"The following volumes of Infantry Tactics are based upon the French ordonnances of 1831 and 1845, for the manoeuvres of heavy infantry and chasseurs a pied. Both of these systems have been in use in our service for some year; the former having been translated by Lieutenant-General Scott, and the latter by Lieutenant-Colonel Hardee ... In this School [of the Battalion], several battalion manoeuvres have been introduced not in the original, several thrown out, and others changed and modified." -- From Preface, v. 1, p. 5-6.
Although many books about the Civil War have been written by veterans, few provide an accurate and entertaining portrayal of the daily life of a soldier, as does Corporal Si Klegg and His ?Pard.? The book, first published in 1887,ø gives an inside look at the transformation from citizen to soldier and the diverse and constantly changing experiences on the march, on the battlefield, in camp, and in the hospital. ø Although the main characters, Si Klegg and his partner ?Shorty,? are fictional, as is their company, Wilbur F. Hinman himself was a four-year veteran of the war. He speaks with the authority of a soldier who participated in several battles with the Sixty-fifth Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which lost 25 percent of its strength to battlefield deaths and disease. He gives a true voice to the individual soldier, presents a realistic picture of army life, and provides an accurate feel for how Civil War soldiers lived and died. The life of a Civil War soldier is so realistically portrayed, both in the text and through the illustrations, that this book has become an indispensable reference for Civil War reenactors attempting to perfectly reconstruct the experiences of the common soldier during the war. Allan R. Millett provides an introduction to this Bison Books edition.
From the homegrown "boodle" of the 19th century to current "misunderstandistan" in the Middle East, America's foremost expert on slang reveals military lingo at its most colorful, innovative, brutal, and ironic. Author Paul Dickson introduces some of the "new words and phrases born of conflict, boredom, good humor, bad food, new technology, and the pure horror of war." This newly updated reference extends to the post-9/11 world and the American military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan. Recommended by William Safire in his "On Language" column of The New York Times, it features dictionary-style entries, arranged chronologically by conflict, with helpful introductions to each section and an index for convenient reference. "Paul Dickson is a national treasure who deserves a wide audience," declared Library Journal. The author of more than 50 books, Dickson has written extensively on language. This expanded edition of War Slang features new material by journalist Ben Lando, Iraq Bureau Chief for Iraq Oil Report and a regular contributor to The Wall Street Journal and Time. It serves language lovers and military historians alike by adding an eloquent new dimension to our understanding of war.
