MUD-WALLS. The ancient fortifications consisted chiefly of mud or clay, thrown up in any convenient form for defence against sudden inroads.
MUET,Fr.SeeMute.
ToMUFFLE. To wrap any thing up so as to deaden the sound, which might otherwise issue from the contact of two hard substances. When the French effected their passage over the march Albaredo, on their route to the plain of Marengo, they were so much exposed to the Austrians, that, in order to get their artillery and ammunition over, without being betrayed by the noise of the carriage wheels, and the clattering of the horses’ shoes, both were muffled with bands of hay and straw, and dung was spread over the ground. In this manner they crossed that stupendous rock. Thirty men were put to the drag ropes of each piece, and as many were employed to draw up the caissons.
Muffled.Drums are muffled at military funerals or burials, and at military executions, particularly when a soldier is shot for some capital crime.
MUGS. An Indian nation, living on the borders of Bengal and Arracan.
MUHLAGIS,Fr.Turkish cavalry which is mounted by expert horsemen, who generally attend the beglierbeys. They are not numerous.
MULATTOS, (Mulâtre,Fr.) In the Indies, denotes one begotten by a negro man on an Indian woman, or by an Indian man on a negro woman. Those begotten of a Spanish woman and Indian man are calledmetis, and those begotten of a savage by ametis, are calledjambis. They also differ very much in color, and in their hair.
Generally speaking, especially in Europe, and in the West Indies, a Mulatto is one begotten by a white man on a negrowoman, or by a negro man on a white woman. The word is Spanish,mulata, and formed ofmula, a mule, being begotten as it were of two different species.
Mulattoes abound in the West Indies; so much so, that on the dangerous symptoms of insurrection, which appeared among the blacks after the success of Toussaint in St. Domingo, a proposal was made to the British government by a rich planter, to raise a mulatto corps, as an intermediate check upon the blacks. After six months suspence, the memorial was rejected by the war-minister.
MULCT. A soldier is said to be mulct of his pay when put under fine or stoppages for necessaries, or to make good some dilapidations committed by him on the property of the people or government.
MULTANGULAR, is said of a figure, or body which has many angles.
MULTILATERAL, having many sides.
MULTIPLE, one number containing another several times: as 9 is the multiple of 3, 16 that of 4, and so on.
MUNIMELL, a strong hold, fortification, &c.
MUNITION,Fr.This word is used among the French to express not only victuals and provisions, but also military stores and ammunition.
Munitionsde bouche,Fr.Victuals or provisions, (such as bread, salt, meat, vegetables, butter, wine, beer, brandy, &c. which may be procured for soldiers) are so called by the French. Corn, oats, hay, straw, and green forage, for cavalry, bear the same appellation. SeeSubsistence.
Munitionsde guerre,Fr.Military stores, such as gunpowder, shot, balls, bullets, matches, &c. SeeStores.
MUNITIONNAIREou entrepreneur des vivres,Fr.Military purveyor, or commissary of stores. Amaury Bourguignon, from Niort, a town of Poitou, was the firstmunitionnaireandentrepréneur général, or purveyor-general, among the French. He was appointed in the reign of Henry III. in 1574. SeePurveyor.
Munitionnairepour la marine,Fr.The head of the victualling office was so called among the French. There was a person on board every ship of war, calledcommis, or clerk, who acted under his orders. The appointment of the latter was somewhat similar to that of a purser in the British navy.
MUNSUBDAR,Ind.A title which gives the person invested with it, a right to have the command of ten thousand horse, with the permission of bearing amongst his ensigns that of the fish; neither of which distinctions is ever granted, excepting to persons of the first note in the empire. The office is called aMunsub, and it is generally supported by a district named, on which the corps is quartered.
MUR,Fr.a wall.
MUR CRENELE,Fr.A wall which has small intervals or spaces at the top, that serve more for ornament or ostentation than for real defence. This method of building prevailed very much in former times.
Murde face,Fr.Outside wall of any building.
Murde face de devant,Fr.Front outside wall; it is likewise calledmur anterieur.
Murde face de derriére,Fr.The wall which forms the backside of a building is so called: it is likewise namedmur postérieur.
Murslateraux,Fr.The side walls of a building.
GrosMurs,Fr.All front and partition walls are so called.
Murde pierres sèches,Fr.A wall that is built of stone, without mortar or cement. Walls or this construction are seen in several counties in England, particularly in the west country.
Muren l’air,Fr.Every wall is so called that does not rise uniformly from a parallel foundation. Walls built upon arches are of this description.
Murmitoyen,Fr.Partition wall.
Murd’appui,Fr.Wall of support. Any wall that is built to support a quay, terrace, or balcony, or to secure the sides of a bridge, is so called.Mur de parapet, or parapet wall, may be considered as a wall of support.
MURAGE. Money appropriated to the repair of military works, was anciently so called.
MURAILLEde revêtement,Fr.the wall which surrounds a fortified place is so called.
Charger enMuraille,Fr.To charge or attack an enemy, in a firm, compact, and steady line.
MURAL-Crown. SeeCrown.
CouronneMURALE,Fr.SeeMural-Crown.
MURDRESSES, inancient fortification, a sort of battlement with interstices, raised on the tops of towers to fire through.
VilleMUREE,Fr.A walled town.
MURRION. SeeMorion.
MURTHERERS, ormurthering pieces, small pieces of ordnance, having chambers, and made to load at the breech. They were mostly used at sea, in order to clear the decks when an enemy boarded a vessel.
MUSCULUS. Kennett in his Roman Antiquities, page 237, says, “the Musculus is conceived to have been much of the same nature as thetestudines; but it seems to have been of a smaller size, and composed of stronger materials, being exposed a much longer time to the force of the enemy; for in thesemusculi, the pioneers were sent to the very walls, where they were to continue, while with their dolabræ or pick-axes, and other instruments, they endeavored to underminethe foundations.” Cæsar has described themuscalusat large in his second book of the civil wars.
MUSIC, a general term for the musicians of aregimental band.
MUSICIANS. It has been often asked, why the dress of musicians, drummers and fifers, should be of so varied and motley a composition, making them appear more like harlequins and mountebanks, than military appendages? The following anecdote will explain the reason, as far at least as it regards the British service:—The musicians belonging to the English guards formerly wore plain blue coats, so that the instant they came off duty, and frequently in the intervals between, they visited alehouses, &c. without changing their uniform, and thus added considerably to its wear and tear. It will be here remarked, that the clothing of the musicians then fell wholly upon the colonels of regiments; no allowance being specifically made for that article by the public. It is probable, that some general officer undertook to prevent this abuse by obtaining permission to clothe the musicians, &c. in so fantastical a manner that they would be ashamed to exhibit themselves at public-houses, &c.
PHRYGIAN MUSIC. A martial sort of ancient music, which excited men to rage and battle: by this mode Timotheus stirred up Alexander to arms.
Modes ofMusic. There were three modes among the ancients, which took their names from particular countries, namely, theLydian, thePhrygian, and theDoric.
MUSKET,-MUSQUET,
the most serviceable and commodious fire-arm used by an army. It carries a ball of 18 to 1 pound. Its length is 3 feet 6 inches from the muzzle to the pan. The Spaniards were the first who armed part of their foot with musquets. At first they were made very heavy, and could not be fired without a rest: they had match locks, and did execution at a great distance. These kinds of musquets and rests were used in England so late as the beginning of the civil wars.
Musquetswere first used at the siege of Rhege, in the year 1521.
MUSQUET BASKETS. These are about a foot, or a foot and an half high, eight or ten inches diameter at bottom, and a foot at the top; so that, being filled with earth, there is room to lay a musquet between them at bottom, being set on low breast-works, or parapets, or upon such as are beaten down.
MUSQUETEERS, soldiers armed with musquets; who, on a march, carried only their rests and ammunition, and had boys to bear their musquets after them. They were very slow in loading, not only by reason of the unwieldiness of the pieces, and because they carried the powder and ball separate, but from the time required to prepare and adjust the match: so that their fire was not so brisk as ours is now. Afterwards a lighter kind of matchlock musquet came in use; and they carried their ammunition in bandeliers, to which were hung several little cases of wood, covered with leather, each containing a charge of powder; the balls they carried loose in a pouch, and a priming-horn, hanging by their side. These arms were about the beginning of this century, universally laid aside in Europe, and the troops were armed with flint firelocks.
MUSQUETOONS, a kind of short thick musquet, whose bore is the 38th part of its length: it carries five ounces of iron, or 7¹⁄₂ of lead, with an equal quantity of powder. This is the shortest sort of blunderbusses.
MUSRAL. The noseband of a horse’s bridle.
MUSSUK,Ind.A skin in which water is carried.
MUSTACHES. Whiskers, worn by the Asiatics, Germans, Russians, and other foreign troops.
MUSTER, ina military sense, a review of troops under arms, to see if they be complete, and in good order; to take an account of their numbers, the condition they are in, viewing their arms, and accoutrements, &c.
Muster.This word is derived from the Frenchmustrer, to shew. At a muster every man must be properly clothed and accoutred, &c. and answer to his name. The French call itappel nominatif. We call it anInspection.
Musters.By sect. 4th of the British Articles of War, it is enacted, that musters shall be taken of the regiments of life guards, horse guards, and foot guards, twice at least in every year, at such times as shall have been or may be appointed, and agreeably to the forms heretofore used therein.
The musters of every other regiment, troop, or company, in the service, are to be taken at such times, and in such manner, as is directed by the late regulations touching regimental and district paymasters, and the mode of mustering, paying, and settling the accompts of the army.
All commanding officers, and others concerned in the mustering, as well of the regiments of life guards, horse guards, and foot guards, as of the other forces, are enjoined to give the utmost care and attention to the making up of the muster rolls with strict exactness and accuracy.
Every officer who shall be convicted before a general court-martial of having signed a false certificate, relating to the absence of either officer, non-commissioned officer, or private soldier, will be cashiered.
Every officer who shall knowingly make a false muster of man or horse, and every officer and commissary, or muster-master, who shall wittingly sign, direct, or allow the signing of the muster rolls, wherein such false muster is contained, shall, uponproof made thereof, by two witnesses before a general court-martial, be cashiered, and suffer such other penalty as he is liable to by the act for punishing mutiny and desertion.
Any commissary or muster-master, who shall be convicted before a general court-martial, of having taken money, by way of gratification, on the mustering any regiment, troop, or company, or on the signing the muster-rolls, shall be displaced from his office, and suffer such other penalty as he is liable to by the said act.
Every colonel, or other field officer, commanding a regiment, troop, or company, and actually residing with it, may give furloughs to non-commissioned officers and soldiers, in such numbers, and for so long a time, as he shall judge to be most consistent with the good of our service; but no non-commissioned officer or soldier, shall, by leave of his captain, or inferior officer, commanding the troop or company, (his field officer not being present) be absent above twenty days in six months; nor shall more than two private men be absent at the same time from their troop or company, unless some extraordinary occasion shall require it; of which occasion the field officer present with and commanding the regiment is to be the judge.
It is strictly forbidden to muster any person as a soldier who does not actually do his duty as a soldier, &c. SeeLivery.
Muster-master-general,Commissary-generalof theMusters, one who takes account of every regiment, their number, horses, arms, &c. reviews them, sees that the horses are well mounted, and all the men well armed and accoutred, &c.
MUSTER-ROLL, (état nominatif,Fr.) a specific list of the officers and men in every regiment, troop, or company, which is delivered to the muster-master, regimental or district paymaster, (as the case may be) whereby they are paid, and their condition is known. The names of the officers are inscribed according to rank, those of the men in alphabetical succession. Adjutants of regiments make out a muster roll, and when the list is called over, every individual must answer to his name. Every muster-roll must be signed by the colonel or commanding officer, the paymaster and adjutant of each regiment, troop, or company: it must likewise be sworn to by the muster-master or paymaster, (as the case may be) before a justice of the peace, previous to its being transmitted to government.
MUSTI. One born of a mulatto father or mother, and a white father or mother.
MUTILATED. In a military sense, signifies wounded in such a manner as to lose the use of a limb. A battalion is said to be mutilated, when its divisions, &c. stand unequal.
MUTINE,orMUTINEER, a soldier guilty of mutiny.
MUTINY, in amilitary sense, to rise against authority. Any officer or soldier who shall presume to use traitorous or disrespectful words against the president of the United States, against the vice president, against the congress of the United States, or against the chief magistrate or legislature of any of the United States, in which he may be quartered, is guilty of mutiny.
Any officer or soldier who shall behave himself with contempt or disrespect towards his commanding officer, or shall speak words tending to his hurt or dishonor, is guilty of mutiny.
Any officer or soldier who shall begin, excite, cause, or join in any mutiny or sedition, in the troop, company, or regiment, to which he belongs, or in any other troop, or company, in the service of the United States, or on any party, post, detachment, or guard, on any pretence whatsoever, is guilty of mutiny.
Any officer or soldier who, being present at any mutiny or sedition, does not use his utmost endeavors to suppress the same, or coming to the knowlege of any mutiny, or intended mutiny, does not, without delay, give information to his commanding officer, is guilty of mutiny.
Any officer or soldier, who shall strike his superior officer, or draw, or offer to draw, or shall lift up any weapon, or offer any violence against him, being in the execution of his office, on any pretence whatsoever, or shall disobey any lawful command of his superior officer, is guilty of mutiny. SeeWar.
Mutiny-Act, an act which passes every year in the British house of commons, to answer some specific military purposes; and by which the army is continued on a peace or war establishment.
MUZZLEof a gun or mortar, the extremity at which the powder and ball are put in.
MUZZLE-RINGof a gun, that which encompasses and strengthens the muzzle, or mouth of a cannon.
MYRIAD, denotes the number ten thousand.
MYRIARCH. The captain, or commander of ten thousand men.
MYRMIDONS. In antiquity, a people of Thessaly, of whom it is fabled, that they arose from ants, upon a prayer put up to Jupiter, by Æacus, after his kingdom had been depopulated by a pestilence. In Homer, and in Virgil, the Myrmidons are Achilles’s soldiers. The term Myrmidon is used in modern times to express any rude ruffian, or hireling assassin; the same asHessian.
MYRMILLONES. A sort of combatants among the Romans, who had on the top of their cask or helmet, the representation of a fish; and in their engagements with the Retiarii, if they werecaught and wrapped in the net, it was not possible for them to escape.
MYSORE. An extensive country in the East Indies, which borders on the Carnatic to the S. W. bounded on the East by the south part of the Carnatic, and the district of Tritchinopoly. It extends west within 30 miles of the sea coast of Malabar. Seringapatam was the capital. It was wantonly attacked, taken, and partitioned twice, and at last completely occupied and incorporated with the British conquests.