Battle-Array,-Line ofBattle,
the method and order of arranging the troops in order or line of battle; the form of drawing up the army for an engagement.This method generally consists of three lines, viz. the front line, the rear line, and the reserve.
The second line should be about 300 paces behind the first, and the reserve at about 5 or 600 paces behind the second. The artillery is likewise divided along the front of the first line. The front line should be stronger than the rear line, that its shock may be more violent, and that, by having a greater front, it may more easily close on the enemy’s flanks. If the first line has the advantage, it should continue to act, and attack the enemy’s second line, terrified by the defeat of their first. The artillery must always accompany the line of battle in the order it was at first distributed, if the ground permit it; and the rest of the army should follow the motions of the first line, when it continues to march on after its first success.
Battle-Ax, an offensive weapon, formerly much used by the Danes, and other northern infantry. It was a kind of halbert, and did great execution when wielded by a strong arm.
Main-Battle. SeeBattle-Array.
BATTLEMENTS, in military affairs, are the indentures in the tops of old castles or fortified walls, or other buildings, in the form of embrasures, for the greater conveniency of firing or looking through.
BATTREl’estrade,Fr.to send out scouts.
Battrela campagne,Fr.to scour the country or make incursions against an enemy.
Battre,Fr.to direct one or more pieces of ordnance in such a manner, that any given object may be destroyed or broken into by the continued discharge of cannon ball, or of other warlike materials; it likewise means to silence an enemy’s fire.
Battrede front,Fr.to throw cannon-shot in a perpendicular or almost perpendicular direction against any body or place which becomes an object of attack. This mode of attack is less effectual than any other unless youbatter in breach.
Battred’écharpe,Fr.to direct shot, so that the lines of fire make a manifest acute angle with respect to the line of any particular object against which cannon is discharged.
Battreen flanc,Fr.is when the shot from a battery runs along the length of the front of any object or place against which it is directed.
Battrea dos,Fr.to direct the shot from one or several pieces of cannon so as to batter, almost perpendicularly, from behind any body of troops, part of a rampart or intrenchment.
Battrede revers,Fr.to direct shot, in such a manner as to run between the two last mentioned lines of fire. When you batter from behind, the shot fall almost perpendicularly upon the reverse of the parapet. When you batter from the reverse side, the trajectories or lines of fire describe acute angles of forty five degrees or under, with the prolongation of that reverse.
Battrede bricole,Fr.This method can only be put in practice at sieges, and against works which have been constructed in front of others that are invested. A good billiard player will readily comprehend what is meant by thebricoleor back stroke; it means simply the firing of shot against a wall so that the balls may rebound and in the rebound strike men or objects, that could not be struck directly.
Battrela Caisse,Fr.to beat a drum.
Mener battant, to overcome.
Mener quelqu’un au Tambour battant.To overcome by strokes of the drum. To disconcert, to confound, puzzle and perplex any body.
BAVINS, in military affairs, implies small faggots, made of brush-wood, of a considerable length, no part of the brush being taken off. SeeFascines.
BAYARD,Fr.a provincial term used in ancient Languedoc and Roussillon to signify a wheel-barrow.
BAYONET, a kind of triangular dagger, made with a hollow handle, and a shoulder, to fix on the muzzle of a firelock or musket, so that neither the charging nor firing is prevented by its being fixed on the piece. It is of infinite service against horse. At first the bayonet was screwed into the muzzle of the barrel, consequently could not be used during the fire. It is said by some to have been invented by the people of Malacca, and first made use of on quitting the pikes. According to others, it was first used by the fusileers in France, and invented or used at Bayonne. At present it is given to all infantry.
BEACON, a signal for securing and guarding against dangers.
On certain eminent places of the country are placed long poles erect, whereon are fastened pitch-barrels to be fired by night, and smoke made by day, to give notice, in a few hours of an approaching invasion; the Irish are reported to have risen upon and extirpated the Danes by beacons or fires lighted on their hills.
BEAR, in gunnery. A piece of ordnance is said tobear, orcometobear, orbroughttobearwhen pointed directly against the object; that is, pointed to hit the object.
BEARD, the reflected points of the head of an ancient arrow, particularly of such as were jagged.
BEAT, in a military sense, signifies to gain the day, to win the battle, &c.
ToBeata parley. SeeChamade.
BEAVER, that part of the ancient helmet which covered the face, and which was moveable so as to expose the face without removing the beaver from the helmet.
BECHE,Fr.a spade used by pioneers.
BEDS, in the military language, are of various sorts, viz.
Mortar-Bedsserve for the same purpose as a carriage does to a cannon: they are made of solid timber, consisting generally of 2 pieces fastened together with strong iron bolts and bars. Their sizes are according to the kind of mortar they carry.
Bedsfor Mortars.
Stool-Bedsfor guns.
Sea-Mortar-Beds, are made of solid timber, having a hole in the centre to receive the pintle or strong iron bolt, about which the bed turns. Sea-mortars are mounted on these beds, on board of the bomb-ketches.
These beds are placed upon very strong timber frames, fixed into the bomb-ketch, in which the pintle is fixed, so as the bed may turn about it, to fire any way. The fore part of these beds is an arc of a circle described from the same centre as the pintle-hole.
Stool-Bed, is a piece of wood on which the breech of a gun rests upon a truck-carriage, with another piece fixed to it at the hind end, that rests upon the body of the hind axle-tree; and the fore part is supported by an iron bolt. SeeCarriage.
BEEF-Eaters, the yeomen of the guard to the king of Great Britain are so called, being kept up rather for pageantry, than for any military service. Their arms are a sabre and lance; and the dress of the 13th century.
BEETLES, in a military sense, are large wooden hammers for driving down pallisades, and for other uses, &c.
BEETLESTOCK, the stock or handle of a beetle.
BELLIGERENT, in a state of warfare. Hence any two or more nations at war are called belligerent powers.
BELTS, in the army are of different sorts, and for various purposes, viz.
Sword-Belt, a leathern strap in which a sword hangs.
Shoulder-Belt, a leathern belt, which goes over the shoulder, and to which the pouch is fixed. It is made of stout leather. SeePouch.
Shoulder-Beltsfor the light cavalry and dragoons, 2¹⁄₂ inches broad. Regiments that have buff waistcoats, usually have buff-coloured accoutrements, and those which have white waistcoats, wear white.
Waist-Belts, are 1³⁄₄ inches; to have buckles or clasps.
Beltsare known among the ancient and middle-age writers by divers names, aszona,cingulum,reminiculum,ringa, andbaldrellus. Thebeltwas an essential piece of the ancient armor, insomuch that we sometimes find it used to denote the whole armor. In latter ages thebeltwas given to a person when he was raised to knighthood: whence it has also been used us a badge or mark of the knightly order.
Beltsamong the aborigines of America, are the symbols of peace or war; they are made in a rude fanciful taste, of colored beads, and are usually presented at all conferences or talks.
BENDINGS, in military and sea matters, are ropes, wood, &c. bent for several purposes. M. Amontons gives several experiments concerning thebendingof ropes. The friction of a ropebent, or wound round an immovable cylinder, is sufficient, with a very small power, to sustain very great weights. Divers methods have been contrived forbendingtimber, in order to supply crooked planks and pieces for building ships; such as by sand, boiling water, steam of boiling water, and by fire. See M. Du Hamel, in his book calledDu Transport, de la Conservation, & de la Force des Bois. M. Delesme ingeniously enough proposed to have the young trees bent, while growing in the forest. The method ofbendingplanks by sand-heat, now used in the British navy yards, was invented by captain Cumberland.
A method has been lately invented and practised forbendingpieces of timber, so as to make the wheels of carriages without joints. Thebendingof boards, andother pieces of timber for curved works in joinery, is effected by holding them to the fire, then giving them the figure required, and keeping them in this figure by tools for the purpose.
BENEFICIARII, in ancient military history, denotes soldiers who attend the chief officers of the army, being exempted from all other duty. In the American service calledwaiters; each commissioned officer being allowed one.
Beneficiariiwere also soldiers discharged from the military service or duty, and provided withbeneficiato subsist on.
BERM, in fortification, is a little space or path, of about 3, 4, 6, or 8 feet broad, according to the height and breadth of the works, between the ditch and the parapet, when made of turf, to prevent the earth from rolling into the ditch; and serves likewise to pass and repass.
ToBESIEGE, to lay siege to or invest any place with armed forces.
BESIEGERS, the army that lays siege to a fortified place.
BESIEGED, the garrison that defends the place against the army that lays siege to it. SeeSiege.
ToBETRAY, to deliver perfidiously any place or body of troops into the hands of the enemy. To discover that which has been entrusted to secrecy.
BETTY, a machine used for forcing open gates or doors. SeePetard.
BICOQUE,Fr.a term used in France to signify a place ill-fortified and incapable of much defence. It is derived from a place on the road between Lodi and Milan, which was originally a gentleman’s country house surrounded by ditches. In the year 1522, a body of Imperial troops were stationed in it, and stood the attack of the whole French army, during the reign of Francis I. This engagement was called the battle ofBicoque.
BILBO, a rapier, or small sword, was formerly so called: from Bilboa in Spain, where excellent swords are made.
BILLorBill-Hook, a small hatchet used for cutting wood for fascines, gabions, bavins, &c.
BILLET, in England is a ticket for quartering soldiers, which intitles each soldier, by act of parliament, to candles, vinegar, and salt, with the use of fire, and the necessary utensils for dressing and eating their meat. The allowance of small beer has been added by a late regulation.
BILLETde logement,Fr.a billet for quarters. This billet or ticket was formerly delivered out to the French troops upon the same general principles that it is issued in England.
Billeting, in the army, implies the quartering soldiers in the houses of any town or village.
BINACLE, a telescope with 2 tubes, so constructed, that a distant object might be seen with both eyes, now rarely used.
BIVOUAC,Biouac,Biouvac, orBiovac,Fr.[from the Germanweywacht, a double watch or guard.] A night-guard, or a detachment of the whole army, which during a siege, or in the presence of an enemy, marches out every night in squadrons or battalions to line the circumvallations, or to take post in front of the camp, for the purpose of securing their quarters, preventing surprises, and of obstructing supplies. When an army does not encamp, but lies under arms all night, it is said tobivoac. Thus before the battle of Austerlitz, Bonaparte was all night inbivoac, or with the advanced guard.
BIT, the bridle of a horse, which acts by the assistance of a curb. SeeCurbandBridon.
BLACK-HOLE, a place of confinement for soldiers, in the English discipline, who may be confined therein by the commanding officer, but not by any inferior officer. In this place they are generally restricted to bread and water.
BLANKETS, are made of coarse paper steeped in a solution of saltpetre, and when dry are again dipt in a composition of tallow, resin, and sulphur. They are used only in fire-ships.
BLAST, andBLASTING. SeeMineandMining.
BLINDS, in military affairs, are wooden frames, composed of 4 pieces, either flat or round, two of which are 6 feet long, and the others 3 or 4 feet, which serve as spars to fasten the two first together: the longest are pointed at both ends, and the two others are fastened towards the extremities of the former, at about 10 or 12 inches from their points, the whole forming a rectangular parallelogram, the long sides of which project beyond the other about 10 or 12 inches. Their use is to fix them either upright, or in a vertical position, against the sides of the trenches or saps, to sustain the earth. Their points at the bottom serve to fix them in the earth, and those at top to hold the fascines that are placed upon them; so that the sap or trench is formed into a kind of covered gallery, to secure the troops from stones and grenades.
The termBlindis also used to express a kind of hurdle, made of the branches of trees, behind which the soldiers, miners, or labourers, may carry on their work without being seen. SeeHurdle.
Blindsare sometimes only canvas stretched to obstruct the sight of the enemy. Sometimes they are planks set up, for which seeMantlet. Sometimes they are made of a kind of coarse basket-work; seeGabions. Sometimes of barrels, or sacks filled with earth. In short, they signify any thing that covers the labourers from the enemy.
BlindSeeOrillonandFortification.
BLOCKADE,-BLOCKADING,
in military affairs, implies the surrounding a place with different bodies oftroops, who shut up all the avenues on every side, and prevent every thing from going in or out of the place; this is usually effected by means of the cavalry. The design of the blockade is to oblige those who are shut up in the town, to consume all their provisions, and by that means to compel them to surrender for want of subsistence.
Hence it appears that a blockade must last a long time, when a place is well provided with necessaries; for which reason this method of reducing a town is seldom taken, but when there is reason to believe the magazines are unprovided, or sometimes when the nature or situation of the place permits not the approaches to be made, which are necessary to attack it in the usual way.
Maritime towns, which have a port, are in much the same case as other towns, when their port can be blocked up, and the besiegers are masters of the sea, and can prevent succours from being conveyed that way into the place.
ToBlockade, or to block up a place, is to shut up all the avenues, so that it cannot receive any relief either of men or provisions, &c.
To raise aBlockade, is to march from before a place, and leave it free and open as before.
To turn a siege into aBlockade, is to desist from a regular method of besieging, and to surround the place with those troops who had formed the siege.
To form aBlockade, is to surround the place with troops, and hinder any thing from going in or coming out.
A new species ofBlockadehas been discovered during the French Revolution, a blockade byproclamation.
BLOCUS,Fr.SeeBlockade.
BLOCKbattery, in gunnery, a wooden battery for two or more small pieces, mounted on wheels, and moveable from place to place: very ready to fireen barbet, in the galleries and casemates, &c. where room is wanted.
Block-house, in the military art, a kind of wooden fort or fortification, sometimes mounted on rollers, or on a flat-bottomed vessel, serving either on the lakes or rivers, or in counter-scarps and counter-approaches. This name is sometimes given to a brick or stone building on a bridge, or the brink of a river, serving not only for its defence, but for the command of the river, both above and below.
BLUNDERBUSS, a well known fire-arm, consisting of a wide, short, but very large bore, capable of holding a number of musquet or pistol balls, very fit for doing great execution in a croud, making good a narrow passage, defending the door of a house, stair-case, &c. or repelling an attempt to board a ship.
BOARDof Ordnance. SeeOrdnance.
Board, also implies an office under the government, where the affairs of some departments are transacted; of which there are several sorts in England.
BOAT. SeeAdvice-Boat,Pontoon-Boat, &c.
BODY, in the art of war, is a number of forces, horse or foot, united and marching under one commander.
MainBodyof an army, sometimes means the troops encamped in the center between the two wings, and generally consists of infantry. The main body on a march, signifies the whole of the army, exclusive of the van and rear-guard.
Bodyof a Reserve. SeeReserve.
Bodyof a place, is, generally speaking, the buildings in a fortified town; yet the inclosure round them is generally understood by it.
BOISde remontage,Fr.every species of timber which is used to new mount cannon, or refit ammunition waggons, &c.
Boisde chauffage,Fr.the fuel which is distributed among French troops.
BOLT, an iron pin used for strengthening a piece of timber, or for fastening two or more articles together. Bolts in gunnery, being of several sorts, admit of various denominations, which arise from the specific application of them, as
BOMB-SeeShell.Chest.SeeCaisson.Vessels,-Ketches,
small vessels, made very strong with large beams, particularly calculated for throwing shells into a town, castle, or fortification, from 13 and 10-inch mortars; two of which are placed on board of each ship. They are said to have been invented by M. Reyneau, a Frenchman, and to have been first put in action at the bombardment of Algiers in 1681: till then it had been judged impracticable to bombard a place from the sea.
BombKetch. The old bomb-ketches carried one 13-inch and 1 10-inch mortar, with 8 six-pounders, besides swivels, for their own immediate defence. The modern bomb-vessels carry 2 10-inch mortars 4 68-pounders, and 6 18-pounders carronades; and the mortars may be fired at as low an angle as 20 degrees; though these mortars are not intended to be used at sea but on very particular occasions; their principal intention, at these low angles, being to cover the landing of troops, and protect coasts and harbours. A bomb-ketch is generally from 60 to 70 feet long from stem to stern, and draws 8 or 9 feet water. The tender is generally a brig, on board of which the party or artillery remain, till their services are required on board the bomb-vessel.
Instructions for their Management and Security in Action.
1. A Dutch pump, filled with water, must be placed in each round-top, one upon the forecastle, one on the main-deck, and one on the quarter-deck; and furnished with leather buckets, for a fresh supply of water.
2. The booms must be wetted by the pumps before the tarpaulins and mortar-hatches are taken off; and a wooden skreen, 5 feet square, is to be hung under the booms, over each mortar, to receive the fire from the vents.
3. The embrasures being fixed and properly secured, the port must be let down low enough to be covered by the sole of the embrasure. Previous to its being let down, a spar must be lashed across it, to which the tackles for raising it again must be fixed; this spar serves to project the tackles clear of the explosion.
4. The mortars must not be fired through the embrasures at a lower angle than 20 degrees, nor with a greater charge than 5 lbs. of powder.
5. Previous to firing, the doors of the bulkhead, under the quarter-deck, must be shut, to prevent the cabin being injured by the explosion.
6. The bed must be wedged in the circular curb, as soon as the mortar is pointed, to prevent re-action; the first wedge being driven tight, before the rear ones are fixed, in order to give the full bearing on the table, as well as the rear of the bed. The holes for dog-bolts must be corked up, to prevent the sparks falling into them.
7. When any shells are to be used on board the bomb, they must be fixed on board the tender, and brought from thence in boxes in her long-boat; and kept along side the bomb-ship till wanted, carefully covered up.
8. In the old constructed bomb-vessels it was necessary to hoist out the booms, and raft them along side previous to firing; but in these new ones, with embrasures, only the boats need be hoisted out; after which the mortars may be prepared for action in 10 minutes.
Proportion of Ordnance and Ammunition for a Bomb Ship, carrying two 10 inch Mortars, to fire at low angles, and at 45 degrees, four 68 Prs. and six 18 Prs. Carronades.
BombTender, a small vessel of war laden with ammunition for the bomb-ketch, and from which the latter is constantly supplied.
BOMBARD, an ancient piece of ordnance, so called, very short, and very thick, with an uncommon large bore. There have been bombards which have thrown a ball or shell of 300 weight: they made use of cranes to load them. The Turks use some of them at present.