THE RUDIMENTS OF MILITARIE DISCIPLINE:
Conteining short instructions for the most necessary postures with Pike and Musquet, and motions for exercising a companie.
Nehem. 4.19.20. &c.
Jude, vers. 3.
EDINBURGH, Printed for James Bryson, 1638.
POSTURES OF THE MUSQUET.
1. TAke up your Musquet, and your Rest, Recover your Musquet, and joine it to your rest.
2. Take out your match, blow your match.
3. Cock your match, try your match, guarde your Pan.
4. Advance three steps, with blowing your match, Present, Open your Pan, and give fire.
5. Joine your Musquet to your rest againe.
6. Recover your match, blow your Pan and prime it, Put of your louse powlder.
7. Cast about your Musquet and your rest.
8. Charge with poulder, chape the Musquet a little against the earth.
9. Charge with Bullet, Chape it a little against the earth.
[Page]10. Recover your Musquet, and Joine it againe to your rest. Cocke your match, &c. Againe as before, making readie for service. When yee have done with service, weigh your Musquet with your right hand, Lay it on your left shoulder, holding the butt with your left hand, and the rest also.
Nota.
¶ It is to bee remembered that the mouth of the Musket be alwayes upward in exercise, for being low, if a sparke of fire should goe in the Pan, it might shoote your neighbour: Also when your Musket is shouldered in marching, hold the mouth of your Musquet high, for the reason foresaid, and for disturbing your follower.
Postures of the Pike.
- TAke up your Pike.
- Overend, or order your pike.
- Shoulder your pike.
- Mount your pike.
- Charge to the front.
- Charge to the right hand.
- Charge to the left hand.
- Right about to the reer.
- Left about to the reer.
- March, and charge.
- Lay down your pike.
Nota.
¶ All your exercises both of Musket and Pike would be at open order, that is, six foot distant between every man in the Ranke, and between each Ranke, and that for doubling [Page] of Rankes. Also when yee come either to be expert; or comes upon service, the ordinare distance is three foot, which is called order: And sometime may come to clo [...]e order; when sidemen close shoulder to shoulder, and the R [...]st of the Rankes close up to the sword point, specially Pickemen against horse.
Motiones.
MOtiones are either in keeping ground, or changeing ground, and are either of the whole or of a part: Keeping ground, when everie one move in his proper place, as in faceing: Changeing ground, as in Countermarch and wheeling: The motion of a part is as in doubleing, closeing, and opening files and rankes, where some move and some stand still, And first of keeping ground and faceing being standing in order.
Of Faceing.
WHen yee are commanded To face to the right hand, stand firme with the left legge, and fall backe with the right legge, and so yee are faced to the right hand, As yee were, bring forward againe that same right legge, and place it where it stood first.
When yee are commanded to Face to the left hand, bring forward the right leg, and so your face will be to the left hand, As you were, bring your right leg to the former situation.
[Page]When you are commanded to face to the right and left hand by division, the halfe of the files to the right hand faceth to the right, as is before set downe, and the halfe of the files to the left hand, as is before set downe: As you were.
When you are commanded to face to the reere by the right hand, hold firme your left legge, turning upon your left heele: Draw back your right legge, till your face bee to the reer. As you were. Turn upon your left heele, and bring about your right legge.
When you are commanded to face to the reere by the left hand, turne on your left heele, and bring forward your right legge, till your face bee to the reere: As you were; Turne on your heele, and bring back your right legge.
The motion of a part is doubling ranks and files, &c. Doubling of rankes serve to enlarge and strengthen the length of the battell, doubling of files to strengthen the deepe of the battell.
Of doubleing of Rankes.
VVHen you are commanded to double your ranks to the right hand, the second rank doubleth to the first, the fourth to the third, the sext to the fift, and so foorth every one of these stepping up to the right side of his leader, with three steppes beginning with the left legge, stepping up on the right hand, with the right legge, and then [Page] bringing up the left legge: As you were, returning by the left hand; Also with three steppes to your owne place.
When you are commanded to double your rankes to the left hand, step foreward as to the right: As you were, but returne by the right hand.
Next, ranks are doubled by bringers up, when men are more perfectly trained; that is, being ten rankes: the left rank doubleth by the right or left hand to the first rank, the ninth to the second, the eight to the third, &c. Or ranks are doubled by middle-men, when the last five rankes of ten double up to the first five through the voide that is betweene the files: And being commanded againe As you were, returne againe to their owne place.
Of doubling files, or strings.
VVHen you are commanded to double your files to the right hand, the right hand file standeth still, and the next file unto it, each man steppeth in behinde his side-man: first, turning about the face to the right hand, setting foreward the right legge steppes foreward, with their left legge behinde their side-men on the right hand, bringeth up their legge, placing their bodie in a right line behinde their leader, As you were, They must turne about their face, moving first their left legge, and thus with three steps recover their station.
[Page]When yee are commanded to double your files to the left hand, the files that formerly moved, stand, and the other come in behinde them, turning your face about, beginning your motion with their left legge with three steppes, and being commanded, As you were, returnes by the right legge.
Of Counter-march.
VVHen yee are commanded Files to the right hand counter march, then all the file-leaders together at one instant steppe forward with the right legge, and bringing about their left legge, turne their bodie to the right hand, and so marche down thorow the files, till they come to the place of the bringers up or last ranke, all that follow the file-leader, must not offer to turn, before they have come up to the place of the file leaders, and every follower must remarke and keep that distance with his leader which hee had before they began to counter-march: As you were: steppe forward with the right legge, and cast about the left legge to the right hand, and so march back to your place.
Files Counter-march to the left hand, steppe forward with the left legge, bringing about the right legge, turning your body to the left hand, and march down as the former. As you were, step forward with your left legge, cast about the right legge to the left hand, and so [Page] march back to your place: Other kindes of counter-march is not fitte.
Closeing, and opening of Rankes.
VVHen yee are commanded to close your rankes; the first ranke standeth still: the second cometh up, and closeth to the distance commanded, either three foote, or close order: the rest of the ranks move up, and close to the same distance.
When yee are commanded to open your rankes, the first ranke standeth still, the rest fall backe towards the reere: the second taketh its distance, and standeth still, so the third till all have got their places.
Closeing, and opening of Files.
VVHen yee are commanded to close your files to the right hand, the right hand file standeth, the second file to it faceth about to it, and steppeth forward, till it have taken the distance commanded, so doth the rest in order, each after other.
If yee be commanded to close your files to the left hand, the left hand file standeth still, and the rest close to it, as they did to the right hand.
[Page]If yee be commanded to close your files to the middle, if yee be ten or six in ranke, the two middle files take their distance, the rest face to them, and the nearest to them take first their distance, and so the rest in order: But this is little needfull; the other two may serve.
When yee are commanded to open your files to the right hand, the left hand file standeth still, the second to it openeth, and all the rest in order, till yee come to the right hand.
When yee are commanded to open your files to the left hand, the right hand file standeth still, and openeth as formerly to the left hand.
When yee are commanded to open files to both the hands, the two middle files open to their just distances, so presse on the rest neerest to them, till all have opened to the distance commanded, and open by stepping sidewayes, pressing with their shoulder their sideman.
Of wheeling, or the great turne.
VVHen ye are commanded the great turne to the right hand, yee must first close your files to that hand, whereto yee are to turne, even to closse order, and close up your rankes to the same order: Then the Corner-file-leader on the right hand standeth still in his place, as the fixed foote of a Compasse, moving with the left legge about, turning on the right foot fixed, his sideman moveth more, and so alwayes the more, the further they [Page] are removed from him, every follower keeping his leader, and in every ranke their sideman, The further they are from the right side, they will make the larger turne, untill the front be where the right flanke was: And being commanded the great turne to the reere by the right hand, haveing now your front where your right flank was, may keepe the same order as at first, till your faces be at the reere. When yee would reduce them: As they were, even to the place where they were first, yee must wheele them just about to the said first place: Then opening their files and rankes, they are just as they were: yee may do just so when yee are commanded to make the great turne to the left hand, onlie they do at the left hand, as the other did at the right hand before; but this motion is seldome used, and would be performed when your men are perfite in all their other motions.