Military reconnaissance

“ Here, halting my force, and placing my artillery in a commanding position, I determined to make a reconnaissance in person, for the purpose of ascertaining if a report just made to me—that the gunboats had left on a previous evening, the home guards had retreated, and that the enemy had been crossing all night—was true. ”

“ Strategical reconnaissance is performed by contact squadrons, which send forward officers and patrols to find the enemy. Tactical reconnaissance falls to the lot of troops of all arms, whether in contact with the enemy or for self-protection. A reconnaissance by a large force of all arms with the idea of provoking an enemy into showing his hand, if necessary by fighting, is called a reconnaissance in force. ”

“ As military commander, as a great general, I eulogize the heroism and self-sacrifice of my blind slaves and hirelings that have returned from a successful campaign against a weaker nation. I speak of the great benefit that the success of our arms will confer upon the people, I emphasize its stimulating effect upon the progress of our country and upon our civilization. ”

“ It is our army, and our army solely, in league with the valiant troops of our allies, that has the honor and the duty of national defense. Let us intrust the army with our final deliverance.
Toward the persons of those who are holding dominion among us by military force, and who assuredly cannot but be sensible of the chivalrous energy with which we have defended and are still defending our independence, let us conduct ourselves with all needful forbearance. ”

“ The men and women of America's Armed Forces selflessly serve to protect our Nation, and they are among our greatest heroes. From the trenches of World War I to the beaches of Normandy, from Korea to Vietnam, from Afghanistan to Iraq, many courageous members of our military have given their lives so that Americans could live in freedom and security. ”

“ We feel sure that you will do your duty nobly, and return covered with honour and renown. Remember, my men, that obedience to discipline, and patience in enduring hardship, and promptitude in the performance of your military duties are the first steps towards the making of a victorious army. ”

“ Never before in time of peace has our country maintained so large and effective a military force. as it now has. The Army, Navy, Marine Corps, National Guard, and Organized Reserves represent a strength of about 558,400 men. These forces are well trained, well equipped, and high in morale. ”

“ These are the permanent conditions, and they give the infantry its supremacy in war. A country that is conquered must be controlled and administered; a city that surrenders must be occupied. Battles can be won in the air or on the sea, and the mark of victory is this, that the patient infantry, military and civil, can then advance, to organize peace. An immense sympathy for the sufferings of the infantry, an immense admiration for their dogged perseverance in their never-ending task, is felt by all those whose business it is to assist them from the air. ”

“ From the hour of enlistment to the hour of return, the United States soldiers and sailors have had with them, throughout the war, the advantage of intelligent, sympathetic help from various civilian organizations, co-ordinating with the military. ”

“ Other troops go through similar scenes of suffering and danger with equal fortitude, when under the influence of strong passions, when fired by revenge, or animated by the hope of plunder, or cheered by the acclamations of victory; but with the single exception of the British army, we doubt whether there are any to whom the mere spirit of military honour is of itself so strong a stimulus. ”

“ Many serjeanties were connected with warfare, such as light horsemen, infantry, bowmen, captains of the national militia, leading the infantry of certain hundreds, military transport, carriage of armour on a horse, munitions of war such as lances, arrows or knives. ”

“ You are the leaven which binds together the entire fabric of our national system of defense. From your ranks come the great captains who hold the Nation's destiny in their hands the moment the war tocsin sounds. ”

“ For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life and above and beyond the call of duty as the leader of a special reconnaissance element with Naval Special Warfare task unit Afghanistan on 27 and 28 June 2005. ”

“ In this new field our training must seek to follow the demands of War. It must accustom the troops to the greatness of their mission both with regard to time and space, attain higher results with the individual, raise the education of its officers above the sphere of the technicalities special to the Arm, and give them a wider horizon of general military conditions. ”

“ A reconnaissance is undertaken with a view to exposing the enemy's position and strength. Without intending a real attack, you demonstrate, feign a forward movement, push on in one place or another, or threaten to turn his flanks; so obliging him to move his men here and there, expose his strength and the limits of the position, and, perhaps, the whereabouts and number of his guns, if they should be tempted to open fire at our scouts. ”

“ We can be sure that the combat units of our Army and Navy are well manned, well equipped, and well trained. Their effectiveness in action will depend upon the quality of their leadership, and upon the wisdom of the strategic plans on which all military operations are based. ”

“ All the business of preparing for the military registration of 10,000,000 men, of providing quarters and instructors for nearly 50,000 prospective officers, for finding arms and equipment for millions of troops yet to be organized, of expanding the regular army to full war strength, of preparing and recruiting the National Guard for war was at hand. ”

“ France has, say, three million soldiers; Germany, five; Austria, four—and England had, perhaps, a hundred thousand men, perhaps more, on board this fleet which defended the English land and lands far overseas without firing a shot. A battalion of infantry is more than sufficient in numbers to man a Dreadnought. How precious, then, the skill of that crew! Man-power is as concentrated as gun-power with a navy. Ride three hundred miles in a motor-car along an army front, with glimpses of units of soldiers, and you have seen little of a modern army. ”

“ And I am sure that no one can get a much better training for the battle of life that he gets in the peace loving, hard working, honor seeking, duty following, never failing, hard fighting service of the United States—on sea or shore. I have been in both, worn the Army and also the Navy blue, and I know. We all deprecate the necessity for armies, but if we must have them, let us thank God for an army like that of our beloved country. ”

“ It follows therefore that cavalry reconnaissance duties will be strictly local and tactical, and that arrangements will be made for procuring strategical information by wireless telegraphy, balloons, motor cars, bicycles, &c., and that on the whole that nation will be best served in war which has provided in peace a nucleus of mounted infantry capable of rapid expansion to fill the gap which history shows always to have existed between the infantry and the cavalry. Such troops need not be organized in large bodies, for their mission is to act by “slimness,” not by violence. ”

“ In every army there are mighty warriors with strength to lift the Censer, swifter of foot than the war horse; who can take the enemy’s standard, or slay his general, If such men be selected, and set apart, cared for and honoured, they are the life of the army.
“Those who use the five arms [1] with skill, who are clever, strong and quick, and careless of the enemy, should be given rank and decoration, and used to decide the victory. Their parents and families should be cared for, encouraged by rewards, and kept in fear of punishment. ”

“ True, a great European Commander has said that soldiers will become attached to any General; a remark true of the times perhaps—true of the troops of that day,—but far from being true of volunteers, who are in the field from what they consider the necessity of the country, and whose souls are bent upon a speedy, honorable, and victorious termination of the war. ”

“ The demands on its fighting efficiency can, under such circumstances, become of importance, and in these smaller operations, reconnaissance during action is more possible than with extended battle-fronts. ”

“ In its pages we find a faithful and most interesting record of past achievements, whether on sea or land, diversified by many characteristic traits of British heroism, and national gallantry, from the lowest to the highest rank in the Service. New improvements in gunnery, navigation, and the art of War, are exposed to view with the commanding powers of a master hand, while no subject is omitted which could by possibility involve the honour and welfare of our Army and Navy. ”

“ He must also inform himself exactly of the state of the military forces both on land and sea, of the number and strength of fortified places, whether they are always kept in a high state of efficiency and well supplied with ammunition, of the condition of the sea-ports, of his vessels of war, and of his arsenals, of the number of troops which he can put into the field at once, both of cavalry and of infantry, without stripping his fortresses bare of their garrisons. ”

“ It is important that we should sustain this right arm of the nation. You may compare the militia and volunteers of the country to the body, the defensible part of the nation; the army to its left arm, and the navy to its right arm. The navy is not confined in its action to our own shores, but it goes abroad, sustaining the honor of our flag upon every sea. ”

“ For the remainder of the period during which the Corps will continue to act as a military body, held in readiness for any emergency that may arise during the peace negotiations, I am confident that every man will strive to do all in his power to uphold the great renown which the Corps has so worthily won. ”

“ In some nations the method has been to trust for defence and security to what is called a Standing Army; a number of men paid by the public, to devote themselves wholly to the military profession; while the body of the people followed their peaceable employments, without paying any attention to the art of war. ”

“ Soldiers of every corps!—It is in your power to retrieve the honour of your country, and to cover yourselves with glory. Every man who performs a gallant action shall have his name made known to the nation. ”

“ It is like a brain: it gathers useful information of all kinds, studying the latest weapons and methods of warfare, the plans and equipment of the enemy, the country in which fighting is to be done. It regulates the various branches of the army so that the artillery and the infantry shall not be working at cross purposes, but shall help each other. ”

“ Soldiers, so long as with your accustomed valor you deal death and destruction in their ranks, so long shall I remain beyond the reach of fire; but let the victory prove, even for a moment, doubtful, your Emperor shall be in the midst of you. This day must decide forever the honor of the infantry of France. Let no man leave his ranks to succor the wounded,—they shall be cared for by one who never forgets his soldiers,—and with this victory the campaign is ended! ”

“ Facilities for reconnaissance have been enormously increased by the introduction of man-carrying, self-propelled Aircraft. Before their introduction reconnaissance {99} at a distance from the forward troops was limited by the speed and endurance of the cavalryman's horse, and by the skill of the cavalry scout in penetrating the preventive screen of hostile cavalry, and in escaping the net spread out to catch him on the return journey. ”

“ We are accorded all the honors of war, which shows that we are fighting men as honorable as ourselves. I thank you every one, officers and soldiers, for the manly defence you have made. This is our first fight, but it is not our last, and the time will come, I hope, when we can wipe out this day’s record by a victory gained not by superior force but by superior gallantry. ”

“ Inspired by the intrepidity and vigilance, the fearlessness and the activity of the General,—who was constantly on the move, visiting the advanced works, pressing his reconnoissances even within the enemy’s lines, and making every available disposition of men and munitions which could conduce to the common safety,—soldiers and citizens kept brave hearts, labored incessantly and cheerfully, observed a sleepless watch upon the sea and its inlets, and stood prepared to offer stout resistance to the Spaniard. ”

“ Strategical reconnaissance takes the aeroplane on longer flights far into the enemy’s country, where above towns in the war zone, about barracks and railheads and headquarters and fortifications, keen eyes may glean much that is of supreme importance to the General Staff in compiling the information as to the strength and dispositions of the enemy on which all strategy is based. ”

“ I saw the superb and veteran armies of Great Britain, France and Italy. I saw the heroic associates with whom our own army is to fight, and I had then, as I have now a sense of stirring and rising pride in the feeling that America's great and splendidly equipped and prepared army is composed of men worthy to be classed with those heroes and that they will find heroes worthy of their fellowship. ”

“ Besides a reinforcement of numbers, the excellence of French troops, that perfect discipline and order in the corps already sent, which have so happily tended to improve the respect and confidence of the people for our allies, the conciliating disposition and the zeal for the service, which distinguish every rank, sure indications of lasting harmony, — all these considerations evince the immense utility of an accession of force to the corps now here. ”