To facilitate this classification in order of merit, three distinct tables are prepared,—
The first relating to the general instruction;The second relating to the military instruction; andThe third relating to the conduct;
The first relating to the general instruction;
The second relating to the military instruction; and
The third relating to the conduct;
and they respectively contain, one column in which the names of the students are arranged by companies in the order in which they have been examined; followed by as many columns as there are subjects of examination, for the insertion of their individual credit and the co-efficient of influence, by which each credit is multiplied; and lastly by a column containing the sum of the various products belonging to, and placed opposite each student’s name.
These tables are respectively completed by the aid of the existing documents, the first for the general instruction, by the director of studies; the second for the military instruction, by the officer commanding the battalion; the third for conduct, under the direction of the commandant of the school, assisted by the second in command.
A jury formed within the school, composed of the general commandant, president, the second in command, the director of studies, and the officer commanding the battalion, is charged with the classification of the students in the order of merit.
To effect it, after having verified and established the accuracy of the above tables, the numbers appertaining to each student in the three tables are extracted and inserted in another table, containing the name of each student, and, in three separate columns, the numbers obtained by each in general instruction, military instruction, and conduct, and the sum of these credits in another column.
By the aid of this last table, the jury cause another to be compiled, in which the students are arranged in the order of merit as established by the numerical amount of their credits, the highest in the list having the greatest number.
If there should be any two or more having the same number of total credits, the priority is determined by giving it to the student who has obtained a superiority of credits in military instruction, conduct, general instruction, notes for the year; and if these prove insufficient, they are finally classed in the same order as they were admitted into the school.
A list for passing from the second to the first division is forwarded to the minister at war, with a report in which the results for the year are compared with the results of the preceding year; and the minister at war, with these reports before him, decides whoare ineligible from incompetency, or by reason of their conduct, to pass to the other division.
The period when the final examinations before leaving the school are to commence, is fixed by the president of the jury, specially appointed to carry on this final examination, in concert with the general commandant of the school.
The president of the jury directs and superintends the whole of the arrangements for conducting the examination; and during each kind of examination, a member of the corps, upon the science of which the student is being questioned, assists the examiner, and, as regards the military instruction, each examiner is aided by a captain belonging to the battalion.
The examination is carried on in precisely the same manner as that already described for the end of the first year’s course of study. And the final classification is ascertained by adding to thenumericalcredits obtained by each student during his second year’s course of study, in the manner already fully explained,one-tenthof the numerical credits obtained at the examinations at the end of the first year.
The same regulations as to the minimum credit which a student must obtain in order to pass from one division to the other, at the end of the first year, which are stated in page 160, are equally applicable to his passing from the school to become a second lieutenant in the army.
A list of the names of those students who are found qualified for the rank of second lieutenant is sent to the minister at war, and a second list is also sent, containing the names of those students that have, when subjected to a second or revised examination, been pronounced by the jury before whom they were re-examined as qualified.
Those whose names appearin the first list are permitted to choose according to their position in the order of merit, the staff corps or infantry, according to the number required for the first named service, and to name the regiments of infantry in which they desire to serve.
Those intended for the cavalry are placed at the disposal of the officer commanding the regiment which they wish to enter.
Those whose names appear in the second list are not permitted to choose their corps, but are placed by the minister at war in such corps as may have vacancies in it, or where he may think proper.
The students who are selected to enter the staff corps, after competing successfully with the second lieutenants of the army, proceed as second lieutenants to the staff school at Paris. Those who fail pass into the army as privates, according to the terms of the engagement made on entering the school.
Thisschool was established in 1826, and is considered19the most perfect and extensive institution of the kind in Europe,—perhaps the only one really deserving the title, the others being more properly mere schools of equitation.
It is under the control of the Minister of War, and was established for the purpose of perfecting the officers of the cavalry corps in all the branches of knowledge necessary to their efficiency, and especially in the principles of equitation,—and to diffuse through the corps a uniform system of instruction, by training up a body of instructors and classes of recruits intended for the cavalry service.
The instruction is entirely military, and is based upon the laws and regulations in force with regard to the mounted troops. It includes; 1st. The regulations for interior service; 2nd. The cavalry tactics; 3rd. The regulations for garrison service; 4th. The regulations for field service applied, as far as possible, on the ground, especially with regard to reconnaissances; 5th. A military and didactic course of equitation, comprising all the theoretical and practical knowledge required for the proper and useful employment of the horse, his breaking, application to the purposes of war, and various civil exercises; 6th. A course of hippology, having for its object practical instruction, by means of the model breeding-stud attached to the school, in the principles which should serve as rules in crossing breeds and in raising colts, to explain the phases of dentition, to point out the conformation of the colt which indicates that he will become a good and solid horse, the method to be pursued to bring the colt under subjection without resistance, and, finally, to familiarize the officers and pupils with all the knowledge indispensable to an officer charged with the purchase and care of remount horses. This course includes also a knowledge of horse-equipment, illustrated in the saddle factory connected with the school; 7th. Vaulting, fencing, and swimming. The non-commissioned officers are also instructed in the theory of administration and accountability. The courseof instruction continues one year, commencing in the month of October. The pupils at the school are:—
1st. A division of lieutenants, (lieutenants instructeurs.)
2nd.A divisionof sub-lieutenants, (sous-lieutenants d’instruction.)
3rd.A divisionof sub-officers, (sous-officiers élèves instructeurs.)
4th.A divisionof non-commissioned officers, (brigadiers élèves.)
5th.A divisionof cavalry recruits, (cavaliers élèves.)
The lieutenants are chosen out of the regiments of cavalry and artillery, as well as from the squadrons of the park-trains and military equipages, from the lieutenants who voluntarily present themselves for the appointment to the General Board of Inspectors. Their age must not exceed thirty-six years.
The sub-lieutenants are appointed from the cavalry regiments, must be graduates of the Special Military School, not above thirty-four years of age, and have served at least one year with the regiment.
The sub-officers are selected from the cavalry corps—one from every two regiments of cavalry and artillery, and every two squadrons of the park-trains and military equipages.
The non-commissioned officers are chosen annually by the inspectors-general—one from each regiment of cavalry:—from among those that show a peculiar aptness for equitation and are distinguished by good conduct, information, zeal, and intelligence; those who are recommended for promotion in their corps are selected in preference. Their age must not exceed twenty-five years, and they must have served at least one year in the ranks.
These pupils, numbering about four hundred, are sent to the school by order of the Minister of War. They continue connected with their corps, from which they are regarded as detached while they remain at the school. They receive additional pay. Those who after due trial are found deficient in the necessary qualifications, are sent back to their regiments.
Upon the recommendation of the inspector-general of the school, the officers who are serving as pupils, compete for promotion by choice with the officers of the corps from which they are detached.
The cavalry lieutenant, who graduates first in his class, is presented for the first vacancy as captain-instructor that occurs in the cavalry, provided he has the seniority of rank required by law. The lieutenant who graduates second obtains, under the same condition, the second vacancy of captain-instructor, provided his division consisted of more than thirty members. The sub-lieutenant graduating first, provided he is not lower than the tenth in the general classificationof the officers of both grades, is presented for promotion to the first vacant lieutenancy that occurs in his regiment.
The non-commissioned officers who pass a satisfactory final examination, are immediately promoted to vacancies that have been preserved for them in their regiments—those who have graduated among the first ten of the class, being presented for promotion as sub-lieutenants, as soon as they have completed their required term of service as non-commissioned officers. Those who attend the school as non-commissioned officers, frequently return as officers for instruction, and again in a higher grade on the staff of the school.
Officers transferred from the infantry to the cavalry are generally sent to this school for a short time at least. The captains-instructor of the cavalry regiments, and the instructors of equitation in the artillery regiments, are mostly selected from the graduates.
The school also receives by voluntary enlistment, such young men, not above the age of twenty-one years, as desire to enter the cavalry service. They are not admitted until they have been subjected to an examination before a committee, by whom they are classified according to their fitness. These volunteer enlistments for the cavalry school are made at Saumur, at least a month before the commencement of the course, on presentation of the certificate of classification and of approval by the commandant of the school. The number is limited to fifty each year.
Such of these cavalry pupils as are distinguished for diligence and good conduct and pass a satisfactory final examination are transferred to the regiments of cavalry, for promotion to the rank of noncommissioned officers by their respective colonels. Those who have not been found fit for admission are sent back simply as privates.
A council of instruction is charged with the direction of the studies. They propose useful changes, and direct the progress of the studies. They are also charged with the examinations.
The recitationsare by s of about thirty each. In reciting upon the general principles of tactics, equitation, hippology, &c., the manner is as in our Military Academy; when reciting upon the movements in tactics, all the commands and explanations of the instructor to the troops are repeated “verbatim et literatim,” and in the tone and pitch of voice used in the field. Perfect uniformity of tone and manner is required. The object of thus reciting is to teach the pupils the proper tone and pitch of voice, to accustom them to hear their own voices, and to enable them to repeat the text literally at this pitch of voice, without hesitation or mistake.
The course of hippologyincludes the structure of the horse, the circulation of the blood, organs of respiration, &c., food, workingpowers, actions, breeds, manner of taking care of him, ordinary ailments and remedies, shoeing, lameness, saddling, sore backs, sanitary police, &c., but does not comprise a complete veterinary course.
The practical exercises consist of:—the ordinary riding-hall drill, including vaulting, the “kickers,” &c.; the carrière, or out-door riding at speed, over hurdles, ditches, &c.; cutting at head; target-practice; fencing; swimming; the usual military drills; skeleton squadron and regimental drills; rides in the country; finally, in the summer, frequent “carousels” or tilts are held.
The veterinary surgeons of the lowest grade are sent here upon their first appointment to receive instruction in equitation, to profit by the study of the model stud, and to learn the routine of their duties with the regiments. They form a distinct class.
In theModel Stud, the number of animals varies. There are usually two stallions and about twenty mares, (Arabs, English, Norman, &c.,) in addition to those selected from time to time from among the riding-animals. Attached to it is a botanical garden, more especially for useful and noxious grasses and plants.
School for Breaking Young Horses.—The best horses purchased at the remount dépôts are selected for the officers, and sent to this place to be trained. The number is fixed at 100 as a minimum. These, as soon as their education is complete, are sold or given, according to the orders of the Minister of War, to those officers who need a remount—in preference, to officers of the general staff and staff corps, those of the artillery, and mounted officers of infantry. These officers may also select from among the other horses of the school, with the approval of the commandant.
School of Farriers.—This is attached to the cavalry school, and is under the direction of the commandant. It is composed of private soldiers who have served at least six months with their regiments, and are blacksmiths or horse-shoers by trade. There are usually two men from each mounted regiment. The course lasts two years; it comprises reading, writing, arithmetic, equitation, the anatomy of the horse, thorough instruction as to all diseases, injuries, and deformities of the foot, something of the veterinary art in general, the selection of metals, making shoes, nails, tools, &c., shoeing horses. The establishment has a large shoeing shop and yard, a recitation-room, museum, and store-rooms. In the recitation-room there are skeletons of horses, men, &c., as well as some admirable specimens of natural preparations in comparative anatomy, a complete collection of shoeing-tools, specimens of many kinds of shoes, &c.—Annuaire de l’Instruction1861,and“Observations.”
Thestaff is the center from which issue and to which are addressed all orders and military correspondence.
The officers of the staff are divided into chiefs of the staff, sub-chiefs, staff-officers, and aides-de-camp.
The colonels and lieutenant-colonels are employed as chiefs of the staff in the different military districts of France, and in the divisions of the army on active service. The ordinary posts of the majors and captains is that of aides-de-camp to general officers.
When several armies are united together under a commander-in-chief, the chief of the general staff takes temporarily the title ofMajor-Général, the general officers employed under him that ofAide-Major-Général.
The duties of the chief of the staff are to transmit the orders of the general; to execute those which he receives from him personally, for field-works, pitching camps, reconnaissances, visits of posts, &c.; to correspond with the commanding officers of the artillery and the engineers, and with the commissariat, in order to keep the general exactly informed of the state of the different branches of the service; to be constantly in communication with the different corps, so as to be perfectly master of everything relating to them; to prepare for the commander-in-chief and for the minister of war, returns of the strength and position of the different corps and detachments, reports on marches and operations, and, in short, every necessary information.
The distribution of the other officers of different ranks, when it has not been made by the minister of war, is regulated by the chief of the general staff.
In every division of the army an officer of the staff is specially charged with the office work; the others assist him when necessary, but they are more usually employed in general staff duties, in reconnaissances, drawing plans of ground, missions, the arrangement ofcamps and cantonments, superintending the distribution of the rations, &c.
The officers of the staff may further be charged with the direction of field-works thrown up to cover camps and cantonments.
Staff officers of all ranks may be employed on posts and detachments. On special missions they command all other officers of the same rank employed with them. When a staff officer is charged with the direction of an expedition or a reconnaissance, without having the command of the troops, the officer in command concerts with him in all the dispositions it may be necessary to make to ensure the success of the operation.
The staff of generals of artillery and of engineers is composed of officers of their respective arms.
The war depot(Dépôt de la Guerre) was founded for the purpose of collecting and preserving military historical papers, reconnaissances, memoirs, and plans of battles; to preserve plans and MSS. maps useful for military purposes, and to have them copied and published.
It is divided into two s—one charged with trigonometrical surveying, topography, plan drawing, and engraving; the other with historical composition, military statistics, the care of the library, the archives, plans, and maps. Each of these s is under the direction of a colonel of the staff corps, who has under his orders several officers of his corps.
The war depot has taken a large share in the preparation of the map of France. The first idea of undertaking this important work dates from 1808. After various delays and difficulties, the trigonometrical survey, which had been for a time suspended, was recommenced in 1818. The work was placed under the war depot, intrusted to the corps of geographical engineers. Since this period the geographical engineers have been incorporated in the staff corps, by the officers of which the work has been continued. The primary triangulation was finished in 1845; the secondary is now finished; the filling in the details will occupy several years to come. The number of officers of the staff corps employed on the survey has varied from twenty-six to ninety.
The officers of the French staff constitute a distinct and separate corps, numbering thirty-five colonels, thirty-five lieutenant-colonels, one hundred and ten majors, three hundred and thirty captains, and one hundred lieutenants. None but officers of this corps can beemployed on the staff. When, by accident, there is not a sufficient number present, regimental officers may be temporarily employed, but they return to their regiments as soon as officers of the staff corps arrive to replace them. The division of the staff into adjutant-general’s and quartermaster-general’s department does not exist in the French service.
The only means of entering the staff corps is through the Staff School of Application. Of the fifty student-officers which the School of Application usually contains, twenty-five leave annually to enter the staff corps, and are replaced by an equal number. Three of these come from the Polytechnic, the remaining twenty-two are selected from thirty pupils of the Military School of St. Cyr, who compete with thirty second lieutenants of the army, if so many present themselves; but, in general, the number of the latter does not exceed four or five.
The course of study in the Staff School of Application lasts two years. The students have the rank of second lieutenant. On passing the final examination they are promoted to the rank of lieutenant; they are then sent to the infantry to do duty fortwo years, at the expiration of which time they are attached for an equal period to the cavalry. They may finally be sent for a year to the artillery or engineers.
This routine can not be interrupted except in time of war, and even then the lieutenant can not be employed on staff duty until he has completed histwo yearswith the infantry. However, officers who have a special aptitude for the science of geodesy or topography, may even earlier be employed on the map of France or other similar duty; and, further, two of the lieutenants, immediately on quitting the Staff School of Application, are sent to the war depot (Dépôt de la Guerre) to gain a familiarity with trigonometrical operations.
The General Officers at their Inspections are required to report specially to the Minister of War on the captains and lieutenants of the staff corps doing duty with the regiments in their districts, both as to their knowledge of drill and manœuvres, and their acquaintance with the duties of the staff. They are to require these officers to execute a military reconnaissance, never allowing more than forty-eight hours for the field sketch and its accompanying report.
Officers of all arms of the rank of captain or under, are permitted to exchange with officers of equal rank in the staff corps; but they must previously satisfy the conditions of the final examinations of the Staff College.
The Staff School of Application is situated in Paris, in the Rue de Grenelle, close to the Invalides. Of the ninety officers attending it, sixty lodge in the building and thirty out of it, but all take their meals in the town. Each has, in general, a room to himself. Servants are provided in the proportion of one to about eight rooms. The officers are forbidden to have private servants.
The staff of the schoolis composed as follows:—
The Commandant, a General of Brigade.The Second in Command, Director of the Studies, a Colonel or Lieutenant-Colonel of the Staff Corps.A Major of the Staff Corps, charged with the superintendence of the interior economy and the drills and exercises.Three Captains of the same Corps, charged with the details of the interior economy of the School, and to assist the Major in the instruction of the Officers in their military duties. The Captains are required to take the direction of a portion of the topographical works on the ground.A Medical Officer.
The Commandant, a General of Brigade.
The Second in Command, Director of the Studies, a Colonel or Lieutenant-Colonel of the Staff Corps.
A Major of the Staff Corps, charged with the superintendence of the interior economy and the drills and exercises.
Three Captains of the same Corps, charged with the details of the interior economy of the School, and to assist the Major in the instruction of the Officers in their military duties. The Captains are required to take the direction of a portion of the topographical works on the ground.
A Medical Officer.
Thirteen Military Professors, or Assistant Professors, viz.:—
A Major or Captain, Professor of Applied Descriptive Geometry.A Major or Captain, Professor of Astronomy, Physical Geography, and Statistics.A Major or Captain, Professor of Geodesy and Topography.A Major or Captain of Engineers, Professor of Fortification.A Major or Captain of Artillery, Professor of the instruction relative to this arm.A Military Sub-Intendant, Professor of Military Legislation and Administration.A Major or Captain, Professor of Military Art.A Captain, Assistant Professor of Descriptive Geography; charged also to assist the Professor of Fortification.A Captain, Assistant Professor of Topography; charged also to assist the Professor of Geography.A Major or Captain of Cavalry, Professor of Equitation; he acts under the immediate orders of the Major of the College.Two Lieutenants or Second Lieutenants of Cavalry, Assistant Professors of Equitation.An Officer of Cavalry of the same rank, acting as Paymaster to the Riding Detachment.
A Major or Captain, Professor of Applied Descriptive Geometry.
A Major or Captain, Professor of Astronomy, Physical Geography, and Statistics.
A Major or Captain, Professor of Geodesy and Topography.
A Major or Captain of Engineers, Professor of Fortification.
A Major or Captain of Artillery, Professor of the instruction relative to this arm.
A Military Sub-Intendant, Professor of Military Legislation and Administration.
A Major or Captain, Professor of Military Art.
A Captain, Assistant Professor of Descriptive Geography; charged also to assist the Professor of Fortification.
A Captain, Assistant Professor of Topography; charged also to assist the Professor of Geography.
A Major or Captain of Cavalry, Professor of Equitation; he acts under the immediate orders of the Major of the College.
Two Lieutenants or Second Lieutenants of Cavalry, Assistant Professors of Equitation.
An Officer of Cavalry of the same rank, acting as Paymaster to the Riding Detachment.
The Non-Military Professors are:—
Two Professors of Drawing.Two Professors of German.A Professor of Fencing.
Two Professors of Drawing.
Two Professors of German.
A Professor of Fencing.
One hundred and forty-five horses are kept for the use of the student-officers, and eighty-two men belonging to the cavalry to look after them.
Both the studies and examinations at the Staff School hold an intermediate place between those of the Polytechnic and St. Cyr, being less abstract than the former, and higher and more difficult than the latter.
The entrance to the Staff School of Application in France is, as is the case in all the French military schools, by means of a competitive examination, or, rather, by the results of three distinct examinations, and by the selection of different sets of successful candidates.Threeare taken from the students leaving the Polytechnic, who have an absolute right to the three first places in the Staff School, andtwenty-twoare selected from the thirty best students leaving St. Cyr, and an equal number of sub-lieutenants of the line under twenty-five years of age, if so many present themselves. The sub-lieutenants must have one year of service in that rank, and they must make known their request to be allowed to compete for admission to the Staff School to the Inspector General, and, through him, to the Minister of War. It should be added, that their number is generally extremely small.
The usual number of young officers admitted yearly to the school in time of peace is twenty-five, but this number is sometimes considerably exceeded, and we found no less than ninety present. ThethreePolytechnic students select the Staff School after their final examination, and the St. Cyr students make known their desire when the whole are examined by a Board of Examiners, and the thirty best are then selected as competitors for admission into the Staff School of Application.
The sub-lieutenants also repair to St. Cyr, where they are examined separately by the same examiners who have just conducted the examination of the St. Cyr students, and in the same subjects.
Their marks or credits are then compared with those of the St. Cyr pupils; and the relative position of the two sets of candidates is ascertained, and the list of those to be admitted to the School of Application determined accordingly.
These examinations take place before a Commission of Officers, composed of,—
A Lieutenant-General President, appointed by the Minister of War.The Director or Chief of the Dépôt de la Guerre.The Commandant of the School of Application.Four Colonels or Lieutenant-Colonels of the Staff, appointed by the Minister of War.A Field Officer chosen from among the Officers employed at the Dépôt de la Guerre, as permanent Secretary.
A Lieutenant-General President, appointed by the Minister of War.
The Director or Chief of the Dépôt de la Guerre.
The Commandant of the School of Application.
Four Colonels or Lieutenant-Colonels of the Staff, appointed by the Minister of War.
A Field Officer chosen from among the Officers employed at the Dépôt de la Guerre, as permanent Secretary.
This Commission is also charged with drawing up and proposing regulations for the approval of the Minister of War concerning the interior organization and the course of study to be followed in theschool, and to make changes in the programmes for admission and for leaving the school.
A very detailed account of the subjects of theentrance examinationis drawn out, and inserted in theJournal Militaire, and theMoniteurevery year. The following are the subjects:—
(1.) Trigonometry and Topography.(2.) Regular Topography—the measuring of plane surfaces and leveling.(3.) Irregular Topography, Plane Trigonometry.(4.) Military Art and History, including—(a.) History of Military Institutions at the chief periods.(b.) Present composition of the French army.(c.) Organization of an army in the field.(d.) History of some of the most memorable campaigns, as those of 1796–97 in Italy, and of 1805 and 1809, in Germany.(5.) Artillery and Science of Projectiles.(6.) Field Fortification and Castremetation.(7.) Permanent Fortification.(8.) Military Legislation.(9.) Military Administration.(10.) Manœuvres.(11.) German Language.(12.) Drawing.
(1.) Trigonometry and Topography.
(2.) Regular Topography—the measuring of plane surfaces and leveling.
(3.) Irregular Topography, Plane Trigonometry.
(4.) Military Art and History, including—
(a.) History of Military Institutions at the chief periods.(b.) Present composition of the French army.(c.) Organization of an army in the field.(d.) History of some of the most memorable campaigns, as those of 1796–97 in Italy, and of 1805 and 1809, in Germany.
(a.) History of Military Institutions at the chief periods.
(b.) Present composition of the French army.
(c.) Organization of an army in the field.
(d.) History of some of the most memorable campaigns, as those of 1796–97 in Italy, and of 1805 and 1809, in Germany.
(5.) Artillery and Science of Projectiles.
(6.) Field Fortification and Castremetation.
(7.) Permanent Fortification.
(8.) Military Legislation.
(9.) Military Administration.
(10.) Manœuvres.
(11.) German Language.
(12.) Drawing.
The marks assigned and the influence allowed to each of these subjects are the same as those given in the final examination at St. Cyr. The entrance examination places the students in order of merit.
All the details of the teaching are in the hands of a Council of Instruction, similar to that of the Polytechnic, and consisting of the General Commandant (President,) the Director of Studies, and three Military Professors, appointed yearly by rotation. Other professors and assistant professors, or officers of the staff of the school, may be called in to assist the Council, but (except in deciding the list at an examination) they have no votes.
This council does not interfere directly with the administration, the common work of the school. It draws up, indeed, the list of lectures, making any alterations in them, or in the books to be used which may seem from time to time desirable. But the officer accountable for the daily working of the school is the Director of Studies. His functions appeared to us to bring him into more constant connection with the pupils than was the case with the director of the Polytechnique. In all the schools the General Commandant and the Director of Studies live in the establishment; but at theEcole d’Applicationand at St. Cyr the director “examines the methods of teaching, and proposes to the Council of Instruction any modifications or improvements which may raise or quicken the instruction. He inspects the work of the student-officers, both inand out of the school. He keeps a register of the marks given by the professors, and at the end of every three months brings the sum of them before the General Commandant in a detailed report.” In fact, his school functions are not modified, as at the Polytechnic, by a body of able professors.
As already stated, there are fifteen professors, without reckoning those of equitation, and thirteen of them are officers; but the system ofRépétiteurs, which we have seen so influential at the Polytechnic, does not exist here.
The hours of workare, in summer,i.e.from May to November, from six to five, and in winter from eight to five, with the exception of one hour for breakfast and one hour forétude libre, which appears to mean very little indeed. From seven to nine hours daily may be taken as the amount, but (as is the case with most French schools) there is a constant change, not only in the subjects taught but in part of the work beingoutand partindoors, some really head work, much purely manual. There does not appear to be the same intense application as at the Polytechnic; indeed, the work for three months in the year is almost entirely in the open air, consisting in making plans and military sketches, either in the neighborhood of Paris or in the more distant parts of the country; eight months are devoted to the in-door studies, one month to the examinations.
The in-door studies are entirely conducted in the halls of study (Salles d’étude), in each of which we found parties of twelve or fifteen students seated. They are inspected constantly by the director or some of the professors. None of the regular work may be done in private. It seems everywhere a fixed belief in the French Military Schools that very much would be done idly and ill if done in private. This presents a striking contrast to the feeling on the subject in England.
The severer and preparatory studies of mathematics are supposed to have been completed prior to entrance into the Polytechnic or St. Cyr. Some, however, of the studies of applied science occupy considerable time at the School of Application.
The following analysis will show the time assigned to each branch:—
1.Astronomyoccupies 1½ hours weekly for the pupils of the first year; afterwards it ceases entirely.2. ToApplied Descriptive Geometrya good deal of time is given, but still only by the pupils of the first year. 12 hours a week are spent upon it in the first half year, 10 in the second.3.Military Topographyoccupies about 10½ hours in the first year, 6 in the second.4. A good deal of time is devoted toField Fortifications. The junior division, it is true, only begin it in their second half year of study, and then only work at it for 1½ hours weekly. But the senior division are occupied 4½ hours weekly in their first half year, and 7½ hours in their second.5.The Study of Military Administration and Legislationis begun immediately upon entrance. It occupies during both years 1½ hours weekly.6.Lectures on Military Art and Tacticsare also given for 1½ hours weekly during both years, and after hearing these lectures the students are occasionally required to write a military memoir on a campaign, descriptions of reconnaissances, or of fields of battle, and to make sketches of ground with accompanying reports. This course was noted by General Foltz, the director of the school, as defective, on the ground that it was too difficult to find a teacher for, or indeed to teach military art; and he thought that lectures on military history, or such works as Napoleon’s Memoirs, would be more useful to the pupils.7.Drawingoccupies throughout 4½ hours weekly, and great attention is bestowed upon it. “We were shown a large number of works done by the young officers of the school. To enumerate some of the most important—there were specimens of objects, with shadows; perspective of the exterior and interior of buildings, with shadows; perspective views of country; machinery drawings, plan, , and elevation; in fortification, a plan of comparison of a portion of ground with proposed field-works for defense; military bridges; reconnaissance, and memoir of a route, with accompanying notes and sketches, done both on foot and on horseback; plan of a portion of country made with a compass by parties of ten, under the direction of a Captain (for this the trigonometrical points and distances were furnished, and it was filled up by a minor triangulation;) plan of a field of battle, made without points; and a description of thebattle.”
1.Astronomyoccupies 1½ hours weekly for the pupils of the first year; afterwards it ceases entirely.
2. ToApplied Descriptive Geometrya good deal of time is given, but still only by the pupils of the first year. 12 hours a week are spent upon it in the first half year, 10 in the second.
3.Military Topographyoccupies about 10½ hours in the first year, 6 in the second.
4. A good deal of time is devoted toField Fortifications. The junior division, it is true, only begin it in their second half year of study, and then only work at it for 1½ hours weekly. But the senior division are occupied 4½ hours weekly in their first half year, and 7½ hours in their second.
5.The Study of Military Administration and Legislationis begun immediately upon entrance. It occupies during both years 1½ hours weekly.
6.Lectures on Military Art and Tacticsare also given for 1½ hours weekly during both years, and after hearing these lectures the students are occasionally required to write a military memoir on a campaign, descriptions of reconnaissances, or of fields of battle, and to make sketches of ground with accompanying reports. This course was noted by General Foltz, the director of the school, as defective, on the ground that it was too difficult to find a teacher for, or indeed to teach military art; and he thought that lectures on military history, or such works as Napoleon’s Memoirs, would be more useful to the pupils.
7.Drawingoccupies throughout 4½ hours weekly, and great attention is bestowed upon it. “We were shown a large number of works done by the young officers of the school. To enumerate some of the most important—there were specimens of objects, with shadows; perspective of the exterior and interior of buildings, with shadows; perspective views of country; machinery drawings, plan, , and elevation; in fortification, a plan of comparison of a portion of ground with proposed field-works for defense; military bridges; reconnaissance, and memoir of a route, with accompanying notes and sketches, done both on foot and on horseback; plan of a portion of country made with a compass by parties of ten, under the direction of a Captain (for this the trigonometrical points and distances were furnished, and it was filled up by a minor triangulation;) plan of a field of battle, made without points; and a description of thebattle.”
These drawings were mostly executed with great care, and we were told that the course was fully as much as the student could accomplish in two years. Some parts of it are done entirely in theSalle d’étude; sketches are made on horseback in the neighborhood of Paris, always under the direction of the professors, others again at great distances, such as one at Biarritz last year, and the one on which the pupils are to be engaged this year, is the line of operations of Wellington from the Spanish frontier to Toulouse. The two last kinds of work are roughly sketched, and finished at Paris. These summer occupations seem to stand in place of vacations, of which there are none.
(1.) ToFencing, three hours a week are given throughout.(2.) To theCavalry Drilltwo hours weekly in the first division. It is replaced byInfantry Drillin the second.
(1.) ToFencing, three hours a week are given throughout.
(2.) To theCavalry Drilltwo hours weekly in the first division. It is replaced byInfantry Drillin the second.
The studies which none but the senior division pursue are,—
(1.)Artillerystudies, which occupy 4½ hours weekly.(2.)Geography, meaning chiefly the military geography of a country, with a few lectures on statistics and political economy; these take 1½ hours weekly.(3.)Geodesy, or trigonometrical surveying, also for 1½ hours.
(1.)Artillerystudies, which occupy 4½ hours weekly.
(2.)Geography, meaning chiefly the military geography of a country, with a few lectures on statistics and political economy; these take 1½ hours weekly.
(3.)Geodesy, or trigonometrical surveying, also for 1½ hours.
The only strictly literary occupation is the study of German for about three hours per week during the whole time. We were told that a large proportion of the pupils unite among themselves to learn English privately, but no public course is given.
The students have two examinations to go through in each year; the first commencing about the first of June, the last in November, and each of the first year’s examinations is held before a jury consisting of—
(1.) The General Commandant, or the Director of Studies; President.(2.) The Professor of the Course examined in.(3.) Two Officers appointed by the Council of Instruction.
(1.) The General Commandant, or the Director of Studies; President.
(2.) The Professor of the Course examined in.
(3.) Two Officers appointed by the Council of Instruction.
The last examination in each year is, of course, the most important, inasmuch as the passage from the Second or Junior to the First or Senior Division, and in part from the Senior into the Staff Corps, is regulated by the results of these examinations; and the value allowed to the last examination in each year is just double of that assigned for the examinations in June.
The examinations of the first year are confined to the subjects of study followed during that year, viz.:—
Descriptive Geometry, Astronomy, Topography, Artillery, Fortification, Military Art and Administration, German, Drawing, Register of Notes and Memoranda.
The professors and members of the jury are directed rigorously to conform themselves to the following scale as regards the marks or credits they award for the oral answers, graphical representations, &c.
The Co-efficients of influenceof the various studies of the first year are as follows:—
GeographicalRepresentation,
Drawing of Machines,
Graphical Representation,
Graphical Representation,
Graphical Representation,
On various questions,
Military Administration,
Keeping of Memorandum Books,
Conduct and Discipline,
Riding and Knowledge of the Horse,
As soon as the examinations are concluded, the Council of Instruction, prepares a provisory classified list of the students, made out in order of merit from the credits or marks awarded by the Examining Jury in connection with the above-mentioned co-efficients of influence, in a similar manner to that already explained in the account of the Polytechnic School, the student with the largest numerical credit being placed at the head of the list.
This provisory list is submitted to the Consulting Committee of the Staff Corps for transmission to the Minister of War.
In order to pass from the Second or Junior into the First or Senior Division, every Student Officer must have obtained the following marks or credits from the Jury, viz.:—
In Astronomy and Geometry, six out of twenty in each.
In all other branches of theoretical instruction, four out of twenty.
In the classification of the graphical representations in topography, a mean of eight out of twenty, and in each of the other courses a mean of six out of twenty; and as the general result of his various works and of his examinations (the mean of the year being combined with the number obtained before the jury in the proportion adopted by the Council of Instruction,) he must have obtained a number of credits equal to one-half of the maximum (1,200.)20
Every Student Officer who in his oral examination before the Jury has failed in obtaining the minimum stated above is subjected to a fresh proof before the Consulting Committee of the Staff Corps, and if this is not favorable to him he ceases to belong to the school, and must return to his regiment, unless such failure can be attributed to an illness of forty-five days, in which case he may be permitted to double his first year’s course of study.
If the second proof be favorable he is retained at the school, butplaced at the bottom of the classified lists prepared by the Council of Instruction.
The co-efficients of influence for the second year are—
GeographicalRepresentation,
Survey with the Compass,
Itinerary of the first survey,
Itinerary of the reconnaissance
Drawing of a Fortress and its Environs,
Reduction of the Drawings,
First Drawing of a Military Bridge,
Drawing of Artillery Carriage,
Memoir on a Fortified place,
Memoir on a Project of Field Fortification,
Military Administration,
Memoir on various questions comprised in drawing up a memoir,
Memoir on the survey with a Compass, or sketch reconnaissance
Riding and Knowledgeof the Horse,
[Indented items:] Subdivision of the Co-efficients of the Graphical Representations, &c.
The examinations of the studentsof the Senior or First Division is made in a similar manner to that already described for the Junior Division, but after they are concluded, and prior to these students being admitted into the Staff Corps, they are subjected to another examination before the Consulting Committee of the Staff Corps, consisting of—