Chapter I: DO HEREBY CERTIFY, upon my word and honor, as an officer and (2)

The several contractors, besides rations including ardent spirits and vinegar, shall only provide and furnish _quarters, transportation, forage, fuel, straw, and stationery_, to recruiting parties where there is no appropriate officer of the quarter-master general’s department to furnish the same. The quarters intended, are those of a temporary kind. The power to provide them shall not extend to the building or repairing of barracks. In what they furnish, they shall govern themselves _exclusively_ by the regulations which have been established by law or by the war department, and in cases to which no regulations apply, by the orders of the particular commanding officer.

No repairs shall be made to any barracks or buildings which shall incur a disbursement of money exceeding fifty dollars, but by an order of the secretary of war.

As often as any matter which may require any special or extra expense can wait without material injury to the service, for a communication to, and the direction of the secretary of war, or the commander of the army; it is not to be undertaken till after such communication and direction shall have been had.

The quarter-master general, his deputies and assistants, are primarily charged with making the disbursements in the cases abovementioned. When there is no such officer, the agent of the war department in the vicinity shall do it. All orders for such disbursements must be definite and in writing, to be transmitted with the accounts of them to the accountant of the war department; and all disbursements made in pursuance of these regulations must be substantiated by such vouchers as shall be prescribed by the said accountant.

_Given at the war office of the United States in the city of
Washington, this twenty eighth day of April_, A. D. 1801.

HENRY DEARBORN,
_Secretary of War_.

_Rules adopted by the president of the United States relative to promotions in the army._

Promotions in the army of the United States, shall hereafter be made agreeably to the regulations in force previous to those of the 3d of September 1799, which were promulgated in general orders, dated the ninth of that month.

Promotions to the rank of captain shall be made regimentally, and to the rank of major and lieutenant colonel in the lines of the artillery and infantry respectively.

The officer next in rank, will, on the happening of a vacancy, be considered, in ordinary cases, as the proper person to fill the same; but this rule may be subject to exceptions in extraordinary cases.

_Given at the war office of the United States, this twenty sixth day
of May_, A. D. 1801, _and of independence the twenty fifth_.

HENRY DEARBORN,
_Secretary of War_.

The above rules for promotion in the infantry and artillery, are applicable to the cavalry and riflemen.

No officer will consider himself as filling a vacancy until he receives notice thereof through the department of war.

H. DEARBORN.
_March 7, 1808._

_Regulations respecting salutes._

Salutes from the forts in the several ports and harbors of the United States shall, as a general rule, be of sixteen discharges from guns of a calibre not exceeding nine or twelve pounders.

No salute shall be fired to foreign ships or vessels of war, but in return; and in every such case, their salute shall be returned gun for gun.

Each military post within the United States may fire a national salute on the morning of the fourth of July, annually; and when there shall be a collection of citizens at, or within the immediate vicinity of a military post for the purpose of celebrating the anniversary of American independence, sixteen guns may be fired in the course of the feast.

A national salute shall be fired on a visit to the post from the president or vice president of the United States, or the governor of the state in which the post may be.

A gun not exceeding a six pounder, should be fired daily at reveille beating, immediately after the break of day; after which, no officer or soldier should remain in bed.

_Given at the war office of the United States in the city of
Washington, this tenth day of June_, A. D. 1801, _and in the twenty
fifth year of American independence_.

(Signed) HENRY DEARBORN,
_Secretary of war_.

REGULATIONS _respecting extra pay, and allowance of soldiers, when ordered on constant labor, for a term not less than 40 days._

The non-commissioned officers and privates of the artillery or infantry who may be drawn as artificers, to work constantly on fortifications or bridges, for a term not less than 40 days, Sundays excepted, shall be allowed, for each day’s actual labor, fourteen cents, and one gill of spirits each, in addition to their pay and rations, and one pair of linen overalls, and one frock; and if they shall be continued at work for 120 days, Sundays excepted, they shall each be allowed an additional frock, and an additional pair of overalls.

Other non-commissioned officers and privates, not artificers, who shall be drawn from the artillery and infantry for constant labor on fortifications, roads, or bridges, for a term not less than 40 days, Sundays excepted, shall be allowed for each day’s actual labor, ten cents and one gill of spirits each, in addition to their pay and rations; and if they shall be continued at work for 120 days, an additional frock and pair of overalls in like manner as the artificers.

It shall be the duty of the officer commanding any such working party, to have a regular account, kept under his inspection of every day’s work performed by each non-commissioned officer or private, signed by the commanding officer, and to transmit monthly a fair abstract thereof to the paymaster of the district in which the labor may be performed, which paymaster will be authorised to draw the money on the said abstracts, and pay the men conformably therewith.

It is to be understood, that the extra daily pay and allowance, is only to be given for actual day’s work, and not to be granted, when from sickness or other causes, the work shall not actually be performed.

(Signed) H. DEARBORN,
_Secretary of war_.

_War department, June 25, 1801._

The above regulations, so far as they respect allowances of extra clothing, are considered as being superseded by the act fixing the military peace establishment, which grants fatigue clothing to all the non-commissioned officers, musicians, and privates of that establishment, annually.

H. DEARBORN.
_March 7, 1808._

_The following rates are to govern in the allowance to officers for the transportation of their baggage, when ordered on distant commands._

A colonel 750 pounds.
Lieut. colonel, 600
Major, 500
Captain, 400
First lieutenant, 300
Second do. 250
Ensign, 250
Surgeon, 500
Surgeon’s mate, 300

Each officer to be allowed the usual and customary prices of transportation by land or water per hundred, on the route which shall be necessary for him to transport himself and baggage, for as many hundred as he is entitled to the transportation of, by the regulations hereto annexed. An average price by land, will not exceed two dollars per hundred for 100 miles, and by water there are but few cases where a certain rate per cwt. is not known.

(Signed) H. DEARBORN.

_War department, June 23, 1801._

In addition to the foregoing regulations, there shall be allowed to each officer, when ordered on general courts-martial, at the rate of three dollars for every hundred miles, for the transportation of his baggage.

(Signed) H. D.

_Ordinance, regulating and ascertaining the quantity of stationery which each officer, serving in the army of the United States, shall be entitled to receive annually._

To every officer commanding a separate post, the garrison of which shall consist of, from one to two companies, twenty quires of writing paper.

To every officer commanding a separate post, the garrison of which shall consist of, from three to five companies, thirty-six quires of writing paper.

To every officer commanding a separate post, one blank book containing two quires of paper.

For the use of the garrison of every separate post, ingredients sufficient to make two quarts of ink.

For the use of the garrison of every separate post, twenty dozen of wafers.

For the use of the assistant military agent, at every separate post, one blank book containing two quires of paper.

For the use of every military company, whether in garrison or otherwise, two quires of paper, and one blank book containing the same quantity.

For the use of every other commissioned officer in the army, two quires of letter paper, with a proportionate allowance of ink, quills, and wafers.

_Done at the war office of the U. States, this 25th day of February,
1802._

H. DEARBORN,
_Secretary of war_.

_Regulations relative to the employment of physicians._

In future, no surgeon, surgeon’s mate, or physician, not holding an appointment in the army of the United States, is to be employed on public account, by any officer or other person whatever to act in the capacity of surgeon or physician, for any man or men attached to the army, unless by special agreement first entered into, in which the compensation for medical service to be performed, shall be stipulated in writing, either by the day or month.

When the services required shall be such, as not to exceed the usual duties of a surgeon’s mate, the compensation per month, should not exceed the pay and emoluments of a surgeon’s mate.

For any number of men, not exceeding twenty, the compensation should not exceed the rate of two hundred dollars a year, including medicine; and for any number of men, not exceeding thirty, the compensation should not exceed the rate of three hundred dollars a year, including medicine.

In no instance, extraordinary cases excepted, should the compensation for medical assistance, for a shorter period than one month, exceed the rate of four dollars per day, exclusive of medicine.

Charges for medical services, after the promulgation of these regulations, will require certificates, of their having been performed agreeable thereto.

_April 2, 1806._

_Regulations relative to returns of clothing._

It shall be the duty of the commanding officers of companies, to make out in December each year correct returns of the clothing necessary for their respective companies for the succeeding year, including what is on hand fit for service; also correct returns or all clothing on hand, noting such as is fit for use: the said returns to be forwarded annually, by the 1st day of January, to the department of war, through the commanding officer of the military post, garrison, or encampment, at which the officer making the returns is stationed. The commanding officers of companies, shall be responsible for the correctness of their respective returns.

_War department, Dec. 1, 1807._

REGULATIONS _to be observed by officers commanding detachments of the army to be embarked, and on ship board_.

I. The officer commanding the embarkation, prior to the men’s going on board, must personally inspect the transports, to ascertain that the quantity of provisions assigned, and every necessary accommodation is provided.

II. As soon as the troops are on board, an officer from each company will personally see, that the arms and accoutrements, the clothing neatly packed in the knapsacks, together with the hats, are to be placed in order, and properly secured, over their respective births, on the racks and pins ordered for the purpose: the arms are all to be provided with cloth tompkins; they are to be oiled, and handled daily, during the voyage, and are to be frequently inspected by the officers, to prevent their being injured by rust.

III. The men must be allotted to births, in the order in which they roll in their companies, and are to be divided into messes by squads, with a non-commissioned officer at the head of each, who is to be responsible for the good order and cleanliness of it; particular attention must be paid to the cooking, for which purpose two men must be detailed weekly from the company to attend to this duty, and it is essential that every other soldier should be prohibited from going to the camboose.

IV. An officer of the day will be appointed, whose duty it will be to enforce regularity, cleanliness and order amongst the men; to see that their provisions are well cooked and equally distributed; and in case of neglect, in any instance, he must immediately report the circumstance to the officer commanding, who will chastise the offender, if necessary.

V. The men must not be permitted to go below during the day, except in case of indisposition, or bad weather; and the bedding must invariably be brought on deck every morning, if not prevented by rain, and taken down always before sun set.

VI. To prevent accidents by fire, no candles must be suffered below, but in lanterns, and smoking between decks must be on no account, permitted. All lights are to be extinguished at eight o’clock; and the officers, to set an example of good order, should not indulge themselves in sitting up beyond a reasonable hour.

VII. General parades and calls of the roll are to be had at troop and retreat, with arms and accoutrements, in good weather, and without in bad; and on every Saturday, the commanding officer must make a complete inspection of arms, accoutrements and clothing.

VIII. To ensure cleanliness, the men must be compelled to wash their heads and hands every morning, and their feet every evening.

IX. A serjeant’s guard must be mounted daily, and a sufficient number of sentries posted, to enforce these regulations; and particularly one or more at the necessary, camboose and hatchways, with their side arms.

X. In case of coming to anchor, care must be taken to prevent the men having any communication with the shore; and attention must be paid to prevent their purchasing liquor or green fruit, from boats coming along side.

XI. The commanding officer is to co-operate with the master of the transport, in whatever may be necessary to promote the voyage; and in approaching a sail, he is positively forbid shewing a single soldier on deck: the sentries are in such case to be removed below.

XII. The men are to be furnished with two flints; twenty four rounds of ball cartridges, each: six in their cartridge boxes, and the residue packed in kegs.

These regulations are to be strictly observed in every particular; and any officer who may violate them, by omission or commission, will be brought before a general court-martial.

_Given at Head Quarters, city of
Washington, Dec. 15, 1808._

This closes the whole body of Regulations for the United States force, as far as the American editor has been able to collect them.

_To buy or sell at the_ REGULATION, to give or receive no more for a commission than what has been settled by the king’s authority in the British service. When an officer is allowed to retire from a regiment with permission to sell, the one next for purchase is supposed to pay the regulation price or his commission; but it frequently happens that parties agree among themselves with respect to terms; and it sometimes occurs, that young men of interest and fortune stop the regular promotions of officers by overbidding the market. This traffic, so infamous in its principle, as well as in its abuses, was exhibited in an odious light in the case of the duke of York and his courtesans in 1809.

_Cavalry_ REGULATIONS, specific instructions for the formations and movements of cavalry.

_Infantry_ REGULATIONS. A system of tactics for infantry. The general principles for the formations and movements of cavalry and infantry being invariably the same, their more particular explanation in several points, is to be found in the regulations for the infantry. See _American Military Library_.

_General_ REGULATIONS _and orders_. A collection of certain general rules which were published for the British army by authority on the 20th of August, 1799, and which are to be considered as the ground work of those instructions that generals commanding districts, and officers in the command of brigades and regiments, forts or garrisons, may find it necessary to issue to the troops under their respective commands. To use the words of the adjutant general, this publication does by no means comprehend the whole detail which the various duties and services, and the interior economy and management of regiments may require. They are principally extracted from a book, intituled _The Rudiments of War_, which was published by N. Conant in 1777, they are directed to be considered as the _standing_ orders of the army at large. They cannot be altered, or in any sense be deviated from, without the king’s or commander in chief’s approbation. It is however to be observed, that a book manifestly calculated for the interior management of the army, and consequently a necessary companion to the rules and regulations, should have been more specific. Many circumstances, apparently insignificant in themselves, and, of course, unnoticed at head quarters, grow into objects of serious discussion among the different regiments of the service, both at home and abroad. It is an old maxim, that he who neglects small faults will soon fall into great offences.

RE-IMBODY. To re-imbody, is to imbody again any regiment or corps that has been disbanded. Thus, the English militia is disbanded, and partially re-imbodied for 28 days in every year during peace.

REIN, that part of a bridle which extends from the head of a horse to the hands of the rider, &c.

REINFORCE, in _founding guns_, that part of a gun next to the breech, which is made stronger than the rest of the piece, in order to resist the force of the powder. There are generally two in each piece, called the first and second reinforce: the second is something smaller than the first, upon the supposition that when the powder is inflamed, and occupies a greater space, its force is diminished, which is not the case. See CANNON.

REINFORCE _ring_. There are three in each gun, called the first, second, and third: they are flat mouldings, like flat iron hoops, placed at the breech end of the first and second reinforce, projecting from the rest of the metal by about ¹⁄₄ of an inch.

REINFORCEMENT _to the army_, is an addition of fresh troops to strengthen an army, in order to enable it to go on with an enterprise, &c.

_To_ REJOIN. To meet again. To return. He left his regiment when it broke up camp, but rejoined it again before the army marched into the enemy’s country·

REJOUISSANCES _publiques_, _Fr._ Public rejoicings, or thanksgivings. Chevalier Folard makes a curious and interesting comment relative to this subject, in one of his notes upon Polybius. He therein asserts, that the _Te Deum_, or thanksgiving to God, was as much practised among the heathens as it is among the moderns.

REITRES, _Fr._ a body of armed horsemen, who came out of Germany, and entered into the French service during the reign of Henry III. They were incorporated with the carabineers.

RELAYER, _Fr._ to relieve; to lessen the labor of any particular set of men by occasionally sending fresh workmen.

RELAIS, _Fr._ a term used in fortification to signify a space, containing some feet in breadth, which is between the foot of the rampart and the scarp of the fosse. It serves as a convenient receptacle for the earth that occasionally crumbles off.

RELAY _horses_, in the _artillery_, are spare horses that march with the artillery and baggage, ready to relieve others, or to assist in getting up a hill, or through bad roads, &c.

RELEASE. The commanding officer alone has the prerogative of releasing a prisoner from confinement, after he has once been duly given in charge to the guard, with his crime or crimes stated in writing; or of remitting after he has been adjudged to suffer military punishment; except in cases of a general court-martial, when the general of the district in certain cases, and the president of the United States in higher cases, can remit or mitigate.

_Cheval de_ RELAIS, _Fr._ a hackney horse.

RELEVEE, _Fr._ The afternoon.

RELEVER, _Fr._ to relieve. Hence,

RELEVER _une sentinelle_, _Fr._ To relieve a sentry, by posting another soldier in his room.

RELEVER _la garde_, _Fr._ To relieve guard.

RELIEF, _Fr._ an order, given by the minister at war, to authorize an officer to receive the arrears of pay which had accumulated during his absence from the regiment.

RELIEF, _Fr._ In architecture means the same as the term does when used in English.

RELIEN, _Fr._ The broken grains of gunpowder which have not passed through the sieve.

_To_ RELIEVE _the guard_, is to put fresh men upon guard, which is generally done every 24 hours.

_To_ RELIEVE _the trenches_, is to relieve the guard of the trenches, by appointing those for that duty, who have not been there before, or whose turn is next.

_To_ RELIEVE _the sentries_, is to put fresh men upon that duty from the guard, which is generally done every two hours, by a corporal who attends the relief, to see the proper orders are delivered to the soldier who relieves.

RELIEVER, an iron ring fixed to a handle by means of a socket, so as to be at right angles to it: it serves to disengage the searcher of a gun, when one of its points is retained in a hole, and cannot be got out otherwise. See SEARCHER.

_A_ REMAIN, a term used among store-keepers belonging to the board of ordnance, &c. to express the actual quantity of stores which is found at an outport, &c. when a new store-keeper is appointed.

REMAINS of stores are ordered to be taken at all places at home, once in seven years, as also at the expiration of a war. In foreign parts a _remain_ is taken only on the appointment of a new store-keeper. See OFFICE OF ORDNANCE, or BOARD OF ORDNANCE.

_To_ REMAND, to send back; as when a soldier who has been brought out of prison, or the guard-house, for the purpose of being examined or tried, is sent back without any thing final occurring relative to his case

_To_ REMARK, to take note of any thing.

REMARKS. Army returns, regimental statements, guard reports, &c. have a column allotted for remarks and observations relative to extraordinary occurrences.

REMBLAI, _Fr._ Earth collected together for the purpose of making a bank way, &c.

REMBLAYER, _Fr._ To collect earth together.

REMBARQUER, _Fr._ To re-embark.

REMBOITER, _Fr._ The same as _Emboiter_. To replace, to put together. The latter term is used by the French in artillery and cavalry manœuvres. It is the correlative to _Déboiter_; to break off.

REMETTEZ _vous_. This term agrees with the phrase--_as you were_. _Se Remettre._ To take a former position, to return to the original ground

REMETTRE, _Fr._ to restore, to bring back again. It is frequently used in a military sense, viz. _Remettre un bataillon_; to restore or bring back a battalion to its original formation

REMIT To lessen; as to remit a part of a soldier’s sentence.

_To_ REMONSTRATE, to make a representation of a case or cases wherein one or more may consider themselves to be aggrieved. Military men may remonstrate through their superior officers; but where the duty of the service is concerned, that duty must be first performed with cheerfulness and fidelity.

REMONTER, _Fr._ To Remount.

REMONTER _une compagnie de cavalerie_, _Fr._ To remount a troop of horse.

REMONTER _une rivière_, _Fr._ To sail up a river.

REMORA, _Fr._ This word is sometimes written _Rémora_, and signifies obstacle, hindrance. It comes from the Latin _Remora_, a small fish, which was supposed by the ancients to impede the progress of a ship.

REMORAL, _Fr._ an officer belonging to a galley, who has charge of the oars.

_To_ REMOVE, to change the situation of a person.

_A_ REMOUNT, means a supply of good and serviceable horses for the whole or part of a cavalry regiment. The following instructions have been copied from a compilation of English general and regimental orders, viz. The size of the horses for the heavy cavalry must run from 15 hands and 1 inch, to 15 3; and the age be 4 or 5 off, if possible; the taking horses coming four must be avoided as much as can be. No horse must be taken for the public service, unless he be very close and compact in his make, very broad across the loins, short and straight backed, close coupled, round barrelled, and well carcassed, wide between the rider’s thighs, deep at the girt and shoulders, and full, though not heavy chested, with short jointed, clean, bony legs, and full furnished, with strong thighs: the shoulders must lay well back; the forehand rise so as to give the horse freedom; and the head must be so set on as to admit of his getting his nose in. To this must be added, action, and good sound, full feet, with open heels. No horse must be taken with flat feet, or any lameness, or visible defect. No heavy, fleshy legged, lumbering horse must be taken on any account.

_To_ REMOUNT. To remount the cavalry or dragoons, is to furnish them with horses in the room of those which have been either killed, disabled, or cast.

RENCONTRE, _Fr._ This word has been adopted amongst us, and signifies either a private quarrel, in which individuals accidentally meet and fight; or an unexpected and irregular combat between two bodies of armed men, who belong to armies that are in hostile opposition to each other. Thus, as in the former instance it serves to distinguish the casual determination of a feud or difference from the pre-determined and settled plan of a duel; so in the latter it marks the difference between a skirmish, &c. and a regular battle.

RENDER. See SURRENDER.

RENDEZVOUS, the place appointed for troops to assemble at. It likewise means any particular spot that is fixed upon for two duellists to decide their quarrel.

RENDEZVOUS, RENDEVOUS, in a _military sense_, the place appointed by the general, where all the troops that compose the army are to meet at the time appointed, in case of an alarm. This place should be fixed upon, according to the situation of the ground, and the sort of troops quartered in the village. In an open country it is easy to fix upon a place of rendezvous, because the general has whatever ground he thinks necessary. In towns and villages the largest streets, or market places, are very fit; but let the place be where it will, the troops must assemble with ease, and be ready for the prompt execution of orders.

RENDU, _Fr._ Surrendered, given up.

_Soldat_ RENDU, _Fr._ This term is used, to express the difference between a soldier who deserts to the enemy, and one who lays down his arms. In the former instance he is called _déserteur_; in the latter, _soldat rendu_. It is sometimes used as a substitute, viz. _Un rendu_, a man who has surrendered.

RENEGADE, RENEGADO, a deserter; any one who goes over to the enemy.

RENFORCEMENT, _Fr._ a hollow place.

RENFORCER, _Fr._ to reinforce, to strengthen, to fortify.

RENFORT, _Fr._ Reinforcement.

RENFORT, _Fr._ a certain part or a cannon so called. See REINFORCE.

REPARATIONS _dans un regiment_, _Fr._ repair of arms, necessaries, camp equipage, &c.

_To_ RENEW, (_renouveler_, _Fr._) to repeat, to begin afresh. Hence to renew hostilities.

RENEWAL. The act of renewing, as the _renewal_ of hostilities.

RENVOI, _Fr._ Sending back; any thing returned.

_Chevaux de_ RENVOI, _Fr._ Returned horses.

REPARTIR, _Fr._ To divide, to separate, to detach.

REPARATION _des troupes_, _Fr._ Distribution of troops in different quarters.

REPERTORY. See MAGAZINE.

REPLIER, _se replier_, _Fr._ To fall back, to retreat. In military movements, to take a rear direction towards any particular part of the line, viz.

_Se_ REPLIER _sur la droite_, _Fr._ To fall back upon the right.

REPLY. After the prisoner’s defence before a court-martial, the prosecutor or informant may _reply_, but without noticing any matter foreign to the specific crime or crimes expressed in the charge.

REPORT, sound; loud noise, as that made by the discharge of a musquet or cannon.

REPORT. Specific statement of persons and things. Although this word may, in some sense, be considered the same as _return_, yet it so far differs in military matters, that it is less comprehensive, and relates more immediately to persons and occurrences than to things.

General officers report to the commander in chief only.

The commander in chief’s guard reports to himself by one of his aid-de-camps.

Reports of cavalry are given in to the senior generals of cavalry; and reports of infantry, to the senior general officers of infantry. On a march the field officer of the piquet reports to the general of the day who leads the column; and in camp to the next superior officer to himself. A provost martial gives in his return of prisoners, and reports to the general of the day.

Judge advocates, acting in districts or garrisons, &c. send in the minutes of courts-martial, and report to the district general. Regimental surgeons report to their commanding officers, and surgeons in districts, &c. to the war office.

_Monthly_ REPORT. Every company in the service of the United States, is required to make a monthly inspection and report, according to forms furnished by the adjutant and inspector.

All troops belonging to the British service, the marines excepted, who report to the admiralty, report through their several commanding officers, &c. to the adjutant general and secretary at war, and to the commander in chief.

_Special_ REPORT. A special report is said to be made when the name of an officer is transmitted by his commander to the general of a district, independent of the regular returns; and some specific instance of misconduct is laid before him; every officer on his arrival from abroad with a regiment or detachment of troops, must report himself to the governor or commanding officer of the seaport at which he arrives; and every officer who takes his passage for foreign service, must do the same previous to his departure.

The senior officer in each recruiting quarter reports weekly to the field officer of the district, the number and strength of the parties therein. The field officers commanding recruiting parties in districts, report to the adjutant and inspector, to whom all returns and reports are to be transmitted by them, and not direct from the recruiting officers.

Reports are made daily, weekly, or monthly, according to circumstances.

The various subordinate reports consist of

Report of a rearguard.

Report of a barrack guard.

Report of a quarter guard.

Report of a main guard and its dependencies, &c. &c.

In the column of remarks which must accompany each of these reports, it is necessary, for the person who signs, to specify all casualties and extraordinary occurrences according to the particular nature of each report. The different hours at which the grand rounds, visiting rounds, and patroles went, must likewise be put down.

REPOS, _Fr._ Rest, ease. It is used by the French as a word of command, viz.

REPOS, _Fr._ a word of command which agrees with _stand at ease_.

_Quartiers de_ REPOS, _Fr._ These places are so called where troops remain for some days to refresh themselves.

_Soldat_ REPOSE _sur l’arme_, _Fr._ a soldier standing at ease with ordered arms.

REPOSEZ _vous sur vos armes_, _Fr._ Order arms.

_In_ REPOSE, (_en repos_, _Fr._) This term, which is manifestly taken from the French, applies to troops that are allowed to be stationary for any given period during an active campaign either through sickness, or from some other cause. Thus the 5th regiment being _in repose_, it was judged expedient to order the 28th to advance by forced marches.

REPOSITORY, a place or repertory, in which any thing is preserved. Thus the British Repository at Woolwich, contains models of every sort of warlike stores, weapons, and fortification: whether invented by officers of the army or civilians, as well of other nations as of Britain, receipts being given to preserve the title to the inventor. The British Repository is indebted to the ingenuity of colonel Congreve, for some of its most useful and important instruments of escalade, fortification, and gunnery.

REPOUSSER, _Fr._ to drive back, to repel.

REPOUSSOIRS, _Fr._ Drivers, chissels.

REPOUSSOIR, _Fr._ a small stick which artificers and fire-workers use in making fire pots and other works.

REPRESAILLES, _Fr._ Reprisals.

REPRIMAND, a slighter kind of punishment sometimes inflicted on officers and non-commissioned officers. It consists in reproving or reprimanding them at the head of their respective regiments, troop, or company, as the cases may be. A reprimand is sometimes inserted in the orderly books.

REQUISITION, (_réquisition_, _Fr._) A term peculiarly used by the French during the course of their revolution, and applicable to most nations in its general import. It signifies the act of exacting either men or things for the public service. Hence--_Denrées, marchandises mises en réquisition_; necessaries of life, goods, &c. put in a state of requisition, or subject to be disposed of for the common good at a fixed price.

_Jeunes gens de la_ REQUISITION, _Fr._ Young men required or called upon to serve in the army.

REQUISITIONNAIRE, _Fr._ A person liable to be put in a state of requisition.

RESERVE, _corps de réserve_, _Fr._ any select body of troops posted by a general out of the first line of action, to answer some specific or critical purpose, in the day of battle. The French likewise call that body a _corps de réserve_, which is composed of the staff of the army, and moves with the commander in chief, from whom it receives the parole or word; but in every other respect it is governed by its own general.

RESINE, _Fr._ Rosin.

RESOLUTION, in algebra, the solution of a problem.

RESOLUTION, (_résolution_, _Fr._) an indispensible quality of the mind, which every general of an army should possess to its full extent. It is the advice of all wise men, leisurely to digest plans, and calmly deliberate upon them; but when once it becomes necessary to put them into execution, the person entrusted with command, should be prompt and vigorous.

RESOOM, _Ind._ Fees or dues.

_To_ RESPITE, to suspend, to delay; from the French _respiter_.

_To be_ RESPITED _on the muster-roll_, to be suspended from pay, &c. during which period all advantages of promotion, pay, &c. are stopped. It is originally derived from respite, which signifies delay, forbearance, &c. Thus in Clarendon’s history of the civil wars we read, that an act passed for the satisfaction of the officers of the king’s army, by which they were promised payment in November following; till which time they were to _respite_ it, and be contented, that the common soldiers and inferior officers should be satisfied upon their disbanding. At present to _respite_ means to deprive an individual of all the advantages attached to his situation; in which sense it signifies much the same as to suspend.

When an officer has exceeded his leave of absence, and has not sent a satisfactory account of himself to his commanding officer, the latter reports him, in an especial manner, to the general of the district, by whom he is returned absent without leave. It sometimes happens, that the colonel or commanding officer gives directions to have him noted on the muster-roll of the regiment; in which case he is said to be respited or deprived of pay. This is the first step towards suspension from rank and pay, which ultimately terminates in a total exclusion from the service, by the offending party being peremptorily superseded. The name of the person is laid before the secretary at war, who with the approbation of the president, directs the adjutant and inspector to strike it off the list of the army.

The money which is respited upon the muster-roll is accounted for by the account of the war department, and placed to the credit of the public by the paymaster-general.

RESPONSIBILITY. The state of being answerable. All public officers, civil or military, are in a state of responsibility with respect to national concerns.

RESPONSIBLE. Answerable; accountable; liable to be called upon. Colonels of regiments are responsible for the discipline of their men; and captains for the interior economy and clothing of their companies.

RESPONSION, _Fr._ A term used by the French. In military orders signifying the same as _charge_ or _redevance_, charge or service. Thus each commandery pays a certain sum, called _somme de responsion_, to its order in proportion to its value.

RESSERRER, to hem in; to confine. _Une garnison fort resserrée_, a garrison narrowly watched by a besieging army, and kept within its walls.

RESSORT, _Fr._ Spring. Elasticity. This word is used in various senses by the French, viz.

_Dernier_ RESSORT, _Fr._ the last shift.

_N’agir que par_ RESSORT, _Fr._ To do nothing of one’s own free will; to be influenced, to be acted upon by others.

_Manquer de_ RESSORT, _Fr._ To want energy, vigor, &c.

_Un caractère qui a du_ RESSORT, _Fr._ A firm, determined character.

RESSOURCE, _Fr._ Resource, shift, refuge.

_Un homme de_ RESSOURCES, _Fr._ a man who has resources within himself.

_Un homme plein de_ RESSOURCES, a man full of resources, full of expedients.

_To_ REST _arms_, to bring the firelock to the same position as in present arms. See MANUAL.

_To_ REST _upon arms reversed_. At military funerals the arms are reversed. The soldiers belonging to the firing party, rest upon the butt ends of their firelocks, while the funeral service is performed, leaning with their cheeks, so as to turn from the corpse.

REST _upon your arms reversed!_ A word of command which is used at military funerals.

RESTANT, _Fr._ the remainder; what is left.

RESTE, _Fr._ Remainder, viz. _Le reste des troupes_, the remainder of the troops.

_Etre en_ RESTE, _Fr._ To be in arrears.

RESTER, _Fr._ to remain behind.

RETENUE, _Fr._ Stoppage; any thing kept back.

RETIAIRE, _Fr._ See RETIARIUS.

RETIARIUS, a kind of gladiator who fought in the amphitheatre during the time of the Romans. He is thus described by Kennett, in his Roman Antiquities, page 274.

The Retiarius was dressed in a short coat, having a fuscina or trident in his left hand, and a net, from which he derives his name, in his right. With this he endeavored to entangle his adversary, that he might then with his trident easily dispatch him: on his head he wore only a hat tied under his chin with a broad riband.

RETIRADE, _or Coupure_, _Fr._ In fortification, a retrenchment, which is generally made with two faces, forming a rentrant angle, and is thrown up in the body of a work for the purpose of receiving troops, who may dispute the ground inch by inch. When the first means of resistance have been destroyed, others are substituted by cutting a ditch, and lining it with a parapet. The _retirade_ sometimes consists of nothing more than rows of fascines filled with earth, stuffed gabions, barrels or sand bags, with or without a ditch, and either fenced with palisadoes, or left without them.

Whenever it becomes absolutely necessary to quit the head or side of a work, the whole of it must, on no account, be abandoned. On the contrary, whilst some determined troops keep the enemy in check, others must be actively employed in throwing up _retirades_, which may flank each other, and in cutting a ditch in front. It is particularly incumbent upon the engineer officer to assist in works of this sort, and every officer and soldier should zealously co-operate with him. A slight knowlege of field fortification will on these occasions give a decided advantage. The body of a _retirade_ should be raised as high as possible, and several fougasses should be laid beneath it, for the purpose of blowing up the ground on which the enemy may have established himself.

RETIRADES _as practised by the ancients_: these were walls hastily run up behind breaches that were made by the battering rams. The able commentator upon Polybius observes, that in no instance, did the skill of the great men of antiquity appear in so conspicuous a light, as in the various chicanes to which they resorted for the preservation of a town. Their ingenuity and resolution increased in proportion as the danger approached. Instead of offering to capitulate as the moderns generally do, when a practicable breach has been opened by a besieging enemy, the ancients, in that emergency, collected all their vigor, had recourse to various stratagems, and waited behind the retirades or temporary retreats to give the enemy a warm and obstinate reception. Cæsar, in his Commentaries, has given a minute description of the manner in which these retirades were constructed; and we find them mentioned by Josephus, in his history of the war of the Jews against the Romans.

The intermediate periods, since the days of the Greeks and Romans, and before the modern era furnish various examples on this head. In 1219, Genghis Khan set all his battering rams to work, for the purpose of effecting a breach in the walls of Ottrar; but, to his great surprise, he no sooner entered the town, than he found a fresh line of entrenchments that had been thrown up in the very heart of the city. He saw every street cut asunder with temporary ditches, and every house presented fresh obstacles: so much so, that he experienced more difficulty in subduing the inhabitants after he had forced the walls, than had occurred in practising the breach.

When the emperor Charles V. laid siege to Metz in 1552, the duke de Guise, who was governor of the town, instantly adopted the necessary precautions to defend it to the last. He built a new wall behind the one against which the principal attack was directed; and when the breach was made, the besiegers found themselves obstinately opposed afresh, within a short space of the ground they had carried. In consequence of this unexpected check, the enemy’s troops grew disheartened; and their want of confidence soon convinced the emperor that the place could not be taken. The siege was unexpectedly raised, and the preservation of the town was entirely owing to the wise precautions that had been adopted by the duke de Guise.

In 1742, marshal Broglio, being closely besieged in the city of Prague, threw up retrenchments within the walls, and prepared to make a most vigorous resistance. An occasion, however presented itself, of which he took advantage, that rendered any further precautions useless. He made a vigorous sortie and forced the enemy to raise the siege.

RETIRED _List_, a list on the British marine establishment upon which superannuated officers are placed.

_Officers who_ RETIRE _in the East India company service_. The India company have resolved, that an officer, (in his military capacity) after twenty years actual service in India, coming to Europe on leave, will be allowed to retire on the pay of his rank, provided he signifies his intention of so doing, within twenty months after his arrival. Officers on leave who are desirous of retiring, and who declare their intention to that effect, within twelve months from their arrival, will be permitted to retire on the pay of the rank they may be entitled to at that period. An officer having completed 22 years actual residence in India, will be allowed to retire on the full pay of his rank, directly on his leaving India.

RETOURS _de la mine_, _Fr._ returns of a mine. See GALLERY.

RETOURS _de la tranchée_, _Fr._ returns of a trench. In fortification, the several windings and oblique deviations of a trench which are drawn, in some measure, parallel to the sides of the place attacked, in order to avoid being enfiladed, or having the shot of the enemy scour along the length of the line. On account of these different returns a considerable interval is opened between the head and the tail of the trench, which, were the lines directed, would not be at any great distance from each other.

RETRAITE, _Fr._ See RETREAT.

RETRAITE _dans les montagnes_, _Fr._ The act of fading back or retreating among the mountains.

_Faire_ RETRAITE, _Fr._ To retire, to fall back.

_Battre la_ RETRAITE, _Fr._ To beat the tap-too.

_Se battre en_ RETRAITE, _Fr._ To maintain a running fight.

RETRAITE, _Fr._ certain appointments which were given during the French monarchy to infantry officers, when they retired from the active duties of their profession, to afford them means of support. The pensions which were settled upon cavalry officers were likewise distinguished by the same term.

RETRAITE, _Fr._ See RELAIS.

RETRANCHEMENS. _Fr._ See RETRENCHMENTS.

RETRANCHEMENS _particuliers qu’on fait sur la tête des brèches d’une place assiègèe_, _Fr._ Particular retrenchments, which are made in front of breaches that have been effected in the walls of a besieged town.

It is always necessary, that retrenchments of this description should have the figures of rentrant angles, in order, that they may not only flank the breaches, but be capable of defending themselves.

A besieging enemy, seldom or ever, attempts a breach at the flanked angle of a bastion, because it must be seen by the two flanks of the neighboring bastions, and be perpetually exposed to the fire of the casemates of the town. Nevertheless should the breach be actually effected, retrenchments might be thrown up, in the same manner that horn-works are constructed, for the purpose of flanking it.

If the breach should be made in the face of the bastion, (which usually happens, because that quarter can be seen by the garrison from one side only) retrenchments in the shape of rentrant angles must be constructed.

Breaches are seldom attempted at the angle of the epaulement, because that part of the bastion is the most solid and compact, and the most exposed to the fire from the curtain to that of the opposite flank, and to the reverse discharge, or fire from the rear. Add to this, that the storming party would be galled in flank and rear, not only from the simple bastion, but likewise from the casemates. If, however, a breach should be effected in that quarter, it would become necessary to throw up retrenchments of a saliant and rentrant nature.

In constructing these different retrenchments it must be an invariable rule, to get as near as possible to the parapets of the bastions and to their ruins, in order to batter those in flank and rear, who should attempt to scale, and at the same time to be out of the reach of the besieger’s ordnance.

When the head of the breach is so much laid open, that the besieger’s cannon can scour all above it, small mines must be prepared beneath, and a retrenchment be instantly thrown up in the body of the bastion.

_To_ RETREAT. To make a retrograde movement. An army or body of men are said to retreat when they turn their backs upon the enemy, or are retiring from the ground they occupied: hence, every march in withdrawing from the enemy is called a retreat.

That retreat which is done in sight of an active enemy, who pursues with a superior force, is the one we particularly allude to in this place; being with reason, looked upon as the glory of the profession. It is a manœuvre the most delicate, and fittest to display the prudence, genius, courage, and address, of an officer who commands: the records of all ages testify it, and historians have never been so lavish of eulogiums as on the subject of the brilliant retreats of their heroes. If it be important, it is no less difficult to regulate, on account of the variety of circumstances, each of which demands different principles, and an almost endless detail. Hence a good retreat is esteemed, by experienced officers, the master-piece of a general. He should therefore be well acquainted with the situation of the country through which he intends to make it, and careful that nothing is omitted to make it safe and honorable. General Moreau’s retreat in 1796, has rendered his name immortal. The three most celebrated modern retreats have been--the one already mentioned, that of Prague, and that of general Macdonald in Italy.

RETREAT, is also a beat of the drum, at the firing of the evening gun; at which the drum-major, with all the drums of the battalion, except such as are upon duty, beats from the camp colors on the right to those on the left, on the parade of encampment: the drums of all the guards beat also; the trumpets at the same time sounding at the head of their respective troops. This is to warn the soldiers to forbear firing, and the sentinels to challenge till the break of day, when the reveille is beat. The retreat is likewise called setting the watch.

_Chequered_ RETREAT, _rétraite en échequier_, _Fr._ It is so called from the several component parts of a line or battalion, which alternately retreat and face in the presence of an enemy, exhibiting the figure of the chequered squares upon a chess board.

All manœuvres of a corps retiring, are infinitely more difficult to be performed with order, than those in advancing. They must be more or less accomplished by chequered movements; one body by its numbers or position, facing and protecting the retreat of another; and if the enemy presses hard, the whole must probably front in time and await him: as the ground narrows or favors, different parts of the corps must double; mouths of defiles and advantageous posts must be possessed; by degrees the different bodies must diminish their fronts, and throw themselves into column of march when it can be done with safety.

The _chequered retreat_ by the alternate battalions or half battalions of a line going to the rear, while the others remain halted, cover them, and in their turn retire in the same manner, is the quickest mode of refusing a part of a corps to the enemy, and at the same time protecting its movement, as long as it continues to be made nearly parallel to the first position.

_In the chequered retreat_, the following rules must be observed: the battalions of the division nearest to the enemy, will form flanks as soon as there is nothing in their front to cover them; but the other divisions will not have any flanks except to the outward battalion of each. The battalions always pass by their proper intervals, and it is a rule in retiring, that the left of each shall always pass the right of the neighboring one.--Whatever advantage the ground offers, those advantages must be seized, without too critical an observance of intervals, or minute adherence to the determined distance of each retreat. The division next the enemy must pass in front, through the intervals of the division immediately behind, and any battalion that finds it necessary, must incline for that purpose. The retiring division must step out, and take up no more time than what is absolutely required to avoid confusion. The division nearest the enemy _fires_; the flanks of its battalions only fire when the enemy attempts to push through the intervals. When that division retires it fires on, skirmishes by its riflemen, and if they have none, by men detached from the light companies, if any, or from platoons formed of rear rank men of one or two of the companies, and placed behind the flanks of the battalions. But should any of its battalions be obliged to halt and to fire, a shorter step must then be taken by the line; and should the enemy threaten to enter at any of its intervals, besides the fire of its flanks, such platoons of the line behind it, as can with safety, must give it support.

RETRENCHMENT, in the _art of war_, is any work raised to cover a post, and fortify it against an enemy; such as fascines loaded with earth, gabions, barrels, &c. filled with earth, sand bags, and generally all things that can cover the men, and stop the enemy; but it is more applicable to a ditch bordered with a parapet; and a post thus fortified, is called a _retrenched post_, or _strong post_. _Retrenchments_ are either general or particular.

_General_ RETRENCHMENTS, are a kind of new defence made in a place besieged, to cover the defendants, when the enemy becomes master of a lodgment on the fortification, that they may be in a condition of disputing the ground inch by inch, and of putting a stop to the enemy’s progress, in expectation of relief; as, if the besieger’s attack a tenaille of the place, which they judge the weakest, either by its being ill flanked, or commanded by some neighboring ground; then the besieged make a great _retrenchment_, inclosing all that part which they judge in most danger. These should be fortified with bastions and demi-bastions, surrounded by a good ditch countermined, and higher than the works of the place, that they may command the old works, and put the besiegers to infinite trouble in covering themselves.