Grenadier

“ Besides their grenades and the firelock, grenadiers carried axes which, with the grenades, were employed in the assault of fortresses, as we are told in the celebrated song, “The British Grenadiers.”
The grenadier companies were formed always of the most powerful men in the regiment and, when the grenade ceased to be used, they maintained their existence as the “crack” companies of their battalions, taking the right of the line on parade and wearing the distinctive grenadier headdress. ”

“ Our leaders march with fusees, and we with hand grenades; 82
We throw them from the glacis about the Frenchman’s ears,
With a tow, row, row, row, row, row, row, for the British grenadiers.
And when the siege is over, we to the town repair,
The townsmen cry huzza, boys, here comes a grenadier,—
Here come the grenadiers, my boys, who know no doubts or fears.
Then sing tow, row, row, row, row, row, row, for the British grenadiers.
Then let us fill a bumper, and drink a health to those
Who carry caps and pouches, and wear the loopèd clothes. ”

“ The French paid particular attention to the training of grenadiers. A man had to be a good, cool-headed pitcher before he could be classed as a grenadier. He must be able to throw his grenade with perfect accuracy up to27 a distance of seventy yards, and to maintain an effective barrage. The grenadier carried his grenades in large pockets attached to his belt, and he was attended by a carrier who brought up grenades to him in baskets, so that he was served with a continuous supply.
LONG-DISTANCE GRENADE-THROWING ”

“ To-day, in the British army, the men who have been trained to throw grenades—now of lighter construction and much more efficient and certain action—are officially known as “bombers” for this reason: When grenade fighting came back to its own in this war, each battalion trained a certain number of men in the use of grenades, and, naturally, called them “grenadiers.” The British Grenadier Guards, the senior foot regiment in the British Army, made formal complaint against the use of their time-honored name in this connection, and British reverence for tradition did the rest. ”

“ Organization
While every infantryman receives a certain amount of instruction in grenade throwing, there should be a grenadier squad in each platoon specially instructed and trained in this most effective auxiliary method of trench warfare. Not all men possess the temperament and qualifications [Pg 99] necessary to make efficient grenadiers. Hence the personnel of the grenadier squad should be carefully selected. Strong physique, personal courage and steadiness in emergencies are the qualifications that count. Men fond of outdoor sports, other things being equal, will be found the best. ”

“ The first step in the training of a grenadier is to overcome his fear of the grenade itself. This [Pg 98] is accomplished by first having him practice fuse lighting with dummy grenades having live fuses. The men will be impressed with the fact that the grenades are dangerous weapons and that familiarity in handling them must not be permitted to degenerate into carelessness.
The next step towards efficiency is the development of accuracy of throwing. ”

“ It seemed impossible that any living creature should survive such a hellish turmoil. When the firing ceased abruptly, or when its direction was changed to give the French infantry a chance to attack us, then our brave fusiliers, musketeers, grenadiers crawled out of the funnels and pockets into which the enemy's grenades had ploughed the earth, made their way from among broken foundations, crumbling cement, trickling sand bags, and, grabbing their guns and wiping the dirt from their eyes, they repulsed the French attack. ”

“ The grenadier squad immediately forms for action. Two bayonet men are in the lead, followed by the grenade thrower, who is in turn followed by the two carriers. Further to the rear are the two barricaders, [Pg 104] who carry a reserve supply of grenades in addition to their sandbags and shovels. The squad leader is where he can best direct the operations.
The grenadier squad is formed as shown in the first position, Plate 40.
1. The grenade thrower puts grenades: (1) into bay 1, at A; (2) into bay 2, at D; (3) into bay 1, at B; (4) into the traverse leg at C.
2. ”

“ The Hessian grenadiers were in the rear of the light infantry, and the 3rd and 4th brigade supported the grenadiers and guards. The guards first fell into action by receiving a very heavy fire from a wood on their right. They soon dislodged the enemy from it, and drove them as far as they had strength to pursue. The enemy had yet cannon and troops on an advantageous height in front, from which it was necessary to force them. The grenadiers were therefore led on, and the rebels were driven back across a deep morass, upon their main army. ”

“ The thin line heard them; a couple of officers glanced over their epaulettes, saw the red plumes of the Coldstream outnumbering the white plumes of the Grenadiers, and tossed their swords in a sudden passion of jealousy. "Charge again, Grenadiers!" they roared, and leaped into the lane with the whole gray wave rolling after them. And with bayonets down and wild hurrahs the battalion drove straight into the redoubt, trampling the dead, and driving the living through the two embrasures as a green sea is emptied through lee scuppers. ”

“ From this moment, subject to machine gun and musketry fire, the men could only proceed slowly along the summits by the alleys of communication, with hand grenades, supported by the artillery, with whom they remained in constant touch by flag-signalling. As the advance of our grenadiers continued, the Germans surrendered in large numbers. An uninterrupted chain of grenade-bearers, like the chains of bucket-holders at a fire in former times, was established in the alleys of communication from Massiges forward, and each fresh arrival of grenades was accompanied by a fresh advance. ”

“ Real superiority over the enemy is obtained by superiority of weapons; courage cannot make up for destruction, one must tax one’s brain to furnish the men with matériel which may be useful to them.
Grenades.—Every grenadier or member of a patrol should carry five grenades; each man should have one, not to throw himself but so that it may be possible to get a certain number of them together in case of need. If a fight with grenades is foreseen in a region cut up with trenches or boyaux or in a town, the supply should be increased. ”

“ Mr. Congreve going up the water in a boat, one of the watermen told him, as they passed by Peterborough House, at Millbank, “that the house had sunk a storey.” “No, friend,” said he; “I rather believe it is a storey raised.”
GRENADIER TOO DEEP.
During a retreat in the unfortunate Dutch campaign, when the army was flouncing through the mud, in a part of the road uncommonly bad, a company of the guards was much scattered: the commanding officer [110] called out to the men to form two deep. “D—me!” shouts a grenadier, from between two mountains of mud; “I am too deep already.” ”

“ The soldiers received the orders with three huzzas, and the grenadiers setting out at a great rate, though at the same time keeping their ranks, paid no attention to the scattered fire they received from the rock, nor made a halt until they got to the top of it; whilst the enemy terrified at their intrepidity, descended as they were mounting, without daring to stand the shock of their onset. Some of the best Sepoys followed the grenadiers, and all together began a strong fire upon the French troops, drawn up within pistol shot below. ”

“ However, the guns from Cromwell's fort, enfilading the ramparts, soon silenced the engines of death stationed there, and the grenadiers, undaunted by the thinning of their ranks, gained the glacis, sprang into the covered way, and after a terrible struggle forced the defenders from that post, from their trenches in the ditch, and over the breach into the city. ”

“ We were busy cooking the remainder of our sausages, bacon, and flour. After dark, a deserter from the French told us, that there were five regiments of grenadiers picked out to storm the town. In the French army, the grenadiers are all in regiments by themselves. We lay down, fully accoutred, as usual, and slept in our blankets. An hour before day we{136} were ready to receive the enemy. About half-past nine o’clock, a great gun from the French line, which was answered by one from ours, was the signal to engage. ”

“ Every rifle grenadier will carry six Hales No. 24 rifle grenades.
Shovels will be carried by every man, less runners, signallers, stretcher-bearers, and Nos. 1 and 2 of Lewis gun teams.
Men carrying shovels will not carry the entrenching tool. ”

“ With a thousand reverberations the steep hills echoed the reports of the firearms, the cries of the wounded, and the cheers of the combatants, as the lines drew closer.
General Wightman now recalled his skirmishers, and ordered the Grenadiers to advance. They did so, blowing their matches and throwing their hand-grenades as fast as possible. ”

“ A grenade is a hollow ball, cylinder, or cube, made of metal or other material, which is filled with some explosive, and burst by means of a fuse, or on impact when it falls among an enemy. Until about the end of the seventeenth century trained soldiers called Grenadiers used grenades which were thrown by hand, but after that date they fell into disuse. ”

“ The success of an attack by scaling is infallible, if they mount the 4 sides at once, and take care to shower a number of grenades among the enemy, especially when supported by some grenadiers and picquets, who divide the attention and share the fire of the enemy.
The ingenious colonel Congreve of the British artillery, has very much improved upon the construction of these ladders. ”

“ One called the "grenadier company" was composed of men picked for their strength acrd courage. As often as not (for instance, at Bunker Hill) the grenadier companies were detached from their regiments and used together in provisional grenadier battalions. ”

“ Horse, foot, and dragoons, artillery, sappers, light infantry, and grenadiers, rushed forward wherever chance or their bewildered officers led them. Here might be seen one half of a regiment blazing away at a stray company of their own people, running like devils for shelter; here some squadrons of horse, who, indignant at their fruitless charges and unmeaning movements, now doggedly dismounted, were standing right before a brigade of twelve-pounders, thundering mercilessly amongst them. Never was witnessed such a scene of riot, confusion, and disorder. ”

“ The dragoons in the rear, not knowing the cause98 of the check, rode furiously forward, and, crowding their front ranks, who were pulling up or wheeling round, and exposed to the fire of the grenadiers, the greatest confusion ensued; while those at our side, finding all attempts at breaking through the light company fruitless, and being severely galled by the fire of the rear rank as well as a flanking fire from some of the grenadiers, all wheeled round and galloped off at full speed. ”

“ In 1678 each company of 100 men usually consisted of 30 pikemen, 60 musketeers, and 10 men armed with light firelocks. In this year the King added a company of men armed with hand-grenades to each of the old British regiments, which was designated the "grenadier company." Daggers were so contrived as to fit in the muzzles of the muskets, and bayonets [xiv] similar to those at present in use were adopted about twenty years afterwards.
An Ordnance regiment was raised in 1685, by order of King James II., to guard the artillery, and was designated the Royal Fusiliers (now 7th Foot) . ”

“ The grenadiers are not distinguished among the other soldiers for the éclat and pre-eminence so striking in the French and Hungarian grenadiers; and it is not customary to unite them into separate corps, in order to attempt bold strokes. The light companies of different regiments are sometimes formed into provisional battalions,—a practice directly in opposition to the purpose for which that species of troops was originally instituted. ”

“ The rifle grenadiers advance at once just as close as possible, but at all costs to within effective grenade range. They then take cover in shell holes, trenches, etc., and open up a rapid fire. They are the long distance howitzers of the platoon and are very valuable. By a well placed grenade the whole resistance may be overcome. This section usually works around a flank. The riflemen work up by squad as far as practicable and to a flank, when an opportunity presents itself, the squad opens fire in such a manner as to protect advance of other squads or teams. ”

“ To right of us, to left, barring our road, the enemy, 20,000 of them, stand ranked on heights, in chosen positions; cannon-batteries, grenadiers, dragoons of Gotha and infinite Pandours: military jungle bristling far and wide. And you must push it heartily, and likewise cut the tap-root of it (seize its big guns) , or it will not roll away. ”

“ A A, denote the column under the command of Lord Cornwallis, after having crossed the forks of the Brandywine. C, two squadrons of dragoons, which were not employed in the action. E E, the first general attack of the enemy's guards and grenadiers. F, Deborre's brigade, on the right, forced by the enemy. G, G, the British and Hessian grenadiers entangled in a wood. H H, march of the enemy toward and beyond Dilworth. The position of the Americans when the battle commenced is named on the plan. I, indicates the ravine or defile where Greene checked the enemy until night No. ”

“ The light company, supported by the grenadiers, and followed by the regiment, descended the mountain at a running pace. Two columns of the enemy, having each a field-piece, and being supported by the heavy guns of the redoubt, opened a sharp fire of grape and musketry; but, as the Eighty-sixth arrived on the plain, they closed on their adversaries with the bayonet. This spirited conduct decided the contest; the opposing ranks, unable to withstand the shock of steel, faced about and fled. ”