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. (part 3 of 8)

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. (part 3 of 8)

=Gun-barrel.= The barrel or tube of a gun. Gun-barrels were formerly made on the coiled principle, and this method is still largely followed in thin barrels like those of shot-guns. The superior kinds of shot-gun barrels are known as stub, stub-twist, wire-twist, laminated, etc.

Stub-iron is made from horseshoe nails cleaned by tumbling and mixed with a small proportion of steel scrap. It is then puddled and put through various processes, which end in the production of a flat bar called a skelp.

Twist is the term applied to coiled barrels. The iron or steel is made into a ribbon, which is wound spirally around a mandrel and welded.

Stub-twist is stub-iron coiled.

Wire-twist is made by welding iron and steel bars together, or two qualities of iron, and drawing the compound bar into a ribbon, which is coiled as before described. The term is specially applied to coiled barrels made from small ribbons.

Damascus iron is made by twisting compound bars of steel and iron, welding several of the twisted bars together and forming a ribbon from the mass.

Laminated is the term applied to barrels made from compound bars.

In twist-barrels, the ribbon is several yards long, about half an inch wide, and thicker at the breech than at the muzzle end. It is heated to redness, wound on the mandrel, then removed and heated to the welding-point slipped over a rod with a shoulder at the lower end. The rod is then dropped vertically several times on a block of metal, which welds the spiral edges together. This is called jumping. The welding is completed by hammering.

Rifle-barrels and the cheaper kinds of shot-gun barrels are made directly from the skelp, which is passed between rollers, which first bend the plate longitudinally and afterwards convert it into a tube. The tube is then heated to a welding heat, a mandrel is pushed into it, and it is passed through the welding rolls, which weld the edges and at the same time taper and lengthen the tube. The boring and turning are done in lathes.

=Gun-carriage.= See CARRIAGE.

=Gun-carriage, Barbette.= See BARBETTE CARRIAGE.

=Gun-carriage, Field.= See FIELD-CARRIAGE.

=Gun-carriage, Flank Casemate.= See FLANK CASEMATE CARRIAGE.

=Gun-carriage, Mountain.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Gun-carriage, Prairie.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Gun-carriage, Sea-coast.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Gun-carriage, Siege.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Gun-cotton=, or =Pyroxyle=. Gun-cotton was discovered by Schönbein in 1846, and was first made by treating ordinary cotton with a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acids. The product resembles ordinary cotton in appearance, but in color is slightly tinged with yellow, and is very much heavier. It explodes with great violence, but is unfit for most military purposes on account of its liability to spontaneous explosion, its corroding residue, and the irregular character of its explosion. Baron von Lenk, of the Austrian service, however, succeeded to some extent in regulating the suddenness of the explosion by twisting it into ropes, and weaving it into cloth, but it never came much into favor for military purposes. As first made, the length of time necessary for its manufacture was about two or three months, but Mr. Abel, of the British war office, has by a series of experiments materially decreased the time necessary for its manufacture, and greatly increased the safety and certainty of the product. At Favesham the manufacture of a peculiar kind of gun-cotton, known as tonite, is conducted on a large scale. The process consists in intimately mixing the ordinary gun-cotton with about an equal weight of nitrate of baryta. This compound is then compressed into candle-shaped cartridges, formed with a recess at one end for the reception of a fulminate of mercury detonator. It contrasts favorably with soft, plastic dynamite from the fact of its being easily fastened to the safety-fuze. Among its advantages, said to be due to the use of the nitrate, are that it contains a great amount of oxygen in a very small volume, and that it is very ready under the detonator, while its great density makes it slow to the influence of ordinary combustion. It is 30 per cent. stronger than ordinary gun-cotton, and takes up but two-thirds of its space, or the same space as dynamite. The cartridges are generally made water-proof. The projectile force of gun-cotton, when used with moderate charges, is equal to about twice its weight of the best gunpowder. Its explosive force is in a high degree greater than that of gunpowder, and in this respect its nature assimilates much more to the fulminates than to gunpowder. It evolves little or no smoke, as the principal residue of its combustion is water and nitrous acid. Recently, by the mixture of nitre and cane-sugar its quickness in action has been reduced so as to make it available for use in small-arms. The nitrous acid, however, will soon corrode the barrel if the piece is not carefully wiped after firing. Other explosive substances analogous to gun-cotton may be prepared from many organic bodies of the cellulose kind, by immersing them in the same bath as for gun-cotton; among these may be mentioned paper, tow, sawdust, calico, and wood fibre.

=Gundermuk.= A village of Afghanistan, 28 miles west from Jellalabad. Here the remnant of the British force, consisting of 100 soldiers and 300 camp-followers, were massacred in 1842, while retreating from Cabul (Cabool), only one man escaping.

=Gun-fire.= The hour at which the morning or evening gun is fired.

=Gun-lift.= The gun-lift recently devised by Col. Laidley, of the U. S. Ordnance Corps, is a most complete and rapid means for moving and dismounting heavy guns. In it the hydraulic jack is placed upon a stand over the gun, whereby the building-up of the crib-work of blocks, which serves as a base for the jack to stand on, is dispensed with, and the position of the jack has not to be changed during the operation of raising or lowering a gun. The ordinary carpenter’s horse or trestle is taken as the basis of the hoisting apparatus. The cap of the trestle, having to sustain the weight of the gun suspended at a distance of more than 2 feet from the points of support, is a large, strong, and heavy piece of timber, and the legs of the trestle have to be strongly braced. The bolster, a strong piece of oak on top of the cap of the trestle, has two mortices cut in it, one for a hoisting-bar to pass through, and the other for the fulcrum-post to rest in. The fulcrum-post has a recess cut on the top to receive the end of a lever and keep it in place. The lever has a mortice through which the hoisting-bar, already mentioned, passes; the latter is perforated with a series of holes through which a pin passes, by which the end of the lever, under which the hydraulic jack works, can be fastened to the hoisting-bar. The hoisting-bar has a hook on its lower end to which the weight to be raised is fastened by means of a sling.

=Gun-metal.= An alloy of nine parts of copper and one part of tin, used for brass cannon, etc. (See BRONZE). The name is also given to certain strong mixtures of cast iron.

=Gunner.= A soldier employed to manage and discharge great guns; an artilleryman. In the U. S. service there is with each piece a gunner, who gives all the executive commands in action. He is answerable that the men at the piece perform their duties correctly.

=Gunner’s Calipers.= Are made of sheet-brass, with steel points. The graduations show diameters of guns, shot, etc.

=Gunner’s Elevating Arc.= See ELEVATING ARC.

=Gunner’s Level=, or =Gunner’s Perpendicular=. Is an instrument made of sheet-brass; the lower part is cut in the form of a crescent, the points of which are made of steel; a small spirit-level is fastened to one side of the plate, parallel to the line joining the points of the crescent, and a slider is fastened to the same side of the plate, perpendicular to the axis of the piece. This instrument is used to mark the points of sight on pieces. By means of the bubble the feet or points of the crescent are placed on a horizontal line on the base-ring or base-line, the slider pushed down until the point rests on the base-ring or line, and its position marked with chalk.

=Gunner’s Pincers.= Are made of iron with steel jaws, which have on the end of one a claw for drawing nails, etc.

=Gunner’s Plummet.= A simple line and bob for pointing mortars.

=Gunner’s Quadrant.= Is a graduated quarter of a circle of sheet-brass of 6 inches radius, attached to a brass rule 22 inches long. It has an arm carrying a spirit-level at its middle and a vernier at its movable end. To get a required elevation, the vernier is fixed at the indicated degree, the brass rule is then inserted in the bore parallel to the axis of the piece; the gun is then elevated or depressed until the level is horizontal. There is also a graduated quadrant of wood, of 6 inches radius, attached to a rule 23.5 inches long. It has a plumb-line and bob, which are carried, when not in use, in a hole in the end of the rule, covered by a brass plate.

=Gunnery.= The art of using fire-arms; but the term is commonly understood as being restricted to the use or application to the purposes of war of the larger pieces of ordnance, as cannon, mortars, and howitzers. In its practical branch gunnery includes a just knowledge of the construction of the several pieces of artillery, and of the strength, tenacity, and resisting power of the materials of which they are formed; of the method of mounting them upon strong, efficient, well-proportioned, and conveniently constructed carriages; of the proportions due to the strength of the powder and projectiles they should carry; of the force and effect, and also of the manufacture of gunpowder; and, generally, of all such mechanical arrangements and appliances as may facilitate the movements and working of the guns, etc., when prepared for action. But gunnery takes a yet far more extensive range; for it may be said to be based upon nearly every branch of the mathematical and physical sciences, and may be itself considered as a science requiring the most intricate combinations of human knowledge and mechanical ingenuity fully to comprehend and perfect. It particularly requires an acquaintance with all experiments which may have been made to ascertain the impetus of projection, the momentum of bodies in motion, and the range and time of flight of projectiles with given charges of gunpowder,--with the effect of the resistance of the atmosphere upon projectiles propelled with different velocities, and the laws of gravitation as affecting falling bodies; and with the various causes, mechanical and otherwise, of the usual deflection of projectiles in their course, when fired from a gun. See PROJECTILES and VELOCITY.

=Gunning.= The act of hunting or shooting game with a gun.

=Gun-pendulum.= A contrivance for obtaining initial velocities of projectiles. The gun is suspended from a frame-work with its axis horizontal. The velocity of the shot is deduced from the arc described in the recoil. The apparatus is now nearly obsolete.

=Gun-platform.= See PLATFORM.

=Gunpowder.= A well-known explosive mixture, whose principal employment is in the discharge, for war or sport, of projectiles from fire-arms, and for mining purposes. The ingredients in gunpowder are saltpetre, charcoal, and sulphur. Slightly different proportions are employed in different countries. In the United States the proportions are 75 to 76 saltpetre, 14 to 15 charcoal, and 10 sulphur. Charcoal is the combustible ingredient; saltpetre furnishes the oxygen necessary to support a rapid combustion and to change the whole mass into gas, and sulphur adds consistency to the mixture and intensity to the flame, besides rendering the powder less liable to absorb moisture; increases the volume of gas by preventing the formation of a solid potassium carbonate, and by increasing the temperature.

In the manufacture of ordinary powder, the operations usually employed are pulverizing the ingredients, incorporation, compression, granulation, glazing, drying, and dusting.

The ingredients are pulverized by placing each separately in barrels which contain bronze or zinc balls, and which are revolved rapidly for several hours.

Incorporation or thorough mixing is effected partially by the use of a rolling barrel, and completed in the rolling-mill. This consists of two cast-iron cylinders rolling round a horizontal axis in a circular trough with a cast-iron bottom. The cylinders are very heavy, and give a grinding motion, which is very effective in bringing about a thorough mixture of the three ingredients. A wooden scraper follows the rollers and keeps the composition in the middle of the trough. The charge in the trough is moistened with 2 or 3 per cent. of water before the rollers are started. A little water is added from time to time as required. This is the most important operation in the manufacture of powder. The time required is about one hour for each 50 pounds of composition. When finished the composition is called mill-cake.

Compressing.--This is next taken to the press-house, slightly moistened and arranged between brass plates, and then subjected to hydraulic pressure of about 70 tons (English tons) per square foot. Each layer is thus reduced to a hard cake.

Granulation.--The cake is broken up into grains by means of toothed rollers revolving in opposite directions, the cake being passed between them. The different-sized grains are separated by sieves between the different sets of rollers.

Glazing is effected by moistening the grains and revolving them in a rolling barrel.

Drying is done on sheets in a room heated to 140°-160°.

Dusting.--The dust is removed by revolving the powder in rolling barrels covered with coarse canvas. The dust is caught by an outside case.

There are five kinds of grain powder used in the U. S. service, distinguished as mammoth, cannon, mortar, musket, and rifle powder, all made in the same manner, of the same proportion of materials, and differing only in the size of the grain. Mammoth is employed for the heaviest sea-coast guns; cannon for smaller sea-coast guns; mortar for mortars and field- and siege-pieces; musket for rifle-muskets; and rifle for pistols. In addition to the above we have the following:

Meal powder, a fine dust containing the ingredients of ordinary gunpowder, but in which the relative proportions of these ingredients vary, according to the rate of burning desired, and the object for which the powder is to be used. Used principally in pyrotechny, and in mortar fire to communicate the flame from the charge to the shell. Also “German” or “American” “White Gunpowder,” more powerful than ordinary gunpowder, but more expensive; acts upon iron, and is very little used in gunnery.

Pebble powder, an irregular large-grain powder, very similar to American “Mammoth,” which preceded it, was made in England, 1865, by breaking ordinary press-cake with copper hammers.

Fossano powder, made in Italy, 1871, granulated by hand, is a slow-burning powder, used in large guns, notably in the 100-ton guns, one of which was recently burst, 1880, by a charge of 552 pounds of this powder. Lately the grains of this powder have been given a regular form.

Among regular grain powders made without molding are cubical, an English powder, extensively used in all their large guns, the largest being 2 inches on the edge. This is made by passing the cake between fluted rollers, which cut it into strips, and then these strips endways between a second set of rollers.

Schaghticoke, made at Hart’s Falls, N. Y., is a cubical powder made very much like the English,--the lines of fracture are, however, simply scratched on the cake (both sides), which is afterwards broken in the ordinary way.

Molded Powder.--The ingredients are the same as those of ordinary gunpowder, but each grain is separately molded.

Gen. Rodman was the first to propose the manufacture of these powders in his perforated cake, 1860; the object being to cause the powder to burn on an increasing surface, thus lessening the strain on the gun in the first moments of combustion. His powder after a few experiments was allowed to fall into disuse in the United States, but the invention was carried to Europe and developed with a smaller grain into prismatic powder, used in Europe, and especially in Germany and Russia, and particularly adapted to breech-loading cannon; the grain is a hexagonal prism in form and contains six cylindrical orifices passing entirely through it parallel to the axis, and symmetrically arranged with respect to it. The cartridge is so made that the cylindrical orifices pass through the entire length.

Hexagonal Powder.--This is the powder principally used in the United States; the grains have the shape which would be given by joining the larger bases of two frustrums of equal six-sided pyramids, and vary in size according to the piece in which the powder is to be used. This powder is believed in the United States to give the best results, and can be adapted to cannon of any caliber.

History of Gunpowder.--The origin of gunpowder as an explosive, and its application to the projection of missiles of war, are lost in the mists of obscurity. Its use in Europe can be traced only to the middle or early part of the 14th century. It is believed by many that certain experiments by Schwartz, a German monk, led to its introduction in war, but the better theory seems to be that the knowledge was obtained from the Saracens. It is probable that the invention arose in Central Asia in the regions where saltpetre occurs as an effervescence of the soil. The Chinese appropriated the discovery at a very early period, and fireworks were common in that country when Europe was roamed by the primitive savage. When Ghengis Khan invaded China, B.C. 1219, fire-arms of a primitive form appear to have been used. Passages in old writers seem also to show that when Alexander invaded India, 327 B.C., he encountered tribes that used similar weapons. The people of India doubtless obtained their knowledge from China. Wars and migrations of tribes gradually disseminated a knowledge of gunpowder over Asia and Northern Africa. The use of gunpowder is mentioned in Arabic writings in the 13th century. The Moors used it in Spain in 1312. In 1331 the king of Granada employed it in sieges. It is said to have been used by the English in the battles of Crécy, 1316. The Venetians employed it in 1380 against the Genoese. From that time to the present fire-arms have gradually supplanted other weapons.

For a long time after its introduction gunpowder was used in the form of dust or “meal powder.” Granulation was attempted to get rid of the difficulties in handling the dust, but the grained form proved too strong for the arms used, and “meal powder” continued in general use till improvements in the weapons about the close of the 16th century admitted of the other form. The granulation was at first very crude. This was remedied in time by the introduction of machinery or corning-mills in the manufacture. Though different-sized grains were at first used in large and small guns the principles involved were not studied, and afterwards one uniform size--large musket powder--was employed in all fire-arms. This step backwards may have been caused by the impurity of the ingredients and bad manufacture, which made the large grains too weak. In the early part of the present century a classification of grains was revived under the two general names of musket and cannon powder. The invention of the mercury densimeter rendered practicable an accurate determination of the specific gravity of powder and its relation to quickness of burning, but the importance of size and form of grain was first appreciated by Gen. Rodman, who, in 1859, began experiments which led at once to the introduction of mammoth powder for large guns, and later to the invention of perforated cake. The introduction of the powerful ordnance now existing in Europe has been rendered possible by improvements in this direction based upon the principles first formulated by Rodman. The latest idea on the subject is “compensating powder” (proposed by Lieut. C. A. L. Totten, of the 4th U. S. Artillery), a spherical grain of gunpowder inclosing a smaller sphere of gun-cotton. This powder remains to be made and experimented with, but it opens a field of research which must lead to valuable results.

=Gunpowder, Absolute Force of.= See ABSOLUTE FORCE OF GUNPOWDER.

=Gunpowder Pile-driver.= A pile-driver operated by the explosive force of gunpowder. The hammer is arranged as usual to slide in vertical guides. It has a piston on its lower end, which enters a cylindrical hole in the pile-cap. In this hole the cartridge is placed, and is exploded through the compression of the air by the piston of the hammer, when the latter falls. The explosion drives down the pile and raises the hammer at the same blow. The powder ordinarily used is a mixture of chlorate of potash and bituminous coal.

=Gunpowder Plot.= A conspiracy entered into by a few Roman Catholics to destroy the king, lords, and commons on the meeting of Parliament on November 5, 1605. On the evening of the 4th, the famous Guy Fawkes, who was to be the leader and agent of the conspirators, was detected under the vaults of the House of Lords preparing the train for being fired the next day; and on the morning of the 5th, a little after midnight, he was arrested, examined, and tortured. He confessed his own guilt, but would not discover his associates. However, all of them were either killed on being captured, or died on the scaffold, except one. The memory of this plot has survived in England, and the name of Guy Fawkes is detested.

=Gunpowder-mill.= See MILL, GUNPOWDER-.

=Gunreach.= The reach or distance to which a gun will shoot; gunshot.

=Güns.= A town of Hungary, situated on the river of the same name, about 57 miles south-southeast of Vienna. It is famous for its noble defense of its fortifications for twenty-eight days against the Turks under Solyman in 1532, thus enabling the emperor Charles V. time to assemble a force strong enough to oppose them.

=Gunshot.= The distance of the point-blank range of a cannon-shot. The distance to which shot can be thrown from a gun so as to be effective; the reach or range of a gun.

=Gunshot.= Made by the shot of a gun; as, a gunshot wound.

=Gun-sling.= See SLING.

=Gunsmith.= A maker of small-arms; one whose occupation is to make or repair small fire-arms; an armorer.

=Gunsmithery.= The business of a gunsmith; the art of making small fire-arms.

=Gunster.= A gunner. This term is now rare.

=Gunstick.= A stick to ram down the charge of a musket, etc.; a rammer or ramrod. This term is now rare.

=Gunstock.= The stock or wood in which the barrel of a gun is fixed.

=Gunstone.= A stone used for the shot of cannon. Before the invention of iron balls, stones were used for shot, but are now altogether superseded.

=Gunter’s Chain= (from Edmund Gunter, the inventor). The chain commonly used by military engineers for measuring land. It is 4 rods, or 66 feet long, and is divided into 100 links.

=Gunter’s Line.= A logarithmic line on Gunter’s scale, used for performing the multiplication and division of numbers mechanically by the dividers;--called also line of lines, and line of numbers; also a sliding scale corresponding to logarithms, for performing these operations by inspection, without dividers;--called also Gunter’s sliding rule. This is used by military engineers.

=Gunter’s Scales.= A wooden rule 2 feet long, on one side of which are marked scales of equal parts, of chords, sines, tangents, rhombs, etc., and on the other side, of logarithms of these various parts, by means of which many problems in surveying and navigation may be solved mechanically, by the aid of the dividers alone. This instrument is used by military engineers.

=Gurges=, or =Gorges=. A charge in heraldry meant to represent a whirlpool. It takes up the whole field, and when borne proper is azure and argent.

=Gurries.= Mud forts made in India are so called. These forts are sometimes surrounded with ditches.

=Gurwal.= A state of Northern Hindostan, under the protection of the British government, at the foot of the Himalaya Mountains. Gurwal was subdued by the Nepaulese about the year 1803, when Purdumin Shah, the rajah, at the head of 12,000 men, was defeated and slain at Gurudwara. The country was conquered by the British in 1814, and partly restored to the rajah’s son.

=Gusset.= Was at first a piece of chain, and afterwards of plate-armor, intended as a protection to the vulnerable point where the defenses of the arm and breast left a gap. In heraldry it is one of the abatements, or marks of disgrace for unknightly conduct. It is represented by a straight line extending diagonally from the dexter or sinister chief point one-third across the shield, and then descending perpendicularly to the base.

=Guy.= A rope used to swing any weight, or to keep steady any heavy body, and prevent it from swinging, while being hoisted or lowered.

=Guzerat.= A state in India, founded by Mahmoud the Gaznevide, about 1020; was conquered by Akbar in 1572; and became subject to the Mahrattas, 1732 or 1752. At the battle of Guzerat, February 21, 1849, Lord Gough totally defeated the Sikhs, and captured the city of Guzerat.

=Gwalior.= Capital of the state of the same name, in Central India. Its nucleus is a completely isolated rock of about 300 feet in height, perpendicular, either naturally or artificially, on all sides; and as it measures 1¹⁄₂ miles by 800 yards, it can accommodate a garrison of 15,000 men. It is thus virtually impregnable against any native force. The spot is understood to have been occupied as a stronghold for more than a thousand years.

=Gyongyos.= A town of Hungary, 43 miles northeast from Pesth. The Austrians were defeated here by the Hungarians in 1849.

=Gytheum=, or =Gythium= (now Palæopolis, near Marathonisi). An ancient town on the east coast of Laconia, founded by the Achæans, near the head of the Laconian Bay, southwest of the mouth of the river Eurotas. It served as the harbor of Sparta, and was important in a military point of view. In the Persian war, the Lacedæmonian fleet was stationed at Gytheum, and here the Athenians under Tolmides burned the Lacedæmonian arsenal, 455 B.C. After the battle of Leuctra (370) it was taken by Epaminondas. In 195 it was taken by Flamininus, and made independent of Nabis, tyrant of Sparta, whereupon it joined the Achæan league.

=Gyves.= Fetters; old word for handcuffs.

H.

=Haarlem=, or =Haerlem=. A city of the Netherlands, in the province of Northern Holland, on the Spaarne. It is an ancient town, and was once the residence of the counts of Holland; was taken by the Duke of Alva in July, 1573, after a siege of seven months. He violated the capitulation by butchering half the inhabitants.

=Habeas Corpus.= A writ of habeas corpus is an order in writing, signed by the judge who grants the same, sealed with the seal of the court of which he is a judge, and issued in the name of a sovereign power where it is granted, by such a court or a judge thereof having lawful authority to issue the same, directed to any one having a person in his custody or under his restraint, commanding him to produce such person at a certain time and place, and to state the reason why he is held in custody or under restraint.

=Habergeon.= A short coat of mail, consisting of a jacket without sleeves. In early times the habergeon was composed of chain-mail; but in the 14th century a habergeon of plate-armor was worn over the hauberk.

=Habiliments of War.= In ancient statutes signify armor, harness, utensils, etc., without which it is supposed there can be no ability to maintain a war.

=Habsburg=, or =Hapsburg, House of=. An ancient sovereign family of Austria, which derives its name from the castle of Habsburg, in Switzerland. The first member of the family who acquired great celebrity was Rudolph of Habsburg, born in 1218, and elected emperor in 1273. He obtained Austria and other provinces by conquest, and founded the dynasty which now reigns over the Austrian empire, and which, since 1736, has been styled the house of Habsburg-Lorraine.

=Hachée= (Fr.). Ignominious punishment of carrying a saddle or dog, to which soldiers were formerly subject in France.

=Haches d’Armes= (Fr.). Pole- or battle-axes. A hache d’arme is an axe with a narrow handle armed with a sharp blade in the form of a crescent very much curved, terminating in two points approaching the handle on one side; the other side terminating in a point or hammer; when both sides were armed with a blade it was called besague.

=Hack.= To cut irregularly, without skill or definite purpose; to notch; to mangle by repeated strokes of a cutting instrument. “My sword hacked like a handsaw.”

=Hack-bush.= Formerly a heavy hand-gun.

=Hacquet Wagen.= A four-wheeled wagon used in the Prussian service to carry pontons. The under-frame of this carriage is built like that of a chariot, by which means it can turn without difficulty.

=Hacqueton.= A stuffed coat or cloak, generally of leather, mounted with metal, formerly worn in France by certain knights of the king’s guards called “Gardes de la Manche.” It came into use during the reign of Charles V., and was discarded during the revolution of 1789.

=Haddington.= A royal burgh of Scotland, and county town of Haddingtonshire, or East Lothian. It was burnt in 1216 by an invading army under John, king of England. Having been rebuilt, it was again burnt to the ground in 1244. In 1355 it was reduced to ashes for the third time by Edward III. of England. The year after the battle of Pinkie, 1548, Haddington was seized and strongly fortified by the English. An allied army of Scotch and French laid siege to it, and, after a memorable defense, it was evacuated by the English in October, 1549.

=Hadrumetum.= See ADRUMETUM.

=Hagbut=, or =Haguebut= (Fr. haquebute). An arquebuse, of which the butt was bent or hooked, in order that it might be held more readily.

=Hagbutar.= The bearer of a fire-arm formerly used.

=Hagg.= An arquebuse with a bent butt.

=Hague.= A little hand-gun of former times.

=Haguebut=, or =Hague-but=. The same as hagbut (which see).

=Haguenau.= A town of France, in the department of Bas-Rhin, formerly a free town of Germany and a strong fortress, situated on the Moder, 18 miles north-northeast of Strasburg. It was founded in 1164 by Frederick Barbarossa. It successfully withstood many sieges, especially during the Thirty Years’ War; but on its occupation in 1675 by the Imperialists, its fortifications were destroyed. On October 17 and December 22, 1793, bloody battles took place here between the French and Austrians, in which the former were the victors.

=Haik.= A large piece of woolen or cotton cloth worn by the Arabs over the tunic, being itself covered in foul weather by the burnoose. This word is also written hyke.

=Hail.= To accost; to call; to salute. A sentinel hails any one approaching his post with, “Who comes there?”

=Hail-shot.= Grape-shot.

=Hainburg.= A town of Austria, on the Danube, 28 miles southeast from Vienna. The Magyars, or Hungarians, gained a great victory here over the Germans in 907.

=Hair.= A spring or other contrivance in a rifle or pistol lock, which, being unlocked by a slight pressure on the trigger, strikes the tumbler-catch, and unlocks the tumbler.

=Hair-cloth.= A species of cloth made of horse-hair, laid upon the floors of magazines and laboratories to prevent accidents. It is usually made up in pieces 14 feet long and 11 feet wide, each weighing 36 pounds.

=Hair-line.= A line made of hair; a very fine line. This line is used in military engineering.

=Hair-trigger.= A trigger so constructed as to discharge a fire-arm by a very slight pressure, as by the touch of a hair. It is connected with the tumbler-catch by a device called a hair.

=Hajduk=, =Haiduk=, or =Hayduk=. The Magyar inhabitants of the district of Hajdu Kerulet, in Eastern Hungary. The Hajduk are direct descendants of those warriors, who, during the long and bloody contest between the house of Hapsburg and the Protestant insurgents of Hungary, formed the nucleus of Prince Stephen Bocskay’s valiant armies. They formerly enjoyed the privileges of the nobility, and were free from taxation.

=Hake.= An old term for a hand-gun.

=Halberd=, or =Halbert=. A weapon borne up to the close of the 18th century by all sergeants of foot, artillery, and marines, and by companies of halberdiers in the various regiments of the English army. It consisted of a strong wooden shaft about 6 feet in length, surmounted by an instrument much resembling a bill-hook, constructed alike for cutting and thrusting, with a cross-piece of steel, less sharp, for the purpose of pushing; one end of this cross-piece was turned down as a hook for use in tearing down works against which an attack was made.

Old Halberd is a familiar term formerly used in the British army, to signify a person who had gone through the different gradations, and risen to the rank of a commissioned officer.

=Halberdier.= One who is armed with a halberd.

=Hale’s Rocket.= See ROCKET.

=Half Bastion.= A demi-bastion. That half of a bastion cut off by the capital, consisting of one base and one front.

=Half Caponniere.= A communication in a dry ditch with one side prepared for defense.

=Half Merlens.= The merlens at the ends of a parapet.

=Half-batta.= An extra allowance which was granted to the whole of the officers belonging to the British East Indian army, except Bengal, when out of the company’s district in the province of Oude. In the upper provinces double batta was allowed. All above full was paid by the native princes, as the troops stationed in that quarter were considered as auxiliaries. Batta is equal to full pay. See BATTA.

=Half-brigade.= A demi-brigade.

=Half-cock.= The position of the cock of a gun when retained by the first notch. Also, to set the cock at the first notch.

=Half-companies.= The same as subdivisions, and equal to a platoon.

=Half-distance.= Is half the regular interval or space between troops drawn up in ranks or standing column.

=Half-face.= Is to take half the usual distance between the right or left face, in order to give an oblique direction to the line, or to fill up a gap at the corner of a square.

=Half-file Leader= (Fr. chef de demi-file). The foremost man of a rank entire.

=Half-files.= Is half the given number of any body of men drawn up two deep. They are so called in cavalry when the men rank off singly.

=Half-full Sap.= When the sappers have only a flank fire (coming in a direction nearly perpendicular to that of the sap) to fear, the sap-roller may be dispensed with. The first sapper then covers himself with the last-filled gabion whilst placing and filling the new one. This species of sap is called the half-full sap.

=Half-hitch.= Pass the end of a rope round its standing part, and bring it up through the bight.

=Half-moon= (Fr. demi-lune). In fortification, is an outwork that has two faces which form a salient angle, the gorge of which resembles a crescent. It owes its original invention to the Dutch, who used it to cover the points of their bastions. This kind of fortification is, however, defective, because it is weak on its flanks. Half-moons are now called ravelins, which species of work is constructed in front of the curtain.

=Half-pay.= An allowance given in the British army and navy to commissioned officers not actively employed. It was first granted by William III. in 1698. In the U. S. service officers receive half-pay only when on leave of absence for a longer period than that for which full pay on leave is allowed, namely, thirty days in each year. See ABSENCE, LEAVE OF.

=Half-pike.= A short pike, which was formerly carried by officers.

=Half-sunken Battery.= See BATTERY.

=Half-sword.= A fight within half the length of a sword; a close fight.

=Haliartus= (now Mazi). An ancient town in Bœtia, on the south of the Lake Copais. It was destroyed by Xerxes in his invasion of Greece, 480 B.C., but was rebuilt, and appears as an important place in the Peloponnesian war. Under its walls Lysander lost his life, 395; it was destroyed by the Romans (171) because it supported Perseus, king of Macedonia, and its territory was given to the Athenians.

=Halicarnassus= (now Boudroum). A Greek city of Asia Minor, situated on the Ceramian Gulf. It was founded by a colony from Trœzene, and was one of the cities of the so-called Doric Hexapolis. During the Persian conquests it readily yielded to the dominion of the conquerors, and remained faithful to Persian interests. Alexander the Great, provoked by the obstinacy with which the city held out against him, commanded that it should be destroyed by fire; but the inhabitants took refuge in the citadel, which successfully resisted his arms.

=Halidon Hill.= Is situated about a mile to the northwest of the town of Berwick, England, in the fork formed by the Whitadder and the Tweed. It was the scene of a bloody conflict between the English and Scots, July 19, 1333, when the latter were defeated, and lost upwards of 14,000 slain, among whom were the regent Douglas and a large number of the nobility, while a comparatively small number of the English suffered.

=Hallecret.= See ALLECRETE.

=Halluc.= A small river in Northern France, which empties into the Somme above Amiens. Near here, at Pont à Noyelles, a seven hours’ battle took place December 23, 1870, between the German army under Gen. Manteuffel and the French Army of the North under Gen. Faidherbe. Both parties claimed the victory. Next day the French general retreated.

=Halt= (Fr. halte). The discontinuance of the march of any body of men, armed or unarmed, under military direction. Frequent halts are necessary for the purpose of resting troops during their progress through a country, or to render them fresh and active previous to any warlike undertaking. It is likewise a word of command in familiar use. See MARCH.

=Halting Days.= Are the days in the week usually allotted for repose, when troops are upon the march, and there is not any particular necessity for exertion or dispatch.

=Halyard.= The rope for hoisting and lowering a flag. Written also halliard.

=Halys.= A river in Asia Minor, near which a battle was fought between the Lydians and Medes. It was interrupted by an almost total eclipse of the sun, which led to peace May 28, 585 B.C. Others give the date 584, 603, and 610 B.C. This eclipse is said to have been predicted many years before by Thales of Miletus.

=Ham.= A town and fortress of France, in the department of Somme, situated on the river of that name, 36 miles east-southeast from Amiens. It is of ancient origin, and was erected in 1407 into a duchy, which was held by the families of Courcy, Orleans, Luxemburg, and Vendôme. Its old fortress was built by Constable de St. Pol in 1470, and is now used as a state prison. Its walls are 39 feet thick, and its principal tower is 108 feet in height, and the same in diameter. Louis Napoleon, late emperor of the French, was confined here from 1840 till 1846.

=Hamburg.= A famous free city of Germany, and one of the most important commercial ports in Europe, is situated on the right bank of the Elbe, about 70 miles from its mouth. It is said to have been founded in the 8th century by Charlemagne. In the 13th century it joined Lubeck in the formation of the Hanseatic League. It was occupied by the French from 1806 to 1809, and was annexed to France in 1810. The Russians became masters of it in 1813, but the French regained possession of it in the same year, and Marshal Davoust sustained a memorable siege here in 1813-14. In 1871 Hamburg became a member of the German empire.

=Hames.= The wooden or iron curved pieces fitting the collar of draught harness to which the traces are attached.

=Hamlets, Tower.= A district in the county of Middlesex, England, under the command of the constable of the Tower, or lieutenant of the Tower Hamlets, for the service and preservation of the Tower of London.

=Hammer.= An instrument with an iron head, for driving nails, etc. The term is also applicable to that part of a gun-lock which strikes the percussion-cap or firing-pin.

=Hammering.= A heavy cannonade at close quarters.

=Hammer-spring.= The spring on which the hammer of a gun-lock works.

=Hammer-wrench.= A combination hammer and wrench; called also monkey-wrench.

=Hampton.= A small village on the Chesapeake Bay, in Virginia, giving its name to Hampton Roads, a southerly branch of Chesapeake Bay, and mouth of James River, defended by Forts Monroe and Calhoun. These roads were the scene of important events in the American Revolution, the war of 1812, and the late civil war, especially the first naval battle between ironclad vessels, the “Merrimac” and the “Monitor.”

=Hanapier=, or =Hanepier= (Fr.). The front part of a cuirass, or iron breastplate worn by light-armed soldiers.

=Hanau.= A town of Germany, the capital of a province of the same name, in Hesse-Cassel, on the Kinzig, 12 miles from Frankfort-on-the-Main. In 1792, Hanau was attacked by the French, and occupied by them in 1796, 1797, and 1805.

=Hand.= A measure 4 inches in length. The height of a horse is computed by so many hands and inches.

=Hand-barrow.= A frame which is carried around by two men, instead of being rolled forward like a wheel-barrow. Those employed in the ordnance department are very useful in the erection of fortifications, as well as carrying shells and shot along the trenches. They generally weigh about 19 pounds.

=Hand-cart.= It consists of a light body with shafts, mounted on two wheels. The shafts are joined together at the ends, and supported immediately in front of the body by iron legs. It weighs 181 pounds, and is used for the transportation of light stores in siege and garrison service.

=Handcuff.= A fastening consisting of an iron ring around the wrist, usually connected by a chain with one on the other wrist; a manacle. Men who have deserted the service are usually manacled in this manner when removed from place to place.

=Handful.= Used figuratively, in a military sense, to denote a comparatively small number; as, “a handful of men.”

=Hand-gallop.= A slow and easy gallop, in which the hand presses the bridle to hinder increase of speed.

=Hand-grenades.= Are small iron shells, from 2 to 3 inches in diameter, filled with powder, which being lighted by means of a fuze, were formerly thrown by the grenadiers among the enemy, in storming a fortress. See GRENADES.

=Hand-gun.= An old term for a small-arm in the times of Henry VII. and VIII.

=Handle Arms.= Formerly a word of command (when the men were at ordered arms), by which the soldier was directed to bring his right hand briskly up to the muzzle of his firelock, with his finger bent upwards.

=Handles.= Bronze guns were formerly furnished with handles placed over the centre of gravity; from their shape they were called dolphins.

=Hand-mallet.= A wooden hammer with a handle, to drive fuzes, or pickets, etc., in making fascines or gabion batteries.

=Hand Sling-cart.= Is a two-wheeled carriage made entirely of iron, except the pole, which is of oak. The axle-tree is arched to make it stronger, and connected with the pole by strong wrought-iron straps and braces. In the rear of the axle a projection is welded, to receive the end of a strong hook. The end of the pole terminates in a ferule and an eye. The eye is for the purpose of attaching to the cart, when necessary, a limber or a horse. The diameter of the wheel is 6 feet. The hand sling-cart is used in siege and garrison service for transporting artillery short distances. It should not be used habitually for heavier weights than about 4000 pounds, but in case of necessity, a 24- or 32-pounder gun may be transported on it. For heavier guns or material, the large sling-cart drawn by horses or oxen should be used. This cart is wooden throughout, and the diameter of the wheels 8 feet.

=Hand-spike.= Is a wooden or iron lever, flattened at one end and tapering towards the other, used in raising heavy weights, or in moving guns to their places after being reloaded.

Manœuvring hand-spike, for garrison and sea-coast carriages and for gins, is 66 inches; for siege and other heavy work, it is made 84 inches long and 12 pounds weight.

Roller hand-spike, for casemate carriages. The latter is made of iron 1 inch round, the point conical; whole length 34 inches.

Shod hand-spike is particularly useful in the service of mortars, and of casemate and barbette carriages.

Trail hand-spike, for field-carriages, is 53 inches in length.

Truck hand-spike, for casemate carriages (wrought iron).

=Hand-staff.= A javelin.

=Hand-to-hand.= A close fight; the situation of two persons closely opposed to each other.

=Handy-fight.= A fight with the hands; boxing.

=Hang Fire.= Fire-arms and trains are said to hang fire when there is an unwonted pause between the application of fire to the gunpowder and its ignition.

=Hang Upon, To.= To hover; to impend. Thus, to hang upon the flanks of a retreating enemy, is to follow the movements of any body of men so closely as to be a perpetual annoyance to them; to harass and perplex him in a more desultory manner than what is generally practiced when pressing upon his rear.

=Hanged, Drawn and Quartered.= In Great Britain, the description of the capital sentence on a traitor, which consisted of drawing him on a hurdle to the place of execution, and after hanging him, dividing the body into quarters. This punishment was substituted by the stat. 54 Geo. III. c. 146, for the ancient and more barbarous sentence of disemboweling alive; but the crown has power to reduce the sentence to simple hanging.

=Hanger.= That which hangs or is suspended; specifically, a short broadsword, incurvated towards the point.

=Hangier.= A Turkish poniard, formerly worn by the Janissaries.

=Hango Head.= A promontory on the north coast of the Gulf of Finland. It was at this place, during the war with Russia, in 1855, that the unarmed crew of an English man-of-war’s boat, with a flag of truce flying, was treacherously fired upon by Russian grenadiers, when all the British sailors in the boat were either killed or wounded.

=Hanover.= A kingdom in the north of Germany, and since 1866 a province of Prussia. It was originally peopled by the Cherusci, the Chauci, and the Langobardi, afterwards known as Lombards. In the time of Charlemagne it was occupied by Saxon tribes, and continued, even after its conquest by that monarch, to be governed by Saxon dukes. From 1714 till 1837, Hanover was governed by the kings of England, without, however, forming part of that kingdom. The French occupied it in 1803; but, two years afterwards, ceded it to Prussia. In 1807, however, they took possession of it, and held it till 1813.

=Hanover Court-house.= A town in East Virginia. Here on May 27, 1862, a severe action took place between the armies of the North and South, which resulted in a victory for the former. The loss on the Northern side was 54 killed and 194 wounded and missing; and on the Southern side, between 200 and 300 killed and wounded, and about 500 taken prisoners.

=Hanse Towns.= The Hanseatic League (from hansa, association), formed by port towns in Germany against the piracies of the Swedes and Danes, began about 1140, and was signed in 1241. At first it consisted only of towns situated on the coasts of the Baltic Sea, but in 1370 it was composed of 66 cities and 44 confederates. They proclaimed war against Waldemar, king of Denmark, about the year 1348, and against Eric in 1428, with 40 ships and 12,000 regular troops, besides seamen. The Thirty Years’ War in Germany (1618-48) broke up the strength of this association. In 1630 the only towns retaining the name were Lubeck, Hamburg, and Bremen.

=Hansy.= A town of Hindustan, in the British district of Hurreeana, under the jurisdiction of the lieutenant-governor of the northwest provinces. It is a very ancient town; was taken by the Mohammedans early in 1035, and has experienced many revolutions.

=Hante= (Fr.). An ornamental pike, having a banner attached.

=Haquebut.= See HAGBUT.

=Har.= A syllable used in composition usually as a prefix, and signifying army;--occurring in various forms, as hare, her, and here; as, harisvalt, leader of an army.

=Haranes= (Fr.). Hungarian militia are so called.

=Harangue.= A speech addressed to a large public assembly; a popular oration; aloud address to a multitude; as, a general makes a harangue to his troops on the eve of a battle.

=Harass.= To annoy; to perplex, and incessantly turmoil any body of men; to hang upon the rear and flunks of a retreating army, or to interrupt operations at a siege by repeated attacks upon the besiegers.

=Harboring an Enemy.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 45.

=Harcarrah.= In India, a messenger employed to carry letters, and otherwise intrusted with matters of consequence that require secrecy and punctuality. They are very often Brahmins, well acquainted with the neighboring countries; they are sent to gain intelligence, and are used as guides in the field.

=Hard-fought.= Vigorously contested; as, a hard-fought battle.

=Hardihood.= Boldness, united with firmness and constancy of mind; dauntless bravery; intrepidity; audaciousness.

=Hardiment.= Hardihood; courage; bold or energetic action; contest; struggle.

=Hard-labor.= A military punishment frequently awarded by courts-martial.

=Hard-tack.= Sea-bread. Hard-tack is also used by U. S. troops while campaigning; large crackers.

=Harfleur.= A town of France, in the department of the Lower Seine, situated at the confluence of the Seine and the Lezarde, a mile from the sea, and 3 miles northeast from Havre. Harfleur was formerly fortified, and an important place. It was besieged by the English under Henry V. in 1415, and this monarch succeeded in taking it, after being before it forty days. It was again taken by the English in 1440.

=Harlaw.= A township of Scotland, in Aberdeenshire, situated 4 miles southwest from old Meldrum, near the confluence of the Ury and Don, memorable for a sanguinary battle fought in 1411 between the Highlanders under Donald, the Lord of the Isles, and the royal forces under the Earl of Mar.

=Harmostes.= A city governor or prefect appointed by the Spartans in the cities subjugated by them.

=Harness.= The iron covering or dress which a soldier formerly wore, and which was fastened to the body by straps and buckles; coat of mail; also, the whole accoutrements, offensive and defensive; armor of a knight or soldier; the armor of a horse. Also the equipments of a draught-horse.

=Harness.= To dress in armor; to equip with armor for war, as a horseman. To equip or furnish for defense.

=Harol.= An Indian term signifying the officer who commands the van of an army. It sometimes means the van-guard itself.

=Harpe.= A species of drawbridge used among the ancients, and deriving its name from its resemblance to the musical instrument. This bridge, which consisted of a wooden frame, and hung in a perpendicular direction against the turrets that were used in those times to carry on the siege of a place, had a variety of ropes attached to it, and was let down upon the wall of a town by means of pulleys. The instant it fell, the soldiers left the turret, and rushed across the temporary platform upon the rampart.

=Harper’s Ferry.= A town of Jefferson Co., W. Va., situated at the junction of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers, about 107 miles north from Richmond. In October, 1859, John Brown, the leader of the anti-slavery party, and his followers entered the town, and seized and held for a short time the armory and arsenal located here. In April, 1861, the Federal troops evacuated the public buildings here, and they were immediately taken possession of by the Confederates, who destroyed them and evacuated the place in June, following. The town was again taken by the Confederates in September, 1862, but was soon after recaptured by the Federal forces, who from that time retained possession of it.

=Harponully.= A district in the south of India. The rajah of this district was tributary to the kings of Benjanagur and Bejapore, to the Moguls, and the Mahrattas; in 1774 he became tributary to Hyder, and in 1786 he was completely subdued by Tippoo, and sent prisoner to Seringapatam. On the capture of that city, Harponully was assigned to the nizam as a portion of his division of Tippoo’s territory, and by him assigned to the British in 1800.

=Harpy.= A fabulous creature in Greek mythology, considered as a minister of the vengeance of the gods. In heraldry it is represented as a vulture, with the head and breast of a woman.

=Harquebuse.= See ARQUEBUSE.

=Harquebusier.= See ARQUEBUSIER.

=Hartlepool.= A seaport of England, in the county Durham, a few miles north of the mouth of the river Tees. It is mentioned as a harbor of some consequence as early as 1171. In the 13th century it belonged to the Bruces of Annandale, in Scotland. Hartlepool suffered severely from the Scots in 1312, and again in 1315, a year after the battle of Bannockburn. It was seized by the insurgents in the northern rebellion under the Earls of Northumberland and Westmoreland, in the time of Elizabeth. During the civil war it was taken by the Scottish army in 1644, and retained by them till 1647.

=Hastaire= (Fr.). Pikeman; spearman.

=Hastati.= From the Latin word hasta, a spear, so that they may literally be called spearmen. A body of Roman soldiers who were more advanced in age, and had acquired a greater reputation in arms than the velites possessed, were distinguished by this appellation. They wore a complete set of armor, and always carried a buckler, made convex, measuring 2¹⁄₂ feet in breadth and 4 feet in length. The longest measured about 4 feet 9 inches, or a Roman palm. The buckler was made of two boards glued together. These were covered in the first instance with a broad piece of linen, which was again covered over with sheep-skin. The edges, both at top and bottom, were fenced with iron, to enable them to meet the broadsword and sabre, and to prevent them from rotting when planted on the ground. The convex part was further covered over with iron plates, to resist the impression of hard blows, and to withstand the violent concussion of stones, etc. The hastati commonly formed the first line in the order of battle; the principes were placed in the second line; whilst the oldest and best legionaries, classed under the name of triarii, constituted a reserve or third line.

=Hastings.= A town of England, in the county of Surrey, 33 miles northeast from Brighton, and one of the Cinque Ports. Near this place, in 1066, was fought the decisive battle of Hastings, which wrested the crown of England from Harold, and gave it to William the Conqueror.

=Hatchet.= A small, light sort of axe, with a bazil edge on the left side, and a short handle. It is used by soldiers for cutting wood to make fascines, gabions, pickets, etc. To take up the hatchet, among the Indians, to declare war, to commence hostilities, etc. To bury the hatchet, to make peace.

=Hatchment.= An ornament on the hilt of a sword. In heraldry, a hatchment is the funeral escutcheon, usually placed in front of the house of a deceased person, setting forth his rank and circumstances. It is in the form of a lozenge, and in its centre are depicted the arms of the deceased, single or quartered.

=Hatras.= A town of Hindostan, in the northwest provinces, 33 miles to the north of Agra. As a place of some strength, it was at one time prominent in the wars of the Doab; but on falling, in 1817, into the possession of the British, it was immediately dismantled.

=Hattrass.= A fortress of India, taken by siege and storm by the troops under the Marquis of Hastings during the Mahratta war.

=Haubergier= (Fr.). An individual who held a tenure by knight’s service, and was subject to the feudal system which formerly existed in France, and by which he was obliged to accompany the lord of the manor in that capacity whenever the latter went to war. He was called fief de haubert, and had the privilege of carrying a halbert. All vassals in ancient times served their lords-paramount as squires, haubergiers, lance-men, bow-men, etc.

=Hauberk.= A twisted coat of mail, sometimes extending only as high as the neck, but more generally continued so as to form a coif, leaving only the face of the knight who bore it exposed. In early times the sleeve of the hauberk sometimes terminated at the elbow, but in the 13th and 14th centuries it came down to the wrist, and very generally descended over the hand in the form of a glove, either one-fingered or divided. In the 11th century the hauberk was worn under plate-armor.

=Haul.= To pull or draw with force or violence; to transport by drawing; to drag; to compel to move or go.

=Hausse, Pendulum.= Is a scale of sheet-brass, the graduations of which are the sines of each quarter of a degree to a radius equal to the distance between the muzzle-sight of the piece, and the axis of vibration of the hausse, which is one inch in rear of the base-ring. At the lower end of the scale is a brass bulb filled with lead. The slider which marks the divisions on the scale is of thin brass, and is clamped at any desired division on the scale by means of a screw. The scale passes through a slit in a piece of steel, with which it is connected by a screw, forming a pivot on which the scale can vibrate laterally. This piece of steel terminates in pivots, by means of which the pendulum is supported on the seat attached to the gun, and is at liberty to vibrate in the direction of the axis of the piece. The seat is of metal, and is fastened to the base of the breech by screws, so that the centres of the steel pivots of vibration shall be at a distance from the axis of the piece equal to the radius of the base-ring.

=Hausse-col= (Fr.). An ornamental plate similar to the gorget. It was formerly worn by infantry officers.

=Hautes-payes= (Fr.). Were soldiers selected by the captains of companies to attend them personally, for which service they received something more than the common pay. Haute-paye became afterwards a term to signify the subsistence which any body of men superior to, or distinguished from the private soldier were allowed to receive.

=Haut-le-pied= (Fr.). A term used to distinguish such persons as were formerly employed in the French armies without having any permanent appointment. Commissaires hauts-le-pied were known in the artillery during the monarchy of France. They were usually under the quartermaster-general.

=Havana= (Sp. Habana). The capital of the island of Cuba, on its north coast, at the mouth of the river Lagida. The harbor is one of the best in the world, being capable of holding 1000 ships with ease; but it has so narrow a channel that only one vessel can enter at a time. This channel is strongly fortified; the city is also surrounded with defensive works, all furnished with heavy artillery. Havana has been frequently attacked; it was captured in 1536 by a French pirate, and partially destroyed; it was subsequently taken, at different times, by the English, by the French, and by the buccaneers. In 1762 the British took possession of it, but restored it in 1763.

=Havelock.= A light cloth covering for the head and neck, used by soldiers as a protection from sunstroke. This covering derived its name from Havelock, a distinguished English general.

=Haverfordwest= (Welsh, Hwlfford). A seaport of Wales, in Pembrokeshire, and the capital of that county. It was at one time strongly fortified, and was possessed of a strong castle, which was built by Gilbert de Clare, first earl of Pembroke. In the insurrection of Owen Glendower, it was successfully defended against the French troops in the Welsh service. In the civil war of the 17th century it was held by the royalists.

=Haversack.= A strong, coarse, linen bag, in which, on a march, a soldier carries his rations. It is borne on the left side, suspended by a strap passing over the right shoulder. The name is also given to the leather bag used in artillery to carry cartridges from the ammunition-chest to the piece in loading.

=Havildar.= A non-commissioned officer or sergeant among the Sepoys. He ranks next to the jemadar, or native lieutenant.

=Havildar-major.= The native sergeant-major in a native infantry regiment.

=Havoc.= Wide and general destruction; devastation; waste. Also, to waste; to destroy; to lay waste.

=Havock.= A cry originally used in hunting, but afterward in war as the signal for indiscriminate slaughter.

=Havre Le=, or =Havre de Grace=. An important and strongly fortified commercial town of France, in the department of the Lower Seine, at the entrance of the Seine into the English Channel. Havre was taken by the British in 1562, and bombarded by them in 1759, 1794, and 1795.

=Hawaii.= See OWYHEE.

=Haxo-casemate.= A vault of masonry thrown over a gun, but not over its embrasure. It is open at the rear, and acts as a traverse.

=Hayti=, =Haiti=, =St. Domingo=, or =Hispaniola=. The largest island in the West Indies, with the exception of Cuba. It was discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1495. Until 1665 Spain kept possession of the island; but in that year the French obtained a footing, and retained their position for upwards of a century and a quarter. In 1800 the independence of Hayti was proclaimed by the negro population, and the French finally quitted the island in 1803. Since that time various revolutions have occurred, and a kind of military elective government has prevailed under different leaders. In 1849 the former French portion of the island was proclaimed an empire under its president, Solouque, who took the title of Faustin I. The sable emperor was, however, deposed in 1858, and a republic was again proclaimed.

=Hazaree.= An Indian term signifying the commander of gun-men. It is derived from hazar, which, in its literal interpretation, signifies a thousand.

=Haze, To.= To punish a man by making him do unnecessary work.

=Head.= In gunnery, the fore part of the cheeks of a gun or howitzer carriage. To head, is to lead on, or be the leader of a party. Head of a work, in fortification, is the front next to the enemy, and farthest from the place; as the front of a horn-work is the distance between the flanked angles of the demi-bastions. The head of a double tenaille is the salient angle in the centre and the two other sides which form the re-entering angles. Head of an army, or body of men, is the front, whether drawn up in lines or on a march, in column, etc. Head of a camp, is the ground before which an army is drawn up.

=Head, Bridge.= Is the end of a bridge,--also the work defending it.

=Header.= In a revetment, is a brick, stone, or sod laid with its end outwards.

=Headless.= Destitute of a chief or leader.

=Head-man.= A chief; a leader.

=Head-piece.= Armor for the head; a helmet; a morion.

=Headquarters.= The place where the officer commanding any army or independent body of troops takes up his residence. The quarters or place of residence of the chief officer; hence, the centre of authority or order.

=Headstall.= That part of a bridle which encompasses the head.

=Heaume= (Fr.). A word derived from the German, which formerly signified casque, or helmet. The heaume has been sometimes called among the French salade, armet, and celate from the Latin word which means engraved, on account of the different figures which were represented upon it. The heaume covered the whole of the face, except the eyes, which were protected by small iron bars laid crosswise. It serves as an ornament or helmet in coats of arms and armorial bearings; it is still preserved in heraldry, and is a distinguishing mark of nobility.

=Heaver.= A bar used as a lever.

=Heavy.= Strong; violent; forcible; as, a heavy cannonade.

=Heavy Artillery.= Troops who serve heavy guns. The term is specially applied to troops in charge of siege guns or guns of position. Also large guns themselves.

=Heavy Cavalry.= European cavalry is divided into light and heavy cavalry, according to the size of the men and horses and the character of the equipment.

=Heavy Fire.= A continuous cannonading; a continuous discharge of musketry.

=Heavy Marching Order.= An expression applied to troops equipped for permanent field service with arms, accoutrements, knapsacks, canteens, and haversacks.

=Heavy Metal.= Large guns carrying balls of a large size; also, large balls for such guns.

=Heavy Ordnance.= Ordnance of great weight and caliber. In the United States the term is restricted in the land service to sea-coast ordnance. See ORDNANCE.

=Hebrides=, or =Western Islands=. A series of islands off the west coast of Scotland, consisting of two principal groups. In ancient times they were subject to the kings of Norway, but were annexed to the crown of Scotland in 1264. From that time they were held by various native chieftains in vassalage to the Scottish monarch, until they came under the sway of one powerful chief, who assumed the title of “Lord of the Isles” in 1346, and effected entire independence of Scotland. In 1748 all hereditary jurisdictions were abolished, and for the first time, under a just and powerful government, the peace of the islands was secured.

=Hebron.= A place in Palestine, about 20 miles a little west of south from Jerusalem, and one of the oldest existing cities in the world. The Maccabees recovered it from the Edomites, who had taken it after the Captivity. It was burned by an officer of Vespasian just before the destruction of Jerusalem. It was taken by the Arabs in 637, and by the Crusaders about 1100; and ever since 1187 has been in the hands of its present masters, the Mohammedans.

=Hedge.= To surround for defense; to fortify; to guard; to protect; to hem. To surround so as to prevent escape.

=Hedjrah.= See HEGIRA.

=Heel.= That part of a thing corresponding in position to the human heel; the lower back part, or part on which a thing rests. In a small-arm it is the corner of the butt which is upwards in the firing position.

=Heel-piece.= Armor for the heels.

=Hegemony.= Leadership; preponderant influence or authority; usually applied to the relations of a government or state to its neighbors or confederates.

=Hegira=, or =Hedjrah= (from the Arabic hajara, to desert). A Mohammedan epoch, dating from the expulsion or flight of Mohammed from Mecca to Medina, July 16, 622. This flight was fixed as the great Moslem epoch by the caliph Omar, seventeen years later.

=Heidelberg.= A city of Germany, in Baden, situated on the Neckar, which is possessed of a celebrated university. This town has been besieged several times; it was taken by Tilly in 1622, and by Turenne in 1674.

=Helder.= A town of Northern Holland, on the North Sea, at the mouth of the Marsdiep, which separates it from the island of Texel. Near this place a naval battle was fought between the English and the Dutch in 1653, in which Van Tromp was killed. It was taken by the English under Sir Ralph Abercrombie in 1799; was afterwards retaken by Brewe, and subsequently rendered a first-class fortress by Napoleon I. It is connected with Amsterdam by the famous Helder Canal.

=Helena, Saint.= An island in the Atlantic Ocean, which presents to the sea, throughout its whole circuit, an immense wall of perpendicular rock, from 600 to 1200 feet high. This island was discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, and belonged to the Dutch from 1610 to 1650, when it fell into the hands of the British. It is chiefly famous for having been the place in which Napoleon I. was confined by the allied powers after his final overthrow at the battle of Waterloo. Here he lived at Longwood, from November, 1815, till his death in 1821. His remains also lay here till 1840, when, by the permission of the English government, they were conveyed to France.

=Helepolis.= In the ancient art of war, a machine for battering down the walls of a place besieged. The invention of it is ascribed to Demetrius Poliorcetes. Diodorus Siculus says that each side of the helepolis was 450 cubits broad, and 90 in height; that it had nine stages, or floors, and was carried on four strong solid wheels, 8 cubits in diameter; that it was armed with huge battering-rams, and had two roofs capable of supporting them; that in the lower stages there were different sorts of engines for casting stones, and in the middle they had large catapults for launching arrows.

=Heligoland.= A small island in the North Sea, situated about 46 miles northwest from the mouths of the Elbe and Weser. It was taken from the Danes by the British in 1807, and became a depot for merchandise intended to be smuggled into the continent during Napoleon’s continental blockade. At the peace of 1814 it was retained by England, and is of importance as an outpost in time of war.

=Heliography.= See LOOKING-GLASS SIGNALING.

=Hellespont.= See DARDANELLES.

=Hellin= (anc. ILUNUM). A royal town of Spain, in the province of Murcia. This town was sacked by the French under Montbrun, and was the point where Joseph and Soult united with Suchet after Marmont’s rout at Salamanca.

=Helmet.= A piece of defensive armor or covering for the head. Among the early nations of antiquity the helmet forms a prominent feature in all military costume, and is often of very great utility in distinguishing the age or country of the wearer. The Egyptian kings had them of brass, while the soldiers wore linen ones thickly padded. The crests of the royal Egyptian helmet were the heads of the lion, bull, or dragon. The Milyans had helmets of skins; those of a fox formed the early Thracian helmet; and this ancient fashion of the heroic ages appears in the galerus of the Roman light troops. The Phrygian bonnet was a skull-cap, with a bent peak projecting in front, like the bust of a bird, with an arched neck and head. It is certainly the most ancient form of helmet. Strabo says the ancient Persians, and probably their oriental neighbors, wore modern turbans; in war, a cap cut in the form of a cylinder or tower. This Asiatic fashion extended itself widely. The helmet of the Grecian soldier was usually made of brass, and sometimes of the skins of beasts, with the hair still on; and to render them more terrible, the teeth were often placed in a grinning manner. The crest was made of horse-hair or feathers, and was curiously ornamented. In the early period of the Greeks, helmets had been composed of the skins of quadrupeds, of which none were more common than the dog. After the time of Alexander the Great, common soldiers had only small crests; chieftains, plumes or two crests. The helmet of the Romans was a head-piece of brass or iron, which left the face uncovered, and descended behind as far as the shoulders. Upon the top was the crest, in adorning which the soldiers took great pride. The usual ornament was horse-hair or feathers of divers colors; but the helmets of the officers were sometimes very splendid, and adorned with gold and silver. Helmets occur with cheek-pieces and movable visors. Singular helmets, with aigrettes, plumes, wings, horns, double crests, double-cheek pieces (some of which are seen on the Hamilton vases), and others, with fantastical additions and overloaded crests, are either barbarian, or subsequent to the removal of the seat of empire to Constantinople. The Gauls wore helmets of brass, with monstrous appendages for ostentation, as the shapes of birds, beasts, etc. In the Middle Ages the knights of Europe were distinguished by helmets adorned with the figure of a crown, or of some animal. The king wore a helmet of gold, or gilt; his attendants of silver; the nobility of steel; and the lower orders of iron. In European armies helmets are worn by the horse-guards and heavy cavalry. In the United States, helmets made of felt and adorned with horse-hair plumes are worn by light artillery and cavalry troops.

=Helmet-shaped.= Shaped like a helmet; galeate.

=Helmless.= Destitute of a helmet; without a helm.

=Helos.= In ancient geography, the name of several towns, so called from their position among or near fens. The most important town of this name was in Laconia, at the mouth of the Eurotas, in a plain close to the sea. In the Dorian conquest of the Peloponnesus Helos was taken, and its inhabitants carried off to Sparta and reduced to slavery. Their name is said to have been applied by their masters generally to all the bondsmen or helots that fell into their power.

=Helots.= The lowest class of the population of ancient Sparta, which was formed of serfs or slaves. They are supposed to have formed the original population of the country, and to have been reduced to bondage by their Dorian conquerors. In war, they served as light troops, each free-born Spartan who bore heavy armor being accompanied to battle by a number of them, sometimes as many as seven. In order to keep their numbers within bounds the Spartans organized secret companies, who went abroad over the country armed with daggers, and both by night and day assassinated the unfortunate Helots, selecting as their special victims the strongest and most vigorous of the oppressed race.

=Helsingfors.= A fortified town, and seaport in Finland, on a peninsula in the Gulf of Finland. It has a good harbor, and is defended by the almost impregnable citadel and fortifications of Sweaborg, which stand on a number of rocky islands at the entrance of the harbor. This town was burnt in 1741, during the war between Sweden and Russia. In 1855, Sweaborg was bombarded for two days by the allied English and French fleet, when some damage was done to the interior defenses of the place.

=Helvetian Republic.= Switzerland having been conquered by the French in 1797, a republic was established in 1798 with this title.

=Helvetii.= A Celtic people inhabiting, according to Cæsar, the region between the mountains of Jura on the west, the Rhone on the south, and the Rhine on the east and north, the region corresponding pretty closely with modern Switzerland. The great and fatal event in their history is their attempted irruption into and conquest of Southern Gaul, in which they were repulsed by Cæsar with frightful slaughter in 58 B.C., and compelled to return to their own country, where they became subjects to the Romans. In the commotions which followed the death of Nero, the Helvetians met with another terrible catastrophe. Remaining faithful to Galba, they were fallen upon by Cacina, a general of Vitellius, who gave them up to the rapacity of his legions, and from this time they scarcely appear in history as a distinct people.

=Helvoetsluys.= A fortified town of Holland, on the south shore of the island of Voorn, 17 miles southwest from Rotterdam. At this place the Prince of Orange, afterwards William III., embarked for England in 1688. It was taken by the French in 1798, and evacuated by them in 1813.

=Hem In.= To surround an enemy, whether on land or sea.

=Hemerodromi.= In Grecian antiquity, were, as the name imports, runners or couriers, who could keep running all day. In a country like Greece, where the roads were few and bad, the hemerodromi were indispensable for the rapid diffusion of important news. Every Greek state made a point of training a number of these men who could travel great distances in an incredibly short space of time, and at every dangerous crisis they were stationed on commanding points to observe and report at headquarters what it was necessary for the authorities to know. In the service of the Persian kings, these men were called angoroi, and the service angereion. Among the Romans these couriers were known as cursores; they traveled sometimes on foot, sometimes on horseback. It is a well-known fact that running footmen attended the Duke of Marlborough in his wars in the Low Countries and in Germany. In the Byzantine empire they were employed as sentinels at the gates of towns. When the gates were opened they were obliged to patrol round the outskirts of the town during the whole day. Frequently, indeed, they advanced considerably into the country, in order to discover whether any hostile body of men was approaching in order to surprise the garrison.

=Henery Isle.= A small island lying due south from Bombay. In 1790 it belonged to Ragojee Angria, and was a principal rendezvous of pirate vessels, though within sight of Bombay. Near it is another small island named Kenery, which is also fortified, and of considerable strength. It was taken possession of and fortified by Sevajee in 1679. In 1790 it belonged to the Peshwa, and was also the haunt of pirates.

=Heneti.= An ancient people in Paphlagonia, dwelling on the river Parthenius; fought on the side of Priam against the Greeks, but had disappeared before the historical times. They were regarded by many ancient writers as the ancestors of the Veneti in Italy.

=Hengestdown.= In Cornwall, England. Here Egbert is said to have defeated the Danes and West Britons in 835.

=Hennebon.= A town of France, in the department of Morbihan, on the Blavet. It was formerly a very strong place, and was successfully defended by the Countess of Montfort, when it was besieged by Charles de Blois, in 1342.

=Henry Rifle.= See MAGAZINE GUNS.

=Hephestion=, or =Hephæstion=. A Macedonian courtier and commander, the son of Amyntor of Pella; became a favorite of Alexander the Great, whom he followed in the invasion of Persia and India. In the return of this expedition, Hephestion and Craterus commanded a separate part of the army. He died in 325 B.C.

=Hep-pah=, or =Hippa=. A New Zealand fort, or space surrounded with stout palisades.

=Heptarchy.= A government of seven; said to have been established by the Anglo-Saxons in England before the reign of Egbert (800-836 A.D.). Under Egbert, Wessex rose to be supreme, and virtually swallowed up the others. The common idea is that these seven kingdoms were contemporaneous; but all that can be safely asserted is, that England in this time was peopled by various tribes, whose leading occupation was war; and that sometimes one was conquered, sometimes another. At no time was there a counterpoise of power among seven of them, so that they could be said to have a separate, much less an independent existence. Still, seven names do survive, so as to use the term Heptarchy.

=Heraclea.= In ancient geography, a large and important city of Magna Græcia. It was situated in Lucania, between the small streams Siris and Aciris, a little way inland from the shore of the Tarentine Gulf. It seems to have been colonized about 432 B.C. In the wars with Pyrrhus it sided with Tarentum against Rome; but it afterwards abandoned its parent state and became an ally of the Roman people. It suffered severely during the Social war, but still retained a considerable measure of importance and prosperity. It afterwards fell into decay.

=Heraclea.= Surnamed Minoa; in ancient geography, a Greek city of Sicily, at the mouth of the Halycus (now the Platani), 20 miles northwest from Agrigentum. The surname seems to have been originally the name of the town, which is first mentioned in history as a colony of Selinus. About the end of the 6th century it was recolonized by the Spartans, and had attained to great prosperity and power, when it was destroyed by the jealousy of the Carthaginians. After remaining in their power for about 200 years it fell into the hands of Agathocles, and then of Pyrrhus. It was next recovered by the Carthaginians, who retained it to the end of the first Punic war, when the whole of Sicily was made over to the Romans. In the second Punic war it reverted to the Carthaginian sway, but was finally attached to the Roman empire by Marcellus, shortly after the fall of Syracuse. After the servile war, Heraclea was repeopled by the Romans, and continued to flourish till the time of Cicero. It afterwards sunk into decay, and at this day its very ruins can hardly be traced.

=Heracleidæ.= This term means, in its widest sense, all the descendants of Heracles (Hercules), of whatever time, and in whatever district of Greece; but is specially applied to those adventurers who, founding their claims on their supposed descent from the great hero (to whom Zeus had promised a portion of the land), joined the Dorians in the conquest of the Peloponnesus. There were five different expeditions, the last and greatest occurring eighty years after the Trojan war. The story of the return of the Heracleidæ touches on the historical period, and though there is much of fable and tradition, yet there seems to be also a large substratum of truth in the records of the Greek historians.

=Heracleum.= A place near Gindarus, in the Syrian province of Cyrrhestice, where Ventidius, the legate of M. Antony, gained his great victory over the Parthians under Pacorus in 38 B.C.

=Herald.= An officer in the European courts, whose duty consists in the regulation of armorial bearings, the marshaling of processions, and the superintendence of pubic ceremonies. In the Middle Ages heralds were highly honored, and enjoyed important privileges; their functions also included the bearing of messages between royal personages, and registering all chivalric exercises; the computation of the slain after battle; and the recording of the valiant acts of the falling or surviving combatants. The office of herald is probably as old as the origin of coat-armor. In England the principal heraldic officers are designated kings-of-arms, or kings-at-arms, and the novitiates or learners are styled pursuivants. There are in England three kings-at-arms, named by their offices Garter, Clarencieux, and Norroy; six heralds,--Somerset, Chester, Windsor, Richmond, Lancaster, and York; and four pursuivants, called Rouge Dragon, Portcullis, Blue Mantle, and Rouge Croix. In Scotland the principal heraldic officer is the Lyon king-at-arms; and there are six heralds,--Snowdoun, Albany, Ross, Rothesay, Marchmont, and Ilay; and five pursuivants,--Unicorn, Carrick, Kintyre, Ormond, and Bute. Ireland has one king-at-arms, Ulster; two heralds, Cork and Dublin; and two pursuivants, of whom the senior bears the title of Athlone, and the other is called the pursuivant of St. Patrick.

=Heraldry.= The science of armorial bearings. The practice of wearing devices on the shields of knights was originated in the middle of the 12th century, and ever since families bear on their shield the arms of their progenitors, which at first had been adopted either arbitrarily or suggested by some striking episode in the life of the bearer.

=Herald’s College=, or =College of Arms=. A collegiate body, founded by Richard III. in 1483, consisting of the heraldic officers of England, who were assigned a habitation in the parish of Allhallows-the-Less, in London. Various charters confirmed the privileges of the College of Arms, and it was re-incorporated by Philip and Mary in 1554. The presidency of the college is vested in the earl marshal, an office hereditary in the family of Howard, duke of Norfolk. He nominates the three kings-of-arms, six heralds, and four pursuivants, who are the members of the collegiate chapter. The members of the college have salaries, but derive their principal income from fees charged for assistance in tracing pedigrees and titles, and for the granting and registration of arms. In Scotland the corresponding functions belong to the Lyon court. See LYON KING-AT-ARMS.

=Herat.= A city of Afghanistan, the capital of an independent state, situated in a plain near the Hury River, 360 miles west from Cabul. This place has often been ravaged by various conquerors, who have claimed and won the empire of Asia. In 1220 it was taken by Genghis Khan, and in 1398 by Tamerlane. It was subsequently united to Persia; but the Afghans took possession of it in 1715. Nadir Shah retook it in 1737, and Ahmed Khan, an Afghan, and one of Nadir’s generals, added it to Afghanistan, after the assassination of Nadir Shah, in 1747. Mohammed Shah marched against Herat in 1836, and, after a long siege, the Persians were forced to withdraw. In 1855 the Persians again made an attempt to get possession of Herat; but, after a short war with England, desisted.

=Hercotectonique= (Fr.). A term in fortification signifying that branch of military architecture which specifically points out the best means of defense and the surest method of providing stores. This word is derived from the Greek.

=Herculean.= Very great, difficult, or dangerous; such as it would require the strength or courage of Hercules to encounter or accomplish.

=Hercules, Pillars of.= The name given by the ancients to the two rocks forming the entrance to the Mediterranean at the Strait of Gibraltar. Their erection was ascribed by the Greeks to Hercules, on the occasion of his journey to the kingdom of Geryon.

=Herefare.= An old term from the Saxon, signifying the same as warfare.

=Hereford.= The chief town of Herefordshire, England, on the Wye. During the Saxon era, the Welsh inflicted considerable damage on this city; it also suffered greatly in the wars of the barons, and under the Plantagenets. During the civil war it held loyally to the cause of the king, and was one of the last places that yielded to the Parliament.

=Heregeld.= A term derived from the Saxon, signifying a tax which was formerly levied for maintaining an army.

=Herera.= In Aragon. Here Don Carlos of Spain, in his struggle for his hereditary right to the throne, at the head of 12,000 men, encountered and defeated (August 24, 1837) Gen. Buerens, who had not much above half that number of royal troops.

=Hereslita=, or =Heresilia=. A term derived from the Saxon, signifying a soldier who abandons his colors, or deserts the service.

=Heretoch=, or =Heretog=. The leader or commander of an army; also, a constable; a marshal.

=Heretum.= A court in which the guards or military retinue that usually attended the old British nobility and bishops were accustomed to parade or draw up.

=Hergate.= A term derived from the Saxon, signifying a tribute which was paid in ancient times to the lord of the soil, to enable him to carry on a war.

=Herisson.= A formidable hedge or chevaux-de-frise; made of one stout beam fenced by a number of iron spikes, and which, being fixed upon a pivot, revolves in every direction upon being touched, always presenting a front of pikes.

=Hermandad= (Sp.). “Brotherhood.” An association of the principal cities of Castile and Aragon, bound together by a solemn league and covenant for the defense of their liberties in seasons of trouble. The most noteworthy (called Santa Hermandad, or Holy Brotherhood) was established in the middle of the 13th century in Aragon, and in Castile about thirty years later; while in 1295, 35 cities of Castile and Leon formed a joint confederacy, and entered into a compact, by which they pledged themselves to take summary vengeance on every noble who had either robbed or injured a member of their association, and refused to make just atonement for the wrong; or upon any one who should attempt, even by the order of the king, to levy an unjust tax. Isabella of Castile, seeing the beneficial effects which an extension of the institution was capable of producing, obtained the sanction of the Cortes for its thorough reorganization and extension over the whole kingdom in 1496. In 1498, the objects of the Hermandad having been obtained, and public order established on a firm basis, the brotherhood was disorganized and reduced to an ordinary police, such as it has existed, with various modifications of form, to the present century.

=Herminia Gens.= A very ancient patrician house at Rome, which appears in the first Etruscan war with the republic, 506 B.C.; vanishes from history in 448.

=Hermunduri.= One of the most powerful nations of Germany; belonged to the Suevic race. They were for a long time the allies of the Romans; but along with the other German tribes they assisted the Marcomanni in the great war against the Romans in the reign of M. Aurelius. After this time they are rarely mentioned as a separate people, but are included under the general name of Suevi.

=Hernici.= A people in Latium; belonged to the Sabine race. They inhabited the mountains of the Apennines between the Lake Fucinus and the river Trerus. They were a brave and warlike people, and long offered a formidable resistance to the Romans. They were finally subdued by the Romans in 306 B.C.

=Hero.= A man of distinguished valor, intrepidity, or enterprise in danger; a prominent or central personage in any remarkable action or event; hence, a great, illustrious, or extraordinary person.

=Hero.= In mythology, an illustrious man, supposed by the populace to partake of immortality, and after his death to be placed among the gods.

=Heroic.= Pertaining to, or like, a hero or heroes; as, heroic valor. Becoming a hero; bold; daring; illustrious; as, heroic action; heroic enterprises.

=Heroic Age.= The age when the heroes, or those called the children of the gods, are supposed to have lived.

=Heroically.= In the manner of a hero; with valor; bravely; courageously; intrepidly; as, the town was heroically defended.

=Heroine.= A female hero; a woman of a brave spirit. The principal female person who figures in a remarkable action.

=Heroism.= The qualities of a hero; bravery; courage; intrepidity.

=Heroship.= The character of a hero.

=Herrings, Battle of the.= Fought on February 12, 1429, when the English were besieging Orleans. It obtained its name from the Duc de Bourbon attempting to intercept a convoy of salt fish on the road to the English camp before Orleans, and in which he was defeated.

=Herse= (from the Fr. herise). In fortification, a grated door, formed by strong pieces of wood joined crosswise, and stuck full of iron spikes. It is usually hung by a rope, and fastened to a moulinet, which is cut in case of a surprise, or when the first gate is forced by a petard, so that it may fall like a portcullis and stop the passage of a gate or other entrance of a fortress.

=Hersillon.= A strong beam, whose sides are stuck full of spikes, which is thrown across the breach made by an enemy to render it impassable.

=Hertford.= The capital of Hertfordshire, England, on the Lee. It is a very ancient town: the castle was founded in 909. In the reign of John it was seized by the French dauphin, and under Edward III. the kings of France and Scotland were secured in it.

=Heruli.= An ancient German tribe, first mentioned among the Gothic nations when these latter had established themselves on the north coast of the Euxine, in the reigns of Gallienus and Claudius. In the reign of Valentinian they are mentioned as being in the service of Rome, fighting against the Alemanni. In the 5th century they allied themselves with the other German tribes, and under Odoacer, in 476, they overthrew the Western empire.

=Hesse.= A territory in Western Germany, the seat of the Catti; formed part of the empire of Charlemagne; from the rulers of it in his time the present are descended. It was joined to Thuringia till about 1263, when Henry I. became landgrave of Hesse. The most remarkable of his successors was Philip, who signed the Augsburg Confession in 1530, and the League of Smalcald in 1531. At his death Hesse was divided in Hesse-Cassel and Hesse-Darmstadt, and in 1803 the former became an electorate, and the latter a grand duchy. Hesse-Cassel was incorporated with Prussia in 1866, and Hesse-Darmstadt became a part of the North German Confederation in 1867, and as such it took part in the Franco-Prussian war in 1870.

=Hessians.= Troops belonging to Hesse-Cassel, Prussia. They have been frequently hired by Great Britain, particularly in the war of American independence, when they were sold at £40 sterling a head, £9 of which was to be repaid if they returned alive.

=Hetman=, or =Ataman=. A word derived from the German, which signifies the chief of a troop. The chief general of the old Polish armies was called Hetman Wielki, and the second general Hetman Polny. The chief or general of the Cossacks is likewise invested with this title by the czar of Russia.

=Heurtequins= (Fr.). Two pieces of iron resembling a knocker, which are placed over the trunnions, or axis of a cannon.

=Heuse= (Fr.). An iron shoe, sometimes called pedieux, attached to the greaves of ancient armor, having an iron sole, and the upper composed of mail.

=Hexagonal Powder.= See GUNPOWDER.

=Hexham.= A town of England, in Northumberland, situated a little below the confluence of the north and south Tyne, 21 miles west from Newcastle. This town is chiefly remarkable for the antiquities with which it is surrounded, and the historical events connected with it. The neighborhood abounds with ruined castles, monuments of battles and heroes; with Roman relics, altars, inscriptions, etc. The cathedral, or priory church of Hexham, was founded in 674, and was destroyed by the Danes. In 1463, a battle was fought in the neighborhood between the houses of York and Lancaster, in which the Yorkists gained the victory. As an interesting historical event, it may be remarked that it was in flying from this field that Queen Margaret threw herself on the protection of a robber, and the cave in which she concealed herself and the Prince of Wales is still pointed out.

=Hibernia=, =Ibernia=, =Ivernia=, and =Ierne=. The names by which Ireland is designated in the classical writers. See IRELAND.

=Hibernian Royal School.= A school established in Great Britain for the maintenance of 350 children of military officers who are supported and educated at this school, at an expense of £7000 per annum to the country.

=Hierarchy, Military.= The essential element for the government and service of an army is a military hierarchy, or the creation of different grades of rank, to which different functions and powers are assigned, the lower in regular subordination to the next higher in the ascending scale. It should be founded on the principle that every one acts in an army under the orders of a superior, who exercises his authority only within the limits established by law. This authority of the superior should be greater or less according to rank and position, and be proportioned to his responsibilities. Orders should be executed without hesitation; but responsibilities should be confined to him who gives orders in virtue of the superior authority with which he is invested; to him who takes the initiative in an order; to him who does not execute an order that he has received; and to him who usurps a command, or continues illegally to exercise its functions. The military hierarchy is determined and consecrated within its sphere of action by grades of rank created by military laws, by other laws regulating the exercise of rank, by military insignia, by military honors, and by the military oath.

=High Treason.= Treason against the state, being the highest civil offense. See TREASON.

=Highlanders.= Properly speaking, are the Celtic inhabitants of the Highlands of Scotland. In the army of Great Britain, it denotes the eight regiments who are uniformed in the Highland dress, including a distinctive tartan, and are as follows: 42d (see BLACK WATCH), 71st, 72d, 74th, 78th, 79th, 92d, and 93d. These regiments are recruited in the Highlands.

=Hilt.= The handle of anything, especially of a cutting instrument, as a knife or sword.

=Hilted.= Having a hilt. Also a term used in heraldry to indicate the tincture of the handle of a sword.

=Hilton Head.= A village on an island of the same name, forming part of Beaufort District, S. C., at the mouth of Broad River. It was taken from the Confederates by the U. S. forces after a severe naval engagement in November, 1861.

=Himera.= A celebrated city on the north coast of Sicily. Here the Carthaginians were defeated with great slaughter by the united forces of Theron and Gelon of Syracuse, 480 B.C. It assisted Syracuse against the Athenians in 415 B.C. In 409 B.C. it was taken by Hannibal, the son of Gisco, who, to revenge the great defeat which the Carthaginians had suffered before the town, leveled it to the ground, and destroyed almost all the inhabitants.

=Hindostan.= See INDIA.

=Hircarrah=, or =Hircarra=. An Indian term for a messenger, guide, footman, or spy.

=Hiring of Duty.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 36, 37.

=Hirpini.= An inland people of Italy who inhabited the southern portion of Samnium. In the early history of Rome the Hirpini are found identifying themselves with their Samnite neighbors against their common foes. They seem to have been subdued in the early part of the 3d century B.C. They appear as an independent people in the second Punic year. Revolting from their old conquerors, they joined the Carthaginian invaders, and, though they were unable to recapture their stronghold of Beneventum, they remained faithful to Hannibal till the defeat at the Metaurus restored the empire of Italy to his opponents. In the year of that event the Hirpini made their peace with their old masters by betraying into their hands the garrisons of their allies. From this time till the outbreak of the Social war, the Hirpini seem to have continued steadfast in their allegiance. On that occasion, however, they set the example of revolt to the allies, and might have become formidable enemies, had not the rapid successes of Sulla induced them to repair their error by complete submission. After the close of the war the Hirpini do not appear in history as an independent people.

=Hispalis.= See SEVILLE.

=Histiæa.= An ancient city of Eubœa. It was taken by the Athenians during the Persian wars, but they revolted from that people, and was again subdued, the old inhabitants of the city were expelled, and 2000 Athenian colonists settled in their stead, and its name changed to Oreus. In the war between Philip and the Greeks, Oreus was frequently contested, and in 200 B.C. it was stormed by the Romans.

=History, Military.= A narrative of military transactions, campaigns, battles, sieges, marches, etc., of an army. It likewise means a relation of the heroic actions of great generals, etc.

=Hit.= To reach with a stroke or blow; especially, to reach or touch an object aimed at, as a mark; to strike or touch, usually with force. Also a striking against; the collision of one body against another; the stroke or blow that touches anything.

=Hitch.= A knot or noose in a rope for fastening it to a ring or other object; as, a clove hitch, a timber hitch.

=Hivites.= A Canaanitish people, who in the time of Jacob are found occupying the uplands of Ephraim, and later the slopes of Hermon and region westward towards Tyre. They were conquered by the Hebrews, and they became menial subjects of Solomon.

=Hobeliers.= In the Middle Ages, a species of light horsemen, chiefly intended for reconnoitring, carrying intelligence, harassing troops on a march, intercepting convoys, and pursuing a routed army; the smallness of their horses rendering them unfit to stand the shock of a charge. Spelman derives the name from hobby, a small horse. Camden used the word Hoblers for certain light horsemen, who were bound by the tenure of their lands to maintain a light horse, for giving notice of any invasion made by enemies, or such like peril towards the sea-side.

=Hobits.= Small mortars of 6 or 8 inches bore mounted on gun-carriages; they were in use before the howitzer.

=Hochebos= (Fr.). Certain soldiers among the ancients, who were so called from their brandishing the pike. This word has likewise been applied to the pike itself.

=Hochkirch.= A village of Saxony, 7 miles southeast of Bautzen. Here Frederick the Great was completely defeated by the Austrians under Daun, October 14, 1758. A conflict between the Russians and Prussians and the French, in which the latter were victorious, took place here May 22, 1813.

=Hochstadt.= A town of Bavaria, situated on the left bank of the Danube. It is noted for a battle, generally known as the battle of Blenheim (which see), in which the French and Bavarians were defeated by the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugène, and which took place between this town and Blenheim in 1704. In 1800, the French under Moreau totally defeated the Austrians near here.

=Hohenlinden.= A village of Bavaria. It is noted for the defeat of the Austrian army in 1800, by the French under Moreau.

=Hohenstaufen.= A celebrated family of German princes, which kept possession of the imperial throne from 1138 to 1254, and died out in 1268. The first of the line was Friedrich von Büren, who received the name on account of having removed his dwelling from a valley auf den Staufen (“up the hill” or “mountain”). His son Friedrich von Staufen, or Hohenstaufen, served under Henry IV., and distinguished himself greatly in the battle of Merseburg, for which the king awarded him the duchy of Swabia. He also fought against the pope in Italy, while holding the position of regent of Germany. Died in 1105.

=Hohenzollern.= The name of an ancient princely German family, from which the kings of Prussia are descended. The name is derived from the castle of Zollern, in Swabia, which is said to have been built by Tassillon or Thasilio about 800.

=Hoist.= To raise; to lift, or bear upward by means of tackle, as a flag, etc. The perpendicular height of a flag, as opposed to the fly, or breadth from the staff to the outer edge.

=Hold.= A place of security; a fortified place; a fort; a castle; often called a stronghold.

=Hold.= To keep one’s self in a given position or condition; to remain fixed; as, not to move; to halt; to stop. Not to give way; not to part or become separated; to remain unbroken. To hold one’s own, to keep up; not to lose ground or be left behind.

=Hold Out, To.= To maintain any place, ground, etc., resolutely against an enemy.

=Hold-all.= A portable case for holding small articles required by soldiers, marines, etc.

=Holland.= A kingdom in Northwest Europe, the chief part of the Northern Netherlands, composed of land rescued from the sea, and defended by immense dykes. It was inhabited by the Batavi in the time of Cæsar, who made a league with them. It became part of Gallia Belgica, and afterwards of the kingdom of Austria. From the 10th to the 15th century it was governed by counts under the German emperors. It was conquered by the French in 1795, and subsequently brought into the condition of a province of France under Napoleon; the emperor’s brother, Louis, being created king of Holland. It was delivered from the French yoke in 1813. See NETHERLANDS.

=Hollow Projectile.= Shell, case-shot, etc. See PROJECTILES, etc.

=Hollow Square.= The form in which a body of foot is drawn up with an empty space in the middle for the colors, drums, baggage, etc. A body of troops formed into a square to resist the charge of cavalry on critical occasions.

=Hollow Tower.= A rounding made of the remainder of two brisures, to join the curtain to the orillon, where the small shot are placed, that they may not be so much exposed to the view of the enemy.

=Hollow Way.= Any pass or road, both sides of which are commanded by heights.

=Holstein.= An extensive duchy of Germany, formerly a dependency of Denmark. The king of Denmark had originally a seat at the German Diet on account of his Holstein possessions, but in 1806, on the formation of the Confederation of the Rhine, this privilege was lost; but in 1815 he was admitted into the Germanic Confederation. In 1848 this duchy, with Schleswig, attempted to gain its independence; but, after some severe fighting, it was reduced to obedience in 1850. In 1863 the struggle was renewed; and, under the pretext of separating this duchy, together with that of Schleswig, from Denmark, and of annexing it to the Germanic Confederation, an allied Austrian and Prussian army invaded the country and drove out the Danes, after a short but desperate struggle. It was annexed to Prussia after the Prussian-Austrian war (1866), and now forms a part of the North German Confederation.

=Holsters.= Leathern cases for pistols, affixed to the pommel of the saddle. They are frequently covered with wool or fur, to prevent injury to the rider in the event of his being thrown forward upon them. They are also worn on a belt.

=Holstered.= Bearing holsters; as, a holstered steed.

=Holy Alliance.= A league formed after the fall of Napoleon by the sovereigns of Russia, Austria, and Prussia, nominally to regulate the relations of the states of Christendom by the principles of Christian charity, but really to preserve the power and influence of the existing dynasties. Most of the other European rulers acceded to it, and the treaty was made public February 2, 1816. A special article of the treaty excluded forever the members of the Bonaparte family from any European throne. But after the secession of England and France the alliance became practically obsolete.

=Holy Ghost, Order of the.= A Roman Catholic order consisting of hospital knights, which was founded in the 12th century, and ceased to exist as a knightly order in 1700.

=Holy Island=, or =Lindisfarne=. An island off the coast of Northumberland, 8 miles southeast from Berwick-on-Tweed, and is connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus or neck of sand. On the south of the island lies the town, and near it are the ruins of an old abbey which the Danes destroyed in 900.

=Holy League.= A name applied to several combinations of sovereigns or princes of Europe for warlike or defensive purposes. The first was organized in 1510 by the pope, Venice and Spain against Louis XII. of France. But the most important of all was the holy league, so called by way of eminence, which was organized at Perrone in 1576, and lasted till 1593, to prevent the accession of Henry IV. of France to the throne.

=Holy Sepulchre, Knights of the.= An order of knighthood instituted probably by Pope Alexander VI., for the guardianship of the Holy Sepulchre, and the relief and protection of pilgrims. The pope was originally the grand master, but he subsequently ceded his rights to the Guardian Father of the Holy Sepulchre. The knights must, by the rules of the order, be all of noble descent; they were bound to hear mass daily, to fight, to live, and to die for the Christian faith, etc. In return for these duties, the knights had the most unusual and extraordinary privileges conferred on them; they were exempt from taxation, could marry, and yet possess church property, legitimize bastards, cut down and bury the bodies of criminals who had been hanged. On the recapture of Jerusalem by the Turks, the knights retired to Italy, and settled at Perugia. After a temporary union with the Hospitallers, the order was reconstructed in 1814 both in France and in Poland, and is still in existence within a very small circle of knights elected by the Guardian Father from the most respectable pilgrims who come to Jerusalem.

=Holy Wars.= See CRUSADE.

=Homelden.= In Northumberland, England, where the Scots, headed by the Earl of Douglas, were defeated by the Percies (among them Hotspur), September 14, 1402.

=Home-service.= Consists in military operations and arrangements for the immediate defense of our own country, should it be threatened by invasion, or by domestic broils or insurrections.

=Homme d’Armes= (Fr.). A military phrase among the French, signifying a gentleman or cavalier who belonged to one of the old companies, was armed cap-a-pie, and always fought on horseback. In ancient times, every man of this description was accompanied by two horsemen independent of his servants. One of the mounted attendants was armed with a cross-bow, and the other with a common bow or battle-axe; so that 100 hommes d’armes composed a body of 300 horse. It was a species of cavalry which existed from the reign of Louis XI. until the reign of Henry II.

=Honduras.= A republican state of the confederation of Central America; being bounded north by the Caribbean Sea and Bay of Honduras, southeast by the Mosquito Territory and Nicaragua, south by San Salvador and the Bay of Conchagua, on the Pacific, and west by Guatemala.

=Honeycomb.= A defect in guns resembling the cells of wax in which the bee stores her honey. These flaws in the metal arise either from careless or imperfect casting, or from long disuse of a gun and exposure to damp. A honeycombed gun is liable to burst in firing.

=Hong-Kong.= An island off the coast of China; was taken by Capt. Elliott, August 23, 1839, and ceded to Great Britain, January 20, 1841.

=Honi Soit Qui Mal y Pense= (Fr.). See GARTER, ORDER OF THE.

=Honor.= In a general acceptation may be properly called a consciousness of worth and virtue in the individual, and a lively desire to preserve the reputation of virtue. As a term, it is variously used in military life. As a quality of the mind, it cannot be too much encouraged or too much cultivated among military men of all ranks and descriptions. The possession of it is a guarantee for good conduct, a bond of fidelity, and a certain barrier against military corruption. Men are excited to deeds of valor and enterprise by a sense of honor, who would otherwise remain inactive, or only perform the mere drudgery of service. This term may likewise be considered as esteem, reputation, the glory which is attached by mankind to talents and virtues.

=Honor, Affair of.= A transaction connected with a duel, or a challenge to fight a duel; a duel itself.

=Honor, Court of.= Is a species of board of inquiry, which has not only the power of ascertaining the degree of guilt which may be attached to misconduct, but of pronouncing an opinion which may or may not entail ignominy upon the guilty persons. See COURT OF HONOR.

=Honor, Debt of.= An obligation which among honorable men, especially officers, is more binding than those engagements or contracts that are guaranteed by law. The reason is manifest.

=Honor, Point of.= A nice discrimination in matters affecting one’s honor. A delicacy of feeling, which is generally acquired by education, and strengthened by intercourse with men of strict integrity and good conduct. It is likewise very frequently the offspring of peculiar habits, received notions, and established etiquettes; also, a minute distinction; a punctilio.

=Honor, Signatures upon.= Are instruments, such as declarations of officers on vouchers for allowances, pay, etc., that are guaranteed by the names of individuals, without oath.

=Honor, Word of.= A promise or engagement that is made or entered into by word of mouth, the breach of which entails disgrace upon the violator. To die upon the bed of honor, is a term particularly applied to military men, who die in battle fighting in their country’s cause.

=Honors of War.= A compliment granted on capitulation to a garrison which has made a gallant defense. The exact nature of the honors accorded have varied in different ages and on different occasions. Ordinarily they are as follows: The garrison marches out through the gap in the breach, if there is one, with arms and personal baggage. The drums beat, the colors fly, officers carry their swords drawn, and the men their bayonets fixed. A certain number of guns--ordinarily two--accompany the force, and formerly the gunners carried lighted matches. On reaching the glacis the garrison--unless it is one of the stipulations that it is to join the main army--forms up and grounds arms, only the officers retaining their swords, and is marched off under escort.

=Honvéd.= The name given in Hungary under the earlier kings to the national champions. With the disappearance of these, the word too disappeared; but in the summer of 1848 it was revived, and applied first to those Hungarian volunteers dispatched to the south against the Servians, and subsequently, when the war with Austria really commenced, to the whole patriotic army. Still, in common parlance, the term honvéd is used only with reference to the Hungarian infantry.

=Hood= (Sp. tapadera). A leather cover for the stirrup of a saddle.

=Hooghly.= A town of Bengal, and the capital of a district of the same name, situated on the west hank of the Hooghly River, 27 miles north from Calcutta. This place is supposed to have been founded by the Portuguese about 1538, and after their expulsion in 1632 by the Mogul troops, it became the imperial port of the Mogul empire. In 1757 it was taken by the British; it was retaken shortly after by Surajah Dowlah, but ultimately fell, after a few months, into the hands of the British under Lord Clive.

=Hooks.= Pieces of bent iron fixed to the transom plates of a field-carriage are so called. They serve to fix the bricoles or ropes for drawing it occasionally backwards or forwards.

=Hookum.= An Indian word, signifying order or command.

=Hookummaumeh.= In India, signifies a letter of instructions, or the paper that contains orders.

=Hoplital= (Fr. hoplites). Foot-soldiers among the Greeks, who bore heavy armor, and engaged with broad shields and long spears. These took precedence of all other foot-soldiers.

=Horde.= A wandering troop or gang; especially a clan or tribe of a nomadic people possessing no fixed habitations, but migrating from place to place for the sake of pasturage, plunder, or the like cause.

=Hordearium.= The money which the Romans gave their cavalry for the sustenance of their horses.

=Horion= (Fr.). A term which formerly signified a helmet, and which in the vulgar acceptation of it now, among the French, means a blow upon the head.

=Horizon= (Gr. orizo, I bound or terminate). In astronomy and geography, is the plane of the great circle of the sphere, dividing the visible from the invisible hemisphere. The horizon is either sensible or rational. The sensible horizon is a plane which is a tangent to the earth’s surface at the place of the spectator, extended on all sides till it is bounded by the sky; the rational horizon is a plane parallel to the former, but passing through the centre of the earth. Both the sensible and rational horizon are relative terms, and change with every change of the spectator’s position on the surface of the earth; in all cases they are perpendicular to the direction of gravity.

=Horizontal Fire.= The fire of guns and howitzers under low angles of elevation.

=Horizontal Plane.= That which is parallel to the horizon; a plane tangent to the surface of the earth, at the place.

=Horizontal Range.= In gunnery, is the distance to which a piece of ordnance will project a ball on a horizontal plane. Supposing no resistance from the atmosphere, the greatest range would be when the piece is elevated at an angle of 45°; and in all other positions the horizontal range would be as the sine of twice the angle of elevation. In a resisting medium the maximum horizontal range requires the elevation to be less than 45°. It is found by experience that, with the ordinary velocity, a cannon-shot ranges the farthest when the elevation of the piece is about 30°.

=Hornwork.= A kind of work in advance of a fortification, akin to a crown-work, but consisting of only one curtain and two half-bastions.

=Hors de Combat.= A French military phrase, signifying that an individual or body of men are so completely beaten as not to be able to maintain the field of battle. Mettre hors de combat, to drive your opponent before you; to press him so closely that he cannot make a stand against you; to put him out of the lists of contests. To be wounded or incapable of individual effort, is also being hors de combat.

=Horse.= A military term for a body of cavalry.

=Horse Artillery.= Is that portion of the artillery which usually serves with cavalry, and in which the cannoneers are mounted on horseback, to enable them to conform with the rapid movements of that arm of the service. Possessing, from their lighter construction and mounted detachments, much greater locomotive powers than other field-batteries, they are especially adapted for following the rapid evolutions of cavalry, for sudden attacks upon particular points, and for supporting the advance, or covering the retreat of an army.

=Horse, Associated.= A body of cavalry so called in the days of Cromwell. At the famous battle of Naseby (June 14, 1645), which decided the fate of Charles I., the Associated Horse were posted in the rear of the right wing of the Republican army, and formed a part of the reserve. Cromwell commanded the cavalry on the right of the whole, and the Associated Horse were under his immediate orders.

=Horse, Cavalry and Artillery.= Horses generally make in a minute, at ordinary pace, 120 steps, and they cover 110 yards; at a trot, 180 steps, covering 220 yards; and at a gallop, 100 steps or strides, covering 352 yards; from which it would appear that the length of the stride at the ordinary pace is about 0.917 yard, and that the velocity corresponds to about 1.74 yards per second; and at a trot the stride is about 1.28 yards and the speed about 3.68 yards per second; and at a gallop the stride is about 3.52 yards, with a speed of about 5.87 yards per second. A good horse carrying a weight of 225 pounds, can travel, without over-exertion, 25 miles in a day of from seven to eight hours; his speed in this case would be between 1.75 and 1.53 yards per second. The weight of an average-sized horse is about from 900 to 1350 pounds. The age of the horse is determined by the appearance of the teeth, which vary according to the number of years the animal has attained, and may be easily understood by a slight attention to the subject; the number, quality, and size of the teeth indicating the respective ages. The lower front teeth or nippers are those by which the age of a colt is usually determined. At two years old these teeth will be complete; that is to say, the colt will have a full set, six in number, of milch-teeth. Between two and three years old the two centre teeth are displaced, and two permanent teeth succeed them, easily distinguished from colt’s teeth by being broader, larger, and having a dark cavity in the centre of the upper surface. At three years old the colt will have in the lower jaw two permanent and four colt’s teeth; between the third and fourth year the next pair of incisor teeth will be shed, and permanent teeth succeed them. At four years old there will be four permanent teeth in the centre, and two colt’s teeth at each corner of the lower jaw. Between the fourth and fifth year the last remaining colt’s nipper, or corner tooth, will be cast; and, if a horse or gelding, the tushes, four in number, will show themselves, two in the upper and two in the lower jaw. At five years old the horse will have a full or complete set of permanent teeth in the upper and lower jaws; for the same change that takes place in the lower is developed in the upper jaw also. The colt at this age takes the name of horse, and is supposed to be equal to all the laborious duties expected from him. Although we can no longer judge of his age by the shifting or shedding of his teeth, we can form a tolerably correct conclusion from other appearances of them. At six years old the dark oval-shaped mark in the centre of the two front nippers, usually called by horsemen “the bean,” will be nearly or quite worn away; the tushes higher and stronger, and the cavities of the interior part of the tooth more filled; the two corner nippers level with the others, and equally developed. At seven years old the marks in the second pair of nippers are filled up, and the tushes become more round externally and internally. At eight years old the marks in the corner nippers are worn out, and the tushes more round and blunt. From this age the animal is said to be, in horse phraseology, “past knowledge”; and although a tolerably correct opinion may be formed for many years to come by the appearance of the upper jaw and other prognostics, still they cannot be implicitly relied on. It often occurs at a much earlier period that the best judges of age are deceived by the untimely structural alteration of the teeth, produced by mechanical or pathological causes, such as crib-biting, biting the rack or manger, eating hard food, etc. Horses used for cavalry in the United States are selected with regard to climate, the American horse east of the Rocky Mountains, and what is known as the Mexican or bronco, west of the Rocky Mountains; the power of endurance of the latter being much more than that of the former, they are better adapted to the rugged, arid country that an American cavalry soldier has to travel over on the western frontier. For artillery large, strong American horses are used. A horse occupies a space in the ranks of a front of 40 inches, a depth of 10 feet; in a stall, from 3¹⁄₂ to 4¹⁄₂ feet front; at picket 3 feet by 9. Cavalry horses usually charge at the rate of 24 miles per hour, or one mile in 2¹⁄₂ minutes. See PACK AND DRAUGHT HORSES.

=Horse Guards.= The name was applied to a large public office in Whitehall, London, appropriated to the departments under the general-commanding-in-chief, and guarded by a squadron of Horse Guards. In 1871 the headquarters were removed to Pall Mall.

=Horse Guards, Royal= (Oxford Blues). Is the third heavy cavalry regiment of the Household Brigade (English). The regiment was raised in 1661 from the remnants of the disbanded army of the late Commonwealth. It took part in Marlborough’s campaigns; served under the Duke of Wellington in the Peninsula and at Waterloo, and has always been considered one of the finest heavy cavalry corps in the world.

=Horseman.= A mounted soldier.

=Horsemanship.= The act or art of riding, and of training and managing horses; manege.

=Horse-power.= A measure for the quantity of work of which an engine or motor is capable in a given time. It is 33,000 foot-pounds in one minute.

=Horse-shoe.= In fortification, is a small round or oval work, with a parapet; generally made in a ditch, or marsh.

=Horse-tail.= A Turkish standard. Commanders are distinguished by the number of horse-tails carried before them, or planted in front of their tents. Thus, the sultan has seven, the grand vizier five, and the pashas three, two, or one.

=Hospital.= A place appointed for the sick and wounded men, provided with physicians, surgeons, nurses, servants, medicines, beds, etc.

=Hospital, Field.= Is the staff and apparatus for the surgical treatment of the wounded in the field, and the locality assigned for the resort of the latter to obtain it. In the United States there is a hospital at every military post, under the superintendence of the army medical department.

=Hospital, Regimental.= In Great Britain, each regiment has a hospital for the reception of the sick belonging to it. This hospital is under the immediate care of the regimental surgeon, who is subordinate to the general medical board.

=Hospital Steward.= In the U. S. service, is a non-commissioned officer of the general staff, whose duty consists in making up prescriptions, administering medicines, and in a general supervision of the sick, under the instructions of an army medical officer.

=Hospital Tent.= A large tent used for hospital purposes. See TENT.

=Hospitallers.= A celebrated brotherhood founded at various times and in different countries for the care of the sick in hospitals. The vow to devote themselves to this work of mercy is, in all these brotherhoods, superadded to the ordinary vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, which are common to all the religious orders in the Roman Catholic Church. One of the earliest recorded instances of a hospital served by such a brotherhood is that of Constance, in the 13th century. See SAINT JOHN OF JERUSALEM and TEUTONIC KNIGHTS.

=Hospodar.= A title borne by the governors of Wallachia and Moldavia, under the Turks. Although nominated by the porte, they possessed absolute power within their own dominions. By the treaty of Adrianople in 1829, the principalities were placed under Russian protection, and from that time till the treaty of Paris in 1856, the hospodars were virtually the nominees of Russia.

=Host.= An army; any large body of men assembled together in arms.

=Hostages.= Are persons given in pledge for the performance of conditions. When a town capitulates, victors and vanquished usually give into the custody, one of the other, several officers, as pledges that each party will duly carry out the terms stipulated. When the terms are fulfilled, the hostages are exchanged; but if the terms be evaded, the opposite side holds the right to put to death, or otherwise punish, the hostages in its possession; of late years the practice is going out of use.

=Hostile.= Belonging to an enemy; appropriate to an enemy; showing ill-will and malevolence, or a desire to thwart and injure; occupied by an enemy or a hostile people; inimical; unfriendly; as, a hostile force, hostile country, etc.

=Hostilities.= A rupture between the natives of different countries. The first hostile act that is committed by either party is considered the commencement of hostilities. Between nations, the first act of hostility presupposes a declaration of war.

=Hosting.= An encounter; a battle. A muster or review. This term is now obsolete.

=Hot Shot.= Shot made red-hot for the purpose of setting fire to buildings, shipping, etc. The charges for hot shot are from one-fourth to one-sixth the weight of the shot. With small velocities, the shot splits and splinters the wood, so as to render it favorable for burning. With great velocity the ball sinks into the wood, is deprived of air by the closing of the hole, and chars instead of burning the surrounding wood. It should not penetrate deeper than 10 or 12 inches. Red-hot balls do not set fire to the wood until some time after their penetration. They retain sufficient heat to ignite wood after having made several ricochets upon water. The wads for hot shot should be made of clay or hay, the latter to be well soaked in water, and before being used, the water pressed out of it. With proper precautions in loading, the ball may be permitted to cool in the gun without igniting the charge. The piece, however, should be fired with as little delay as possible, as the vapor would diminish the strength of the powder. They are heated by means of furnaces erected for the purpose, which hold sixty or more shot. The shot being placed, and the furnace cold, it requires one hour and fifteen minutes to heat them to a red heat; but after the furnace is once heated, a 24-pounder shot is brought to a red heat in twenty-five minutes. Red-hot shot is not in general use.

=Hotchkiss Projectile.= See PROJECTILE.

=Hotchkiss Revolving Cannon.= Consists of five barrels grouped around a common axis; they are revolved in front of a solid breech-block, which has in one part an opening to introduce the cartridges, and another opening through which to extract the empty shells. The cartridges are fired after being revolved and while motionless in front of the solid portion of the breech. In exterior aspect it resembles the Gatling gun, but is entirely different in its interior mechanism. See MACHINE GUNS.

=Hotchkiss Rifle.= See MAGAZINE GUNS.

=Hôtel des Invalides= (Fr.). A spacious building which was erected by Louis XIV. in Paris, upon the river Seine, as a public monument of his charity and munificence. All disabled, infirm, and wounded officers and soldiers were received, lodged, and subsisted during the remainder of their lives within its walls.

=Hotte= (Fr.). A sort of hand-basket, which is often made use of in the construction of batteries and other works, and serves to carry earth from one place to another. Hence the word hod, a well-known machine for carrying bricks.

=Hougines= (Fr.). Parts of ancient armor covering the thighs, legs, and arms.

=Hounds.= Are pieces of wood used in the construction of limbers for gun-carriages to connect the splinter-bar with the axle.

=Hours of Sitting= (Courts-martial). See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 94.

=Household Troops.= See GUARDS.

=Housing.= Cover or cloth over or under a horse’s saddle used for cleanliness, or as an ornamental or military appendage; a saddle-cloth; a horse-cloth.

=Howitzer= (derived by Grimm and Littré from the Bohemian haufnice, “catapult”). A short, light cannon, having a chamber intended to throw large projectiles with comparatively small charges. A howitzer is of larger caliber than a gun of like weight; is mounted in a similar manner, and is used for shorter ranges. It is said to have been first introduced by the Dutch in the early part of the 17th century, and soon afterward came into almost general use. The Russians in 1777 introduced the licorne, an improved howitzer. Howitzers project larger shells than guns with which they are associated; are well adapted for ricochet fire, the destruction of field-works, breaking down palisades, and setting fire to buildings; and the projectiles used are shells, spherical-case, canister, grape, and carcasses. Howitzers, except for siege and mountain service, are no longer manufactured in the United States, as our present guns are equally suitable for shell-firing in field or garrison service. The ones now in use in the U. S. service are 8-inch and 24-pounder mountain howitzers. The former is used for siege purposes, and for the defense of ditches in fortifications. The 24-pounder flank defense howitzer, now out of use, was formerly employed for this purpose. The 8-inch howitzer has, strictly speaking, no chamber; the bore is, however, terminated by a semi-ellipsoid, the axis being 6 inches in length. This piece weighs 2600 pounds, and the shell (not filled) 45 pounds. The mountain howitzer (12-pounder) is a small, light, bronze piece about 3 feet long, weighing 220 pounds, capable of being easily removed from its carriage, and transported upon the back of a mule. The shell weighs, when strapped and charged, 9.35 pounds, and the maximum range of the piece is about 1000 yards. There are two distinct kinds of carriage used with it, one similar to the carriage of the ordinary field-piece, but smaller and lighter, the other having four wheels and called the prairie carriage. This piece has been extensively employed in our numerous Indian wars upon the plains and mountains of the West, and has done good service.

=Hualpais=, or =Hualapais Indians=. A tribe of aborigines who are located on the Colorado River near the Mojaves.

=Hub.= The hilt of a weapon; as, to drive a dagger into a body up to the hub.

=Hubbardton.= A village of Rutland Co., Vt., about 46 miles south-southwest of Montpelier. Here an American force of three regiments of Warner, Francis, and Hale, numbering about 1300, were defeated by the British under Col. Fraser, July 7, 1777.

=Hubert, St., Order of.= The highest Bavarian order of knighthood, founded in 1444.

=Hubertsberg.= A village of Saxony, 24 miles east from Leipsic. The treaty of peace, by which the Seven Years’ War was ended, was signed in the royal castle of this place in 1763.

=Hue and Cry.= In Great Britain, an official gazette, which serves to advertise deserters from her majesty’s service.

=Huguenots.= A term (derived by some from the German Eidgenossen, “confederates,” by others from Hugues, a Genevese Calvinist) applied to the Reformed party in France, followers of Calvin. They took up arms against their persecutors in 1561. After a delusive edict of toleration, a great number were massacred at Vassy, March 1, 1562, when the civil wars began, which lasted with some intermission till the edict of Nantes in 1598 (revoked in 1685). The massacre of St. Bartholomew’s day, August 24, 1572, occurred during a truce.

=Huissier d’Armes= (Fr.). Tipstaff; an officer formerly so called in France, who was attached to the royal household. They were at first distinguished by the name of sergens d’armes, or sergeants-at-arms. Some were directed to bear the mace before the king during the day, and obtained on that account the appellation of huissiers d’armes; in later times they were called the huissiers, or tipstaffs of the king’s chamber. Others kept watch in the king’s bed-chamber during the night, and were sworn to expose their lives for the safety of his person, whence they obtained the name of archers de la garde, which term was changed to gardes du corps, or body-guards.

=Hulan.= See UHLAN.

=Hull=, or =Kingston-upon-Hull=. A seaport town of England, in Yorkshire, situated on the great inlet of the Humber, at the point where it is entered by the river Hull. It is a very ancient town; during the civil war it declared for the Parliament, and sustained two severe sieges by the royalists.

=Humaitá.= A strong post on the river Paraguay, defended by a battery of 300 cannon, and believed to be impregnable by Lopez, the president of Paraguay; was forced by the Brazilian ironclads February 17, 1868. On the 19th, Caxias, the Brazilian general, stormed a work to the north of Humaitá, and captured many stores.

=Hungary.= A portion of the Austrian empire. It was a part of the ancient Pannonia and Dacia; was subjected to the Romans about 106, and retained by them till the 3d century, when it was seized by the Goths, who were expelled about 376 by the Huns, under Attila. After his death in 453, the Gepidæ, and in 500 the Lombards held the country. It was acquired by the Avars about 568, and retained by them till their destruction by Charlemagne in 799. About 890 the country was settled by a Scythian tribe, named Vingours, or Ungri (whence the German name Ungarn), and the Magyars of Finnish origin. The progress of the Magyars westward was checked by their defeat by the emperor Henry the Fowler, 934. After various changes of rulers it came permanently under the dominion of Austria in 1526. A revolution took place in Hungary in 1848 under the leadership of Kossuth.

=Huns.= The name of a considerable nation of antiquity, which from time to time made incursions on the Roman dominions, and which eventually, under Attila, the most renowned of its leaders, brought in the 5th century the Eastern and Western empires to the verge of destruction. They were originally of Asiatic origin, and probably akin to the Scythians and Turks. In the latter part of the 4th century they settled along the Danube, in the territory abandoned by the Goths, and subsequently they pressed onward towards further conquests. In the 5th century they had acquired considerable power, but after Attila’s death it was broken. Many of them afterwards took service with the Romans; others joined the invaders from the north and east that were attacking the moribund Roman empire.

=Hunters, Death-.= Followers of an army, who, after an engagement, look for dead bodies in order to strip them.

=Hurdices.= Ramparts, scaffolds, fortifications, etc.

=Hurdles.= In fortification, twigs of willow or osiers, interwoven close together, and sustained by long stakes. They are made in the figure of a parallelogram, in length 5 or 6 feet, in breadth 3 or 3¹⁄₂. The closer they are wattled together the better. They serve to revet, or render batteries firm, or to consolidate the passage over muddy ditches; or to cover traverses and lodgments for the defense of the workmen against the fireworks. Hurdles are constructed in nearly the same manner as gabions, excepting that the pickets are placed in a straight line instead of a circle.

=Hurkaru.= A messenger; one who brings intelligence; a scout.

=Hurl.= To send whirling or whizzing through the air; to throw with violence; to drive with great force; as, to hurl a lance, etc.

=Huron Indians= (also called Wyandots). A tribe of aborigines now almost extinct, who were settled in Canada and in a part of the United States. They fought against the United States in the war of 1812-15.

=Hurst.= A charge in heraldry representing a small group of trees, generally borne upon a mount in base.

=Hurter=, or =Heurtoir=. A square beam placed at the foot of a parapet where there is an embrasure to prevent the wheels of the gun, when the latter is run up, from injuring the interior slope. A short fascine or military fagot is sometimes substituted for a beam. A hurter is placed on the front part of a siege platform, under the wheels. The motion of gun-carriages is checked, front and rear, by pieces of wood or iron bolted to the top rails called hurters and counter-hurters.

=Hussar.= A name given to the national cavalry of Hungary and Croatia. They were first raised in 1458, and received their name either from the method in which they were called out, or from the Tartar uswar, which signifies cavalry. In the armies of modern Europe hussars are light horse, and differ from light dragoons only in some peculiarities of dress and equipments.

=Hussites.= Is the name of the followers of Huss. Immediately after his martyrdom they arose in Bohemia, and took a frightful revenge on the priests, monks, and prelates of the Roman Catholic Church. Wenceslaus succeeded, however, in appeasing the storm by granting them religious freedom. But when the king died in 1419, and the pope issued an order for the conversion of the Hussites by force, a civil war began. They assembled under the leadership of John Ziska, on Mount Tabor, captured Prague, pillaged and burnt the monasteries, and defeated at Deutchbrod in 1422, and in several other minor encounters, the troops of Sigismund, the German emperor and heir of Wenceslaus. Ziska died in 1424, but his successor, Procopius, a former monk, was still more successful. He defeated Sigismund at Miess and Tachau, and carried the war into Austria, Bavaria, Franconia, and Saxony. Meanwhile, the Hussites had separated into two parties, the Taborites and Calixtines. In the beginning they acted in perfect concert with each other. But in 1433 the Council of Basle succeeded in coming to an agreement with the Calixtines and in drawing them out of the contest; the result of which was that the Taborites were totally defeated at Bomishbrod in 1434. Toleration was granted, and Sigismund entered Prague, August 23, 1436. The Hussites opposed his successor, Albert of Austria, and called Casimir of Poland to the throne, but were defeated in 1438. A portion of the Hussites existed in the time of Luther, and were called “Bohemian Brethren.”

=Hut.= Is a wooden structure, more or less rough in details, for the housing of troops. It is substituted very often for the tent, when the sojourn in a camp or cantonment is likely to be of consideration, as, for instance, through a winter,--a hut, however rude, which is wind- and water-tight, being as superior in comfort to a tent as the latter is to the open air. Huts may be made of almost any size, and are sometimes for one officer; at others for as many as 100 men. The quarters occupied by U. S. troops on the American frontiers are very frequently huts made by the troops.

=Huy.= A town of Belgium, 18 miles southwest from Liege. This town has withstood several sieges. Its fortifications were dismantled in 1718, but in 1815 its castle was rebuilt.

=Hyccara= (now Muro di Carini). A town of Sicani, on the north coast of Sicily, west of Panormus. It was taken by the Athenians and plundered, and its inhabitants sold as slaves, 415 B.C.

=Hydaspes.= A river in India, where Alexander the Great defeated Porus, after a severely contested engagement, in 327 B.C.

=Hyder.= The Arabic term for lion. This title is frequently given to men of rank in India.

=Hydraulic Jack.= A powerful portable apparatus for moving heavy weights through short distances, by an application of the principles of the hydrostatic press. There are two forms, the lifting- and pulling-jack. Those used in the American military service are of 80 tons capacity.

=Hydraulic Loading Apparatus.= The apparatus used in manœuvring heavy turret-guns in the English navy, invented by Mr. George Rendel (a member of Sir William Armstrong’s firm), and first tested in the working of a 38-ton gun on the “Thunderer.” It was determined to similarly equip the “Inflexible,” with her 80-ton armament. The apparatus was thoroughly tested, in working the 100-ton guns delivered to the Italian government, in experiments at Spezzia, 1876. The working of the gun, including all the operations of loading and sponging, is effected by means of hydraulic pumps, which are all operated by one small steam-engine. The gun is placed with its trunnions resting on two heavy blocks of metal, which, being retained by guides, slide on large beams or girders built in the floor of the turret. In front and rear of the blocks are pistons, working in cylinders in the direction of the floor-beams. These pistons, under the influence of water-pressure, move the gun in and out of battery. The breech is raised and lowered by similar means. When the gun and trunnion-blocks rush back under the impulse of the recoil from firing, the water in the rear cylinders is forced out through escape-valves, which are held down by springs under a tension of 50 atmospheres. The recoil is thus checked in the space of 3 or 4 feet. If a larger charge is used the tension of the springs can be increased. The springs only come into play in resisting the desperate force of recoil. The water pumped into the cylinders (a valve at the rear opening outwards being raised) is sufficient to run the gun forward without displacing the recoil-valves, the working-pressure required being less than 50 atmospheres.

When the gun is to be loaded, it is run forward and the muzzle depressed till it is in front of an armored hood, which shields an iron door in the main deck. The door slides back, a sponge appears on the end of a staff, which enters the bore and lengthens itself like a telescope till the bottom is reached, when, in obedience to the touch of a valve, a flood of water is ejected from the sponge to extinguish fire and wash the bore. The shot and cartridge next appear, lifted from below on a small truck, which is run out on a trap-door. The cartridge is lifted in front of the muzzle, the sponge--now converted into a rammer--pushes it a short distance into the gun, is then withdrawn, and when the shot rises pushes both to the bottom of the bore. The sponge is then withdrawn below deck and the trap closes. Each of these movements is effected entirely by water-pressure, the course of the water and the corresponding operation being determined by manipulating the proper valve. The power is supplied by a small steam-engine specially designed for the purpose. When no manœuvre is to be performed, the engine occupies itself in pumping water from the tank against the recoil-valves. When the pressure rises above 50 atmospheres these valves allow a small quantity to escape, which runs back into the tank. The engine barely moves in this work. When any manœuvre is to be performed, such as running the gun forward, a handle is touched, the cylinder-valves open a passage to the water, and, the enormous resistance being removed, the engine rattles with energy, and the gun moves forward as by magic. The valve being closed by the operator, the engine returns to its sisyphean labor of pumping water against the loaded valves till some new outlet gives it a specific task.

Every part of this apparatus, notwithstanding its provisional mounting, worked perfectly in the experiments at Spezzia.

The only defect in the principle was developed by the bursting of one, the 38-ton gun of the “Thunderer” (January 2, 1879), which was worked by this apparatus. The disaster has been generally attributed to the presence in the gun of a double charge of both shot and powder. This could hardly have occurred in hand-loading. Steps have been taken to remedy the apparatus in this regard.

=Hygrometer.= An instrument for measuring the degree of moisture of the atmosphere.

=Hygrometer, Daniell’s.= A form of hygrometer consisting of a bent glass tube terminating in two bulbs, the one covered with muslin, the other of black glass, and containing ether and a thermometer. Ether being poured on the muslin, the black ball, cooled by the evaporation of the ether within, is soon covered with dew, at which moment the receding of the inclosed thermometer, compared with that of another in the air, gives the dew point.

I.

=Iapydes.= A warlike and barbarous people in the north of Illyricum, between the rivers Arsia and Tedanius; were a mixed race, partly Illyrian and partly Celtic, who tattooed their bodies. They were subdued by Augustus. Their country was called Iaiydia.

=Iazyges.= A powerful Sarmatian people, who originally dwelt on the coast of the Pontus Euxinus and the Palus Mæotis; but in the reign of Claudius settled near the Quadi in Dacia, in the country bounded by the Danube, the Theiss, and the Sarmatian Mountains. The Iazyges were in close alliance with the Quadi, along with whom they frequently attacked the Roman dominions, especially Mœsia and Pannonia. In the 5th century they were conquered by the Goths.

=Ice.= In high latitudes, during the winter, rivers are frequently covered with ice of sufficient thickness to sustain the heaviest loads. This means of communication should be used with great circumspection. A change of temperature may not only suddenly destroy this natural bridge, but render the river impassable by any method for a considerable time in consequence of the floating ice.

The thickness of ice should be, to allow the passage of infantry in single file on a line of planks, and 2 yards apart, 2 inches; cavalry or light guns, with intervals, 4 inches; 12-pounder field-pieces, unlimbered and on sleds, 5 inches; 12-pounder field-pieces, limbered and drawn by horses, with intervals between pieces, 6 to 7 inches. Ice when 10 to 12 inches thick bears the heaviest loads. Two tracks of planks laid on the ice for the carriage-wheels to run on, may be employed when there is any doubt as to its strength, or the wagon may be transformed into a sort of sled by fastening two planks under the wheels.

The thickness of the ice may be increased, when the temperature is low enough, by throwing water on it.

When the river is frozen on each side, but open in the middle in consequence of the velocity of the current, a boom stretched across the open space will often check the velocity sufficiently to cause the water to freeze.

=Iceni.= A British tribe which inhabited chiefly Suffolk and Norfolk. In 61, headed by Boadicea, their queen, they marched southwards and destroyed Verulam, London, and other places, with great slaughter of the Romans, but were defeated by Suetonius near London, and their queen slain.

=Ich Dien.= I serve; the motto under the plume of ostrich feathers found in the helmet of the king of Bohemia after he was slain at the battle of Crécy, at which he served as a volunteer in the French army, August 26, 1346. Edward the Black Prince, in veneration of his father, Edward III., who commanded that day, though the prince won the battle, adopted this motto, which has since been borne with the feathers by the heirs to the crown of England; but not as prince of Wales, which many have erroneously maintained.

=Ichnæ=, or =Ischnæ=. A Greek city in the north of Mesopotamia, founded by the Macedonians; was the scene of the first battle between Crassus and the Parthians, in which the former gained the victory. According to Appian, the Parthians soon after defeated the Romans near the same spot.

=Ichnography.= The plan or representation of the length and breadth of a fortification, the distinct parts of which are marked out either on the ground itself, or on paper. A plan upon the correct principles of ichnography represents a work as it would appear if it were leveled to its foundations, and shows only the expanse of ground on which it had been erected. The science does not represent either the elevation or the different parts belonging to a fortification. This properly comes under the title “profile,” which does not, however, include length.

=Iconium= (now Konieh). A town of Asia Minor, situated on the shores of the Lake Trogitis, about 120 miles inland from the Mediterranean. In ancient times it was famous as the capital of Lycaonia, and from 1087 to 1229 it was the seat of a Seljuk sultanate. In December, 1832, a battle was fought here, in which Ibrahim Pasha completely defeated the Turkish army.

=Idaho.= A Territory of the United States, bounded on the north by the British possessions, on the east by Montana and Dakota, and on the south by Nevada and Utah. It was organized in 1863, and has frequently been the scene of Indian troubles.

=Idsted.= A village of Selswick. A battle was fought here in 1850, between the Danes and Schleswig-Holsteiners, in which the latter were defeated.

=Ignition= (Lat. ignis, “fire”). The act of setting fire to, or of taking fire; as opposed to combustion or burning, which is a consequence of ignition. By ignition of gunpowder is understood the setting on fire of a particular point of the charge.

=Ilerda= (now Lerida). A town of the Ilergetes, in Hispania Tarraconensis, situated on a height above the river Sicoris (now Segre). It was afterwards a Roman colony, but in the time of Ausonius had ceased to be a place of importance. It was here that Africanus and Petreius, the legates of Pompey, were defeated by Cæsar, 49 B.C.

=Illinois.= One of the Central States of the United States, in the valley of the Upper Mississippi, and one of the most fertile in the Union, having scarcely any soil which is uncultivable. It was originally settled by the French, but fell into the hands of the English in 1763, becoming the property of the United States at the Revolution. It was organized as a State December 3, 1818, and during the civil war was a staunch supporter of the Union.

=Illinois Indians.= A confederacy of Indian tribes, mostly of Algonkin stock, who formerly inhabited the State now known by their name. Very few relics of these tribes now exist.

=Illustrious.= Conferring lustre or honor; brilliant; renowned; as, illustrious deeds or titles.

=Illyricum=, or =Illyria=. Is the Roman name of a country whose limits in ancient times varied considerably. It was inhabited by a savage tribe, who were much addicted to piracy and robbery. In 359 B.C. Philip of Macedon conquered the eastern portion of the country, now Albania, and it was incorporated with Macedonia. The Illyrians were brought into a collision with the Romans on account of their piracy, which led to their subjugation about two centuries before the Christian era. They made numerous efforts to shake off the Roman yoke, but were always defeated, and the country became a most important province of the Roman empire, comprising the territory represented in modern times by Croatia, Dalmatia, Herzegovina, Montenegro, nearly all Bosnia, and a part of Albania. On the division of the Roman empire, it shared in the vicissitudes that followed that act. A decree of Napoleon, on October 14, 1809, gave the name of Illyrian provinces to Carniola, Dalmatia, and other countries from the Adriatic Sea to the Save, then belonging to the French empire. At his fall these provinces were united as a kingdom to the Austrian empire, and some alterations were made in its boundaries, especially by the restoration to Hungary of what had formerly belonged to it, and the annexation of the whole of Carinthia.

=Ilmenau.= A town of Saxe-Weimar, on the Ilm, 18 miles west from Weimar. A battle was fought by the united forces of the Russians and Saxons against the Swedes near this town in 1706.

=Imbannered.= Furnished with banners.

=Imbellic.= Not warlike or martial. This term is now obsolete.

=Imbody.= See EMBODY.

=Imbrued=, or =Embrued=. An expression used in heraldry to signify bloody, or dropping with blood. Weapons thus blazoned are drawn with drops of blood falling from them.

=Imeritia.= Formerly an independent Transcaucasian territory, now part of the government of Kutais. Its history as an independent dominion commenced from about the beginning of the 15th century, and was long marked by internal dissensions. In 1745, Solomon I. was proclaimed, but his nobles revolting shortly after, and aided by the Turks, dethroned him. Solomon applied for help to Russia, and in 1769, Count Todtlen, at the head of a Russian force, entered Emeritia, restored the king, and drove back the Turks. The civil dissensions of this province, however, continued, and at last, in 1810, after having long acknowledged allegiance to Russia, it was formally incorporated in, and proclaimed a province of that empire.

=Immailed.= Wearing mail or armor; clad in armor. This term is now obsolete.

=Immartial.= Not martial; not warlike. This term is now obsolete.

=Immortals.= In antiquity, the name of a body of 10,000 troops, constituting the guard of the king of Persia; so called because they were always of the same number; for as soon as any of them died, the vacancy was immediately filled up. They were distinguished from all the other troops by the richness of their armor, and still more by their bravery. The same term was applied to the life-guards of the Roman emperors.

=Imola.= A fortified town of Ravenna, a province of Italy, on a small island in the river Santerno; it is defended by a strong castle. This town was founded by the Lombards on the ruins of Forum Cornelii, destroyed by Justinian, and was afterwards successively held by different chiefs who ruled in Central Italy. Julius II. annexed it to the States of the Church, but it was delivered from the papal yoke when Ravenna declared for annexation to Sardinia in 1859.

=Impact.= In gunnery, the single instantaneous blow or stroke of a body in motion against another either in motion or at rest.

=Impale.= In heraldry, to arrange two coats of arms side by side in one shield divided per pale. It is usual thus to exhibit the conjoined coats of husband and wife, the husband’s arms occupying the dexter, or right side, and the wife’s the sinister, or left side, of the escutcheon.

=Impedimenta.= The accompaniments to an army received from the Romans the name of impedimenta. They consist in transportation of munitions, equipments, provisions, hospital supplies, tents, engineering tools, bridge equipage, and boats, baggage, cooking utensils, etc., necessary for the use of an army moving against an enemy. This requires the use of large numbers of wagons and of draught animals, or shipping, and necessarily impedes the movement of an army. See BAGGAGE.

=Impenetrable.= Incapable of being penetrated or pierced, not admitting the passage of other bodies, not to be entered; as, an impenetrable shield.

=Imperator.= An old Roman title signifying commander, which was applied to the rulers of provinces, consuls, pro-consuls, etc., or to anybody who had an imperium assigned him. After a victory the Roman soldiers frequently saluted their commander by this title.

=Imperial Guards.= See GUARDS, IMPERIAL.

=Imperialists.= This word was chiefly applied to the subjects of, or forces employed by the house of Austria, when opposed to the troops of other German powers.

=Imperil.= To bring into peril, to endanger.

=Impetuous.= Rushing with force and violence, moving with impetus, furious, forcible; as, the troops went pouring forward with impetuous speed.

=Impetus.= In gunnery, the altitude through which a heavy body must fall to acquire a velocity equal to that with which a ball is discharged from a piece.

=Implement.= Whatever may supply a want, especially an instrument or utensil as supplying a requisite to an end; as, the implements of war.

=Implements, Equipments, and Machines.= In artillery, the two former are employed in loading, pointing, and firing cannon, and in the mechanical manœuvres of artillery carriages, the latter to mount and dismount cannon from their carriages, and to transport artillery material from one part of a work to another. The implements for loading cannon are, (1) The rammer-head, a short cylindrical piece of beech or other tough wood, fixed to the end of a long stick of ash, called a staff, employed to push the charge to its place in the bore or chamber of a cannon. (2) The sponge, a woolen brush attached to the end of a staff, for the purpose of cleaning the interior of cannon and extinguishing any burning fragments of the cartridge that may remain after firing. In the field and mountain services, the rammer-head and sponge are attached to the opposite ends of the same shaft; in the siege and sea-coast services, they are attached to separate staves, except for howitzers, in which they are combined. (3) The ladle, a copper scoop attached to the end of a staff for the purpose of withdrawing the projectile of a loaded piece. (4) The worm, a species of double cork-screw attached to a staff, used in field and siege cannon to withdraw a cartridge. (5) The gunner’s haversack (which see). (6) The pass-box, a wooden box closed with a lid and carried by a handle attached to one end. In siege and sea-coast service, where the cartridge is large, it takes the place of the haversack. (7) The tube-pouch or primer-pouch, a small leather pouch attached to the cannoneer by a waistbelt. It contains the friction-tubes, lanyard, priming-wire, thumb-stall, etc. (8) The budge-barrel (which see). (9) The priming-wire, used to pick a hole in a cartridge for the passage of the flame from the vent. (10) The thumb-stall, a buckskin cushion attached to the thumb or finger to close the vent in sponging and loading. (11) The fuze-setter, a brass drift for driving a wooden fuze into a shell. (12) The fuze-mallet, made of hard wood, and used in connection with the setter. (13) The fuze-saw, a 10-inch tenon saw for cutting wooden or paper fuzes to the required length. (14) The fuze-gimlet, sometimes employed in place of the saw to open a communication with the fuze composition. (15) The fuze-auger, an instrument for regulating the time of burning of a fuze by removing a certain portion of the composition from the exterior. For this purpose it has a movable graduated scale, which regulates the depth to which the auger should penetrate. (16) The fuze-rasp, a coarse file employed in fitting a fuze-plug to a shell. (17) The fuze-plug reamer, used to enlarge the cavity of a fuze-plug after it has been driven into a projectile, to enable it to receive a paper fuze. (18) The shell-plug screw, a wood screw with a handle, used to extract a plug from a fuze-hole. (19) The fuze-extractor, worked by a screw, and is a more powerful instrument than the preceding; it is used for extracting wooden fuzes from loaded shells. (20) The fuze-wrench, made in the form of a cross or T-shaped, to unscrew percussion fuzes. (21) The mortar-scraper, a slender piece of iron with a spoon at one end and a scraper at the other, for cleaning the chamber of a mortar. (22) The gunner’s sleeves, made of flannel or serge; they are drawn over the coat-sleeves of the gunner to prevent them from being soiled while loading a mortar. (23) The funnel, made of copper, and used in pouring the bursting charge into a shell. (24) The powder-measures, made of copper, of cylindrical form, and of various sizes, for the purpose of determining the charges of shells and cannon by measurement. (25) The lanyard, a cord, one end of which has a small iron hook, and the other a wooden handle. It is used to explode the friction-tubes with which cannon for the land service are now fired. (26) The gunner’s gimlet and vent-punch, used in boring out the vent when it becomes foul. (27) Gunner’s pincers (which see). (28) The shell-hooks, an instrument made to fasten into the ears of a shell, for the purpose of lifting it to the muzzle of the piece. (29) The tow-hook, in field service, used in unpacking ammunition and taking projectiles from the chest. The implements for pointing are: the gunner’s level, gunner’s quadrant, the breech-sight, the pendulum-hausse, and elevating arc. (See appropriate headings.) The tangent-scale, a brass plate, the lower edge of which is cut to the curve of the base-ring of the piece, and the upper formed into offsets which correspond to differences of elevation of a quarter of a degree. It is used in pointing by placing the curved edge on the base-ring, with the radius of the offset corresponding with the highest point of the ring, and sighting over the centre of the offset, and the highest point of the swell of the muzzle. The principal manœuvring implements are: the trail handspike, the manœuvring handspike, the shod handspike, the truck handspike, the roller handspike (see HANDSPIKE); the prolonge, a stout rope used to connect the lunette of the carriage and pintle-hook of the limber to move the piece short distances without limber; the sponge-bucket, made of sheet-iron, for washing the bore of the piece; the tar-bucket, also made of sheet-iron, for carrying grease for the wheels; the watering bucket, made of sole-leather, for watering the horses; the water-buckets, made of wood and bound with iron hoops. These are of two kinds,--one for the traveling-forge, and the other for the service of garrison batteries. The drag-rope, used when necessary to employ a number of men in hauling loads, or extricating a carriage from a difficult part of the road. It has a hook at one end, a loop at the other, and six wooden handles placed about 4 feet apart. The men’s harness, similar to the drag-rope, except that the rope is stouter, and the handles are replaced by leather loops which pass over the shoulders of the men, to enable them to exert their strength to advantage. The bill-hook, or hand-bill, used for cutting twigs. The screw-jack, a lifting-machine composed of a screw worked by a movable nut supported on a cast-iron stand. It is used in greasing carriage-wheels. Artillery machines comprise the gin (see GIN), the sling-cart (see HAND-SLING-CART), the casemate truck, the hand-cart (see HAND-CART), the lifting-jack, and the lever-jack. The casemate truck is composed of a stout frame of wood mounted on three barbette traverse-wheels, and is employed to move cannon and carriages through posterns and along casemate galleries. The lifting-jack is a small but powerful screw, worked by a geared nut. It is useful when the space for manœuvring is small, and the number of men limited. If the weight to be raised is sufficiently high, the lifting power is applied at the top; if it be low, it is applied at the foot. The lever-jack is another but less powerful apparatus for lifting. It consists of a lever of wood resting on a bolt, which passes through holes in two uprights. The height of the bolt is varied by passing it through different holes in the uprights (eight in number), and the power of the lever is regulated by a notched piece of cast iron screwed to the under side of the lever.

=Implements, Re-loading.= See RE-LOADING IMPLEMENTS.

=Impregnable.= Not to be stormed, or taken by assault; incapable of being reduced by force; able successfully to resist attack; as, an impregnable fortress.

=Impregnably.= In an impregnable manner; in a manner to defy force; as, a place impregnably fortified.

=Impress.= To compel any person to serve.

=Impression.= The effect of an attack upon any place or body of soldiers.

=Imprisonment.= Officers may be sentenced to imprisonment by a general court-martial in any case where the court may have discretionary authority. General, garrison, and regimental courts-martial may sentence soldiers to imprisonment, solitary or otherwise, with or without hard labor, for various offenses enumerated in the Articles of War. A garrison or regimental court-martial, in awarding imprisonment, is limited to a period not exceeding thirty days. When a court awards solitary imprisonment as a punishment, it is necessary that the words “solitary confinement” should be expressed in the sentence. The legal imprisonment in the United States is confinement, solitary confinement, and confinement on bread and water; confinement on bread and water shall not extend over fourteen days at a time, with intervals between the periods of such confinement not less than such periods, and not exceeding eighty-four days in any one year.

=Impulse.= The act of impelling, or driving onward with sudden force; impulsion; the action of a force so as to produce motion suddenly, or without appreciable loss of time. Also sudden motion exciting to action; hasty inclination; influence acting unexpectedly, or with momentary force; impression; instigation; as, the troops moved forward with one impulse.

=In Battery.= The position of field-guns when unlimbered and prepared for action. Also applied to heavy guns when in the firing position; also the command for the movement in both cases. Heavy guns are “from battery” when in the loading position.

=In Gear.= A command in the service of heavy guns, to cause the eccentrics of the truck-wheels to be thrown in gear. Also refers to the position of the eccentrics when the command is executed.

=In Line.= Refers to the formation of troops when posted, or marching, with extended front.

=Inaccessible.= A general term for any distance or height which cannot be approached for any military purposes.

=Inactive.= Not disposed to action or effort; not diligent or industrious; not busy; idle; as, an inactive officer.

=Inca.= A king or prince of Peru, before the conquest of that country by the Spaniards.

=Incapable.= A term of disgrace, frequently annexed to military sentences, when an officer has been cashiered by the sentence of a general court-martial, and rendered incapable of ever serving his country in either a civil or military capacity.

=Incendiary Compositions.= Used to set fire to buildings, shipping, etc., have been known and used from the earliest times. Greek fire (which see) was extensively used in the 7th century. Among modern incendiary compositions are fire stone, sometimes called rock fire, and Valenciennes composition (which see).

=Incendiary Shells.= Are shells containing incendiary compositions. See CARCASS for modern example.

=Incensed=, or =Animé=. An epithet applied in heraldry to panthers or other wild beasts borne with flames issuing from their mouth and ears.

=Incidence, Angle of.= In projectiles, the angle which the line of direction of the projectile makes with the surface of the obstacle on which it impinges.

=Inclination.= In gunnery, the inclination of a plane is the angle it makes with the horizon either above or below.

=Inclination of the Grooves.= In a rifle is the angle which the tangent to the groove at any point makes with the element of the bore passing through the point. The tangent of the angle, which may be taken as a measure of the inclination, is equal to the circumference of the bore divided by the length of bore corresponding to one revolution of the spiral. See TWIST.

=Incline.= To gain ground to the flank, as well as to the front. Inclining is of great use in the marching of the line in front, to correct any irregularities that may happen. It is equivalent to the quarter facing and to the oblique marching of the infantry. It enables you to gain the enemy’s flank without exposing your own, or without wheeling or altering the parallel front of the company.

=Inclose.= To surround; to shut in; to confine on all sides; to include; to shut up; to encompass; as, to inclose a fort or an army with troops; to inclose a town with walls.

=Incommoder l’Ennemi= (Fr.). To get possession of a fort, eminence, etc., from which the enemy may be harassed, or which is necessary to his security.

=Incompetent.= Incapable; unfit; unequal. No officer, be his situation what it may, can be said to be competent to command who is not only willing and able to follow orders himself, but will likewise see them strictly adhered to by others; whose mind is not superior to partialities, and whose judgment is not equal to discern real merit from ignorant assumption.

=Incorporate, To.= To add a smaller body of forces to a larger, and to mix them together. Independent companies are said to be incorporated, when they are distributed among different regiments; regiments among brigades, etc.

=Incorporation.= In the manufacture of gunpowder, is the thorough mixing of the three ingredients--nitre, sulphur, and charcoal,--a very important operation. The process should be so complete that the smallest particle of the gunpowder should contain each ingredient in proper proportion.

=Increasing Twist.= A term applied to rifle grooves, the inclination of which increases from the breech to the muzzle. In many guns the grooves begin at the front of the chamber, without inclination.

=Incursion.= Invasion without conquest; inroad; ravage.

=Indefensible.= Not defensible; not capable of being defended or maintained; as, a military post may be indefensible.

=Indefensive.= Having no defense.

=Indella.= A body of Swedish yeomen furnished by certain proprietors of lands, after the manner of the old Norman feudal system.

=Indemnification.= A regulated allowance for losses sustained by officers or soldiers on actual service.

=Indemnity.= Indemnification, compensation, or remuneration for loss, damage, or injury sustained.

=Indent, To.= A word particularly made use of in India for the dispatch of military business. It is of the same import and meaning as to draw upon. It likewise means an order for military stores, arms, etc.; as, an indent for new supplies, etc.

=Indented.= In heraldry, one of the partition lines of the shield, similarly notched to dancetté, but with notches much smaller, and not limited in number.

=Indented Line.= In fortification, is a serrated line, forming several angles, so that one side defends another. The faces are longer than the flanks. Indented lines are used on the banks of rivers, where they enter a town. The parapet of the covered way is also often indented.

=Independence, Declaration of.= The solemn declaration of the Congress of the United States of America, on July 4, 1776, by which they formally renounced their subjection to the government of Great Britain.

=Independent.= In a military sense, is a term which distinguishes from the rest of the army those companies which have been raised by individuals for rank, and were afterwards drafted into corps that were short of their complement of men. Independent company or troop, is one that is not incorporated into any regiment.

=India=, or =Hindostan=. An extensive region of Southern Asia, celebrated during many ages for its riches and natural productions. The Hindoo histories ascribe the origin of the people to a period ages before the ordinary chronologies. A race of kings is mentioned as reigning 2300 B.C. Several ancient nations, particularly the Tyrians and Egyptians, carried on commerce with India. It was partially conquered by Darius Hystaspes, who formed an Indian satrapy, 512 B.C., and by Alexander, 327 B.C. The authentic history of Hindostan commences with the conquests of Mahmoud Ghuzni, 1004. For further history of India, see BENGAL, CALCUTTA, MADRAS, etc.

=Indian File.= Single file; arrangement of persons in a row following one after another; the usual way among Indians of traversing woods, etc.

=Indian Fortification.= The entrance into an East Indian fortification is through a large and complicated pile of buildings, projecting in the form of a parallelogram from the main rampart; and, if the city has two walls, it projects beyond them both. This building consists of several continued terraces, which are of the same height as the main rampart, and communicate with it; the inward walls of these terraces form the sides of an intricate passage, about 20 feet broad, which leads by various short turnings, at right angles, through the whole pile to the principal gate that stands in the main rampart. This is the general outline of the old Indian fortifications.

=Indian Military Force.= The East Indian military service, like the civil service, has been undergoing a thorough reorganization, consequent on the great mutiny, and the transfer of the government of the country from the East India Company to the crown. In 1857, at the outbreak of the mutiny, the Indian army consisted of about 277,000 men, of whom 45,000 were Europeans and 232,000 natives. During the mutiny the native army of Bengal was almost entirely broken up. Fifteen regiments of regular native infantry, the local infantry, the Gurka and irregular line regiments, eight regiments of irregular cavalry, and the sappers and miners, were all that remained at the close of 1860 of the old native army of Bengal. The Indian army in 1867 numbered 183,148 men; 61,498 being Europeans, and 121,650 Indian forces. The police, civil and military, forms an important force, and is to a great extent taking the place of the regular army. In Bengal, for instance, the military police includes ten battalions of infantry each 700 strong; three squadrons of cavalry, and some local levies; in all about 10,000 men, of various races, with 40 European officers. The whole police force of India has been reorganized on one uniform system, with a central organization of its own in each presidency.

=Indian Territory.= A large extent of territory, which originally belonged to the Louisiana purchase, lying north by west of that State. It was set apart for the use of Indians, many tribes of whom have from time to time been removed to it, and have wonderfully improved in the arts of civilized life.

=Indiana.= One of the Western States, and a portion of the great Mississippi Valley country. It was settled in the early part of the 18th century by the French; was subsequently ceded to the English, and after the Revolution passed into the possession of the United States. The early settlers were for a long time troubled by the incursions of the Indians; but after their signal defeat by Gen. Harrison at Tippecanoe, November 7, 1811, they were soon afterwards subdued, and became peaceable. Indiana was admitted as a State in 1816, and during the civil war contributed its full quota of troops to the support of the Union.

=Indians.= The name by which the various tribes of aborigines scattered over the extensive continent of America are distinguished. They are divided into numerous tribes and nations, all in a state more or less savage, and having all the peculiar characteristics of that kind of life. They generally decline as the civilized population advances into the country; though reservations of land have always been set apart by the U. S. government for the support of tribes within its territory. (See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.) A short description of the most important tribes will be found under appropriate headings in this work.

=Indians and their Agencies.= The following are the distribution and population of the Indians in the United States, taken from the Report of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, 1876:

ARIZONA, Colorado River Agency: Mojaves, 820; Chemehuevis, 320; Hualapais (not on reservation), 620; Coahuilas (not on reservation), 150; Cocopas (not on reservation), 180. Moquis Pueblo Agency: Moquis Pueblos, 1700. Pima and Maricopa Agency: Papagos, about 5000; Pimas, 4100; Maricopas, 400. San Carlos Agency: Pinal and Aribaipa Apaches, 1051; Chiricahua Apaches, 297; Mojave Apaches, 618; Yuma Apaches, 352; Tonto Apaches, 629; Coyotero Apaches, 1612. Indians in Arizona not under an agent: Yumas, 930; Mojaves, 700.

CALIFORNIA, Hoopa Valley Agency: Hoopas, 511; Redwoods, 12; Siahs, 13; Klamaths, 44. Round Valley Agency (192 not on reservation): Potter Valley, 307; Ukie, 197; Pitt River, 60; Red Wood, 94; Wylackie, 172; Con Cowe, 148; Little Lake, 166. Tule River Agency: Tules, Tejons, Wachamnis, Kweahs, King’s River, and Manaches, 1200. Indians in California not under an agent: Mission, Coahuila, Temecula, and other Indians, 4375; Klamaths, 1125.

COLORADO, Los Pinos Agency: Tabequache-Muache, Capote, and Weminuche bands of Utes, 2000. White River Agency: Grand River, Yampa, Uintah, and Pah bands of Utes, 900.

DAKOTA, Cheyenne River Agency: Two Kettle Sioux, Sans-Arc Sioux, Minneconjou Sioux, Blackfeet Sioux, 2280. Crow Creek Agency: Lower Yanctonais Sioux, 1213. Devil’s Lake Agency: Sisseton Sioux, 391; Wahpeton Sioux, 477; Cut-Head Sioux, 203. Flandreau Agency: Flandreau Sioux, 361. Fort Berthold Agency: Arickarees, 692; Gros Ventres, 414; Mandans, 241; Gros Ventres (seceders), 100. Lower Brulé Agency: Lower Brulé Sioux, 1800. Ponca Agency: Poncas, 730. Red Cloud Agency: Ogallalla Sioux, Northern Cheyennes, Northern Arapahoes, 6000. Spotted Tail Agency: Upper Brulé and Ogallalla Sioux, Lower Brulé Sioux, Northern Brulé Sioux, and others, 2315. Sisseton Agency: Sisseton and Wahpeton Sioux, 1745. Standing Rock Agency: Upper Yanctonais Sioux, Lower Yanctonais Sioux, Uncpapa Sioux, Blackfeet Sioux, 2315. Yankton Agency: Yankton Sioux, 1992. Indians in Dakota not under an agent, or absent from agencies, 15,000.

IDAHO, Fort Hall Agency: Bannacks, 648; Shoshones, 964. Lemhi Agency: Sheepeaters, 300; Bannacks, 190; Shoshones, 450. Nez Percés Agency: Nez Percés, 2800. Indians in Idaho not under an agent: Cœur d’Alenes, Pend d’Oreilles, and Kootenays, 1000.

INDIAN TERRITORY, Cheyenne and Arapahoe Agency: Cheyennes, 2029; Arapahoes, 1703; Apaches, 48; Cheyennes absent from reservation, 180; held as prisoners by military, 32. Kiowa and Comanche Agency: Kiowas, 1090; Comanches, 1570; Apaches, 325. Osage Agency: Osage, 2679; Kaws, 443. Pawnee Agency: Pawnees, 2026. Quapaw Agency: Quapaws, 235; confederated Kaskaskias, Piankeshaws, Weas, Peorias, and Miamis, 202; Ottawas, 140; Eastern Shawnees, 97; Wyandottes, 258; Senecas, 240; Modocs, 117; Straggling Black Bob Shawnees and Pottawatomies, 100. Sac and Fox Agency: Sacs and Foxes of Mississippi, 417; absentee Shawnees, 647; Mexican Kickapoos, 312. Union Agency: Cherokees, 18,672; Creeks, 14,000; Choctaws, 16,000; Chickasaws, 5800; Seminoles, 2553. Wichita Agency: Caddos and Delawares, 580; Comanches, 168; Keechies and Wacos, 155; Tawacanies, 100; Wichitas, 217. Indians in Indian Territory not under an agent: Citizen Pottawatomies, 131.

IOWA, Sac and Fox Agency: Sacs and Foxes, 341.

KANSAS, Kansas Agency: Pottawatomies (prairie band), 497; Kickapoos, 252. Indians in Kansas without an agency: Chippewas, of Swan Creek, and Munsees, 61; Mokohoko band of Sacs and Foxes, 200.

MICHIGAN, Mackinac Agency: Chippewas of Lake Superior, 1200; Chippewas of Saginaw, Swan Creek, and Black River, 2000; Chippewas and Ottawas of Lake Michigan, 7000; Pottawatomies of Huron, 60.

MINNESOTA, Leech Lake Agency: Pillager and Lake Winnebagoshish Chippewas, 1610; Chippewas of Mississippi, 790. Red Lake Agency: Red Lake Chippewas, 1178. White Earth Agency: Mississippi Chippewas, 1768; Pembina Chippewas, 452; Otter-Tail Chippewas, 485.

MONTANA, Blackfeet Agency: Blackfeet, Bloods, and Piegans (no tribal distinctions), 7200. Crow Agency: Mountain Crows, 1500; River Crows, 1000. Flathead Agency: Flatheads, 381; Pend d’Oreilles, 858; Kootenays, 390. Fort Peck Agency: Assiniboines, 1998; Yanctonais, Uncpapa, Brulé, Teton Sioux, and Gros Ventres, 6500.

NEBRASKA, Great Nemaha Agency: Iowas, 224; Sacs and Foxes of Missouri, 100. Omaha Agency: Omahas, 1027. Otoe Agency: Otoes and Missouris, 454. Santee Agency: Santee Sioux, 793. Winnebago Agency: Winnebagoes, 1500.

NEW MEXICO, Abiquiu Agency: Utes, 900; Jicarilla Apaches, 326. Cimarron Agency: Jicarilla Apaches, 420; Muache Utes, 230. _Mescalero Agency_: Mescalero Apaches, 1400. Navajo Agency: Navajoes, 11,868. Pueblo Agency: Pueblos, 8400. Southern Apache Agency: Gila Apaches, Mogollen Apaches, Mimbre Apaches, Chiricahua Apaches, 1600.

NEW YORK, New York Agency: Senecas, 3017; Oneidas, 250; Onondagas, 453; Cayugas, 161; Tuscaroras, 412; St. Regis, 741.

NEVADA, Nevada Agency: Pah-Utes on Pah-Ute reservation, 400; Pah-Utes in Northern Arizona (not on reservation), 284; Pah-Utes in Utah (not on reservation), 528; Pah-Utes in Southern Nevada (not on reservation), 631; Pah-Utes in California (not on reservation), 184; Pah-Utes on Pyramid Lake reserve, 1500; Shoshones, 500; Pah-Utes on Walker River reserve, 500. Western Shoshone Agency: Goship Utes (not on reservation), 204; Western Shoshones (not on reservation), 1945; Indians in Nevada not under an agent: Pah-Utes (not on reservation), 1000.

NORTH CAROLINA, Eastern Cherokee Agency: Eastern Cherokees, 1600; other Eastern Cherokees scattered through Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee, 800.

OREGON, Grand Ronde Agency: Molels, Clackamas, Rogue River, and other bands, 755. Klamath Agency: Klamaths, 676; Modocs, 100; Pah-Ute Snakes, 100; Wollpahpe Snakes, 174. Malheur Agency: Pah-Utes, 462; Snakes, 300. Siletz Agency: Rogue River, Shasta Scoton, and thirteen other bands, 1100; Alseas, Sinselaws, Coosas, and Umpquas, 325. Umatilla Agency: Walla Walla, 128; Cayuse, 385; Umatilla, 169. Warm Springs Agency: Wascoes, 263; Teninoes, 50; Warm Springs, 187; Indians roaming on Columbia River, renegades and others, 2000.

UTAH, Uintah Valley Agency: Uintah Utes, 650; Indians in Utah not under an agent, Pah Vents, 134; Goship Utes, 256.

WASHINGTON TERRITORY, Colville Agency: Colvilles, 650; Spokanes, 685; Lakes, 242; Calispels, 395; Okinakanes, 330; San Poels and Nespeelums, 500; Methows, 315. Neah Bay Agency: Makahs, 538. Puyallup Agency: Muckleshoot, 130; Puyallups, 525; Nisquallies, 205; Squaxons, 50; Chehalis, 240; Shoal Water Bay, 60; Grape Harbor, 160; Cowlitz, 25. Quinaielt Agency: Quinaielts, 122; Queets, 114; Hohs, 80; Quillehutes, 260. S’Kokomish Agency: S’Klallams, 550; Towanas, 275. _Tulalip Agency_: Snohomish, 900; Lummi, 600; Etakmur, 550; Swinomish, 700; Muckleshoot, 500. Yakama Agency: Yakama, Palouse, Pisquose, Wenatshepum, Kliktat, Klinquit, Kowwassayee, Siaywas, Skinpah, Wisham, Shyiks, Ochechole, Kahmiltpah, and Seapcat, 4100.

WISCONSIN, Green Bay Agency: Menomonees, 1522; Oneidas, 1387; Stockbridges, 121. La Pointe Agency: Chippewas, Red Cliff Band, 726; Bad River, 732; Lac Court d’Oreille, 1048; Lac de Flambeau, 665; Fond du Lac, 404; Grand Portage, 262; Bois Fort, 714. Indians in Wisconsin not under an agent: Winnebagoes, 823; Pottawatomies (prairie band), 180.

WYOMING, Shoshone Agency: Shoshones (eastern band), 1800.

Indians in North Carolina, Indiana, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, and Texas: Miamis, Seminoles, Lipans, Tonkawas, 850. Number of Indians in the United States, exclusive of those in Alaska, 266,151; number of Indians who are mixed-bloods, 40,639; number of school-teachers for Indians, 437; amount of money expended for education during the year, $362,496.03; number of births and deaths about even.

ALASKA. The aboriginal inhabitants of Alaska are divided generally into two classes, the Ararian, or Coast tribes, and Indian, or Interior tribes; of the former the Innuit, or Esquimo races, inhabit coast of Arctic and North Pacific Ocean, and the Aleutians inhabited the chain of Aleutian Islands and the western ends of Aliaska peninsula.

Innuit, or Esquimo. Kopágmuts; numbered, in 1870, about 200; inhabit the shore of the Arctic Ocean between Mackenzie’s River and Manning’s Point; were formerly much more numerous and powerful, inhabiting valley of Mackenzie’s River for 300 miles until driven out by Indians.

Kanmalígmut. They number about 250; inhabit shore of Arctic Ocean from Manning’s Point to Cape Barrow; great traders.

Nuwikmut. Number about 600, and inhabit coast of Arctic Ocean from mouth of Colville River to Cape Liskurore; main villages at Cape Smith, Cape Barrow, Wainwright’s Island, and Icy Cape; make annual trading voyages in July and August.

Nunatogmuts. Number about 350; inhabit the north shore of Kotzebue Sound; treacherous and thieving; meet white traders annually at Point Hope, and carry on trade with natives up the inland rivers.

Konágmuts. Number about 100, and inhabit the eastern shore of Selanik River and southeast coast of Kotzebue Sound, carrying on trade with interior Indians.

Okeéogmuts. Number about 350, and inhabit the islands in Behring’s Sea and Straits north of N. lat. 63°; most agile and hardy of Northern Indians; are bold, obstinate, and courageous; carry on trade between Asia and America by means of skin canoes.

Kikhtogámuts. Number about 250, and inhabit St. Lawrence Island; the most immodest and filthy of Esquimos.

Kariágmuts. Number 500, and inhabit peninsula between Kotzebue and Norton Sounds, have large trade with whalers, and travel extensively; are addicted to theft, incest, and violence.

Mahlemut. Number 600; inhabit the neck of the Kariak peninsula.

Unáligmuts. Number 150, and inhabit southwestern shore of Norton Sound.

Ecógmuts. Number about 1000; inhabit the delta of the Yukon and 300 miles of its valley. Have heavy beard and hairy bodies, in strong contrast to other tribes.

Mágemuts. Number about 500; inhabiting Muriak Island and coast from 60° to 62° N. lat. Great hunters of mink, as their name indicates. They excel in ivory carving, but are poor, filthy, and immodest.

Kusknogmuts. Number 2500; inhabit shore of Kuskoquine Bay and valley of Kuskoquine River for 150 miles; do not intermarry with other tribes.

Nushagágmuts. Number about 400, and inhabit shore of Bristol Bay and valleys of lakes between it and coast mountains.

Ogulmuts. Number about 500, and inhabit north shore of Aliaska peninsula and basin of Lliamna Lake.

Karrigmuts. Number 3000, and inhabit south shore of Aliaska peninsula and shore of Cook’s Inlet to Lliamna Peak, and also Kodiack Island; were formerly much more numerous, and occupied all the shore of Cook’s Inlet until the interior Indians drove them off and established themselves on that coast; they are frequently confounded with the Aleuts; have been much altered by over 90 years’ intercourse with Russians; are virtually Greek Christians.

Chugachígmuts. Number about 600, and inhabit southern and eastern coast of Kenai peninsula.

Ugálákmuts. Number about 400, and inhabit coast from Icy Bay to Prince William’s Sound, except at the mouth of the Atna, on Copper River, where the interior Indians hold the coast. This tribe is at present the southern and eastern limit of the Innuit, or Esquimo races, although at one time they undoubtedly extended to the mouth of the Stickeen River.

Aleuts. On the advent of the Russians, about 150 years ago, the twenty Aleut races numbered about 10,000 people; they had marked peculiarities and well-defined tribal divisions. The cruelty, oppression, and persecution of the Russians rapidly decreased their numbers; their natural and tribal distinctions were lost and forgotten; they were entirely cowed and subdued; they embraced Greek Christianity, and were transported by their conquerors all along the coast.

Khagántagákuhn. Number 350, and inhabit western end of Aliaska peninsula and Shumagin Islands.

Unaláshkuhns. Number 750; inhabit Unalask, Unmak, and Priboloff Islands.

Atkanhun. Number 470, and inhabit the Western Islands.

Tinneh. Interior Indian tribes belonging to the same family; occupy either flank of the Rocky Mountains, from the mouth of Mackenzie’s River southward as far as Mexico. In Alaska they extend westward to near the delta Yukon, but absolutely reach the sea-coast only at two places, the mouth of the Atna River and the shore at Cook’s Inlet.

Koyukukhotana. Number about 600, and inhabit the mountain north of the Yukon and east of Norton Sound. A fierce and warlike tribe, constantly at war with the Kaiguhkotima; live in permanent villages, and travel by dog-sledges. They subsist by hunting deer and mountain-sheep.

Kaiguhkotima. Number about 2300; have many settlements between lat. 60° and 65° N. and long. 150° and 160° W., on the lower Yukon and Kuskoquin Rivers. They live by fishing and trading dried fish with the tribes of the upper rivers for moose and deer meat, wooden-ware, and beech-bark canoes, which the latter are very skillful in making; they travel by dog-sledges.

Unakhotana. Number about 500, and live in the valley of the Yukon from long. 152° to 156° W.; do not build permanent villages, keep only hunting-dogs, practice polygamy, take and discard wives at pleasure.

Ahtona. Number about 1500, and inhabit the basin of the Atna, or Copper River. This is one of the two tribes that have forced their way through the Ararians and conduct their annual trading independent of the middlemen of the coast.

Tchaninkutchin. Number about 1000, and inhabit north shore of Kenai peninsula and basin of Suchinto River. This is the second instance of interior Indians proper who have forced their way through the Ararians. Less is known of them than any other coast tribes; they are intelligent and warlike, and subsist on mountain-sheep, with the skins of which they clothe themselves.

Nehannees. A name given to a number of tribes who inhabit the head-waters of the Yukon, Mackenzie, and Stickeen Rivers. By the late George Gibbs, they are of a low grade and little is known of their peculiarities or numbers. They consist of the Abbatotena, who inhabit the basin of the Pelly and MacMillan Rivers, and are called by the Hudson Bay people “Gens du Bois.” The Mauvais Mondi, inhabiting basin of Francis Lake. Architotena, called Sicannees by the Hudson Bay people, inhabit the head-waters of the Deas and Laird’s Rivers. The Dahotena, inhabiting the head-waters of the Stickeen, and the Iahko-tena, in the basin of the Lewis River.

Chilkahtena. Inhabit head-waters of rivers that rise near the head-waters of the Chilkuht that flow north into the Yukon. They are bold and warlike; number about 500; are middlemen traders between the Chilkhut Ihlinkets, who do not allow them to descend the Chilkhut, and interior tribes.

Jnahnkutchin. Number about 800, and live in basin of Jenanah River, the principal tributary of the Yukon, are nomadic, live on deer, and trap fox and sable for trade; are regarded by their neighbors, whom they visit annually for trading purposes, with fear and terror.

Kutchkutchin. Number about 400, and inhabit about 350 miles of the Yukon valley.

Natsitkutchin. The “Gens de Rats” of the Hudson Bay people; occupy the north side of the Porcupine; number not known.

Inkuthkutchin. 250 in number; inhabit south bank of Porcupine.

Hankutchin. Number not known; occupy 300 miles of Yukon valley that is densely wooded.

Intchuon Kutchin. Very numerous, “the Gens de Foix” of the Hudson Bay people; occupy the basin of the White, the Lewis, and the Stewart River; they are of nomadic habits, amiable and remarkably honest. They trade with the Atna River Indians.

Ihlinkets. A stock of Indians inhabiting the islands of the Alexander Archipelago from lat. 60° N. to the head or north end of Vancouver Island. They are essentially maritime and commercial; they travel entirely by canoes, in which they make voyages hundreds of miles in length. They live in fixed villages, always built upon the shores of bays or rivers in the most substantial manner of heavy timber, often showing great mechanical skill, and frequently arranged with regard for capacity for defense. They own slaves, cremate their dead, and are industrious and frugal as well as cruel, warlike, and aggressive in their nature.

Yakutats. Numbering about 350; inhabit the coast from Mount St. Elias to Mount Crilton, their principal village being at Port Mulgrove, Behring’s Bay. They cure salmon to live upon, hunt the seal and sea-otter for trade. They eat the blubber and flesh of the whale, and often voyage as far south as Fort Simpson, in lat. 54° N.

Chilkahtknan. Number about 1500 in the village of Chilkaht and Iselkort Rivers and head of Lyn Channel; they are fierce and warlike, often at war with the southern Indians; make annual trading voyages, carrying peltries obtained from interior Indians as far south as Victoria, Vancouver Island, receiving in exchange blankets, powder, ball, hardware, and molasses and sugar.

Sitkakneen. Number about 1200 or 1500, and inhabit the shore of Cross Sound, Checkayoff, Kruyoff, and Buranoff Islands. Their principal village is Sitka, Buranoff Island. They are called Kolases by Russians, whom it took many years to subdue to a sufficient extent to make a foothold in their country. They frequently fought the intruders, and as late as 1855 perpetrated a bloody massacre, killing a whole congregation who were worshiping in a church. Before the advent of the Russians they were often at war with their neighbors, and before being subject to an epidemic of smallpox and a massacre by the Stickeens were much more numerous. The Russians employ large numbers of them at ship-building. They are industrious and have much mechanical skill in working both wood and metals. Large numbers of them have been baptized into the Greek Church, but Christianity never made much impression upon them.

Kootznonknan. Numbering about 300; inhabit Admiralty Island, their principal village being at Hood’s Bay. They resemble the Sitkas, with whom they intermarry. They were the first to distill a kind of liquor from molasses or sugar and potatoes or beans, which is now a universal custom in Alaska, and is demoralizing the native population to a great extent.

Jahkuknan. Numbering about 250 in the basin of the Jashku River and shore of Stephen’s Pass; resemble the Sitkas.

Kakenan. Number about 200; inhabit Kow and several other islands in Stephen’s Pass; warlike and treacherous. They are the only Alaska Indians with whom the United States has had hostilities. Gen. J. C. Davis destroyed their principal village in 1858, since which time they have declined in power and importance.

Tongasknan. 200 in number; inhabit Tongas Island.

Stakhinknan. Number 1000; inhabit the mouth of Stahkin River and neighboring islands; principal village at Wrangle Island; resemble the Sitkas closely; warlike and treacherous; skillful workers in metals and wood.

Kygahn. Called Haidas by Hudson Bay people; numbering in Alaska about 500 and in Prince of Wales Archipelago; are of fine stature, and fierce and warlike as well as treacherous; ingenious carvers in metal and wood; they formerly carried on a trade in slaves with more northern Indians, making for the purpose of capturing them predatory incursions as far south as Vancouver Island and Puget Sound. They also manufacture and supply yellow-cedar canoes of immense size to northern Indians.

=Indications, Military.= See MILITARY INDICATIONS.

=Indicator.= An invention of Gen. Wingate, of the New York Militia, for instructing men in aiming the musket. A steel rod passing through a brass tompon in the muzzle is projected forwards by the firing-pin. The rod carries a sharp point in the line of the sights, which punctures a miniature target a foot or so in front of the muzzle.

=Indisciplinable.= Not disciplinable; incapable of being disciplined, or subjected to discipline; undisciplinable.

=Indiscipline.= Want of discipline or instruction.

=Indore.= The capital of the principality of the same name in India, on the left bank of the Kuthi. This place, mean and insignificant enough in itself, acquired considerable notoriety in connection with the grand revolt of 1857. Though Holkar, the rajah, remained faithful to the British government, yet his troops mutinied on July 1, holding their prince as a prisoner in his palace, and butchering many Europeans, men, women, and children, in cold blood.

=Inefficient.= Incapable of, or indisposed to, effective action; effecting nothing; as, an inefficient force.

=Inergetic.= Having no energy; as, an inergetic officer.

=Inescutcheon.= In heraldry, a small escutcheon borne within a shield.

=Inexperienced.= Not having experience; unskilled; as, an inexperienced general.

=Inexpugnable.= Incapable of being subdued by force; impregnable.

=Infamous Behavior.= In the British service a term peculiarly applicable to military life when it is affected by dishonorable conduct; on conviction of which, an officer is ordered to be cashiered. Infamy may be attached to an officer or soldier in a variety of ways; and some countries are more tenacious than others on this head. Among European nations it has always been deemed infamous and disgraceful to abandon the field of action or to desert the colors. In Germany a mark of infamy was attached to the character of every man who was found guilty of misbehavior before the enemy. Among the Romans it was considered as infamous and disgraceful to be taken prisoner, and a Roman soldier was impressed with the idea that he must either conquer or die on the field. There are various occasions in which the conduct of an officer may render him unworthy of the situation he fills, such as cheating at play, taking unfair advantages of youth, imposing upon the credulity or confidence of a tradesman, habitual drunkenness, flagrant breaches of hospitality, etc.

=Infantry= (Lat. infans, “child,” or “servant,” applied to servants who went on foot, and infanterie, to foot-soldiers generally). Is that portion of a military establishment using small-arms and equipped for marching and fighting on foot, in contradistinction to artillery and cavalry. It is the oldest of the “three arms” into which armies are conventionally divided; was the favorite of the Greeks, the Gauls, the Germans, and the Franks, and was that mainly with which Rome conquered the world. Under Grecian and Roman civilization it attained pre-eminence as the arm of battle, but fell into contempt and comparative desuetude early in the Middle Ages, and did not emerge from that obscurity till the decline of the feudal system. It was first revived by the Swiss, who, armed with the pike, withstood the most famous chivalry of Europe. Afterwards the Spanish infantry, armed with the musket, and led by Alva and the Duke of Parma, Cortez and Pizarro, became the terror of two continents. The other states of Europe were not slow in learning the lesson. Infantry steadily increased in power and importance from the first years of the 14th century, and is now recognized as constituting the principal strength of military organizations. This importance results from the fact that it can be used everywhere, “in mountains or on plains, in woody or open countries, in cities or in fields, on rivers or at sea, in the redoubt or in the attack on the breach.” It is the self-sustaining arm in the field of battle, and is, moreover, less expensive, man for man, than its auxiliaries.

=Infantry Exercise.= The use of the rifle, and manœuvres for regiments of infantry, according to the regulations issued by the War Department.

=Infantry, Heavy-armed.= Among the ancients were such as wore a complete suit of armor, and engaged with broad shields and long spears. They were the flower and strength of the Grecian armies, and had the highest rank of military honor.

=Infantry, Light.= Came into use after the year 1656. They had no camp equipage to carry, and their arms and accoutrements were much lighter than the common infantry, or battalion men; they were used as skirmishers, etc.

=Infantry, Light-armed.= Among the ancients, were designed for skirmishes, and for fighting at a distance. Their weapons were arrows, darts, or slings.

=Infantry Tactics.= See TACTICS.

=Inferior.= In a military sense means simply junior in rank, having a lower rank.

=Infest.= To trouble greatly; to disturb; to annoy; to harass; as, the sea is infested with pirates; parties of the enemy infest the coast.

=Infile.= To arrange in a file or rank; to place in order. This term is obsolete.

=Inflammation.= When grains of powder are united to form a charge, and fire is communicated to one of them, the heated and expansive gases evolved insinuate themselves into the interstices of the charge, envelop the grains, and ignite them, one after the other. This propagation of ignition is called inflammation, and its velocity the velocity of inflammation. It is much greater than that of combustion, and it should not be confounded with it. The velocity of inflammation of powder compressed by pounding is about .64 inch, while that of mealed powder in the same condition is only .45 inch. Inflammation, in the study of gunpowder, is the spread of the flame from one grain to another--as opposed to ignition; the setting on fire of a certain point of the charge.

=Informant.= In case a civil person is the complainant, he becomes the principal witness before a court-martial, and after giving his evidence may remain in court, in order that the judge-advocate may refer to him.

=Informers.= In the British service, were soldiers who gave information of false musters, or of pay illegally detained; and were, for said services, entitled to their discharge.

=Ingauni.= A Ligurian tribe who formerly inhabited the sea-coast and adjoining mountains at the foot of the Maritime Alps, on the west side of the Gulf of Genoa. They are mentioned as being engaged in hostilities with a neighboring tribe, the Epanterii, on the occasion of the landing of Mago, the brother of Hannibal, B.C. 205. They were several times engaged in wars with the Romans, but were finally defeated by the pro-consul, Æmilius Paullus, in a decisive engagement (losing 15,000 killed and 2500 prisoners), which resulted in their ultimate submission to the Roman sway.

=Inglorious.= Shameful; disgraceful; ignominious; as, he charged his troops with inglorious flight.

=Inimical.= Hostile.

=Initial Velocity.= In England the term muzzle velocity is frequently used. In gunnery, the initial velocity of a projectile is the velocity at the muzzle of the piece, and is determined by the use of the ballistic pendulum, the gun pendulum, the electro-ballistic machines, the Schultz chronoscope, or the Le Boulengé chronograph; the two last being now generally used in the U. S. service. The various plans in use differ only in the manner of recording and keeping the time of flight. The initial velocity of a shot may be ascertained by firing the gun, the axis being horizontal, at a target and measuring the distance of the point struck below the point where the axis of the gun produced would pierce the target. This is the vertical distance fallen through by the ball in the time of passage from the muzzle to the target, and the time in which it falls through this distance is given by the formula

(2_s_) t = √(----) ( g)

in which t represents the time, s the vertical space fallen through, and g the force of gravity. The distance to the target divided by this time gives the initial velocity approximately. Practically, this method is only applicable to large breech-loading cannon, which have neither windage nor vibration in the barrel to affect the angle of departure of the projectile. Smooth-bores or muzzle-loading rifles are subject to the first cause of error; the first-named guns in a great degree, and small-arms to vibrations not yet fully investigated, which cause a sensible difference between the axis of the piece as pointed and the line of fire. The causes that affect initial velocity are the weight of the charge, the size and position of the vent, the windage, the length of the bore, the form of the chamber, the diameter and density of the projectile, the windage of the cartridge; the form, size, density, and dryness of the grains of powder; and the barometric, thermometric, and hygrometric states of the atmosphere. See VELOCITY.

=Injuries to Cannon.= Brass cannon are little subject to external injury caused by service, except from the bending of the trunnions sometimes, after long service or heavy charges. Internal injuries are caused by the action of the elastic fluids developed in the combustion of the powder, or by the action of the shot in passing out of the bore. These effects generally increase with the caliber of the piece. The principal injury of the first kind is the cutting away of the metal of the upper surface of the bore over the seat of the shot. The injuries of the second kind are, the lodgment of the shot,--a compression of the metal on the lower side of the bore, at the seat of the shot, which is caused by the pressure of the gas in escaping over the top of the shot. There is a corresponding burr in front of the lodgment, and the motion therefore given to the shot causes it to strike alternately on the top and bottom of the bore, producing other enlargements, generally three in number, the first on the upper side a little in advance of the trunnions, the second on the lower side about the astragal, the third in the upper part of the muzzle. It is chiefly from this cause that brass guns become unserviceable. Scratches, caused by the fragments of a broken shot, or the roughness of an imperfect one. A piece is said to be honeycombed when the surface of the bore is full of small holes and cavities. This is due to the melting and volatilization of a portion of tin in the alloy, tin being much more fusible than copper. Iron cannon are subject to the above defects in a less degree than brass, except the corrosion of the metal, by which the vent is rendered unserviceable from enlargement. The one cause of injury to iron cannon is the rusting of the metal, producing a roughness and enlargement of the bore and an increase of any cavities or honeycombs which may exist in the metal.

Iron cannon, however, are subject to a peculiar erosion by the gases, which Prof. Horsford explains by supposing that under the enormous tension and heat the sulphur in the gases unites with the iron, producing a friable sulphide of iron, which is successively formed and swept off by the gases. Wrought-iron guns are peculiarly subject to this erosion, cast-iron and steel less so. The amount of erosion is dependent upon the velocity with which the gases pass over the surface of the bore. In rifled wrought-iron guns having windage this action is fully illustrated, and the gun is soon disabled. The strong preference in many countries for steel as a bore lining is thus explained. By the use of expanding projectiles this action is largely prevented, the sabot acting as a gas-check. This system of projectiles is rapidly gaining favor for this and other reasons.

=Inkerman.= A small Tartar village in the Crimea, situated near the eastern extremity of the harbor of Sebastopol. It was once a celebrated city, and has numerous caverns cut in the rock, supposed to be the work of the monks in the Middle Ages. Near this place, November 5, 1854, was fought a battle between the allied English and French forces on the one side, and the Russians on the other, the former amounting to 25,000 or 30,000, the latter about 60,000. The Russians began the attack at dawn of day upon the intrenched lines of the English; but after a fierce and sanguinary contest of many hours, inflicting great loss on both sides, the Russians were finally driven from the field.

=Inlist.= See ENLISTMENT.

=Inlying Picket.= A body of infantry or cavalry in campaign, detailed to march, if called upon, and held ready for that purpose in camp or quarters.

=Inner.= One of the circular rings on the Creedmoor target; a shot striking in this space counts three.

=Inniskilliners=, or =Enniskilliners=. In the British service, the officers and soldiers of the 6th Dragoons and the 27th Foot are so called, from the two regiments having been originally raised at Enniskillen (or Inniskillen), a town of Ulster, where the inhabitants distinguished themselves in favor of King William against James II.

=Innuit.= A name given by some ethnologists to the Indian races inhabiting the northwestern coast of North America. They differ in many respects from the Indians of the interior and farther south. The Aleuts and Esquimos are not included in the term.

=Inofficial.= Not official; not proceeding from the proper officer; not clothed with the usual forms of authority, or not done in an official character; not required by or appropriate to the duties of any office; as, inofficial intelligence.

=Inquiry, Board of.= A term used in contradistinction to a court-martial, to signify the meeting of a certain number of officers (who are not sworn) for the purpose of ascertaining facts that may afterwards become a matter of investigation on oath. There are also courts of inquiry; such courts in the armies of Europe, it would seem, derived their origin from the prerogative of the sovereign, and became part of the military judicature by custom and not by express law. From this fact it has been considered that the exercise of this authority, instead of being regarded as an assumption of power, is a favor to the accused, and it is thus stated by Capt. Simmons in his work on courts-martial. For the army of the United States, courts of inquiry have been specially authorized by legal enactment. (See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 115 to 121.) The origin and purposes of such courts would naturally lead to the conclusion that they are of the essence of high command; and therefore the right to convoke them, under all the legal restrictions, is properly confined to the President of the United States, a general commanding an army, or a colonel commanding a department; and in the cases of enlisted men, the commanding officer of the regiment. See COURT OF INQUIRY.

=Inroad.= The entrance of an enemy into a country with purposes of hostility; a sudden or desultory incursion or invasion; attack; encroachment.

=Inroll.= See ENROLL.

=Insconced.= In the military art, when any part of an army has fortified itself with a sconce, or small work, in order to defend some pass, etc., it is said to be insconced. See ENSCONCE.

=Inscribe.= To mark with letters, characters, or words, as, to inscribe the name of the battle on their colors.

=Insecure.= Not effectually guarded or protected; unsafe; exposed to danger or loss.

=Inspect.= To view and examine officially; as, troops, arms, etc.

=Inspection.= A strict examination; a close survey. It is of various kinds, and embraces general, regimental, and troop or company duties. A general inspection is made from time to time by inspectors-general designated by the commanding generals of military divisions or departments. Every regiment on this occasion is minutely looked into, and a faithful account is delivered by each commanding officer of the actual state of his regiment. The interior economy of the corps is not only investigated, but the discipline of the men is likewise examined.

=Inspection of Cannon, Instruments for.= These are used to verify the dimensions of cannon, and to detect the presence and measure the size of cavities in the metal. The star-gauge is an instrument for measuring the diameter of the bore at any point. The cylinder-staff is used to measure the length of the bore. It is supported by a rest of a T-form at the muzzle, and the extremity inserted in the gun is armed with a measuring-point and a guide-plate. The cylinder-gauge is a cylinder of cast iron, turned to the exact or true diameter of the bore. When used it is attached to the end of the cylinder-staff. The searcher consists of four flat springs turned up at the end, and attached to a socket which is screwed on to the end of the cylinder-staff. It is used to feel for cavities in the surface of the bore. The trunnion-gauge verifies the diameters of the trunnions and rimbases. The trunnion-square is used to verify the position of the trunnions with regard to the bore. The trunnion-rule measures the distance of the trunnions from the rear of the base-ring. Calipers, for measuring exterior diameters. A standard-rule, for verifying other instruments. The vent-gauges are two pointed pieces of steel wire, 0.005 inch greater and less than the true diameter of the vent, to verify its size. The vent-searcher is a hooked wire, used to detect cavities in the vent. A rammer-head, shaped to the form of the bottom of the bore, and furnished with a staff, is used to ascertain the interior position of the vent. A wooden rule, to measure exterior lengths. A mirror, a wax taper, beeswax; rammer, sponge, and priming-wire. Figure and letter-stamps, to affix the required marks. The objects of inspecting cannon are to verify their dimensions, particularly those which affect the accuracy of the fire, and the relation of the piece to its carriage, and to detect any defects of metal and workmanship that would be likely to impair their strength and endurance.

=Inspection of Projectiles.= The principal points to be observed in inspecting shot and shells are, to see that they are of proper size in all their parts; that they are made of suitable metal; and that they have no defects, concealed or otherwise, which will endanger their use or impair the accuracy of their fire.

Inspection of Shot.--The instruments are one large and one small gauge, and one cylinder-gauge; the cylinder-gauge has the same diameter as the large gauge; it is made of cast iron, and is 5 calibers long. There are also, one hammer with a conical point, six steel punches, and one searcher made of wire. The shot should be inspected before they become rusty; after being well cleaned each shot is placed on a table and examined by the eye, to see that its surface is smooth and that the metal is sound and free from seams, flaws, and blisters. If cavities or small holes appear on the surface, strike the point of the hammer or punch into them, and ascertain their depth with the searcher; if the depth of the cavity exceeds 0.2 inch, the shot is rejected; and also if it appears that an attempt has been made to conceal such defects by filling them up with nails, cement, etc. The shot must pass in every direction through the large gauge, and not at all through the small one; the founder should endeavor to bring the shot up as near as possible to the large gauge, or to the true diameter. After having been thus examined the shot are passed through the cylinder-gauge, which is placed in an inclined position, and turned from time to time to prevent its being worn into furrows; shot which slide or stick in the cylinder are rejected. Shot are proved by dropping them from a height of 20 feet on a block of iron, or rolling them down an inclined plane of that height against another shot at the bottom of the plane. The average weight of the shot is deduced from that of three parcels of 20 to 50 each, taken indiscriminately from the pile; some of those which appear to be the smallest should also be weighed, and they are rejected if they fall short of the weight expressed by their caliber more than one-thirty-second part. They almost invariably exceed that weight.

Inspection of Grape- and Canister-shot.--The dimensions are verified by means of a large and small gauge attached to the same handle. The surface of the shot should be smooth and free from seams.

Inspection of Hollow Projectiles.--The inspecting instruments are a large and small gauge for each caliber, and a cylinder-gauge for shells of 8 inches and under. Calipers for measuring the thickness of shells at the sides. Calipers to measure the thickness at the bottom. Gauges to verify the dimensions of the fuze-hole and the thickness of the metal at the fuze-hole. A pair of hand-bellows; a wooden plug to fit the fuze-hole, and bored through to fit the nozzle of the bellows. A hammer, a searcher, a cold chisel, steel punches.

Inspection.--The surface of the shell and its exterior dimensions are examined as in the case of shot. The shell is next struck with the hammer, to judge by the sound whether it is free from cracks; the position and dimensions of the ears are verified; the thickness of the metal is then measured at several points on the great circle perpendicular to the axis of the fuze-hole. The diameter of the fuze-hole, which should be accurately reamed, is then verified, and the soundness of the metal about the inside of the hole is ascertained by inserting the finger. The shell is now placed on a trivet, in a tub containing water deep enough to cover it nearly to the fuze-hole; the bellows and plug are inserted into the fuze-hole, and the air forced into the shell; if there be any holes in the shell, the air will rise in bubbles through the water. This test gives another indication of the soundness of the metal, as the parts containing cavities will dry more slowly than other parts. The mean weight of shells is ascertained in the same manner as that of shot. Shot and shells rejected in the inspection are marked with an X made with a cold chisel,--on shot near the gate, and on shells near the fuze-hole.

=Inspector-General.= A staff-officer of an army, whose duties are those of inspection, and embrace everything relative to organization, recruiting, discharge, administration, accountability for money and property, instruction, police, and discipline. In the French army, a certain number of general officers are annually designated to make inspections.

=Inspector-General of the Cavalry.= In the British service, a general officer whose particular duty is to inspect all cavalry regiments, to report the state of the horses, and to receive specific accounts from the different corps of their actual state. He communicates directly and confidentially with the commander-in-chief. Inspector-general of the recruiting service is an officer of rank, through whom the field-officers of districts, and colonels of regiments (when they personally manage the recruiting service of their own corps), transmit their several returns to the adjutant-general’s office.

=Inspector-General’s Department.= In the United States, the law provides for one inspector-general, with the rank of brigadier-general; two inspectors-general, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel; and two with the rank of major. Also, that the Secretary of War may, in addition, detail officers of the line, not to exceed four, to act as inspectors-general.

=Installation.= The act of investing any one with a military order.

=Instruction.= The education or training of soldiers in military duties. In the U. S. service the colonel has general charge of the instruction of his regiment.

=Instructions.= Military directions or orders.

=Instruments, Military Musical.= The instruments which are peculiar to the cavalry of most nations are the trumpet and bugle. In France, dragoon regiments in general formerly adopted the drum in common with the infantry; they now use the trumpet for garrison, and the bugle for field service. A certain number of fifers are likewise allowed in foot regiments. In the U. S. army, the drum, fife, and bugle are used by foot, and the trumpet by mounted troops. There is allowed a band of musicians to each regiment, which usually serve at regimental headquarters, and is partly maintained by the regimental fund. (See FUND.) There is also a band employed at the West Point Military Academy, which is maintained by the government. In the U. S. navy there is a band allowed to each commander-in-chief of a fleet, which is also maintained by the general government.

=Instruments, Warlike Musical.= The Turks made use of wind and clashing instruments of different shapes and sizes; all, except one wind instrument, are better calculated for pomp and ceremony, than adapted to military service. The clashing instruments, which the French call instrumens à choc, consist of two sorts of drums, and an instrument which is made of two plates of metal. Their wind instruments consist of a winding or crooked trumpet, and of a wooden fife. The big drum which they call daul, stands 3 feet high. It is carried by a mounted drummer, who makes use of a thick stick, with which he strikes the upper part, and a small one, with which he plays upon the lower part; these he applies alternately, with much dexterity of hand and great gravity of countenance. This is the only instrument which the Turks use in military exercises or manœuvres, and is constantly beaten when the enemy is near, and round all the outposts, in order to keep the sentinels on the alert. On these occasions the drummer exclaims with a loud voice, Jagda Allah! that is, “God is good!”

=Insubjection.= Want of subjection; state of disobedience to government.

=Insubmission.= Want of submission; disobedience.

=Insubordinate.= Not submissive; not submitting to authority.

=Insubordination.= The quality of being insubordinate; want of subordination; disorder; disobedience to lawful authority; a serious military offense.

=Insubres.= A Gallic people, who crossed the Alps, and settled in Gallia Transpadana, in the north of Italy. Next to the Boii, they were the most powerful and warlike of the Gallic tribes in Cisalpine Gaul. They were conquered by the Romans shortly before the commencement of the second Punic war.

=Insufficiency.= The quality of being insufficient; want of sufficiency; deficiency; inadequateness; as, the insufficiency of provisions for a garrison.

=Insult, To.= In a military sense, is to attack boldly and in open day, without going through the slow operations of trenches, working by mines and saps, or having recourse to those usual forms of war, by advancing gradually towards the object in view. An enemy is said to insult a coast when he suddenly appears upon it, and debarks troops with an immediate purpose to attack.

=Insurgents.= Soldiers or people generally in a state of insurrection. The term, however, admits of one exception. Hungarian insurgents (Insurgenten die Ungarischen) mean the Hungarian militia, called out or summoned by general proclamation, as under the old feudal system.

=Insurrection.= A rising against civil or political authority; the open and active opposition of a number of persons to the execution of law in a city or state; a rebellion; a revolt.

=Intenable.= Incapable of being held; untenable; not defensible; as, an intenable fortress.

=Intendant=, or =Intendant Militaire=. An officer in the French army charged with the organization and direction of all the civil services attending a force in the field. The officers acting under his orders are those in charge of all the finance services, the provisions, stores, hospitals, artillery train, and transport departments, besides the interpreters, guides, and such like temporary services. The intendant-en-chef of an army is the representative of the minister of war; and, short of superseding the general’s orders, can exercise, in case of need, all the functions of that high officer of state. The intendance is divided into intendants, ranking with general officers, sub-intendants with colonels, and assistant-intendants with majors; besides these there are cadets, who receive no pay, and constitute a probationary grade.

=Intercept.= To interrupt communication with, or progress towards; to cut off; as, to intercept the march of an army.

=Intercombat.= A combat between.

=Interior.= A word of varied application; as, the interior flanking angle is formed by the curtain and line of defense. Interior radius is that part of an oblique radius extending from the centre of the polygon to the centre of the bastion. Interior side is the line of the curtain produced to the two oblique radii of the front, or a line drawn from the centre of one bastion to that of the next.

=Interior Form of Cannon.= The interior of cannon may be divided into three distinct parts: 1st, the vent, or channel which communicates fire to the charge; 2d, the seat of the charge, or chamber, if its diameter be different from the rest of the bore; 3d, the cylinder, or that portion of the bore passed over by the projectile. See also GROOVES FOR RIFLE CANNON.

=Interior Guards.= Are police guards, guards of property, etc., who are liable to come in contact with the enemy.

=Interior Slope.= Is the inclination towards the inner part of a work which is given to the earth forming the rampart or parapet. Interior crest is the crest of the interior slope.

=Interval.= In military dispositions and manœuvres, any given distance or space. In tactics the term is used to signify taken parallel to the front, as opposed to distance or space perpendicularly to the front. Interval between two battalions is the space which separates them when they are drawn up for action or when they are encamped. This space is generally wide enough to admit the march of another regiment; that is to say, it is equal to the extent of its front when in line. Interval between the line and the camp comprehends the space which lies between the camp and the line of intrenchments. It is generally from 180 to 200 toises in breadth; so that the different sections of troops which are necessary for the security of the camp, may have room to move in, while sufficient ground is left in rear for troops to pass and repass as occasion may require. The same observation holds good with respect to contrevallation.

=Intrench.= Is to make secure against the attack of an enemy by digging a ditch or trench, etc. To intrench upon, to invade, to make encroachments upon the property or territories of another.

=Intrenched Camp.= A large space capable of containing an entire army, surrounded by works of fortification. Frequently an intrenched camp joins a fortress, in which case it is protected by permanent works of considerable strength--detached forts, for instance.

=Intrenching Tool.= An implement used for intrenching. In view of the deadly fire of modern small-arms it is a matter of great importance that the soldier should be able to get cover. For this reason it has been proposed to make an intrenching tool a part of the soldier’s equipment. In the United States army a combination bayonet and intrenching tool is used. See TROWEL BAYONET.

=Intrenchment.= Is generally a ditch or trench with a parapet. The earth removed to form the ditch is used to construct the parapet. Fascines, with earth thrown over them, gabions, hogsheads, or bags filled with earth, are often employed to revet or strengthen the work when the earth is loose or sandy. Intrenchments of armies are the whole works or obstacles by which an army or large body of troops cover themselves for their defense.

=Intrepidity.= An unqualified contempt of death; an indifference to fortune as far as it regards personal safety; a fearlessness of heart, and a daring enterprise of mind.

=Inundation.= The act of letting water into a country so that it shall be overflowed, to prevent the approach of an enemy. It is among the most considerable of the various methods which have been devised for impeding the approach to a field-work, or indeed, any fortification.

=Invade, To.= To make a forcible or clandestine entry into the territory of another state; to pass the regular line of frontier of any country, in order to take possession of the interior.

=Invalid.= A soldier who has been wounded, or has suffered in his health, and in consequence of his good conduct has been recommended to a certain provision for life. Chelsea Hospital is the place allotted for the reception of such objects of public gratitude and benevolence in England; the Soldiers’ Home, in Washington, D. C., in the United States, and the Hôtel des Invalides, at Paris, France. In England numbers of invalids are, however, allowed to reside where they choose, and are then known as “out-pensioners.”

=Invalides.= Wounded veterans of the French army, maintained at the expense of the State. See HÔTEL DES INVALIDES.

=Invaliding.= Signifies the return home, or to a more healthy climate, of soldiers or sailors whom wounds or the severity of foreign service has rendered incapable of active duty. The man invalided returns to his duty as soon as his restored health justifies the step.

=Invasion.= In war, is the entrance or attack of an enemy on the dominions of another.

=Inventory of Effects of Deceased Officers and Soldiers.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 125, 126.

=Inverness.= A royal burgh of Scotland, capital of a county of the same name, situated on both sides of the river Ness. It was a city of the Picts up to 843; taken by Edward I.; retaken by Bruce, 1313; burnt by the Lord of the Isles, 1411; taken by Cromwell, 1649; and by Prince Charles Edward in 1746. The latter was defeated at Culloden, about 5 miles from Inverness, April 16, 1746.

=Inversion.= A movement in tactics by which the order of companies in line is inverted, the right being on the left, the left on the right, and so on.

=Invest.= To invest a place is to seize upon all the avenues leading to a town or fortress. On the occasion of an investment, the hostile troops are distributed on the principal commands, to prevent any succor from being received by the garrison, and to keep the ground until the rest of the army, with the artillery, can arrive to form a regular siege. To invest a place is, in fact, to take preparatory measures for a blockade or close siege.

=Invincible.= Incapable of being conquered or overcome; unconquerable; insuperable; as, an invincible army, etc.

=Inwall.= To inclose or fortify with a wall.

=Iona=, =Icolmkill=, or =Hii=. The most famous of the Hebrides, in Argyle Co., Scotland. It is about 3 miles long, and varies in breadth from a mile to a mile and a half. It was founded by Saint Columba, a native of Ireland, in the 6th century, and long remained the chief seat of learning and the centre of missionary enterprises undertaken by the Culdees. In 795, 802, 806, 825, and 986 the island was ravaged by Norsemen, by whom its monks were martyred in the three latter dates.

=Ionia.= In Asia Minor. About 1040 B.C., the Iones, a Pelasgic race, emigrated from Greece, and settled here and on the adjoining islands. They were conquered by the great Cyrus about 548 B.C.; revolted in 504, but were again subdued. After the victories of Cimon, Ionia became independent and remained so till 387, when it was once more subjected to Persia. It formed part of the dominions of Alexander and his successors; was annexed to the Roman empire, and conquered by the Turks.

=Ionian Islands.= A group of islands running round the west coast of Epirus, and west and south of Greece. After the division of the Roman empire these islands were included in the eastern half, and so continued till 1081, when the Duke of Calabria took possession of them. From this time they underwent a continual change of masters till the commencement of the 15th century, when they by degrees came into possession of the Venetians, who in 1797 ceded them to France. They were seized by Russia and Turkey in 1800, by France in 1807, by Great Britain in 1809, and November 15, 1815, they were formed into a republic under the protectorate of the latter power. In May, 1864, they were formally annexed to Greece.

=Ionie Indians.= A tribe of aborigines allied to the Caddos, who resided in Texas, and were generally peaceable and friendly.

=Iowa.= One of the Central States of the United States, lying between the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. It originally formed a portion of the Louisiana Territory; and permanent settlements commenced to be formed in it about 1833; organized as a Territory in 1838, and admitted as a State in 1846. During the civil war it contributed its full quota of troops to the cause of the Union.

=Iowa Indians.= A tribe of aborigines of Dakota stock, who inhabited the State which now bears their name. They were closely allied to the Sacs and Foxes.

=Ipsara=, or =Psara=. A small island in the Grecian Archipelago, west of Scio; belongs to Turkey. It was taken by the Turks in 1824.

=Ipsus.= A town of Phrygia, in Asia Minor. Here in 301 B.C., a battle was fought between Antigonus, king of Asia, and the forces of Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus, which resulted in the defeat and death of Antigonus.

=Ipswich.= The chief town of the county of Suffolk, England, situated on the Orwell. This town was destroyed by the Danes about 1000.

=Ireland.= Anciently named Ierne and Hibernia, is said to have been first colonized by Phœnicians. Some assert that Partholani landed in Ireland about 2048 B.C.; that the descent of the Damnonii was made about 1403 B.C.; and that this was followed by the descent of Herber and Heremon, Milesian princes, from Galicia, Spain, who conquered Ireland, and gave to the throne 171 kings. The Danes and Normans invaded Ireland in 795; but were totally defeated by Brian Boriomhe at Clontarf, April 23, 1014. In 1172, King Henry II. of England invaded Ireland with a formidable armament, and received homage from several of the minor native chiefs, and from the chief Norman adventurers, granting to the latter charters authorizing them, as his subjects, to take possession of the entire island in his name; which they partially succeeded in accomplishing. Subsequently the authority of the English crown became limited to a few towns on the coast, and the district termed “the Pale,” comprising a small circuit about Dublin and Drogheda. Henry II. received the title of “king of Ireland” in 1541, by an act passed by the Anglo-Irish Parliament in Dublin; and about the same period, some of the native princes were induced to acknowledge him as their sovereign, and to accept peerages. The attempts of the English government to introduce the reformed faith stirred up dissensions in Ireland. Among the first to revolt was the Earl of Desmond, after whose death, in 1583, his vast estates in Munster were parceled out to English settlers. Soon after the chief clans of Ulster took up arms; and in opposing them, the forces of Queen Elizabeth, commanded by officers of high military reputation, encountered many reverses, the most serious of which was that in 1598 at the battle of the Yellow Ford, where the English army was routed and its general slain. Philip III. of Spain, at the solicitation of the Irish chief, dispatched a body of troops to their assistance in 1601, which landed in the extreme south, instead of in the north, as had been expected, were unable to effect anything, and were constrained, to surrender. Although Elizabeth was supported by numbers of native Irish, the northern chiefs, O’Neill and O’Donnell, held out till the queen’s government came to terms with them in 1603, recognizing them as earls of Tyrone and Tirconnell. In 1608 these noblemen having apprehensions for their personal safety quitted Ireland, and retired to the continent. Their withdrawal enabled James I. to carry out that project of parceling out the north of Ireland to Protestant Scotch and English settlers. The Irish took advantage of the contentions in England to rise in insurrection (1641) and massacre the Protestants. It is believed that nearly 40,000 fell victims to their fury. The country continued in a state of anarchy till 1649. when Cromwell overran it. At the revolution the native Irish generally took the part of James II., the English and Scotch “colonists” that of William and Mary; and the war was kept up for four years (1688-1692). The Irish again rebelled in 1798, and were not suppressed until 1800. Ireland was incorporated with England and Scotland in 1801. Several insurrections have taken place since the latter date but were quickly suppressed. For important military events in Ireland, see separate articles.

=Irish Brigade.= A body of men who followed the fortunes of James II., and were formed into regiments under the monarchy of France.

=Iron Cross.= A Prussian order of knighthood, instituted on March 10, 1813, by Frederick William III., and conferred for distinguished services in the war which was then being carried on. The decoration is an iron cross with silver mounting. The grand cross, a cross of double the size, was presented exclusively for the gaining of a decisive battle, or the capture or brave defense of a fortress. It was revived by William I. in the Franco-Prussian war, and awarded by him to his son for his victory at Weissembourg, August 4, 1870.

=Iron Crown.= The crown of the ancient Lombard kings; is a broad band of gold set with jewels, within which is a thin plate or fillet of iron, and is declared by tradition to have been hammered from one of the nails of the true cross. It has been used at the coronation of 34 different monarchs, including Charlemagne, Henry VII. of Germany, Charles V., and Napoleon. After the peace of Vienna in 1866, the crown was presented by the emperor of Austria to Victor Emmanuel, king of Italy.

=Iron Ores.= Character of Pig-iron.--Ores suitable for “gun-metal” should be reduced in the smelting-furnace, with charcoal and the warm blast, varying from 125° to 300° Fahr., depending upon the ore used. Iron thus made, or pig-iron, should be soft, yielding easily to the file and chisel; the appearance of the fracture should be uniform, with a brilliant aspect, dark gray color, and medium-sized crystals. Character of Gun-metal.--When remelted and cast into cannon, it should approach that degree of hardness which resists the file and chisel, but not so hard as to be bored and turned with much difficulty. Its color should be a bright, lively gray; crystals small, with acute angles, and sharp to the touch; structure uniform, close, and compact. Magnetite.--Octahedral Iron Ore.--Color iron-black. Streak black. Brittle. The black streak and magnetic properties distinguish this species from the following: Specular Iron Ore.--Hematite.--Often massive granular; sometimes lamellar or micaceous. Also pulverulent and earthy. Color, dark steel-gray or iron-black, and often when crystallized having a highly splendid lustre; streak-powder cherry-red or reddish-brown. The metallic varieties pass into an earthy ore of a red color, having none of the external characters of the crystals, but perfectly corresponding to them when they are pulverized, the powder they yield being of a deep red color, and earthy or without lustre. Sometimes slightly attracted by the magnet. Limonite.--Brown Iron Ore.--Usually massive, and often with a smooth botryoidal or stalactitic surface, having a compact fibrous structure within. Also earthy. Color, dark brown to ochre-yellow; streak, yellowish-brown to dull yellow. Lustre, sometimes sub-metallic; often dull and earthy; on a surface of fracture frequently silky. Spathic Iron.--Carbonate of Iron.--Chalybite.--Usually massive, with a foliated structure, somewhat curving. Sometimes in globular concretions or implanted globules. Color, light grayish to brown; often dark brownish-red, or nearly black on exposure. Streak, uncolored. Lustre, pearly to vitreous; translucent to nearly opaque.

=Irons.= Fetters or instruments made of iron, with which a prisoner is shackled. To be put in irons, is to be handcuffed and confined in fetters.

=Ironsides.= A strong man. A cuirassier;--applied also to Cromwell’s cavalry.

=Iroquois=, or =Six Nations=. The name given by the French to the Indian confederacy of the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas, to which were afterwards added the Tuscaroras, after being driven from their hunting-grounds in North Carolina. This once formidable confederacy is now nearly extinguished, but remnants of it are still found scattered through the State of New York.

=Irregular.= Not regular; not according to common form or rules; as, an irregular building or fortification. See FORTIFICATION, IRREGULAR.

=Irregular Cavalry.= A term now almost obsolete. It applied a few years ago to regiments of horsemen raised under certain conditions in the East Indies. These conditions were that each man should provide his own horse, arms, accoutrements, and clothing, receiving in return a monthly sum, which also included his pay. To these regiments only three English officers were appointed, the other officers being natives. These regiments are still paid in the same way, but they are clothed, armed, and equipped in a uniform manner; the number of British officers is increased, and they are no longer styled irregular cavalry.

=Irregularity.= A violation of the customs of service,--a delinquency which is subject to censure but not serious enough to be brought before a court-martial.

=Irun.= A town of Spain, near the left bank of the Bidassoa. It is a place of great antiquity, having been in existence in the time of the Romans. The Carlists were defeated by the British Legion, under Gen. Sir de Lacy Evans, in the battle of Irun, May 16, 1837.

=Isabella the Catholic, Order of.= A Spanish order of knighthood, founded by Ferdinand VII., March 24, 1815, as a reward of loyalty, for the defense of the possessions of Spanish America. At present, it is conferred for all kinds of merit. The sovereign is the head of the order, which is divided into the three classes of Grand Crosses, Commanders, and Knights.

=Isauria.= A province in Asia Minor, the inhabitants of which were a wild and semi-barbarous race, who lived by rapine and plunder. The Romans surrounded Isauria with a chain of fortresses, but the Isaurians broke through them and remained as untamable as before. Under the empire, army after army was sent against Isauria, which stood to Rome, and afterwards to Constantinople, very much in the relation that Circassia now does to Russia. In the 8th century their national vanity was gratified by a countryman of their own being appointed to the throne. From this date they gradually ceased to be formidable.

=Ischia.= An island in the Gulf of Naples, 6 miles from the coast, and 17 miles west from Naples. In 1807, Ischia was taken by a British and Sicilian force.

=Isernia.= A place in Southern Italy, on the west slope of the Apennines, where the Sardinian general Cialdini defeated the Neapolitans, October 17, 1860.

=Isle of France.= See MAURITIUS.

=Ismail=, or =Ismailov=. A strong town of Turkey in Europe, on the north side of the Kilia arm of the Danube. This place was long in the possession of the Turks; it was stormed by the Russians, under Suwarrow, in 1790. It remained in the possession of Russia until 1856, when it was restored to Turkey by the removal of the Russian frontier.

=Isolé= (Fr.). This word is used among the French, to express any body or thing which is detached from another. It is variously applied in fortification. Thus a pavilion or a barrack which is not joined to any other wall or building is called isolé, because it stands alone, and a person may walk entirely round it. A parapet is also said to be isolé when there is an interval of 4 or 5 feet existing between the rampart and its wall; which interval serves as a path for the rounds.

=Ispahan.= A famous city of Persia, capital of the province of Irak-Ajemi, situated on the Zendarud. In 1722 it was taken by the Afghans, and in 1729 was retaken by Nadir Shah. It has fallen gradually into decay.

=Issue.= Event; consequence; the ultimate result of any undertaking; the termination of any contest. A term also applied to the distribution of supplies; as, issue of rations, issue of clothing, etc., to troops.

=Issues.= In the British service, are certain sums of money which are, at stated periods, given to public accountants for public service; and for the honest distribution of which, every individual so intrusted is responsible to Parliament. Regimental issues are moneys paid by regimental agents, acting under the authority of their respective colonels, for regimental purposes.

=Issus.= An ancient city and seaport in Cilicia, in Asia Minor, close to the frontier of Syria, on or near the head of the Sinus Issicus, now the Gulf of Scanderoon. It was in the neighborhood of this city that Alexander the Great annihilated the Persian army under Darius in 333 B.C. Here too was fought (194 A.D.), the bloody battle between Septimus Severus and Pescennius Niger, by virtue of which the former became sole master of the Roman empire. The exact site of Issus has not yet been discovered.

=Istalif.= A town of Afghanistan, province of Cabul (Cabool). It was taken and partly destroyed by the British in 1842.

=Italy.= A peninsula in the south of Europe. The invading Pelasgians from Greece, and the aborigines (Umbrians, Oscans, and Etruscans), combined, formed the renowned Latin race still possessing the southern part of Europe. The history of Italy is soon absorbed into that of Rome, founded 753 B.C. Previous to the 15th century it was desolated by intestine wars and the interference of the German emperors; since then, Spain, France, and Germany have struggled for the possession of the country, which has been divided among them several times. Spain predominated in Italy during the 16th and 17th centuries; but was compelled to yield to the house of Austria at the beginning of the 18th century. The victories of Bonaparte in 1797-98 changed the government of Italy; but the Austrian rule was re-established at the peace of 1814. In 1848 the Milanese and Venetians revolted and joined Piedmont, but were subdued by Radetzky. The hostile feeling between Austria and Piedmont gradually increased till war broke out in April, 1859, in which the Austrians were defeated, and the kingdom of Italy was re-established in 1861. Another war with Austria was declared in June, 1866, but peace was signed in October, same year, and Venetia was ceded to Italy. For other details, see ROME and the various Italian cities throughout this volume.

=Ithome.= A mountain fortress of Messenia, memorable for the defense there made for many years against the Spartans in the first Messenian war. It was afterwards the citadel of Messene, when that city was founded by Epaminondas.

=Itinerairies= (Fr.). Itinerary movements or days of march. A technical phrase among the French to denote the order and the disposition which a body of men or an army is directed to observe in its march from one camp to another, or to any particular quarter or destination.

=Itzehoe.= An ancient town in the duchy of Holstein. The original castle around which Itzehoe was built by Charlemagne in 809. This town was twice taken by Tilly in the Thirty Years’ War, and in 1657 a great portion of it was burned down by the Swedes.

=Ivry-la-Bataille.= A town of France, department of Eure, 40 miles west of Paris. It is celebrated for the decisive victory which was gained by Henry IV. of Navarre over the forces under the Duke of Mayenne in 1590.

=Ixcaquixtla.= A town in the southern part of the state of Puebla, Mexico. It is noted in Mexican history as the scene of a sharp battle fought January 1, 1817, between Mexican insurgents under Gen. Mier of Teran, and the Spanish troops under La Madrid.

=Izucar.= A city of the state of Puebla, Mexico. Near here Gen. Matamoros, lighting for the independence of his country, gained a victory over the Spaniards, February 24, 1812.

J.

=Jaca=, or =Jacca=. A fortified town of Spain, in the province of Aragon, situated at the foot of the Pyrenees, on the river Aragon. It is a town of great antiquity, and, from its position, has been the scene of many sanguinary contests. Its occupation was eagerly coveted by every invader of the Peninsula, from Cato and Julius Cæsar to the generals of Napoleon.

=Jack.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Jack= (Fr. jacque). A coat of defensive armor, quilted and covered with leather, worn particularly by horsemen; a buff-jerkin; rarely, a coat of mail.

=Jack, Hydraulic.= See HYDRAULIC JACK.

=Jack in the Box.= A very handy engine, consisting of a large wooden male-screw turning in a female one, which forms the upper part of a strong wooden box, shaped like the frustum of a pyramid. It is used by means of levers passing through holes in it as a press in packing, and for other purposes.

=Jack Wambasium.= A sort of coat armor, formerly worn by horsemen, not of solid iron but of many plates fastened together, which some persons by tenure were bound to furnish upon any invasion.

=Jack-boots.= Cavalry boots, made of thick, firm leather, hardened in a peculiar manner. They were sometimes lined with plates of iron.

=Jacket.= A short, close garment, extending downward to the hips; a short military coat is so called. In the manufacture of ordnance a tube inclosing and reinforcing another tube is called a jacket.

=Jack-man.= One wearing a jack; a horse-soldier; a retainer.

=Jack-screw.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Jacob, St.= A Swiss hamlet, about a mile south of Basle, on the Bienne road, and the scene of a great battle fought in 1444, between 1600 Swiss and a vastly more numerous French force, under the dauphin, afterwards Louis XI. The Swiss fought for ten hours, slew three times their number of the enemy, but were themselves cut off to 10 men. This battle is known as the “Swiss Thermopylæ.”

=Jacobins.= One of those clubs which played so conspicuous a part in the first French revolution. In 1792 they took the name of “The Society of the Friends of Liberty and Equality.” Immediately after the fall of the king, the Jacobins began that struggle against the Girondists which ended in the destruction of the latter. After the fall of Robespierre during the Convention they rapidly lost influence, and were at last suppressed.

=Jacobites.= This name was given to those who, at the English revolution in 1688, adhered to the cause of the dethroned James II. In Ireland the adherents of the Stuarts rose in rebellion, but were vanquished by force of arms. In Scotland attempts were made in 1715 and 1745 by the descendants and adherents of James II. to expel the house of Hanover. Both were unsuccessful, and involved the ruin of many noble families.

=Jacob’s-staff.= A mathematical instrument for taking heights and distances, used by military engineers.

=Jacquerie, Insurrection of the.= The name given to the war of the French peasantry, which broke out in 1358. The immediate occasion of it was the enormities perpetrated by Charles the Bad, king of Navarre, and his adherents; but it was really caused by long-continued oppression on the part of the nobles. Suddenly rising against their lords, the peasants laid hundreds of castles in ruins, murdered the nobles, and violated their wives and daughters, practicing every enormity, and acting, as they said, on the principle of doing as had been done to them. For some weeks they were successful; but the magnitude of the danger induced the nobles to make common cause against them, and on June 9 the peasants were defeated with great slaughter near Meaux by Captal de Buch and Count of Foix. This put an end to the insurrection.

=Jade= (Fr.). A very hard stone, of an olive color, from which the handles of swords and sabres are manufactured in Poland and Turkey.

=Jaen.= Formerly an independent Moorish kingdom; is now a province of Spain. It was conquered by the Moors on their entrance into Spain. Jaen maintained its independence as a Moorish state till 1234, when it fell into the hands of Ferdinand III., and was added to the kingdom of Castile.

=Jaffa=, =Yafa=, or =Joppa=. A town of Asiatic Turkey, in the province of Syria, on the Mediterranean. This place attained its greatest prosperity in the times of the Crusaders, when it became the principal landing-place of the warriors of Christendom. In 1799 it was stormed by the French under Bonaparte, and here was perpetrated his shameful massacre of Turkish prisoners. In 1832, Mohammed Ali made himself master of it; but the Turks, with the assistance of the British and Austrians, took it from him again in 1840.

=Jaffna=, or =Jaffnapatam=. The capital of the district of Jaffnapatam, in Ceylon. The town is fortified, and possesses a good citadel; but it was taken, after a short resistance, by the British troops in 1795.

=Jaghire.= An Indian term, signifying the assignment of the revenues of a district to a servant or dependant of government, who is hence called Jaghirdar. Jaghires are frequently given in India to persons as a reward and compensation for their military services.

=Jaghire Asham.= An Indian term, signifying land granted for the support of the troops.

=Jahpoor.= A town of Hindostan, in the presidency of Bengal, 15 miles from Agra. This place has been the scene of two decisive battles; the first fought in 1688, between Aurungzebe and his brother Darah Sheeoh; and the second, in 1707, between Alum and Azain Usbaum, all Indian princes.

=Jalapa.= A city of the Mexican confederation, 60 miles west-northwest of Vera Cruz. In 1847-48 the American troops occupied it.

=Jalet= (Fr.). See GALET.

=Jalons= (Fr.). Long poles with a wisp of straw at the top. They are fixed at different places and in different roads, to serve as signals of observation to advancing columns, when the country is inclosed, etc. They are likewise used as camp colors to mark out the ground on days of exercise.

=Jamaica.= One of the West India Islands, or Greater Antilles, which belongs to Great Britain, and forms the most considerable and valuable of its possessions in that quarter. It was discovered by Columbus in 1494, and colonized by the Spaniards in the early part of the 16th century. In 1655 it was taken by the English, when 3000 British soldiers who had served in the Parliamentary army settled there. In 1866 a revolt of a large portion of the negro population took place, which was promptly suppressed.

=Jamb.= To squeeze tight.

=Jambeaux=, or =Jambes= (Fr.). Greaves; armor for the legs, made of waxed leather or metal; much used in the Middle Ages.

=James of the Sword, St.= A military order in Spain, instituted in 1170 under the reign of Ferdinand II., king of Leon and Galicia. Its object was to put a stop to the incursions of the Moors; these knights obliging themselves by a vow to secure the roads. The highest dignity in that order is that of grand master, which has been united to the crown of Spain. The knights were obliged to give proof of their descent from families that had been noble for four generations on both sides; they were also required to make it appear that their ancestors were neither Jews, Saracens, nor heretics, nor had ever been called into question by the Inquisition.

=James Island.= One of the sea islands of Charleston Co., S. C., having Charleston harbor and Ashley River on the north. The battle of Secessionville (June 11, 1863) and several other spirited engagements occurred upon this island during the late civil war.

=James Projectile.= See PROJECTILES.

=James Rifle.= An American sporting rifle, which was popular many years ago.

=James, St.= A town of France, in the department of Manche. William the Conqueror built a strong fortress here, which remained in possession of the English till 1448.

=Jamestown.= A former village of James City Co., Va., on the north bank of the James River. The first English settlement in the United States was made at this place in 1608, but nothing now remains but a few ruins. The forces of Wayne and Lord Cornwallis had an engagement near here in 1781.

=Jangar.= A kind of ponton constructed of two boats with a platform laid across them, which is used by the natives in the East Indies to convey horses, cattle, etc., across rivers.

=Janissar-Agasi.= Commander-in-chief of the Janissaries.

=Janissaries= (Turk, ieni tcheri, “new soldiers”). An order of infantry in the Turkish army: originally prisoners trained to arms; were first organized by Orcan, about 1330, and remodeled by his son Amurath I., 1360; their numbers being increased by following sultans. In later days they degenerated from their strict discipline, and several times deposed the sultan. During an insurrection, June 14-15, 1826, when nearly 3000 of them were killed, the Ottoman army was reorganized, and a firman was issued on June 17 abolishing the Janissaries.

=Januarius, Order of St.= An order of knighthood founded by King Charles of Sicily (afterwards Charles III. of Spain) on July 6, 1738. It was abolished after the French invasion of 1806, and re-introduced in 1814. The badge is a gold octagonal white and red enameled cross, with gold lilies in the upper and side angles. The obverse represents St. Januarius in episcopal robes with an open book. The round middle of the reverse shows a golden open book, and two phials partly filled with blood. The knights are either Cavalieri di Giustizia, who must count four noble generations, or Cavalieri di Grazia.

=Japan.= An Asiatic empire, composed of Japan, or Niphon, and 3850 isles, with nearly 40,000,000 inhabitants. For military events in Japan, see separate articles in this book.

=Jargeau.= A town of France, in the department Loiret, 10 miles from Orleans. This place was taken, after a short siege, by the Earl of Salisbury, in 1428.

=Jarnac.= A town of France, situated on the Charente. The Protestants under Coligny and the Prince of Condé were defeated near Jarnac in 1659, when the latter was slain.

=Jassy=, or =Yassy=. The chief town of Moldavia, and the residence of the hospodar or prince of that country. Jassy has been frequently taken by the Russians, but it has always been restored at the conclusion of each war with Turkey. In 1822 it was burned by the Janissaries, from which disaster it has never recovered.

=Jauts=, or =Jats=. A people of Hindostan, who have at different times made some figure in its annals. The first historical mention of them occurs in the beginning of the 11th century, on the invasion of India by Mahmoud the Gaznevide, when they were completely defeated and driven into the mountainous districts of the interior of India. We find them afterwards, under the growing imbecility of Aurungzebe’s successors, continually extending their conquests. They suffered a reverse, however, at the hands of Ahmed Shah, the sovereign of Cabul, who invaded Northern India, and overran a great portion of their territory. The Jaut chief afterwards became an ally of Ahmed Shah, having treacherously betrayed his former allies, the Mahrattas, at the battle of Paniput, January 14, 1761. When the British power became predominant, the rajah of the Jauts, Rungeet Sing, sought security by concluding a treaty by which he agreed to assist England against all enemies, and by this means he retained the government of his territories. In 1808, however, on the defeat of Holkar by the British, he received into Bhurtpore the discomfited army. The city was besieged, and cost the British an immense number of lives; but at length, despairing of effectual resistance, the rajah agreed to compel Holkar to quit the place. For this breach of the terms of the treaty he was compelled by the English to pay a heavy fine. Disputes about the succession to the throne afterwards led to the interference of the British, and the hitherto impregnable fortress of Bhurtpore was taken by Lord Combermere, January 18, 1826, after a desperate resistance on the part of the Jauts.

=Java.= A large island in the Eastern Archipelago; is said to have been reached by the Portuguese in 1511, and by the Dutch in 1595. The latter, who now possess it, built Batavia, the capital, about 1619. The atrocious massacre of 20,000 of the unarmed natives by the Dutch, sparing neither women nor children, to possess their effects, took place in 1740. The island capitulated to the British, September 18, 1811; but it was restored to Holland in 1814.

=Javelin= (Lat. pilum). A short and light spear used for darting against an enemy. In the ancient Roman legions, the first and second lines were armed with them, and in those days they were considered excellent offensive weapons.

=Je Maintiendrai= (“I will maintain”). The motto of the house of Nassau. When William III. came to the throne of England, he continued this, but added “the liberties of England and the Protestant religion,” at the same time ordering that the old motto of the royal arms, “Dieu et mon droit” should be retained on the great seal, 1689.

=Jean de Pied de Port, St.= A town of France, in the department of the Lower Pyrenees, on the Nive. Near this place is the pass of Roncevaux, or Roncesvalles, where, in 778, the army of Charlemagne was defeated, and Rolland, the distinguished Paladin, mortally wounded.

=Jelalabad.= A town of Afghanistan; capital of a province of the same name, 75 miles southeast from Cabul (Cabool). It is memorable for the successful resistance made there in 1841-42 by Sir Robert Sale, with a handful of British troops against a large besieging force of Afghans. Its fortifications were destroyed by the British in 1842, when they evacuated the country.

=Jeloudar.= An East Indian term, signifying to belong to the train or equipage.

=Jemadar.= A native lieutenant in an Indian native infantry or cavalry regiment.

=Jemappes.= A village and commune of Belgium, in the province of Hainault, 2 miles west from Mons. In 1792, the French under Dumouriez gained a great victory over the Austrians near this place.

=Jemaulabad.= A town and fortress in the south of India, province of Canara, which was originally called Narasingha Augady. The first, which was built by Tippoo, stands on the summit of an immense rock, which may be deemed impregnable, as it is wholly inaccessible except by one narrow way. After the fall of Seringapatam, it sustained a siege of six weeks from the British, when being bombarded, it was taken, and the commander having poisoned himself, his principal officers were hanged. It was afterwards surprised and taken by a band of insurgents or plunderers, when it was reduced, after a blockade of three months, and all that did not escape were summarily executed.

=Jena.= A town of Germany, in the grand duchy Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, situated in a romantic valley at the confluence of the Leutra with the Saale. In this vicinity was fought the great battle of Jena, October 14, 1806, between the French and Prussian armies, in which the latter was totally defeated.

=Jenizer-effendi.= An appointment among the Turks, which in some degree resembles that of provost-marshal in European armies. The only functions which this officer is permitted to exercise are those of judge to the company. He sits on particular days for the purpose of hearing the complaints of the soldiers, and of settling their differences. If a case of peculiar difficulty should occur, he reports the case to the Aga, whose opinion and determination are final.

=Jericho.= Once one of the most flourishing cities of Palestine, situated a few miles northeast of Jerusalem. The Israelites captured and destroyed it on their first entry into Canaan. In the time of Herod it was rebuilt, but was destroyed in the reign of Vespasian, and again rebuilt under Hadrian. During the Crusades, it was repeatedly captured, and at last destroyed. At the present day its place is occupied by a miserable village called Richa.

=Jersey.= One of the Channel Islands, and the largest and most southerly of the group, situated about 15 miles west from the coast of France, and belonging to Great Britain. Various attempts have been made by the French to possess themselves of this island, but without success. The most remarkable was in 1781, when they were repulsed by the local militia.

=Jerusalem.= A celebrated city of Syria, the capital of the ancient Judæa and the modern Palestine. This city was called Salem in 1913 B.C.; its king was slain by Joshua, 1451 B.C. It was taken by David, 1048 B.C., who dwelt in the fort, calling it the City of David. Jerusalem was taken by the Persians in 614; retaken by the emperor Heraclius, 628; by the Saracens, 637; and by the Crusaders, when 70,000 infidels were put to the sword; taken by Saladin, 1187; by the Turks, who drove away the Saracens, 1217 and 1239. It was held by the French under Bonaparte, February, 1799.

=Jet= (Fr.). A term signifying the motion of any body that is urged forward by main force; it likewise means the space which is gone over by any propelled body; and sometimes the instrument from which anything is thrown or shot; as, the cross-bow, etc. Jet des bombes is a phrase adopted instead of tir, which formerly expressed the course that a shell took when it was thrown out of a mortar by the power of gunpowder.

=Jets.= See PYROTECHNY.

=Jiddah=, or =Jeddah=. A trading town of the Hedjaz, Arabia, about 60 miles west from Mecca. On June 15, 1858, the inhabitants rose against the Christians resident among them, and massacred a considerable number of them. In August of the same year the town was bombarded by the British, and satisfaction rendered.

=Jingal=, or =Jingall=. A small, portable piece of ordnance, to be fired from the ground or on a wall, resting on a long, slender butt-end, and two legs. This piece was used in India. See GINGALS.

=Joar.= An East Indian term, signifying a general massacre of the women and children, which is sometimes performed by the Hindoos, when they find they cannot prevent the enemy from taking the town. When this dreadful and unnatural ceremony is to take place, a spot is selected which is filled with wood, straw, oil, etc. The victims are inclosed and the whole is set on fire.

=John (St.) of Jerusalem, Knights of.= See SAINT JOHN OF JERUSALEM, THE ORDER OF THE KNIGHTS HOSPITALLERS OF.

=Join.= A technical word used in the British service, signifying to effect the junction of one military body with another. In a more limited sense, it means the accession of an individual, voluntary or otherwise, to a corps or army. If an officer, on being ordered to join, omits to do so willfully, he is liable to be tried by a general court-martial, or to be peremptorily suspended for being absent without leave.

=Jooday Perraput.= An East Indian term, signifying a slave taken in war.

=Jour= (Fr.). The tour of duty which is done in the course of a day and night. Etre de jour, to be officer of the day, or to command a body of troops at a siege or otherwise in the capacity of a general officer, etc.

=Journal= (Fr.). A public record or general orderly book, kept in the French service, and in which every transaction that occurred during a siege is entered by the governor of the town, for the inspection of a superior authority. The general officer who carried on the siege of a place likewise kept a document of the same kind, and minuted down everything that happened under his command. So that the journal which was kept in this manner was a circumstantial detail of what occurred, day after day, during the attack and defense of a town.

=Journals of Defense.= In the American service during war, the commander of a place, and the chiefs of engineers and of artillery, shall keep journals of defense, in which shall be entered, in order of date, without blank or interlineation, the orders given or received, the manner in which they are executed, their results, and every event and circumstance of importance in the progress of the defense. These journals shall be sent after the siege to the Department of War.

=Journals of March.= Commanding officers of troops marching through a country little known will keep journals of their marches according to a form laid down in Army Regulations. At the end of the march a copy of the journal will be retained at the station where the troops arrive, and the original will be forwarded to the headquarters of the department or corps d’armée. Thence, after a copy has been taken, it will be transmitted, through the headquarters of the army, to the adjutant-general, for the information of the War Department. The object of the journal is to furnish data for maps, and information which may serve for future operations. Every point of practical importance should therefore be noted.

=Journée= (Fr.). A term used among the French to express any particular engagement or battle; as, la journée de Marengo, the battle of Marengo. We frequently adopt the word in the same sense; thus, a hard-fought day signifies a hard-fought battle.

=Joust=, or =Just=. An exercise of arms and horsemanship, performed in the Middle Ages by knights and nobles. In the joust, the combatants engaged one another singly, each against his antagonist. The weapon most in use in the joust was the lance, but sometimes the battle-axe and sword were employed. To direct the lance anywhere but at the body of the antagonist was reckoned foul play. In the joust of peace, or joute de plaisance, a foot encounter preceded the mounted combat.

=Joute= (Fr.). A close fight between two individuals. It likewise means an engagement at sea.

=Joves= (Fr.). The two sides in the epaulement of a battery which form the embrasure are so called.

=Joyeuse= (Fr.). A name given to the sword of Charlemagne.

=Judge-Advocate.= An individual appointed to officiate as public prosecutor upon every general court-martial for the trial of officers and soldiers accused of a breach of the Articles of War, general regulations, or any conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline. He is appointed by the officer authorized to assemble a general court-martial, and must be relieved by the same authority. His duties are various and important (see De Hart’s “Military Law,” Benét on “Courts-Martial,” and Scott’s “Analytical Digest of Military Law,” on duties, etc., of judge-advocate); he must be present at the court for which he is appointed, not only to record all its proceedings, but also in order to impart validity to its jurisdiction. He advises the court on points of law, of custom, and of form, and invites their attention to any deviation therefrom. If any question of law arises out of the proceedings, and he is called upon for his opinion, he is bound to give it. It is his duty to take care that the accused does not suffer from a want of knowledge of the law, or from a deficiency of experience or ability to solicit from witnesses, or develop by the testimony on the trial, a full statement of the facts of the case as hearing on the defense. If the court, or a member thereof, should deviate from the letter of the law, or assume a power at variance with it, the judge-advocate is bound to point out the error, which should become a part of the record. It is now admitted that the custom of appointing persons from civil life to officiate as judge-advocate is clearly objectionable. It creates a ministerial officer without legal responsibilities, and necessarily commits to his hands high interests of the government, and to some extent the rights and reputation of individuals, to be treated and observed without any stronger guaranty of fidelity than his own sense or impression of moral obligation. In the important duties of the judge-advocate as recorder, adviser, and prosecutor, the utmost deference to the dignity of the court should be apparent; a delicate courtesy and modest demeanor should be characteristic of his address, while his argument may be replete with all the vigor and energy which knowledge imparts and which truth demands.

=Judge-Advocate-General.= Of the British forces is stationed in London, and is regarded as a civil officer, and is paid from the civil department. The office is generally held by an experienced barrister, to whom all proceedings of courts-martial are referred for remarks as to legality and regularity. In the United States he is a staff-officer with the rank of brigadier-general, who receives, revises, and causes to be recorded the proceedings of all courts-martial, courts of inquiry, and military commissions, and has charge of the records of the bureau of military justice.

=Judge-Advocates, Corps of.= In the United States, consists of four general staff-officers with the rank of major, who are usually assigned to duty at the headquarters of geographical divisions and departments, and may be detailed as judge-advocates of military courts.

=Judge-Martial=, or =Advocate-General=. In former years was the supreme judge in martial law, as to the jurisdiction and powers of military courts in the British system.

=Junior.= One having a lower rank. When the grade is the same, the one having the more recent commission or warrant.

=Junk-wads.= Are used for proving cannon. Wad-molds for each caliber--consisting of two cast-iron cylinders of different diameters set in oak, or of two strong pieces, strapped with iron, and joined by a hinge--are employed in their manufacture. The junk, after having been picked, is compressed by being beaten in the smaller mold with a maul and cylindrical drift--the latter nearly of the size of the mold--until it assumes the requisite dimensions; it is then taken out by raising the upper part of the mold, and closely wrapped with rope-yarn passed over it in the direction of the axis of the cylinder, and fastened by a few turns around the middle of the wad. It is then placed in the large mold, and again beaten with the maul and drift until its diameter is increased to that of the mold; when it is taken out and its diameter verified by a wooden gauge corresponding to the large shot-gauge of the caliber.

=Jupon=, or =Just-au-Corps=. A surcoat. The name jupon is chiefly applied to the short tight form of that military garment in use in the 14th century. It was a sleeveless jacket or overcoat, composed of several thicknesses of material sewed through, and faced with silk or velvet, upon which were embroidered the arms of the wearer. It fitted closely to the body, and, descending below the hips, terminated in an enriched border of various patterns.

=Jurisdiction.= Legal authority; extent of power. All sutlers and retainers to the camp, and all persons whatsoever serving with the armies of the United States in the field, though not enlisted soldiers, are to be subject to orders, according to the rules and discipline of war. To decide exactly where the boundary-line runs between civil and military jurisdiction as to the civilians attached to an army is difficult; but it is quite evident that they are within military jurisdiction, as provided for in the Articles of War, when their treachery, defection, or insubordination might endanger or embarrass the army to which they belong in its operations against what is known in military phrase as “an enemy.” Probably the fact that troops are found in a region of country chiefly inhabited by Indians, and remote from the exercise of civil authority, may enter into the description of “an army in the field.” Persons who attach themselves to an army going upon an expedition against hostile Indians may be understood as agreeing that they will submit themselves for the time being to military control. All officers, conductors, gunners, matrosses, drivers, or other persons whatsoever receiving pay or hire in the service of the artillery or corps of engineers of the United States, shall be subject to be tried by courts-martial. The officers and soldiers of any troops, whether militia or others, being mustered and in pay of the United States, shall, at all times and in all places, when joined, or acting in conjunction with the regular forces of the United States, be governed by the Rules and Articles of War, and shall be subject to be tried by courts-martial in like manner with the officers and soldiers in the regular forces; save only that such courts-martial shall be composed entirely of militia officers. No officer, non-commissioned officer, soldier, or follower of the army shall be tried the second time for the same offense. No person shall be liable to be tried and punished by a general court-martial for any offense which shall appear to have been committed more than two years before the issuing of the order for such trial, unless the person by reason of having absented himself, or some other manifest impediment, shall not have been amenable to justice within that period. No garrison or regimental court-martial shall have the power to try capital cases, or commissioned officers; neither shall they inflict a fine exceeding one month’s pay, nor imprison, nor put to hard labor any non-commissioned officer or soldier, for a longer time than one month.

=Just.= See JOUST.

=Justice, Military.= That species of justice which prevails in the army, and which is administered by military tribunals in accordance with the Articles of War. In Prussia justice is frequently obtained through what is known as the court of honor. See COURT OF HONOR, COURT-MARTIAL; also, APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 29, 30, and 72 to 105.

=Justice, Military, Bureau of.= In the United States consists of one judge-advocate-general, with the rank, pay, etc., of brigadier-general. See JUDGE-ADVOCATE-GENERAL.

=Juterbogk.= A small town of Prussia, in the province of Brandenburg. In the vicinity is the field of Dennewitz, where the Prussians defeated the French, September 6, 1813. See DENNEWITZ.

=Jutland.= The only considerable peninsula of Europe that points directly north, forms a portion of the kingdom of Denmark, and comprises the province of North Jutland. South Jutland was taken by the allies in 1813, and restored in 1814. In historical times, the Jutes took part in the expedition of the Saxons to England. As allies of the Saxons, they waged war with Charlemagne, and under the name of Normans (Northmen), frequently desolated the coasts of Germany and France.

=Juzail.= A heavy rifle used by the Afghans.

K.

=Kabbade= (Fr.). Military clothing of the modern Greeks; Roman sagum.

=Kabyles.= An aboriginal African people, inhabiting the mountains of the Atlas. They are an independent race, who mainly exist by plundering the people of the plains. They are divided into numerous tribes, each of which has its distinctive name, with the prefix Beni before it. See BENI-ABBES, BENI-ACHOUR, etc.

=Kaffa.= See CAFFA.

=Kaffraria.= An extensive country in Southern Africa, extending from the north of Cape Colony to the south of Guinea. The English war with the natives of the country began in 1798, and continued with intermissions until March, 1853. The Kaffirs, headed by Mokanna, a prophet, attacked Grahamstown, but were repulsed with much slaughter in 1819; again defeated in 1828, 1831, and 1834. After a series of engagements, they were attacked by Governor-General Cathcart, and completely defeated, December 20, 1852, and peace was restored in the following March.

=Kagosima.= A town of Japan, which was bombarded by the English in 1863, in retaliation for the murder of one of their subjects.

=Kahlenberg.= A hill in Austria, on the Danube, a little northwest of Vienna. On its side the army of Sobieski arrived to the rescue of Vienna, when besieged by the Turks in 1683.

=Kaiffa.= A seaport town of Syria, situated on the south side of the Bay of Acre. It was captured by the French in 1799.

=Kainardji.= In Bulgaria; here a treaty was signed, 1774, between the Turks and Russians, which opened the Black Sea, and gave Crimea to the latter.

=Kaiser= (from Lat. Cæsar). The German word for emperor, which has been so extensively known and used in every language since the year 1871, when William, king of Prussia, was crowned at Versailles, France, as emperor of Germany. Thus was revived the old Teutonic appellation of kaiser, which applied formerly, and especially in the Middle Ages, to the German emperors, who inherited this title from the Roman Cæsars, themselves succeeded by Charlemagne, who is considered by the Germans as the first emperor of the Vaterland, as William is the latest one.

=Kaiserslautern.= A fortified town of the palatinate of the Rhine, which belongs to Bavaria, 33 miles west from Spires. It was the scene of much hard fighting between the French and Germans in 1792 and 1793.

=Kak Towda= (Ind.). A term applied in the East Indies to the fine mold used in making butts for archery practice.

=Kalafat.= A town of Wallachia, situated on the left bank of the Danube, nearly opposite Widdin. It is strongly fortified, and commands the approach to the Danube. The battle of Citate was fought here on January 6, 1854, and three following days, between the Turks under Omar Pasha and the Russians under Gortschakoff.

=Kalai= (Fr.). A Turkish fortress; more particularly applied to stockades.

=Kalisch=, or =Kalice=. A town of Poland, belonging to Russia, and situated on the frontier of the Prussian territory. The Swedes were defeated by the Poles in its vicinity in 1706; another battle was fought here between the Russians and Saxons in 1813.

=Kalispels=, or =Calispels=. See PEND D’OREILLES.

=Kalmar=, or =Calmar=. A fortified town of Sweden, and the capital of a province, on the sound or strait of the same name, in the Baltic, opposite the island of Oland. In 1397, the treaty of Kalmar, by which Denmark, Norway, and Sweden were united, was signed here.

=Kalmucks=, or =Calmucks=. Called by the Tartars Khalimick (“renegades”), the largest of the Mongolian peoples, inhabiting large regions of the Chinese, and also Russian dominions. They are divided into four tribes: the Choshots, ruled by descendants of Genghis Khan; the Soongars, in the 17th and the 18th centuries the masters of the other races; oppressed by the Chinese, they migrated in great numbers, in 1758, to Russia, but returned in 1770 to Soongaria; the Derbets, who dwell in the valleys of the Don and Ili; the Torgots, formerly united with the Soongars. The Kalmucks are a nomad, predatory, and warlike race, and pass the greater part of their lives in the saddle.

=Kalsa Cutcherry= (Ind.). The room of business, where matters pertaining to the army are transacted, and all matters of litigation on that branch of service are determined.

=Kaluga.= Chief town of the government of the same name in Russia, on the right bank of the Oka. From the 14th to the 18th century, its stronghold was a great protection against the invasions of the Lithuanians, the Tartars of the Great Horde, and especially against the Crimean Tartars. It is at present the residence of Schamyl, the Circassian chief.

=Kalunga Fort.= In the East Indies; it was attacked unsuccessfully by the company’s forces, and Gen. Gillespie killed, October 31, 1814; and again unsuccessfully on November 25. It was evacuated by the Nepaulese, November 30, same year.

=Kaminietz.= A town of Russian Poland, situated on the river Smotriza, and the capital of the government of Podolia. The fortifications of this place were razed in 1812, but have since been rebuilt.

=Kamtschatka.= A peninsula on the east coast of Asia; was discovered by Morosco, a Cossack chief, and was taken possession of by Russia in 1697.

=Kanauts.= A term used in India to designate the walls of a canvas tent.

=Kangiar.= A Turkish sabre, the blade of which is bent contrary to other swords, generally ornamented with diamonds and other precious stones.

=Kansas.= One of the States of the United States, the thirty-fourth in order of admission. It lies between 37° and 40° N. lat., and between 25th meridian of long. and the western boundary of the State of Missouri, and is, geographically, the central State of the Union. It was organized as a Territory in 1854, and admitted into the Union January 29, 1861; and though it remained loyal during the civil war, yet many of its inhabitants took the field for the Confederate cause.

=Kapigi-Bachi.= Officer in charge of the gates of the sultan’s palace; a warrior.

=Kaponier.= See CAPONIERE.

=Karauls.= Military posts; sultan’s body-guards.

=Karki-Mesrac.= A Turkish lance.

=Karmathians.= So called from Abu Said Al-Jenabia, surnamed Al-Karmata, a Mohammedan sect which sprang up in the 9th century, and was originally a branch of the Ismailis. The sect was very powerful for a time. They conquered Arabia, Persia, and Syria, which they ruled with a despotic power, and their armies gained great victories of those of the caliphs. In 928 they threatened Bagdad, and in 930, under their leader, Abu Takir, entered Mecca, which was full of pilgrims, when a massacre of the most fearful description ensued, desecrated the holy places, and carried away the supreme palladium, the black stone, which was only restored to Mecca at an immense ransom after twenty years. From that time their power declined, and after the 11th century they are not mentioned in history, although some traces of them still exist at Hasa, their former stronghold.

=Karrack.= See CARRACK.

=Kars.= A fortified town of Asiatic Turkey, in the province of Armenia, situated on a table-land between 6000 and 7000 feet above the level of the sea. In 1828 it was taken from the Turks by the Russians under Paskievitsch. In 1855, its fortifications having been strengthened, it sustained a long siege by the Russians. Their attempt at taking it by storm (September 29) failed, but it was compelled by famine to surrender, November 30. Kars again surrendered to the Russians in 1877, having been captured by storming in a night attack,--one of the most brilliant feats of arms in the annals of history.

=Kaschau.= A town of Hungary; is situated in the beautiful valley of the Hernad, 130 miles northeast from Pesth. Two battles were fought near Kaschau during the Hungarian revolution, both of which the Austrians gained.

=Kaskaskia Indians.= A tribe which formerly inhabited Illinois, but are now located with other tribes on the Quapaw agency, Indian Territory. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.

=Kastamouni=, or =Costambone=. A town in Anatolia, Asia Minor. It stands in a dreary hollow, from which rises a solitary rock surmounted by a fortress in ruins. During the Greek empire, the fortress was in possession of the Comneni. It was taken by Bajazet, retaken by Timour, and lastly, conquered by Mohammed I.

=Katan.= A Japanese sword, otherwise cattan.

=Katsbach=, or =Katzbach=. A river in Prussia, in the province of Silesia, near which Gen. Blücher defeated the French under Macdonald and Ney, August 26, 1813. He received the title of Prince of Wahlstatt, the name of a neighboring village.

=Kátsena.= A town of Central Africa, in the empire of Sokoto. In 1807 the conquering Fúlbes assailed it, and a war was commenced, which lasted for upwards of seven years. The capture of the town was achieved only through its destruction.

=Kavass.= In Turkey, an armed constable; also a government servant or courier.

=Kazan.= A town of Russia, capital of the government, and ancient capital of the kingdom of the same name; is situated on the river Kazanka, 4 miles from the north bank of the Volga. It was founded in 1257 by a Tartar tribe, and after various vicissitudes, was made the capital of an independent kingdom of the khan of the Golden Horde, which flourished in the 15th century. In 1552 the Russians, under Ivan the Terrible, carried the town after a bloody siege, and put an end to the existence of the kingdom.

=Kecherklechi.= Are guards attached to the person of the king of Persia; they are armed with a musket of an extraordinary size and caliber. They were raised and formed into a regular corps about the middle of the 18th century.

=Keechies.= A small tribe of Indians residing with others on the Wichita Agency, Indian Territory. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.

=Keen.= Sharp; having a fine cutting edge; as, a keen blade.

=Keep.= To maintain hold upon; not to let go of; not to lose; to retain; as, if we lose the field, we cannot keep the town.

=Keep.= In ancient military history, a kind of strong tower, which was built in the centre of a castle or fort, to which the besieged retreated, and made their last efforts of defense. In the Norman keeps there appear to have been three stories, the lowest for stores, the second for a guard-room, and the upper, or solarium, for the family. The keep was similar to what the classical ancients called the citadel, or inner fort,--a term generally applied to modern fortification on the continent. King’s Keep, a fort built by King Henry II. in the inner part of Dover Castle is so called.

=Keep Off.= To deter an enemy from approaching close to the lines or fortifications, by inducing him to suspect a superior force, an ambuscade, or a mine, or by openly galling his advanced posts in such a manner as to beat him in detail. Infantry may keep off cavalry by hot firing, or by a bristling hedge of bayonets, when in square.

=Keep On.= To go forward; to proceed; to continue to advance; as, to keep on advancing into the enemy’s country.

=Keep Up.= In military movements, is to preserve that regular pace by which a line or column on a march, or in manœuvring, advances towards any given point without any chasms or fluctuations. When a regiment marches by files, it is almost impossible for the rear to keep up. On this account, divisions, sub-divisions, and even sections, are best calculated to preserve a regular depth and continuity of march. Keep up likewise signifies to attend to the interior management and discipline of a corps, so as to prevent the least deviation from established rules and regulations. Thus commanding officers are said to keep up good order and discipline, who, whether present or absent, provide against the least insubordination, etc. To keep up a heavy fire, is to play heavy ordnance against a fortified place, or body of men, by a calm and well-directed succession of shot. The term is equally applicable to a steady fire of musketry.

=Kehl.= A town of Germany, on the Rhine, opposite Strasburg. It is of great importance in a military sense, and was fortified by the French engineer Vauban in the year 1688. This place has often been besieged and taken. It was obstinately defended against the Austrians, who took it in 1797. It was taken by the French the following year, and retained by them till 1814.

=Kelat.= A town and strong fortress of Afghanistan, 72 miles northeast from Candahar. It was held by the British till their evacuation of the country in 1842.

=Kelat.= The capital of Beloochistan, India, standing on a hill 6000 feet above the level of the sea. In 1840 this place was taken by the English general Nott, but in the following year the British finally withdrew from it.

=Kelso.= A town in Scotland, in the county of Roxburgh, situated at the confluence of the Tweed and the Teviot. An old abbey, now in ruins, is the chief object of interest in Kelso. It was founded by David I. in 1128, and was destroyed in 1560, after having sustained great injury at the hands of the English in 1522 and 1545. Kelso is often mentioned in the histories of the border wars.

=Kemmendine.= A post of the Burmese empire, near Rangoon, memorable for the various contests between the British forces and the natives in 1824.

=Kenaians.= A numerous tribe of Indians residing in Alaska. They derive their name from the peninsula of Kenai, and are peaceable and self-supporting.

=Kenilworth.= A small town of Warwickshire, England. The only interest of the place centres in its ruined castle, which stands on a rocky and commanding eminence; it was founded by Geoffrey de Clinton, lord chamberlain to Henry I. It was granted by Henry III. to Simon do Montfort, earl of Leicester, and became the chief rallying-point of the insurgents who sided with that noble. After his death it held out for six months against the royal forces. The castle of Kenilworth was dismantled by Oliver Cromwell.

=Kent.= A maritime county of England, forming the southeastern angle of the kingdom, and approaching nearer to the continent than any other part of the kingdom. It was in this county that the Romans first landed when they invaded Britain. It was then inhabited by the Cantii. Kent was the first kingdom of the Heptarchy established by the Saxons in Britain.

=Kentucky.= One of the Central States of the Mississippi Valley, and the second admitted into the confederacy after the Revolution. It was formerly included in the territory of Virginia, to which it belonged till 1792. Its name, signifying “the dark and bloody ground,” is suggestive of its early history, it being the scene of many bloody conflicts between the settlers and Indians, and also the grand battle-ground of the Indians themselves. The most important battle between the Indians and whites took place near Blue Lick Springs, August 19, 1782, the latter numbering 182, and the former about three times that number. After a desperate engagement the Kentuckians were totally routed, with a loss of 60 killed and wounded. The celebrated Col. Boone bore a part and lost a son in this engagement. In the war of 1812 Kentucky was largely and effectively represented, as also in the Mexican war. In the civil war the State at first declared a strict neutrality; but as this condition could not be maintained, after stormy and exciting discussions in its councils, it declared for the Union in November, 1861. As the population was almost equally divided in its sympathy, Kentuckians were to be found fighting in the ranks of both contending armies. The State was the theatre of several hotly contested actions during the civil war, and suffered considerably during that trying period.

=Kerana.= A long trumpet, similar in shape and size to the speaking-trumpet. The Persians use it whenever they wish to make any extraordinary noise, and they frequently blow it with hautboys, kettle-drums, and other instruments, at retreat or sunset, and two hours after midnight.

=Kerman=, or =Sirjan=. The capital of a province of the same name in Persia, situated about 360 miles southeast from Ispahan. In 1794, after a brave defense, this city was taken by Aga Mohammed Khan, and given up to plunder for three successive months. It has never recovered from the effects of this great disaster.

=Kern= (Ir. cearn). A soldier. The Irish infantry were formerly distinguished by this appellation. The men in those days were armed with a sword and a dart or javelin, which was tied to a small cord, so that after they had thrown it at the enemy they could instantly recover it, and use it in any way they thought proper. The javelin was called skene, which is also the Irish for a knife.

=Kertch= (anc. Panticapœum). A town of Russia, in the government of Taurida, on the coast of the Crimea. It was colonized in 500 B.C. by the Milesians, and about 50 B.C. it became part of the Roman empire; and in 375 A.D. it fell into the hands of the Huns. In 1280 it was occupied by the Genoese, who were driven out by the Turks in 1473. It was seized by the Russians in 1771, and formally ceded to them in 1774. In May, 1855, it was taken by the allied French and English during the Crimean war, on which occasion it was ruthlessly plundered by the soldiery.

=Ket’s Rebellion.= A revolt which occurred in England in July, 1549, instigated by William Ket, a tanner, of Norfolk. He demanded the abolition of inclosures and the dismissal of evil counselors. The insurgents amounted to 20,000 men, but were quickly defeated by the Earl of Warwick, whose troops killed more than 200 of the insurgents.

=Kettle-drum.= A drum formed by stretching vellum over the circular edge of a hemispherical vessel of brass or copper. This instrument, which gives forth a sharp, ringing sound, is used in Europe by regiments of cavalry and horse-artillery in lieu of the ordinary cylindrical drum, which would, from its shape, be inconvenient on horseback. Kettle-drums are not used in the U. S. military service.

=Kettle-drum Cart.= A four-wheel carriage drawn by four horses, which was used exclusively by the British artillery as a pageant. The ordnance flag was painted on the fore part, and the drummer, with two kettle-drums, was seated, as in a chair of state, on the back part. This cart, which is finely engraved and richly gilt, has not been in the field since 1743, when the king was present. It is at present kept in the Tower of London.

=Kettle-drummer.= One who plays on a kettle-drum.

=Kettle-hat.= A cap of iron worn by knights in the Middle Ages.

=Key.= In artillery carriages, is a bolt used to secure cap squares and for analogous purposes.

=Key of a Position or Country.= A point the possession of which gives the control of that position or country.

=Key-chain.= A chain attached to the key to prevent it from being lost.

=Key-plates.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, THE CAISSON.

=Keyserlicks=, or =Imperialists=. The Austrian troops are frequently called so. The term was indeed common among the British soldiers, when they did duty with the Austrians, and invaded France in 1794.

=Khaibar.= A town of Arabia, the capital of an independent Jewish territory, 110 miles north from Medina. In 628 it was taken by Mohammed, who had received from a Jewess of the town the poisoned egg which ultimately cost him his life.

=Khan.= A title of Mongolian or Tartar sovereigns and lords. A khanate is a principality. Khagan means “khan of khans,” but has seldom been applied. The word khan is probably of the same origin as king.

=Khedive.= A title, said to signify a position inferior to an absolute sovereign, but superior to a mere viceroy, which was given to the viceroy of Egypt, Ismail Pasha, by the sultan of Turkey in 1867.

=Kheet= (Ind.). A fortified city, which is 4 or more coss, or 8 English miles, in length and breadth, and which does not exceed 8 coss, or 16 English miles.

=Khelat.= A hill fortress of considerable strength in the territory of Afghanistan, which was gallantly captured by the British troops in 1839.

=Kherson.= An ancient Dorian colony, which came under the sway of the great Mithridates about 120 B.C., and afterwards of that of Rome in 30. It continued important, and its possession was long disputed by the Russians and Greeks. It was taken by Vladimir, grand duke of Russia, in 988. The city was destroyed by the Lithuanians; and the Turks found it deserted when they took possession of the Crimea in 1475.

=Khiva= (anc. Chorasmia), =Khaurezm=, =Kharasm=, or =Urgunge=. A khanate of Turkestan, in Central Asia. In ancient times it was nominally subject to the Selucidæ; subsequently it formed part of the kingdoms of Bactria, Parthia, Persia, and the Caliphate, and became an independent monarchy in 1092 under a Seljuk dynasty. The Khivans, or as they were then called, the Khaurezmians, after conquering the whole of Persia and Afghanistan, were obliged to succumb to the Moguls, under Genghis Khan, in 1221. In 1370 it came into the hands of Timur. Timur’s descendants were subdued in 1511 by Shahy Beg, chief of the Uzbeks, a Turkish tribe, and his successors still rule over Khiva. In 1717, Peter the Great attempted to conquer it, but his army was totally defeated; the attempt was renewed in 1839 by the czar Nicholas, with the same result; the greater part of the Russian army perished in the desert. From 1873 to 1875, however, it was continually invaded by the armies of Russia, who in the latter year occupied a portion of the principality, which is now ruled by the Russian government under the name of the Trans-Caspian Territory.

=Khodadaud Sircar= (Ind.). The government or ruler blessed or beloved of God; it was a title assumed by Tippoo Sahib, the sovereign of the kingdom of Mysore, who fell in defense of his capital, Seringanatam, when it was stormed, May 4, 1799, by the British forces under Lieut.-Gen. Harris.

=Khoi.= A walled town of Persia, province of Azerbijan, on a tributary of the Khar. In the plain of Khoi, Shah Ismael signally defeated the Turks under Selim I. in 1514.

=Khurd-Cabul.= A village of Afghanistan, situated 16 miles southeast of Cabul. Here, in 1841, the British troops retreating from Cabul to Jelalabad became totally disorganized, and were murdered without resistance by the Afghans; and here, in 1842, Gen. Pollock encamped after the decisive defeat of the Afghans at Terzeen.

=Khyber Pass.= The most practicable of all the openings through the Khyber Mountains, is the only one by which cannon can be conveyed between the plain of Peshawur, on the right bank of the upper Indus, and the plain of Jelalabad, in Northern Afghanistan. It is 30 miles in length, being here and there merely a narrow ravine between almost perpendicular rocks of at least 600 feet in height. It may be said to have been the key of the adjacent regions in either direction from the days of Alexander the Great to the Afghan wars of 1839-42. Here a British army, on its retreat from Cabul in January, 1842, was absolutely annihilated.

=Kibee.= A flaw produced in the bore of a gun by a shot striking against it.

=Kick.= To recoil;--said of a musket, piece of ordnance, and the like.

=Kickapoos.= A tribe of Indians who formerly lived on the Wisconsin River, and were for a long time hostile to the white settlers, but after Wayne’s victory over the tribes in Ohio in 1794 submitted, and concluded a treaty of peace in 1795. In 1811 and 1812, however, they again renewed hostilities, and attacked Fort Harrison in the latter year. Being repulsed, they surprised and murdered 20 persons at the mouth of White River. For this and similar atrocities they were punished by the burning of some of their villages. After a desultory warfare, treaties of peace were again concluded with them, and after the treaty of 1819 they sold their lands and moved beyond the Mississippi River. A few settled down to agriculture, and their descendants now exhibit considerable indications of civilization; but the greater number roamed over the country committing depredations. Some of them are now settled on the Kansas agency, Kansas, and others on the Sac and Fox agency, in Indian Territory. See INDIANS AND THEIR AGENCIES.

=Kidnapper.= Parties were formerly so called, who by improper means decoyed the unwary into the army.

=Kiel.= Chief town of Holstein, a seaport, and a member of the Hanseatic League in 1300. By a treaty between Great Britain, Sweden, and Denmark, signed here January 14, 1814, Norway was ceded to Sweden. An extraordinary assembly of the revolted provinces, Schleswig and Holstein, met here September 9, 1850. By the convention of Gastein between Austria and Prussia, August 14, 1865, the former was to govern Holstein, but Kiel to be held by Prussia as a German federal port. This was annulled in 1866 by the issue of the war.

=Kiev=, or =Kief.= The chief town of the government of that name, on the west bank of the Dnieper; is one of the oldest of the Russian towns, and was formerly the capital. In 864 it was taken from the Khazars by two Norman chiefs, companions of Ruric, and conquered from them by Oleg, Ruric’s successor, who made it his capital. It was nearly destroyed by Batu, khan of Kiptchak. In the 14th century it was seized by Gedimin, grand duke of Lithuania, and annexed to Poland in 1569, but in 1686 was restored to Russia.

=Kilcullen.= In Kildare, Ireland. Here a large body of the insurgent Irish defeated the British forces commanded by Gen. Dundas, May 23, 1798. The general in a subsequent engagement overthrew the rebels near Kilcullen bridge, when 300 were slain.

=Kildare.= A county of Ireland, in the province of Leinster. The insurrection in Ireland which swelled into the rebellion, commenced in Kildare, May 23, 1798. On that night Lieut. Gifford of Dublin, and a number of other gentlemen, were murdered by the insurgents. This rebellion was quelled in 1799.

=Kilkenny.= Capital of a county of the same name in Ireland, on the Nore. After a siege the town surrendered to Cromwell, March 28, 1650, on honorable terms.

=Killa= (Ind.). A castle, fort, or fortress.

=Killadar.= The governor, or commandant of a fort in India.

=Killala.= A small seaport town of Ireland, in the county of Mayo. It was invaded by a French force landing from three frigates, under Gen. Humbert, August 22, 1798. The invaders were joined by the Irish insurgents, and the battles of Castlebar and Colooney followed; and the French were defeated at Ballinamuck, September 8 of the same year.

=Killaloe.= A town of Ireland, in the county Clare, 12 miles northeast of Limerick. This town was long the royal seat of the O’Briens; and at Kincora, about a mile to the north, are pointed out some remains of the residence. At Killaloe, in 1691, Gen. Sarsfield intercepted the artillery of William III. on its way to Limerick.

=Killese.= The groove in a cross-bow.

=Killiecrankie.= A famous pass through the Grampian Mountains, in Perthshire, Scotland, 15 miles northwest of Dunkeld. At the northwest extremity of this pass a battle was fought in 1689, between the revolutionary army under Gen. Mackay, and the royalists under J. C. Graham of Claverhouse, viscount Dundee, in which the former was defeated.

=Kilmainham Hospital.= An asylum in Dublin, Ireland, for aged and disabled soldiers. It was founded by Arthur, earl of Granard, marshal-general of the army in Ireland, 1675. The appointments to this place are in the gift of the commander-in-chief of the army, who selects them from the old half-pay officers. The expense of the institution to the country is £8000 per annum.

=Kilmallock.= A town of Ireland, in the county Limerick. It was invested by the Irish forces in 1598, but the siege was raised by the Duke of Ormond. There was much fighting done here in 1641 and 1642. Kilmallock police barrack was attacked by 200 armed Fenians on March 5, 1867; the barrack was defended for three hours by 14 police constables, who finally drove off the Fenians, with loss, by a sally.

=Kilsyth.= A village of Scotland, in Stirlingshire, 13 miles southwest from Stirling. Montrose gained a victory over the Covenanters, commanded by Gen. Baillie, near Kilsyth in 1637.

=Kinburn.= A fort at the confluence of the rivers Bug and Dnieper, which was taken by the English and French, October 17, 1855. Three floating French batteries, on the principle of horizontal shell-firing, said to be the invention of the emperor, were very effective. On October 18, the Russians blew up Oczakoff, a fort opposite.

=Kindle.= In a military sense, to kindle is to excite to arms; to excite military ardor.

=Kineton.= A town of England, in Warwickshire, 11 miles southeast from Warwick, in the vicinity of which the famous battle of Edgehill was fought between the royalist and Parliamentary armies in 1642.

=Kinghorn.= A small burgh of Scotland, in the county of Fife, situated on the Frith of Forth. In early Scottish history it was a place of importance. Here Macbeth is said to have routed the Northmen.

=King-of-Arms=, or =King-at-Arms=. The principal herald of England was at first designated king of the heralds, a title exchanged for king-of-arms about the reign of Henry IV. There are four kings-of-arms in England, named respectively Garter, Clarencieux, Norrov, and Bath; but the first three only are members of the College of Arms. Scotland has a heraldic officer called Lyon king-of-arms, or Lord Lyon king-at-arms. Ireland has one king-of-arms, named Ulster. See HERALD.

=King’s Mountain.= A range of mountains in North and South Carolina, about 16 miles from north to south, with several spurs spreading laterally. About a mile and a half south of the North Carolina line, in this range, on October 7, 1780, the British forces about 1100 strong, under Lieut.-Col. Ferguson, were surprised and attacked by the American militia under Cols. Cleaveland, Shelby, and Campbell, and, after an obstinate and bloody contest, their leader being among the slain, the British were made prisoners.

=Kingsland.= A parish of England, in Herefordshire, 4 miles west from Leominster. The battle of Mortimer’s Cross, which fixed Edward IV. on the throne, was fought here in 1461.

=Kingston.= A city in Ulster Co., N. Y., 90 miles north of New York City. It was burnt by a British force under Sir Henry Clinton, October 7, 1777; it was afterwards rebuilt and incorporated as a village in 1805.

=Kingston.= A village and township of Luzerne Co., Pa. In this township the massacre of Wyoming took place, on July 3, 1778. See WYOMING VALLEY.

=Kingston-upon-Thames.= A town in Surrey, England, on the Thames, 10 miles southwest of London. The first armed force of the Parliamentary army assembled in this town, and here the last attempt in favor of Charles I. was made.

=Kinsale.= A town of Ireland, in the county of Cork. This place was taken by the Spaniards in 1601, and in 1608 King James II. landed here.

=Kioge.= A seaport of Denmark, near Copenhagen, where the Danes in 1807 were signally defeated by the British.

=Kiowas.= A warlike and powerful tribe of Indians, who formerly roamed over Kansas, Colorado, and Northern Texas, robbing and murdering settlers. They are now located, to the number of about 2000, with the Comanches, on a reservation in Indian Territory. In 1870, in violation of the terms of their treaty, they made a raid into Texas, where they killed several people. For this two of their principal chiefs, Satantá and Big Tree, were sentenced to be hung; but their sentence was commuted to imprisonment for life, and they were subsequently pardoned. Of late years they have been peaceable.

=Kiptchak=, or =Kipchak=. A term which, in the Middle Ages, designated that vast territory stretching north of the Caspian Sea, from the Don to Turkestan, and occupied by the Kumans and Polovises. This tract formed one of the four empires into which the huge dominion of Genghis Khan was divided, and was the portion of his eldest son Jûjy, under whose son and successor, Batû Khan, it became the terror of Western Europe, and held Russia in iron subjection from 1236 till 1362. Batû also conquered Bulgaria, and invaded Hungary, Austria, and Eastern Germany, but made no permanent conquests in this direction. This extensive empire was dismembered towards the end of the 15th century, and gave rise to the khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan, and Crim-Tartary. The Mongols of Kiptchak were also known as the Golden Horde.

=Kirkee.= A village of Hindostan, near Poona, in the Deccan, memorable for a battle fought there in 1817 between the Anglo-Indian forces and the Mahrattas, who, although greatly superior in number, were compelled to retreat with severe loss.

=Kisselbaches.= Soldiers are so called in India.

=Kissingen.= A town of Bavaria, on the Saale, 30 miles north-northeast of Würzburg. It was taken by storm on July 10, 1866, after a severe engagement between the Bavarians and Prussians, in which the latter were victorious.

=Kit.= A small wooden pail or bucket, wherewith boats are bailed out.

=Kit.= In military language, the equipment in necessaries, such as shirts, boots, brushes, etc., of a soldier, but not applicable to his uniform, arms, or accoutrements.

=Kitchen.= The building or room used by soldiers for cooking purposes.

=Klagenfurth=, or =Clagenfurt=. A town of Austria, the capital of the duchy of Carinthia, on the Glan. In 1809 the French entered this place, and destroyed the fortifications which surrounded it.

=Klamaths=, or =Clamets=. A tribe of Northern California Indians, who lived in Southern Oregon and Northern California, near Klamath Lake, and on Klamath and Rogue Rivers. They are generally peaceable, and number about 700. They are now located on a reservation, and have an agency in Southern Oregon known by their name.

=Klicket.= A small gate in a palisade for the purpose of sallying forth.

=Kliketats=, or =Kliktats=. A tribe of Indians who resided in Washington Territory, in the country between the Cascade Range and the Columbia River, north of the Dalles. They were reduced to complete subjection in 1855, and are now located with kindred tribes to the number of about 4000, on the Yakima reservation, Washington Territory.

=Klinket.= A term used in fortification, signifying a small postern or gate in a palisade.

=Knapsack.= A bag of canvas or skin, containing a soldier’s necessaries, and worn suspended by straps between his shoulders. Those used in the British army are ordinarily of black painted canvas, but a new sort of knapsack, called the valise equipment, has been issued to some regiments. Some other nations, as the Swiss, make them of thick goat-skin, dressed with the hair on.

=Knight.= From the Saxon cniht, a servant or attendant, was originally a man-at-arms bound to the performance of certain duties, among others to attend his sovereign or feudal superior on horseback in time of war. The institution of knighthood, as conferred by investiture, and with certain oaths and ceremonies, arose gradually throughout Europe as an adjunct of the feudal system. The character of the knight was at once military and religious; the defense of the Holy Sepulchre and the protection of pilgrims being the objects to which, in early times of the institution, he especially devoted himself The system of knight-service introduced into England by William the Conqueror empowered the king, or even a superior lord who was a subject, to compel every holder of a certain extent of land, called a knight’s fee, to become a member of the knightly order; his investiture being accounted proof that he possessed the requisite knightly arms, and was sufficiently trained in their use. After the long war between France and England, it became the practice for the sovereign to receive money compensations from subjects who were unwilling to receive knighthood, a system out of which grew a series of grievances, leading eventually to the total abolition of knight-service in the reign of Charles II. Since the abolition of knight-service, knighthood has been conferred, without any regard to property, as a mark of the sovereign’s esteem, or a reward for services of any kind, civil or military. The ceremonies practiced in conferring knighthood have varied at different periods. In general, some religious ceremonies were performed, the sword and spurs were bound on the candidate; after which a blow was dealt him on the cheek or shoulder, as the last affront which he was to receive unrequited. He then took an oath to protect the distressed, maintain right against might, and never by word or deed to stain his character as a knight and a Christian. A knight might be degraded for the infringement of any part of his oath, in which case his spurs were chopped off with a hatchet, his sword was broken, his escutcheon reversed, and some religious observances were added, during which each piece of armor was taken off in succession, and cast from the recreant knight. For the different orders of knighthood, see separate articles, under their appropriate headings, in this work.

=Knight, To.= To dub or create a knight, which in modern times is done by the sovereign, who gives the person kneeling a blow with a sword, and says, “Rise, Sir ----.”

=Knight Baronet=, or =Baronet=. A dignity or degree of honor next below a baron and above a knight, having precedency of all orders of knights except those of the garter, and being the only knighthood that is hereditary. The order was founded by James I. in 1611, and is given by patent. The word, however, in the sense of lesser baron, was in use long before the time of James I.

=Knightage.= The body of knights taken collectively.

=Knight-bachelor.= One of the lowest order of knights, who were expected to remain unmarried until they had gained some renown by their achievements.

=Knight-banneret.= A knight who carried a banner, who possessed fiefs to a greater amount than the knight-bachelor, and who was obliged to serve in war with a greater number of attendants. He was created by the sovereign in person on the field of battle.

=Knight-errant.= A wandering knight; a knight who traveled in search of adventures, for the purpose of exhibiting military skill, prowess, and generosity.

=Knight-errantry.= The practice of wandering in quest of adventures; the manners of wandering knights; a quixotic or romantic adventure or scheme.

=Knight-erratic.= Pertaining to knight-errantry.

=Knighthood.= Originally a military distinction, came, in the 16th century, to be occasionally conferred on civilians, as a reward for valuable services rendered to the crown or community. The first civil knight in England was Sir William Walworth, lord mayor of London, who won that distinction by slaying the rebel Wat Tyler in presence of the king. In recent times, it has been bestowed at least as often on scholars, lawyers, artists, or citizens, as on soldiers, and in many cases for no weightier service than carrying a congratulatory address to court.

=Knighthood.= The character, dignity, or condition of a knight.

=Knightliness.= Duties of a knight.

=Knightly.= Pertaining to a knight; becoming a knight; as, a knightly combat.

=Knights, Military.= An institution of military knights at Windsor, England, formerly called “Poor Knights,” which owes its origin to Edward III., and is a provision for a limited number of old officers. These officers consist of a governor and 12 knights on the upper foundation, and 5 on the lower, together 18, and are composed of officers selected from every grade, from a colonel to a subaltern, chiefly veterans, or on half-pay. They are allowed three rooms each in Windsor Palace, and 2 shillings per diem for their sustenance, besides other small allowances.

=Knights of St. George.= See GARTER, ORDER OF THE.

=Knights Templar.= See TEMPLAR, KNIGHTS.

=Knight-service.= A tenure of lands held by knights on condition of performing military service. It was abolished in the time of Charles II. of England.

=Knob of a Cascabel.= See CASCABEL.

=Knot.= A twist or loop in a rope or cord, so made that the motion of one piece of the line over the other shall be stopped. The knot owes its power of passive resistance to the friction of the rope. The three elementary knots, which every one should know, are the timber-hitch, the bow-line, and the clove-hitch.

The virtues of the timber-hitch are, that, so long as the strain upon it is kept up, it will never give; when the strain is taken off, it is cast loose immediately.

The bow-line makes a knot difficult to undo; with it the ends of two strings are tied together, or a loop made at the end of a single piece of string. For slip nooses, use the bowline to make the draw-loop.

The clove-hitch binds with excessive force, and by it, and it alone, can a weight be hung to a smooth pole, as to a tent-pole. A kind of double clove-hitch is generally used, but the simple one suffices, and is more easily recollected.

There are other knots very useful in the artillery service and indispensable aboard ship, viz.: single knot, weaver’s knot, figure-eight knot, artificer’s knot, mooring knots, hitches, capstan, or prolonge knot, square knot, loops, becker knot, and anchor knot.

=Knot, Shoulder-=. See SHOULDER-KNOT.

=Knout.= A scourge composed of many thongs of skin, plaited, and interwoven with wire, which was till lately the favorite instrument of punishment in Russia for all classes and degrees of criminals. The offender was tied to two stakes, stripped, and received on the back the specified number of lashes; 100 or 120 were equivalent to sentence of death, but in many cases the victim died under the operation long before this number was completed. This punishment is at present only inflicted upon ordinary criminals, such as incendiaries or assassins. It is no longer in use in the army, except when a soldier is dismissed for ill conduct, in which case 3 to 10 lashes are given, in order to disgrace the soldier, rather than punish him.

=Kolin.= A town of Bohemia, on the left bank of the Elbe. Here the Austrians under Daun defeated the Prussians under Frederick the Great, June 18, 1757.

=Koloshes.= The Russian name for the Indians of the coast of Alaska.

=Komorn.= See COMORN.

=Koniagas=, or =Kadiaks=. The names by which the various tribes of aborigines living along the coast of Alaska for over 1500 miles, are known.

=Konieh= (anc. Iconium). A town of Asiatic Turkey, the capital of the province of Karamania, Asia Minor. Here the Turkish army was defeated by the pasha of Egypt, after a long, sanguinary fight, December 21, 1832. See ICONIUM.

=Königgrätz.= A town and fortress of Bohemia, on the left bank of the Elbe. On July 2, 1866, the Austrians under Gen. Benedek were signally defeated with a loss of 40,000 men by the Prussians under King William, at Sadowa, near Königgrätz.

=Königsberg.= A fortified city of Prussia, and former capital of the kingdom, is situated on both banks of the Pregel, and on an island in that river, 4 miles from its entrance into the Frisch Haff. It was founded in 1255, and in 1365 became a member of the Hanseatic League; in 1626, it was surrounded with walls; and in 1657, received a strong additional defense in the citadel of Friedrichsburg. It suffered much during the Seven Years’ War by the occupation of the Russians from 1758 to 1764; and also from the French, who entered it in 1807, after the battle of Friedland.

=Königstein.= A town of Germany, in Saxony, 17 miles southeast of Dresden, on the left bank of the Elbe. It has a fortress, situated on a rock nearly 450 feet high, which is one of the few in Europe that never yet were taken. The royal treasures have usually been deposited here during war.

=Koom=, or =Kum=. A town of Persia, in the province of Irak-Ajemee. It was destroyed by the Afghans in 1722.

=Kootenais=, =Kontenays=, =Cottonois=, =Coutanies=, or =Flatbows=. A tribe of Indians who formerly resided wholly in British Columbia, but some of them are now located in Washington, Idaho, and Montana Territories. They are generally peaceable and self-supporting, and have made some progress in civilization. About 400 of them reside at the Flathead Agency, Montana.

=Koreish.= An Arab tribe which had the charge of the Caaba, or sacred stone of Mecca, and strenuously opposed the pretensions of Mohammed. It was defeated by him and his adherents, 623-30.

=Kossacks.= See COSSACKS.

=Kossova.= A town of European Turkey, 8 miles northeast from Pristina. A battle was fought near this place in 1389 between the Turks and Serbs. The latter were defeated, and the king slain.

=Koszegh=, or =Guns=. See GUNS.

=Kotah.= The chief town of a protected state of the same name; is situated in Rajpootana, India, on the right bank of the Chumbul. In 1857, notwithstanding the fidelity of the rajah to the British government, Kotah fell under the power of the mutineers, remaining in their possession until March 30, 1858, when it was stormed by Gen. Roberts.

=Kot-duffadar.= See DUFFADAR, KOT.

=Koul.= A soldier belonging to a noble corps in Persia.

=Kouler-Agasi.= A distinguished military character in Persia, who has the command of a body of men called Kouls. He is usually governor of a considerable province.

=Kouls.= The third corps of the king of Persia’s household troops. The Kouls are men of note and rank; no person can arrive at any considerable post or situation in Persia who has not served among the Kouls.

=Kovno.= Capital of the government of the same name in European Russia, near the confluence of the Vilia and the Niemen, was founded in the 10th century, and was the scene of many bloody conflicts between the Teutonic knights and Poles during the 14th and 15th centuries.

=Kraal= (probably from the language of the Hottentots). In South Africa, a village; a collection of huts; sometimes a single hut. This term is applied to the villages and military camps of the Zulus.

=Krasnoe.= A Russian village, 30 miles southwest of Smolensk, near which the French, in the retreat of 1812, lost, during three successive days, 25,000 men, several thousand prisoners, and 25 pieces of cannon.

=Kreuznach.= A town of Rhenish Prussia, on the Nahe, 40 miles south-southeast of Coblentz. This place was stormed by Gustavus Adolphus in 1632.

=Kris=, or =Crease=. A dagger or poniard, the universal weapon of the inhabitants of the Malayan Archipelago. It is made of many different forms, short or long, straight or crooked. The hilt and scabbard are often much ornamented. Men of all ranks wear this weapon; and those of high rank, when in full dress, sometimes carry three or four. In Java women sometimes wear it.

=Krupp Gun.= The metal used in these celebrated guns is cast steel, a composition of puddled steel and wrought iron. The wrought iron is obtained from the best hematite ores of Europe, the puddled steel from the spathic ore of Siegen, in the immediate vicinity of the works. The proportions of each metal, the details of their preparation, as well as certain ingredients guessed at but not known, remain a secret with the manufacturers. Manganese in small quantity is supposed to be present and to exercise an important influence. The result is a metal equal in elasticity and tensile strength to the best English steel, the excellent quality of which is largely due to “oil tempering,” a process entirely omitted in the Krupp gun. The ingots forming the different parts of the gun are cast in cylindrical iron molds, an operation requiring the greatest care to prevent the imprisonment of air or other gases in the casting,--a defect which the tenacious character of the metal renders fatal. Subsequent hammering only increases the trouble by involving a larger area. As soon as the ingot is hard enough to permit handling it is removed from the mold and cooled slowly in ashes. It is next brought to a working heat in a furnace, placed under a steam-hammer weighing from 1 to 50 tons, according to the size of the ingot, and drawn out to the required length and thickness, when it is again buried in ashes and gradually annealed to remove the tensions induced by hammering. From the rough ingot thus prepared the tube forming the barrel is made directly by boring, turning, and rifling. The ingots intended for hoops, trunnion bands, etc., are cut up into short lengths, which are formed into rings without weld by being split through the centre within a certain distance of the ends, after which the slit is gradually widened to a circle by swaging. The parts when finished are carefully annealed.

The Krupp gun consists of a central tube or barrel, comprising the greater mass of the gun, and a series of encircling hoops. The tube has a thickness of about eight-tenths of the caliber from a point over the front of the charge to the termination of the rings or hoops, whence it is conical, tapering to a thickness of about half the caliber at the muzzle. From the seat of the charge breech-wards the tube thickens rapidly by a series of steps to a cylinder about 1¹⁄₅ calibers thick. The hoops overlie the tube from the cylinder in rear to the base of the cone in front, covering about half the total length of the tube. The hoops are put on in layers, the number of layers being determined by the size of the gun. The 6-inch gun has one, the 8- and 9-inch two, and the higher calibers have three layers of hoops. The hoops are shrunk on at black heat, the different layers being held in place by small key-rings.

The rifling for Krupp guns is polygrooved, the twist uniform, the grooves being gradually narrowed towards the muzzle for the suppression of windage. The chamber in which the shot and charge rest is a little larger than the bore, though they coincide at the bottom. This makes the passage of the projectile into the bore direct and prevents the abrasion which would occur if tilted upwards in leaving its seat. Moreover, the shot is “centred”--that is, has its axis in the axis of the bore--from its entry into the gun.

The breech-mechanism is essentially that of Broadwell. The breech is closed on the “sliding block” principle. Through the cylindrical part of the barrel in rear of the rings, from one side to the other, a slot is cut in which the breech-block slides horizontally, alternately exposing and closing the rear of the chamber. The block is run in and out by an attached screw, which works partly in the upper wall of the slot. The motion of the block is governed by guides in the upper and lower walls of the slot slightly inclined from the perpendicular to the axis of the piece. The rear of the slot is so cut that the block is wedged firmly against it when it is home. The block is locked in this position by a large screw, which catches in certain threads cut on the rear wall of the slot. The block is furnished with an “indurator plate,” a disk of hardened steel, which is set in its face to receive the direct action of the powder gases. The vent is in the axis of the gun through the block. The gas-check used is the Broadwell ring (which see). The powder for all the large guns is the prismatic. (See GUNPOWDER.) Both steel and cast-iron projectiles are used. The steel projectiles for armor piercing have their points water-tempered. Rotation being communicated by compression, the projectiles belong to the soft-jacketed class. The projectile is turned smooth in a lathe, pickled in dilute acid, and then put in sal-ammoniac to remove oil. It is next galvanized by immersion in molten zinc, then immersed in lead, and afterwards a heavy lead jacket is cast on it, which is turned down, leaving several prominent rings to facilitate compression into the grooves. In late years Herr Krupp has adopted for his large guns the American system of projectiles, having soft metal expanding sabots attached to the base, with a centring ring in front.

Krupp guns range in size from small field-pieces to a gun weighing 72 tons. The field pieces manufactured number several thousand. They form the official equipment of the German army, and contributed much to German success in the Franco-Prussian war. The large guns, comprising 6-, 7-, 8-, 9-, 10-, 11-, and 12-inch guns, have been made in large numbers, and have found a ready sale in Germany, Russia, and Turkey.

The largest guns are a 14-inch gun weighing 56 tons, and a 15³⁄₄-inch weighing 72 tons. (See CANNON.) Herr Krupp is also a large manufacturer of gun-carriages of all kinds. His partiality for steel has led him to use it almost exclusively in his constructions. He has inherited likewise the aversion of the great Borsig for welding; and a noticeable feature of his guns is an absence of any weld. The “coil” principle, so well adapted to develop tangential strength, is also omitted, the character of the metal being relied upon to resist strains “across the grain.”

Perhaps the most novel piece of ordnance of modern times is Krupp’s non-recoiling shield gun. This gun is made with an enlargement around the muzzle in the shape of a large ball, which is held in a socket formed in a heavy armored shield protecting the gun in front, the arrangement giving a veritable ball-and-socket joint, about which the gun is elevated and traversed. On shipboard or in a fortification the shield would form a part of the armor or scarp wall. A narrow slit above the ball is used in pointing by the gunner, who for this purpose sits astride of the gun. The problem solved by this unique arrangement is the entire suppression of recoil, the strain being absorbed by the massive shield. In the late experiments at Mappen, 1879, the triumphs of Krupp guns culminated in the performances of this novel piece of ordnance. Its action was satisfactory in every respect, and so slight was the shock communicated to the gun that the gunner did not deem it necessary to dismount, but kept his seat astride of it during the firing.

=Krupp’s Steel Works.= On account of the wide-spread reputation which the steel produced in the great works of Krupp at Essen, in Rhenish Prussia, has obtained, it is necessary that these works should receive a brief notice. They were founded by Friedrich Krupp in 1810, and were continued by his sons after his death in 1826. For the last fifty years they have been increasing annually from one-sixth to one-third in size, until now they cover about 500 acres, and give employment to about 20,000 persons, including those engaged in building, and in the mines and smelting-houses. For large metallurgical works Essen is favorably situated, being in the centre of a coal-bearing area, where coal of the best quality can be procured cheaply, and near mines of manganiferous iron ore, which has been found excellently adapted for the manufacture of steel; but it is believed that the admirable organization of every part of his manufactory has conduced as much as anything to the great success of Krupp. The articles manufactured consist principally of rails, tires, crank-axles, shafts, mining pump-rods, gun-carriages and guns, the proportion of ordnance being about two-fifths of the whole. Guns have been made at Essen for the Prussians, Austrians, Belgians, Dutch, Italians, Turks, Japanese, and also for the English, although not directly ordered by the government. Since 1872 a field-gun invented by Krupp has been adopted by the Prussian government, and supplied to the whole army. The establishment possesses 286 steam-engines from 2 to 1000 horse-power, 1100 furnaces of various kinds, 71 steam-hammers, 264 smith’s forges, 275 coke-ovens, and 1056 planing, cutting, and boring machines. It burns over 1000 tons of coal daily, and has over 11,000 gas-burners, consuming in twenty-four hours 400,000 cubic feet of gas. It has, besides, a complete telegraph system, 800 cars, 15 locomotives, 33 miles of railway, over 3000 dwelling-houses, hospitals, chemical laboratory, a photographic and lithographic establishment, over 400 mines, 11 blast-furnaces and several smelting-houses which produce annually about 20,000 tons of pig-iron. These works have already produced over 18,000 heavy guns.

=Kshatriya.= The second or military caste in the social system of the Brahmanical Hindus.

=Ku-Klux-Klan.= A secret organization of ex-Confederate soldiers, who, for several years after the close of the civil war, by their murders and other crimes disturbed the tranquillity of the Southern States. Their victims were chiefly freedmen, and persons suspected of favoring the policy of the government. Stringent measures were taken against them by Congress in 1871, and they soon after ceased their disturbances.

=Kul.= The Turkish word for slave to the Prince. The grand vizier, the bachas, the beiglerbeys, and all persons who receive pay or subsistence from situations dependent upon the crown, are so called. This title is in high estimation among the Turkish military, as it authorizes all who are invested with it to insult, strike, and otherwise ill use the common people, without being responsible for the most flagrant breach of humanity.

=Kulm.= A small village of Bohemia, 16 miles north-northwest of Leitmeritz, was the scene of two bloody conflicts between the French and allied Russian-Austrian armies on August 29-30, 1813. The French, numbering 30,000 men, were commanded by Gen. Vandamme; the Russians, during the first day’s conflict, were 17,000, and were commanded by Gen. Ostermann-Tolstoi. During the night, the latter were heavily reinforced, and on the second day Barclay de Tolly assumed the command with 60,000 troops. The result was the complete wreck of the French army, which lost in these two days little short of 20,000 men, while the allies did not lose half of that number.

=Kunnersdorf.= See CUNNERSDORF.

=Kunobitza.= In the Balkan, where John Hunniades, the Hungarian, defeated the Turks, December 24, 1443.

=Kupele.= Straits so called in India, through which the Ganges disembogues itself into Hindustan. They are distant from Delhi about 30 leagues. It was at these straits that the East Indians made some show of resistance when the famous Tamerlane (Timur) invaded India. The field of this victory is the most distant point of that emperor’s conquest in India, and on the globe.

=Kurrol= (Ind.). The advanced-guard of a main army.

=Kurtchi.= A militia is so called in Persia. It consists of one body of cavalry, which is composed of the first nobility of the kingdom, and of the lineal descendants of the Turkish conquerors, who placed Ismael Sophi on the throne. They wear a red turban of twelve folds, which is made of particular stuff. This turban was originally given them by Ismael, in consideration of their attachment to the religion and family of Ali. In consequence of their wearing this turban, the Persians are always called by the Turks kitilbaschi, or red-heads. The Kurtchi form a body of nearly 18,000 men.

=Kurtchi-baschi.= The chief or commanding officer of the Kurtchi. This was formerly the most distinguished situation in the kingdom, and the authority annexed to it was equal to what the constable of France originally possessed. At present his power does not extend beyond the Kurtchis.

=Kush-bash= (Ind.). Persons who enjoy lands rent free, upon condition of serving the government in a military capacity when called upon.

=Kustrin=, or =Custrin=. A fortified town of Prussia, in the province of Brandenburg, at the union of the Wartha with the Oder, 48 miles east from Berlin. In 1758 it was bombarded by the Russians, and in 1806 taken by the French. It has a large powder-magazine.

=Kutchin.= A family of Alaska Indians, which is divided into a number of petty tribes, who occupy the valley of the Yukon River.

=Kyanizing.= A process for preserving timber from decay,--so named from the inventor Kyan. The process consists in saturating the wood with a solution of corrosive sublimate.

=Kythul.= A town of India, and the capital of a district of the same name. The district fell into the possession of the British in 1843, from the failure of heirs to the last rajah.

L.

=Labarum.= A military standard of the Roman empire. It consisted of a long lance crossed at right angles near the top by a staff, from which hung a small flag or streamer of purple cloth inwrought with gold and precious stones, and bearing the effigy of the emperor. Constantine the Great, when he embraced Christianity, substituted for that device a crown, a cross, and the initial letters of the name of Christ, and made it the imperial standard.

=Labeates.= A warlike people in Dalmatia, whose chief town was Scodra, and in whose territory was the Labeatis Palus (now Lake of Scutari), through which the river Barbana (now Bogana) runs.

=Label=, =Lambel=, or =File=. In heraldry, is the mark of cadency which distinguishes the eldest son in his father’s lifetime. It consists of a horizontal stripe or fillet, with three points depending from it. When the mark of cadency itself is designated a file, its points are called labels.

=Labicum=, =Labici=, =Lavicum=, =Lavici= (now Colonna). An ancient town in Latium, on one of the hills of the Alban Mountain, 15 miles southeast from Rome. It was an ally of the Æqui; taken and colonized by the Romans, 418 B.C.

=Laboratory.= A department which is intrusted with the manufacture of combustible and other substances for military purposes, such as blank and ball cartridges for small-arms, cartridges for every description of ordnance, rockets, and all stores of similar character. This department is likewise intrusted with the conservation, packing, restoring, and supply of all gunpowder to the several military and naval departments, and in the British service is under the management of officers of the royal artillery especially appointed to that duty; in the U. S. service it is under the officers of the ordnance department. In the latter service officers of artillery, as well as non-commissioned officers and privates, are instructed at the artillery school, Fort Monroe, Va., in laboratory duties, and carefully taught the manipulation and manufacture of laboratory stores. At the West Point Military Academy, the cadets are thoroughly instructed in the above duties, as are also the naval cadets at the Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md. In the British service officers of artillery, as well as non-commissioned officers and gunners, are instructed in laboratory duties. Officers and non-commissioned officers of artillery in Germany, France, and Austria are required to possess a knowledge of the manufacture and care of laboratory stores.

=Laboratory, Royal.= An extensive military manufacturing department in Woolwich Arsenal, England. Although it has existed for many years, it was only in 1855 that the present very large establishment was organized. Here are foundries for the casting of shot, shell, grape, etc.; apparatus for the manufacture of percussion-caps, which are formed--hundreds at a time--out of the copper sheet; presses where rifle-bullets are squeezed into shape; fuzes in all stages of manufacture; and a thousand other instances of combined ingenuity and power. The British government grants permission to inspect the factory. There are also laboratories--though on a comparatively small scale--at Portsmouth and Davenport, England.

=Laboratory Stores.= The following are among the laboratory stores used in service:

The time-fuze, the percussion-fuze, and the concussion-fuze (which see).

The wooden fuze consists of a conical plug of wood of the proper size for the fuze-hole of the shell with which it is to be fired. The axis of this plug is bored out cylindrically from the large, down to within a short distance of the small end, which is left solid. At the large end a cup is hollowed out, and the outside of the plug is divided into inches and parts, generally tenths, commencing at the bottom of the cup. The cylindrical space is filled with composition, pounded hard, and as regularly as possible, and the cup filled with meal powder moistened with whisky or alcohol. The rate of burning is determined by experiment, and marked on a waterproof cap, which is tied over the cup. Knowing the time any shell is to occupy in its flight, the fuze is cut off with a saw at the proper division, and firmly set in the fuze-hole with a fuze-set and mallet. The disadvantage of this fuze is its irregularity, it being very difficult to pound the composition so that equal lengths will burn equal times. The shell may either burst too soon, and a great part of its effect lost, or it may burst after burying itself in the ground, or it may burst after passing the proper point. This irregularity of burning is common to all fuzes where the composition is driven in successive layers in a column which burns in the same direction. This fuze is used with mortar shells. The composition of mortar-fuzes is, nitre 2 parts, sulphur 1 part, and meal powder 3 parts; the quantities of meal powder vary in fuzes for mortars of different calibers. Generally these fuzes are cut before being inserted in the shell; but they are sometimes bored through at the proper positions instead of being sawed. They are also cut obliquely, when the fuze is so long as to render it likely that it will reach the bottom of the shell; for by cutting it perpendicular to the axis, the whole base of the wood might be driven in contact with the bottom of the shell, and prevent the lighted composition from setting fire to the bursting charge.

The paper time-fuze consists of a cylindrical column of burning composition packed in a paper case, gradually increasing in thickness from its lower to its upper or outer extremity; to insure ignition, it is primed with rifle-powder at the larger end. It is inserted at the time of loading the piece into a brass or wooden plug previously driven into the fuze-hole of the shell. The composition has the same ingredients as gunpowder, the proportions being varied to suit the required rate of combustion; pure meal powder gives the quickest composition; by adding certain proportions of sulphur and nitre, the composition burns more slowly. The rate of burning also depends upon the density of the composition and the purity and thorough mixture of the ingredients. These fuzes vary in length, burning from 4 to 40 seconds; they are graduated in seconds on the outside of the case, and can be cut to a length corresponding to any intermediate time of flight.

Belgian, or Bormann-fuze. See BORMANN-FUZE.

The Wright-fuze, a modification of the Bormann-fuze, extends the time of burning to 12 or 14 seconds.

United States sea-coast fuze. The paper case fits in a fuze-plug of bronze instead of wood. It fits the fuze-hole of the shell in the same way as the wooden plug, and is retained by the force of friction. A safety-cap and primer combined have been adopted to prevent ricochets, especially over water, from extinguishing the fuze. A recess in the top, filled with priming composition, is covered until the fuze is required for use, with a disk of lead or paper fitting accurately the opening. The fire is conveyed to the fuze composition through a crooked passage which is filled with priming, and prevents water from entering in sufficient quantity to extinguish the fuze. For security a small leaden plug is placed in the inner end of the fuze-plug, where it remains until it is driven out by the shock of the explosion. When the shell is placed in the piece, nothing more is necessary than to remove the disk which covers the recess in the top. Paper-fuzes are inserted at the moment of loading the gun, and into wooden or brass fuze-plugs previously driven into the shell.

Port-fire consists of a small paper case, filled with a highly inflammable but slow-burning composition, the flame of which is very intense and penetrating, and cannot be extinguished by water, it is principally used as an incendiary material in loading shells, and for communicating fire to the priming of guns when proving them.

Port-fire composition consists of nitre, sulphur, and meal powder, in different proportions. One kind is composed of nitre, 65 parts; sulphur, 22.5 parts; and meal-powder, 12.5 parts. A port-fire case, 18 inches in length, filled with this composition, burns 10 minutes.

Priming-tubes are small pipes having a cup on one end, and filled with a composition for firing cannon. The tube in general use in the U. S. service is the friction-primer (which see).

Slow-match is a slow-burning match prepared from hemp or flax slightly twisted, soaked in strong lye, or in water holding in solution sugar of lead. Cotton rope well twisted forms a good match without any preparation. Slow-match prepared from hemp or flax burns 4 to 5 inches to the hour; it is used principally for the purpose of retaining fire in the shape of a hard-pointed coal, to be used in firing cannon, fireworks, etc. It was formerly used in field-batteries for lighting the port-fires with which the pieces were discharged; but both are now entirely superseded by the friction-primer.

Quick-match is a match made of threads of cotton, or cotton-wick, steeped in gummed brandy or whisky, then soaked in a paste of meal powder and gummed spirits, and afterwards strewed over with meal powder; one yard of it burns in the open air 13 seconds. The quick-match is used to fire mortars, and sometimes in proving pieces. It is extensively used in priming all kinds of fireworks, such as fire and light balls, carcasses, rockets, priming-tubes, etc., and in conveying fire very rapidly from one portion of a piece of firework to another. When used for discharging cannon, the quick-match is set fire to by a slow-match, port-fire, or any other convenient material. When used to prime carcasses, etc., it is set on fire by the flame from the piece.

The Valenciennes composition is a compound of 50 parts of nitre, 28 of sulphur, 18 of antimony, and 6 of rosin; it is used as an incendiary composition, in charging shells for the purpose of increasing their destructive property, by setting fire to buildings, shipping, etc. For manufacture of ammunition for small-arms, see “U. S. Ordnance Memorandum,” No. 21, 1878.

=Laborer= (Fr.). In a military sense, expresses any direct and concentrated effort which is made to destroy a fortification. It likewise applies to the working of a bomb or shell, which excavates, plows up, and scatters the earth about wherever it bursts. Laborer un rampart, signifies to bring several pieces of ordnance discharged from two oblique directions to bear upon one centre. Shells are generally used on these occasions, and the chief design is to second the operations of the miner in some particular part from which the explosion is to take place.

=Labuan Pulo.= An island of the Malay Archipelago, lying off the northwest coast of Borneo. The British took possession of this island in 1846, and it was formally ceded to the British crown by the sultan of Borneo in 1848.

=Lacandones.= A tribe of Indians in Central America, who for more than three centuries maintained a hostile attitude to the Spaniards. They are nominally subject to Guatemala, but are in reality quite independent.

=Lacay=, or =Laquet= (Fr.). An old French militia was formerly so called. The name is found among the public documents which were kept by the treasurers belonging to the dukes of Brittany in the 15th century.

=Lacerne= (Fr.). The short woolen military cloak of the Romans.

=Lacheté= (Fr.). An opprobrious term which is frequently used among the French, and is applied in all instances of cowardice, want of spirit, or dishonorable conduct. La trahison est une lacheté; treason is infamous in its nature.

=Lachish.= A city of Southern Palestine. It was taken after a two days’ siege by Joshua, and, in later times, is repeatedly mentioned as a place strongly fortified. After a siege, conducted by Sennacherib in person, it was taken and plundered, with the customary massacre of its inhabitants. It was taken by Nebuchadnezzar at the downfall of the kingdom of Judæa, and was reoccupied by the Jews after the Return.

=Lacker.= A composition made use of for preserving iron cannon, carriages, shot, etc. The following are the proportional parts of compositions made use of for preserving iron cannon: (1) Pulverized black lead, 12; red lead, 12; litharge, 5; lampblack, 5; linseed oil, 66. This composition is to be boiled gently about twenty minutes, during which time it must be constantly stirred. (2) Ground umber, 3.75; pulverized gum shellac, 3.75; ivory-black, 3.75; litharge, 3.75; linseed oil, 78; spirits of turpentine, 7.25. The oil must be first boiled half an hour; the mixture is then boiled twenty-four hours, poured off from the sediment, and put in jugs, corked. (3) Coal-tar (of good quality), 2 gallons, and spirits of turpentine, 1 pint. In applying lacker, the surface of the iron must be first cleaned with a scraper and a wire brush, if necessary, and the lacker applied hot, in two thin coats, with a paint-brush. It is better to do it in summer. Old lacker should be removed with a scraper, or by scouring, and not by heating the guns or balls, by which the metal is injured. About 5 gallons of lacker are required for 100 field-guns and 1000 shot; about one quart for a sea-coast gun. Before the lacker is applied every particle of rust is removed from the gun, and the vent cleaned out.

=Lacs d’Amour.= In heraldry, a cord of running knots used as an external decoration to surround the arms of widows and unmarried women; the cordélier, which differs but slightly from it, being used similarly with the shields of married women.

=Lacunette= (Fr.). A term in fortification. A small fosse or ditch was formerly so called. The word cunette (which see) has since been adopted.

=Ladder Bridge.= Used for crossing streams, etc. It is formed by running a cart or gun-limber into the stream and securing it there, with the shafts in a vertical position, by ropes from both sides of the river; one end of a ladder from each bank resting upon it, and covering the steps or rungs with planks.

=Ladders, Scaling= (Fr. eschelles de siege). Are used in scaling when a place is to be taken by surprise. They are made several ways; sometimes of flat staves, so as to move about their pins and shut like a parallel ruler, for conveniently carrying them. The French make them of several pieces, so as to be joined together, and to be capable of any necessary length. Sometimes they are made of single ropes, knotted at proper distances, with iron hooks at each end, one to fasten them upon the wall above, and the other in the ground; and sometimes they are made of two ropes, with staves between them to keep the ropes at a proper distance, and to tread upon. When they are used in the action of scaling walls, they ought to be rather too long than too short, and to be given in charge only to the stoutest of the detachment. The soldiers should carry these ladders with the left arm passed through the second step, taking care to hold them upright close to their sides, and very short below, to prevent any accident in leaping into the ditch.

=Ladle.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Lady of Mercy, Our.= A Spanish order of knighthood, founded in 1218 by James I. of Aragon, in fulfillment of a vow made to the Virgin during his captivity in France. The object for which the order was instituted was the redemption of Christian captives from among the Moors, each knight at his inauguration vowing that if necessary for their ransom he would remain himself a captive in their stead. Within the first six years of the existence of the order no fewer than 400 captives are said to have been ransomed by its means. On the expulsion of the Moors from Spain, the labors of the knights were transferred to Africa. The order was extended to ladies in 1261. Their badge is a shield party per fess gules and or, in chief a cross pattée argent, in base four pellets gules for Aragon, the shield crowned with a ducal coronet.

=Lady of Montesa, Our.= An order of knighthood, founded in 1317 by King James II. of Aragon, who, on the abrogation of the order of Templars, urged Pope Clement V. to allow him to employ all their estates within his territory in founding a new knightly order for the protection of the Christians against the Moors. His request was acceded to by the following pope, John XXII., who granted him for this purpose all the estates of the Templars and of the knights of St. John situated in Valencia. The order is now conferred merely as a mark of royal favor. The badge is a red cross edged with gold, the costume a long white woolen mantle, decorated with a cross on the left breast, and tied with very long white cords.

=Lagos.= A city and seaport of Portugal, in the province of Algarve, about 23 miles east-northeast from the extremity of Cape St. Vincent. In the Bay of Lagos, Admiral Boscawen obtained a signal victory over the French Toulon fleet, August 18, 1759.

=Lagos.= In the Bight of Benin, Africa; this place was assaulted and taken by the boats of a British squadron, under Commodore Bruce, December 26-27, 1851. In 1862 the place was ceded to the British government, and created a settlement.

=Lahore.= The capital of the Punjab, in British India, standing on the Ravee, 270 miles northwest from Delhi. It was taken by Baber about 1520, and was long the capital of the Mongol empire. It fell into the power of the Sikhs in 1798; was occupied by Sir Hugh Gough, February 22, 1846, who in March concluded a treaty of peace.

=Laibach=, or =Laybach=. A town of Austria, capital of the duchy of Carniola, 44 miles northeast from Trieste. This place was taken in 1799 by Bernadotte, and in 1809 by Macdonald. It is well known from the congress which was held in it in 1821, the object of which was the extinction of constitutional government, as established in Naples after the insurrection in 1820.

=Laidley’s Practice Musket.= This gun is made out of an old smooth-bore musket, reamed out for a length of 11 inches, for the reception of a coil ribbon spring, on one end of which a closely-fitting piston is placed, having a stem of about 5 inches attached to its centre; a hole is bored through the breech-screw and a cut made on its under side to receive a spring; a circular disk with a flaring hole through its centre is secured in the barrel just in front of the end of the breech-screw; a short lever crosses the end of the barrel just in front of this disk, and is held in position by the spring already referred to; the hole in the cone is enlarged and receives a small spindle with a collar at its middle, which prevents it from coming out. About 12 inches from the breech a horizontal cut is made through the top of the barrel, leaving an opening of 2 inches in length; a cylindrical plug having a hole through its axis is inserted in the barrel at this place, and a handle screwed in. An inner barrel, having a bore of .22 inch and a length of 17 inches, its upper end counter-bored, is inserted in the barrel and secured by a screw; the length of the block is such as to close the space between the chambered recess and the end of the inner barrel. A hole is bored through the side of the stock to communicate with the hole through the breech-screw. A dart is fired from this musket, which when fired into the target is extracted with a claw-tool. The men in firing stand at a distance of 15 paces from the target; and two men use the gun, firing alternately. This is a very useful musket to practice the soldier in rifle-firing. The soldier can also be practiced at long ranges with this gun in the following manner: Place a target at 500 or 600 yards distant, or as far off as convenient, so that it can be seen through the open window; place a target (16 inches square, with a bull’s-eye of .75 inch) 15 paces from the firing-stand, at such a height that the distant target may be seen 4 or 5 inches below the middle of its lower edge; mark on the floor the position for the feet of the man when firing, raise the longer leaf of the sight, aim at the distant bull’s-eye, and fire; the shots will strike the near target if correctly placed, and the accuracy of aim will be shown by the score thus made. The height of the target may have to be adjusted after the first few shots.

=Laird.= A leader or captain.

=Laisches= (Fr.). Were thin metal plates which the ancient Gauls placed upon the buff-coats of infantry, between the buff and the lining.

=Lake Champlain.= See CHAMPLAIN, LAKE.

=Lake Ontario.= See ONTARIO, LAKE.

=Lake Regillus.= In Italy, where tradition states the Romans defeated the Latin auxiliaries of the expelled Tarquins about 499 B.C.

=Lama.= See PACK AND DRAUGHT ANIMALS.

=Lambrequin.= Leathern strap or flap hanging from a cuirass, often highly ornamented. Also ribbon of different colors for fastening a helmet, twisted round its crest, the knot forming an ornament.

=Lamia= (now Zeitun, or Zetuni). A town in Phthiotis, in Thessaly, situated on the small river Achelous. It has given its name to the war which was carried on by the confederate Greeks against Antipater, after the death of Alexander, 323 B.C. The confederates under the command of Leosthenes, the Athenian, defeated Antipater, who took refuge in Lamia, where he was besieged for some months. Leosthenes was killed during the siege; and the confederates were obliged to raise it in the following year (322), in consequence of the approach of Leomatus. The confederates under the command of Antiphilus defeated Leomatus, who was slain in the action. Soon afterwards Antipater was joined by Craterus; and thus strengthened, he gained a decisive victory over the confederates at the battle of Cranon (322), which put an end to the Lamian war.

=Lamian War.= See LAMIA.

=Lampion de Parapet= (Fr.). A lamp generally used on a parapet or elsewhere in a besieged place. It was a small iron vessel filled with pitch and tar, which was lighted by the troops as occasion required.

=Lancaster.= The chief town of Lancashire, England, situated on the river Lune. It is supposed to have been the Ad Alaunam of the Romans. It was granted by William I. or II. to Roger de Poitou, who erected a castle upon its hill. It was taken by the Jacobites, November, 1715, and November, 1745.

=Lancaster Gun.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF.

=Lancaster Herald.= One of the six heralds of England, ranking second in seniority. His office is said to have been instituted by Edward III., when he created his son, John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster. Henry IV. raised Lancaster to the dignity of king-at-arms. Edward IV., after reducing him back to the status of a herald, abolished his office, which was revived by Henry VII.

=Lancaster Rifle.= See SMALL-ARMS.

=Lancastrians.= See ROSES, WARS OF THE.

=Lance.= A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle, and metal point, now usually adorned with a small flag, and generally used by horsemen to transfix an enemy, but formerly used sometimes as a javelin. This offensive weapon was much used by the French in former times, particularly by that class of military gentlemen called chevaliers, and by the gendarmes. Before the reign of Philip de Valois, the chevaliers and gendarmes fought on foot, armed with lances only, both in battles and at sieges. On these occasions they shortened their lances, which were then said to be retaillees, or cut again.

=Lance= (Fr.). Means likewise an iron rod which is fixed across the earthen mold of a shell, and which keeps it suspended in the air when it is cast. As soon as the shell is formed, this rod must be broken, and carefully taken out with instruments made for that purpose. Shells ought to be scrupulously examined with respect to this article, as they could not be charged were the lance or any part of it to remain within. This is also the name of an instrument which conveys the charge of a piece of ordnance and forces it home to the bore.

=Lance.= A soldier armed with a spear; a lancer.

=Lance.= To pierce with a lance, or any similar weapon; to throw in the manner of a lance. See LANCH.

=Lance a Feu= (Fr.). A squib. A species of artificial firework which is made in the shape of a fuze, and is used for various purposes. The composition of the lance a feu consists of 3 parts of the best refined saltpetre, 2 parts of flour of sulphur, and 2 of antimony; the whole being pounded and mixed together. The chief use of the lance a feu is to throw occasional light across the platform, whilst artificial fireworks are preparing. They likewise serve to set fire to fuzes, as they can be taken hold of without danger.

=Lance a Feu Puant= (Fr.). Stink-fire lances prepared in the same manner that stink-pots are, and particularly useful to miners. When a sapper or miner has so far penetrated towards the enemy as to hear the voices of persons in any places contiguous to his own excavation, he first of all bores a hole with his probe, then fires off several pistols through the aperture, and lastly forces in a lance a feu puant, taking care to close up the hole on his side to prevent the smoke from returning towards himself. The exhalation and stinking hot vapor which issue from the lance, and remain confined on the side of the enemy, infest the air so much, that it is impossible to approach the quarter for three or four days. Sometimes, indeed, they have had so instantaneous an effect, that in order to save their lives, miners, who would persevere, have been dragged out by the legs in an apparent state of suffocation.

=Lance de Feu= (Fr.). A species of squib, which is used by the garrison of a besieged town against a scaling party.

=Lance, Free.= See FREE LANCE.

=Lance Socket.= A leather socket which supports the butt of the lance when carried on horseback; called also lance bucket.

=Lance-Corporal.= An assistant to a corporal; a private performing the duties of a corporal; a lance-pesade. See CORPORAL, LANCE-.

=Lance-gaye= (Fr.). See ARCH-GAYE.

=Lance-head.= The head of a lance.

=Lance-knight.= A common or foot-soldier; a lansquenet. See LANSQUENET.

=Lance-pesade.= See ANSPESSADE.

=Lance-rest.= A projection like a bracket, on the right side of a breastplate in armor, to aid in bearing a lance.

=Lancers.= A description of cavalry soldiers in different armies of Europe, who are armed with lances. The type and perfection of lancers are the Russian Cossacks, whose long lances enable them to combat with enemies at a distance from which they themselves take little harm. The lancers were brought into European notice by Napoleon, who greatly relied upon some Polish regiments. After the peace of 1815, the arm was adopted in the English service, but it is thought by many that the British lancer has a weapon too short to enable him to charge an infantry square with any chance of success.

=Lances Levées= (Fr.). Uplifted lances, indicating that the enemy was beaten, and that the chevaliers or gendarmes should close the day by giving a final blow to the disordered ranks.

=Lanch.= To throw, as a lance; to dart; to let fly. To pierce with a lance, or as with a lance; to wound. Written also launch.

=Land Batteries.= Batteries used on land, as distinguished from floating batteries, etc., employed in the defense of harbors.

=Landau.= A strong town of Bavaria, in the Palatinate of the Rhine, situated on the Queich, 18 miles from Carlsruhe. This place was held alternately by the French and Austrians from 1680 to 1815, when it was assigned to the Germanic Confederation, under the protection of Bavaria.

=Landen.= See NEERWINDEN.

=Land-force.= A military force, army, or body of troops serving on land, as distinguished from a naval force.

=Landgrave.= A German nobleman of a rank corresponding to an English earl.

=Landgravine.= The wife of a landgrave.

=Landing.= In fortification, is the portion of the floor of the gallery between the frames that bound the entrance to a return. The landing is in all cases horizontal.

=Landing of Troops.= See DISEMBARKATION.

=Landshut.= A town of Prussian Silesia. In June, 1760, the Austrians gained a decisive victory over the Prussians in this place.

=Landsturm.= A local militia of Prussia, formed of men above forty years of age, which never leaves its own district, and is only called out in case of actual invasion.

=Landwehr.= The militia of a country. Austria has a landwehr--bei den Oestreichern; and Prussia--bei den Preussen. The former are a sort of a reserve to each regiment of the line; they are under the same colonel, and are drilled once a year with the line regiment. The Prussian landwehr is more completely national. Every Prussian subject commences military service in the standing army, a force composed of the youth of the nation from twenty to twenty-five years old. After two or three years of service, the soldier proceeds to his home, but is liable to be called upon to join his regiment. During this period he is called a reservist. At the expiration of five years from the date of enlistment, the men are transferred into the first class or levy of the landwehr, remaining in it until their thirty-second year. In time of war they are liable to be called upon to serve with the regiment of the line of a corresponding number,--in fact, they form the reserve of that regiment whence reinforcements are drawn. From their thirty-second to their thirty-ninth year the men belong to the second levy, and are only called out occasionally in time of peace, but in war they garrison fortresses.

=Lane.= The term applied to a body of soldiers in two ranks standing face to face, forming, in fact, a street, passage, or lane. The French call this formation haie, or hedge. It is used when troops form a guard of honor for persons of rank to pass through.

=Langensalza.= A town of Prussian Saxony, on the Salza, 20 miles northwest of Erfurt. The French and Saxons were here defeated by the Prussians in 1750; in 1761 the Prussians and English defeated the German imperial army; in 1813 the Prussians were defeated by the Bavarians; and in 1866, a bloody contest took place between the Prussians and Hanoverians, resulting in the capture of the Hanoverian army as prisoners of war.

=Langrel=, or =Langrage=. A villainous kind of shot, consisting of various fragments of iron bound together, so as to fit the bore of the cannon from which it is to be discharged. It is seldom used but by privateers.

=Languedoc= (anc. Narbonensis Prima). An old province of the south of France, bounded east by the river Rhone, and south by the Mediterranean. As a Roman province it enjoyed the freedom of Italy. It formed part of Gallia Narbonensis, but, in the Middle Ages, was known as Septimania, from the seven cathedral churches which it contained. From the hands of the Romans it passed into the possession of the Goths; and being wrested from them, it was occupied by the Saracens till 725, when they were expelled by Charles Martel. It afterwards came under the sway of Philip the Bold, and became a part of the French Kingdom in 1361.

=Languet=. A small slip of metal on the hilt of a sword, which overhangs the scabbard; the ear of a sword.

=Lansdown.= In Somersetshire, England. The Parliamentary army under Sir William Waller was defeated here July 5, 1643.

=Lansquenet.= A German foot-soldier; originally one of the serfs who followed the camp in the service of the common soldiers; afterward one of the independent troops who hired themselves to those willing to pay highest for their services.

=Lanterne= (Fr.). Sometimes called cuiller, or ladle, serves to convey gunpowder into a piece of ordnance. It is made of copper, and resembles a round spoon or ladle, which is fixed to a long pole.

=Lanuvium= (now Civita Lavinia). An old and important city of Latium, on the Appian Way, 20 miles south of Rome. Tradition describes it as a colony from Alba; but it first rose to importance in the 5th century B.C., when it took part against Rome as one of the thirty cities of the Latin League. Its name again appears in the long wars between Rome and the Æqui and Volsci, siding with the former; it changed sides in 383 B.C., but was leniently treated by its old ally at the end of the war. In the great Latin war, 340 B.C., it again took part against Rome, and in the general settlement at the close of hostilities, it obtained the Roman civitas.

=Lanyards.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Laodicea ad Mare= (now Ladikiyeh). A city on the coast of Syria, about 50 miles south from Antioch; was built by Seleucus I. on the site of an earlier city, called Ramitha. It was severely punished by Cassius for its adherence to Dolabella, and again suffered in the Parthian invasion of Syria. It was taken and destroyed by the Arabs in 1188.

=Laon.= A town of France, in the department of the Aisne, 75 miles northeast from Paris. It was besieged by the barbarians in 407; taken and sacked by Gelimer in 682; unsuccessfully besieged by the Normans in 882; taken by Eudes, count of Paris, in 892, by Charles the Simple in 895, and by Robert of France, who held it till 923. It was taken by the Duke of Burgundy in 1411; by the royal troops in 1414; surrendered in 1419 by Philip the Good to the English, who were dispossessed in 1429. It was unsuccessfully besieged by the Calvinists in 1567, and was taken by Henry IV. in 1594. On March 10, 1814, an indecisive battle was fought here between the French troops under Napoleon, and the Prussians under Blücher.

=Lapelle=, or =Lapel=. The facings of uniform coats were formerly so termed. Until the introduction of epaulettes in 1812, the white lapelle was synonymous with a lieutenant’s commission in the British service.

=Lapithæ.= A wild race, inhabiting, in ancient times, the mountains of Thessaly. They derived their name from a mythical ancestor, Lapithes, a son of Apollo, and the brother of Centauros, the equally mythical ancestor of the Centaurs. A bloody war is said to have been waged between the kindred races in prehistoric times, which ended in the defeat of the Centaurs, but the Lapithæ were in their turn defeated by Hercules.

=Laplander.= An inhabitant of Lapland, a country of Northern Europe.

=Lapse.= To fall in, or belong to. This expression was formerly used in the British army to signify the reversion of any military property. Thus, upon the sale or purchase of one commission at the regulated difference, another (where there are two) is said to lapse to government. Commissions lapse, or fall into the patronage of government, when vacancies happen by death, by officers being superseded, or where officers apply to sell who have only purchased a part of their commissions, and have not served long enough to be entitled to sell the whole; in which case they are only permitted to sell what they actually purchased, and the remainder is in the gift of the government.

=Lap-weld.= A weld in which the welding edges are made thin, lapped one over the other and welded.

=Laranda= (now Larenda, or Caraman). A considerable town in the south of Lycaonia. It was taken by storm by Perdiccas, but afterwards restored. It was used by the Isaurian robbers as one of their strongholds.

=Largs.= A seaport of Scotland, in Ayrshire, 23 miles southwest from Glasgow. Here, in 1263, Alexander III. of Scotland gained a victory over Haco, king of Norway.

=Lariat.= The lasso, a long cord or thong of leather with a noose, used in catching wild horses and other animals. The term is now applied to a rope 1¹⁄₄ inches in circumference and 30 feet long, made of Italian hemp, which is used in the U. S. cavalry service to picket horses while grazing.

=La Roda.= A town of Spain, in the province of Murcia, 22 miles northwest from Albacete. This place is famous for the defense it made against the Carlists in 1840.

=La Rothière= (France), =Battle of=. Took place between the French, commanded by Napoleon, and the Prussian and Russian armies, which were defeated with great loss after a desperate engagement, February 1, 1814. This was one of Napoleon’s last victories.

=Lascar.= In the East Indies, signifies properly a camp-follower, but is generally applied to native sailors on board of British ships. The Lascars make good seamen, but being of an excessively irritable and revengeful nature, are generally kept in the minority in a ship’s crew.

=Lash.= To tie or bind with a rope or cord; to secure or fasten by a string.

=Lashes.= Formerly a general court-martial could sentence a soldier to receive a certain number of lashes. This mode of punishment is prohibited in the U. S. service. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 98.

=Lashing-rings.= Are fixed on the sides of artillery traveling-carriages, to lash the tarpaulin, as also to tie the sponge, rammer, and ladle.

=Lasso.= A rope or cord with a running noose, used by men on horseback in Spanish America, Texas, and Southern California for catching cattle, wild horses, grizzly bears, etc. It is said that the lasso was used by the ancient Sarmatians and Parthians. Certain Patagonians use a lasso with a stone tied to the end,--instead of a noose.

=Laswarree.= A town of Hindostan, in Delhi, which was the scene of the defeat of the Mahrattas by Lord Lake, November, 1803.

=Latham House.= In Lancashire, England; it was heroically defended for three months against the Parliamentarians, by Charlotte, countess of Derby. She was relieved by Prince Rupert, May, 1644. The house was, however, surrendered December 4, 1645, and dismantled.

=Lathe.= In the manufacture of ordnance, lathes are machines for turning cannon, gun-barrels, etc.

=Latrines.= Conveniences for soldiers in camps and barracks. Much attention has of late been devoted to their construction; a large percentage of the army sickness having been traced to their defective and impure condition.

=Lauenberg.= A duchy of Northern Germany, but formerly united with the crown of Denmark; was conquered from the Wends by Henry the Lion of Saxony about 1152; ceded to Hanover, 1689, and seized along with Hanover by the French in 1803. It was afterwards, with some change of boundary, made over to Prussia, and by Prussia transferred to Denmark in 1815, with reservation of rights. In 1870 it was re-annexed to Prussia.

=Laufach.= In Bavaria, Southwestern Germany; it was taken by the Prussians, under Wrangel, July, 1860, after a sharp action, in which the Hessians were defeated.

=Launch.= To throw as a spear or dart; to send forth. Written also lanch.

=Laundresses.= Camp-women, usually the wives of soldiers, employed to wash soldiers’ clothing.

=Laurel.= An evergreen shrub, selected for the brows of heroes and conquerors, and emblematic of their unfading reputation.

=Lauterburg.= A town of France, in the department of the Lower Rhine, 33 miles northeast from Strasburg. In 1793 the French forced the famous lines of Lauterburg, and took this place.

=Laval.= A town of France, in the department of the Mayenne, situated on the Mayenne, 42 miles east from Rennes. This place suffered greatly in the Vendean war, towards the close of the last century.

=La Vendée= (West France). The French royalists of La Vendée took arms in March, 1793, and were successful in a number of hard-fought battles with the republicans, between July 12, 1793, and January 1, 1794, when they experienced a severe reverse. Their leader Henri, comte de Larochejaquelein, was killed March 4, 1794. A short peace was made at La Jaunay, February 17, 1795. The war was terminated by Gen. Hoche in 1796. A treaty of peace was signed at Luçon, January 17, 1800.

=Lavure= (Fr.). The grains, dust, or detached pieces of metal which fall in casting cannon.

=Law, Martial.= See MARTIAL LAW.

=Law, Military.= A branch of the general municipal law, consisting of rules ordained for the government of the military forces of a state or government, and those voluntarily serving with them, equally in peace and war, and administered by tribunals of special and limited jurisdiction. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR.

=Law of Arms.= Certain acknowledged rules, regulations, and precepts, which relate to war; and are observed by all civilized nations. The laws of arms also show how to proclaim war, to attack the enemy, and to punish offenders in the camp, etc.

=Law of Nations.= Such general rules as regard the embassies, reception and entertainment of strangers, intercourse of merchants, exchange of prisoners, suspension of arms, etc.

=Laws, Execution of.= On all occasions when the troops are employed in restoring or maintaining public order among their fellow-citizens, the use of arms, and particularly fire-arms, is obviously attended with loss of life or limb to private individuals; and for these consequences, a military man may be called to stand at the bar of a criminal court. A private soldier also may occasionally be detached on special duty, with the necessity of exercising discretion as to the use of his arms; and in such cases he is responsible, like an officer, for the right use or exercise of such discretion.

Some years ago, the public journals of London recorded the meritorious behavior of a private sentry, upon the occasion of a riotous mob assembled at the entrance of Downing-Street with the intention of attacking the government offices in that quarter of the town. This man standing alone presented his musket, and threatened to fire upon the crowd, if the slightest attempt were made to approach the particular office for the defense of which he was placed on duty, and succeeded by the terror thus created, though at a great risk of consequences to himself, in keeping the rioters at bay until a larger force arrived to assist him. The soldier’s conduct was publicly much approved. It was also clearly legal according to Macadam’s case (a soldier tried before the courts of Scotland in 1735); and if after the announcement of his intentions the mob had pressed forward to execute their purpose, he would have been held justified at law in firing at the rioters upon his own responsibility. The Duke of Wellington, as Constable of the Tower, testified his marked approbation of this man’s conduct, by promoting him at once to a wardership at that fortress.

The right of officers or soldiers to interfere in quelling a felonious riot, whether with or without superior military orders, or the direction of a civil magistrate, is quite clear, and beyond the possibility of mistake. This subject, however, was formerly little understood; and military men failed in their public duty through excess of caution.

But notwithstanding the existence of a clear right and duty on the part of military men voluntarily to aid in the suppression of a riot, it would be the height of imprudence to intrude with military force, except upon the requisition of the proper authority, unless in those cases where the civil power is obviously overcome, or on the point of being overcome, by the rioters.

When the civil officer may not deem it safe to wait for the orders of government, he should address his requisition for troops, not to any subordinate military officer, but to the highest authority, to whom he should communicate his object in making it, and all the information he may possess regarding the strength and designs of those by whom the public peace is menaced or disturbed. His duty is confined to these points. He has no authority in directing military operations. The officer commanding the troops has alone authority to determine the number and nature of those to be employed; the time and manner of making the attack, and every other operation for the reduction of the enemy.

Under no circumstances can U. S. troops be called into service at the “polls.”

In the United States, regular troops can be ordered only to serve against rioters, or other lawless bands of citizens, under the orders of the President to co-operate with the civil authorities.

It should ever be the aim of military men to attain the desired end by the exercise of passive interposition.

=Laws of War.= The recognized rules for the conduct of civilized warfare. These rules relate to the treatment of prisoners, non-combatants, spies, traitors, etc.; the disposition of private property, the rights of capture, occupation and conquest, the establishment of blockades, the rights and obligations of neutrals, etc.

=Lay.= To quit; to surrender the use of; as, lay down one’s arms. To lay for, is to attempt something by ambuscade.

=Lay.= To point or aim; as, to lay a gun. See POINTING.

=Lay About, To.= To strike, or throw the arms on all sides; to act with vigor.

=Layette= (Fr.). Three-sided tray or box without a cover, used to carry powder from one mortar to another in powder-mills.

=Lazarus.= A military order instituted at Jerusalem by the Christians of the West, when they were masters of the Holy Land. They received pilgrims under their care, and guarded them on the roads from the insults of the Mohammedans. This order was instituted in the year 1119, and was confirmed by a bull of Pope Alexander IV. in 1255, who gave it the rule of St. Augustine.

=Lazzaro, St.= In Northern Italy, where the king of Sardinia and the Imperialists defeated the French and Spaniards after a long and severe conflict, June 4, 1746.

=Lead.= To conduct as a chief or commander; as, let the troops follow where their general leads.

=Lead Balls.= Are now generally made by compression, by means of machinery, either at arsenals or at private establishments.

=Lead Out.= A command in the mounted service to cause the horses to be taken from the stable or picket line preparatory to mounting or harnessing.

=Leader.= A chief, a commander; a captain. Also the directing musician of a band.

=Leadership.= The state or condition of a leader.

=Leading.= The clogging of the grooves of a rifle with lead from the bullet,--one of the principal obstacles against continuous accurate shooting. It is obviated by covering the bullet with a paper patch or by using a lubricant in the canellures. See BULLETS.

=Leading Column.= The first column that advances from the right, left, or centre of any army or battalion.

=Leading File.= The first two men of a battalion or company that marches from right, left, or centre, by files. See FILE-LEADER.

=Leading Guide.= The foremost guide of a column.

=Leading Question.= In the proceedings of military tribunals, is a question to a witness which suggests the desired answer. Such questions are objectionable except under certain conditions.

=Leaf Sight.= A form of elevating rear sights, consisting of several hinged leaves of different heights. See SIGHT.

=League.= A measure of length or distance, equal, in England and the United States, to three geographical miles.

=League.= See HOLY LEAGUE.

=League, Achæan.= See ACHÆAN LEAGUE.

=League, First Suabian.= See SUABIA.

=League, Great Suabian.= See SUABIA.

=League, Holy.= See HOLY LEAGUE.

=League of Marbach.= See SUABIA.

=Leaguer.= A camp, generally of an investing army.

=Leaguer.= One who unites in a league; a confederate.

=Leaguerer.= One who belongs to or is engaged in a league; a leaguer.

=Leave of Absence.= See ABSENCE, LEAVE OF.

=Lech.= A river in Southern Germany, near which the cruel Gen. Tilly was defeated by the Swedes, under Gustavus Adolphus, April 18, 1632. Tilly died of his wounds soon after.

=Leek.= The Welsh emblem, in consequence of a command from Dewi, or David, afterwards archbishop of St. David’s, in 519. On the day that King Arthur won a great victory over the Saxons, Dewi is said to have ordered the soldiers to place a leek in their caps.

=Leesburg.= See BALL’S BLUFF.

=Legatus.= Among the Romans, an ambassador, or lieutenant-general. Legati were of three kinds: (1) Those sent by foreign nations on an embassy to Rome. (2) Those sent from Rome on an embassy to foreign countries or the provinces. (3) Those who served under Roman generals during war, or under the pro-consuls and prætors in the provinces. The latter kind was generally a person of high military skill, and was appointed by the consul, prætor, or dictator, under whom he was intended to serve. His nomination, however, was not legal until sanctioned by the senate. His duty was to aid his superior officer, by advising him in all great emergencies, by acting as his substitute, both in civil and military affairs, and by assuming his insignia as well as authority during his absence. In the last case, he was called legatus pro prætore. The number of legati under one superior differed in proportion to the importance of the war or the extent of the province.

=Leghorn= (It. Livarno). A large maritime town in Central Italy, in the province of Leghorn. It was entered by the French army July 27, 1796; evacuated by the French in 1799, and retaken in 1800. It was unsuccessfully attacked by the British and Italian forces in December, 1813. The Austrians took the city from the insurgents May 12 and 13, 1849, and quelled a slight insurrection, July, 1857.

=Legion= (Lat. legio). A corps of soldiers in the Roman armies, first formed by Romulus, about 750 B.C., when it consisted of 3000 foot and 300 horse. When Hannibal was in Italy, 216 B.C., the legion consisted of 5200 soldiers; and under Marius, in 88 B.C., it was 6200 foot besides 700 horse. There were 10, and sometimes as many as 18 legions kept at Rome. Augustus had a standing army of 45 legions, together with 25,000 horse and 37,000 light-armed troops, about 5 B.C.; and the peace establishment of Adrian was 30 of these formidable brigades. A legion was divided into 10 cohorts, and every cohort into 6 centuries, with a vexillum, or standard, guarded by 10 men. The peace of Britain was protected by 3 legions. The French army was divided into legions subsequent to the reign of Francis I. See THUNDERING LEGIONS.

=Legion of Honor, Order of the.= An order of merit instituted under the French republic in May, 1802, by the first consul, Napoleon Bonaparte. The order originally comprised three classes,--grand officers, commanders, and legionaries. The class of grand officers was, on the coronation of Napoleon I., divided into Knights of the Grand Eagle and grand officers. On the restoration of the Bourbons the Legion was remodeled so as to consist of four classes,--viz., grand officers, grand crosses, commanders, and knights, but the order lost much of its original character. The order confers its distinction for civil and military valor, but especially for the latter. The college of the Legion is in possession of considerable means, which have been augmented by the addition of property belonging to Louis Philippe. Out of this fund pensions are paid to certain members of the order who have been wounded or who have undergone the amputation of a limb in service. These pensions have sometimes amounted to as large a sum as 6,000,000 of francs annually.

=Legionary.= Relating to or consisting of a legion or of legions; as, a legionary force.

=Legionary.= One of a legion.

=Legnago.= A fortress on the Adige, Northern Italy, one of the quadrilateral. It was captured by the French in 1796; but reverted to the Austrians in 1815. It was surrendered to the Italians in October, 1866.

=Legnano.= A town in Northern Italy, in the province of Milan, where the emperor Barbarossa was defeated by the Milanese and their allies, May 29, 1176, which victory led to the treaty of Constance in 1183.

=Leicester.= A town of England, and the chief town of Leicestershire, situated on the Soar. During the civil war it was taken by Charles I., May 31, and by Fairfax, June 17, 1645.

=Leinster.= A province of Ireland, occupying the southeast part of that island. It was a kingdom in 1167. The abduction of Devorgilla, wife of O’Rourke, a lord of Connaught, by Dermot, king of Leinster, in 1152, is asserted to have led to the landing of the English, and the subsequent conquest. The province of Leinster gave the title of duke to Schomberg’s son in 1690. The title became extinct in 1719, and was conferred on the family of Fitzgerald in 1766.

=Leipsic.= A city of the kingdom of Saxony, situated about 65 miles west-northwest of Dresden, near the Prussian border, in a large and fertile plain. The Elster, the Pleisze, and the Parthe flow through or past the city, and unite about 3 miles below it. The city sprung up at the junction of the Pleisze and the Parthe, and is first mentioned as a town in 1015. It gradually increased in prosperity and importance. The famous Leipsic Conference between Luther, Eck, and Carlstadt, in 1519, greatly tended to the promotion of the Reformation. It suffered greatly in the Thirty Years’ War, in which it was five times besieged and taken, and again in the Seven Years’ War; and although the commercial changes connected with the French revolution at first affected it very favorably, yet it suffered not a little amidst the terrible struggle of the years 1812 and 1813, when it was alternately in possession of the French and of the allies. The immediate neighborhood of Leipsic has been the scene of two battles of great importance in the history of Germany and of Europe,--the battle of Leipsic, or of Breitenfeld (see BREITENFELD), on September 7, 1631, and the great battle called the Battle of the Nations, which continued for three days, October 16-18, 1813. The latter was one of the most bloody and decisive of those which effected the deliverance of Europe from French domination. The troops under Napoleon in this battle amounted to about 180,000 men, and those of the allies, commanded by Prince Schwarzenberg, Marshal Blücher, and Bernadotte, crown-prince of Sweden, to almost 300,000. About 2000 pieces of artillery were brought to the field. The loss of the French was reckoned at about 38,000 killed and wounded, and 30,000 prisoners; that of the allies to about 48,000. The victory of the allies was complete; the French being compelled to evacuate Leipsic, and to retreat.

=Leith.= A town of Scotland, 2 miles northeast from Edinburgh, of which it is the seaport. It was burned in 1541 by an English fleet, and in 1549 it was occupied by French troops, who came to the assistance of Mary of Guise.

=Leleges.= An ancient race which inhabited Greece before the Hellenes, and are mentioned along with the Pelasgians as the most ancient inhabitants. They were a warlike and migratory race, and piracy was their chief occupation. The Leleges must be regarded as a branch of the great Indo-Germanic race, who became incorporated with the Hellenes, and thus ceased to exist as an independent people.

=Length of Cannon.= Is the distance from the rear of the base-ring to the face of the piece, and the extreme length is from the rear of the cascabel to the face.

=Lengthen.= To extend in length; to make longer; to elongate; as, to lengthen a line of troops. To lengthen the step, to take more than the prescribed pace.

=Lenni-Lenape.= See DELAWARES.

=Lens.= A parish and town of France, in the department Pas-de-Calais, 9 miles from Arras. A battle was fought here in 1648, between the Spanish forces and those of the Prince of Condé, in which the latter gained the victory.

=Lentini= (Lat. Leontini). A city of Sicily, situated between Syracuse and Catania. In 427 B.C., the Lentinians applied to the Athenians for support against Syracuse; they were sent twenty ships, under the command of Laches and Charœades. In 215 B.C., they raised their standard of open war against Rome; but Marcellus hastened to attack the city, and made himself master of it without difficulty. Under the Roman government it was restored to the position of an independent town.

=Leon.= A province of Spain, subdivided into the smaller provinces of Salamanca, Zumor, and Leon. The kingdom of Leon was erected in 746, by Alfonso the Catholic, out of the provinces he had wrested from the Saracens and the older kingdom of Asturias, and in 1230 it was permanently united to Castile. During the Peninsular war it suffered greatly.

=Lepanto= (anc. Naupactus). Called by the Greek peasants Epakto, a seaport town of Greece, 12 miles northeast from Patras. The name Naupactus is said to have originated with the Heraclidæ, who are reported to have there built the fleet with which they invaded the Peloponnesus. After the Persian war it fell into the possession of the Athenians, who settled it with the expatriated Messenians. The Athenians made it their chief military station in Western Greece during the Peloponnesian war. At its close Lepanto was taken by the Locrians, and afterwards passed in succession through the hands of the Etolians, Macedonians, Achæans, and Romans. In 1475 it was invested by the Turks, who, after the loss of 30,000 men in four months, were forced to raise the siege. Within the Gulf of Lepanto, in 1571, was fought the great naval engagement between the Ottomans and the Christian powers of the Mediterranean, under Don John of Austria, in which the former lost about 200 galleys and 20,000 men.

=Lerida.= A town of Spain, in Catalonia, on the Segre, 80 miles northwest from Barcelona. In 1707 this place was stormed by the French, and in 1810 it was again taken by French troops under Suchet.

=Lesse= (Fr.). A machine covered with raw hides, used as a mantelet by the ancient Greeks for different purposes.

=Let Off, To.= To discharge; to let fly, as an arrow; or fire the charge of, as a gun.

=Letter Stamp.= See INSPECTION OF CANNON.

=Letters Patent.= The written instrument by which a government grants to an inventor the exclusive right and use of his invention for a term of years.

=Lettre de Cachet= (Fr.). An infamous state paper, which existed before the French revolution, which was sealed, and the person upon whom it was served carried into confinement without ever seeing the authority by which he was hurried off in so peremptory a manner, or being tried afterwards for any specific offense. It was always written by the king, countersigned by one of his principal secretaries of state, and sealed with the royal signet.

=Lettre de Passe= (Fr.). A paper which was formerly signed by the kings of France, authorizing an officer to exchange from one regiment into another.

=Leuctra.= A village of Bœotia, situated between Thespia and Platæa, in the territory of the former, celebrated as the scene of the great battle between the Spartans, commanded by Cleombrotus, and the Thebans, under Epaminondas, in which the former were defeated, and the supremacy of Sparta finally overthrown.

=Leuthen.= A village of Prussia, in Lower Silesia, 9 miles west of Breslau. It is celebrated for the victory won there December 6, 1757, by Frederick the Great, with 33,000 men, over the Austrians under Prince Charles of Lorraine at the head of 92,000.

=Levee en Masse= (Fr.). A general rising of the people of any country, either for the purpose of self-defense, or to answer the intention of its governing powers.

=Level.= In mining, is a horizontal passage or gallery.

=Level, Gunner’s.= Sec GUNNER’S LEVEL.

=Level, Horizontal.= Free from obstructions or declivities.

=Level, James’s.= An instrument to find the highest points of the breech and muzzle of a cannon, when the carriage-wheels stand on uneven ground. Plumb-level, one in which the horizontal arm is placed in true position by means of a plummet or plumb-line, to which it is at right angles. Spirit-level, one in which the adjustment to the horizon depends on the position of a bubble, or small vacant space, in the upper side of a glass tube, which is slightly curved and nearly filled with alcohol or ether. Surveyor’s level, or leveling instrument, a telescope with a spirit-level attached, and with suitable screws, etc., for accurate adjustment, the whole mounted on a tripod for use in leveling.

=Levellers.= A fanatical party in Germany, headed by Muncer and Storck in the 16th century, who taught that all distinctions of rank were usurpations on the rights of mankind. At the head of 40,000 men Muncer commanded the sovereign princes of Germany and the magistrates of cities to resign their authority; and on his march his followers ravaged the country. The landgrave of Hesse at last defeated him; 7000 of the enthusiasts fell in battle, and the rest fled; their leader was taken and beheaded at Mulhausen in 1525. The English “Levellers,” powerful in Parliament in 1647, were put down by Cromwell in 1649, and their leader, Lilburn, imprisoned.

=Lever-jack.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Levet.= A blast of a trumpet,--probably that by which soldiers are called in the morning. This term is obsolete.

=Levy= (Fr. levée). Is the compulsory raising of a body of troops from any specified class in the community for purposes of general defense or offense. When a country is in danger of instant invasion, a levée en masse is sometimes made,--i.e., every man capable of bearing arms is required to contribute in person towards the common defense. On less urgent occasions, the levy may be restricted to a class, as to men between eighteen and forty years of age. At other times, a levy of so many thousand men of a certain age is decreed, and the districts concerned draw them by lot from among their eligible male population. In armies sustained by volunteering, the levy, which is a remnant of barbarous times, is unnecessary; but the system was frequently resorted to in France before the enactment of the conscription laws. In 1862-64 there were great levies in the United States of America; and in any country where great danger is apparent, and volunteers are not sufficiently numerous, recourse must at all times be had to a levy of the people. This term is also applied to the assessment of taxes, tolls, or contributions.

=Levy.= To raise or collect troops or funds by a levy. The word has also other meanings; as, to levy war, to make war, to begin hostilities; to levy a siege, to desist from, to raise the siege. In this latter sense it is nearly obsolete.

=Lewes.= A town of England, in Sussex, on the Ouse, 7 miles northeast from Brighton. Near this town, in 1264, Henry III. was defeated by Simon de Montfort, and imprisoned in the castle.

=Lewis.= A device for lifting stones, consisting of two wedge-shaped pieces of iron, which are inserted butt foremost into a dovetail mortise in the stone, and keyed by inserting a piece between them. All three are then shackled to the lifting-chain by a bolt passing through them.

=Lexington.= A township of Middlesex Co., Mass., 11 miles northwest from Boston. The first battle in the war between Great Britain and her revolted colonies in North America was fought here on April 19, 1775, and ended disastrously for the British.

=Lexington.= A village of Lafayette township, Mo., on the right bank of the Missouri River. In September, 1861, a body of Federal troops under Col. Mulligan were here captured by the Confederate general Price. The town was retaken by the Federals in October following. In October, 1864, an indecisive engagement took place here between the armies of Gens. Price and Blunt.

=Leydan= (anc. Lugdunum Batavorum). An important city of the Netherlands, in the province of South Holland, on the Old Rhine, 6 miles from its outlet in the North Sea. It was once a strong fortress, and the siege which it sustained from the Spaniards in 1573-74 made it famous. For seven weeks there was no bread within its walls, but the burghers still resisted, though the hunger became almost unbearable. At last the Prince of Orange came to their rescue. The dykes were opened, and the waters, which drowned a great number of the besiegers, carried a fleet of 200 boats loaded with provisions to the city. As a reward for the valor the city evinced during this siege, the Prince of Orange founded a university here.

=Liburnia.= In ancient times was a portion of Northern Illyricum, in the neighborhood of the Sinus Flanaticus, now the present Croatia and Dalmatia. It was inhabited by the Pelasgic race, who were daring seamen and noted pirates. Their privateers, with large lateen-sails, were for centuries the terror of the seas, and during the second Macedonian war the Romans adopted them.

=Libyans.= The name formerly given to the inhabitants of the northern portion of Africa, with the exception of the delta of the Nile. They fell under the sway of the Romans, and subsequently relapsed into barbarism.

=Licorne.= See HOWITZER.

=Lictor.= A Roman officer who bore an axe and fasces as insignia of his office. His duty was to attend the chief magistrates when they appeared in public, to clear the way and enforce respect for them. In addition, he performed constabulary duties.

=Lid=, or =Roof=. See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Lide= (Fr.). A warlike machine which was formerly used to throw large stones against a fortified place, or upon an enemy.

=Lie.= To be situated; to occupy a fixed place; as, the troops lie encamped at Washington. To lie in ambush, to be posted in such a manner as to be able to surprise your enemy, should he presume to advance without having previously cleared the woods, hedges, etc. To lie in wait, to take a position unobserved by the enemy, and to remain under arms, in the expectation of suddenly falling upon his flanks or rear. To lie under cover, to be under the protection of a battery, or to be sheltered by a wood, etc. To lie under arms, to remain in a state ready for action.

=Liebenau.= A town of Bohemia. Here was fought the first action of the Seven Weeks’ War, June 26, 1866, when the Austrians were compelled to retreat by the Prussians under Gen. von Horne.

=Liegnitz.= A town of Prussian Silesia, at the conflux of the Katzbach, the Schwarzwasser, and the Neisse, 35 miles northwest from Breslau. The Austrian army was totally defeated before Liegnitz in 1760 by the Prussians under the command of Frederick the Great.

=Lieutenancy.= The office or commission of a lieutenant.

=Lieutenant.= From the French, lieu tenant, “holding the place,” in a general sense is an officer performing the duties of his superior. The rank was abolished by Charles IX. in the French army, and re-established by Henry IV. In company organizations the lieutenant comes next after the captain, and supplies his place during temporary absence. There are two grades of lieutenants, first and second. A lieutenant in the navy is an officer ranking with a captain in the army, holding rank above a master and below a lieutenant-commander.

=Lieutenant de la Colonelle= (Fr.). The second officer, or what was formerly styled the captain-lieutenant of the colonel’s company of every infantry regiment in France.

=Lieutenant du Roi= (Fr.). During the monarchy of France there was a deputy governor in every fortified place, or strong town, who commanded in the absence of the governor, and was a check upon his conduct when present. This person was called lieutenant du roi. Lieutenants des Gardes Françoises et Suisses; lieutenants belonging to the French and Swiss guards. During the existence of the monarchy in France they bore the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and took precedence of all captains. Lieutenants Provinciaux d’Artillerie were certain officers belonging to the old French service, and immediately attached to the artillery, who bore the title or name of the particular province in which they were stationed. Several of these lieutenants, who had military employment under the board of ordnance, received the rank of lieutenant-general in the army from the king, and could rise to the most exalted stations in common with other officers.

=Lieutenant-Colonel.= His rank corresponds with that of commanders in the navy. See COLONEL, LIEUTENANT-.

=Lieutenant-General.= His rank is equivalent to that of a vice-admiral. See GENERAL, LIEUTENANT-.

=Life-guard.= A guard of the life or person; a guard that attends the person of a prince, or other high officer or dignitary; a body-guard. See GUARDS.

=Light Battery.= A mounted battery of field-guns.

=Light Bobs.= In the British service, a familiar term used for the light infantry.

=Light Horse.= All mounted soldiers that are lightly armed and accoutred for active and desultory service, may be considered under this term. Thus light dragoons, hussars, mounted riflemen, etc., are strictly speaking light horse.

=Light Infantry.= A body of armed men selected and trained for rapid evolutions; often employed to cover and assist other troops. See INFANTRY, LIGHT.

=Light Infantry Company.= In the British service, a company of active, strong men, carefully selected from the rest of the regiment. It always occupies its place on the left of the battalion until called for. When the call sounds, the light company orders arms and unfixes bayonets without word of command, and remains in readiness to move.

=Light Marching Order.= A soldier paraded with arms, ammunition, canteen, and haversack, is said to be in light marching order.

=Light Troops.= By this term is generally meant all troops which are lightly accoutred for detached service.

=Light, Velocity of.= It has been proven by astronomers that light travels through space with the prodigious, though finite, velocity of 192,500, or nearly 200,000 miles in a second of time, and consequently would pass round the earth in the eighth part of a second. It is also proved, by the phenomena of aberration, that the light of the sun, planets, and all the fixed stars, travels with the same velocity.

=Light-armed.= Not heavily armed, or armed with light weapons; as, light troops; a troop of light horse. See INFANTRY, LIGHT-ARMED.

=Light-ball.= See PYROTECHNY.

=Light-barrel.= See PYROTECHNY.

=Ligny.= A village in Belgium, in the province of Namur, about 10 miles northeast of Charleroi, famous on account of the battle fought here by the French under Napoleon, and the Prussians under Blücher, June 16, 1815, in which the latter was defeated.

=Liguria.= In ancient geography, a region of Northern Italy, the land of the Ligurians It is first mentioned by the early Greek authors as extending as far westward as the mouths of the Rhone, while according to Polybius, its eastern boundary was Pisæ, and its northern the country of the Arretines. The Ligurians, so often praised by ancient authors for their hardihood and bravery, are generally understood to be those on the south side of the Apennines exclusively. In the time of Strabo these eked out the scanty produce of their stony and sterile soil by hunting and feeding flocks, and thus fostered that vigor of frame and ferocity of disposition which long rendered them the indomitable foes and plunderers of the Romans. They were renowned as slingers and light infantry in the armies of the Carthaginians, and afterwards in those of the Romans. They were conquered by the Romans in 125 B.C. Liguria formed the first point of the Roman province of Gaul; in 1797, in consequence of the conquests of Bonaparte, it was formed into the republic of Liguria.

=Limber.= To attach to the limbers; as, to limber the gun; to limber up.

=Limber-chest.= The ammunition-chest placed on the limber of field-pieces.

=Limbers.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR.

=Limenarque= (Fr.). An office of distinction, which existed in the Roman empire. The persons invested with it were directed to watch the frontiers of the empire, and they commanded the troops that were employed upon that service.

=Limerick.= A city of Ireland, chief town of a county of the same name, situated on the Shannon, about 60 miles from its mouth, and 106 miles south-southwest of Dublin. It has always been deemed a place of importance. It was taken by the English in 1174; in 1651 it was taken by Ireton, the son-in-law of Cromwell; in 1690 it was unsuccessfully besieged by King William III. in person; in 1691 it surrendered to Gen. Ginkel, afterwards earl of Athlone. Before the Conquest it was the seat of the kings of Thomond.

=Limitary.= A guard or superintendent, placed at the confines or boundaries of any kingdom or state.

=Limitation of Time of Prosecution.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 103.

=Limites Romani.= The name of a continuous series of fortifications, consisting of castles, walls, earthen ramparts, and the like, which the Romans erected along the Rhine and the Danube, to protect their possessions from the attacks of the Germans.

=Limits.= In a military sense, is that which bounds or confines; as, the limits of a sentinel’s post; the limits of a garrison. An officer in arrest may have his limits extended.

=Limoges.= A town of France, in the department of the Upper Vienne, on the Vienne. It was besieged and taken by the English in 1370.

=Limonite.= An iron ore (which see).

=Lincelles.= In Northern France, where the allied English and Dutch armies defeated the French, August 18, 1793.

=Linch-pin.= A pin through the end of an axle-arm of an artillery carriage to keep the wheel on. A hook attached to the head of the pin and embracing the axle-arm prevents the pin from being jolted out.

=Linch-pin Washer.= A ring against which the linch pin rubs.

=Lincoln= (anc. Lindum Colonia). A city of England, the capital of Lincolnshire, on the Witham. It was at the period of the Conquest rich and populous. It was taken several times by Saxons and Danes. Without Newport-gate, upon Lincoln plain, was fought the battle between the partisans of the empress Maud, commanded by the Earl of Gloucester, and the army of Stephen, in which the king was defeated and taken prisoner, February 2, 1141. Lincoln was the scene of important operations during the civil wars in the reign of King John; and here the party of the Dauphin was completely overthrown by the Earl of Pembroke during the minority of Henry III. During the great civil war the royalists obtained possession of the city, but it was stormed by the Parliamentary army under the Earl of Manchester, May 5, 1644.

=Linden-tree.= The wood used in artificial fireworks, etc.

=Lindisfarne.= See HOLY ISLAND.

=Line.= Various opinions have been given as to what portion of the military establishment should constitute the line of the army, and in the absence of legislation, which should settle the question, it will continue to be a subject of controversy, and some difficulty has arisen from the vague and uncertain meaning of the words “line of the army,” which neither in the English service nor in the United States have a well-defined meaning. The opinion that the words are intended to distinguish the regular army from the militia, or discriminate between officers by brevet and those by ordinary commissions, as understood by some, would seem to be erroneous. Though the words “line of the army” may sometimes be used in a different sense, the opinion prevails that in the 122d Article of War they are used to designate those officers of the army who do not belong to the staff, in contradistinction to those who do. It is now generally conceded that the law contemplates that the fighting portion of the army; as cavalry, artillery, infantry, and engineers, or that part of the service organized or subdivided into units for command, as well as the commanders thereof, constitutes the “line of the army.” The four arms of the service above mentioned form the principal part of a mobilized army, and as they are always formed into a line of battle to resist the attack of an enemy, or to make an attack, they are generally known as the “line of the army,” or “troops of the line,” to distinguish them from other bodies of men who form parts of an army.

=Line.= In the British service, the regular infantry of an army, as distinguished from militia, volunteer corps, artillery, cavalry, etc.

=Line.= In tactics, a body of men in either one or two ranks; generally a body of troops drawn up with an extended front. To line, is to place troops in line (see ALIGN); thus, to line hedges or walls, is to place troops behind them. To form the line, in land tactics, is to arrange the troops in order of battle, or battle array. To break the line, to change the direction from that of a straight line, in order to obtain a cross-fire, and for other purposes. To line a street or road, is to draw up any number of men on each side of the street or road, and to face them inwards. This is frequently practiced on days of ceremony, when some distinguished person is received with military honors on his way through places where troops are stationed. This is the usage also in funerals, when the corps under arms form a line facing inwards.

=Line.= In fencing, an imaginary line opposite to the fencer, wherein the shoulders, right arm, and the sword should always be found, and wherein are also to be placed the two feet at the distance of 18 inches apart. In which sense a man is said to be in his line, or to go out of his line, etc.

=Line.= A cord or rope; as, a picket line, side lines (which see).

=Line, Horizontal.= A line parallel to the plane of the horizon; as, any line in the level surface of a plane.

=Line, Inclined.= Is a line which is oblique to the plane of the horizon.

=Line, Magistral.= See MAGISTRAL LINE.

=Line, Oblique.= A straight line which is neither parallel nor perpendicular to another line; also a line of troops posted or marching obliquely.

=Line of Battle.= The position of troops drawn up in their usual order without any determined manœuvre.

=Line of Counter-approach.= A sort of trench which the besieged make, and push forward from the glacis, for the purpose of counteracting the enemy’s works.

=Line of Defense.= See DEFENSE, LINE OF.

=Line of Demarcation.= A line which is drawn by consent, to ascertain the limits of lands or territories belonging to different powers.

=Line of Direction.= In gunnery, was a line formerly marked upon guns, by a short point upon the muzzle, and a cavity on the base-ring, to direct the eye in pointing the gun.

=Line of Duty.= An officer or soldier disabled while performing properly authorized duty is said to be injured in line of duty, and as such is entitled to the allowances fixed by law.

=Line of Fire.= In gunnery, the axis of the gun produced.

=Line of Fire.= In fortification, this term admits of two distinct acceptations: first, when it is found necessary to give an idea of the manner in which a rampart or an intrenchment covers any space of ground by the discharge of ordnance or musketry, lines must be drawn to express the distances traversed by the shot, etc. These lines are called lines of fire, being representations of the actual ranges; second, all that extent of a rampart or intrenchment from which the projectiles of ordnance or musketry are discharged, is understood to be the line of fire.

=Line of Least Resistance.= The shortest distance from the centre of the charge of a mine to the open air.

=Line of March.= Arrangement for marching. Course or direction taken by an army.

=Line of Metal.= Or natural line of sight, is a line drawn from the highest point of the base-ring or base-line to the highest point of the swell of the muzzle, or to the top of the sight, if there be one. The line of sight nearest to the axis of the piece is the natural line of sight, the others are artificial lines of sight. See ARTIFICIAL LINE OF SIGHT.

=Line of Sight.= See LINE OF METAL and POINTING.

=Line of the Bastion, Capital.= Is a line which bisects the salient angle of a bastion. See CAPITAL.

=Line, Retiring.= A line of troops in orderly retreat.

=Line, Tangent.= A straight line, which meets a curve at one point and touches without cutting it.

=Line, Vertical.= A line which is perpendicular to the horizon. Of this description are all lines that express height or depth.

=Lineal, or Linear.= Pertaining to length; pertaining to the line of an army.

=Lineal Rank.= Is the rank of a line-officer in his arm of the service.

=Linear Promotion.= Is promotion of line-officers according to seniority in the arm of service, as opposed to promotion in the regiment.

=Line-firings.= This term is used when troops fire by line.

=Lines.= A series of field-works, either continuous or at intervals. The former are connected by means of curtains or straight walls. The rule in constructing the other is, that the works shall be within cannon- or musket-shot range of each other, according to their armament.

=Lines, Close and Open.= Formerly when troops were drawn up in order of battle with intervals between the battalions and squadrons, the lines were said to be close and open.

=Lines, Continued.= A continued line of field-works constructed for the defense of a position.

=Lines Cremaillere.= Are composed of alternate short and long faces at right angles to each other.

=Lines, Full or Close.= Are lines of men drawn up without leaving intervals between them.

=Lines, Inside.= Are a kind of ditches towards the place, to prevent sallies, etc.

=Lines of Bastion.= As the name indicates, are formed of a succession of bastion-shaped parapets, each consisting of two faces and two flanks, connected by a curtain.

=Lines of Circumvallation.= The defensive works by which a besieging army covers its rear and flanks against a relieving force.

=Lines of Communication.= Are trenches that unite one work to another, so that men may pass between them without being exposed to the enemy’s fire; hence, the whole intrenchment round any place is sometimes called a line of communication, because it leads to all the works.

=Lines of Communication.= This term is applied to all the practicable routes and roads connecting the different parts of an army occupying the theatre of war. Therefore, as the army moves from its base, the lines of operations become lines of communication, and since these “lines of operations” are generally the longest and most important lines of communication, it is to them that the simple term “communications” generally refers. All the routes used by the trains employed in provisioning an army, form a part of the communications. The most important, safest, and most convenient of these routes, all other things being equal, will be the central one, or the one leading from the centre of the army back to its base. This particular route is sometimes designated as the “line of supplies.”--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Lines of Contravallation.= See CONTRAVALLATION.

=Lines of Operations.= The roads or routes by which an army moves from its base towards its objective-point have been designated by the term “lines of operations.” Lines of operations are classified from their number into single, double, or multiple lines; from their positions with respect to the lines of operations of the enemy into interior or exterior lines; and from their position with respect to each other into convergent or divergent lines. Other classifications are sometimes used descriptive of the nature or other quality of the line.

Single Line of Operations.--An army moving in a given direction with all its parts united, or with those parts so situated that they can be readily joined when required, is said to use a “single line of operations.” Sometimes this line is called a simple line. A single line of operations does not mean a single road, but embraces all the roads or routes taken by the fractions of the army for the purpose of reaching a common point of concentration; the condition being imposed that these roads shall not be so far apart, or have intervening such obstacles, that the different parts of an army will be prevented from uniting at any given time which may be appointed.

Double and Multiple Lines of Operations.--When there are obstacles intervening between the roads or routes passed over by an army, or the roads are so far apart as to prevent the parts of the army from being readily united, the army is then said to employ “double” or “multiple” lines of operations.

Interior Lines of Operations.--If these lines are within those employed by the enemy, they are known as “interior” lines.

Exterior Lines of Operations.--If these lines are outside of the lines employed by the enemy, they are called “exterior” lines.

Convergent Lines of Operations.--If these lines of operations start from points some distance apart, approach each other, and meet at some point in advance, they are called “convergent.” Sometimes the term “concentric” is employed to designate them.

Divergent Lines of Operations.--These lines are the reverse of convergent lines, as they continue to separate, or the distance between them to widen, as the army advances. The term “eccentric” is also applied to them.

Accidental Lines of Operations.--Lines of operations are sometimes employed different from those proposed in the original plan of campaign. To these lines the term “accidental” is applied. It does not follow that their adoption is a matter of accident, as might be inferred from their name. They are frequently the result of a change in the original plan, which probable change was foreseen and provided for.

Temporary Lines of Operations.--Sometimes an army in making a movement employs a line which deviates from that adopted in the general plan of campaign. As soon as the movement is completed the original lines are resumed. Such line adopted for such movement is termed a “temporary line.” The term “manœuvre line” is also applied to it.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Lines of Retreat.= The roads passed over as the army advances are ordinarily the roads taken when the army retires or is driven back. In the latter case they are known as “lines of retreat,” and are “single,” “double,” “diverging,” etc., according to their number and position.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Lines of Tenailles.= Consist of parapets, forming a series of salient and re-entering angles.

=Lines of Torres Vedras.= See TORRES VEDRAS.

=Lines Outside.= Are a kind of ditches towards the field, to hinder relief, etc.

=Lines, Strategical.= The lines followed by an army in making a strategical movement are called “strategical lines.” Temporary lines of operations, or manœuvre lines, therefore, are strategical lines. Lines of operations are important strategical lines. And in general, lines connecting two or more strategical points, which lines can be used by an army, and which allow of easy communication between these points, are “strategical lines.” A base of operations is therefore a strategical line.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Lines with Intervals.= One or more rows of field-works with large intervals between them, through which the offensive may be assumed.

=Linesmen.= In the British service, infantrymen of the regular army are so called.

=Lingerer.= One who pretends to be indisposed, in order to avoid his tour of duty,--a skulker. Hence the term malingerer, or a soldier who avoids duty in a disreputable manner.

=Linlithgow-bridge.= Near Edinburgh, Scotland, near which the forces of the Earl of Angus, who held James V. in their power, defeated the forces of the Earl of Lennox, who, after receiving promise of quarter, was killed by Sir James Hamilton, 1526.

=Linstock.= A short staff of wood, about 3 feet long, having at one end a piece of iron divided into two branches, each of which has a notch to hold a lighted match, and a screw to fasten it there, the other end being shod with iron to stick into the ground.

=Linstock Socket.= A socket attached to the piece in which the linstock was formerly carried.

=Lipan Indians.= A warlike tribe of aborigines residing in Texas and Mexico.

=Lippe=, or =Lippe Detmold=. A small principality of Northwest Germany, the chief part of which is comprised between Prussian Westphalia, Hanover, and the principality Pyrmont. The surface is hilly, partly covered by the Teutoburger Wald, where Arminius exterminated the legions of Varus.

=Lis= (Fr.). A warlike machine was formerly so called. It consisted of a piece of wood or a stake, about the size of the human body, which was made smaller at the top than at the bottom, and resembled a lily not yet blown. Several of these were tied together with ozier or willow twigs, and were used for the security of a camp. They were not unlike the palisades of the present day.

=Lisaine.= A small river in France, rising in the Vosges Mountains, and flowing west of the fortress of Belfort. On January 15, 16, and 17, 1871, a terrible contest raged here between the French army under Bourbaki and the Germans under Von Werder, the French being finally compelled to retreat. The German loss was about 2000; the French about 6000.

=Lisbon.= The capital of Portugal, situated on the north bank of the Tagus, near its mouth in the Atlantic. In 1807 it was occupied by the French, and was afterwards the scene of important operations between the British and French armies, until the latter were finally driven from Portugal.

=Lisburn.= A town of Ireland, in the county of Antrim, on the Lagan, 8 miles southwest from Belfast. It was founded in 1627, and in 1641 was laid in ashes by the Irish insurgents. It was again burnt in 1707.

=Lisieux.= A town of France, in the department Calvados, situated near the confluence of the Orbec and the Tanque. The Normans pillaged it in the 8th century, and retained it for a considerable time. It has since been frequently besieged and captured, and was last taken by Henri Quatre in 1588.

=Lisle=, or =Lille=. A city of France, formerly the capital of French Flanders, and now of the department of the North. It was founded in 1009 by Baudouin IV., count of Flanders. It fell into the power of Philip the Fair, after a siege of three months in 1297, and was taken again by Guy, count of Flanders, in 1302. The Protestants attempted in vain to surprise it in 1581, and the French besieged it without success in 1645. Wrested from the Spaniards by Louis XIV. in 1667, and retaken by the allies in 1708, after a long and obstinate siege, it was ceded to France by the treaty of Utrecht. The Austrians bombarded it from September 29 till October 6, 1792, but the garrison, admirably supported by the bravery of the inhabitants, compelled them to raise the siege.

=Lissa.= A town of Prussian Poland, near the borders of Silesia. This place was laid in ruins by the Russian army in the campaign of 1707.

=Lissa.= A mountainous island of Austria, in the Gulf of Venice, near the coast of Dalmatia, held by the British from 1810 to 1815. Near here the Italian fleet, commanded by Persano, was defeated with severe loss by the Austrian fleet, commanded by Tegethoff, July 20, 1866.

=List.= A roll or catalogue; as, the army-list, the pay list, etc.

=List.= A line inclosing or forming the extremity of a piece of ground, or field of combat; hence, in the plural (lists), the ground or field inclosed for a race or combat. To enter the lists, to accept a challenge, or engage in a contest.

=List.= To engage in the public service by enrolling one’s name, as soldiers; to inclose for combat; as, to list a field.

=Litana Silva= (now Silva di Luge). A large forest on the Apennines, in Cisalpine Gaul, southeast of Mutina, in which the Romans were defeated by the Gauls, 216 B.C.

=Litter= (Lat. lectica, from lectus, “bed”). According to Rees’s Cyclopædia, a kind of vehicle borne upon shafts, anciently esteemed the most easy and genteel way of carriage. It was much in use among the Romans, among whom it was borne by slaves kept for that purpose, as it still continues to be in the East, where it is called a palanquin. The invention of litters, according to Cicero, was owing to the kings of Bithynia. In the time of Tiberius they had become very frequent at Rome, as appears from Seneca. Horse-litters were much used in Europe prior to the introduction of coaches. In the military service the litter is a species of hurdle bed, on which the wounded are sometimes carried from the field of battle. What is known as the hand-litter or stretcher is used to carry men from where they fall in battle to field hospitals. The hand-litter or stretcher is generally constructed with canvas about 6¹⁄₂ feet long by 3 feet wide, the sides securely fastened to two hard-wood poles about 8 feet in length; the two cross-pieces should be constructed so that the litter can be rolled up. Small outlying bodies of troops, especially detachments of cavalry, are not always provided with them; for these the hand-litter, made with guns and blankets, has been extemporized; for this purpose the edges of the blanket are rolled over the guns, and tied firmly with twine, and two stout sticks are also tied across at the head and foot, serving as handles for the bearers. This being laid on the ground, the wounded man is placed upon it, with his knapsack under his head. The Indian litter is made by taking two stout saplings, and attaching to them three cross-pieces, about 2¹⁄₂ or 3 feet apart, by cords and notches; the sick or wounded man being placed on his blanket, this frame-work is placed over him, and the blanket knotted to it. By three bent twigs and an additional blanket, a kind of top can be made to this in case of a storm. Several kinds of horse or mule litters for frontier service have been invented, but none seem so well adapted for all purposes as the one invented by Surgeon J. C. Baily, U.S.A. Ambulance litters are so constructed as to be drawn from the ambulance and taken to the wounded man, who is by it conveyed to the vehicle. It is then slid into place on rollers, and steadied by loops and guys.

=Little Fortification.= The first division of the first system of Vauban, and is so called when the exterior side of a fortification does not exceed 350 yards. It is used in the construction of citadels, small forts, horn- and crown-works.

=Living Force.= Vis viva. That force of a body in motion which determines the work of which it is capable. Living force is measured by the product of the mass into the square of the velocity.

=Livonia.= A Russian province on the Baltic Sea, first visited by some Bremen merchants about 1158. It has belonged successively to Denmark, Sweden, Poland, and Russia. It was finally ceded to Peter the Great in 1721.

=Liziere.= The berme of a parapet. See BERME.

=Llandeweyer.= In Caermarthenshire, Wales. Here Llewellyn, prince of Wales, having descended into the plains, was surprised, defeated, and slain by the lords-marchers, December 11, 1282. This disaster led to the subjugation of Wales in 1283.

=Llerena.= An ancient town of Spain, in the province of Estremadura, 59 miles north from Seville. Near this place, the English under Combermere defeated the French under Drouet in 1812.

=Load.= The charge of a fire-arm; as, a load of powder.

=Load.= To place a charge in; to charge, as a gun, with powder, or with powder and shot, or ball.

=Load.= A word of command given when men are to charge their guns or rifles.

=Loading.= The process of loading field-shells is as follows: They are set up on their sabots, the charges measured out in the proper powder-measure, and poured in through a copper funnel. The fuze-plugs are then driven in with a mallet, allowing the tops to project about 0.1 inch, care being taken not to split them. The holes in the plugs are then carefully reamed out, and stopped with tow wads, which are pressed in firmly with a round stick.

Process of loading spherical case-shot: The shot having been cleaned, the balls are put in. A stick with a less diameter than the fuze-hole, and having a groove on each side of it, is inserted and pushed to the bottom of the cavity by working the balls aside. The shot is then placed in a sand-bath or oven, and brought to a proper temperature to receive the sulphur, which, in a melted state, is poured in to fill up the interstices between the balls; the shot is allowed to cool and the sulphur to harden, when the stick is withdrawn, and the sulphur adhering to the sides of the eye and the surface of the shot is removed. If a fuze-plug and paper fuze are to be used, the charge is poured in, and the plug inserted exactly as in case of a shell; but, if the Bormann-fuze is to be used, the charge is inserted, and the stopper and fuze screwed into their places, care being taken before placing the fuze in position to puncture the covering of the magazine, so that the fire can communicate with the charge. Spherical-case are now usually loaded by putting in the bullets and pouring melted sulphur or rosin in until the case is full. After the sulphur has cooled, the space for the powder is bored out by a cutter, which removes both the sulphur and portions of the bullets from the space. This is a quicker method, and gives a more compact projectile. Case-shot for rifle guns are filled in a similar manner. The object of the sulphur or rosin is to solidify the mass of bullets, and preventing them from striking by their inertia against the sides of the case, and cracking it, when the piece is fired. Coal-dust is sometimes used instead of sulphur or rosin. Round, leaden balls, seventeen to the pound, are used.

Process of filling mortar-shells: Having been inspected to see that they are clean, dry, and in good order, place them on a block made for the purpose, or on rings of rope, or in indentations in the floor of the magazine, or on the ground with the fuze-holes up. The charge measured out in a powder-measure is poured in through a funnel, and any incendiary composition, such as pieces of port-fire, rock-fire, etc., is inserted. In the mean time the fuze is cut to the proper length according to the range, by resting it in a groove made in the block, or inserting it in a hole made in a block or in a post, and sawing it across with the fuze-saw; or the fuze may be bored through with a gimlet perpendicularly to the axis at the proper point. The fuze is then tried in the fuze-hole, and should enter three-fourths of its length. If it does not, it may be reduced by rasping. The head of it is covered with tow to prevent the breaking of the composition, the fuze-setter placed on, and the fuze driven with the mallet until the head projects not more than 0.2 inch to 0.4 inch above the surface of the shell. These shells are generally filled and the fuzes driven in the battery magazines, as they are required. Shells for heavy guns are loaded in the same way as mortar-shells; but as paper fuzes inserted in wooden or bronze fuze-plugs are used instead of wooden fuzes, the plug only is driven into its place, and stopped with tow after the bursting charge has been poured through it into the shell.

=Loading-bar.= A bar used to carry shot. It is passed through the ring of the shell-hooks; also called carrying-bar.

=Loading-tongs.= A pair of tongs used with siege howitzers to set the shell home.

=Loano.= A town of Italy, in the province of Genoa, situated on the Gulf of Genoa. Here the Austrians and Sardinians were defeated by the French, under Masséna, November 23, 1795.

=Lobau.= An island of Lower Austria, in the Danube, 5 miles east-southeast of Vienna. Here the French, in 1809, remained intrenched for six weeks, between the battles of Gross-Aspern and Wagram.

=Lobbes.= A town of Belgium, 10 miles southwest from Charleroi, on the Sambre. This was the scene of an engagement between the Austrian and French troops in 1794.

=Local Rank=, or =Temporary Rank=. An officer who receives increased rank, for a limited period or during the performance of some specific duty, is said to have local rank. Also sometimes applied to the rank held by an officer who is assigned to duty by his brevet rank to a locality fixed by geographical limits, such as a military department or district. See BREVET RANK.

=Lochaber-axe.= A formidable weapon of war, consisting of a pole bearing an axe at its upper end, formerly used by the Scotch Highlanders.

=Lochage.= In Greek antiquity, an officer who commanded a cohort.

=Lochleven Castle.= In Scotland, built on an isle in Loch Leven, it is said by the Picts. It was besieged by the English in 1301 and in 1334. The Earl of Northumberland was confined in it, 1569. It was the place of Queen Mary’s imprisonment in 1667.

=Lock.= That part of a fire-arm by which fire is produced for the discharge of a piece. The first form of the apparatus was the match-lock, which consisted of a lever holding a lighted match, which by a simple mechanism was brought in contact with the priming. This was superseded by the wheel-lock, invented in Nuremburg, or Italy, according to different authorities, which made its appearance early in the 16th century. This consisted of a wheel wound up against a spring and released by a trigger. In its revolution it evolved sparks by friction against an alloy of iron and antimony, which fell upon and ignited the priming. This was replaced about 1680 by the flint-lock, consisting of a hammer, or cock, holding a flint, which in its descent struck a steel plate. This device gave way in its turn, about 1840, to the percussion-lock, which, in one or another of its many forms, promises to endure indefinitely. The terms matchlock, flintlock, firelock, etc., have also been used to designate the weapon itself.

=Lock.= In fencing, to seize, as the sword-arm of an antagonist, by turning the left arm around it, in order to disarm him.

=Lock-chain Bridles.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF, THE CAISSON.

=Lock-chain Hooks.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF, THE CAISSON.

=Lock-chains.= Are chains used to lock the wheels of field- and siege-carriages, or to prevent them from turning. For siege-carriages the chain has a shoe at the end, which goes under the wheel and lifts it from the ground. In field-carriages the chain is passed around one of the felloes and secured to itself by a key. In both carriages the chain is secured to the stock by an assembling-bolt.

=Lock-chains.= See ORDNANCE, CONSTRUCTION OF, THE CAISSON.

=Locket.= The chape of a sword-scabbard.

=Locking-plates.= Are thin, flat pieces of iron on the sides of a field-carriage, where the wheels touch it in turning, to prevent the wearing of the wood in those places. These plates are commonly called wheel-guard plates.

=Lock-plate.= The plate in a small-arm which covers the lock and to which the mechanism is attached.

=Lockspit.= In field fortification, a small cut or trench made with a spade, about a foot wide, to mark out the first lines of a work.

=Lock-step.= A mode of marching by a body of men going one after another as closely as possible, in which the leg of each moves at the same time with and closely follows the corresponding leg of the person directly before him.

=Locri=, or =Locri Epizephyrii= (now Motta di Burzano). A town of the Greek Locrians in Italy, on the southeast coast of the Bruttian peninsula. An important event in its history is the battle at the river Sagras, in which 10,000 Locrians and a few Rhegian auxiliaries defeated, with great carnage, an army of 130,000 Crotoniats. They were allies of the Romans against Pyrrhus; but after the battle of Cannæ, 210 B.C., revolted to the Carthaginians, and did not resume the yoke of Rome until 205 B.C. From this period Locri seems to have gradually declined in importance.

=Lodge Arms.= An old word of command, which was used on guards and pickets for the men to place their arms in front of the guard-house or quarter-guard.

=Lodge, Indian.= See WIGWAM.

=Lodge-pole.= Is a pole used by Indians in the construction of their teepes. It is generally of mountain pine or ash, about 30 feet long; 2 to 2¹⁄₂ inches at the butt, and 1¹⁄₂ inches at the other extremity. Lodge-poles are also used by the Indians to construct their travaux, to convey their wounded, camp equipments, etc. See TRAVOIS.

=Lodging Allowance.= In the British army, a money allowance given under certain circumstances to officers and men for whom there is no accommodation in barracks to provide lodgings for themselves. Married sergeants and private soldiers, who are married “with permission,” are entitled to lodging-money at various rates up to 8 shillings a week, when separate rooms in barracks cannot be spared for the accommodation of each couple.

=Lodgment.= Is a work made by the besiegers in some part of a fortification, after the besieged have been driven out, for the purpose of maintaining it, and to be covered from the enemy’s fire. It also means a footing obtained inside of an enemy’s works.

=Lodgment.= See INJURIES TO CANNON.

=Lodi.= A town of Italy, in the province of Lombardy, stands on the right bank of the Adda, 19 miles south of Milan. Lodi is celebrated for the victory of the French under Bonaparte over the Austrians, on May 10, 1796, when the long and narrow bridge was carried by the French column, notwithstanding a tremendous fire from the Austrian batteries.

=Logement= (Fr.). Means generally any place occupied by military men, for the time being, whether they are quartered upon the inhabitants of a town, or are distributed in barracks. When applied to soldiers that have taken the field, it is comprehended under the several heads of huts, tents, etc.

=Logistics.= Is properly that branch of the military art embracing all details for moving and supplying armies. It includes the operations of the ordnance, quartermaster’s, subsistence, medical, and pay departments. It also embraces the preparation and regulation of magazines for opening a campaign, and all orders of march and other orders from the general-in-chief relative to moving and supplying armies. Some writers have, however, extended its signification to embrace strategy.

=Logrono.= A town of Spain, the capital of a province of the same name, in Old Castile, situated on the Ebro. In 1808 and 1823 it was occupied by the French, being of importance as a military post.

=Loigny.= A village in France, department of Loiret, about 9 miles from Orleans. During the Franco-German war, the army of the Loire under Gen. Chanzy was defeated near here by the Germans under the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg, December 2, 1870.

=Lombard.= A form or size of cannon formerly in use.

=Lombards= or =Longobards=. A German people of the Suevic family, not very numerous, but of distinguished valor, who played an important part in the early history of Europe. About the 4th century they seem to have begun to leave their original seats (on the Lower Elbe, where the Romans seem to have come first in contact with them about the beginning of the Christian era), and to have fought their way southward and eastward, till they came into close contact with the eastern Roman empire on the Danube, adopted an Arian form of Christianity, and after having been some time tributary to the Heruli, raised themselves upon the ruins of their power, and of that of the Gepidæ, shortly after the middle of the 6th century, to the position of masters of Pannonia, and became one of the most wealthy and powerful nations in that part of the world. Under their king Alboin they invaded and conquered the north and centre of Italy (568-569), and founded the kingdom of Lombardy. The nobles ravaged the greater part of Italy subsequent to 573, but in 584 they appointed Autharis their king, who greatly extended the empire, and formed a powerful kingdom. In the autumn of 773, Charlemagne invaded Italy; and in May of the following year Pavia was conquered and the Lombard kingdom, after an existence of 206 years, was overthrown. In 776, an insurrection of some of the Lombard nobles brought Charlemagne again into Italy, and their dukedoms were broken down into counties, and the Lombard system, as far as possible, supplanted by that of the Franks. In 803, a treaty between Charlemagne, the Western, and Nicephorus the Eastern emperor, confirmed the right of the former to the Lombard territory.

=Lombardy.= The name given to that part of Upper Italy which formed the nucleus of the kingdom of the Lombards (which see). It consisted of the whole of Italy north of the peninsula, with the exceptions of Savoy and Venice, and after the fall of the Lombard kingdom, in 774, was incorporated in the Carlovingian empire. In 843 it was created a separate kingdom, but was not entirely severed from the Frankish monarchy till 888. From this time it was ruled by its own kings till 961, when it was annexed to the German empire. Out of the wrecks of the old independent kingdom now arose a number of independent duchies, as Friuli, Mantua, Susa, Piedmont, etc., and soon afterwards the republics of Venice, Genoa, Milan, and Pavia, etc. The Lombard cities declared themselves independent towards the commencement of the 12th century, and in 1167 were joined by their less powerful neighbors in the “first Lombard league,” for the maintenance of their liberties against Frederic Barbarossa, whom they severely defeated in 1176. In 1225 they were compelled to form the “second Lombard league” against Frederick II., and with similar success. After this, petty tyrants rose in most of the cities, and foreign influence quickly followed. The Guelph and Ghibelline factions greatly distracted Lombardy; and from the 15th century to the present time it has been contended for by the German and French sovereigns. The house of Austria obtained it in 1748, and held it till 1797, when it was conquered by the French, who incorporated it into the Cisalpine republic, and in 1805 into the kingdom of Italy. On the breaking up of the French empire in 1815, the Lombardo-Venetian kingdom was established by the allied sovereigns and given to Austria, who had lost her Flemish possessions. In 1859 this union was dissolved by the Italian war; and also by the treaty of Villa Franca, ceded to the king of Sardinia.

=Lomond, Loch.= The largest and most celebrated of the Scottish lakes, separating the counties of Dumbarton and Stirling. In 1263 the Norsemen, under Angus, king of Man, after having ravaged the shores of the adjoining Loch Long, drew their boats over the neck of land which separates the two waters at Tarbet, massacred the inhabitants, and set fire to the numerous villages they found on the shores of the lake. After this expedition, the loch came into the hands of some of the chief Highland clans, who long carried on their feuds here.

=Lomza.= A district town in the government of Augustovo, in Poland, on the left of the Narev, a tributary of the Vistula. It played a prominent part in the history of Poland, but has never recovered from its sufferings during the Swedish wars.

=Lonato.= A town of Northern Italy, province of Brescia; it is surrounded by walls, and further defended by a citadel. It suffered greatly during the Middle Ages by pestilence. Here Bonaparte gained a victory over the Austrians in 1796.

=London.= The capital and chief city of the British empire, stands on both banks of the Thames, about 60 miles from the sea. It appears first in history under the reign of Claudius, and it was fortified under Constantine the Great. Boadicea, queen of the Iceni, reduced London to ashes, and put 70,000 Romans and strangers to the sword in 61; it was rebuilt and walled in by the Romans in 306; pillaged by the Danes in 839. In 1875 its population was 3,445,160.

=London, New.= A city of New London Co., Conn., situated 42 miles southeast from Hartford, on the Thames. This place was burned by the British in 1781.

=Londonderry.= The capital of a county of the same name in Ireland, on the Foyle. This town is of great antiquity, and has often suffered from the effects of war. It was besieged by James II., from December, 1688, till August, 1689, when the siege was raised.

=Long Island.= An island about 115 miles long, which is separated from New York by the East River, a strait about half a mile wide. Its capital is Brooklyn (which see), where was fought in 1776 the first pitched battle of the Revolutionary war, the result being the defeat of the Americans. The island suffered considerably at the hands of the English during this war. During the civil war (1861-65) Long Island took an active part in aid of the cause of the Union.

=Long Roll.= See ROLL, LONG.

=Long-bow.= A bow of the height of the archer, formerly used in England for war and sport.

=Long-jawed.= The state of a rope when its strands are straightened by being much strained and untwisted, and from its pliability will coil both ways.

=Longitudinal Strain.= The strain on a cannon or fire-arm which tends to part it with a ring fracture. See ORDNANCE, STRAINS UPON.

=Longwy.= A strongly fortified town of France, in the department of the Moselle, 33 miles northwest from Metz. This is called the “iron gate of France,” and was in 1792 taken by the Prussians, and again by the allies in 1815.

=Looking-glass Signaling.= A method of signaling invented and extensively used by the North American Indians, both on the Plains and in the regions west of the Rocky Mountains. The reflection of the sun is flashed from a small piece of a mirror held in the hand. Indians have been known to communicate over a distance of several miles by this means. It is also extensively used in their drills,--the chief often directing the movements of his warriors with the greatest ease and certainty from a distant point overlooking the field. This method of signaling, modified by the resources of science, has been lately introduced into the English service, and used both in India and Southern Africa. A concave mirror is used, and an artificial light replaces the sun when he is absent. The method has been called heliography.

=Loop-holed Galleries.= Are vaulted passages or casemates, usually placed behind the counterscarp revetment, and behind the gorges of detached works, having holes pierced through the walls, to enable the defenders to bring a musketry fire from unseen positions upon the assailants in the ditch. Loop-holes, however, are not confined to galleries. In modern fortifications, the revetments, both scarp and counterscarp, are very generally pierced for musketry fire.

=Loop-holes.= Apertures in a wall or stockade, through which a fire of musketry may be directed on the exterior ground.

=Loose.= Not close or compact. “With horse and chariots ranked in loose array.”

=Loosen, To.= To open ranks or files from close order. To loosen is, in fact, to lose that firm continuity of line or perpendicular adherence, which constitutes the true basis of military operations. The lock-step was introduced for the purpose of counteracting the mischievous effects of loose marching, but it produced a greater inconvenience, and has therefore been laid aside; the equal pace and marked time correct both.

=Loot.= An East Indian term for plunder or pillage.

=Looties=, or =Lootees=. An East Indian term for a body of irregular horsemen, who plunder and lay waste the country, and harass the enemy in their march.

=Lootywallow.= An East Indian term of the same import as looties.

=Lorarii.= Among the Romans, officers whose business it was, with whips and scourges, to compel the gladiators to engage. The lorarii also punished slaves who disobeyed their masters.

=Lorca.= A town of Spain, in the province of Murcia, on the Cornera. This town is remarkable in history as having been the key of Murcia during the Moorish wars; being situated on the frontiers of Granada, it was often taken and retaken. It suffered greatly from military violence during the French occupation in 1810.

=Lord-Lieutenant.= In Great Britain the lord-lieutenant of a county is a permanent provincial governor appointed by the sovereign by patent under the great seal. He is the permanent local representative of the crown, who, on the occasion of an invasion or rebellion, has power to raise the militia, form regiments, troops, and companies, and give commissions to officers. He is also the head of the magistracy, the militia, and the yeomanry; he nominates officers of militia and volunteers, and is the chief executive authority.

=Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland.= The viceroy or deputy of the sovereign, to whom the government of Ireland is committed. The office has existed from a remote period, the appointment having been made under different designations. The lord-lieutenant is appointed under the great seal of the United Kingdom, and bears the sword of state as the symbol of his viceregal office. He has the control of the police, and may issue orders to the general commanding the troops for the support of the civil authority, the protection of the public, the defense of the kingdom, and the suppression of insurrection. He also has the power to confer knighthood.

=Loreto=, or =Loretto=. A fortified city of Italy, in the province of Macerate, situated 14 miles southeast from Ancona. This place was taken by the French in 1797.

=Lorica.= A cuirass, or coat of mail worn by the Roman soldiers, was made of various materials. The ordinary kind consisted of a skin, or a piece of strong linen covered with small plates of iron, which resembled both in their shape and in their manner of overlapping each other the scales of a serpent or fish. Sometimes cuirasses or hauberks, composed entirely of iron rings linked together, were worn by the Roman hastati. A less flexible but more impervious defense was the cuirass made of hard leather or of metal, and consisting of two parts (the one covering the breast and abdomen, and the other the back), united by hinges and leathern thongs.

=Lorraine= (Ger. Lothringen). A former extensive province of France, included in the departments of Vosges, Meurthe, Moselle, and Meuse. Under the Romans it formed part of the Belgic division of Gaul, and was afterwards united to the empire of Charlemagne. It subsequently became a duchy, and passed into possession of the dukes of the house of Austria. In 1836 it was ceded to Stanislas, ex-king of Poland, and after his death passed to the crown of France, from which it was wrested by the Germans at the close of the Franco-German war, May 10, 1871.

=Los Angeles.= A city, the capital of a county of the same name, in Southern California, about 350 miles southeast of San Francisco. It was captured from the Mexicans by the combined forces of Gen. Kearney and Commodore Stockton in 1846.

=Loss.= Killed, wounded, and captured persons, or captured property.

=Losses.= In the British army there is a regular provision made for indemnification for losses by fire, by shipwreck, in action with the enemy, by capture at sea, by destruction or capture of a public store-house, by the destruction of articles or horses, to prevent their falling into the hands of the enemy, etc. In the United States, it would seem just that Congress should establish some general rule regulating such matters. The principle of settling all such claims by special legislation cannot but bear hardly on a number of individuals, and also probably in the end imposes greater burdens upon the treasury.

=Loudon.= A parish of Ayrshire, Scotland, 4 miles east from Kilmarnock. In the neighborhood, at Loudon Hall, Bruce, with his forces, encountered the troops of the Earl of Pembroke in 1307.

=Loudon-hill.= See DRUMCLOG.

=Louis=, or =Knights of St. Louis=. The name of a military order in France, instituted by Louis XIV. in 1693. Their collars were of a flame color, and passed from left to right. The king was always grand master.

=Louisburg.= A famous fortress built by the French soon after the peace of Utrecht (1713) upon the eastern coast of Cape Breton Island. Since the existence of so strong a place threatened the colonial and English fisheries, it was determined in 1745 by the Legislature of Massachusetts Bay (France and Great Britain being then at war) to strike a blow at the town. Accordingly, a force of colonists consisting of 3250 Massachusetts militia, aided by 516 men from Connecticut and 304 from New Hampshire, set sail in 100 vessels, and landed near the town, April 30, 1745. An active but irregular siege (though the men were without tents and the proper means of conducting such operations) was terminated June 17, 1745, by the capitulation of the French under Duchambon. But the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) gave back all Cape Breton to France. The town was invested in 1758 by Gen. Amherst with 14,000 British troops, 20 line ships, 18 frigates and other vessels. After a tremendous bombardment, which quite destroyed the town, and breached the walls badly, the garrison and French fleet surrendered July 26, 1758. The English overthrew the fortifications at an expense of $50,000. The first cost was one hundred times that sum.

=Louisiana.= One of the Southern or Gulf States of the United States, lying between Arkansas and Mississippi on the north and east, the Gulf of Mexico on the south, and Texas on the west. The country was visited by La Salle, and the mouth of the Mississippi discovered in 1691, and though Iberville attempted to found a colony in 1699, his efforts were not successful. The country was transferred to Spain by France in 1762; restored to France in 1800; and purchased by the United States in 1803. That part of the Territory now known as the State of that name was admitted into the Union in 1812, and was within three years afterwards the scene of the great battle of New Orleans, fought January 8, 1815, between the British troops under Gen. Pakenham, and the Americans under Gen. Jackson, in which the former were defeated with great loss. The State seceded, and was the theatre of many important events during the civil war (1861-65).

=Loup des Anciens= (Fr.). Was an iron instrument, made in the shape of a tenaille, by means of which they grappled the battering-rams, and broke them in the middle.

=Louviers.= A town of France, in the department of the Eure, situated on the Eure. It was sacked both by Edward III. and Henry V. of England.

=Lover’s War.= In French history, a name given to a civil war in the year 1580, during the reign of Henry IV. It was so called because it arose from the jealousies and rivalries of the leaders, who were invited to meet at the palace of the queen-mother.

=Loyalist.= A person who adheres to his sovereign, or to the constituted authority; especially one who maintains his allegiance to his prince or government, and defends his cause in times of revolt.

=Lozenge.= In heraldry, a charge generally enumerated among the sub-ordinaries, in the shape of a rhombus placed with the acute angles at top and bottom. The horizontal diameter must be at least equal to the sides, otherwise it is not a lozenge, but a fusil. The term lozengy is applied to a field divided by diagonal lines crossing one another at regular intervals, so as to form a diamond pattern, the compartments being of alternate tinctures.

=Lubeck.= One of the three cities of the German empire, situated on the river Trave, about 14 miles from the Baltic. Lubeck has existed since the 11th century, and received important privileges from the German emperors in the 12th century, which were confirmed by the Danes, into whose power it fell in 1201. It was declared a free city of the empire in 1226, and thereafter maintained its independence against the Danes, and joined the other towns in the great Hanseatic League (which see). With the decline of the Hanseatic League, it lost its historic importance, but continued to flourish as an independent city, till it was taken and plundered by the French, November 6, 1806. In 1810 it was incorporated with the French empire, and in 1813 the Russians compelled the French to deliver it to its rightful owners; but the French again occupied it, until it was liberated by Sweden. In 1871 it was annexed to the German empire.

=Lubny=, or =Lubnu=. A town of European Russia, government of Poltava, or Pultowa, on the Sulla. Charles XII. of Sweden besieged this place for a considerable time, but he did not succeed in taking it.

=Lubricant.= A greasy substance or mixture of substances placed on the surface or in the cannelures of bullets to lessen friction in the bore. Bayberry tallow, beeswax, Japan wax, stearine, graphite, soapstone, etc., are some of the substances used.

=Lucanians.= A warlike people of Southern Italy; defeated Alexander of Epirus at Pandosia, 332 B.C.; were subdued by the Romans, 227; revolted after the battle of Cannæ, 216; were reduced by Scipio, 201; again revolted, 90; admitted as Roman citizens in 88.

=Luceria= (now Lucera). Sometimes called Nuceria, a town in Apulia, on the borders of Samnium. In the war between Rome and Samnium, it was taken by the Samnites, 321 B.C., and next by the Romans, 319; but having revolted to the Samnites in 314, all the inhabitants were massacred by the Romans, and their place supplied by Roman colonists.

=Lucknow= (Hind. Laksmanavate). A city of British India, capital of Oude, situated on the right bank of the Goomty, 610 miles from Calcutta. In 1857, during the Indian mutiny, this place was besieged by the rebels, but was bravely defended by the troops under Sir Henry Lawrence, and afterwards by Gens. Outram and Havelock. The long-suffering troops and English residents were finally relieved by Sir Colin Campbell, who then effected one of the most masterly retreats on record in the annals of Indian warfare. The British regained possession of it in 1858.

=Lucon.= A town of France, in the department of Vendée, situated on the edge of a marshy plain. The Republicans sustained a defeat under the walls of Lucon in 1703, and the insurgent Vendeans besieged the place some months afterwards, but without success.

=Ludlow.= A municipal and Parliamentary borough of England, in the county of Salop, at the confluence of the Corve and Teme. The castle, now a magnificent ruin, was at one time one of the most important strongholds against the Welsh.

=Lugo.= A town of Italy, in the province of Ravenna. It was sacked and nearly destroyed by the French in 1796.

=Lugs.= The ears of a bombshell, to which the hooks are applied in lifting it.

=Luncarty.= A village of Scotland, 4 miles north from Perth, where the Danes were defeated in 990 by Kenneth III.

=Lundy’s Lane, Battle of.= Called also the battle of Niagara, and of Bridgewater, was fought on the Canadian frontier within sight and hearing of the Falls, July 25, 1814. In this contest the American troops, numbering about 4500, commanded by Gen. Brown, succeeded, after a display of desperate valor and perseverance, in repulsing about midnight a body of 7000 British, and capturing one of their generals, Riall, and 7 pieces of cannon. The losses on both sides were nearly equal (about 850 killed, wounded, and missing). During the night the Americans fell back to Chippewa, being unable to convey their trophies with them for want of means of transportation, and in the morning when they advanced to Bridgewater Mills they found the enemy again occupying the battle-ground, in possession of their captured cannon, and having been reinforced too strong to be again dislodged. The Americans thus lost all the substantial fruits of the victory.

=Lunge= (a corruption of allonge). A pass or thrust with a sword; a shove with a boarding-pike.

=Lunette.= A field-work consisting of two faces forming a salient angle, or one projecting towards the enemy, and two flanks parallel, or nearly so, to the capital or imaginary line bisecting the salient angle. In shape it is like the gable end of a house. It is intended for the defense of avenues, farm-houses, bridges, and the curtains of field-works.

=Lunette.= An iron ring at the end of the trail of a field-piece, which is placed over the pintle-hook of the limber in limbering up the gun. The term is also applied to the hole through an iron plate on the under side of the stock of a siege-piece, into which the pintle of the limber passes when the piece is limbered.

=Lunettons.= A smaller sort of lunettes.

=Lunéville.= A well-built town of France, in the department of the Meurthe. The palace was for many years the residence of Stanislas, king of Poland. The first treaty of Austria and the French republic was signed in this town in 1801.

=Lunge.= In fencing and bayonet exercise, an extended thrust.

=Lunt.= The match-cord used for firing cannon.

=Lusitania.= A district of ancient Hispania, considered in its original meaning as the country of the Lusitani. It now comprises Portugal south of the river Douro, and a large number of provinces in Spain. The Lusitanians, especially those that inhabited the mountains, were much addicted to plunder, were the bravest of all the Iberians, and offered most resistance to the Romans.

=Lustration= (Lat. lustratio). Sacrifices or ceremonies by which the ancients purified their cities, fields, armies, or people, defiled by any crime or impurity. There were several ways of performing lustration, viz., by fire, by sulphur, by water, and by air. The Roman people underwent a lustration in the Campus Martius, after the census, which was taken every five years (lustrum), had been completed. In the armies, some chosen soldiers, crowned with laurel, led the victims--a cow, a sheep, and a bull--thrice round the army ranged in battle-array in the field of Mars, to which deity the victims were subsequently sacrificed, after many imprecations had been invoked upon the enemies of the Romans. The Gothic kings abolished these ceremonies when they became masters of Rome.

=Lutter.= A town of Germany, 23 miles southwest from Brunswick, in the Hartz district. Christian IV., king of Denmark, was defeated near this town by Tilly in 1626.

=Lutzen.= A small town of Prussia, province of Saxony, famous for two great battles fought in its vicinity. The first took place on November 16, 1632, between the Swedish army under Gustavus Adolphus and the Imperialists under Wallenstein; Gustavus Adolphus was killed, but the victory was gained by the Swedes. The second great battle was fought on May 2, 1813, somewhat farther to the south, at the village of Groszgörschen. It was the first great conflict of the united Russian and Prussian armies with the army of Napoleon in that decisive campaign. The allies gained at first great successes; but the French were left in possession of the field at the close of the day.

=Luxemburg.= The capital of the grand duchy of Luxemburg, situated on the Else, or Alzette. The Spaniards, Austrians, French, and Dutch, who successively held possession of the town, so increased and strengthened its fortifications that in the beginning of the 19th century it was considered to be, with the exception of Gibraltar, the strongest fortress in Europe. In 1867 it was declared neutral ground.

=Lycaniens= (Fr.). Hungarian light infantry are so called.

=Lydda.= An ancient town of Palestine, which stood in the fertile plain of Sharon, about 9 miles from Joppa. It was rebuilt by Hadrian, and its name changed to Diosopolis, “the city of Zeus.” It was destroyed by a Mongol tribe in 1271. The modern village of Ludd occupies its site.

=Lyers, Out-=. See OUT-LYERS.

=Lying.= To be actually stationed or quartered in a given place. In-lying and out-lying pickets. See PICKET.

=Lying Out of Quarters.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 31.

=Lyman Gun.= See MULTI-CHARGE GUNS.

=Lyon=, or =Lord Lyon King-at-Arms=. The chief heraldic officer for Scotland, whose title is derived from the lion rampant in the royal escutcheon. The Scottish king-at-arms has, unlike his brother-kings of England, from an early period exercised jurisdiction independently of the constable and marshal, holding office directly from the sovereign by commission under the Great Seal. In early times he was occasionally designated the Lord Lyon; but the now prevalent custom of so calling him seems to have arisen from the circumstance that, since 1796, the office has been held by a peer. According to Nesbet, the Lyon has precedence of all knights and gentlemen not being officers of state, or senators of the College of Justice. Since the Union, he has ranked next to Garter; Clarencieux and Norroy follow; then Ulster; but it has sometimes been maintained that within Ireland, Ulster has place next after Lyon. The Lyon is king-at-arms to the order of the Thistle.

=Lyons=, or =Lyon= (anc. Lugdunum). A city of France, capital of the department of the Rhône, situated at the confluence of the Rhône and Saône. A Roman colony is said to have been established here in 43 B.C. The city was destroyed by fire in the time of Seneca, but was shortly after restored by Nero to its former splendor. It was plundered and again burnt by the soldiers of Septimius Severus, after the defeat of Albinus near it in 197 A.D. In 1793, the city having refused to submit to the Convention, sustained a memorable siege from August 8 to October 9, on which date it was taken, and suffered severely at the hands of the republicans.

M.

=McAllister, Fort.= A formidable casemated earthwork, with bombproofs, mounting 9 guns, on Genesis Point, about 6 miles above the mouth of Great Ogeechee River, Georgia, which was erected by the Confederates during the civil war. On January 27, 1863, it was attacked by the ironclad “Montauk,” under the command of Capt. John L. Worden, three gunboats, and a mortar-schooner; but after a bombardment of many hours’ duration, they failed to reduce it. Another attack was made with like results on February 1, the “Montauk” again participating in it. A third attack was made on March 3, and after a bombardment of eight hours by a fleet of ironclad monitors and mortar-schooners, under the command of Capt. Drayton, they again failed to reduce it. After the naval attacks the fort received additions in armament and garrison, and in 1864 comprised three half-bastions and two curtains, mounted 21 guns, several of which were 8-inch and 10-inch pieces, and was garrisoned by 250 men. On December 13, 1864, it was taken by assault by a division of Gen. Sherman’s army under Gen. Hazen, and its entire garrison and stores captured. Communication by water being thus opened, the capture of Savannah followed on December 21.

=Macadamized.= A term applied to roads covered with broken stone,--from McAdam, a Scotch engineer, who first introduced this method of road-making.

=Macana.= The war-club of the South American Indians.

=Macassar=, or =Mankasser=. The chief settlement of the Dutch in the island of Celebes, and is defended by Fort Rotterdam. In 1810 it surrendered to the British, but was restored to the Dutch in 1814.

=Maccabees.= A family of patriotic Jews, who commenced their career during the persecutions of Antiochus Epiphanes, 167 B.C., when Mattathias, a priest, resisted the tyranny of the governor. His son, Judas Maccabæus, defeated the Syrians in three battles, 166 and 165 B.C., but fell in an ambush, 161 B.C. His brother Jonathan made a league with the Romans and Lacedæmonians, and after an able administration was treacherously killed at Ptolemais by Tryphon, 143 B.C. His brother and successor, Simon, was also murdered. The history of the Maccabees is contained in five books bearing that name.

=Mace.= A strong, short, wooden staff, with a spiked metal ball for a head. It was a favorite weapon with knights, with the cavalry immediately succeeding them, and at all times with fighting priests, whom a canon of the church forbade to wield the sword. No armor could resist the force of a well-delivered blow from the mace. The mace is now borne before magistrates as an ensign of authority.

=Macedonia.= Anciently the name of a country lying north of Thessaly, which was originally of small extent. The history of Macedonia is involved in much obscurity till about 490 B.C., when the Persians subdued it, so that the Macedonian king, Alexander I., was compelled to take part with Xerxes in his invasion of Greece. It again regained its independence upon the retreat of the Persians after the battle of Platæa in 479 B.C. After a period of civil wars Philip II. ascended the throne in 359 B.C., and his son Alexander III., surnamed Alexander the Great, brought half the then known world under his empire; but after his death the Macedonian empire was broken up, and, at the end of a period of twenty-two years of incessant wars, formed into four principal kingdoms under his greatest generals. Macedonia itself fell to the lot of Antipater, after whose death ensued another period of civil wars and contests for the throne. The Macedonians were defeated by the Romans in the great battle of Cynocephalæ, 197 B.C., and their country became subject to the Roman power. After the time of Constantine the country was ravaged by Slavic tribes, and by the 7th century the old semi-Greek Macedonians were extinct, and in the latter ages of the Byzantine empire their place was supplied by colonies from Asia, many of them of Turkish descent.

=Macedonian Pike=, or =Sarissa=. A spear or lance of great length used in warfare by the Greeks.

=Macerata.= A town of Central Italy, in a province (formerly a delegation) of the same name, situated on an eminence between the rivers Potenza and Chienti, 21 miles southwest of Ancona. The place was taken by assault and sacked by the French, in 1799.

=Machete= (Sp.). A large, heavy knife resembling a broadsword, often 2 or 3 feet in length, used by the inhabitants of Spanish America as a hatchet, to cut their way through thickets, and for various other purposes.

=Machicolation.= The act of hurling missiles or pouring various burning or melted substances upon assailants through machicolations.

=Machicolations.= The apertures between the corbels or brackets supporting a projecting parapet; the term is applied also to the parapets. The apertures are for the purpose of allowing projectiles to be hurled at an enemy when he approaches near the wall, as in scaling, undermining, etc. Such defenses are very common in castellated architecture, especially over gateways, towers, etc.

=Machicoulis.= The same as machicolation.

=Machine Guns.= See BATTERY GUNS.

=Machine, Infernal.= This term has been applied to various deadly contrivances, for instance, to the battery gun with which the attempt to assassinate Louis Philippe was made, as well as to the devices used on similar historical occasions; also to the fire-ship used by the English at St. Malo. This was a three-decker charged with powder on the first deck; shells, carcasses, etc., on the second; and with barrels filled with combustibles on the third; the gun-deck was covered with old guns overloaded. It was intended to destroy ships, bridges, etc.

=Machines, Artillery.= See IMPLEMENTS.

=Machines of War, Ancient.= Under this head is comprehended every kind of machine or engine made use of before the invention of gunpowder, for overthrowing, destroying, and burning the defenses of an enemy. They were of three kinds,--the first for projecting arrows, darts, stones, javelins, and fire-arrows; the second for battering and breaching walls, etc.; and the third for covering the troops thus engaged. They are as follows:

Muscule, arbalest, ballista, belfry, belier. (See appropriate headings.)

Bricole, machine for projecting quarrels or darts.

Carreau, catapulta (which see).

Chat, or cat, a covered shed, occasionally fixed on wheels, for protecting soldiers employed in filling up the ditch, preparing the way for the helepole, or wooden tower, or for mining the wall.

Chat echine, prickly cat, beam bristling with oaken teeth, for the defense of a town, by being let down on the besiegers.

Corbeau, long pole armed with a strong iron harpoon or scythe at one end, suspended in a frame placed on a cart; by manœuvring the other end they tore away the machines with which the besieged endeavored to seize the head of the battering-ram.

Corbeau à griffe, pole with strong nippers or pincers, with which any object was seized and lifted up, and afterwards broken, if possible.

Couillard, clide, jauclide, machine for throwing stones.

Cranequin, large stirruped cross-bow or latch. (See ARBALEST.)

Espringal, falarique, harpe (which see).

Frondibale, long beam moving in a vertical plane between two uprights on an axle (not in the middle); the longer arm was provided with a bag or case containing stones, and sometimes a sling; the other was heavily loaded, the beam being placed horizontally, and suddenly disengaged; the weight on the shorter limb forced up the other, and projected the stones forward.

Helepole. (See HELEPOLIS.)

Herse. (See HERSE.)

Hourdeis, hurdles employed by the besieged to protect their walls from the machines of the enemy.

Lyonnois, machine for defending a breach, with a head like a treble fleur-de-lis on wheels.

Mangona, machine similar to the ballista, generic term signifying all kinds of machines.

Mangonel, diminutive of the above, applied to small machines.

For the following machines of war, see appropriate headings: MANTELET, MANUBALLISTE, MATAFUNDA, MATE-GRIFFON, MUCHETTÆ, ONAGRE, PLUTEUS, POLIBOLE, RIBAUDEQUIN, SAMBUQUE, SCORPION, TARIÈRE, TESTUDE, TOLENON, TREBUCHET, TREPIED, VIGNE, VIRETON.

=Maciejovice.= Near Warsaw, Poland. Here the Poles were totally defeated, and their general, Kosciusko, taken prisoner, October 10, 1794, after a murderous action. Kosciusko strenuously endeavored to prevent the junction of the Russian and the Austrian armies.

=Mackay Gun.= This gun is made of wrought iron, and distinguished from the Whitworth and Lancaster guns by the following characteristics: The Whitworth has a hexagonal bore in a tube of homogeneous iron, strengthened with hoops forced on by hydraulic pressure; the Lancaster is without grooves, but the bore is oval; the Mackay has numerous grooves, but the projectile does not, as in other guns, fit into them, its rotation being imparted by the rush of gases through the spiral grooves around it. In every case the groove or oval takes one turn, or portion of a turn, within the gun.

=Mackinaw=, or =Mackinac=. Formerly called Michilimackinac, “the great turtle.” A town and fort on an island of the same name in Lake Huron, about 320 miles by water north-northwest of Detroit, Mich. It fell into the hands of the English on the conquest of Canada from the French; but the Indians in its neighborhood remained hostile to their new masters. The fort was captured by a ruse, and the inhabitants massacred by the Chippewas under Pontiac, June 4, 1763. It was again garrisoned by the British in the following year. The island came into possession of the United States in 1796, and was captured by the British and Indians July 17, 1812. The Americans attempted its recapture, August 14, 1814, but without success.

=Macrones=. A powerful and warlike Caucasian people on the northeastern shore of the Pontus Euxinus.

=Madagascar.= An island of the Indian Ocean, situated at some distance from the east coast of Africa, being separated from that continent by the channel of Mozambique. The French formed several settlements in different parts of the island in 1665, but they were repeatedly driven out by the natives. The English were also driven out of the island in 1836, and the old system of Fetichism was restored. Madagascar is at present governed by Ranavalona, a Christian.

=Made.= A professional term for having obtained a commission, or being promoted.

=Madras.= Called by the natives Chennapatam, a maritime city and fortress of British India, and capital of the presidency of the same name. It was taken by the French in 1744; restored to the English at the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, in 1749, and was vainly besieged by the French under Lally, December, 1758-59. It is now considered one of the strongest fortresses in India.

=Madrid.= The capital of Spain, in New Castile, on the left bank of the river Manzanares. It is mentioned in history as Majerit, a Moorish castle. Madrid was sacked by the Moors in 1109; retaken and fortified by Henry III. about 1400; taken by Lord Galway in 1706; and by the French in March, 1808. The citizens of Madrid attempted to expel the French, and were defeated with much slaughter, May 2, 1808; the French were compelled to retire, but the place was retaken by them December 2, 1808, and retained until Wellington and his army entered it, August 12, 1812.

=Madriers.= Are long planks of broad wood, used for supporting the earth in mining, carrying on a sap, making coffers, caponiers, galleries, and for various other purposes at a siege; also to cover the mouth of petards after they are loaded, and are fixed with the petards to the gates or other places designed to be forced open. When the planks are not strong enough they are doubled with plates of iron.

=Madura.= An island of the Malay Archipelago, situated off the northeast coast of the island of Java, from which it is separated by a narrow channel. The Dutch invaded this island about the year 1747, and made slaves of a great number of the inhabitants.

=Maestricht.= A town of Holland, and capital of the province of Limburg, on the Maas, 110 miles southeast from Amsterdam. This town was taken by the French in 1794; and from 1795 till 1814 it was the capital of the French department of the Lower Meuse.

=Magazine.= A word derived from the Arabic, makhzan, “store-house,” means any place where stores are kept; but as a military expression, it always means a store-house for powder, although arms may at times be kept in it. In military structures the magazines must be bomb-proof, and therefore necessitate very thick walls; they must be quite free from damp, and should admit sufficient daylight to render the use of lanterns within generally unnecessary. The entrance is protected by shot-proof traverses, lest an opening should be forced by ricochet shots.

=Magazine Guns.= Are breech-loading small-arms having a magazine capable of holding several cartridges which may be fired in quick succession,--the empty shell being ejected and another cartridge conveyed into the breech from the magazine by working the mechanism of the piece. Among American magazine guns, the Spencer was one of the first that proved successful, and was extensively used during the war of the Rebellion, 1861-65. The magazine was a tube in the stock. The Spencer is no longer made. The Henry was a contemporary, and used a tube under the barrel,--this gun as now improved is known as the Winchester, and is sold in every part of the globe. The Ward-Burton and Hotchkiss have tubes, the first under the barrel, the second in the stock like the Spencer; they are both bolt guns as to breech mechanism. The Lee uses as a magazine a kind of pocket between the stock and barrel. This is readily detached. A gun carrying a great number of cartridges is the Evans, which has a spiral cartridge-carrier in the stock. Other guns, the Meigs and Cullen, have been made carrying a still greater number, as many as forty or fifty, but these systems have not met with any considerable success. See SMALL-ARMS.

=Magdala.= A strong mountain fortress in Abyssinia, which King Theodore held against the expedition sent out in 1867 by the British government for the rescue of their subjects. In April, 1867, this stronghold was taken by Gen. Napier, for which he was created Baron of Magdala. See ABYSSINIA.

=Magdeburg.= A fortified city of Prussia, in the province of Saxony, on the Elbe. It was founded by Otto the Great in the 10th century, and is considered one of the strongest fortresses in Germany. It suffered greatly during the Thirty Years’ War, when it was sacked, and its inhabitants massacred, under the direction of Tilly. In 1806 it was taken by the French, and annexed by them to the kingdom of Westphalia; but finally restored to Prussia in consequence of the downfall of Napoleon in 1814.

=Magdolum= (in the Old Testament Migdol). A city of Lower Egypt, near the northeastern frontier, about 12 miles southwest of Pelusium, where Pharaoh Necho defeated the Syrians, according to Herodotus.

=Magenta.= A town of Italy, in Lombardy, 15 miles west from Milan. A great battle was fought here in June, 1859, between the French and Austrians, in which the latter were defeated. The French were commanded by Gen. MacMahon, who received the title of Duke of Magenta.

=Magetobria= (now Moigte de Broie, on the Saône). A town on the western frontiers of the Sequani, near which the Gauls were defeated by the Germans shortly before Cæsar’s arrival in Gaul.

=Magistral Line.= The tracing or guiding line in fortification,--the first laid down on the work or on paper,--and from which the position of all the other works is determined. In field fortification the crest line of the parapet is the magistral; in permanent fortification the cordon or coping of the escarp wall is the guide.

=Magna Charta.= The great charter, so called, obtained by the English barons from King John in 1215, at Runny Meade. This name is also given to the charter which was granted to the people of England in the ninth year of Henry III., and confirmed by Edward I.

=Magnate.= A person of rank or dignity; a grandee or nobleman; one of influence or distinction in any sphere.

=Magnesia= (now Manissa). A town of Lydia, usually mentioned with the addition of ad Sypilum (“at or near Sypilus”) to distinguish it from Magnesia on the Mæander, in Ionia, situated on the northwestern slope of Mount Sypilus. It is chiefly celebrated in history for the victory gained under its walls in 190 B.C. by the two Scipios over Antiochus the Great, whereby that monarch was forever driven from Western Asia. The town after the victory of the Scipios surrendered to the Romans.

=Magnetic.= Pertaining to the magnet; possessing the properties of the magnet, or corresponding properties; as, a magnetic needle. Magnetic needle, a slender bar of steel magnetized and suspended at its centre on a sharp-pointed pivot, so that it may take freely the direction of the magnetic meridian. It constitutes the essential part of a mariner’s compass.

=Maharajpoor.= A small town in Hindostan, India. This place was the key of the position of the Mahratta army on December 29, 1843, when the battle took place between them and the British army under Sir Hugh Gough. The Mahrattas were totally defeated.

=Mahe.= A seaport in Hindostan, India; is a French settlement on the coast of Malabar, and was taken possession of by them in 1722; retaken by the British in 1761; restored at the peace of Paris in 1763, but was again taken in 1793. It was restored to the French in 1815.

=Mahrattas.= A people of Hindoo (Hindu) race, inhabiting Central India, south of the Ganges, from Gwalior to Goa, and supposed by many to be the descendants of a Persian or North Indian people. They are first mentioned in history about the middle of the 17th century. Under the leadership of Sevaji, a freebooter or adventurer, they overran and subdued a large portion of the emperor of Delhi’s territory. They subsequently were divided into tribes under powerful leaders, and endeavored to overcome the Mogul; but they sustained a frightful defeat in January, 1761, at the hands of Ahmed Shah Abdalli, the ruler of Afghanistan, on the field of Paniput, where they lost 50,000 men, and all their chiefs except Holkar. They still, however, continued to be the hired mercenaries of the Delhi emperor, till the growing influence of the British compelled them to look to their own safety. After many long and bloody contests with the British and their allies, in which sometimes the whole, but more frequently a portion of the Mahrattas joined, they were one by one, with the exception of Scindiah, reduced to a state of dependence. This last-mentioned chief having raised a powerful army, officered by Frenchmen and disciplined after the European method, continued the contest for a number of years, till his power was finally broken in 1843. The Mahratta chiefs still possess extensive dominions under British protection.

=Maida.= A town of Naples, in Calabria Ulta, 9 miles south from Nicastra. It is noted for the defeat of the French under Regnier by the British under Sir John Stuart, in an action that took place in the plains near the town in 1806.

=Maiden.= An instrument resembling the guillotine, formerly used in Scotland for beheading criminals. Also, a fortress which has never been taken.

=Maidstone.= A town of England, in Kent, 29 miles southeast from London, on the Medway. In 1648 this town was stormed by the Parliamentary troops.

=Mail= (Fr. maille, It. maglia; from the Lat. macula, a “spot, hole, or mesh of a net”). Signifies a metal net-work, and is ordinarily applied to such net-work when used as body defensive armor. Well-made mail formed an admirable defense against all weapons except fire-arms, and its pliability and comparative lightness gave it favor over the more cumbrous plate-armor.

=Mail.= To put a coat of mail or armor upon; to arm defensively.

=Maillet= (Fr.). A mallet. The French formerly made use of this instrument as an offensive weapon in their engagements. In 1351 the mallet was used at the famous battle “des Trente” (of thirty), which derived its name from the number of combatants that fought on each side. This extraordinary combat holds a distinguished place in the history of Brittany, and was entered into by the partisans of Charles of Blois and the king of France on one side, and by the Count Montfort and the king of England on the other. Under the reign of Charles VI. a Parisian mob forced the arsenal, and took out a large quantity of mallets, with which they armed themselves for the purpose of murdering the custom-house officers. The persons who assembled on this occasion were afterwards called Maillotins. In the days of Louis XII. the English archers carried mallets as offensive weapons.

=Maillotin= (Fr.). An old French term which signified an ancient weapon that was used to attack men who wore helmets and cuirasses. A faction in France was also distinguished by this appellation. See MAILLET.

=Mainade= (Fr.). A body of marauders commanded by a chief.

=Main Body.= The line or corps of an army which marches between the advance- and rear-guard; in camp, the body which lies between the two wings.

=Main Guard.= See GUARD, MAIN.

=Main Work.= In fortification, is the principal work as distinguished from the outworks.

=Maine.= The largest of the New England States, and the most easterly of the United States. The first settlement was made in it at Phippsburg, in 1607, but was subsequently abandoned. Settlements from New Hampshire gradually extended themselves into it, and it was afterwards annexed to Massachusetts, as far as the Kennebec River. In the latter part of the 17th century it suffered much from the incursions of the savages and the French, many of the towns being laid waste and the inhabitants slaughtered. This state of affairs was terminated by the treaty of Utrecht in 1712. During the Revolutionary war Portland was bombarded by the British in 1775, and much property destroyed. Maine was admitted into the Union as a State in 1820. Its northern boundary formed a subject of controversy with Great Britain, which threatened a war, but was settled by compromise in 1842. During the civil war, Maine was one of the most active of the Northern States in the cause of the Union.

=Mainotes.= The inhabitants of the mountainous district of Maina, a peninsula between the bays of the Kolokythia and Koron, forming part of the province of Laconia, in Greece. They number about 60,000, and are a wild and brave race, but addicted to robbery. While the Turks held possession of Greece, the Mainotes were almost completely independent, and when not engaged in a common struggle against the Turks their chiefs were at war with each other. The Mainotes, under their principal chief or bey, took a prominent part in the war for the liberation of Greece; but subsequently their independence was destroyed.

=Maintain.= When any body of men defend a place or post against the attacks of an adverse party, they are said to maintain it.

=Maintenance, Cap of.= Sometimes called Cap of Dignity, a cap of crimson velvet lined with ermine, with two points turned to the back, originally only worn by dukes, but afterwards assigned to various families of distinction. According to Sir John Fearne, “the wearing of the cap had a beginning from the duke or general of an army, who, having gotten victory, caused the chiefest of the subdued enemies whom he led to follow him in his triumph, bearing his hat or cap after him, in token of subjection and captivity.” Most of the reigning dukes of Germany, and various families belonging to the peerage both of England and Scotland, bear their crests on a cap of maintenance.

=Maison-du-Roi= (Fr.). The king’s household. Certain select bodies of troops were so called during the monarchy of France, and consisted of the gardes-du-corps, or body-guards, the gendarmes, chevaux-legèrs, or light-horse, mousquetaires, or musketeers, la gendarmerie, grenadiers à cheval, or horse-grenadiers, the regiments belonging to the French and Swiss guards, and the cent Suisses, or hundred Swiss guards. The maison-du-roi, or king’s household, was not considered a separate establishment from the rest of the army until the reign of Louis IV. This establishment was successively formed by different kings out of militia companies, which they took into their body-guard.

=Maitre d’Armes= (Fr.). A term in general use among the French, signifying a fencing-master. Every regiment has a maitre d’armes attached to it.

=Majesty.= A title applied to sovereigns; as, Her Britannic Majesty.

=Major.= An officer next in rank above a captain and below a lieutenant-colonel; the lowest field-officer.

=Major, Aid-= (Fr.). See AID-MAJOR.

=Major, Brigade-.= See BRIGADE-MAJOR.

=Major, Drum-.= See DRUM-MAJOR.

=Major, Etat-= (Fr.). See ÉTAT-MAJOR.

=Major, Farrier-.= See FARRIER-MAJOR.

=Major, Fife-.= See FIFE-MAJOR.

=Major, Sergeant-.= See SERGEANT-MAJOR.

=Major, Town-.= See TOWN-MAJOR.

=Major, Trumpet-.= See TRUMPET-MAJOR.

=Majorate.= The office or rank of major.

=Majorca.= The principal of the Balearic Isles, in the Mediterranean, lying about 120 miles to the east of Spain. Majorca rebelled against Philip V. of Spain in 1714; but submitted July 14, 1715.

=Major-General.= See GENERAL, MAJOR-, and GENERAL OFFICER.

=Majority.= High rank; specifically, the military rank of a major.

=Make Good.= A phrase used sometimes in the wording of sentences in proceedings of courts-martial in the case of deserters; as, he will make good the time lost by desertion.

=Make Ready.= See READY.

=Malabar.= An extensive province of Hindostan, in the presidency of Madras. It is supposed that Malabar was, at a very early period, conquered by a king from above the Ghauts. It was invaded by Hyder Ali in 1760, and subdued by him in 1761. On the downfall of Tippoo Sahib, this country was annexed to the British dominions.

=Malabar Guns.= Heavy pieces of ordnance, which were made in the Malabar country, and were formed by means of iron bars joined together with hoops. They were very long, and extremely unwieldy.

=Malacca.= A British settlement situated on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula, about 100 miles northwest from the settlement of Singapore. This district was annexed to the Portuguese dominions about 1511, taken by the Dutch in 1640, and given by the Dutch to the English in 1825.

=Malacca.= The capital of the above country, is situated on the coast, upon the strait which bears its name. In 1507 this town was visited by the Portuguese, and afterwards stormed by them. It was subsequently taken by the Dutch, who retained possession of it till 1795, when it was occupied by a British force.

=Malaga.= A city of Spain, in Granada, on the coast of the Mediterranean, 66 miles northeast from Gibraltar. It fell into the hands of the Moors in 714, and was not wrested from them until 1487, when it was taken by Ferdinand the Catholic. In 1810 it was occupied by the French, and remained in their possession till 1812.

=Malakoff.= A hill near Sebastopol, on which was situated an old tower strongly fortified by the Russians during the siege of 1854-55. The allied French and English attacked it on June 17-18, 1855, and after a conflict of forty-eight hours were repulsed with severe loss. On September 8, the French again attacked the Malakoff; at 8 o’clock the first mine was sprung, and at noon the French flag floated over the conquered redoubt. In the Malakoff and Redan were found 3000 pieces of cannon of every caliber, and 120,000 pounds of gunpowder.

=Malandrins=, or =Tard-venus= (Fr.). Companies of banditti, who chose their own chief, and overran France and Italy in the 14th century.

=Malatesta.= A noble Italian family, which acquired the lordship of Rimini in the 13th century, and furnished several leaders of the Guelph party. Malatesta II. and Galeotto Malatesta, sons of Pandolfo I., began to reign over Rimini in 1355. They had a great military reputation, and next to the Visconti were perhaps the most powerful princes of Italy. The former died in 1364, and Galeotto in 1385, leaving two sons, Carlo and Pandolfo III. These two became able generals, and commanded the army of Visconti, duke of Milan, from 1393 to 1408. Carlo, who was lord of Rimini, died without issue in 1429. The descendants of Pandolfo III. possessed Rimini until 1528, when it was added to the papal dominions.

=Malavilly.= A town of Hindostan, in the province of Mysore, where the English troops under Gen. Harris defeated Tippoo Sahib’s army in 1799.

=Maldon.= A town of England, in the county of Essex, which was built in 28 B.C. It is supposed to have been the first Roman colony in Britain; was burnt by Queen Boadicea, and rebuilt by the Romans. It was burnt by the Danes in 991, and rebuilt by the Saxons.

=Malignant.= In English history, one of the adherents of the house of Stuart; a cavalier; so called by the opposite party.

=Malinger.= To feign illness, or to protract disease in order to avoid duty.

=Malingerer.= A soldier who feigns himself sick. Any soldier convicted of malingering, feigning or producing disease, or of intentionally protracting his cure or aggravating his disease, is liable to be tried by a court-martial for “conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline,” and to suffer the punishment attached to that offense.

=Malingery.= A feigning of illness, or protracting of disease in order to escape duty.

=Malkin.= A sponge with a jointed staff for cannon.

=Malleable Iron.= Iron which can be worked under the hammer. The term is specifically applied to cast iron which has had a part of its carbon extracted by cementation with an oxide.

=Mallet.= A wooden hammer, to drive into the ground the pegs by which a tent is fastened; it is likewise used on various other occasions, especially in fortification and artillery.

=Malmesbury.= A town of England, in Wiltshire. This town was taken from the royalists by Sir William Walter in 1643, but it was soon recovered, and again taken a short time after.

=Malo, St.= A seaport of France, in the department of Ille-et-Vilaine, on the small island of Aron. This port sustained a tremendous bombardment by the English under Admiral Benbow in 1693, and under Lord Berkely in July, 1695. In 1758 the British landed in considerable force in Cancalle Bay, and went up to the harbor, where they burnt upwards of a hundred ships, and did great damage to the town, making a number of prisoners.

=Maloi-Jaroslavitz.= A town of Russia, in the government of Kaluga. It is noted for being the scene of a most sanguinary action between the French and Russians, in October, 1812, in which the former were defeated.

=Malplaquet.= A village of France, in the department of the North. It was the scene of a sanguinary battle in 1709, between the French under Marshal Villars, and the allies commanded by the Duke of Marlborough and the Prince Eugène, in which the latter were victorious.

=Malta.= An island belonging to Great Britain, situated in the Mediterranean, 54 miles from the Sicilian coast, and about 200 from Cape Bon, on the African coast. It is strongly fortified around the capital, Valetta, which was built by the Knights of St. John. Malta was colonized by the Carthaginians about 500 B.C., and as early as the first Punic war it was plundered by the Romans, but did not come finally into their possession until 242 B.C. During the 5th century it fell successively under the sway of the Vandals and Goths. The Romans, however, regained it under Belisarius in 533 A.D., and kept possession of it till it was conquered by the Arabs in 870. In 1090, Count Roger of Sicily drove out the Arabs, and established a popular council for the government of the island. Charles of Anjou, after overrunning Sicily, made himself master of it; but after a time, the houses of Aragon and Castile successively held the island. Subsequently, the emperor Charles V. took possession of Malta, and in 1530 granted it to the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, from whom the Turks had recently captured their great stronghold at Rhodes. The knights raised by degrees the stupendous fortifications, and, moreover, spent their large income in beautifying the island in every way. Meanwhile they rendered incessant services to Christendom in the chastisement of the ferocious Barbary pirates. To revenge these acts, the Turks brought immense forces against Malta in 1557, and again in 1565. The siege in the latter year was carried on by the sultan Solyman himself, with the flower of the Ottoman army; but the grand master, La Valette, opposed a heroic resistance, and he was forced to re-embark, with the loss of more than 25,000 of his best troops. The defenders lost 260 knights and 7000 Maltese soldiers; and their gallantry was the theme of admiration throughout the world. After this siege the knights built Valetta. In 1571, they, with the Maltese, behaved most courageously at the battle of Lepanto, where the Turks lost 30,000 men. Though waging perpetual war with the Turks, the knights continued in possession of Malta until 1798, when it surrendered to Napoleon, and received a French garrison. In 1800 it was blockaded by a British squadron, and was forced to surrender to the English, in whose possession it has remained as a dependency.

=Malta, Knights of.= See ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM, KNIGHTS OF.

=Maltese Cross.= A cross of eight points, of the form worn as a decoration by the Hospitallers and other orders of knighthood.

=Malvern Hill.= Near the James River, in Virginia. Here, on the night of June 30, 1862, all the divisions of the Army of the Potomac, under Gen. McClellan, were united in a strong position, after five days of incessant marching and fighting. About 4 A.M. on July 1 the Confederate forces advanced to storm this position, but were mowed down by a destructive fire of grape from the land batteries, and were obliged to seek shelter in the woods. The gunboats, also, which were within range, opened a destructive fire of shells on the enemy. The attack was a complete failure, the loss of the Confederates being considerable, while that of the Federals was insignificant. After this repulse, the Confederates retired to Richmond, and McClellan pursued his way to the James, arriving at Harrison’s Landing on July 3.

=Mameliere= (Fr.). Armor for the breast, from which depended two chains, one attached to the pommel, and the other to the scabbard of the sword.

=Mamelukes= (Arabic, mamluk, a “slave”). The name given to the slaves of the beys, brought from the Caucasus, and who formed their armed forces. When Genghis Khan desolated a great part of Asia in the 13th century, and carried away a multitude of the inhabitants for slaves, the sultan of Egypt bought 12,000 of them, partly Mingrelians and Tartars, but mostly Turks, and formed them into a body of troops. But they soon found their own power so great that, in 1254, they made one of their own number sultan of Egypt, founding the dynasty of the Baharites, which gave place to another Mameluke dynasty in 1382. The Caucasian element predominated in the first dynasty, the Tartar element in the second. Selim I., who overthrew the Mameluke kingdom in 1517, was compelled to permit the continuance of the 24 Mameluke beys as governors of the provinces; but in the middle of the 18th century they regained such a preponderance of power in Egypt that the pasha named by the Porte was reduced to a nominal ruler. The number of them scattered throughout all Egypt was between 10,000 and 12,000 men. Their number was kept up chiefly by slaves brought from the Caucasus, from among whom the beys and other officers of state were exclusively chosen. Their last brilliant achievements were on the occasion of the French invasion of Egypt, and during the time immediately following the retirement of the French. At this time Murad Bey stood at their head. But in 1811 they were foully massacred by Mehemet Ali.

=Mamertini.= Sons of Mamers, or Mars, were Campanian soldiers of Agathocles. They seized Messina, in Sicily, in 281 B.C., and when closely besieged by the Carthaginians and Hiero of Syracuse in 264, they implored the help of the Romans, which led to the first Punic war.

=Mammoth Powder.= See GUNPOWDER.

=Man.= To supply with men; to furnish with a sufficient force or complement of men, as for management, service, defense, or the like. Also, to supply with strength for action; to prepare for efficiency; to fortify.

=Man, Isle of.= An island of Great Britain, in the Irish Sea, nearly equidistant from the coasts of England, Scotland, and Ireland. It was subdued by the king of Northumberland, 621; by Magnus of Norway, 1092; ceded to the Scots, 1266, and taken from them in 1314 by Montacute, afterwards earl of Salisbury; it subsequently fell to the Earl of Derby. The brave Countess of Derby held this island against the troops of the Parliament in 1651, after her husband had been beheaded at Bolton, England, in the same year for his devotion to the royal cause.

=Manassas.= A town in Prince William Co., Va., which was an important military position during the civil war, and where the Alexandria and Manassas Gap Railways meet, near a creek called Bull Run; it was held by the Confederates in 1861, when they were attacked by the Federal general Irvin McDowell. He began his march from Washington on July 16, and gained some advantage on the 18th at Centreville. On the 21st was fought the first battle of Bull Run. The Federals, who began the fight, had the advantage till about 3 o’clock P.M., when the Confederate general Johnston brought up reinforcements, which at first the Federals took for their own troops. After a brief resistance, the latter were seized with sudden panic, and in spite of the utmost efforts of their officers, fled in disgraceful rout, abandoning a large quantity of arms, ammunition, and baggage. The Confederate generals, Johnston and Beauregard, did not think it prudent to pursue the fugitives, who did not halt till they reached Washington. The Federal army is said to have had 481 killed, 1011 wounded, and 1216 missing. The loss of the Confederates was stated to be about 1500. In March, 1862, when the Army of the Potomac under Gen. McClellan marched into Virginia, they found that the Confederates had quietly retreated from the camp at Manassas. On August 30, 1862, this place was the site of another great battle between the Northern and Southern armies. In August, Gen. “Stonewall” Jackson, after compelling the Federal general Pope to retreat, defeated him at Cedar Mountain on the 9th, turned his flank on the 22d, and arriving at Manassas repulsed his attacks on the 29th. On the 30th, Gen. R. E. Lee (who had defeated Gen. McClellan and the invading Northern army before Richmond, June 26 to July 1) joined Jackson with his army, and Pope received reinforcements from Washington. A desperate conflict ensued, which ended in the Confederates gaining a decisive victory, compelling the Federals to a hasty retreat to Centreville, where they were once more routed, September 1. The remains of their army took refuge behind the lines of Washington on September 2. Pope was at once superseded, and McClellan resumed the command to march against the Confederates, who had crossed the Potomac and entered Maryland.

=Manch=, or =Maunch=. A charge frequently used in heraldry to represent a sleeve with long pendent ends, of the form worn by ladies in the reign of Henry I.

=Manchester.= A city of England, in Lancashire, on the Irwell. In the time of the Druids, it was one of their principal stations. It was one of the seats of the Brigantes, who had a castle or stronghold called Mancenion; and was, about 79, selected by the Romans as a station, and called Mancunium. Called by the Saxons Manceastre. Taken from the Britons, 488; captured by Edwin of Northumbria, 620; taken by the Danes, 877; retaken, 923.

=Mandans.= A tribe of Indians of the Dakota family, who are located with the Arickarees and Gros Ventres on a reservation near Fort Berthold, Dakota. They were hostile to the Sioux, and more friendly to the whites than the neighboring tribes. They number about 250.

=Mandarin.= A general term applied to Chinese officers of every grade by foreigners. It is derived from the Portuguese mandar, “to command”; the Chinese equivalent is kwan. There are nine ranks, each distinguished by a different-colored ball or button placed on the apex of the cap, by a peculiar emblazonry on the breast, and a different clasp of the girdle. The military mandarins are selected by the emperor of China to superintend and command the militia of the country.

=Mandilion.= A soldier’s loose coat; an outer garment without sleeves.

=Mandrel.= In forging, is a rod used to preserve the interior form of hollow-work. Also, the spindle upon which an article is placed in shaping it in a lathe.

=Manduria= (now Casal Nova). A town in Calabria, on the road from Tarentum to Hydruntum, and near a small lake. Here Archidamus III., king of Sparta, was defeated and slain in battle by the Messapians and Lucanians, 338 B.C.

=Manège.= The art of horsemanship or of training horses. Also, a school for teaching horsemanship, and for training horses; a riding-school.

=Mangalore.= A seaport town and fortress of Hindostan, on the eastern shore of the Indian Ocean, in the province of Canara. The Portuguese had a factory here, which was destroyed by the Arabians. In 1793 the town was taken by Hyder Ali, then the Mysore general; in 1768 it was captured by a detachment from Bombay; but was shortly afterwards retaken by Hyder. In 1783 Mangalore again surrendered to a force from Bombay; and after the destruction of Gen. Matthews’s army, sustained a long siege from Tippoo Sahib, and was gallantly defended by Col. Campbell. Upon the conclusion of peace in 1784, it was restored, and the fortifications were dismantled. In 1799, on the overthrow of Tippoo, it was finally taken possession of by the British.

=Mangan= (Fr.). This word is sometimes written mangon, a warlike machine formerly used. The term itself was generally adopted to signify any species of warlike machine. But it more particularly meant the largest and most powerful machine that could be used for warlike purposes; whether it was practiced to throw enormous stones against besieged places, or to cast javelins, etc. It was likewise called ballista, from the Greek, tormentum, from the Latin, torquendo, and sometimes petraria, because stones weighing upwards of 360 pounds were thrown from it. This machine answered the double purpose of defending or attacking fortified places, and it was sometimes used at sea.

=Mangonel= (Fr. mangonel, mangoneau). A very strong and powerful cross-bow, from 15 to 20 feet long, for throwing arrows, darts, or stones. The trebuchet, ribaudequin, etc., were only a variety of the above.

=Manheim=, or =Mannheim=. A town of Germany, in the grand duchy of Baden, at the confluence of the Neckar and the Rhine. It surrendered to the French, under command of Pichegru, September 20, 1795. On October 31, the Austrians under Wurmser defeated the French near the city. Several battles were fought with various success in the neighborhood during the late wars.

=Manifesto=, or =Manifest=. A public declaration, usually of a prince or sovereign, showing his intentions, or proclaiming his opinions and motives in reference to some act done or contemplated by him; as, a manifesto declaring the purpose of a prince to begin war, and explaining his motives.

=Maniglions.= The two handles on the back of a piece of ordnance.

=Manilla=, or =Manila=. A town of the island of Luzon, and the capital of the Spanish settlements in the Philippine Islands. It was taken by the English in 1757; and again in October, 1762, by storm.

=Manipularis= (Fr. manipulaire). The chief officer in a part of the Roman infantry called manipulus, was so called. This officer was likewise ordinary (Fr. ordinaire).

=Manipulus.= So called from its standard or flag, which was made of cloth, and hung suspended on a staff with a hand. The manipulus was distinguished in this manner from the chief standard of each legion, which was an eagle of massive metal.

=Manipulus= (Fr. manipule). A small body of infantry originally, so called among the Romans during the reign of Romulus. Their ensign was a hand on the end of a staff. The manipulus consisted of 100 men, and in the days of the consuls and first Cæsars, of 200. Three manipuli constituted a Roman cohort. Each manipulus was commanded by two officers called centurions, one of whom acted as lieutenant to the other. Every manipulus made two centuries, or ordines. This, however, cannot be said to have been the uniform establishment or formation of the manipulus; for according to Varro and Vegetius, it was the smallest body of men employed in the Roman armies, and composed the tenth part of a century. Spartian says, “it consisted of only ten soldiers.” Some authorities assert that it takes its name from manipulus, “a handful of straw,” the latter having been fixed to a long pole to serve as a rallying signal, before the eagles were adopted. This circumstance has given rise to the modern expression, a handful of men, une poignée de gens. Vegetius, on the other hand, says it comes from manus, which signified a small body or handful of men collected together, and following the same standard; and Modestus as well as Varro state it to have been so called because, when they went into action, they took each other by the hand, or fought all together. A French writer conceives that the manipulus may be considered as one of those parts of a modern battalion which are distributed in different rooms, etc., and which is called une chambree, or a company that messes together.

=Manly.= Having qualities becoming a man; firm; brave; undaunted; noble, etc.

=Mannite, Nitro-.= A high explosive resembling nitro-glycerine in its properties, and made in an analogous manner by the action of nitric and sulphuric acids upon mannite, a form of sugar.

=Manœuvre=, or =Maneuver=. Management; dexterous movement; specifically, an evolution, movement, or change of position among military or naval bodies. To perform a movement in military or naval tactics; to make an evolution. Also, to change the positions of, as troops or ships.

=Manœuvring-wheels.= See ORDNANCE, CARRIAGES FOR, SEA-COAST CARRIAGES.

=Manresa.= A town of Spain, in Catalonia, 30 miles northwest from Barcelona. It suffered much in the war of independence; and in March, 1811, it was almost completely burnt to the ground by Marshal Macdonald.

=Mans, Le.= A city of France, formerly capital of the province of Maine, now of the department of Sarthe. The final struggle between the Vendean troops and the French republicans took place here in 1793, in which the latter were victorious; and in 1871, another battle took place between the Germans and French, in which the former were victorious.

=Mansoura=, or =Mansourah=. A town of Lower Egypt, 34 miles southwest from Dalmietta. Here Louis IX. was defeated by the Saracens and taken prisoner, April 5, 1250. Some French troops which occupied the garrison were massacred here in 1798.

=Manteau= (Fr.). This word, which literally signifies a cloak, is frequently used among the French to express the covering that hussars or light infantry troops carry for the double purpose of shielding their bodies from the inclemencies of the weather in outposts, etc., and for spreading over their heads, by means of poles, when they occasionally halt, and take a position.

=Mantelet= (Fr.). A large osier buckler which was used in ancient times; it was held upright, under cover of which archers shot their arrows. Also a circular frame upon wheels covered with osier or horse-hair, used for the same purpose.

=Mantes.= A town of France, in the department of Seine-et-Oise, 30 miles west-northwest of Paris. It was taken and reduced to ashes by William the Conqueror in 1087.

=Mantillis.= A kind of shield, anciently fixed upon the tops of ships as a cover for archers.

=Mantinea=, or =Mantinœa=. Anciently a city of the Morea, 9 miles north from Tripolitza. It is now the modern Greek village of Palespoli. It was famous as being the scene of several battles, of which the most important was that fought between the Spartans and the Thebans under Epaminondas (362 B.C.), in which the former were defeated.

=Mantle.= A long flowing robe, worn in the Middle Ages over the armor, and fastened by a fibula in front, or at the right shoulder. The mantle is an important part of the official insignia of the various orders of knighthood.

=Mantlet.= A sort of temporary fortification intended to protect the men working guns in embrasures, casemates, or port-holes from the bullets of sharpshooters. The mantlet is usually made to be hoisted up while the gunner takes aim, and then lowered to cover the whole opening except a circular aperture for the muzzle of the cannon. With every increase in the range and precision of small-arms, mantlets become more essential for the safety of gunners. Mantlets are made of thick fir, of solid oak planks, or of iron plates, the last being preferable, as the lightest. At Sebastopol, the Russians effectively blocked their embrasures by thick mantlets of plaited rope suspended freely. A mantlet of planks or iron plates, about 5 feet high, and occasionally mounted on small wheels, is also used to protect sappers working at the end of a sap, although a rolling gabion is preferred for this purpose by many engineers.

=Mantling=, or =Lambrequin=. A heraldic ornament depicted as hanging down from the helmet, and behind the escutcheon. It is considered to represent either the cointise (an ornamental scarf which passed round the body and over the shoulder) or the military mantle or robe of estate. When intended for the cointise, it is cut into irregular strips and curls of the most capricious forms, whose contortions are supposed to indicate that it has been torn into that ragged condition in the field of battle. When the mantling is treated as a robe of estate, the bearings of the shield are sometimes embroidered on it. A mantling adjusted so as to form a background for the shield and its accessories constitutes an Achievement of Arms. In British heraldry, the mantling of the sovereign is of gold lined with ermine; that of peers, of crimson velvet lined with ermine. Knights and gentlemen have generally crimson velvet lined with white satin; but sometimes the livery colors are adopted instead, as is generally the practice in continental heraldry.

=Mantonet= (Fr.). A small piece of wood or iron, which is notched, for the purpose of hanging anything upon it. The pegs in soldiers’ rooms are sometimes so called.

=Mantua.= A fortified city of Northern Italy, 22 miles southwest from Verona. Mantua is both by nature and art one of the strongest places in Europe. It can boast of an antiquity almost equal to that of Rome, and experienced all the vicissitudes of the Middle Ages, and, like other Italian cities, emerged from them into liberty and independence. It surrendered to the French, February 2, 1797, after a siege of eight months; was retaken by the Austrian and Russian army, July 30, 1799, after a short siege. In 1800, after the battle of Marengo, the French again obtained possession of it. It was included in the kingdom of Italy till 1814, when it was restored to the Austrians, who surrendered it to the Italians, October 11, 1866, after the peace.

=Manual.= Book of reference; as, ordnance manual, etc.

=Manual.= A prescribed exercise by means of which soldiers are taught to handle and use their weapons. The manual of arms is the exercise with the musket; the manual of the piece, the exercise with the field-gun. There are also manuals for the sabre, pistol, etc.

=Manuballiste= (Fr.). A cross-bow. There were two kinds in the reign of Henry VII., viz., the latch which was used for quarrels, and the prodd for bullets.

=Manufacture of Ordnance.= See ORDNANCE, MANUFACTURE OF.

=Manufacture of Powder.= See GUNPOWDER.

=Manx.= Pertaining to the Isle of Man.

=Maoris.= A New Zealand word signifying native, is the name given to themselves by the inhabitants of New Zealand, and that by which they are now usually designated. In 1861 war broke out between them and the British, terminating in favor of the latter in 1862; but in 1863 the Maoris recommenced hostilities, and a formidable conspiracy was formed to expel the British troops. In 1868 they massacred many settlers and offered a desperate resistance, and were not subdued until the following year. They numbered at that time about 40,000. They are now comparatively peaceable.

=Map.= In a military and geographical sense, is a plane figure, representing the surface of the earth, or a part thereof, according to the law of the particular kind of projection used; distinguishing the situation of cities, mountains, rivers, roads, etc.

=Marathon.= A village on the east shore of Attica, 20 miles northeast from Athens. Here on September 28 and 29, 490 B.C., the Greeks, only 10,000 strong, defeated the Persian army amounting to 200,000, who had 6400 killed. The Greek loss was 192 Athenians killed, besides some Platæans and slaves. The Greeks were commanded by Miltiades, Aristides, and Themistocles. Among the slain was Hippias, the instigator of the war. The Persian army was forced to retreat to Asia.

=Marathus.= An important city on the coast of Phœnicia, opposite to Aradus. It was destroyed by the people of Aradus in the time of the Syrian king, Alexander Balas, a little before 150 B.C.

=Maraud.= To rove in quest of plunder; to make an excursion for booty; to plunder.

=Marauder.= A rover in quest of booty or plunder; a plunderer.

=Marauding.= Is irregular plunder or violence offered to the inhabitants of a country by the individuals of an army. In all armies where discipline is maintained, marauding is, at least professedly, punished by death; the provost-marshal having power to inflict that penalty summarily on all offenders taken in the act. Marauding is also applied to plundering at sea; as, the Barbary corsairs are systematic marauders.

=Marburg.= A town of Germany, in Hesse-Cassel, situated on the Lahn. It suffered much during the Seven Years’ War, 1753-60.

=March.= The movement of a body of men from one place to another. In marching it cannot be too strongly inculcated that every just movement and manœuvre depends upon the correct equality of march established and practiced by all the troops of the same army, and that when this is not attended to confusion must follow on the junction of several battalions. Also, the distance marched over; as, a march of 20 miles.

=March.= To cause to move in military array; to push forward, as troops; to cause to advance in a steady, regular, or stately manner.

=March.= The military signal for soldiers to move; a piece of music, designed or fitted to accompany and guide the movement of troops; or a piece of music composed after the measure of a march. Also, the command for soldiers to move.

=March.= The length of a day’s march for troops of any arm depends, to a great extent, upon the condition of the roads, the supply of water, forage, etc.; also upon the advantages to be gained over an enemy.

Infantry marches at the rate in common time of 90 steps = 70 yards in one minute, or 2 miles 680 yards in an hour; in quick time, 110 steps = 86 yards in one minute, or 2 miles 1613 yards in an hour; in double time, 165 steps = 151¹⁄₄ yards in one minute, or 5 miles 275 yards in an hour. Under ordinary circumstances infantry should march from 15 to 20 miles a day, halting about ten minutes every hour.

Cavalry should march about 20 miles a day, and be kept at a walk, halting several times during the day, when the men should dismount and permit the horses to refresh themselves by giving them a few mouthfuls of grass and water. On a forced march the horses should not be halted, but they should be relieved fifteen minutes every hour by dismounting the men and requiring them to march. For selection of cavalry horses, rate of speed at a trot, gallop, etc., see HORSE.

The march of artillery should be governed by the movements of the arms of the service to which it is assigned for duty. The care of men and horses is a combination of what has been laid down for cavalry and infantry. For the rates of march of, and loads carried by, artillery horses, see PACK AND DRAUGHT HORSES.

=Marchands= (Fr.). Slop-sellers, petty sutlers. Men of this description always flock round and follow an army on its march. As they generally deal in articles which are required by the officers and soldiers, it is the business of every general to see them properly treated, to insure their safety, and to permit them, under certain regulations, to have access to the camp.

=Marcher.= One who marches. In ancient times the lord or officer who defended the marches or borders of a territory.

=Marches.= A frontier, a border. In English history, the boundary between England and Wales, also between England and Scotland.

=Marches, Combined.= When the movements of the divisions or corps are made independent of each other, but having the same object in common, they are known as combined marches. They are arranged with the intention of having the several columns arrive at a given position but coming from different directions.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches, Flank.= Are marches made parallel or obliquely to the enemy’s position. They are used when it is desired to turn the enemy’s position or attack him on the flank.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches, Manœuvre.= Marches are sometimes made by which an army gains a position, the possession of which compels the enemy to leave the position he is occupying. If these marches are under the observation of the enemy, they are termed “manœuvres”; but if made out of his sight, they are called manœuvre marches.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches of Concentration.= The marches which are made by several bodies of troops, starting from points separated from each other, for the purpose of bringing these troops together at some stated place, are termed marches of concentration. Forced marches are much used in concentrating troops, especially before a battle. Many examples are given in military history.

Friant’s division of Davoust’s corps marched over 80 miles in forty-eight hours in 1805, to join Napoleon in the battle of Austerlitz. Craufurd’s brigade marched, so Napier says, 62 miles in twenty-six hours, to join Wellington at Talavera, in 1809. Napoleon marched an army to the relief of Dresden, in 1813, by forced marches of over 30 miles a day for three consecutive days. The marches of the different corps of the Army of the Potomac on the 30th of June and the 1st of July, 1863, by means of which the army was concentrated at Gettysburg, are good examples of marches of concentration. The 6th Corps under Gen. Sedgwick made on this occasion a march over 30 miles.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches, Route.= Route marches are used by troops both during war and in peace. They are used in peace to conduct a body of troops from one station or post to another. They are used in war for the purpose of assembling the fractions of an army on its base of operations; of conducting troops through a district or country where there is no enemy, etc.

There are three kinds of route marches, according to the manner in which they are made, viz.: ordinary, forced, and marches by rail.

Ordinary route marches are those made along ordinary roads and where the length of the march in any one day is not greater than 20 miles. Twenty miles is a long march, especially if the body of troops is large, and this distance is taken as the limit for an ordinary march. If the distance marched in any one day is greater than 20 miles, the march is forced.

Forced marches are extremely exhausting upon the troops and should not exceed 30 miles per day, although greater distances have been overcome by good troops. The number of forced marches made in succession must be few, only two or three, even for the best of troops. They are used but rarely in time of peace, and then only under pressing circumstances. They are much used in war, when a rapid concentration of troops is to be made; when a strategical combination is to be effected, etc.

Route marches by rail are employed both in peace and war. This kind of march includes all those in which the troops do not actually march, but are transported bodily to their destination. Railroads have become in recent years the great factor in rapid and cheap means of moving troops, and the term “rail” is therefore applied to this method of conducting troops from one place to another.

This method is of especial service when the time given to the troops to reach their destination is short, and the distance is great. It is especially used in the case of assembling armies and forwarding the reserves and recruits to the theatre of war. The late war in the United States, the war in 1859 in Italy, the Franco-Prussian war in 1870, etc., all furnish examples.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches, Strategical.= Marches which made in the theatre of war, near an enemy whose position is not exactly known, having in general for their object the completion of some strategical combination, are designated strategical marches. They are used to conduct an army to a position from which an attack can be made on the enemy, or to a position in which the army can remain and receive an attack; in other words, to a position immediately in the presence of the enemy.

Strategical marches are either ordinary or forced marches, and are used principally to mass troops at some stated point on the theatre of operations before the enemy can make arrangements to prevent it or can prepare counter-movements to weaken or nullify the effect of the movement. Secrecy, celerity, and good order are therefore indispensable requisites for success in marches of this kind.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marches, Tactical.= Marches made in the immediate vicinity of the enemy, and so near that they may be observed by him, are called tactical marches. Since these marches are made very near the enemy, greater precautions are required to guard against an attack than are necessary in strategical marches.

Tactical marches differ from route and strategical marches in one material particular, and that is in the number and sizes of the wagon-trains accompanying the troops on the march. Both in route and strategical marches the troops are cumbered with long and unwieldy wagon-trains carrying the baggage and supplies of the army, whereas in a tactical march there are none, or the trains are reduced to a minimum. Since the enemy may attack the moving columns at any minute, everything is sacrificed to the important one of being ready to fight at a minute’s notice, and the army carries with it only supplies enough for two or three days, and little or no baggage. Everything not essential for feeding the troops and not necessary for fighting is therefore left behind the army while it is making a tactical march.--Prof. J. B. Wheeler.

=Marchfeld.= In Austria, where Ottocar II. of Bohemia was defeated and slain by his rival, the emperor Rodolph of Hapsburg, August 26, 1278.

=Marching.= One of the first necessities to distinguish a body of disciplined troops from a mere crowd of men is a regular cadenced step, taken by every individual at the same time, and with the same foot. When troops are to march a long distance the route step is employed, the men keeping the same distance and their places in the ranks as when marching on drills, parades, reviews, musters, etc., where the cadenced step in common, quick, or double time is employed. In the U. S. service the length of the step in common and quick time is 28 inches, and the cadence is at the rate of 90 steps per minute for common time and 110 for quick time; in double time the length of the step is 33 inches and the cadence at the rate of 165 steps per minute, but it may be increased to 180. In the feudal ages, when infantry fell into disrepute, cadenced marching was unattended to, and seems only to have been thoroughly revived by Marshal Saxe.

=Marching Money.= The additional pay which officers and soldiers receive for the purpose of covering the expense necessarily incurred when marching from one place to another.

=Marching Order.= In the British service a soldier is said to be in marching order when he is fully equipped with arms, ammunition, and a portion of his kit, which weighs from 30 to 35 pounds. In service marching order, by the addition of provisions and some campaigning necessaries, he carries nearly 50 pounds. But heavy marching order, which was yet heavier, is now happily abolished. See HEAVY MARCHING ORDER, and LIGHT MARCHING ORDER.

=Marching Orders.= The orders issued preparatory to troops marching; and in the British service signifies six days’ journey at least.

=Marching Regiments.= A term given in England to those who had not any permanent quarters, but were liable to be sent not only from one end of Great Britain to another, but to the most distant of her possessions abroad. Although the word marching is insensibly confounded with those of line and regulars, it was originally meant to convey something more than a mere liability to be ordered upon any service; for by marching the regular troops from one town to another, the inhabitants, who from time immemorial have been jealous of a standing army, lost their antipathy to real soldiers, by the occasional absence of regular troops. At present the English guards, infantry, etc., may be considered more or less as marching regiments. The marines and volunteers have stationary quarters.

=Marcomanni.= A powerful confederacy of ancient Germans, who were resident, as their name imports, on the borders. They are first mentioned in history by Cæsar, and seem at that time to have dwelt upon the banks of the Rhine. From Tacitus and several others we learn that they soon afterwards moved westward, under their king Maroboduus, drove the Boii out of Bohemia, and settled in that country. After organizing a government, Maroboduus formed a league with the neighboring tribes, for the purpose of defending Germany against the Romans. He was thus enabled to muster 70,000 disciplined soldiers, and to conclude an honorable treaty with the emperor Tiberius in 6 A.D. In 17 he was defeated by the Cherusci, and in two years afterwards he was expelled from his throne by the Goth Catualda, and forced to seek refuge in Italy. The same fate soon afterwards befell his dethroner and successor, and the Marcomanni once more came under the sway of native kings. After this they gradually extended their dominions, until they had reached the Danube, and had provoked the jealousy of the Romans in the time of Domitian. Then began hostilities between the Romans and the Marcomanni, which led to the protracted struggle of the Marcomannic war, during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, but was finally quelled by the peace of Commodus, in 180. Favored, however, by the feeble rule of Commodus, they continued their predatory inroads into the Roman provinces of Noricum and Rhætia, and ventured sometimes as far as the defiles of the Alps. In 270, in the reign of Aurelian, they pushed forward into Italy, and penetrated even to Ancona, spreading consternation around them. After this period they disappear gradually, and are mentioned for the last time among the hordes of Attila.

=Marcouf, St.= Two small islands of France, in the department Manche, and which protect the roadstead off Cape La Hogue. They were taken by the British in 1795, but restored to France at the peace of Amiens.

=Maréchal= (Fr.). Major-general.

=Maréchal de Bataille= (Fr.). A military rank which once existed in France, but was suppressed before the revolution, or rather confined to the body-guards. An officer belonging to that corps received it as an honorary title. Its original functions, etc., with respect to general service, sunk in the appointments of maréchal de camp and major-general. It was first created by Louis XIII. Maréchal-général des logis de la cavalerie, this appointment took place under Charles IX. in 1594. He had the chief direction of everything which related to the French cavalry. Maréchal des logis pour les vivres, a person belonging to the quartermaster-general’s department was so called in the old French service.

=Maréchal de Camp= (Fr.). A military rank which existed during the French monarchy. The person invested with it was a general officer, and ranked next to a lieutenant-general. It was his duty to see the army properly disposed of in camp or quarters, to be present at all the movements that were made; to be the first to mount his charger, and the last to quit him. He commanded the left in all attacks. The appointment under this distinction was first created by Henry IV. in 1598.

=Maréchal-Général des Camps et Armées du Roi= (Fr.). A post of high dignity and trust, which during the French monarchy was annexed to the rank of maréchal de France. Military writers differ with respect to the privileges, etc., which belonged to this appointment; it is, however, generally acknowledged that the general officer who held it was intrusted with the whole management of a siege, being subordinate only to the constable, or to any other maréchal de France, who was his senior in appointment.

=Maréchal-Général des Logis de l’Armée= (Fr.). This appointment, which existed during the old French government, and has since been replaced by the chef de l’état-major, corresponds with that of quartermaster-general in the British service.

=Maréchaussées de France= (Fr.). A species of military police which formerly existed in France. During the French monarchy there were 31 companies of maréchaussées à cheval, or mounted policemen. These companies first formed for the purpose of preserving public tranquillity, and were distributed in the different provinces of the kingdom. This useful body of men was first formed under Philip I. in 1060; they were afterwards suppressed, and again re-established in 1720, as constituting a part of the gendarmerie of France. There were other companies of maréchaussées, who were particularly distinguished from the 31 above mentioned; such, for instance, as that of the constables, called the gendarmerie.

=Marengo.= A village of Italy, in Piedmont, near the Bormida, 2 miles southeast from Alessandria. Here the French army, commanded by Bonaparte, attacked the Austrians, June 14, 1800; his army was retreating, when the arrival of Gen. Dessaix turned the fortunes of the day. The slaughter on both sides was dreadful. By this victory Bonaparte gained 12 strong fortresses, and became master of Italy.

=Margarita.= An island in the Caribbean Sea lies off the coast of Venezuela, of which republic it forms a province. This island was first visited by Columbus in 1498, and has in more recent times (1816) been the scene of a bloody warfare between the revolutionists and the Spanish troops under Gen. Murillo, in which the latter were defeated.

=Margrave.= A German nobleman corresponding in rank to the English marquis. Margravine is the wife of a margrave.

=Margum=, or =Margus=. A fortified place in Mœsia Superior, west of Viminacium, situated on the river Margus (now Morava), at its confluence with the Danube. Here Diocletian gained a decisive victory over Carinus.

=Maricopa Indians.= A tribe of aborigines, numbering about 400, who are located with the Pimas on a reservation on the Gila River, Arizona, about 180 miles above its mouth. They are peaceable, and follow agricultural pursuits.

=Marienbourg.= A fortified town of Belgium, situated in the province of Namur. This place was occupied by the French from 1659 till 1815.

=Marignano= (now Malegnano). A village of Northern Italy, near Milan. Three battles have been fought near here: (1) Francis I. of France defeated the Duke of Milan and the Swiss, September 13-14, 1515; above 20,000 men were slain; this conflict has been called the “battle of the giants.” (2) Near here was fought the battle of Pavia. (See PAVIA.) (3) After the battle of Magenta, June 4, 1859, the Austrians intrenched themselves at Malegnano. Marshal Baraguay d’Hilliers with 16,000 men was sent to dislodge them, which he did, on June 8, with a loss of about 850 killed and wounded. The Austrians suffered severely.

=Marine.= A soldier serving on ship-board; a sea-soldier; one of a body of troops trained to do duty on vessels of war.

=Marine Fortification.= This kind of fortification differs from land fortification in that the approaches of the enemy which are to be resisted take place on the level of the sea, so that he can come near without having to overcome the dangerous slope of the glacis. The combat is simply one between two powerful batteries, and the question to be decided is, whether the ship or the fort will first be placed hors de combat; the ship having ordinarily the largest number of guns, while the fort has more solid battlements, and its fewer guns of great caliber can be fired with a steadiness unattainable on so shifting a base as the ocean. Under these circumstances, the less relief a sea-fortress has the better, the less likely is it to be hit from shipping. Its walls are usually built perpendicular, or nearly so. The magazines and quarters for the men are bomb-proof, as also are the casemates, from which the guns are usually fired, although sometimes, as in the martello tower, the gun is worked on top of the structure. Sea fortifications may be of various importance, the simplest being the battery consisting of a mere parapet formed in a cliff or on a hill, and mounted with guns to command the sea; these are generally built in such concealed situations, that it is hoped the hostile ship will not perceive them until they actually open fire. These are numerous all around the British coast. Next greater in importance is the martello tower (which see). More powerful still are the breach-forts, such as those which on either shore defend the entrance to Portsmouth harbor, England. These are constructed of the most solid masonry, and armed with guns of the heaviest caliber, sweeping the very surface of the sea so as to strike an approaching ship between wind and water. The guns are usually in bomb-proof casemates, and the fort is often defended on the land side, if the coast be level; if, however, higher ground be behind, this would be useless, and then the sea-front alone is defensible. Most terrible of all sea-forts, however, are the completely isolated forts with perpendicular faces and two and three tiers of heavy guns. Such are the tremendous batteries which render Cronstadt almost unapproachable, and by which Spithead and Plymouth Sound, England, are now being fortified. These forts are generally large, with all the requisites for a garrison to maintain itself; against them wooden ships stand no chance, and in the American civil war, Fort Sumter, at Charleston, has shown itself no mean antagonist for ironsides. In the new forts, as Spithead, etc., iron is to be employed as the facing, in plates of such vast thickness and weight that it is supposed no ship can ever possess any comparable power; and as they are to be armed with guns the smallest of which will probably be 300-pounders, it is expected that they will be able to destroy any fleet that could be sent against them. At the present day, the value of sea fortifications is disputed, as iron-plated vessels may pass them with impunity, unless the artillery in the fort be so heavy as to destroy the armor of the ships. In the long run, however, it is apparent that the fort can command the greater power; for its armor may be of any thickness, while that of the ship must be limited by her floating powers, and on the other hand, the limit to the size of artillery must be sooner reached in a ship than in a solid and stationary fortress.

=Marines, Corps of.= In the U. S. service is a body of troops who serve at the different naval stations, and on board ships of war. The men are drilled in all respects as infantry, and therefore, when on shore, are ordinary land forces. On board ship, their ordinary functions are as sharpshooters in time of action, and at other times to furnish sentries for guarding the stores, gangways, etc.; and they are useful as exercising a good control over the less rigidly disciplined sailors. They are also instructed as guns’ crews, and when not on guard, are subject to the orders of the naval officers in the same manner as the seamen. The corps was first established in the United States in 1775, and was permanently organized by act of Congress in 1798. By this act, marines were made liable to do duty at the call of the President in any of the forts or posts of the United States, and were placed on the footing of infantry soldiers, as far as regards pay and allowances. When detached for duty with the army, marines are subject to the Articles of War; at all other times they are subject to the laws and regulations for the government of the navy. The corps numbers about 2000 men commanded by a colonel. The corps has undergone many changes in respect of numbers, equipment, drill, and methods of recruiting since its organization, and was never in a better state of discipline and efficiency than now. No man is enlisted who is unable to read and write, under 5 feet 6 inches high, or over thirty-five years of age. It is organized into battalions for duty on shore, and into “guards,” or companies, for service afloat, each having its proper complement of officers, non-commissioned officers, musicians, and privates, and is considered an indispensable auxiliary to the navy. Civilians between twenty and twenty-five years of age are eligible at present to appointment as lieutenants in line of promotion, and are stationed at the head-quarters of the corps in Washington for their preliminary instruction. In the British service, besides the infantry, there is a division of marine artillery. In rank, marine officers correspond with army officers of the same grade, according to seniority; they are usually appointed from civil life.

=Maritime.= Bordering on, or situated near, the ocean; connected with the sea by site, interest, or power.

=Mark.= That toward which a missile is directed; a thing aimed at; what one seeks to hit or reach.

=Mark, St., Knights of.= An order of knighthood which formerly existed in the republic of Venice, under the protection of St. Mark the Evangelist.

=Mark Time.= To mark time is to move each leg alternately in quick or ordinary time, without gaining ground. This is frequently practiced when a front file or column has opened too much, in order to afford the rear an opportunity of getting up; and sometimes to let the head of a column disengage itself, or a body of troops file by, etc.

=Marker.= The soldier who forms the pivot of a wheeling column, or marks the direction of an alignment. Also, the one who records the number of hits and misses made by soldiers at target practice.

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