Rank (military)

“ In the discussion which took place in 1828 relating to ordinary rank and rank by brevet, the then Secretary of War (Gen. Porter) says, “Rank in the line of the army or lineal rank, as understood by the President, is applicable to the existing organization of that portion only of the army which is intended for field operations or the exertion of physical force against an enemy. It is commonly used in contradistinction to the staff,” etc. He then goes on to show that in the 62d Article it has another meaning,—House Document 58, 20th Congress, 2d session, page 13. ”

“ THE VARIOUS RANKS IN THE BRITISH ARMY, AND HOW TO DISTINGUISH THEM.
The civilian is often wofully puzzled when trying to make out the rank of a military man in uniform. He sees a venerable, soldier-like man, in scarlet or blue, marching beside a body of men. This personage is crowned with a cocked hat with white plumes, with all the pomp of sword, &c., and is immediately selected as “the General.” ”

“ Rank, is a straight line made by the soldiers of a battalion, or squadron, drawn up side by side: this order was established for the marches, and for regulating the different bodies of troops and officers which compose an army.
Doubling of the RANKS, is the changing one rank to two, by telling off the files, one, two, one, two, &c. and by the word, even files to the rear double; this method is frequently used in the manœuvres of a regiment.
Rank and file, men carrying the firelock, and standing in the ranks, are called rank and file. ”

“ There are no coverers in the centre rank to officers or colors. The colors are placed between the fourth and fifth battalion companies, both in the front rank, and each covered by a non-commissioned officer, or steady man in the rear rank. One serjeant is in the front rank betwixt the colors; he is covered by a second serjeant in the rear rank, and by a third in the supernumerary rank. The sole business of these three serjeants is, when the battalion moves in line, to act as guides, and direct the march according to prescribed instructions. ”

“ The music form between the colors and the front rank. The serjeant coverers move up to the front rank, to fill up the intervals left by the officers. The pioneers fall back to six paces distance behind the centre of the rear rank. The drummers take the same distance behind their divisions. The major moves to the right of the line of officers; the adjutant to the left of the front rank. The staff place themselves on the right of the front rank of the grenadiers. The colonel and lieutenant-colonel dismounted, advance before the colors four and two paces. ”

“ The battalion being in line, at the command to “form company column,” the third rank of each even division of the right wing faces about, marches 12 paces to the rear, halts, and faces to the front; the first and second ranks of the uneven divisions face to the left, and place themselves 6 paces in rear of the first and second ranks of the even divisions; the third rank of the uneven subdivisions faces to the left, and, filing in front of the third rank of the even division, forms with it a third division in double rank. The movement is executed in the uncadenced step. ”

“ The lieutenants take their posts when the first sergeant has reported and draw saber with the captain. The company, if not under arms, is formed in like manner omitting reference to arms. (172)
216. For the instruction of platoon leaders and guides, the company, when small, may be formed in single rank. In this formation close order movements only are executed. The single rank executes all movements as explained for the front rank of a company. ”

“ The rank entire may be resorted to for various purposes during the movements of one or more battalions, since it may serve not only to cover them from the enemy’s observation, but in some cases, especially in foggy weather, will itself appear a larger body than it really is. Too much attention cannot be given to the organization of light troops on foot. ”

“ Although a single battalion may, by opening its companies and files, from 3 deep form 2 deep, by introducing its rear rank into the other two, yet a considerable line posted, which is to be lengthened out to one or both flanks by its rear rank, must, to greater advantage, perform such operation, by each company quarter wheeling the sub-divisions of its rear rank and facing to the hand they are to march to; the last rank of each company closes up to its first ”

“ Many men have not had the advantages of others before they enter the ranks, and for them to have the same chances of promotion post-schools are provided, each with a competent instructor, and under the charge of a commissioned officer.
On becoming a corporal some increase of responsibility is given our young soldier. He must wear as an indication of his rank two V-shaped stripes upon his arms and a narrow one down each trousers leg, of the color of the service insignia—red for artillery, yellow for cavalry, white for infantry. ”

“ When this is the case, and any duty specially concerning Artillery is carried on, it is usual for an officer not to attend in the dress of a General or Field-Marshal but in that of the Colonel of the regiment to which he belongs.
RANKS.
Next to Field-Marshals come Full Generals. After a General comes a Lieutenant-General, and then a Major-General. The civilian usually makes a mistake in the relative rank of these two officers; for as a Major is higher in rank than a Lieutenant, so he considers a Major-General must be higher than a Lieutenant-General. ”

“ The introduction of artillery, and the expert and proper management of field-guns, rendered it necessary that a suitable description of officers and men should be selected for such an important and scientific branch of the service, in order to ensure its usefulness; hence it may be inferred, that as qualifications of a superior kind were requisite, the Subaltern Officers in the Royal Fusiliers obtained, on their first appointment, the rank of Lieutenant, a distinction which is continued to the present time. ”

“ By method and discipline are to be understood the marshaling of the army in its proper subdivisions, the graduations of rank among the officers, the maintenance of roads by which supplies may reach the army, and the control of military expenditure. ”

“ Lieutenants and subalterns are given charge of a troop in the cavalry, a gun or section—according to the number of young officers available—in a battery and of a section of men in an infantry51 company. Nominally in command of their men, they are in practice largely dependent on their senior non-commissioned officers for the efficiency of the men under their command. An officer’s real efficiency, in peace service, does not begin until he “gets his company” or squadron: in other words, until he is promoted to the rank of captain. ”

“ Sir Evelyn Wood bears evidence that “in tactical skill, officers of all ranks have improved to a very great degree; but the improvement in military spirit, in eagerness to learn, and to submit cheerfully to great physical discomforts is even more remarkable, and this spirit reacts naturally on the lower ranks.”
The armament of all arms is altering. In the cavalry the front ranks of all heavy and medium regiments are armed with the lance, as well as sword and carbine, and only the hussars retain the two latter for both ranks. ”

“ If it should be considered advantageous behind entrenchments to keep the infantry in two ranks, the third rank should be placed in reserve, and brought forward to relieve the front rank when fatigued, or when the fire is observed to slacken. ”

“ Most of the officers were dressed in uniform which is neat and serviceable—viz., a bluish-grey frock-coat of a colour similar to Austrian yagers. The infantry wear blue facings, the artillery red, the doctors black, the staff white, and the cavalry yellow; so it is impossible to mistake the branch of the service to which an officer belongs—nor is it possible to mistake his rank. A second lieutenant, first lieutenant, and157 captain, wear respectively one, two, and three bars on the collar. A major, lieutenant-colonel, and colonel, wear one, two, and three stars on the collar. ”

“ No one could ever hope to find a more thorough Fusilier than the man who went to sleep on guard and let a calf eat his clothes off. Such conduct deserved most distinguished regard, as an encouragement to the Fusiliers. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General of the Battalion, the highest rank in our corps. ”

“ The above are the five grades of higher officers. To all intents and purposes, no nation has more than four of these five ranks, while France and the United States, the great republics, have only two. The correspondence between rank and functions cannot be exactly laid down, but in general an officer of the rank of lieutenant-general commands an army corps and a major-general a division. Brigades are commanded by major-generals, brigadier-generals or colonels. Armies are as a rule commanded by field marshals or full generals. ”

“ Ground and air forces use the same system of ranks although, at least during peacetime, the four-star army general rank has no equivalent in the air or naval forces. Below the army general there are three general grade, three field grade, and four company grade officer ranks. In descending order the general grades are colonel general, lieutenant general, and major general; the field grades are colonel, lieutenant colonel, and major ”

“ After a thorough consideration of allied organizations it was decided that our combat division should consist of four regiments of infantry of 3,000 men, with three battalions to a regiment and four companies of 250 men each to a battalion, and of an artillery brigade of three regiments, a machine-gun battalion, an engineer regiment, a trench-mortar battery, a signal battalion, wagon trains, and the headquarters staffs and military police. ”

“ From the false maxim, that the second rank, if they are shorter men, cannot fire over the front, the lesser men are ranged in the first, and the taller in the second rank through the whole army of the United States, and this produces a great eye-sore. ”

“ In almost all the Cavalry Regiments, including the 1st and 2nd Life Guards, the ranks are distinguished as follows—
All Field Officers have a row of embroidery round the collar and cuffs, whilst those below that rank have none. ”

“ Every lieutenant-colonel in H.M.’s service in India who happened to be senior in that rank to any one of the lieutenant-colonels commandant now promoted, was also breveted with the rank of colonel, and as in each presidency there are no less than four distinct gradation-lists leading to this rank, viz., artillery, engineers, cavalry, and infantry, each of which has had its fortunate period, the confusion and supersession which followed may easily be imagined. ”

“ In 1864 he was gazetted second lieutenant and by 1865 had attained the rank of regimental adjutant with the title of Major—a rank which became, it may be said in passing, at the close of the war, so common throughout the States, that humorists were wont to tell how in 1866 it was impossible to throw a brick in any given direction where men happened to assemble without hitting an officer of that standing. ”

“ The casualties had been severe. In the first phase (November 20th to 23rd) , they amounted to 75 Officers and 1,613 other Ranks; in the second phase (November 25th to 28th) , to 79 Officers and 1,565 other Ranks. [97] The honours had been not few [98] ; but, apart from the measure of achievement which casualty and honours lists supply, we take count of the enhanced spirit of the Division, which, though it had ‘found itself’ before, may be said to have vindicated at Cambrai its title to a place in the front rank. ”

“ The ranks are closed; the void is filled without haste, disorder, or confusion.
Nothing could be more beautiful, nothing could be more magnificent than a regiment of the line advancing for a bayonet charge upon the enemy. Search the ranks; examine one by one these soldiers blackened with powder, try to find the foot-soldier you have seen lounging about the shop windows in large cities, with his shako on the back of his head. The lounger of yesterday is the hero of to-day. Now, danger illumines every face; courage, like an aureole, shines resplendent on every brow. ”

“ For the battalions being generally under very young men, the distinctions of rank were not very rigidly enforced, and the merits of each officer were consequently better known, and more earnestly supported when promotion and honours were to be obtained. ”

“ The strength of a regiment renders it impossible to attack the objective in several lines. The officer commanding will give orders as to whether the front line is to be in single rank, and as to whether the rear lines are to be in a similar formation or in closed double rank. ”

“ Proud of the gallant officer who had won the daughter whom she loved so tenderly, she still believes, in the depths of the boundless mother-love, that no man can quite surpass her soldier son.
THE END. FOOTNOTE
[A] By act of Congress, officers may be addressed by the title of the highest rank held by them in the volunteer service during the war. The colonel always punctiliously so addressed his friend and subordinate, although in the army his grade was simply that of first lieutenant. ”

“ To teach the recruits how to form in ranks the instructor will first place them in single rank, arranged according to height, the tallest man on the right, with intervals of about 4 inches between men, and will explain that the object of these intervals is to give freedom of movement in marching and in the use of the rifle in ranks. ”