather or canvas, or else of strips of dressed hide.
=Canada, Dominion of.= A country of North America which embraces all of the American possessions of Great Britain lying north of the United States. It was discovered by John and Sebastian Cabot, June 24, 1497; the French founded Quebec in 1608. The English general Wolfe captured Quebec in 1759, and the conquest of Canada was completed in 1760. The Americans under Montgomery invaded Canada, and surprised Montreal, November, 1775; expelled by Carleton, March, 1776; the Americans under Gen. Hull again invaded Canada; defeated at Brownstown, August 8, and surrendered August 16, 1812. The Americans took York April 27, Fort George May 27, 1814; they were defeated at Chippewa July 25, and peace was signed at Ghent, December 24, 1814. Several rebellions took place in Canada, but were speedily suppressed. Invasions of Canada by armed Fenians from the United States were attempted in 1866 and 1870, but were repelled without difficulty.
=Cananore.= A seaport town of British India, in the presidency of Madras; it is the chief military station of the British in Malabar. In 1501 a small fort was built here by the Portuguese, which was taken by the Dutch in 1664. These were subsequently driven out by Tippoo Saib, and in 1790 the British took possession.
=Candahar=, or =Kandahar=. A fortified city of Afghanistan; stands in a fertile plain, 200 miles southwest from Cabool. This city is supposed to have been founded by Alexander the Great. Candahar was held by Tartary, India, and Persia in turn. During all the disasters of the Afghan war, the British succeeded in holding possession of the city, 1839-42.
=Candia= (anc. Crete). An island in the Mediterranean Sea. It was conquered by the Romans, 68 B.C.; seized by the Saracens, 823; retaken by the Greeks, 960; sold to the Venetians, 1204; gained by the Turks after a 24 years’ siege, during which more than 200,000 men perished, 1669; ceded to the Egyptian pasha, 1830; restored to Turkey, 1840; in 1866 the Christian inhabitants revolted against the Turks, and demanded an annexation to the kingdom of Greece. This war excited much sympathy among Christian nations, but the Cretans were subdued in 1869.
=Candle Bombs.= Pasteboard shells filled with pyrotechnic compositions which make a brilliant display upon explosion. They are used for signaling, and are made up with a powder charge attached to one side; a strand of quick-match leads to the charge when placed in the mortar. The mortars used are very light, being simply hollow cylinders of stout paper, sole-leather, or wood. They are made very light for ease of transportation.
=Candy.= A kingdom of Ceylon; it was taken by a British detachment, February 20, 1803, who capitulated June 23, following, anxious to evacuate the place on account of its unhealthiness; on the third day many were treacherously massacred at Columbo. The war was renewed in October, 1814; the king made prisoner by Gen. Brownrigg, February 19, 1815, and the sovereignty vested in Great Britain, March 2, 1815.
=Canister.= In the U. S. service, a round of canister consists of a hollow tin cylinder filled with cast iron or lead balls, which vary in size and number with the caliber and kind of piece; the cylinder is closed at the bottom by a thick cast-iron plate, and at the top by one of sheet-iron. The interstices between the balls are filled with dry sawdust, the object of which is to give more solidity to the mass, and to prevent the balls from crowding on one another when the piece is fired. In the English service this is called case-shot.
=Canister-shot.= One of the lead or iron balls in a round of canister.
=Cannæ.= A town of Naples, province of Terra di Bari. It is celebrated for the great victory gained there by Hannibal over the Romans, in the summer of 216 B.C. The loss of the Romans is stated by Livy at 45,000 infantry and 3000 cavalry.
=Cannon.= A military engine of which the general form is that of a hollow cylinder closed at one end, and variously mounted, used for throwing balls and other instruments of death by force of gunpowder. Cannons are made of iron, brass, bronze, and sometimes of steel rods welded together, and are of different sizes. They are classified, from their nature, guns, howitzers, and mortars; also from their use, as field, mountain, prairie, sea-coast, and siege; also as rifled and smooth-bore. See ORDNANCE.
The following are the most famous cannon of all ages, arranged according to the diameter of the bore:
1. The Tsar Pooschka, the great bronze gun of Moscow, cast in 1586; bore 36 inches, weight 86,240 pounds; threw a stone ball weighing 2000 pounds.
2. Mallet’s Mortar, English, 1857-58; built up of cast and wrought iron; bore 36 inches; cast-iron shell weighing 2986 pounds.
3. The Malik-I-Mydan, “Master of the Field,” the great bronze gun of Bejapoor, India; cast 1538; bore 28.5 inches; basalt ball, 1000 pounds.
4. The Bronze Gun of Mahomet II., A.D. 1464; bore 25 inches; granite ball, 672 pounds.
5. The Dulle-Griete of Ghent, wrought iron, A.D. 1430; bore 25 inches; stone ball, 700 pounds.
6. The Dhool-Dhanee, bronze gun of Agra, India; bore 23.2 inches; stone balls, 520 pounds.
7. Mons Meg of Edinburgh; wrought iron, A.D. 1455; bore 20 inches; stone ball, 400 pounds.
8. Rodman Gun, American, 1863; cast iron; bore 20 inches, weight 117,000 pounds; cast-iron solid shot weighing 1080 pounds.
The most powerful cannon the world has ever seen have been made within the present decade (1870-80). They are rifles.
The 100-ton Armstrong guns sold to Italy to arm the “Duilio” and “Dandolo”; bore 17 inches, weight of oblong shot of chilled iron 2000 pounds, charge of Fossano powder 552 pounds. Muzzle-loading.
The 80-ton Woolwich guns made to arm the “Inflexible”; bore 16 inches, weight of shot 1700 pounds, charge of cubical powder 440 pounds. Muzzle-loading.
The 72-ton Krupp guns; bore 15.75 inches, weight of steel shot 1700 pounds, charge of prismatic powder 452 pounds. Guns all steel. Breech-loading.
=Cannonade.= The act of discharging shot or shells from cannon for the purpose of destroying an army, or battering a town, ship, or fort; usually applied to an attack of some continuance.
=Cannon-ball.= A ball usually made of cast iron, to be thrown from cannon.
=Cannon Baskets.= The old English phrase for gabions.
=Cannon-bullet.= A cannon-ball.
=Cannoneer.= A man who manages cannon.
=Cannoneering.= The use of cannon.
=Cannoneers’ Seats.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, NOMENCLATURE OF ARTILLERY CARRIAGES.
=Cannon-lock.= A contrivance, like the lock of a gun, placed over the vent of a cannon to explode the charge.
=Cannon-metal.= An alloy of copper with about 9 per cent. of tin;--called also gun-metal.
=Cannon-perer.= An ancient piece of ordnance throwing stone shot.
=Cannon-proof.= Proof against cannon.
=Cannon Royal.= A 60-pounder of 8¹⁄₂ inches bore.
=Cannonry.= Cannon collectively; artillery.
=Cannon-shot.= A ball for cannon.
=Canonnière= (Fr.). This name was given formerly to a tent which served to shelter four canonniers, but later the term was applied to all infantry tents which contained seven or eight men.
=Canonnière= (Fr.). An appellation formerly given to a gun-proof tower; it also designated an opening in the walls of cities, forts, etc., through which the defenders of these places could fire on an enemy without being exposed.
=Canonniers= (Fr.). Artillerymen, gunners. In 1671, during the administration of Louvois in France, the name of canonniers was given to the first company of the regiment of the king’s fusileers; in April, 1693, this regiment was named artillerie royal, but the first company retained the name of canonniers.
=Canonniers Gardes-côtes= (Fr.). Were instituted in 1702, by Louis XIV. of France, for the service of coast batteries. They are similar to the Artillery Coast Brigade in the British service.
=Canstadt=, or =Cannstadt=. A town of Würtemberg, on the river Neckar. In the vicinity a battle was fought in 1796, between Gen. Moreau and the Archduke Charles of Austria.
=Cantabri.= A rude race of ancient mountaineers who lived in Cantabria, the northern part of Spain, near the Bay of Biscay. They made a brave resistance to the Romans in the Cantabrian war, 25-19 B.C. They are said to have been of Iberian origin.
=Cantabrum.= A large banner used during the time of the Roman emperors, and borne on festive occasions.
=Canteen.= A tin vessel used by soldiers to carry water on the march, or in the field. It is usually suspended by a strap from the shoulder. In the British service the canteen is made of wood. The name is also applied to the store authorized within the precincts of British barracks for the sale of liquors, small stores, etc. (See POST TRADER.) A leather or wooden chest divided into compartments, and containing the table equipage of an officer when on active service, is also called a canteen.
=Canterbury= (the Durovernum of the Romans). A town in Kent, England. Its cathedral was sacked by the Danes, 1011, and burnt down, 1067; rebuilt, 1130; again burnt down, 1174, and again rebuilt. During the civil war in England, Cromwell’s dragoons used Canterbury Cathedral as a stable.
=Cantinière= (Fr.). Women who are authorized to establish themselves in the barracks or follow the troops in time of war, selling them liquors and provisions. The cantinières, whether attached to regiments or barracks, are selected from the wives of non-commissioned officers or privates, and wear a uniform. See VIVANDIÈRE.
=Cantle.= The hind-bow or protuberance of a saddle; also written cantel.
=Canton.= The only city in China with which Europeans were allowed to trade till the treaty of August 29, 1842. In 1856 a serious misunderstanding arose between Great Britain and China, on account of the Chinese having boarded the “Arrow,” a small vessel, lying in the Canton River, with a British colonial register. The Canton forts were taken, and Canton was bombarded by Sir Michael Seymour in 1856, and in the following year the Chinese fleet was entirely destroyed. In 1858 Canton was taken, and the forts at the mouth of the Pei-ho River were taken by the allied French and English forces.
=Canton.= One of the nine honorable ordinaries in heraldry. It occupies a corner of the shield either dexter or sinister, and is a third of the chief.
=Cantonments.= In the general operations of European armies are temporary resting-places. In cantonments the men are not under canvas, as in camps, but occupy during an armistice, or in intervals between active operations, adjacent towns and villages. In India cantonments are permanent places, being regular military towns, distinct and at some little distances from the principal cities.
=Cantonné.= In heraldry, when a cross is placed between four other objects it is said to be cantonné.
=Canusium= (now Canosa). An important and very ancient city of Apulia, in Italy. It was probably founded by the Greeks. Here a battle took place between the Carthaginians under Hannibal, and the Romans under Marcellus, 209 B.C.; it lasted two days; the first day the Carthaginians were victorious, but on the second day the Romans gained the victory after committing great havoc among their adversaries. It was captured by the Romans, 318 B.C.
=Canvas.= A coarse hempen or linen cloth which is extensively used in the form of tents, etc.
=Cap-a-pie= (Fr.). “Head to foot.” In military language of the Middle Ages, this term was applied to a knight or soldier armed at all points, with armor for defense and weapons for attack.
=Caparison.= The bridle, saddle, and housing of a military horse.
=Cape Breton.= A large island of British North America, separated from Nova Scotia by the Gut of Canso. Said to have been discovered by Cabot, 1497; by the English in 1584; taken by the French in 1632, but was afterwards restored, and again taken in 1745, and retaken in 1748. The fortress of Louisburg was captured by the English, July 26, 1758, when the garrison were made prisoners, and 11 French ships were captured or destroyed. The island was ceded to England, February 10, 1763.
=Cape Coast Castle.= In Southwest Africa; it was settled by the Portuguese in 1610, but it soon fell to the Dutch; it was demolished by Admiral Holmes in 1661. All the British factories and shipping along the coast were destroyed by the Dutch admiral, Ruyter, in 1665. It was confirmed to the English by the treaty of Breda, in 1667. See ASHANTEES.
=Cape Colony.= See CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.
=Capeline= (Fr.). A helmet without a visor, nearly in the form of a round head; it was formerly worn by infantry.
=Cape of Good Hope.= In Southern Africa; long held by the Dutch; was captured by the British, September 16, 1795; restored to the Dutch at the general peace, but was again taken by the British, January 9, 1806; it still belongs to the British, though a severe desultory warfare has often been carried on with the native tribes.
=Capital.= In technical fortification, is an imaginary line bisecting the salient angle of a work.
=Capitulation.= The surrender of a fortress or army on stipulated conditions.
=Caponiere.= A covered passage across the ditch of a fortified place, for the purpose either of sheltering communication with outworks or of affording a flanking fire to the ditch in which it stands. If the caponiere is protected only on one side, it is single; if on both sides, and covered, it is double.
=Capote.= A heavy coat with a hood, worn by soldiers, sailors, and others.
=Cappadocia.= An ancient province of Asia Minor, now included in Asiatic Turkey. It was conquered by Cyrus the Great of Persia, and was ruled by independent kings after the time of Alexander the Great until 17, when Tiberius reduced it to a Roman province.
=Cappel.= A village of Switzerland. Here the reformer Ulric Zwinglius was slain in a conflict between the Catholics and the men of Zurich, in October, 1531.
=Capri= (anc. Capreæ). An island near Naples, the sumptuous residence of Tiberius, memorable for the debaucheries he committed during the last seven years of his life. Capri was taken by Sir Sidney Smith, April 22, 1806; taken from the British, October 4, 1808, by a French force under Gen. Lamarque.
=Caps.= The head-dress or shako of such troops as are not supplied with helmets.
FORAGE CAPS are the cloth undress head-covering of the officer or soldier.
=Caps.= In gunnery, are the leathern plugs, or bungs, used to prevent rain or rubbish from collecting in the bore of the guns and howitzers. There are also cannon caps for similar purposes, used for mortars.
=Caps, Percussion-.= Are small metal covers, inlaid with detonating powder, and placed on the nipple of a rifle or revolver. The hammer, striking on the outer surface of the cap, causes the powder to explode and ignite the charge.
=Cap-square.= A strong plate of iron which comes over the trunnion of a cannon, and keeps it to its place.
=Capstan.= A strong, massy column of timber, formed somewhat like a truncated cone, and having its upper extremity pierced to receive bars, or levers, for winding a rope round it, to move great weights, or to exert great power; used in moving heavy guns considerable distances; called also a crab.
=Capsules.= Copper caps for percussion-locks.
=Captain.= In a limited and technical sense, is the title of an officer who commands a troop of cavalry, a company of infantry, or a battery of artillery. He is the next in rank below a major, and in the U. S. army is responsible for the camp and garrison equipage, the arms, ammunition, and clothing of his company.
There is no position in the army that will give as much satisfaction in return for an honest, capable, and conscientious discharge of his duty as that of captain or commanding officer of a company. There is a reward in having done his full duty to his company, that no disappointment of distinction, no failure can deprive him of; his seniors may overlook him in giving credits, unfortunate circumstances may defeat his fondest hopes, and the crown of laurel may never rest upon his brow, but the reward that follows upon the faithful discharge of his duty to his company he cannot be deprived of by any disaster, neglect, or injustice.
He receives it whenever he looks upon his little command, and sees the harmony, comfort, and discipline that prevail; he feels it when he comes to part with his men in the due course of promotion, or as they individually take their discharge after a faithful service; he remembers it when, in after-years, no matter if rank and honors have in the mean time fallen upon him, he meets an old soldier who, with respect and affection, still calls him his captain.
He is a small sovereign, powerful and great within his little domain, but no imbecile monarch ever suffered more from intrigues, factions, and encroachments than an incapable company commander; no tyrant king must contend more with rebellions, insurrections, and defections than an arbitrary and unjust captain, and no wise and beneficent ruler ever derived more heartfelt homage, more faithful services, or more patriotic devotion than a just, competent, and faithful commander receives from his company. They will love him truly, they will obey him faithfully, and whilst there is life they will stand by him in the hour of battle.
The command of a company divides itself into two kinds of duty, requiring very different capacity, viz., Government and Administration. The former requires force of character, judgment, and discretion, and has often been well performed without much capacity for the latter. Administration requires a certain amount of knowledge absolutely indispensable to a discharge of a duty.
Government.--Under this head may be included instruction in tactics and discipline, the preservation of order and subordination, and the cultivation of a military spirit and pride in the profession among the men. It involves the appointing and reduction of non-commissioned officers, and the subject of rewards and punishments.
Administration.--Providing the clothing and subsistence, and keeping the accounts of soldiers in order, that they may be paid, and attending to the transportation of the men and their supplies, belong under this head. They involve the keeping of the records of the company, and the pay and clothing accounts of the men; the drawing and distributing of supplies, and the care and accountability of public and company property. The efficient administration of the affairs of a company greatly facilitates the discipline and government of the company, makes the men content and cheerful in the performance of their duties, and attaches them to their commander.
=Captaincy.= The rank, post, or commission of a captain.
=Captaincy-general.= The office, power, territory, or jurisdiction of a captain-general.
=Captain-General.= This was the proper appellation of a commander-in-chief till Marlborough’s time, if not later. The rank is sometimes still given on extraordinary occasions. It was born by the Marquis of Wellesley during his government in India, and is applied to the governor-general of the Canadas. In the United States, the governor of a State is captain-general of the militia. Captain-lieutenant, an officer, who with the rank of a captain, and pay of lieutenant, commands a company or troop.
=Captainry.= The power, or command, over a certain district; chieftainship; captainship.
=Captainship.= The condition, rank, post, or authority of a captain or chief commander. Also skill in military affairs; as, to show good captainship.
=Captive.= A prisoner taken by force or stratagem in war, by an enemy; made prisoner, especially in war; kept in bondage or confinement.
=Captivity.= The state of being a prisoner, or of being in the power of the enemy, by force or the fate of war.
=Captor.= One who takes, as a prisoner or a prize.
=Capture.= The act of taking or seizing by force; seizure; arrest; as, the capture of an enemy. The thing taken; a prize; prey taken by force, surprise, or stratagem.
=Captured Property.= As civilization has advanced during the last centuries, so has likewise steadily advanced, especially in war on land, the distinction between the private individual belonging to a hostile country and the hostile country itself, with its men in arms. The principle has been more and more acknowledged that the unarmed citizen is to be spared in person, property, and honor, as much as the exigencies of war will admit. A victorious army appropriates all public money, seizes all public movable property until further direction by its government, and sequesters for its own benefit or that of its government all the revenues of real property belonging to the hostile government or nation. The title to such real property remains in abeyance during military occupation, and until the conquest is made complete. As a general rule, the property belonging to churches, to hospitals, or other establishments of an exclusively charitable nature, to establishments of education, or foundations for the promotion of knowledge, whether public schools, universities, academies of learning, or observatories, museums of the fine arts, or of a scientific character,--such property is not to be considered public property; but it may be taxed or used when the public service may require it. Classical works of art, libraries, scientific collections, or precious instruments, such as astronomical telescopes, as well as hospitals, must be secured against all avoidable injury, even when they are contained in fortified places whilst besieged or bombarded. And if they can be removed without injury, the ruler of the conquering state or nation may order them to be seized and removed for the benefit of the said nation. The ultimate ownership is to be settled by the ensuing treaty of peace.
The United States acknowledge and protect, in hostile countries occupied by them, religion and morality; strictly private property; the persons of the inhabitants, especially those of women; and the sacredness of domestic relations. Offenses to the contrary are rigorously punished. This does not interfere with the right of the victorious invader to tax the people or their property, to levy forced loans, to billet soldiers, or to appropriate property, especially houses, land, boats or ships, and churches for temporary and military uses. Private property can be seized only by way of military necessity, except the owner forfeits his right to it by committing a crime or offense against the victorious power. All captures and booty belong, according to the modern law of war, primarily to the government of the captor. See STORES, MILITARY.
=Capua.= A town of Naples, in the province of Terra di Lavoro; took the part of Hannibal when his army wintered here after the battle of Cannæ, 216 B.C., and, it is said, became enervated through luxury. In 211, when the Romans retook the city, they scourged and beheaded all the surviving senators; many of them having poisoned themselves after a banquet previous to the surrender of the city. During the Middle Ages, Capua was successively subjugated by the Greeks, Saracens, Normans, and Germans. It was restored to Naples in 1424, and was taken, November 2, 1860, by Garibaldi.
=Capuchons= (Fr.). A society formed in France from 1181 to 1183, for the suppression of the brigandage of the Routiers; they exterminated 7000 brigands in an engagement near Verdun.
=Caracas= (South America). Part of Venezuela, discovered by Columbus in 1498. It was reduced by arms, and assigned as property to the Welsers, German merchants, by Charles V.; but for their tyranny they were dispossessed in 1550, and a crown governor appointed. The province declared its independence, May 9, 1810.
=Caracole= (Sp. caracol). A French term used in horsemanship or the manège to denote a semi-round or half-turn. When cavalry advance to charge in battle they sometimes perform caracoles in order to perplex the enemy, and excite a doubt whether they will attack the flank or the front.
=Caravaggio.= A walled town of Italy, in the province of Bergamo. Here a battle was fought, September 15, 1448, between the Milanese and Venetians, in which the latter were defeated.
=Carberry Hill.= In Southern Scotland; here on June 15, 1567, Lord Hume and the confederate barons dispersed the royal army under Bothwell, and took Mary, queen of Scots, prisoner. Bothwell fled.
=Carbine.= A short light musket, used by cavalry. It is so called from a kind of light horse (Carabins), whose weapon it was. They were employed by Henry II. of France in 1559.
=Carbineers=, or =Carabineers=. Dragoons armed with carbines, who occasionally acted as infantry. All regiments of light-armed horse were formerly called carbineers; but since the establishment of hussars and lancers, they have, for the most part, lost that denomination.
=Carbon.= See CHARCOAL.
=Carcass.= In gunnery, is a spherical shell having three additional holes, of the same dimensions as the fuze-hole, pierced at equal distances apart in the upper hemisphere of the shell, and filled with a composition which burns with intense power from 8 to 10 minutes, and the flame issuing from the holes sets fire to everything combustible within its reach; it is used in bombardments, setting fire to shipping, etc., and is projected from cannon like a cannon-shell.
=Carcassonne= (anc. Carcaso). A city in the south of France, capital of the department of Aude. It was taken from the Visigoths by the Saracens in 724.
=Carchera.= A name given by the Corsicans to their cartridge-belts.
=Cardiff.= A seaport and county town of Wales, in Glamorganshire. Cardiff is an ancient place, and is surrounded by walls, in which were four gates. Its castle, once large and strongly fortified, was erected about the year 1079. Robert, duke of Normandy, was confined in it for 28 years after the battle of Tinchebria. This fortress was afterwards taken and partially destroyed by Cromwell.
=Cardigan.= A town in Cardiganshire, Wales. It was an important town about the Norman conquest, and the Normans were frequently defeated before mastering it. The town suffered much in the struggles between the Welsh and the Normans.
=Cardinal Points.= The four intersections of the horizon with the meridian, and the prime vertical circle, or north and south, east and west. In astrology, the cardinal points are the rising and setting of the sun, the zenith and nadir.
=Caria.= An ancient province in the extreme southwest of Asia Minor. It was conquered by Cyrus, 546 B.C.; by Dercyllidas, a Lacedæmonian, 397. Caria was absorbed in the Turkish empire.
=Carignan.= A small town about 12 miles from Sedan, department of Ardennes, Northeast France. At the plain Douzy, near this place and the encampment of Vaux, a part of MacMahon’s army, retreating before the Germans, turned round and made a stand, August 31, 1870. After a long and severe engagement, in which the positions were taken and retaken several times, the Germans turned the flank of their enemies, who were compelled to fall back upon Sedan, where they were finally overcome, September 1.
=Caripi.= A kind of cavalry in the Turkish army, which, to the number of 1000, are not slaves, nor bred up in the seraglio, like the rest, but are generally Moors, or renegade Christians, who have obtained the rank of horse-guards to the Grand Seignior.
=Carisbrooke Castle.= In the Isle of Wight, England; it is said to have been a British and Roman fortress; was taken in 530, by Cerdic, founder of the kingdom of the West Saxons. Here Charles I. was imprisoned in 1647.
=Carizmians.= Were fierce shepherds living near the Caspian Sea; having been expelled by the Tartars, they invaded Syria in 1243. The union of the sultans of Aleppo, Hems, and Damascus was insufficient to stem the torrent, and the Christian military orders were nearly exterminated in a single battle in 1244. In October they took Jerusalem. They were totally defeated in 1247.
=Carlaverock Castle.= In Southern Scotland; it was taken by Edward I. in July, 1300.
=Carlisle.= A frontier town of England, in the county of Cumberland, wherein for many ages a strong garrison was kept. Just below this town the famous Picts’ wall began, which crossed the whole island to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and here also ended the great Roman highway. The castle was destroyed by the Danes, 875, restored in 1092 by William II.; was the prison of Mary, queen of Scots, in 1568. Taken by the Parliamentary forces, in 1645, and by the young Pretender, November 15, 1745; retaken by the Duke of Cumberland, December 30, same year. The cathedral was almost ruined by Cromwell in 1648.
=Carlisle.= Capital of Cumberland Co., Pa. This town was shelled by the Confederates, July, 1863.
=Carlow.= A town in Southeastern Ireland; the castle, erected by King John, surrendered after a desperate siege to Rory Oge O’Moore, in 1577; again to the Parliamentary forces in 1650. Here the royal troops routed the insurgents, May, 1798.
=Carlowitz=, or =Karlowitz=. A town of the Austrian empire, on the Danube. Here, in 1699, a treaty was concluded between Turkey and Austria; and here Prince Eugène defeated the Turks in 1716.
=Carlsruhe=, or =Karlsruhe=. Capital of the grand duchy of Baden; built by the Margrave Charles William, 1715. It was occupied by the Prussians, June 25, 1849, who aided to suppress the revolution, and enabled the grand duke to return, August 18, 1849.
=Carmagnola.= A town of Piedmont, on the river Po. It was captured by Catinat troops in 1691; taken by the French Republican troops in 1795.
=Carmel, Knights of the Order of Our Lady of Mount.= A semi-religious order of knighthood instituted by Henry IV. of France, and incorporated with the order of the Knights of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. The order consisted of 100 gentlemen, all French, who were to attend the king in his wars, and had considerable revenues assigned them.
=Carnatic.= A district of Southern Hindostan, extending along the whole coast of Coromandel. Hyder Ali entered the Carnatic with 80,000 troops in 1780, and was defeated by the British under Sir Eyre Coote, July 1 and August 27, 1781, and decisively overthrown, June 2, 1782. The Carnatic was overrun by Tippoo in 1790. The British have possessed entire authority over the Carnatic since 1801.
=Carnifex Ferry.= Over the Gauley River, West Virginia. A force of about 5000 Confederates under Gen. Floyd, who occupied a strong position here, became engaged with a Federal brigade of the troops under Gen. Rosecrans on the afternoon of September 10, 1861, when some severe fighting occurred until night put an end to the contest. The Federals intended to renew the attack in the morning with a stronger force, but during the night Gen. Floyd withdrew his troops across the river, burned the ferry-boats and the bridge which he had constructed, thus cutting off pursuit, but leaving his camp, baggage, small-arms, and munitions of war in the hands of the Federals.
=Carolina, North.= See NORTH CAROLINA.
=Carolina, South.= See SOUTH CAROLINA.
=Caroling.= A custom of the ancients before going to war, which consisted of singing, etc.
=Carpet Knight.= A man who obtains knighthood on a pretense for services in which he never participated.
=Carpi.= In Northern Italy; here Prince Eugène and the Imperialists defeated the French, July 9, 1701.
=Carquois= (Fr.). A quiver of iron, wood, leather, etc., which was worn slung over the right shoulder.
=Carrago.= A kind of fortification, consisting of a great number of wagons placed round an army. It was employed by barbarous nations, as, for instance, the Scythians and Goths.
=Carreau=, =Quarreau=, or =Carre= (Fr.). A bolt or dart, with a large steel head, for a cross-bow.
=Carriage.= A gun-carriage is designed to support its piece when fired, and also to transport cannon from one point to another. It consists of two cheeks, connected together and with a stock by assembling bolts. The front part supports the piece, and rests upon an axle-tree furnished with wheels, the rear end of the stock or trail resting on the ground. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Carriage, Casemate.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, SEA-COAST CARRIAGES.
=Carriage, Field-.= See FIELD-CARRIAGE.
=Carriage, Mountain.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Carriage, Prairie.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Carriage, Sea-coast.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Carriage, Siege.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Carrical=, or =Karical=. A seaport town of Hindostan, on the coast of Coromandel. It was formerly strongly fortified, but is now thoroughly dismantled. It came into possession of the French in 1759; was taken by the English in 1803; and restored to the French in 1814.
=Carrick.= An old Gaelic term for a castle or fortress, as well as for a rock in the sea.
=Carrickfergus.= A seaport town in the county of Antrim, Ireland. Its castle is supposed to have been built by Hugh de Lacy in 1178. The town surrendered to the Duke of Schömberg, August 28, 1689. The castle surrendered to Thurot, a French naval officer, in 1760.
=Carrick’s Ford.= Over the Cheat River, Virginia. On July 13, 1861, a force of Confederates under Gen. Garnett, retreating from Laurel Hill, were pursued and here attacked by Union troops under Gen. Morris, and after a few attempts to make a stand, were completely routed, and Gen. Garnett killed.
=Carroccio= (Ital.). A very large four-wheeled carriage, which was used by the Crusaders during the Middle Ages. On its platform, which was large enough to hold 50 persons, was erected a tower surmounted with a cross and a standard, and to it was attached a bell, which indicated the passing of the carroccio. Before engaging in battle, an effigy of Christ of life size was placed on the platform and at its feet an altar; then a mass was held. A number of knights guarded it, and it was drawn by oxen richly caparisoned. Its invention is attributed to the people of Lombardy.
=Carron.= A village in Stirlingshire, Scotland, on a stream of the same name, falling into the river Forth. It is noted for its extensive iron-works. The carronade, a peculiar kind of gun, derives its name from this place.
=Carrousel.= A species of knightly exercise in imitation of the tournament, common in the courts of Europe till the beginning of the 18th century. It usually consisted in tests of skill in horsemanship, and in the use of the lance, sword, and pistol, the competitors being mostly dressed as were the knights of former times.
=Cart.= In a military sense, is a vehicle mounted on two wheels, and drawn by hand or by horses or oxen. See HAND-CART, HAND SLING-CART.
=Cartagena.= A city and fortified seaport of Spain, is in the province of Murcia, and on a bay of the Mediterranean. It was built by Hasdrubal, the Carthaginian general, 242 B.C.; taken by Scipio, 210. It was subsequently taken by the Goths, and did not begin to rise into importance again till the time of Philip II. It was taken by a British force under Sir John Leake in 1706; retaken by the Duke of Berwick, 1707.
=Cartagena=, or =Carthagena=. A fortified city of New Granada, South America. It was taken by the French in 1544, and subsequently by the English under Sir Francis Drake, in 1585, who plundered it and set it on fire; pillaged by the French in 1697; bombarded by Admiral Vernon in March, 1740; and unsuccessfully besieged by the English in 1741. In the contest with the mother-country, Cartagena was first besieged by Bolivar, and afterwards by Morillo, to whom it surrendered. It was subsequently reduced by the independent troops.
=Carte=, or =Quarte=. A movement of the sword in fencing, as tierce and carte. Also a movement of the rifle bayonet drill.
=Carte-blanche.= In a military sense, means a full and absolute power which is lodged in the hands of a general of an army, to act according to the best of his judgment, without waiting for superior instructions or orders. It likewise strictly means a blank paper, to be filled up with such conditions as the person to whom it is sent thinks proper.
=Cartel.= As a military term it is used to denote an agreement between two belligerents for the exchange of prisoners.
=Cartel-ship.= A vessel used in exchanging prisoners or carrying proposals to an enemy.
=Carthage.= An ancient and celebrated city in Africa, the renowned rival of Rome. It was founded by the Phœnicians, and was one of the latest settlements made by them on the African coast of the Mediterranean, about the middle of the 9th century B.C. No record of the early history of Carthage has been preserved. First alliance of Carthaginians and Romans, 509 B.C.; the Carthaginians in Sicily were defeated at Himera by Gelo, 480 B.C.; they took Agrigentum, 406 B.C., and were defeated by Agathocles, 310 B.C. The first Punic war began (which lasted twenty-three years) in 264 B.C., and ended in 241 B.C. Hamilcar Barcas was sent into Spain, and took with him his son, the famous Hannibal, 237 B.C. Hannibal conquered Spain as far as the Iberus, 219 B.C. The second Punic war began (which lasted seventeen years) in 218 B.C., and ended in 201 B.C. The third Punic war commenced 149 or 150 B.C.; Carthage taken and burned by order of the senate, 146 B.C. A colony settled at Carthage by C. Gracchus, 122 B.C.; its rebuilding planned by Julius Cæsar, 46 B.C., and executed by his successors; it was taken by Genseric the Vandal in 439; retaken by Belisarius, 533; taken and destroyed by Hassan, the Saracenic governor of Egypt, 698.
=Carthage.= The capital of Jasper Co., Mo., on Spring River. Near here, on July 5, 1861, an engagement took place between some of Gen. Lyon’s troops under Col. Sigel, and a superior force of Confederates under Gen. Rains and Col Parsons. The Union loss was 13 killed and 21 wounded.
=Carthoun.= The ancient cannon royal, carrying a 66-pound ball, with a point-blank range of 185 paces, and an extreme one of about 2000. It was 12 feet long and of 8¹⁄₂ inches diameter of bore.
=Cartouch.= A roll or case of paper, etc., holding a charge for a fire-arm.
=Cartouch.= In gunnery, a case of wood, about 3 inches thick at the bottom, bound about with marline, holding about 400 musket-balls, besides 8 or 10 iron balls of a pound each, to be discharged from a howitzer, for the defense of a pass, etc. It also implies an article made of leather, to sling over the shoulder of the gunner, who therein carries the ammunition from the tumbril for the service of the artillery, when at exercise in the field.
=Cart-piece.= An early battering cannon mounted on a peculiar cart.
=Cartridge.= For cannon, is the powder charge and its case. The case is a cylindrical bag of flannel, wildbore, or serge, in which the charge is placed. The mouth is closed by tying with twine, forming the choke, which is always turned towards the muzzle when the gun is charged. For chambered pieces the mouth of the cartridge-bag is closed with a cartridge-block to give it a proper form. For some services the cartridge is attached to the projectile, in others it is carried separately. See ORDNANCE, AMMUNITION FOR.
For small-arms, is the complete charge when the powder and lead are in the same case; if separate, it applies only to the powder and its case. A case containing powder only is called a blank cartridge. Cartridge-cases for military small-arms were formerly made of paper. In loading the gun the case was torn and the powder and ball put in separately. By using an inflammable paper the cartridge was afterwards used entire, especially in pistols and breech-loaders. Paper cases made very strong and reinforced by metallic heads are still much used in breech-loading shot-guns. Linen or cloth cases were also used at one period.
The introduction of breech-loaders into the military service has led to the universal adoption of metallic cartridges. The cases are cylinders of copper or brass, closed at the breech end, and holding both powder and bullet, the latter being retained in the case by a slight crimp. A small quantity of fulminate in the base inflames the powder upon being struck by the firing-pin. England is behind all other nations in the use of the Boxer cartridge, the case of which is made by a wrapping of thin sheet-brass. In the manufacture of metallic cartridges the United States leads the world. Millions were supplied the Turks in their late war with Russia by the Winchester Arms Company, of New Haven, Conn. Metallic cartridge are reloading and single fire. Reloading cartridges have an external primer, which can be renewed for successive loadings. The single fire have the fulminate inside the base, and cannot readily be reloaded. The copper cartridges for the U. S. service rifle, made at Frankford Arsenal, Pa., are of this latter class.
=Cartridge-bag.= See CARTRIDGE.
=Cartridge-bags.= See ORDNANCE, AMMUNITION FOR, AMMUNITION FOR FIELD SERVICE.
=Cartridge-belt.= A belt for carrying small-arm cartridges. A form extensively used in the Western United States, called the prairie-belt, has a number of leather or canvas loops sewed on the outside in which the cartridges are stuck.
=Cartridge-block.= See ORDNANCE, AMMUNITION FOR, STRAPPED AMMUNITION.
=Cartridge, Bottle.= A metallic cartridge, so called from its shape. It contains a larger charge than the ordinary cylindrical cartridge for the same caliber. The cartridge used in the Martini-Henry is of this shape.
=Cartridge-box.= A leathern case, with cells for cartridges, which are protected by a flap of leather. This box is suspended by a leathern strap, which passes over the left shoulder and under the right arm of the wearer, or is suspended from the waist-belt, as in the U. S. service.
=Cartridge, Buck-and-ball.= A cartridge containing a round musket-ball and 3 buckshot, formerly much used in smooth-bore muskets.
=Cartridge, Buckshot.= Containing a charge of buckshot. Formerly used in muskets, but now obsolete for military purposes.
=Cartridge, Centre Primed.= A metallic cartridge in which the fulminate is placed in the centre of the cartridge head or base.
=Cartridge, Multi-ball.= A metallic cartridge recently proposed by Capt. E. M. Wright, U. S. Ordnance Corps, in which two or more bullets or pieces of lead are substituted for the ordinary bullet, with the idea of doing more execution at short ranges.
=Cartridge-paper.= A stout paper formerly used in making military cartridges.
=Cartridge, Reloading.= See CARTRIDGE.
=Cartridge, Rim-fire.= A metallic cartridge in which the fulminate is placed in the rim surrounding the head. This rim being struck at any point, explodes the powder. Formerly much used in pistols and magazine guns. These cartridges are not reloading.
=Cartridge, Single-fire.= See CARTRIDGE.
=Casale=, or =Casal=. A town of Piedmont, the capital of a province of the same name, on the river Po. Here the French defeated the Spaniards in 1640. In May, 1859, an Austrian reconnoitring party, who had advanced from Vercelli, were here repulsed by the Sardinian Bersaglieri (riflemen).
=Casal Nova.= A village in Spain, where a corps of Lord Wellington’s army had an affair with the French troops under Marshal Masséna, during their retreat from Portugal on March 14, 1811.
=Cascabel.= In gunnery, is the projection in rear of the breech, and is composed of the knob, the neck, and the fillet. It is used to facilitate the handling of the piece in mounting and dismounting it, and moving it when off its carriage.
=Cascans.= In fortification, are holes in the form of wells, serving as entrances to galleries, or giving vent to the enemy’s mines.
=Case-hardening.= The process of converting the surface of iron into steel. Formerly much used in making small-arms. The parts to be hardened, such as the hammer, tumbler, etc., were inclosed in an airtight iron box, filled with charcoal, bones, particles of horn, or other carbonizing substance. The box and its contents were then submitted to prolonged heat. The process is that of incomplete cementation (which see).
=Casemate.= Was originally a loop-holed gallery excavated in a bastion, from which the garrison could fire on an enemy who had obtained possession of the ditch without risk of loss to themselves. The term was afterwards applied to a bomb-proof vault in a fortress, which is designed for the protection of the garrison, without direct reference to the annoyance of the enemy. A casemated battery consists of such a vault or vaults, with openings for the guns.
=Casemate Carriage.= A gun-carriage used in casemates. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.
=Casemate Gun.= A gun mounted in a casemate.
=Casemates Nouvelles= (Fr.). Arched batteries which are constructed under all the openings of revetments or ramparts. The different forts of Cherbourg are defended by these casemates; the works erected around Dover Castle come likewise under this description; the works at Fort Columbus, N. Y., are erected on the same principle.
=Casemate Truck.= Consists of a stout frame of wood mounted upon three barbette traverse wheels. The front wheel is pivoted so as to change direction. It is used to move cannon and heavy weights through posterns and along casemate galleries.
=Casernes.= In fortification, are buildings for the soldiers of the garrison to live in; generally erected between the houses of fortified towns and the rampart. In a general acceptation, casernes signify barracks.
=Case-shot.= In the U. S. service, a case-shot is a hollow cast-iron projectile filled with musket-balls. The projectile has thinner walls than the ordinary shell. To fill it a tube is inserted in the fuze-hole, the balls are introduced, and melted sulphur or rosin is poured in to fill up the interstices and keep the balls in position. When this has solidified the tube is withdrawn, leaving a vacant space for a small bursting charge. This description answers for the two kinds used,--the spherical case for the 12-pounder smooth-bore and the oblong case for rifle guns. Case-shot should be burst in the air a short distance in front of the troops fired upon. Time-fuzes are, therefore, used with both; the Bormann-fuze for the former, and the paper fuze for the latter. In Europe this ammunition is called shrapnel, from the inventor. There the term case-shot is applied to what is called in the United States canister,--that is, a thin case filled with bullets, used for short range without fuzes, the case being disrupted in the gun.
=Cashier.= To dismiss from the service with ignominy. An officer thus dismissed is understood to be excluded from the service thereafter. A dismissed officer may be restored; a cashiered officer is deemed unworthy of the indulgence.
=Cashmere.= A province of Northern India; was subdued by the Mohammedans in the 16th century; by the Afghans in 1752; by the Sikhs in 1819; and ceded to the British in 1846, who gave it to the Maharajah Gholab-Singh, with a nominal sovereignty.
=Casing.= The cast-iron case of converted guns (which see).
=Casks, Raft of.= See RAFT OF CASKS.
=Casque=, or =Cask=. A piece of defensive armor, to cover and protect the head and neck in battle; a helmet.
=Cassano.= A town of Lombardy, 16 miles from Milan, on the river Adda. In 1259, Eccelino Romana, chief of the Ghibelines, was here defeated and killed. In 1705 the French under the Duke of Vendôme gained a victory over the Imperialists, commanded by Prince Eugène; and in 1799, Suwarrow inflicted a defeat on the French under Moreau.
=Cassel.= A city of Germany, 90 miles northeast from Frankfort-on-the-Main. It was the capital of Westphalia under Napoleon I.; besieged by the allies in 1761; taken by the allies November 1, 1762; captured by the Russians in September, 1813.
=Cassel.= A town of France, department of the North. On April 11, 1677, the Marshal de Luxemburg near here defeated the Prince of Orange, who lost 4000 dead and 3000 prisoners. The French occupied Cassel, June 19, 1707.
=Casse-tête= (Fr.). A mace or war-club, made of very hard wood, used formerly in savage warfare.
=Cassine.= A small house, especially in the open country; applied also to a house standing alone, where soldiers may lie hid, or may take a position.
=Cas, St.= A village on the coast of France, in the department Côte du Nord. Here, in 1758, a landing of the British under Lord Cavendish was repulsed, and 100 years afterwards a column was inaugurated to commemorate the event.
=Castalla.= A town of Spain, 24 miles northwest of Alicante. The Spaniards under O’Donnell were here defeated by the French under Delort, August 21, 1812.
=Casteggio.= A town of Northern Italy, in the division of Alessandria. On June 9, 1800, the battle of Montebello was gained by the French under Lannes over the Austrians in the neighborhood of this place. On May 20, 1859, another engagement was fought here between the Austrians under Count Stadion and the French and Sardinian troops, in which the latter were victorious.
=Castel-a-Mare.= A seaport town of Sicily. Richelieu defeated the Spanish fleet here in 1648; and in 1799 a battle was fought between the French under Marshal Macdonald and the allied English and Neapolitans.
=Castel Fidardo.= Near Ancona, Central Italy. Near here Gen. Lamoricière and the papal army of 11,000 men were totally defeated by the Sardinian general Cialdini, September 18, 1860. Lamoricière with a few horsemen fled to Ancona, then besieged; on September 29 he and the garrison surrendered.
=Castellan.= A governor or constable of a castle.
=Castellated.= Adorned with turrets and battlements, like a castle.
=Castellation.= The act of fortifying a house and rendering it a castle. Now obsolete.
=Castelnaudary.= A town of France, department of Aude. It suffered greatly in the wars of the Middle Ages, and under its walls the Duke of Montmorency was made prisoner by the royal troops in 1632.
=Castiglione.= A fortified town of Lombardy, 22 miles northwest from Mantua. Here, in 1796, the French under Augereau gained a decisive victory over the Austrians. The French commander was afterwards made, on account of this battle, Duc de Castiglione. In 1859 the battle of Solferino also occurred in its neighborhood.
=Castillejos.= In Northern Africa; here, in January, 1860, was fought the first decisive action of the war between Spain and Morocco. Gen. Prim, after a vigorous resistance, repulsed the Moors under Muley Abbas, and advanced towards Tetuan.
=Castillon.= A town of France, in the department of Gironde. It is celebrated as the scene of the battle between the forces of Henry VI. of England and Charles VII. of France, in July, 1453, in which the English met with a signal defeat, their leader, the Earl of Shrewsbury, and his son being slain.
=Casting.= The rejection of horses deemed unfit for further cavalry use.
=Casting Cannon.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF.
=Cast Iron.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Castle.= A name given to a building constructed as a dwelling, as well as for the purpose of repelling attack. The name is especially given to buildings of this kind constructed in Europe in the Middle Ages, and which were generally surrounded by a moat, foss, or ditch.
=Castlebar.= A town of Ireland. French troops under Humbert landed at Killala, and, assisted by Irish insurgents here, compelled the king’s troops under Lake to retreat, August 27, 1798; but were compelled to surrender at Ballinamuck.
=Castlecomer.= A town of Ireland; in the rebellion of 1798 this town was attacked by the rebels, and nearly destroyed by fire.
=Castle-guard.= The guard which defends a castle.
=Castles.= In heraldry, castles are often given as charges in the shields of persons who have reduced them, or been the first to mount their walls in an assault.
=Cast-metal Gun.= See ORDNANCE, CAST-METAL CANNON.
=Castrametation.= Is the art of laying out camps, and of placing the troops so that the different arms of the service shall afford support to each other in the best manner.
=Cast Steel.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Casualties.= In the military service, is a word which includes all losses in numerical strength of officers by death, dismissal, or resignation, and of enlisted men by death, desertion, or discharge; also all losses in fighting strength caused by wounds.
=Casus Belli.= A Latin phrase used with reference to any event, or complication between sovereign powers, which gives rise to a declaration of war.
=Catafalco.= In ancient military architecture, a scaffold of timber, decorated with sculpture, paintings, etc., for supporting the coffin of a deceased hero during the funeral solemnity.
=Catalans.= The inhabitants of Catalonia, Spain. Their language, costume, and habits are quite distinct from those of the rest of their countrymen. In energy, industry, and intelligence they greatly surpass the rest of the Spaniards. They were considered brave warriors.
=Catalaunian Plain.= The ancient name of the wide plain surrounding Châlons-sur-Marne, in the old province of Campagne, France, celebrated as the field of battle where the West Goths, and the forces under the Roman general Aetius, gained a great victory over Attila in 451. A wild tradition tells that three days after the great fight, the ghosts of the fallen myriads appeared on the plain, and renewed the conflict.
=Catalonia.= An old province of Western Spain, was settled by the Goths and Alani about 409; conquered by the Saracens, 712; recovered by Pepin and Charlemagne; united with Aragon in 1137. It formed part of the Spanish marches and the territory of the Count of Barcelona.
=Catania= (anc. Catana). A town near Mount Etna, Sicily. The ancient city was founded by the Phœnicians or Greeks, and was nearly as old as Rome. It was taken by the Athenian general Nicias about 413 B.C., and was an important city under the Romans. In August, 1802, the town was held by Garibaldi and his volunteers, in opposition to the Italian government. He was captured on August 29.
=Cataphract.= The old Roman term for a horseman in complete armor.
=Cataphracta.= In the ancient military art, a piece of heavy defensive armor, formed of cloth or leather, fortified with iron scales or links, wherewith sometimes only the breast, sometimes the whole body, and sometimes the horse too, was covered.
=Catapult= (Lat. catapulta). An engine of war used by the ancients, somewhat resembling a cross-bow. In the catapult a string or rope, suddenly freed from great tension, gave a powerful impulse to an arrow placed in a groove. There were great catapults, fixed upon a scaffold with wheels, which were used in sieges, and small ones, carried in the hand, which were employed in the field.
=Cataract.= A portcullis.
=Catawba Indians.= A tribe of aborigines who formerly inhabited the Carolinas. A remnant still exists on a reservation on the Catawba River. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Cateau Cambresis.= In Northern France, where on April 2 and 3, 1559, peace was concluded between Henry II. of France, Philip II. of Spain, and Elizabeth of England. France ceded Savoy, Corsica, and nearly 200 forts in Italy and the Low Countries to Philip.
=Caterva.= In ancient military writings, a term used in speaking of the Gaulish or Celtiberian armies, denoting a body of 6000 armed men. The word is also used to denote a party of soldiers in disarray; in opposition to cohort or turma, which signify in good order.
=Cat-o’-nine-tails.= An instrument of punishment formerly used to flog offenders in the army, consisting of nine pieces of line or cord fastened to a piece of thick rope, and having three knots at intervals.
=Cattaro.= A fortified town of Dalmatia, Austria, at the bottom of the Gulf of Cattaro. This town was captured by the British in 1813, and till 1814 belonged successively to Austria and France.
=Catti.= An ancient German tribe, attacked but not subdued by the Romans; absorbed by the Franks in the 3d century.
=Caudine Forks.= Two narrow mountain-gorges or defiles near the town of Caudium, in ancient Samnium. They are celebrated in connection with a humiliating disaster which the Roman army suffered in 321 B.C.
=Caution.= An explanation given previous to the word of command, by which soldiers are called to attention, that they may execute any given movement with unanimity and correctness.
=Cavalcade.= In military history, implies a pompous procession of horsemen, equipages, etc., by way of parade, to grace a triumph, public entry, or the like.
=Cavalier.= Originally meant any horse-soldier, but in English history is the name given to the party which adhered to King Charles I., in opposition to the Roundheads, or friends of the Parliament.
=Cavalier.= In fortification, is a defense-work constructed on the terre-plein, or level ground of a bastion. It rises to a height varying from 8 to 12 feet above the rampart, and has a parapet about 6 feet high. Its uses are to command any rising ground held by the enemy within cannon-shot, and to guard the curtain, or plain wall between two bastions, from being enfiladed. A cavalier battery--used in siege operations--is a battery of which the terre-plein, or platform of earth on which the gun stands, is above the ordinary level of the ground.
=Cavalot.= An obsolete cannon carrying a ball weighing one pound.
=Cavalry.= That part of a military force which consists of troops that serve on horseback. In European armies cavalry are generally classed as heavy, medium, and light,--cuirassiers and dragoons, lancers, hussars, etc. In the U. S. service all mounted soldiers are simply called cavalry.
=Caveating.= In fencing, implies a motion whereby a person in an instant brings his sword, which was presented to one side of his adversary, to the opposite side.
=Cavesson.= A sort of nose-band of leather or iron, which is put on the nose of a horse, to assist in breaking or training him.
=Cavin.= In military affairs, implies a natural hollow, sufficiently capacious to lodge a body of troops, and facilitate their approach to a place. If it be within musket-shot, it is a place of arms ready made, and serves for opening the trenches, free from the enemy’s shot.
=Cavriana.= A village of Northern Italy. The tower of this place formed one of the principal positions of the centre of the Austrian army, from which it was driven by the Franco-Sardinian forces, under Napoleon III. and Victor Emmanuel, at the battle of Solferino, June 24, 1859.
=Cawnpoor=, or =Cawnpore=. A town of Hindostan, on the right bank of the Ganges. It is an important British military station. It was garrisoned during the mutiny in June, 1857, by native troops under Sir Hugh Wheeler; these troops broke out into revolt. Nana Sahib, who had long lived on friendly terms with the British, joined the rebels; he took Cawnpoor, June 26, after a three weeks’ siege, and in spite of a treaty, massacred great numbers of the British, without respect to age or sex, in the most cruel manner. Gen. Havelock defeated Nana Sahib July 16, at Futtehpore, and retook Cawnpoor, July 17. Sir Colin Campbell defeated the rebels here on December 6, following.
=Cayenne.= French Guiana, South America; settled by the French, 1604-35. It afterwards came successively into the hands of the English (1654), French, and Dutch. The last were expelled by the French in 1677. Cayenne was taken by the British, January 12, 1809, but was restored to the French in 1814.
=Cedar Creek.= In Northern Virginia. While encamped on this creek on the morning of October 19, 1864, the army of Gen. Sheridan was suddenly attacked before daylight by the Confederate troops under Gen. Early, its left flank turned, and the whole line driven back in confusion about 4 miles, with the loss of 24 pieces of artillery. Gen. Sheridan, who was at Winchester on his return from Washington, on hearing of this disaster, hastened to the scene of action, reformed his corps, and awaited the attack of the enemy, which was made and handsomely repulsed about 1 P.M. About 3 P.M. Sheridan attacked the enemy and completely routed him, recovering his own artillery and capturing 30 pieces besides, thus converting into a brilliant victory what threatened to be a great disaster. About 2000 prisoners and 300 wagons and ambulances fell into Sheridan’s hands, and many of his own men who had been taken prisoners in the morning were recovered.
=Cedar Mountain.= A sugar-loaf eminence about 2 miles west of Mitchell’s Station, Culpeper Co., Va. On August 9, 1862, a sanguinary conflict took place here between the Confederate forces under Gens. Jackson and Ewell, and part of Gen. Pope’s army under Gen. Banks, night putting an end to the contest. The Federals being largely outnumbered, suffered severely, and fell back about a mile, but without disorder. Their loss was about 1500, 300 of whom were taken prisoners. A considerable quantity of ammunition, stores, etc., also fell into the hands of the Confederates.
=Celeres.= The life-guards which attended Romulus in the infancy of Rome, were so called. They were laid aside by Numa Pompilius. Celeres were properly distinguished from other troops, by being lightly armed and acting always on foot.
=Cells.= Places of solitary confinement in which soldiers are placed, as punishment for serious crimes.
=Celtiberi=, or =Celtiberians=. An ancient and warlike people of Spain, who are renowned in history for their long and obstinate resistance to the Romans. In the second Punic war, after giving important aid to the Carthaginians, they were induced by the generosity of Scipio to accept the alliance of Rome. They revolted against Rome in 181 B.C., but were appeased by Gracchus in 179. War was renewed in 153, and continued with varying success until after the capture of Numantia, 134 B.C. In spite of this great blow the Celtiberi again renewed the war under Sertorius, and it was only after his fall that they began to adopt the Roman language, dress, and manners.
=Cement.= Hydraulic cements are much used in building permanent fortifications. The cement used by the Romans in their great sea-walls, aqueducts, etc., which are still standing as monuments of their civil engineering, was pozzuolana, a volcanic earth from near Baiæ, Italy. It is still an article of export from Italy. The most noted modern cement is Portland, made artificially in England by burning a mixture of the chalk and clay from the valley of the Medway.
=Cementation.= In metallurgy, is the process of converting metals by absorption under great heat. Specially applied to the conversion of iron into steel by causing it to absorb carbon. The iron bars are imbedded in charcoal and exposed to prolonged heat in a closed furnace. The qualities of the resulting steel vary with the degree and duration of the heating. The bars, when removed, are called blistered steel from their appearance. See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR, BLISTERED STEEL.
=Cenotaph.= The empty tomb of a hero, or monument erected in honor of a person, without the body of the deceased being interred in or near it.
=Centesimation.= In ancient military history, a mild kind of military punishment, in cases of desertion, mutiny, and the like, when only every one hundredth man was executed.
=Central America.= Includes the republics of Guatemala, San Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica (which see). They declared their independence September 21, 1821, and separated from the Mexican Confederation July 21, 1823. The states made a treaty of union between themselves March 21, 1847. There has been among them since much anarchy and bloodshed.
=Centre.= A point equally distant from the extremities of a line, figure, or body; the middle point or place of anything.
=Centre of an Army.= The body of troops occupying the place in the line between the wings. See TARGET.
=Centre of Gravity.= The point of a body about which all its parts are balanced. This is a matter of great importance in cannon, both for mechanical manœuvres and for ordinary handling. In all large guns in the United States, and in many in Europe, the axis of the trunnions passes through the centre of gravity of the gun. Such guns have no preponderance, and need no support in firing except the trunnions. This innovation was introduced by the genius of Rodman, and brought many advantages in the handling of heavy guns. In projectiles, the centre of gravity, or inertia, is also a thing of moment. Spherical projectiles in which this point does not coincide with the centre of figure are said to be eccentric, and are subject to certain deviations (see PROJECTILES); deviation of the relative position of these points influences the flight also of rifle projectiles.
=Centre of the Bastion.= In fortification, is the intersection made by the two demi-gorges.
=Centrifugal Gun.= A form of machine gun in which balls are thrown from a chambered disk rotating with great speed.
=Centrobaric Method.= The method ordinarily used to determine by calculation the centre of gravity of a projected gun. The principle used is that the volume generated by any surface in revolving about a fixed axis is measured by the product of the surface into the path described by its centre of gravity. The moments of the weights of the several parts are referred to an axis usually taken tangent to the knob of the cascabel. The sum of these moments, divided by the weight of the piece, gives the distance of the centre of gravity from the assumed axis. In homogeneous guns, the volumes of the several parts can be used instead of the weights.
=Centurion.= A military officer among the ancient Romans, who commanded a (centum) hundred men.
=Century.= In an ancient military sense, meant a hundred soldiers, who were employed in working the battering-ram.
=Cephalonia.= One of the Ionian Islands; was taken from the Ætolians by the Romans 189 B.C., and given to the Athenians by Hadrian in 135. It was conquered by the Normans in 1146, afterwards passed into the possession of the Venetians, and was taken by the English in 1819.
=Cephisus.= A river in Attica, near which Walter de Brienne, duke of Athens, was defeated and slain by the Catalans in 1311.
=Cercelée=, or =Recercelée=. In heraldry, is a cross circling or curling at the ends, like a ram’s horn.
=Cercle= (Grand-cercle), Fr. A form observed under the old government of France, by which it was directed that every evening at a specific hour the sergeants and corporals of brigade should assemble to receive orders, the former standing in front of the latter. Subsequent to the grand cercle, a smaller one was made in each regiment, when general or regimental orders were again repeated to the sergeants of each regiment, and from them communicated to the officers of the several companies.
=Ceremonies, Stated Military.= Exercises, such as parades, reviews, inspections, escorts of the color, escorts of honor, funeral honors, guard-mounting, etc.
=Cerignola.= A town of South Italy, in the province of Capitanata. Here, in 1503, the French were defeated by the Spaniards, and the Duke of Nemours, who commanded the former, was slain.
=Cerro Gordo.= A celebrated mountain-pass in Mexico, about 60 miles northwest of Vera Cruz. Here an army of about 12,000 Mexicans under Santa Anna was totally defeated by about 8000 U. S. troops under Gen. Scott, April 18, 1847. The Mexicans lost about 1000 killed and wounded, besides 3000 prisoners; the American loss was 431 killed and wounded.
=Certificate of Disability.= See DISABILITY.
=Certificate of Merit.= See MERIT, CERTIFICATE OF.
=Cessation of Arms.= An armistice or truce, agreed to by the commanders of armies, to give them time for a capitulation, or for other purposes.
=Ceuta.= A fortified seaport of Morocco, opposite Gibraltar. The castle stands on the highest point of the ancient Abyla, one of the pillars of Hercules, terminating a peninsula. This was a Mauritanian town under the Romans, and in 1415 was taken from the Moors by the Portuguese. In 1580 it passed into the possession of the Spanish, in whose hands it afterwards remained.
=Ceylon= (anc. Taprobane). An island in the Indian Ocean. It was invaded by the Portuguese Almeyda, 1505, but it was known to the Romans in the time of Claudius, 41. The Dutch landed in Ceylon in 1602; they captured the capital, Colombo, in 1503. Intercourse with the British began in 1713. A large portion of the country was taken by them in 1782, but was restored in 1783. The Dutch settlements were seized by the British, 1795. Ceylon was ceded to the British by the peace of Amiens in 1802. The British troops were treacherously massacred or imprisoned by the Adigar of Candy, at Colombo, June 26, 1803. The complete sovereignty of the island was assumed by England in 1815.
=Chæronea= (Bœotia). Here Greece was ruined by Philip, 32,000 Macedonians defeating 30,000 Thebans, Athenians, etc., August 6 or 7, 338 B.C. Here Archelaus, lieutenant of Mithridates, was defeated by Sylla, and 110,000 Cappadocians were slain, 86 B.C.
=Chain.= A chain made of a kind of wire, divided into links of an equal length, is made use of by military engineers for setting out works on the ground, because cord lines are apt to shrink and give way.
=Chain-ball.= See PROJECTILE.
=Chain-mail.= A kind of armor made of interlaced rings, both flexible and strong; much used in the 12th and 13th centuries.
=Chain-shot.= See PROJECTILE.
=Chair.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, NOMENCLATURE OF ARTILLERY CARRIAGE.
=Chalcedon.= In Asia Minor, opposite Byzantium, colonized by Magarians about 684 B.C. It was taken by Darius, 505 B.C.; by the Romans, 74; plundered by the Goths, 259 A.D.; taken by Chosroes the Persian, 609; by Orchan the Turk in 1338.
=Chalcis.= An ancient Greek city, of great antiquity, the capital of the island of Eubœa. It rose to great eminence, but finally became a tributary of Athens, from whose sway it revolted several times, being as often, however, subdued, and held until the downfall of the Athenian empire at the close of the Peloponnesian war. In later times it was successively occupied by the Macedonians, Antiochus, Mithridates, and the Romans. It joined the Achæans in the last war against the Romans, and the town was in consequence destroyed by Mummius. The modern city of Egripo, or Negropont, built on its site, for a time in possession of the Venetians, was taken by the Turks in 1470.
=Chalgrove.= In Oxfordshire, England. At a skirmish here with Prince Rupert, June 18, 1643, John Hampden, of the Parliament party, was mortally wounded. A column was erected to his memory, June 18, 1843.
=Challenge.= The act of a sentinel in questioning or demanding the countersign from those who appear at his post.
=Challenge.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 26, 27, and 28.
=Challenge of Members of Courts-martial.= When a member shall be challenged by a prisoner, he must state his cause of challenge, of which the court shall, after due deliberation, determine the relevancy or validity, and decide accordingly; and no challenge to more than one member at a time shall be received by the court.
=Châlons-sur-Marne.= A town of France, in the department of Marne. Here the emperor Aurelian defeated Tetricus, the last of the pretenders to the throne termed the Thirty Tyrants, 274; and here in 451 Aetius defeated Attila the Hun, compelling him to retire into Pannonia.
=Chamade.= A signal made for parley by beat of drum.
=Chamber.= Of a mine, that place where the powder is deposited.
=Chamber.= In howitzers, and mortars of the old model, was the smallest part of the bore, and contained the charge of powder. In the howitzers the chamber was cylindrical, and was united with the large cylinder of the bore by a conical surface; the angles of intersection of the conical surface with the cylinders of the bore and chamber were rounded (in profile) by arcs of circles. In the 8-inch howitzer, the chamber was united with the cylinder of the bore by spherical surface, in order that the shell might, when necessary, be inserted without a sabot. The chamber is omitted in all cannon of the late models, the cylinder of the bore terminating at the bottom in a semi-ellipsoid. The old chambers were subcaliber. The first use of a chamber larger than the bore occurred, it is believed, in a gun invented by an American named Ferris. The gun had a great range. One of the most important improvements in recent ordnance consists in the use of this chamber. The English, who deserve the credit of first appreciating it, now use it in all their largest guns. See ORDNANCE, HISTORY OF.
=Chambersburg.= The capital of Franklin Co., Pa. This place was the scene of several exciting incidents during the civil war. It was occupied by a party of Confederate cavalry under Gen. Stuart in 1862, by a part of Gen. Ewell’s forces in June, 1863, and next month almost totally destroyed by fire by a party of Confederate cavalry under Gen. McCausland.
=Chamfron=, or =Chamfrain=. The frontlet of a barbed or armed horse, usually having a spike between the eyes.
=Champ de Mars.= An open square in front of the Military School, Paris, which was used for the great meetings of the French people, reviews, etc.
=Champigny.= A town of France, department of the Seine, 8 miles east-southeast of Paris. On November 30, 1870, a force of 120,000 French under Gens. Trochu and Ducrot, who made a sortie from Paris, were met near here by the Germans, and some severe fighting ensued, with great loss on both sides, the French holding the taken possessions until the contest was renewed, December 2, when the French were compelled to retreat.
=Champion Hills.= In Hinds Co., Miss., west of Jackson. Here the Confederate forces under Gen. Pemberton were defeated by the Union troops under Gen. Grant, May 16, 1863.
=Champlain, Lake.= An extensive body of water forming part of the boundary between the States of Vermont and New York, and extending northward a few miles beyond the Canada line. It was the scene of engagements between the Americans and British during the war of independence. On its waters also, in 1814, Commodore Macdonough gained a victory over the British fleet.
=Chancellorsville.= A small village of Spottsylvania Co., Va., near the Rappahannock River, about 65 miles north by west from Richmond. This place was the scene of several sanguinary conflicts between the Federal army of the Potomac under Gen. Hooker and the Confederates under Gen. Lee. On April 28, 1863, the Federal army crossed the Rappahannock; on May 2, Gen. “Stonewall” Jackson furiously attacked and routed the right wing, but was mortally wounded by his own party firing on him by mistake. Gen. Stuart took his command, and after a severe conflict on May 3 and 4, with great loss to both parties, the Federals were compelled to recross the Rappahannock. The struggle was compared to that at Hougoumont during the battle of Waterloo.
=Chandelier.= In military engineering, a wooden frame, which was filled with fascines, to form a traverse in sapping.
=Chanderee=, or =Chandhaire=. A town of India in the province of Malwa. Its fortress, formerly deemed impregnable, consists of a strong rampart of sandstone flanked by circular towers, and is situated on a high hill. During the native wars, being a place of importance, it was frequently besieged.
=Chandernagore.= The principal settlement of the French in Bengal, which is encompassed by the British district of Hooghly. In 1757 this settlement was taken by the British, but restored in 1763. In 1793 it was again taken by the British, but restored to the French a second time in 1816.
=Chandore.= A fortified town of British India, 130 miles northwest from Bombay. In 1804 and 1818 this place capitulated to the British.
=Chantier= (Fr.). A square piece of wood, which is used for the purpose of raising anything. It serves to place barrels of gunpowder in a proper manner, and frequently to try pieces of ordnance instead of frames.
=Chantilly.= A post-village of Fairfax Co., Va. Here, on September 1, 1862, the Confederate troops of Gen. Lee attacked a part of Gen. Pope’s army, under Gens. Reno, Stevens, and Kearney, and a severe conflict ensued, lasting into the night, and resulting in the death of Gens. Stevens and Kearney.
=Chape.= The metallic part put on the end of a scabbard, to prevent the point of the sword or bayonet from piercing through it.
=Chapeau.= In a military sense, a hat, cap, or other head-covering.
=Chapeau Bras.= A military hat which can be flattened and put under the arm.
=Chaperon.= A hood or cape worn by Knights of the Garter.
=Chaplain.= A clergyman with a military commission, giving him the spiritual charge of soldiers. There are 30 post and 4 regimental chaplains in the U. S. army.
=Chaplain-General.= In the British service, the officer at the head of the chaplain’s department.
=Chaplet.= In heraldry, is always composed of four roses, the other parts being leaves.
=Chappe= (Fr.). A barrel containing another barrel, which holds gunpowder. It likewise means a composition of earth, horse-dung, and wad, that covers the mouth of a cannon or mortar.
=Chapultepec.= A strong fortress of Mexico, situated about 2 miles southwest of the metropolis. It consists of an eminence rising to the height of about 150 feet, with a strong castle on top. During the Mexican war it was deemed necessary by Gen. Scott, for strategic reasons, to capture this last outward defense of the capital prior to the attack on the city itself. This was gallantly effected on September 13, 1847, and next day the city was entered by the American forces, thus virtually ending the war. Preparations for the assault were commenced on the night of September 11, and before the evening of the 12th, owing to the skillful arrangement of Gen. Scott’s artillery, the exterior defenses began to give way. Next day was determined on for the attack. The American forces were so placed that the assault could be made simultaneously from different sides at a preconcerted signal, which would be the temporary cessation of the cannonade from their batteries. It was given, and the attacking forces advanced, Gen. Quitman’s division from the south, and Gen. Pillow from the wooded slope on the west, Gen. Smith’s brigade supporting Quitman, Pillow supported by the division of Gen. Worth, and the batteries throwing shells into the fort over the heads of their friends. Under a heavy fire of musketry the attacking forces advance, and step by step they gain every disputed point, scaling-ladders are brought into requisition, an entrance effected, and the defeated Mexicans, dislodged and retreating, are pursued to the very gates of their capital. The American loss during the three days was 833 killed and wounded.
=Charcoal.= One of the ingredients of gunpowder. It is made by distilling small sticks of wood in closed retorts. Willow, alder, poplar, and dogwood are some of the woods used. In distilling the heat should be kept below redness. Charcoal should be light in weight, and have a velvety fracture. It inflames at about 460° Fahr. Its composition and properties vary with the nature of the wood and mode of distillation employed.
Charcoal obtained from light wood is the best for gunpowder, as it is more combustible and easy to pulverize, and contains less earthy matters. Willow and poplar are used for this purpose in the United States and black elder in Europe. The wood must be sound and should not be more than 3 or 4 years old, and about 1 inch in diameter; branches larger than this should be split up. It is cut in the spring when the sap runs freely, and is immediately stripped of its bark. The smaller branches are used for fine sporting powder.
The operation of charring may be performed in pits, but the method now almost universally used in making charcoal for gunpowder is that of distillation. For this purpose the wood is placed in an iron vessel, generally of a cylindrical form, to which a cover is luted; an opening with a pipe is made to conduct off the gaseous products, and the wood is thus exposed to the heat of a furnace. The progress of distillation is judged of by the color of the flame and smoke, and sometimes by test-sticks, which are introduced through tubes prepared for the purpose.
Properties.--The charcoal thus obtained should retain a certain degree of elasticity, and should have a brown color, the wood not being entirely decomposed. As it readily absorbs one-twentieth of its weight of moisture, which diminishes its inflammability, it should be made only in proportion as it is required for use. Wood generally contains 52 per cent. of carbon, but distillation furnishes not more than 30 to 40 per cent. of charcoal.
As it is desirable to have charcoal for gunpowder very combustible, it must be prepared at a low temperature, and must be light.
Accidents.--When recently prepared charcoal is pulverized and laid in heaps, it is liable to absorb oxygen with such rapidity as to cause spontaneous combustion. This has been the cause of serious accidents at powder-mills, and hence it is important not to pulverize charcoal until it has been exposed to the air for several days. When charcoal has not absorbed moisture, and is mixed with oxidizing substances, it may be inflamed by violent shocks or by friction. This is the principal cause of the accidents which occur in the preparation of explosive mixtures which contain charcoal. See GUNPOWDER.
=Chard.= A town of England, in Somersetshire. Here the royalists were defeated in the civil wars between Charles I. and the Parliament.
=Charenton.= A town of France, in the department of the Seine. It stands on the Marne, over which there is a bridge, which was frequently the scene of bloody conflicts between the citizens and the soldiers during the French revolutions. It now forms a portion of the fortifications of Paris.
=Charge.= The act of rushing on the enemy with a view to come to close fighting. It is also sometimes applied to the temporary command of a detachment, troop, company, or battery. A charge likewise means the statement of the crime for which an officer or soldier is brought before a court-martial.
=Charge.= The quantity of powder with which a piece of artillery is loaded. The charge corresponding to the maximum velocity in the projectile is called the maximum charge. The longer the gun the greater the maximum charge. In the early days of artillery, when powder was used in the form of dust, a very large charge was necessary. After the introduction of grained powder it was reduced gradually to about one-fourth the weight of the shot. At the time of the recent departures in ordnance, the charge for smooth-bore guns was from one-fifth to one-eighth the weight of the projectile; for howitzers, from one-eighth to one-twentieth; for mortars the charge varied with the range, the largest being about one-ninth. For rifle guns the disproportion was greater than for smooth-bores, the average being about one-tenth. In small-arms, the charge for the old smooth-bore musket was about one-third the weight of the ball. When the rifle was introduced, this proportion was retained till the oblong bullet began to be used, when the charge was relatively much diminished, till it fell to about one-tenth. The tendency lately has been to increase it. In some of the best-known rifles of the present day the charge is about one-fifth,--a majority use more than one-sixth. The same tendency is still more observable in heavy ordnance. The largest Krupp, Woolwich, and Armstrong guns use a charge greater than one-fourth the weight of the projectile.
=Charge.= The position of a weapon fitted for attack; as, to bring a weapon to the charge.
=Charge.= In heraldry, the figures represented on a shield are called charges, and a shield with figures upon it is said to be charged. The charges in a shield ought to be few in number, and strongly marked, both as regards their character and the mode of their representation. The family shield belonging to the head of the house almost always is simpler,--i.e., has fewer charges than the shields of collaterals, or even of junior members.
=Charger= (Fr. cheval de bataille). A horse kept by an officer for military purposes.
=Chariot.= In antiquity, a war car or vehicle.
=Charleroi.= A strongly fortified town of Belgium, in Hainaut. This place was fortified by Vauban. Several great battles have been fought near this town, especially in 1690 and 1794. Charleroi was besieged by the Prince of Orange, 1672 and 1677; but he was soon obliged to retire. Near here, at Ligny, Napoleon attacked the Prussian line, making it fall back upon Wavres, June 16, 1815.
=Charleston.= A port of entry and the chief city of South Carolina, founded in 1672. On Sullivan’s Island, about 7 miles below, communicating with the harbor, a garrison of about 400 Americans under Col. Moultrie sustained an assault from 9 British ships of war, and gallantly repulsed them, on June 28, 1776. The city was afterwards besieged, and after a gallant resistance of nearly six weeks surrendered to the British, May 12, 1780, being held by them till 1782. In the civil war (1861-65) it was here the first gun was fired, which resulted in the reduction of the famous Fort Sumter. In the latter part of the war it was bombarded and besieged by the Federal troops. Its evacuation by the Confederates and its occupation by the Federals followed, February 18, 1865.
=Chase.= In gunnery, is the conical part of the gun in front of the reinforce.
=Chase-ring.= In gunnery, is a band at the front end of the chase.
=Chassepot.= A species of rifle. See SMALL-ARMS.
=Chasseurs.= A French word signifying “hunters,” applied in various forms to light troops in the French service, organized at different times, either as infantry or cavalry, as chasseurs à pied, de Montague, de Vincennes, for infantry, and chasseurs à cheval, d’Afrique, Algeriens, etc., for cavalry. They have organizations in other armies also corresponding to these, such as the jägers in the Austrian army, and the cacciatore dei Alpi of the Garibaldian troops in the Italian war of 1859-60.
=Chassis.= A traversing frame or movable railway, along which the carriage of a heavy gun in barbette, or casemate, moves backward and forward in action. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, SEA-COAST CARRIAGES.
=Chastleton.= A parish of England, in Oxfordshire, 5 miles from Chipping Norton. Here, in 1016, Canute defeated Edmund Ironside.
=Châteaudun.= An old city in Northwest France, the residence of the heroic Dunois, who died in 1468. Here were massacred July 20, 1183, about 7000 Brabançons, fanatic mercenaries who had been hired to exterminate the Albigenses by the Cardinal Henry, abbot of Clairvaux, in 1181. They had become the scourge of the country, and the “Capuchons” were organized for their destruction. Châteaudun was captured by the Germans after a severe conflict of about 9 hours, October 18, 1870. Barracks had been erected in the town, and the Garde Mobile fought bravely. The town was re-occupied by the French, November 6.
=Château Thierry.= A town of France, in the department of Aisne. It is built on the slope of a hill, capped by the ruins of a castle, which is said to have been erected by Charles Martel in 730. In 1814 this place was the scene of several conflicts between the allied army and the French troops.
=Chatham.= A town of England, in the county of Kent, on the Medway. It is a principal station of the royal navy. There is a fine station and military arsenal close to Chatham, containing vast magazines and warehouses, in which there are all kinds of stores, and where all the operations necessary for building and fitting out ships of war are carried on. There are also extensive barracks for infantry, royal marines, artillery, and engineers. Chatham is defended by forts on the heights, by which it is partly surrounded. There are also very extensive fortifications about Chatham, called the Lines, which are defended by ramparts, palisades, and a broad, deep ditch. On June 10, 1667, the Dutch fleet under Admiral Ruyter sailed up to Chatham and burnt several men-of-war. The entrance into the Medway is now defended by Sheerness and other forts.
=Chatillon-sur-Seine.= A town of France, department of Côte-d’Or, 43 miles north-northwest of Dijon, on the Seine. Here a congress was held by the four great powers allied against France, at which Caulaincourt attended for Napoleon, February 5, 1814; the negotiations for peace were broken off on March 19, following.
=Chattanooga.= A village of Hamilton Co., Tenn. During the civil war it was the scene of many exciting incidents between the contending forces. It was attacked by Gen. Negley in June, 1862; occupied by Gen. Rosecrans, July, 1863, and in the same year were fought in its vicinity a succession of the most momentous battles of that eventful epoch, commencing September 23, 1863, with Gen. Grant’s attack on Gen. Bragg. The movements were under direction of Gens. Sherman and Thomas, and resulted, after three days’ severe fighting around Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, and Lookout Mountain, in the total defeat of the Confederates, and their pursuit back into Georgia.
=Chaumont, Treaty of.= Entered into between Great Britain, Austria, Russia, and Prussia, and signed by these powers respectively March 1, 1814. This treaty was succeeded by the celebrated treaty of Paris, April 11, following, by which Napoleon renounced his sovereignty over France.
=Chausses.= In the armor of the Middle Ages, were defense-pieces for the legs. Some were made of padded and quilted cloth, with metal studs; some of chain-metal, some of riveted plates, and some of banded mail. It was not unusual to fasten them by lacing behind the leg.
=Chauvinisme= (Fr.). An exaggerated idea of the qualities of a leader, as Chauvin, a character in a French play (from whom the name is derived), is represented to have had of his leader, Bonaparte.
=Checky.= In heraldry, when the field of any charge is composed of small squares of different tinctures, it is said to be checky.
=Cheeks.= In the construction of artillery-carriages, are the parts between which the piece is placed and upon which the trunnions are supported. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, NOMENCLATURE OF ARTILLERY CARRIAGE.
=Chelone=, or =Tortoise=. In military antiquity, the form of battle adopted by the Greeks in besieging fortified towns. It served to protect the besiegers in their approach to the walls. This invention was formed by the soldiers placing their shields over their heads, in a sloping position, similar to the tiles of a house. The first rank stood erect, the second stooped a little, the third still more, and the last rank knelt. They were thus protected from the missile weapons of the foe, as they advanced or stood under the walls of an enemy. The chelone was similar to the testudo of the Romans. See TESTUDO.
=Chelsea.= A parish of England, in Middlesex, on the Thames. Chelsea Hospital is the great national asylum for decayed and maimed soldiers, and one of the noblest institutions of the kind in Europe. The institution was founded by Charles II. in 1682. Connected with the hospital is the Military Asylum, a noble establishment, founded in 1801, for the education and maintenance of the children of soldiers. See ASYLUM.
=Chemin-des-Rondes= (Fr.). A beam from 4 to 12 feet wide, at the foot of the exterior slope in a permanent fortification. It is sometimes covered in front by a hedge, or low wall, or small parapet of earth.
=Chemise.= In mediæval fortification, an additional escarp or counter-guard wall, covering the lower part of the escarp.
=Cherasco.= A town of Piedmont, situated on the Tanaro. A peace was concluded here between Louis XIII. of France and the Duke of Savoy, in 1631. On April 26, 1796, the place was taken by the French, and here, three days after, the “Armistice of Cherasco” was concluded between the Sardinian commissioners and Napoleon, by which the latter obtained the right of free passage for his troops through the Sardinian states; and the treaty that followed gave to the French republic Savoy, Nice, and the possessions of Piedmont to the westward of the highest ridge of the Alps.
=Cheraw.= A village of Chesterfield Co., S. C. It was a Confederate depot of supplies during the civil war, and was captured with all its stores by Gen. Sherman, March 3, 1865.
=Cherbourg.= A fortified seaport town and important naval station of France, department of Manche, on the English Channel. Edward III. of England unsuccessfully laid siege to Cherbourg in 1346, but in 1418 it was given up to the British. The French regained it in 1450, but the English again took it in 1758.
=Cheriton Down.= In the county of Hants, England. Here Sir William Waller defeated the royalists under Lord Hopton, May 29, 1644.
=Cherokee Indians.= A tribe of aborigines who formerly occupied the southern portion of the Appalachian Mountains, and a large tract of country on both sides of the range. In 1838 they were removed by the U. S. government to the west of the Mississippi, into what is now Indian Territory, and the portion of the tribe that now remains have a civilized government and a written language. For numbers, etc., see INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Cherusci.= One of the most celebrated of all the German tribes at the time of Cæsar. Being excited to hostilities by the tyranny and rapacity of the Romans, they entered into a confederation with the neighboring tribes, and, under their leader Arminius, defeated a Roman army at Teutoburg Forest, in A.D. 9. Germanicus, a Roman general, afterwards tried to avenge this disgrace to their honor by subduing them, but was unsuccessful. Owing to their own internal dissensions they were subsequently subdued by the Chatti, another German tribe.
=Chesses.= Are the platforms which form the flooring of military bridges. They consist of two or more planks, ledged together at the edges by dowels or pegs.
=Chest, Ammunition-.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, THE CAISSON.
=Chest, Military.= Is a technical name for money and negotiable securities carried by an army, and intended to defray its current expenses. In the British military system this department is managed by the commissariat; in the United States, by the paymaster-general and commissary-general.
=Chester.= A city of England, in the county of Cheshire. The British Caerleon and the Roman Deva, the station of the Twentieth Legion, Valeria Victrix, quitted by them about 477. The city was first built by Edelfleda about 908. Chester was ravaged by the Danes in 980; taken after three months’ siege for the Parliament in 1645. A projected attack of Fenians on Chester Castle was defeated by the vigilance of the authorities and the arrival of the military, February 11-12, 1867.
=Cheval-de-frise.= A piece of timber traversed with wooden spikes, pointed with iron, 5 or 6 feet long, used to defend a passage, stop a breach, or make a retrenchment to stop cavalry.
=Chevalet= (Fr.). A sort of bell-tent, formerly used in the French service, when an army encamped. It resembled in some degrees the wigwam of an Indian.
=Chevalier= (Fr.). A horseman; a knight. A member of certain orders of knighthood. In heraldry, a horseman armed at all points.
=Chevet= (Fr.). A small wedge which is used in raising a mortar. It is placed between the frame and swell of the mortar.
=Cheviot Hills.= A mountain-range extending along the border between Scotland and England; the scene of many conflicts between the Scotch and English.
=Chevrette.= An engine for raising guns or mortars into their carriages.
=Chevron.= The arrow-headed stripes on the arm, by which the rank of a non-commissioned officer is indicated.
=Chevron.= In heraldry, is an ordinary representing the rafters of a house, and supposed to betoken the accomplishment of some memorable work, or the completion of some business of importance, generally the foundation of his own family by the bearer.
=Cheyenne Indians.= A tribe of aborigines dwelling east of the Rocky Mountains, and divided into three bands. For numbers, etc., see INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Chiari.= A town of Northern Italy, near the Oglio. In 1701, Marshal Villeroi was near this town defeated by Prince Eugène.
=Chicane.= To dispute every foot of ground, by taking advantage of natural inequalities, etc.
=Chickahominy.= A river in Eastern Virginia, which, rising about 16 miles northwest of Richmond, flows southeastwardly into the James. Along the margins of the river was the scene of Gen. McClellan’s operations in 1862.
=Chickamauga.= A village of Hamilton Co., Tenn. During the civil war a continuous series of combats were fought here, between the forces of Gens. Rosecrans and Bragg, but without decisive results, September 19-20, 1863.
=Chickasaw Indians.= A warlike tribe of aborigines which formerly occupied Alabama and a portion of Mississippi. They removed into the Indian Territory in 1837. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Chief.= The head or leader of any band or community; a commander.
=Chief.= In heraldry, an ordinary formed by a horizontal line occupying the upper part of the escutcheon. Any object borne in the upper or chief part of the shield is said to be in chief, though the chief be not divided off from the rest of the field as a separate portion.
=Chief of Staff.= In the U. S. service a chief of staff with the rank of brigadier-general was provided by law for the lieutenant-general commanding the army. The senior staff-officer of a general is sometimes designated as the chief of staff. See OFFICERS, STAFF-, and STAFF.
=Chieftain.= A captain, leader, or commander; a chief; the head of a troop, army, or clan.
=Chieftaincy.= Chieftainship. The rank, office, or quality of a chieftain.
=Chili.= An independent republic of South America, bordering on the Pacific Ocean. It was invaded by Almagro in 1535, he being sent by Pizarro to subdue the country. In the 16th and 17th centuries violent contests raged between the Spaniards and Indians, both parties suffering severely. The country continued a vice-royalty of Spain till 1810, when a revolution commenced which terminated in its independence in 1817.
=Chilled Iron.= Cast iron hardened by pouring it into iron molds. Much used in manufacturing armor-piercing projectiles. The celebrated Palliser shot is of this kind.
=Chilled Shot.= See PROJECTILES.
=Chillianwallah, Battle of.= In India, between the Sikh forces in considerable strength and the British commanded by Lord (afterwards Viscount) Gough, fought January 13, 1849. The Sikhs were completely routed, but the loss of the British was very severe. On February 21, Lord Gough attacked the Sikh army under Shere Singh in its position at Goujerat, with complete success, and the whole of the enemy’s camp fell into the hands of the British.
=China.= The “Celestial Empire,” in Eastern Asia, for which the Chinese annals claim an antiquity of from 80,000 to 100,000 years B.C., is allowed to have commenced about 2500 B.C.; by others to have been founded by Fohi, supposed to be the Noah of the Bible, 2240 B.C. We are told that the Chinese were acute astronomers in the reign of Yao, 2357 B.C. Towards the close of the 7th century B.C. the history of China becomes more distinct. Thirty-two dynasties have reigned, including the present. See important cities of China throughout this work.
=China, Great Wall of.= One of the most remarkable structures known in history, supposed to have been erected about 220 B.C. by the first emperor of the Tsin dynasty as a protection against the invasions of the Tartars. It traverses the northern boundary of China, and extends about 1250 miles. Including a parapet of 5 feet, the total height is 20 feet, thickness of base 25 feet, and at the top 15 feet. Towers or bastions occur at intervals of about 100 yards. Earth inclosed in brick-work forms the mass of the wall, but for more than one-half its length it is little else than a heap of gravel and rubbish.
=Chinese Fire.= A pyrotechnic composition, consisting of 16 parts of gunpowder, 8 of nitre, 3 of charcoal, 3 of sulphur, and 3 of iron-borings.
=Ching-Hai.= A fortified seaport town of China. At this place, in October, 1841, the Chinese were signally defeated by the British.
=Ching-Kiang-Foo.= A fortified city of China, on the Yang-tse-Kiang River. It was taken by the British, after a determined resistance on the part of the Mantchoo garrison, July 21, 1842.
=Chinook.= An artificial language or jargon originated by the Hudson Bay Company for communicating with different tribes of Indians. It consists of about a hundred words, some coined, some French, and some of Indian origin. It is still extensively used as a sort of court language by the different tribes along the Pacific coast, from California to Behrings Strait.
=Chinook Indians.= A collection of races of Indian tribes inhabiting the Lower Columbia in Washington Territory and Oregon.
=Chippewa.= A village of Canada West, memorable for the victory gained by the Americans, 1900 strong, under Gen. Brown, over 2100 British troops under Gens. Rial and Drummond, July 4, 1814.
=Chippewa Indians=, or =Ojibways=. A tribe of aborigines who inhabit portions of Michigan, Wisconsin, and the basin of Lake Superior. In the early settlement of the country they were allies of the French, and waged inveterate warfare against the Sioux. In 1855 they ceded their lands to the United States, and are now placed on reservations. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Chivalry= (Fr. Chevalerie, from chevalier, “knight,” or “horseman”). The system of knighthood, together with the privileges, duties, and manners of knights. The qualifications or character of knights, as valor, dexterity in arms, courtesy, etc.
=Chlorate of Potassa.= Chlorate of potassa is formed by passing a current of chlorine, in excess, through lime-water, and then treating the mixture with the chloride of potassium or by the carbonate or sulphate of potassa. The chlorate of potassa and chloride of calcium are formed,--the former crystallizes, the latter remains in solution. It is soluble in water, but not sensibly so in alcohol. It is a more powerful oxidizing agent than nitre, and, when mixed with a combustible body, easily explodes by shock or friction. It is inflamed by simple contact with sulphuric acid, and thus affords a simple means of exploding mines.
=Chlorates.= Oxidizing agents used in explosives (which see). Chlorate of potassa is the salt ordinarily used.
=Chocks.= See IMPLEMENTS.
=Choctaw Indians.= A tribe of aborigines which formerly lived in Mississippi, along the Yazoo River. They are now settled in Indian Territory, and are partially civilized. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.
=Choczim=, or =Chotyn=. A fortified town of Bessarabia, Southern Russia, on the Dniester. Here the Turks were defeated by the Poles in 1621, and again in 1673; the Turks were again defeated at this place by the Russians in 1739.
=Choke.= The tied end of a cartridge; also the constriction of a rocket-case, etc.
=Choker.= An implement used by engineers to compress and test the circumference of a fascine. It consists of two strong pieces of wood about 4 feet long joined by a chain. Two rings inserted in the chain mark the length of the circumference required.
=Chokey.= An East Indian guard-house and prison.
=Cholet.= A town of France, in the department of Maine-et-Loire. Here, during the Vendean war, two actions were fought in 1793, in both of which the royalists were defeated. In the first they lost their brave general, Bonchamps; and the second drove them across the Loire, thus virtually deciding the war against them.
=Chosroes.= See KHOSROO.
=Chotyn.= See CHOCZIM.
=Chouans.= The name which a band of peasants received who fought for the monarchy against the convention in Maine and Normandy in 1793. They received their name from their leader, Jean Cattereau, nicknamed “Chouan,” and were with great difficulty subdued, their final submission not taking place till 1803.
=Christian Charity, Knights of the Order of.= Was the name of an order instituted by King Henry III. of France for the support of maimed officers and soldiers who had done good service in the wars. Henry IV. placed it under the charge of the marshals and colonels of France, and by means of it many of those who had served their country faithfully were enabled to spend the latter portion of their lives in peace and above want. The order formed the germ of that noble hospital, the Invalides, which was founded by Louis XIV., and which served as a model for the English hospitals of Greenwich and Chelsea. On the founding of the hospital the order was superseded.
=Christiansand.= A fortified seaport of Norway, and capital of a government of the same name. This place was founded in 1641 by Christian IV., and was taken by the British in 1807.
=Christ, Order of.= When the Templars were expelled from France, and their property confiscated by Philippe le Bel, they were received into Portugal, and their order revived there in 1317 under this title. Noble descent and three years’ military service against the infidel were required for admission.
=Chrome Steel.= See ORDNANCE, METALS FOR.
=Chronograph.= See CHRONOSCOPE.
=Chronoscope.= An instrument for measuring minute intervals of time. The term is specially applied by military men to instruments for obtaining initial velocities. The gun-pendulum and ballistic-pendulum were formerly used for this purpose, but are now nearly obsolete. All modern chronoscopes use electricity as a transmitting agent. The general method of applying it is to have the current-bearing wires pass through two targets placed in the path of the projectile. These wires are cut by the projectile, and the interval between the successive ruptures is recorded by a delicate time-keeper. Knowing the distance between the targets, the velocity is obtained by dividing this space, expressed in feet, by the number of seconds in the interval. Chronoscopes differ in the kind of time-keeper employed. One of the largest classes of chronoscopes use the pendulum.
The electro-ballistic machine of Col. Benton (U. S. Ordnance Department) may be taken as a type of this class. It consists of two pendulums having equal times of vibration suspended from the same horizontal axis. When the pendulums are deflected, one to the right the other to the left, through angles of 90°, pieces of soft iron attached to them come in contact with electro-magnets, which serve to hold them up. Each of these magnets is excited by a current passing through one of the targets. When the targets are ruptured the pendulums fall, and in passing each other record the point of meeting by operating a delicate bent lever attached to one of them, which leaves a dot of ink on the arc in front of which the pendulums vibrate. The interval of time between the rupture of the two targets is obtained from a table of arcs and corresponding times. Col. Benton has also invented an instrument called velocimeter, in which he uses threads instead of electro-magnets to hold up the pendulums. The threads pass through the targets, and when they are cut the pendulums fall as before. This method has found considerable favor where great accuracy is not required.
Schultz’s chronoscope uses as a time-keeper a tuning-fork, which, in its vibrations, traces a waved line upon a revolving cylinder. The rupture of each of the targets is recorded by an electric spark deposited on the cylinder near the waved line. The number of waves between the spark spots gives the interval of time when the period of vibration or tarage of the fork is known. The vibration of the fork is sustained by electro-magnets, which alternately attract and release the branches, an interrupter being placed in the circuit. When the current passing through the targets is broken an induced current is generated, which deposits the spark on the cylinder in leaping a short break in the circuit. When the first target is broken, by an ingenious contrivance the current is made through the second target before the shot reaches it. The tarage of the fork is obtained by placing a second’s pendulum in the target current, which ruptures the current in each vibration, and produces a series of spark spots on the cylinder. The number of waves between successive spots gives the number of vibrations to the second.
Boulanger’s chronograph is the simplest of all chronoscopes. It uses a rod held up vertically by a magnet, which is excited by a current through the first target. The current through the second target, when broken, releases a spring knife-blade, which, moving sideways, marks the rod in its fall. The interval of time is obtained from the distance through which the rod has fallen, as shown by the position of the mark. The end of the scale is marked when both currents are simultaneously broken.
=Chrystler’s=, or =Chrysler’s Field, Battle of=. The name of an engagement which took place at Chrystler’s farm, on the St. Lawrence River, November 11, 1813, between the American forces under Gen. Boyd and the British troops under Lieut.-Col. Morrison, in which neither party gained a victory, but the advantage was with the British.
=Chunar, Treaty of.= Concluded between the nabob of Oude and Governor Hastings, by which the nabob was relieved of his debts to the East India Company, on condition of his seizing the property of the begums, his mother and grandmother, and delivering it up to the English, September 19, 1781.
=Churubusco.= A village or hamlet of Mexico, on the Rio de Churubusco, about 6 miles south of the city of Mexico. This place was the scene of a battle between the American forces under Gen. Winfield Scott, marching on the city of Mexico, and the Mexicans, defending the approaches to their capital, under President Santa Anna. The battle of Contreras was fought on the same day. The Americans were victorious in both battles, taking 3000 prisoners, and capturing 37 pieces of ordnance. The entire Mexican army was dispersed, their ancient capital captured, and an honorable peace ensued.
=Chusan.= One of a group of islands off the east coast of China. This island, called the “key of China,” was taken by the British in 1840 and 1841, and held by them until the terms of their treaty with China were fulfilled by the latter power.
=Cimbres.= A chain of mountains in Mexico. On April 28, 1862, the advance-guard of the French, commanded by Gen. Count de Lorencez, encountered and defeated in a defile of this chain a Mexican force 6000 strong under Gen. Saragosa, who had fortified themselves and placed 18 pieces of artillery in position.
=Cimbri.= A warlike tribe of ancient Europe, which, in conjunction with the Teutones and others, invaded the south of Europe, and successively defeated six Roman armies, until in the end they were conquered by Caius Marius, 101 B.C. They had previously devastated Gaul and Spain, and are said to have lost from 100,000 to 140,000 men in the battle with Marius.
=Cimeter.= A short sword with a convex edge or recurvated point, used by the Persians and Turks.
=Cimier= (Fr.). A heavy ornament which the ancient knights or chevaliers in France and in other countries were accustomed to wear upon their helmets; small figures were afterwards substituted in their stead.
=Cincinnati, Order of.= A society which was founded in the United States by officers of the Revolutionary army in 1783. Its object was to keep alive the feelings of friendship and patriotism engendered by common toils and perils, and to assist those who were in need through the vicissitudes of the war. In 1787, Washington was elected president of the order.
=Cinquain.= In ancient military history, was an order of battle, to draw up 5 battalions, so that they might make 3 lines, that is, a van, main body, and reserve.
=Cintra.= In Portugal. Here was signed an agreement on August 22, 1808, between the French and English, the day after the battle of Vimeira. As it contained the basis of the convention signed on August 30, following, it has been termed the convention of Cintra. By it Junot and his army were permitted to evacuate Portugal free, in British ships. The convention was publicly condemned, and in consequence a court of inquiry was held at Chelsea, which exonerated the British commanders. Wellington and Napoleon both justified Sir Hew Dalrymple.
=Cipher.= A preconcerted enigmatical system of communication. Much used in war when dispatches are liable to interception by the enemy,--both for written communication and for signaling.
=Circassia.= A country in Asia on the north side of the Caucasus. The Circassians are said to be descended from the Albanians. They were unsubdued, even by Timour. Circassia was surrendered to Russia by Turkey by the treaty of Adrianople, 1830. The Circassians under their great leader Schamyl resisted the authority of Russia. They were defeated by Orbelliani in June, November, and December, 1857. Orbelliani subdued much of the country, and expelled the inhabitants, April, 1858. Schamyl, their leader, was captured and treated with much respect, September 7, 1859. The last of the Circassian strongholds captured and the war declared at an end, June 8, 1864.
=Circitores.= So were named, in the Roman armies, the men who inspected the sentinels.
=Circuit-closer.= A device for closing an electrical circuit. In torpedo warfare the term is applied to an apparatus used to explode submarine mines.
=Circumferenter.= An instrument used by engineers for measuring angles.
=Circumvallation.= Works made by besiegers around a besieged place facing outwards, to protect their camp against attacks from a hostile army operating in the rear. It usually consists of a chain of redoubts, either isolated or connected by a parapet.
=Cisalpine.= This--that is, the south--side of the Alps.
=Citadel.= A fort of 4 or 5 bastions in or near a town. It serves two purposes, enabling the garrison of a town to keep the inhabitants in subjection, and in case of siege forming a place of retreat for the defenders, thus enabling them to hold out after the rest of the town has been captured. It must fully command the fortifications of the city, and have a large space around it clear of buildings.
=Citate.= A place close to the Danube, where the Russian general Gortschakoff, intending to storm Kalafat, threw up redoubts, which were stormed by the Turks under Omar Pasha, January 6, 1854. The fighting continued on the 7th, 8th, and 9th, when the Russians were compelled to retire to their former position at Krajowa, having lost 1500 killed and 2000 wounded.
=City Point.= A village of Prince George Co., Va., on the James River, at the mouth of the Appomattox. During the civil war, Gen. Grant fixed his headquarters at this point in 1864, and during his subsequent operations against Richmond it was the base of supplies for his army.
=Ciudad Real.= A town of Spain, capital of a province of the same name, about 100 miles south of Madrid. The French under Sebastian here defeated the Spaniards in March, 1809.
=Ciudad Rodrigo.= A fortified town of Spain, in the province of Salamanca. It was occupied by the Portuguese in 1706, and during the Peninsular war was the object of frequent contention between the French and the allies. In June, 1810, the French under Masséna invested the town, and, after a gallant defense by the Spaniards, it was forced to surrender, July 10. In January, 1812, after a siege of 11 days, the place was assaulted, and after a bloody struggle the British succeeded in capturing the town. This storming was one of the most brilliant events in English military annals.
=Civic Crown.= Among the ancient Romans, was a crown given to any soldier who had saved the life of a citizen. It was composed only of oaken boughs, but accounted more honorable than any other.
=Civière= (Fr.). A small hand-barrow, which is carried by two men, and is much used by the artillery.
=Civil Authority.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 59.
=Civil War.= See WAR, CIVIL.
=Civilized Warfare.= See WAR, also HONORS OF WAR.