Appendix. Embracing Words Casually Omitted in the Body of the Work and the Articles of War.
A.
Acanzi. In military history, the name of the Turkish light-horse who formed the vanguard of the sultan’s army.
Adoni, or Adonani. A city in Hindostan, formerly strongly fortified; captured by Tippoo Sahib in 1787; sold to England after his death in 1800.
Afabuar (Fr.). Color-bearer of the ancient Icelanders. Every war-vessel had one of these officers aboard, who commanded the soldiers. These officers were selected for this duty for their bravery.
Alains (Fr.). People of ancient Sarmatia; they followed the Huns in their invasions, and penetrated as far as Spain in the 6th century.
Alexandria. A port in Egypt, where, on March 21, 1801, the French army destined by Napoleon Bonaparte to conquer Egypt, and afterwards proceed to India with hostile designs, was routed by the British under Sir Ralph Abercromby. The town capitulated to Hutchinson on September 2, 1801; and surrendered upon a subsequent occasion to Gen. Fraser, on March 20, 1807.
Allezoir. A frame of timber firmly suspended in the air with strong cordage, on which is placed a piece of ordnance with the muzzle downwards. In this situation the bore is rounded and enlarged by means of an instrument which has a very sharp and strong edge made to traverse the bore by force of machinery, or horses, and in a horizontal direction.
Allezures. The metal taken from the cannon by boring.
Ancient. A term formerly used to express the grand ensign or standard of an army.
Anspessade (Fr.). This term was originally used to denote dismounted horsemen, who were obliged to serve temporarily in the infantry, and who broke off the tops of their lances so as to reduce their length to that of the halberds of the sergeants. Also, a non-commissioned officer who acts subordinate to a corporal; a lance-corporal.
Antoninus, Wall of. Was a rampart or defense (the remains of which still exist under the name of Graham’s Dyke), which was erected in Scotland in 139 by the Romans against the incursions of the North Britons.
Aquileia (Istria). Made a Roman colony about 180 B.C., and fortified A.D. 168. Constantine II. was slain in a battle with Constans, fought at Aquileia towards the close of March, 340. Maximus was defeated and slain by Theodosius, near Aquileia, July 28, 388. Theodosius defeated Eugenius and Arbogastes, the Gaul, near Aquileia, and remained sole emperor, September 6, 394. Eugenius was put to death, and Arbogastes died by his own hand, mortified by his overthrow. In 452 Aquileia was almost totally destroyed by Attila the Hun, and near it in 489 Theodoric and the Ostrogoths totally defeated Odoacer, the king of Italy.
Auberoche, Guienne. In Southern France. The Earl of Derby defeated the French, besieging this place, August 19, 1344.
Auray (Northwest France), Here on September 29, 1364, the English under John Chandos defeated the French and captured their leader, Du Guesclin. Charles of Blois, made duke of Brittany by the king of France, was slain, and a peace was made in April, 1365.
B.
Band, Military.[1] Consists of a body of musicians attached to each army regiment or battalion. The law provides for a band at the Military Academy at West Point. And for each artillery, cavalry, and infantry regiment a chief musician, who shall be instructor of music; and for each artillery and infantry regiment two principal musicians; each cavalry regiment to have one chief trumpeter. Musicians for regimental bands are enlisted as soldiers, and formed under the direction of the adjutant, but are not permanently detached from their companies, and are instructed in all the duties of a soldier.
[1] Incorrectly printed in the body of the work.
Bander (Fr.). To unite; to intrigue together for the purpose of insurrection.
Barry. In heraldry, the term applied to a shield which is divided transversely into four, six, or more equal parts, and consisting of two or more tinctures interchangeably disposed. Barry-bendy is where the shield is divided into four, six, or more equal parts, by diagonal lines, the tincture of which it consists being varied interchangeably. Barry-pily is where the shield is divided by diagonal lines, the different colors being interchanged.
Bassinet (Fr.). The pan of a musket.
Bautzen. A town in Saxony, near which desperate battles were fought May 20-22, 1813, between the French, commanded by Napoleon, and the allies under the emperor of Russia and the king of Prussia. The struggle commenced on the 19th, with a contest on the outposts, which cost each army a loss of above 2000 men. On the 20th (at Bautzen), the French were more successful; and on the 21st (at Murschen), the allies were compelled to retire; but Napoleon obtained no permanent advantages from these sanguinary engagements. Duroc was killed at Rachenbach by a cannon-ball on May 22, to the great sorrow of the emperor and the French army.
Beaver, or Bever. That part of a helmet covering the lower part of the face, which shifted on pivots to allow the wearer to drink. The word is derived from the Latin word bevere, to drink.
Bethune. A town of France, in the department Pas-de-Calais; it is strongly fortified, part of the works and the citadel having been constructed by Vauban; taken by the French in 1645; retaken by the allies in 1710, but was restored to France by the treaty of Utrecht, 1714.
Biset (Fr.). Was a member of the national guard who performed his duty in civilian’s dress, before the wearing of uniform on duty was made obligatory.
Blackstock’s Hill. A hill situated in South Carolina, United States, memorable for the victory the Americans gained over the English in 1780.
Blakemere. A village of England, near where a memorable battle was fought between the Scots and the troops of Edward II. of England, in which the latter were defeated.
Blumenau. In Lower Austria; on July 22, 1866, the Austrians in possession of this place were attacked by the Prussians on their march towards Vienna, a severe conflict was interrupted by the news of the armistice agreed to at Nikolsburg; and the same evening Austrians and Prussians bivouacked together.
Brabant. Part of Holland and Belgium, an ancient duchy, part of Charlemagne’s empire, fell to the share of his son Charles. In the 17th century it was held by Holland and Austria, as Dutch Brabrant and the Walloon provinces, and underwent many changes through the wars in Europe. The Austrian division was taken by the French in 1746 and 1794. It was united to the Netherlands in 1814, but South Brabant was given to the kingdom of Belgium, under Leopold, 1830. The heir of the throne of Belgium is styled Duke of Brabant.
Braquemart, or Jacquemart (Fr.). In antiquity, a two-edged broadsword.
Breda. A strongly fortified town of Holland; taken by Prince Maurice of Nassau in 1590; by the Spaniards under Spinola in 1625, and by the Dutch in 1637; taken by the French in 1793. The French garrison was expelled by the burgesses in 1813.
Briche (Fr.). A machine of war formerly used to throw stones.
Broad Arrow. A mark for goods belonging to the royal dock-yards or navy, England; is said to have been ordered to be used in 1698, in consequence of robberies.
Brussels. Once capital of Austrian Brabant, now of Belgium (since 1831), was founded by St. Gery, of Cambray, in the 7th century. It was bombarded and captured by Marshal Villeroi in 1695; taken by the French in 1701 at the beginning of the War of Succession; captured by the Duke of Marlborough in 1706; by the French under Marshal Saxe in 1747, and by Gen. Dumouriez in 1794; the revolution commenced in 1830.
C.
Cabacle (Fr.). Military coat of the modern Grecians.
Cabas (Fr.). A large shield or buckler, which served to protect the archers who attacked in intrenchments.
Cage de la Bascule (Fr.). A space into which one part of a draw-bridge falls, whilst the other rises and conceals the gate.
Calosiers. Soldiers of ancient Egypt, who with the Hermotybes composed the particular guard of the king.
Calotte (Fr.). The back plate of a sword-handle; the cap of a pistol; species of skull-cap worn by French cavalry, sabre-proof, made of iron or dressed leather.
Candjiar, or Canjar. A kind of crooked Turkish sabre.
Carcas (Fr.). The name given to a quiver during the Middle Ages.
Chadd’s Ford. A village in Delaware Co., Pa., on the Brandywine Creek. Near here was fought the battle of Brandywine, September 11, 1777.
Charlestown. A former city and seaport of Middlesex Co., Mass.; is now a northern suburb of Boston. Was burnt by the British forces under Gen. Gage, June 17, 1775. On Bunker’s Hill a monument is erected commemorating the battle of that name, which was fought June 17, 1775.
Charlestown. A village of Jefferson Co., West Va. In this place John Brown was tried and executed, December, 1859. On October 18, 1863, a Confederate force of 1200 or 1400 men, under Gen. Imboden, surrounded the place at daylight, and attacked the Union troops stationed there. Being surprised, they were panic-stricken, and, flying in confusion, were nearly all captured. The place was recaptured within an hour by a force of U. S. troops under Col. George D. Wells, and the Confederates driven from the town.
Chateau Cambresis. A fortified town of French Flanders, on the Selle, where the French republican army was defeated by the Duke of York in April, 1794.
Cherry Valley. A village of Otsego Co., N. Y. It was the scene of a dreadful massacre by the Tories and Indians in the British service, October 11, 1778. Thirty-two inhabitants, nearly all women and children, were murdered, besides sixteen soldiers of the Continental army. The rest of the citizens were made prisoners and taken away, and all the buildings were burned.
Chickasaw Bluffs, Battle of. Before Vicksburg, Miss. The U. S. forces under Gen. W. T. Sherman assaulted this strongly fortified position, December 29, 1862, but, though the head of the assaulting column reached the works, the severe fire from the rifle-pits and batteries caused them to fall back to the point of starting, leaving many dead, wounded, and prisoners on the field. The Confederate loss was but light.
Clipeadus. So were called, in ancient times, the soldiers who were armed with the Grecian buckler, which was large and round. By clipeadus chlamyde was understood combatants, who, in place of the shield, wound their coats (chlamyde) around their left arms.
Clunaculum. A poniard carried by certain Roman troops in ancient times. It was so called because it was carried on the back of the soldier.
Cnemidas. A kind of leggings, made of bronze, which were worn by Grecian soldiers.
Cnidos (now Crio). A town of Anatolia, in Asia Minor; in its neighborhood a battle was fought between the Lacedæmonian and Persian fleets in 394 B.C.; the latter gained the victory.
Colismarde (Fr.). A long, slender sword.
Colletin (Fr.). So was called, in ancient times, that part of an armor which protected the neck and upper part of the breast.
Custozza. Near Verona, Northern Italy. Here the Italians were defeated by Marshal Radetzky, July 23, 1848; and here they were again defeated, June 24, 1866, after a series of desperate attacks on the Austrian army. The Italians were commanded by their king, Victor Emmanuel, and the Austrians by the Archduke Albrecht.
D.
Davids Island. An island of 100 acres in Long Island Sound, within the township limits of New Rochelle, Westchester Co., N. Y. It was purchased in 1867 by the U. S. government, to be used for military purposes.
Dinkelsbuhl. A town of Bavaria, surrounded with a high wall, flanked with towers and ditches. It suffered much during the Thirty Years’ War.
Dorylæum (Phrygia). Soliman, the Turkish sultan of Iconium, having retired from the defense of Nicæa, his capital, was here defeated with great loss by the Crusaders, July 1, 1097.
Douglas. An ancient noble family of Scotland. The earls of Douglas, the earls of Angus, and the earls of Morton belonged to this family. Sir James Douglas, surnamed “The Good,” was the founder of their fame and grandeur. He commanded the left wing at Bannockburn in 1314, and was killed by the Saracens in Spain about 1330, in a pilgrimage to Palestine. James the second, earl of Douglas, was a famous warrior, and was killed at the battle of Otterburn in 1388. Archibald the Grim, third earl, fought for the French at Poitiers, and died about 1400. He was succeeded by his son Archibald, fourth earl, who displayed great courage at the battle of Shrewsbury (1403), where he fought against Henry IV., and rendered important services to Charles VII. of France, who rewarded him with the duchy of Touraine. He was killed at the battle of Verneuil, in France, in 1424.
Dry Tortugas. A group of ten small, low, barren islands belonging to Monroe Co., Fla. These islands served as a place of imprisonment for persons under sentence by courts-martial during the late civil war. Several criminals concerned in the conspiracy in which President Lincoln was murdered were confined here.
E.
Egard (Fr.). An ancient tribunal of Malta which decided, by commission, suits among the knights.
Eleasa. In Palestine; here Judas Maccabæus was defeated and slain by Bacchides and Alcimus, and the Syrians about 161 B.C.
Entrenchments. The field-works which are hastily thrown up to cover a force in position.
Erivan, Irvin, or Irivan. A fortified town of Russian Armenia, situated on the Zenghi. It was taken by the Turks in 1553 and 1582, but recovered by Abbas the Great, 1604; after being several times captured, it was ceded to Persia, 1769. The Russians blockaded this place during six months in 1808, and were repulsed, with great slaughter, in an attempt to storm it. In 1827, however, it was taken by them.
Ermin. An order of knights instituted in 1450, by Francis I., duke of Bretagne, and which formerly subsisted in France. The collar of this order was of gold, composed of ears of corn in saltire, at the end of which hung the ermine, with the inscription a ma vie. But the order expired when the dukedom of Bretagne was annexed to France.
Erouad, or Erroad. A town of Hindostan, in the province of Coimbetoor. This town was reduced in size during the reign of Tippoo Sahib; and during the invasion of Gen. Meadows the town was destroyed. It was taken by the British in 1790, and retaken by Tippoo; but it came into the final possession of the British, along with the province, in 1799.
Evans Rifle. See Magazine Guns.
F.
Fabian. Delaying; dilatory; avoiding battle, in imitation of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus, a Roman general who conducted military operations against Hannibal, by declining to risk a battle in the open field, but harassing the enemy by marches, countermarches, and ambuscades.
G.
Gad. The first-born of Zilpah, Leah’s maid, was the seventh son of Jacob. The tribe of Gad numbered in the wilderness of Sinai more than 40,000 fighting-men. Nomadic by nature, they preferred to remain on the east side of Jordan, and were reluctantly allowed to do so by Joshua, on condition of assisting their countrymen in the conquest and subjugation of Canaan. The men of Gad—if we may judge from the eleven warriors who joined David in his extremity—were a race of stalwart heroes; “men of might, and men of war, fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountains.”
Gomer Chamber. Chamber of the 24-pounder Coehorn mortar; it is in the form of a frustum of a cone, superior diameter 3 inches, and inferior, 2 inches.
Gore. In heraldry, a charge consisting of one-third of the shield cut off by two arched lines, one drawn from the dexter or sinister chief, and the other from the bottom of the escutcheon, meeting in the fess point. A gore sinister is enumerated by heralds as one of the abatements or marks of dishonor borne for unknightly conduct. See Gusset.
Guelf, Guelph, or Welf. The name of a noble family in Germany, the founder of which lived in the time of Charlemagne.
H.
Half Merlons. The merlons at the ends of the parapet.
Harrow. In a military sense, means to lay waste; to ravage; to destroy.
Here. Is a word used by soldiers at a regimental roll-call, to intimate their presence.
M.
Magnano. In Northern Italy; here Scherer and a French army were defeated by the Austrians under Kray, April 5, 1799.
Mars. The name of the Roman god of war, was a contraction of Mavors. He was supposed to be a son of Jupiter and Juno, and was identified with the Ares of Greek mythology. According to Ovid he was a son of Juno, but had no father. Homer and other poets relate that Mars fought for the Trojans at the siege of Troy, and was wounded by Diomede. Mars was believed to love war for its own sake, and to delight in carnage. He is usually represented as a grim soldier in full armor,—sometimes as driving furiously in a war-chariot.
Moliones, or Molionidæ. Regarded as the sons of Neptune (Poseidon); according to Homer the Moliones, when yet boys, took part in an expedition of the Epeans against Neleus and the Pylians. When Hercules marched against Augeas, the latter intrusted the conduct of the war to the Moliones; but as Hercules was taken ill, he concluded peace with Augeas, whereupon his army was attacked and defeated by the Molionidæ. In order to take vengeance, he afterwards slew them near Cleonæ, on the frontiers of Argolis. Their sons, Amphimachus and Thalpius, led the Epeans to Troy.
N.
Nugent. The name of a noble family, originally from Normandy, who settled in Ireland in the 12th century. Richard Nugent was created by King James I. earl of Westmeath in 1621. George Thomas John Nugent, born in 1785, became marquis of Westmeath in 1822. Sir George Nugent, grandson of Viscount Clare, born in 1757, served in America and the Netherlands. He was successively appointed governor of Jamaica and commander-in-chief of the army in the West Indies, and in 1846 field-marshal. Died in 1849. His brother, Sir Charles Edmund Nugent, served with distinction under Rodney, and was created admiral of the blue in 1808. In 1833 he received the title of admiral of the fleet. Died in 1844.
P.
Paneas, or Panius (Syria). Here Antiochus the Great defeated Scopas, the Egyptian general, and his Greek allies, 198 B.C.
Percy. The name of an ancient and noble English family, descended from William de Percy, who, in the reign of William the Conqueror, possessed several manors in the counties of Lincoln and York. He was probably a Norman. In the reign of Edward I. a Henry de Percy acquired Alnwick and other estates in Northumberland. Another Henry de Percy, in the reign of Edward III., married Mary Plantagenet, a great-granddaughter of King Henry III., and had two sons, Henry, earl of Northumberland, and Thomas, earl of Worcester. Henry Percy, surnamed Hotspur, a son of Henry last named, rebelled against Henry IV., and was killed at the battle of Shrewsbury (1408). A son of Hotspur was restored to the earldom, fought for the house of Lancaster, and fell at Saint Albans, in 1455, leaving several sons, who were killed in the war of the Roses. In the reign of Elizabeth, a Percy, earl of Northumberland, was executed for rebellion (1572).
Pharaoh. The term applied in the Bible to the kings of Egypt, of which many explanations have been proposed, as pa-ra, “the sun;” pi-ouro, “the king;” per-aa, “the great house,” “court;” pa-ra-anh, or “the living sun.” None of these etymologies are altogether satisfactory, some not being found at an early period. It is still less possible to connect it with the name of any Egyptian monarch, and it must have been a common appellation like khan, cæsar, or czar. Pharaoh is the one under whom the Israelites were in bondage, and who compelled them to build the treasure-cities of Pithom and Rameses of bricks; and it was under him or his successor that Egypt was afflicted with the ten plagues, and that Moses and Aaron led the Israelites out of Egypt, and the Egyptian army in its pursuit of the retreating Israelites was drowned in the sea, although it is doubtful if Pharaoh perished with them. The identical Egyptian monarch who was the Pharaoh of the Exodus has been a subject of dispute, but it is principally confined to the period of the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties. The other Pharaohs mentioned in the Bible are the father of Hadad the Edomite, supposed to be a king of the twenty-second dynasty; the father-in-law of Solomon; one of the predecessors of Sheshanka or Shishak; that monarch himself, who overran the Holy Land and pillaged Jerusalem; Tirhakah the Ethiopian, who for a time wrested Egypt from the Assyrians; Nekau or Necho II., who invaded Palestine to reduce it to subjection, then in alliance with the Assyrians, but was finally defeated at Carchemish by Nebuchadnezzar, then at a youthful age, 605 B.C.; and Uah-pa-ra, Hophra or Apries, of the twenty-sixth dynasty, who marched to relieve the siege of Jerusalem, causing the Babylonians to retire for a while, although it was finally taken by Nebuchadnezzar, 588 B.C. It is remarkable that the Ethiopian Kings Zerah and so mentioned in the Bible are not styled Pharaohs, like the Egyptian rulers, as if for some reason they had not the same title or were recognized as lawful rulers of the country.
Phylarque (Fr.). A Grecian cavalry officer who commanded the cavalry of his tribe.
R.
Reichenbach (Prussia). Here was signed a subsidy treaty between Russia, Prussia, and England, whereby the last engaged to provide means for carrying on the war against Napoleon I. on certain conditions, June 14-15, 1813. Austria joined the alliance soon after. Here Duroc was killed during the conflicts between the French and the allies, May 22, 1813.
S.
Shako. A kind of military cap.
T.
Tesseræ Militares. Military watchwords, or countersigns, among the ancient Romans.
V.
Viana. A town of Portugal, in the province of Minho, situated on the Lima, 38 miles north from Oporto. This place surrendered to Admiral Sir Charles Napier in the civil war which deprived Don Miguel of the throne of Portugal.