Chapter XXXVII: Part VIII (3)

167. Every officer, on becoming the thirtieth on the list of lieutenants, must be prepared to undergo the required examination. Any officer, after four years’ service, may apply for such examination at an earlier period.

168. Instructions will, from time to time, be issued to the general or other officer commanding districts or stations, to assemble a board, to consist of three officers, viz., a field officer (of the artillery, if possible), an officer of the staff, and a captain of artillery, or an officer of that corps who may already have passed the examination. Either the gunnery instructor or the fire-master should, when practicable, be selected for this duty. If it be impossible to obtain a staff officer, a captain of the line should be substituted; if a second officer of artillery cannot be had, an officer of engineers should be substituted; but either the president or one member must be of the artillery.

169. That portion of the examination which can be best replied to in writing will be conducted by means of questions prepared by the deputy adjutant-general of artillery, and forwarded to the general officer commanding the district. The _vivâ voce_ and practical examination will be conducted by the board of officers, who will satisfy themselves that the officer under examination not only possesses the requisite knowledge himself, but that he is able to impart that knowledge in a clear and satisfactory manner.

170. The board will then forward, through the general officer, its report, together with the written answers, to the adjutant-general of the forces; and, in returning to him the written answers, the president of the board will certify that they are the _bonâ fide_ performances of the candidates, without assistance. The written papers will then be examined by the deputy adjutant-general of artillery, and the result, together with the opinion of the board, reported to the Commander-in-Chief.

ROYAL WARRANT OF OCTOBER 30, 1871.

In pursuance of the abolition of the whole system of purchase, sale, or exchange for money, of commissions in the army, by Royal Warrant, dated July 20, 1871, certain changes in respect to first appointments, regimental promotion, and exchanges, became necessary, and were provided for in the Royal Warrant issued October 30, 1871, which became operative on the first day of November following. By these regulations, the first step in official rank is that of Sub-Lieutenant; the rank of Cornet and Ensign being no longer recognized. As a general rule, the final appointments will be given only to successful candidates at a competitive examination. These will be probationary, and revocable in case the unfitness of the incumbents shall be demonstrated by practical trial in their work. From the Memorandum of the Secretary of War (Edward Cardwell), which accompanies the Warrant, we cite the following as defining the present system of original appointments and promotion.

Commissions as Lieutenants will be given to all Cornets and Ensigns appointed before the 26th of August, 1871, and to Cornets and Ensigns appointed since that date from the A List at Sandhurst, their commissions to date from the first of November.

Commissions as Sub-Lieutenants will be given to:

(_a._) All other Cornets and Ensigns appointed after the 26th of
August, 1871, the rank of Cornet and Ensign being abolished.

(_b._) Candidates who have passed the examination for Direct
Commissions, in their turn as vacancies occur.

(_c._) Candidates for commissions in the Household Cavalry and Foot Guards who are nominated to fill the vacancies which occur in those regiments, before the date of the first competitive examination for Sub-Lieutenancies, and who pass a qualifying examination.

(_d._) Candidates from the Universities now on the
Commander-in-Chief’s list.

Sub-Lieutenants will be attached for a year to regiments at home. They will then be required to go through a course of instruction, and on passing a practical professional examination, be commissioned to regiments as Lieutenants. They will be under strict discipline, and will be liable to be removed for unfitness, either moral or physical, and for misconduct. Those unsuited to the Cavalry may be transferred to the Infantry.

In dating their commissions they will be allowed a portion, not exceeding one year, of their services as Sub-Lieutenants; the time allowed being determined by the class of certificate they receive after their year’s regimental training, their conduct while under instruction, and their position at the final examination. Their service for retirement will reckon from the date of their commissions as Lieutenants.

Candidates who have passed the examination for direct commissions, and have also passed satisfactorily through a year’s course of study at the Royal Military College before being appointed to be Sub-Lieutenants, and Sandhurst Cadets from the B List will be commissioned to regiments as Lieutenants on serving satisfactorily for twelve months with a regiment as Sub-Lieutenants.

There are now a large number of supernumerary officers, and also a
large number of candidates who have passed for commissions.

The absorption of supernumerary officers will probably be completed, and the candidates who have passed for commissions have received their appointments in about two years from the present time, and personal appointments in the Army will then only be given as follows:

(_a._) To successful candidates at a competitive examination.

(_b._) To non-commissioned officers recommended for promotion by the
Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief.

(_c._) To candidates from the Universities.

(_d._) To Queen’s Cadets, Indian Cadets, and Pages of Honor.

(_e._) To Lieutenants of Militia.

The competitive examination will be carried out by the Civil Service Commissioners; the standard of qualification being that recommended by the Royal Commission on Military Education. Ample notice will be given of the first examination, and there will be no advantage in any applications being made for admission to be examined before the publication of such notice.

Non-commissioned officers, on being selected for promotion, will pass an examination in certain professional subjects; and then, after twelve months’ satisfactory service as Sub-Lieutenants, will receive commissions as Lieutenants.

A certain number of Sub-Lieutenancies a year will be allotted to candidates who have passed the University examination specified in the Regulations. If they also pass the examination for the degree of B.A., they will be allowed two years’ extension of the limit of age. University candidates will be required to give at least six months’ notice of their desire to be admitted into the Army. If in any year there should be more candidates than appointments, the requisite number will be chosen by competition between the candidates; after their appointment they will go through the same course as other Sub-Lieutenants.

There will be no vacancies for two years for any candidates from the
Universities whose names are not now on the Commander-in-Chief’s list.

Queen’s and Indian Cadets and Queen’s Pages will be required to pass a qualifying examination, which for the present will be the same as that recommended by the Royal Commission on Military Education. The nominations will remain as heretofore. When appointed, Cadets and Pages will go through the same course as other Sub-Lieutenants.

First appointments as Subalterns in the Militia will be made on the recommendation of the Lieutenants of counties. Candidates, before receiving their Commissions as Lieutenants in the Militia, will be required to pass a qualifying examination in general subjects equal to the standard fixed as necessary for a candidate for a Sub-Lieutenancy. They will next be required to be attached to a regiment of the Line for three months, or such time as may be necessary to teach them their drill. After serving with their Militia regiments for two annual trainings, they will be eligible for the appointment of Lieutenants in the Army. In order to obtain such an appointment they must be recommended by the commanding officer of their Militia regiment, his recommendation being confirmed by the general officer commanding the district, and they will be required to pass an examination in professional subjects of the same kind as that which will be required of a Sub-Lieutenant before he receives his commission as Lieutenant.

The limits of age, except for non-commissioned officers, will be fixed at from seventeen to twenty for Sub-Lieutenants, the limit being raised to twenty-two in the case of candidates who have passed their examination for the degree of B.A. at the Universities, and from nineteen to twenty-two for Lieutenants from the Militia.

In addition to the examinations hitherto required from regimental officers, those who are promoted to the rank of Captain after the 1st of November will, before being promoted to the rank of Major, be required, to pass a professional examination.

The General Order promulgating the Royal Warrant and the Memorandum of Secretary Caldwell contains the following paragraph:

His Royal Highness the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief, in promulgating these regulations to the Army, would desire to impress upon each individual officer, and especially upon those of junior standing who have still a name to make in the service, that they must more than ever rely upon their own exertions, upon their professional knowledge and ability, upon their general character and conduct as officers, and the opinion with which they impress their military superiors, for advancement in the service.

_Examiners Employed by Council of Military Education._

_Mathematics._--Rev. Canon Heaviside, Norwich; Rev. W. N. Griffin,
late Fellow and Tutor, St. John’s, Cambridge.

_Classics._--Rev. Osborne Gordon, D.D., late of Christ Church College,
Oxford; Prof. Rawlinson, Camden Professor of Ancient History, Oxford.

_English._--G. W. Dasent, D.C.L.; W. Stebbing, M.A., Fellow of
Worcester College, Oxford.

_French._--M. Esquiros; M. Savoye.

_German._--Prof. Max Müller, Prof. of European Languages, Oxford; C.
Schöll, Ph.D.

_Hindustani._--Prof. J. Dowson; Rev. W. D. Mallagan, M.A.

_Experimental Sciences._--Prof. Liveing, M.A., Prof. of Chemistry,
Cambridge; Prof. Abel, Chemist to War Office.

_Natural Sciences._--Prof. Morris, F.G.S.; H. W. Bristow, F.R.S.

_Drawing._--Lt. Col. H. Scott, R.E.; Rev. W. Kingsley, late Fellow and
Tutor, Cambridge.

_Italian._--C. De Tivoli.

_Spanish._--Señor Vives.

_Portuguese._--Le Chevalier da Costa Ricci.

_Dutch._--Rev. Dr. Gehle.

_Modern Greek._--Rev. N. Morphinos.

_Danish._--Rev. J. Plenge.

_Military History._--Major G. P. Colley.

_Fortification and Practical Gunnery._--Lt.-Col. Hutchinson, R.E.;
Major Milman, R.A.

_Military Administration._--Major M. Petrie.

_Persian._--Col. Ouseley.

_Military Legislation._--Col. J. H. Laye, D.J.A.

_Artillery._--Major C. F. Yonng.

In the evidence before the Military Education Committee, of July 13, 1869, the Secretary of the Civil Service Commission expressed the opinion that the entrance examination, both to Sandhurst and Woolwich, on subjects purely civil, might be conducted by the latter; and that the same and other subjects, in their scientific value, both in all qualifying and competitive examinations for direct commission and promotion, could be conducted by the same examiners, thereby securing economy, more uniformity in the methods and tests, and more satisfactory results. The staff of examiners should be composed of changing as well as of permanent members, and when the service is professional, an expert should be called in. The entire work of the Civil Service Commission, including the India Service, is done by one Commissioner, the Secretary, and his permanent examiners, with occasional assistants.

_Expenses of Council of Military Education._

_Year._ £ _s._ _d._
1858-59, 6,325 3 1
1859-60, 6,956 7 7
1860-61, 7,757 12 1
1861-62, 7,789 14 3
1862-63, 7,681 17 6
1863-64, 7,529 11 10
1864-65, 7,976 17 5
1865-66, 7,884 2 8
1866-67, 7,353 16 5

ROYAL MILITARY COLLEGE AT SANDHURST.

I. HISTORICAL NOTICE.

The Royal Military College at Sandhurst was instituted in 1799, on the persistent representations of its necessity and advantages, by General Le Marchant, an eminent and distinguished officer, who met his death in actual service on the plains of Salamanca, in 1812. The report of the Parliamentary Commissioners of 1855 and 1870 give the following particulars of the history and present condition:

It commenced as a place of instruction for officers, in 1799. In 1801, the Junior Department was organized. The united departments took the name of the Royal Military College, and his Majesty George the Third was pleased by Royal Warrant to appoint a Supreme Board of Commissioners for the purpose of managing all the affairs of the College.

An establishment and a course of study were recommended by this Board, and adopted in a Royal Warrant, passed in the same year, 1801. From this date warrants were issued from time to time until the warrant of 1808, which cancels all former warrants, and still regulates the College.

By this warrant, a Board of Commissioners was appointed, consisting of the Commander-in-Chief, the Secretary at War, the Master-General of the Ordnance, the Quartermaster-General, the Adjutant-General, the Governor, and the Deputy-Governor of the College,--all for the time being. Certain other officers were added to these _ex officio_ members. In the Board so constituted were vested the control, direction, and management of all the affairs of the College. The College was to be under the immediate command of the Governor and Deputy-Governor, to be divided into a senior and junior department, each to have its own course of study, under its own staff.

A collegiate board was created to take cognizance, of all matters relating to the interior economy of both departments. This board consisted of the Governor, the Deputy-Governor, and three other resident military authorities.

The Royal Warrant of the 27th May, 1808, for regulating all matters relative to the Royal Military College, states the objects of the two departments of the College, as follows:

The Senior Department of the Royal Military College is established for the purpose of instructing officers in the scientific parts of their profession, with a view of enabling them the better to discharge their duty when acting in command of regiments (the situation in which they can best recommend themselves to Us, and be entitled to hope for advancement in the higher stations of Our service), and, at the same time, of qualifying them for being employed in the Quartermaster-General’s and Adjutant-General’s Departments.

The Junior Department of the Royal Military College is appropriated to the instruction of those who, from early life, are intended for the military profession, and who, by this means, may be grounded in science previously to their obtaining commissions in Our army.

This department of the College is also intended to afford a provision for the sons of meritorious officers, who have fallen or been disabled in the service of their country, and the means of education to the sons of those officers who belong to Our regular service.

The first of the departments organized was thus the Senior Department, which was established at High Wycombe, in 1799, although it would seem that classes for the military instruction of officers had been in existence previous to that year. The origin of the Senior Department is thus described in the evidence given by Sir Howard Douglas before the Select Committee on Sandhurst:

General Jarry, who was the first Commandant of the Senior Department, was a Frenchman, highly educated in France, who entered the service of Prussia a short time before the commencement of the Seven Years’ War, and was on the personal staff of Frederic the Second through the whole of that war. He returned to France, and became afterward one of the generals of the French army; and, in the year 1795, defected from the French army, and came to London, where he soon became very generally known as a man of eminent talent, perfectly master of the science and the practice of his profession, and, from his having served so long about the person and on the staff of Frederic the Second, full of the most interesting anecdotes and instructive details connected with that war. General Le Marchant, having formed an acquaintance with General Jarry, in London, it occurred to him that, if General Jarry could be engaged to give lectures to a certain number of young officers Who might be disposed to go and reside where the general might attend, it would be very advantageous to the service. General Jarry was so engaged. A house was taken at High Wycombe; a considerable number of the rising young officers of the day became his students,--Sir George Murray, Sir Henry Bunbury, Sir Richard Bourke, General Richardson, and a great many others. General Jarry soon found that the rudiments of military science in the British army were not sufficiently known to enable all the students to profit by his instruction, and recommended that mathematical, and fortification, and other classes, should be established; and, accordingly, Mr. Dalby, a mathematical professor, M. St. Denis, professor of fortification, and M. Polchet, of the Polytechnic School, were engaged; and in this Way the Senior Department was established.

General Jarry became commandant of the establishment on its institution, and, in 1804, Sir Howard Douglas himself was appointed to assist General Jarry, as superintendent.

The formation of the Junior Department had probably been determined upon from the time when the Senior Department was established. It was actually organized in 1801, when it was established at Great Marlow, and, in the year 1803, consisted of 200 cadets; the Senior Department being, at the same time, composed of 30 students. Each department had at this time its own commandant, superintendent, and special staff of instructors (7 for the Senior, and 19 for the Junior Department); while there was, in addition, a general staff, consisting of a governor, lieutenant-governor, and other officials, for the two departments, which, although in separate localities, together constituted the Royal Military College.

The Royal Warrant of 27th May, 1808, fixed the establishment on a still larger scale, as follows:

1 Governor, 1 Lieutenant-Governor, 1 Inspector-General of Instruction.

_Senior Department._--1 Commandant, 1 Adjutant, 30 Students.

_Junior Department._--1 Commandant, 1 Major, 4 Captains of Companies,
412 Gentlemen Cadets.

_Staff._--1 Chaplain and Librarian and Superintendent of Religious and Classical Instruction, 1 Agent, 1 Secretary to the Board of Commissioners, 1 Paymaster, 1 Quartermaster, 1 Surgeon, 1 Assistant Surgeon.

The number of professors is not fixed by the warrant, but, in 1810, 5 were employed at the Senior, and 32 at the Junior Department. In 1815, the number of professors was 6 at the former, and 36 at the latter.

The establishment, with slight modifications, continued as above throughout the period of the war which terminated in 1815; but shortly after the conclusion of peace reductions began, in consequence of the recommendations made in the report of the Finance Committee of 1817, and at the same time the course of instruction in the Junior Department was made of a much less military character than it had originally been.

The Senior Department was, as has been stated, originally established at High Wycombe, and the Junior Department, as there was not sufficient accommodation for it at the same place, was, on its institution, placed at Great Marlow. It is probable, however, that it was intended from the first that the Military College should be at Sandhurst, and it appears that, as early as 1801, the greater part of the estate at Sandhurst had been purchased. Owing, however, to doubts having subsequently arisen as to the eligibility of Sandhurst as a site for the college, the works there do not appear to have been commenced until 1809; and it was eventually determined that the Junior Department alone should be placed there, the Senior Department being accommodated at Farnham. In 1812, the Senior Department went to the quarters prepared for them at the latter place, and about the same time the Junior Department was removed to Sandhurst. In 1820, in consequence of the space left vacant by the reductions which had then been made in the Junior Department, the Senior Department was transferred to Sandhurst; its separate military staff was at the same time abolished, the number of students at it was reduced to 15, and the number of instructors to 2. It continued in this state down to the time of its conversion into the Staff College, which took place in January, 1858. The Junior Department was also, by successive reductions, brought, in 1832, to the state in which it stood in 1855, at the time of the appointment of the Select Committee of the House of Commons, the number of cadets having been reduced to 180, divided into two companies. In the year 1832, also, the Parliamentary votes in aid of the College, which, in 1815, had amounted, for the Junior Department alone, to £34,000, entirely ceased, and, from this time up to 1855, the College was not only self-supporting, but, in some years, actually paid money into the Exchequer.

In the year 1855, in consequence of attention having frequently been drawn in Parliament to the state of Sandhurst, a Select Committee of the House of Commons was appointed to inquire into the condition of the Royal Military College. The establishment of the College, was, at that time, as follows:

1 Governor, 1 Lieutenant-Governor.

_Senior Department._--2 Instructors, 15 Students.

_Junior Department._--1 Major and Superintendent of Studies, 2 Captains of Companies, 180 Gentlemen Cadets, 1 Chaplain, 1 Secretary to the Board of Commissioners, 1 Paymaster and Quartermaster, 1 Surgeon, 1 Assistant Surgeon, 1 Riding Master, 16 Instructors.

This continued without material alteration to be the establishment until 1858.

The instructors undertook the following branches:

(_A._) _Senior Department._--1. Mathematics and Fortification.
1. Military Surveying.

(_B._) _Junior Department._--3. Mathematics. 2. Fortification. 3. Military Drawing and Surveying. 1. Landscape Drawing. 2. History, Geography, and Latin. 3. French, 2. German. [The seniors in those branches also gave instruction to the Senior Department.]

The Chaplain also gave instruction in History.

The title of Major and Superintendent of Studies dates from the year 1842. For some years previously, the offices of Adjutant, Paymaster, and Superintendent of Studies, had been combined in the person of one officer, Major Proctor. On his retirement, in 1842, Lieut.-Colonel Prosser was appointed Major and Superintendent of Studies--an office which has been retained to the present day--and the appointment of Adjutant was abolished.

At the time of the inquiry by the Select Committee of the House of Commons (1855), the Junior Department of the College was a school for boys. The limits of age for admission were from 13 to 15. Candidates were admitted by application to the Governor, on passing a qualifying examination, before the professors of the college, in elementary subjects of ordinary education. The maximum term of residence was four years, the average period being three years. The course of study was intended to complete the general education of the youth, in addition to giving him military instruction, and included history, geography, and Latin, as well as more professional subjects.

The system of instruction which prevailed at the College at that time is described as follows by Mr. Twisden, now professor of mathematics at the Staff College:

The instruction and examinations in the Junior Department were, in the year 1855, conducted on the following system: There was a division of the department into upper and lower school; but, practically, the division was of little importance. The most important division was made by the line which, in each separate branch of instruction, divided the cadets in the Board class from those not in the Board class.

A cadet was in a Board class who was actually preparing for the public examination, which took place before the “_Board_ of Commissioners for Regulating the Affairs of the Institution.” The Board was, however, in most cases, represented by not more than one or two of its members. In any given subject, a cadet had to pass through certain grades of elementary instruction before he could be placed in a Board class. Moreover, he was only moved from one grade of elementary instruction to another on passing examinations, which were held monthly by the senior instructors in the several subjects. The junior instructors reported those of their cadets whom they regarded as ready for promotion, and the senior ascertained that the proper degree of proficiency was obtained. Thus, in mathematics, a cadet had to pass examinations in Fractions and Decimals, mixed numbers, Rule of Three, Interest, and Square Root, Algebra up to the end of Quadratic Equations, and logarithms,--four successive examinations in all. He had then to spend a half year in the study of Euclid’s Geometry before admission to the Board class. It will be understood that all the cadets were not examined monthly, but only such as were reported as fit for examination; so that any one cadet might pass a long time without examination, or he might be examined for several successive grades in one subject, and not undergo any examination in another. There was, in fact, scarcely any mutual dependence of one branch of instruction upon another. I believe the only exceptions to this were, that a cadet was required to have passed his examination in algebra before getting into the lowest fortification class, and to have gained a certain proficiency in military drawing before getting into the surveying class.

The Board class in each branch was taught by the senior instructor in that branch, except that the Board class of history was taught by the chaplain. When a cadet had passed an examination in any subject before the Board, he was said to have taken up a step. The steps which it was possible for him to take up were as follows, and I have arranged them in three groups, for conveniences of reference:

A.--(1.) Euclid’s Geometry. (2.) Fortification. (3.) Surveying.

B.--(4.) Trigonometry and Mensuration. (5.) Attack and Defence of Fortification. (6.) History and Geography. (7.) Latin. (8.) French. (9.) German.

C.--(10.) Elements of Mechanics. (11.) Elements of Coördinate Geometry
and Differential Calculus.

To gain a commission without purchase, it was necessary to take up the three steps in the group A, and any three in the group B,--six in all. But if a cadet took up more than six steps, the fact was mentioned in the certificate given him on leaving the College. For gaining this honorary distinction, the steps marked in group C were allowed to count; but I believe not otherwise. I may mention that, in many cases, more than six steps were taken up.

The process of examination before the Board was this: About seven weeks before the end of the half year, the senior instructor in each branch reported the cadets in his branch whom he thought capable of taking a step. Thus the senior instructor or professor of mathematics reported those cadets in the Euclid Board class whom he judged capable of taking up the step. Shortly after, these cadets were examined before the Lieutenant-Governor; about a week before the end of the half year, they were examined again, on this occasion, before the Governor; lastly, they were examined publicly before the _Board_. Failure was possible in either of these examinations, and not unfrequently occurred at the preliminary examinations, and sometimes, though rarely, at the Board examination. The effect of failure was, that the cadet could not pass his step without going through his examinations at the end of the next half year.

The examinations were conducted entirely _vivâ voce_. The Governor’s and Lieutenant-Governor’s examinations were searching; they sometimes lasted from six to seven hours; but, of course, the cadets, severally, were under examination only during a part of that time. The Board examination, though less searching, was a real examination. A cadet under examination had not the least notion of what was going to be asked, except that it was fairly within the subject of the step.

The system thus briefly described was invented by Major Proctor, who was at first _Adjutant_ and, afterward, Superintendent of Studies. It was in operation, at all events, as early as the year 1818. It was open to several objections; but it possessed this capital advantage, that it was calculated to bring, and, in point of fact, brought a large majority of the cadets up to a certain moderately high standard of proficiency. The instructors were under no temptation to take great pains with a few clever boys, and to neglect the rest; they were nearly sure to assist every cadet showing the least inclination to work, and to assist those most who were in need of assistance.

On the other hand, the system failed to supply a cadet of superior ability with a motive to attain a high degree of proficiency in any given subject. The utmost attained was, that cadets of more than ordinary ability were encouraged to attain the standard of proficiency in more than the necessary six subjects. The system was also open to the serious objection that, under it, the cleverest cadets got through their course quickly. This was bad for them, for it had the effect of bringing their school-education to an early end; and it was bad for the institution, because the eldest cadets were not the most intelligent.

I must be allowed to add, that my experience of the examinations by _vivâ voce_ has given me a very lively sense of the value of that kind of examination; and, though it is not adapted for all subjects, and, where many have to be examined, takes too much time, yet it might be used under many circumstances with very great advantage, and I regard its total disuse since the year 1858 as a very serious error.

I have mentioned above the fact of the Junior Department being divided into an under and upper school. I may add that there were six classes,--three in each school, and two removes in each class. I believe that this was the remains of an earlier organization, which, without being formally abrogated, was, by degrees, nearly obliterated by the introduction of the step system. The only thing that kept up the distinction between upper and lower school was, that a cadet, to be in a Board class, had to pass into upper school. The three classes in the upper school did not have a nominal existence in 1851.

With respect to the Senior Department, a somewhat different system was followed. The course was one of two years; but, in the case of officers who had been cadets, the course was one of a year and a half. There was an examination held at the end of each half year on the subject of the half year’s course. The method of examination resembled that in use in the Junior Department. The subjects comprised in the course are mentioned in a paper printed on page 215 of the evidence taken before the Select Committee of the House of Commons on Sandhurst (1855).

In certain respects, officers might do more than the prescribed course, and obtain honorary mention, _e.g._, they might do extra plans; they might take up a certain amount of analytical mathematics, with a portion of Poisson’s “Traité de Mécanique,” and of Laplace’s “Mécanique Céleste.” I have by me the synopsis of the ordinary course of mathematics in use before the year 1858; but, as the heads of it are given in the paper above referred to, it is unnecessary to give any details about it.

The Report of the Select Committee of 1855 contained various suggestions for the improvement of both departments of the College, but did not propose to alter the character of the Junior Department as a place of juvenile education. The only practical results of the report were, the establishment of Queen’s cadetships, and the revision of the rates of payment required from all classes of cadets. The institution of Queen’s cadetships was determined upon by the Government in 1856, but the other alteration was not immediately carried out, and no modification of importance in the constitution of the College ensued from the recommendations of the Committee. It was not until the general reorganization of the system of military education which took place in 1857 that any important change was made in regard to the Military College.

It appears to have been decided at the end of 1856 by Lord Panmure, then Secretary of State for War, that an amalgamation of the Junior Department of Sandhurst with the lower classes of Woolwich should be effected. The Council of Military Education, on their appointment, in April, 1857, were directed to suggest the mode in which this amalgamation could be carried out, taking, as their starting point, the principle that Sandhurst was to be converted from a school for boys into a college for young men, with the age of admission ranging from 16 to 18.

The proposed plan having been approved, an announcement was made, in December, 1857, that the education of candidates for all arms of the service, who did not obtain commissions by direct appointments, would be given at Sandhurst; that entrance would be obtained by competitive examination, open to candidates between the ages of 16 and 18; that the period of study would be two years, and would be terminated by a competitive examination, the most successful candidates in which would be permitted to select the Engineers or Artillery, according to the number of vacancies in those corps, or would receive commissions without purchase in the Cavalry, Guards, or Line. Those who selected the Ordnance corps were to be removed to the school of application at Woolwich.

Almost simultaneously with this notification, appeared a General Order, announcing the conversion of the Senior Department into the Staff College, which was then placed under a separate commandant and staff of instructors,--the Junior Department being henceforward called the Cadet College.

An examination for admission to Sandhurst, under the regulations described above, took place in January, 1858, when 24 candidates were admitted to the College. On the 26th of April, however, a resolution was passed by the House of Commons, on the motion of Mr. Monsell, in consequence of which the plan for the amalgamation of Woolwich and Sandhurst was necessarily abandoned; and, in May, 1858, revised regulations were issued, which again placed Sandhurst on the footing of an entirely distinct establishment from Woolwich. In these regulations, however, a new provision was introduced, by which a cadet at the Military College was, if otherwise eligible, permitted to compete at the examination for admission to Woolwich, without his position at Sandhurst being affected by failure in this examination. This regulation has been retained.

The large increase in the numbers of the College which was contemplated by the amalgamation scheme was not carried out, the establishment still remaining at 180 cadets, divided into two companies. At the same time, the other alterations recommended by the Council in the constitution and course of study of the College were brought into effect. Since this period the system of juvenile military instruction, which had been already abandoned at Woolwich, has been discontinued at Sandhurst. The establishment was converted from a school for boys into a college for young men, the minimum age for admission being placed at 16; while the course of instruction--the length of which was fixed at two years--was made almost entirely professional. The principle of competition was adopted as the condition of admission, although not to so full an extent as at Woolwich, the candidate for Sandhurst being required to apply to the Commander-in-Chief, in order to have his name entered on the list of competitors. The entrance examinations for admission to the College, and the final examinations for commissions, were placed under the control of the Council of Military Education; and the whole method of instruction was revised, the old system of “steps” being abandoned.

For many years, up to this time, the College had been almost entirely self-supporting. The orphan-class of cadets, established by the Royal Warrant of 1808, who had received a gratuitous education, had, after successive reductions, been finally abolished in 1822; and, though the sons of officers were still educated at reduced rates, the system had been gradually introduced of affording them this advantage without expense to the public, by increasing the rates paid by the sons of private gentlemen. This system, which had been animadverted on by the Select Committee of the House of Commons, in 1855, was altered on the reorganization of the College, in 1858; the rates of payment from all classes were reduced, and the principle was, at least partially, adopted, of defraying, by a Parliamentary vote, the difference between the actual cost of the education of a cadet and the lower rates charged for the sons of officers. The first public announcement of the institution of Queen’s cadetships, the holders of which were to receive a gratuitous education, was also made in 1858. Since this period, a large part of the expense of the College has been borne by the public.

Some addition to the instructional staff was made in the year 1858, in consequence of the general changes introduced at that time in the system and subjects of instruction; and, in the same year, the office of Adjutant--which had been abolished in the year 1842--was revived, in consequence of the strong representations of the Governor, Lt.-Gen. Sir H. D. Jones.

The next important change in the organization of the College was in 1862. After the abandonment of the scheme for the amalgamation of Woolwich and Sandhurst, the Council of Military Education turned their attention to the subject of enlarging the latter establishment, with the view of making it a general military college, through which all candidates for commissions in any branch of the service, except the Artillery and Engineers, should be required to pass. The general outline of a scheme having this object in view was submitted by the Council as early as July, 1858, to General Peel, then Secretary of State for War. It was still under consideration when General Peel left office, in the summer of 1859, and was again brought under the notice of his successor, Lord Herbert, in August of that year.

After some consideration, the general principle of the scheme was sanctioned by Lord Herbert, in December, 1859; but no immediate steps were taken for carrying the plan into operation. At the end of 1860, however, the Council were directed to draw up a detailed scheme of organization for the College, on the assumption that all candidates for commissions in the Cavalry, Guards, and Infantry, would be required to pass through a year’s course of instruction there; a vote was also included in the estimates of 1861 for commencing the enlargement of the buildings, with the ultimate object of providing accommodation for 600 cadets. The details of the scheme were, after some correspondence, fully matured, and were on the point of being submitted to Her Majesty for approval, with the view of the new system coming into effect on the 1st of January, 1862. The plan, however, met with very great opposition, both in the House of Commons and from the authorities of the universities, who regarded it as necessarily leading to the exclusion of university men from the army. In consequence of this opposition, the Under-Secretary of State for War, toward the end of the session of 1861, announced, in the House of Commons, that the new system should not come into operation until Parliament had had a further opportunity of expressing their opinion upon it. The original plan was also so far modified that the extension of the College was limited to providing accommodation first for 500, and then for 400 cadets, in the first instance; but the abolition of appointments to direct commissions, and the system of passing all candidates for commissions in the Line through the College, were still contemplated, though the commencement of the system was deferred until the 1st July, 1862.

The question was in this state at the time of the death of Lord Herbert, in August, 1861. Sir George Lewis, who succeeded him as Secretary of State for War, having, during the recess, reconsidered the question, announced, shortly after the commencement of the session of 1862, that it had been determined to abandon the idea of requiring all candidates for commissions in the Line to pass through the College, and that the system of appointments to direct commissions by purchase would be maintained. At the same time, it was proposed that _non-purchase_ commissions should in future only be obtained by passing through Sandhurst, and that an enlargement of the College to 336 cadets should take place, to provide for the increased number of non-purchase commissions caused by the amalgamation of the Indian with the Imperial Army.

Even in this modified form, the plan for the extension of the College appears to have been viewed with considerable jealousy by the House of Commons. A vote adverse to it was actually at first carried; but the question having, in consequence of the representations of Sir George Lewis, been reconsidered, the plan proposed by the Government was at length agreed to. Regulations for the College on the new footing were issued on the 1st May, 1862. These regulations form the basis of the present system of the College.

One of the most important changes made at this time was the great increase in the number of free commissions placed at the disposal of the College. Under the old system which existed prior to 1858, while the institution was still a mere place of juvenile education, all cadets who passed in the six “steps,” to which allusion has been made, received free commissions; but there was, strictly speaking, no competition for such commissions. After the alteration in the age of admission to the College, and the general revision of the course of instruction which took place in 1858, a limited number of free commissions were bestowed upon those cadets who stood highest in the final examination. A large number of these appointments, however, still remained in the gift of the Commander-in-Chief, and were granted to candidates who passed the ordinary examination for direct commissions. Since 1862, all non-purchase commissions have been reserved for cadets at the Royal Military College, with the exception of a small number (not exceeding on an average 12 annually) bestowed upon non-commissioned officers promoted from the ranks, and upon gentlemen who have held the appointment of page to Her Majesty. The commissions given to the latter are exclusively in the Foot Guards, and their number seldom exceeds one in each year. The free commissions allotted to the College are thrown open to competition among the cadets, with the exception of those reserved for Queen’s and Indian cadets. Both of these classes of cadets have, since the institution of Indian cadetships, which took place simultaneously with the change of the College system, in August, 1862, been entitled to receive free commissions on passing a qualifying examination at the end of their term of residence.

The course of study at the College was, at the same time, considerably modified, with the view of allowing its completion, under ordinary circumstances, in one year, instead of two years, as formerly,--the maximum term of residence being fixed at a year and a half. An attempt was also made to render the course more strictly professional, and better adapted to qualify a young officer for the performance of ordinary regimental duties immediately on joining his corps, by the introduction of instruction in military law, interior economy, etc.

The age of admission was fixed at 16 to 20 for candidates for the Infantry, and 16 to 22 for those for the Cavalry,--an extension of a year in these limits being for the first time introduced in favor of students at the universities. A further privilege held out to the latter class of candidates was that, while others could only obtain admission by competitive examination, the fact of having passed certain university examinations was of itself made a qualification for admission. These concessions, which, at first, were made to the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and Dublin, have been since extended to the other universities.

The number of cadets was never raised to the extent contemplated in the plan proposed by Sir George Lewis. It was originally intended that the College should accommodate 336 cadets, divided into four companies of 84 each; but the establishment was ultimately fixed at 250. This increase, however (the numbers having, previously to 1862, been 180), led to the addition, in August, 1862, of a third company to the two in which the cadets had been previously divided. An additional captain was appointed to command this company, and, at the same time, three subaltern officers (one to each company) were, for the first time, added to the strength of the establishment, to assist the captains in the charge of the companies. Simultaneously with this, an important alteration was made in the discipline of the College, by abolishing the system which had hitherto prevailed of employing the sergeants to assist in maintaining discipline by reporting the cadets for offences committed against the regulations.

The increase in the establishment also necessitated in this year an augmentation of the staff of instructors.

The establishment of the Royal Military College in 1863, after the change of system had come into effect, was as follows:

_General Staff._--1 Governor, 1 Chaplain, 1 Paymaster, 1
Quartermaster, 1 Surgeon, 1 Assistant-Surgeon, 1 Riding Master.

_Staff College._--1 Commandant, 1 Adjutant, 9 Professors, 30 Students.

_Cadet College._--1 Lieutenant-Governor, 1 Major and Superintendent of Studies, 3 Captains of Companies, 3 Subalterns, 250 Gentlemen Cadets, 1 Adjutant, 40 Professors and Instructors, of whom two were employed also at the Staff College.

The organization of the College has undergone no material alteration since 1863, with the exception of the abolition of the office of Lieutenant-Governor, and the substitution for it of that of Commandant of the Cadet College. The change, though decided upon in 1862, was not carried out during the tenure of office of the officer who, at that time, held the appointment of Lieutenant-Governor, and did not actually take effect until 1864. The Lieutenant-Governor, though nominally the deputy of the Governor, had exercised no control over the Commandant of the Staff College from the time of the institution of the latter establishment, in 1858. His functions were limited to the Cadet College, of which he was virtually, though not nominally, the Commandant.

The establishment of cadets was raised in 1865 to 300, and some slight alterations have, at various times, been made in the number of professors and instructors; but, in its general character, the establishment at the present time remains as it was in 1863.

The modifications which have since been made consist chiefly in the reduction of the higher limit of age for admission to 19 for all branches of the service (retaining, however, the former exception in favor of students from the universities); the discontinuance of the study of military law, etc.; and the extension of the ordinary course of residence from one year to a year and a half.

In regard to discipline, the system of assigning marks for good conduct, which was introduced by the regulations of 1862, has been discontinued, owing to practical difficulties which were found to occur in carrying out the system with uniformity. At the beginning of 1868, an alteration was introduced in the powers of the professorial staff with regard to the maintenance of discipline. Previously to this period they had exercised no disciplinary powers; they have since been required to take notice of all offences which come within their cognizance, either in or out of study, and have been empowered to place a cadet in arrest pending an inquiry into the offence. Even at the present time, however, the professors have no power of punishment, this power being confined to the military staff of the College.

According to the Royal Warrant of 1808, the four companies of cadets were placed upon the establishment of the army, and every one admitted to the College received a warrant of gentleman cadet, with the daily pay of 2_s._ 6_d._ Down to the year 1857, the regulations for admission to the College contained the provision that, “in conformity to the Royal Warrant, dated the 27th of May, 1808, all gentlemen cadets at the Royal Military College are subject to the Articles of War.” This provision appears to have been omitted from all regulations published on the recommendation of the Council of Military Education since the reorganization of the College, which took place at the beginning of 1858. At the present time, a cadet, on admission, is required to sign a declaration “to conform, in every respect, to Her Majesty’s Regulations, and to the rules and discipline of the service.”

The Board of Commissioners, at the time of the report of the Select Committee of the House of Commons, in 1855, still continued to administer all the affairs of the Royal Military College, in virtue of the wide powers vested in them by the Royal Warrant of 1808. For some years previously to this, however, the War Office had exercised considerable control over the financial acts of the Board. On the appointment of the Council of Military Education, in 1857, the latter body began to superintend the course of instruction at the College, their attention having been directed to this subject in the first instructions issued to them on their appointment. At the beginning of 1858, they commenced to conduct the examinations for admission, and, by a Royal Warrant of the 1st October, 1858, they were formally appointed Visitors of the College, and required to report to the Commander-in-Chief upon the instruction given at it. The power of recommending either the appointment or removal of the professors and instructors was, by the same warrant, placed in their hands.

The original warrant of 1808 has never been cancelled, and the powers vested by it in the Board of Commissioners still, therefore, nominally remain in force, except so far as by the warrant of 1858. Since this time, however, the connection of the Commissioners with the management of the College has been gradually diminished. In 1863, the office of Secretary to the Board was abolished, his financial duties being transferred to the Paymaster of the College, and the performance of his other duties being provided for in the Commander-in-Chief’s office. The discipline of the College still remains nominally under the superintendence of the Commissioners; but, even in regard to this point, their interference, except when questions of considerable importance have arisen, appears to have been little called for. Their duties of late years seem to have been principally confined to business connected with the management of the College property, in regard to which, although the estate is now formally vested in the Secretary of State for War, the former powers of the Commissioners are reserved.

The attendance in the College, since its reorganization, has been as follows, viz.:

1855 180
1862 250
1865 300

_Staff of Government and Instruction_, 1871-2.

_President._--Duke of Cambridge, Field Marshal.
_Vice-President._--Rt. Hon. Edward Cardwell, Secretary of War.
_Governor._--Lt.-Gen. Sir D. A. Cameron.
_Assistant._--Col. J. E. Addison.
_Paymaster._--Major Oliver Nicolls.
_Chaplain._--Rev. E. J. Rogers, M.A.
_Quartermaster._--John Davies.
_Surgeon._--A. McLean, M.D.
_Assistant Surgeon._--John Greig, M.D.
_Riding-Master._--Capt. C. C. Brooke.

CADETS’ COLLEGE.

_Adjutant._--Major W. Patterson.
_Captains of Companies of Gentlemen Cadets._--Lt.-Col. W. R. Farmar,
Lt.-Col. Alfred P. Bowlby, Capt. H. E. Couper.

_Staff of Instruction._

_Mathematics and Arithmetic._--Rev. J. W. Vintner, Rev. Alfred Deck,
G. Hester, J. P. Ketley.
_Fortification._--Capt. G. Phillips, Lt. E. D. C. O’Brien,
Capt. H. L. Mitchell.
_Military Surveying._--Capt. W. Paterson.
_Military History._--Capt. E. M. Jones.
_Military Drawing._--Capt. E. A. Anderson, Capt. C. W. Fothergill,
Capt. R. L. Leir.
_Landscape Drawing._--Robert Harley.
_French Language._--J. Balagué.
_Geology._--T. R. Jones.
_Chemistry._--Edm. Atkinson, Ph.D.

STAFF COLLEGE.

_Commandant._--Col. E. B. Hamley, C.B.
_Adjutant._--Major A. S. Jones.

_Professors and Instructors._

_Mathematics._--Rev. J. F. Twisden, T. Savage.
_Military History._--Major C. Adams.
_Fortification and Artillery._--Capt. H. Schaw.
_Military Topography._--Major S. B. Farrell, Royal Engineers.
_Military Administration._--Capt. W. Walker.
_French._--A. A. De Charente.
_German._--Dr. Overbeck.
_Hindustani._--J. Dowson.
_Military Drawing._--Capt. E. A. Anderson.

QUEEN’S AND INDIAN CADETSHIPS.

The creation of Queen’s cadetships originated in the recommendations of the select Committee of the House of Commons on Sandhurst. At the time the Committee reported (in the year 1855) the age of admission to Sandhurst was from 13 to 15; in the following year, however, at the time the recommendations of the Committee were adopted by the Government, it was in contemplation to raise the minimum age for admission to the College to 16; and it was consequently decided that, in order to meet the case of those who under the former regulations would have been admitted as Queen’s cadets at a younger age, a special allowance of 40_l._ a year might, at the discretion of the Secretary of State, be granted to a candidate qualified for a Queen’s cadetship, at the age of 13, to assist him in his preparatory education, until he attained the age at which he would be eligible for admission to the College. This arrangement was sanctioned by the Treasury in 1856, and at first the results of the recommendations of the Select Committee seem to have been confined to granting candidates the special allowance in aid of their preparatory education, as no cadet entered until 1860.

The first public announcement of the institution of Queen’s cadetships, and of the regulations under which they were to be granted, was made by a General Order, dated Horse Guards, 5th January, 1858. It had by this time been finally determined to fix the ordinary minimum age for admission to Sandhurst at 16; but an exception was made in favor of the Queen’s cadets, who were to be admitted one year younger,--at the age of 15. The following were among the regulations:

These cadetships, of which there are twenty in all, are confined to the sons of officers of the army, Royal navy, and Royal marines, who have fallen in action, or have died of wounds received in action, or of diseases contracted on active service, and who have left their families in reduced circumstances.

Gentlemen cadets on this class are educated gratuitously.

The nominations, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State for War, are made by the Commander-in-Chief for the army, in the proportion of 15 cadetships, and by the First Lord of the Admiralty for the navy and marines, in that of five cadetships,--to whom applications are to be made.