 |
United States Volunteers |
|
|
United States Volunteers |
|
| EVOLUTION | DESCRIPTION | REFERENCE |
| 1,2 | To break to the right or the left into column. | Casey, SoB, Part II, paras 77-104 |
| 3,4 | Close Column by Division, Right in Front, or Left in Front | Casey, SoB, Part II, paras 157-189 |
| 5 | Deploy Column To the Left (or To the Right). | Casey, SoB, Part IV, paras 490-498 |
| 6 | Deploy Column On the Right (or On the Left). | Casey, SoB, Part IV, paras 500-522 |
| 7,8 | Change Front to the Right, or to the Left. | Casey, SoB, Part V, paras 830-873 |
| 9 | To ploy the battalion into column doubled on the centre. | Casey, SoB part V, paras 874-897 |
| 10 | Deployment of the double column, faced to the front. | Casey, SoB Part V, paras 946-955 |
| 11,12 | To form the double column into line of battle, faced to the right or left | Casey, SoB Part V, paras 958-975 |
|
To break to the right or the left into column. Casey, SoB, Part II paras 77-104 | |
| 77. | Lines of battle will habitually break into column by company; they may also break by division or by platoon. |
| 78. | It is here supposed that the colonel wishes to break by company to the right; he will command: 1. By company, right wheel. 2. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH.) |
| 79. | At the first command, each captain will place himself rapidly before the centre of his company, and caution it that it has to wheel to the right; each covering sergeant will replace his captain in the front rank. |
| 81. | At the command march, each company will break to the right, according to the principles prescribed in the S.C., No. 178; each captain will conform himself to what is prescribed for the chiefs of platoon; the left guide, as soon as he can pass, will place himself on the left of the front rank to conduct the marching flank, and when he shall have approached near to the perpendicular, the captain will command: 1. Such company. 2. HALT. |
| 82. | At the second command, which will be given at the instant the left guide shall be at the distance of three paces from the perpendicular, the company will halt; the guide will advance and place his left arm lightly against the breast of the captain, who will establish him on the alignment of the man who has faced to the right; the covering sergeant will place himself correctly on the alignment on the right of that man; which being executed, the captain will align his company by the left [Left, DRESS], command FRONT, and place himself two paces before its centre. |
| 83. | The captains having commanded FRONT, the guides, although some of them may not be in the direction of the preceding guides, will stand fast, in order that the error of a company that has wheeled too much or too little may not be propagated; the guides not in the direction will readily come into it when the column is put in march. |
| 85. | A battalion in line of battle will break into column by company to the left, according to the same principles, and by inverse means; the covering sergeant of each company will conduct the marching flank, and the left guide will place himself on the left of the front rank at the moment the company halts. |
| 87. | When the battalion breaks by division, the indication division will be substituted in the commands for that of company; the chief of each division (the senior captain) will conform himself to what is prescribed for the chief of company, and will place himself two paces before the centre of his division; the junior captain, if not already there, will place himself in the interval between the two companies in the front rank, and be covered by the covering sergeant of the left company in the rear rank. The right guide of the right company will be the right guide, and the left guide of the left company the left guide, of the division. |
| 88. | When the battalion shall break by platoon to the right or to the left, each first lieutenant will pass around the left of his company to place himself in front of the second platoon, and, for this purpose, each covering sergeant, except the one of the right company, will step, for the moment, in rear of the right men of his company. |
| 89. | When the battalion breaks by division to the right, and there is an odd company, the captain of this company (the left), after wheeling into column, will cause it to oblique to the left, halt it at company dis tance from the preceding division, place his left guide on the direction of the column, and then align his company by the left. When the line breaks by division to the left, the odd company will be in front; its captain, having wheeled it into column, will cause it to oblique to the right, halt it at division distane from the division next in the rear, place his right guide on the direction of the other guides, and align the company by the right. |
| 93. | The battalion being in column, the lieutenant colonel and senior major will place themselves on the directing flank, the first abreast with the leading subdivision, and the other abreast with the last, and both six paces from the flank. The adjutant will be near the lieutenant colonel, and the sergeant major near the senior major. |
| 96. | The colonel will have no fixed place as the instructor of his battalion; but in columns composed of many battalions, he will place himself habitually on the directing flank fifteen or twenty paces from the guides, and abreast with the centre of his battalion. |
| 97. | When the colonel shall wish to move the column forward without halting it, he will caution the battalion to that effect, and command: 1. By company, right wheel. 2. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 98. | At the first command, the captains of companies will execute what is prescribed for breaking into column from a halt. |
| 99. | At the second command, they will remain in front of their companies to superintend the movement; the companies will wheel to the right on fixed pivots as indicated in the S.C., No. 190; the left guides will conform to what is prescribed above; when they shall arrive near the perpendicular. the colonel will command: 3. Forward. 4. MARCH. 5. Guide left. |
| 100. | At the third command, each covering sergeant will place himself by the right side of the man on the right of the front rank of his company. At the fourth command, which will be given at the instant the wheel is completed, the companies will cease to wheel, and march straight forward. At the fifth, the men will take the touch of elbows to the left. The leading guide will march in the direction indicated to him by the lieutenant colonel. The guides will immediately conform themselves to the principles of the march in column, S. C. No. 205 and following. |
| 103. | If the battalion be marching in line of battle, the colonel will cause it to wheel to the right or left, by the same commands and the same means; but he should previously caution the battalion that it is to continue the march. At the first command, the Color and general guides retake their places in ranks. |
| 104. | A battalion in line of battle will break into column by company to the left, according to the same principles and by inverse means; the covering sergeant of each company will conduct the marching flank, and the left guides will place themselves on the left of their respective companies at the command forward. |
|
Close Column by Division, Right in Front, or Left in Front Casey, SoB, Part II, paras 157-214 | |
| To ploy the battalion into close column. | |
| 157. | This movement may be executed by company or by division, on the right or left subdivision, or on any other subdivision, right or left in front. |
| 158. | The examples in this school will suppose the presence of four divisions, with directions for an odd company; but what will be prescribed for four will serve equally for two or three divisions. |
| 159. | To ploy the battalion into close column by division in rear of the first, the colonel will command: 1. Close column, by division. 2. On the first division, right in front. 3. Battalion, right-FACE. 4. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 160. | At the second command, all the chiefs of division will place themselves before the centres of their divisions; the chief of the first will caution it to stand fast; the chiefs of the three others will remind them that they will have to face to the right, and the covering sergeant of the right company of each division will replace his captain in the front rank, as soon as the latter steps out. |
| 162. | At the third command, the last three divisions will face to the right; the chief of each division will hasten to its right, and cause files to be broken to the rear, as indicated No.111; the right guide will break at the same time, and place himself before the front rank man of the first file, to conduct him, and each chief of division will place himself by the side of this guide. |
| 163. | The moment these divisions face to the right, the junior captain in each will place himself on the left of the covering sergeant of the left company, who will place himself in the front rank. This rule is general for all the ployments by division. |
| 165. | At the command march, the chief of the first division will add, Guide Left; at this, its left guide will place himself on its left, as soon as the movement of the second division may permit, and the file closers will advance one pace upon the rear rank. |
| 166. | All the other divisions, each conducted by its chief, will step off together, to take their places in the column; the second will gain, in wheeling by file tb the rear, the space of six paces, which ought to separate its guide from the guide of the first division, and so direct its march as to enter the column on a line parallel to this division; the third and fournh divisions will direct themselves diagonally towards, but a little in rear of, the points at which they ought, respectively, to enter the column; at six paces from the left flank of the column, the head of each of these divisions will incline a little to the left, in order to enter the column as has just been prescribed for the second, taking care also to leave the distance of six paces between its guide and the guide of the preceding division. At the moment the divisions put themselves in march to enter the column, the file closers of each will incline to the left, so as to bring themselves to the distance of a pace from the rear rank. |
| 167. | Each chief of these three divisions will conduct his division till he shall be up with the guide of the directing one; the chief will then himself halt, see his division file past, and halt it the instant the last file shall have passed, commanding: 1. Such division; 2. HALT; 3. FRONT; 4. Left-DRESS. |
| 168. | At the second command, the division will halt; the left guide will place himself promptly on the direction, six paces from the guide which precedes him, in order that, the column being formed, the divisions may be separated the distance of four paces. |
| 169. | At the third command, the division will face to the front; at the fourth, it will be aligned by its chief, who will place himself two paces outside of his guide, and direct the alignment so that his division may be parallel to that which precedes-which being done, he will command, FRONT, and place himself before the centre of his division. |
| 170. | If any division, after the command front, be not at its proper distance, and this can only happen through the negligence of its chief, such division will remain in its place, in order that the fault may not be propagated. |
| 174. | The colonel will superintend the execution of the movement, and cause the prescribed principles to be observed. |
| 175. | The lieutenant colonel, placing himself in succession in rear of the left guides, will assure them on the direction as they arrive, and then move to his place outside of the left flank of the column, six paces from, and abreast with, the first division. In assuring the guides on the direction, he will be a mere observer, unless one or more should fail to cover exactly the guide or guides already established. This rule is general. |
| 176. | The senior major will follow the movement abreast with the left of the fourth division, and afterward take his position outside of the left flank of the column, six paces from, and abreast with, this division. The junior major will follow the movement and afterward take post as indicated in No. 94, observing what follows; he will take post abreast of the division next to the last. |
| 177. | To ploy the battalion in front of the first division, the colonel will give the same commands, substituting the indication left for that of right in front. |
| 178. | At the second and third commands, the chiefs of division and the junior captains will conform themselves to what is prescribed Nos. 160, 162, 163; but the chiefs of the last three divisions, instead of causing the first three files to break to the rear, will cause them to break to the front. |
| 181. | At the fourth command, the chief of the first division will add: Guide right. |
| 182. | The three other divisions will step off together to take their places in the column in front of the directing division; each will direct itself as prescribed, No. 166, and will enter in such manner that, when halted, its guide may find himself six paces from the guide of the division next previously established in the column. |
| 183. | Each chief of these divisions will conduct his division, till his right guide shall be nearly up with the guide of the directing one; he will then halt his division, and cause it to face to the front; at the instant it halts, its right guide will face to the rear, place himself six paces from the preceding guide, and cover him exactly-which being done, the chief will align his division by the right. |
| 186. | The lieutenant colonel, placed in front of the right guide of the first division, will assure the guides om the direction as they successively arrive, and then move outside of the right flank of the column, to a point six paces from, and abreast with, the fourth division, now in front. |
| 187. | The senior major will conform himself to what is prescribed No. 176, and then move outside of the right flank of the column, six paces from, and abreast with, the first division, now in the rear. The junior major will conform to the movements of the column and then take post as indicated No. 176. |
| 188. | The movement being ended, the colonel will command: Guides, about-FACE. |
| 189. | At this, the guides, who are faced to the rear, will face to the front. |
| Remarks on ploying the battalion into column. | |
| 213. | The battalion may be ployed into column at full, or half distance, on the same principles, and by the same commands, substituting for the first command: Column at full (or half) distance by division. |
| 214. | In the ployments and movements in column, when the subdivisions execute the movements successively, such as to take or close distances; to change direction by the flank of subdivisions, each chief of subdivision will cause his men to support arms after having aligned it and commanded,FRONT. |
|
Deploy Column To the Left (or To the Right). Casey, SoB, Part IV, paras 490-498 | |
| Successive Formations. | |
| 490. | Under the denomination of successive formations are included all those formations where the several subdivisions of a column arrive one after another on the line of battle; such are formations on the right, or left, forward and faced to the rear into line of battle, as well as deployments of columns in mass. |
| 491. | The successive formations which may be ordered when the column is marching, and is to continue marching, will be executed by a combination of the two gaits, quick and double quick time. |
| 1st. Column at half distance, to the left (or right) into line of battle. | |
| 492. | A column at half distance having to form itself to the left (or right) into line of battle, the colonel will cause it to take distances by one of the means prescribed Article IX., Part Third, of this school; which being executed, he will form the column into line of battle, as has been indicated No. 464 and following. |
| 493. | If a column by company, at half distance, be in march, and it be necessary to form rapidly into line of battle, the colonel will command: 1. By the rear of column left (or right) into line, wheel. 2. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 494. | At the first command, the right general guide will move rapidly to the front, and place himself a little beyond the point where the head of the column will rest, and on the prolongation of the guides. The captain of the eighth company will command: Left into line, wheel; the other captains will caution their companies to continue to march to the front. |
| 496. | At the command march, briskly repeated by the captain of the eighth company, the guide of this company will halt short, and the company will wheel to the left, conforming to the principles prescribed for wheeling from a halt; when its right shall arrive near the line, the captain will halt the company, and align it by the left. The other captains will place themselves briskly on the flank of the column; when the captain of the seventh sees there is sufficient distance between his company and the eighth to form the latter into line, he will command: Left into line, wheel-MARCH; the left guide will halt short, and, facing to the rear, will place himself on the line; the company will wheel to the left, the man on the left of the front rank will face to the left, and place his breast against the left arm of the guide; the captain will halt the company when its right shall arrive near the line, and will align it by the left. The other companies will conform successively to what has just been prescribed for the seventh. |
| 497. | Each captain will direct the alignment of his company on the left man in the front rank of the company next on his right. |
| 498. | The lieutenant colonel will be watchful that the leading guide marches accurately on the prolongation of the line of battle, and directs himself on the right general guide. The senior major, placed in rear of the left guide of the eighth company, will, as soon as the guide of the seventh company is established on the direction, hasten in rear of the guides of the other companies, so as to assure each of them in succession on the line. The junior major will hold his position abreast with the color company. |
|
Deploy Column On the Right (or Left). Casey, SoB, Part IV, paras 500-529 | |
| 2d. Column at half distance, on the right (or on the left) into line of battle. | |
| 500. | A column by company, at half distance and right in front, having to form itself on the right into line of battle, the colonel will indicate to the lieutenant-colonel a little in advance, the point d'appui, or rest, for the right, as well as the point of direction to the left; the lieutenant-colonel will hasten with two markers, and establish them in the following manner on the direction indicated. |
| 501. | The first marker will be placed at the point d'appui for the right front-rank man of the leading company; the second wil indicate the point where one of the three left files of the same company will rest when in line; they will be placed so as to present the right shoulder to the battalion when formed. |
| 502. | These dispositions being made, the colonel will command: 1. On the right into line. 2. Battalion, guide right. |
| 503. | At the second command, the right will become the directing flank, and the touch of the elbow will be to that side; the right guide of the leading comapny will march straight-forward until up with the turning point, and each following guide will march in the trace of the one immediately preceding. |
| 505. | The leading company being nearly up with the first marker, its captain will command: 1. Right Turn, and when the company is precisely up with this marker, he will add: 2. MARCH. |
| 506. | At the command, march, the company will turn to the right: the right guide will so direct himself as to bring the man next to him opposite to the right marker, and when at three paces from him, the captain will command: 1. First company; 2. HALT. |
| 507. | At the second command, the company will halt; the files, not yet in line, will form promptly; the left guide will retire as a file closer; and the captain will then command: 3. Right-DRESS. |
| 508. | At this command, the company will align itself; the two men who find themselves opposite to the two markers will each lightly rest his breast against the right arm of his marker; the captain, passing to the right of the front rank, will direct the alignment on these two men. These rules are general for all successive formations. |
| 509. | The second company will continue to march straight forward; when arrived opposite to the left flank of the preceding company, it will turn to the right, and be formed on the line of battle, as has just been prescribed; the right guide will direct himself so as to come upon that line by the side of the man on the left of the first company. |
| 510. | At the distance of three paces from the line of battle, the company will be halted by its captain, who will place himself briskly by the side of the man on the left of the preceding company, and align him self correctly on its front rank. |
| 511. | The left guide will, at the same time, place himself before one of the three left files of his company, and, facing to the right, he will place himself accurately on the direction of the two markers of the preceding company. |
| 512. | The captain will then command: Right-DRESS. |
| 513. | At this command, the second company will dress forward on the line; the captain will direct its alignment on the front rank man who has rested his breast against the left guide of the company. |
| 514. | The following companies will thus come successively to form themselves on the line of battle each conforming itself to what has just been prescribed for the one next to the right; and when they shall all be established, the colonel will command: Guides-POSTS. |
| 515. | At this command, the guides will take their places in line of battle, and the markers placed before the right company will retire. |
| 516. | If the column be marching in quick time, and the colonel should wish to cause the movement to be executed in double quick time, he will add the command: Double quick- MARCH. At the command march, all the companies will take the double quick step, and the movement will be executed as prescribed No. 503 and following. |
| 519. | The colonel will follow up the formation, passing along the front, and being always opposite to the company about to turn: it is thus that he will be the better able to see and to correct the error that would result from a command given too soon or too late to the preceding company. |
| 520. | The lieutenant colonel will, with the greatest care, assure the direction of the guides; to this end, the instant that the markers are established for the leading company, he will move a little beyond the point at which the left of the next company will rest, establish himself correctly on the prolongation of the two markers, and assure the guide of the second company on this direction; this guide being assured, the lieutenant colonel will place himself farther to the rear, in order to assure, in like manner, the guide of the third company, and so on, successively, to the left of the battalion. In assuring the guides in their positions on the line of battle, he will take care to let them first place themselves, and confine himself to rectifying their positions if they do not cover accurately, and at the proper distance, the preceding guides or markers. This rule is general, for all successive formations. |
| 521. | A column, left in front, will form itself on the left into line of battle according to the same principles: the captains will go to the left of their respective companies to align them, and shift afterward to their proper flanks, as prescribed No. 474. |
| 522. | In a column left in front, the platoon columns will be governed by the same principles as are prescribed for them in a column right in front. |
| Remarks on the formation on the right, or left, into line of battle. | |
| 523. | In order that this movement may be executed with regularity, it is necessary to establish the line of battle so that the guide of each company, after turning, may have at least ten steps to take, in order to come upon that line. |
| 524. | In the first exercises, the line of battle will be established on a direction parallel to that of the column; but, when the captains and guides shall comprehend the mechanism of the movement, the colonel will generally choose oblique directions, in order to habituate the battalion to form itself in any direction. |
| 525. | When the direction of the line of battle forms a sensible angle with that of the march of the column, the colonel, having changed the guide as indicated No. 502, will, before it arrives opposite the right of the line, give the head of the column a new direction parallel to the line; to this end, he will indicate to the guide of the leading company a point in advance, on which this guide will immediately direct himself, and the company will conform itself to the direction of its guide. at the command, or on a mere caution. or the captain, according as the change of direction may require; each following company will make the same movement, on hte same ground, as it shall successively arrive. By this means the guides of all the companies in the column will have, after turning nearly the same number of paces to take in order to come upon the line of battle. |
| 526. | Every captain will always observe, in placing himself on that line, not to give the command dress, until after the guide of his company shall have been assured on the direction by the lieutenant colonel. This rule is general for all successive formations. |
| 527. | Each captain will cause his company to support arms, the instant that the captain, who follows him, shall have commanded front. This rule is general for all successive formations. |
| 528. | When, in the execution of this movement, the colonel shall wish to commence firing, he will give the order to that effect to the captain whose company is the first in line of battle; this captain will immediately place himself behind the centre of his company, and as soon as the next captain shall have commanded front, he will commence the fire by file, by the commands prescribed, school of the company. At the command fire by file, the marker at the outer file of this first company will retire, and the other will place himself against the nearest man of the next company. The captain of the latter will commence firing as soon as the captain of the third company, in line, shall have commanded front; the marker before the nearest file of the second company, in line, will now retire, and the guide before the opposite flank will place himself before the nearest file of the third company, in line, and so on, in continuation, to the last company on the left or right of the battalion, according as the formation may have commenced with the right or left in front. |
| 529. | In all the successive formations, the same principles will be observed for the execution of the fire by file. This fire will always be executed by the command of each captain of company. |
|
Change Front to the Right, to the Left. Casey, SoB, paras 830-873 | |
| Changes of front. Change of front perpendicularly forward. | |
| 830. | The battalion being in line of battle, it is supposed to be the wish of the colonel to cause a change of front forward on the right company, and that the angle formed by the old and new positions be a right angle, or a few degrees more or less than one; he will cause two markers to be placed on the new direction, before the position to be occupied by that company, and order its captain to establish it against the markers. |
| 831. | The captain of the right company will immediately direct it upon the markers by a wheel to the right on the fixed pivot; and, after having halted it, he will align it by the right. |
| 832. | These dispositions being made, the colonel will command: 1. Change front forward on first company. 2. By company, right half wheel. 3. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 833. | At the first command, each captain will place himself before the centre of his company. |
| 835. | At the third, each company will wheel to the right on the fixed pivot, as prescribed in the S. C. 189; the left guide of each will place himself on its left as soon as he shall be able to pass; and when the colonel shall judge that the companies have sufficiently wheeled, he will command: 4. Forward. 5. MARCH. 6. Guide right. |
| 836. | At the fifth command, the companies ceasing to wheel will march straight forward; at the sixth, the men will touch elbows towards the right. |
| 837. | The right guide of the second company will march straight forward until this company shall arrive at the point where it should turn to the right; each succeeding right guide will follow the file immediately before him at the cessation of the wheel, and will march in the trace of this file until this company shall turn to the right to move upon the line; this guide will then march straight forward. |
| 838. | The second company having arrived opposite to the left file of the first, its captain will cause it to turn to the right; the right guide will direct himself so as to arrive squarely upon the line of battle, and, when he shall be at three paces from that line, the captain will command: 1. Second company. 2. HALT. |
| 839. | At the second command, the company will halt; the files not yet in line with the guide will come into it promptly, the left guide will place himself on the line of battle, and as soon as he is assured in the direction by the lieutenant colonel, the captain will align the company by the right. |
| 840. | Each following company will conform to what has just been prescribed for the second. |
| 842. | The formation ended, the colonel will command: Guides-POSTS. |
| 843. | If the battalion be in march, and the colonel shall wish to change front forward on the first company, and that the angle formed by the old and new positions be a right angle, he will cause two markers to be placed on the new direction, before the position to be occupied by that company, and will command: 1. Change front forward on first company. 2. By company, right half wheel. 8. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 844. | At the first command, the captains will move rapidly before the centre of their respective companies; the captain of the first company will command: 1. Right turn; 2. Quick time; the captains of the other companies will caution them to wheel to the right. |
| 846. | At the command march, the first company will turn to the right, according to the principles prescribed in the S.S., No. 415; its captain will halt it at three paces from the markers, and the files in rear will promptly come into line. The captain will align the company by the right. |
| 847. | Each of the other companies will wheel to the right on a fixed pivot; the left guides will place themselves on the left of their respective companies, and when the colonel shall judge they have wheeled sufficiently, he will command: 4. Forward. 5. MARCH. 6. Guide right. |
| 848. | These commands will be executed as indicated No. 833 and following. |
| 850. | The colonel will cause the battalion to change front forward on the eighth company according to the same principles and by inverse means. |
| Change of front perpendicularly to the rear. | |
| 852. | The colonel, wishing to change front to the rear on the right company, will impart his purpose to the captain of this company. The latter will immediately face his company about, wheel it to the left on the fixed pivot, and halt it when it shall be in the direction indicated to him by the colonel; the captain will then face his company to the front and align it by the right against the two markers, whom the colonel will cause to be established before the right and left files. |
| 854. | These dispositions being made, the colonel will command: 1. Change front to the rear, on first company. 2. Battalion, about-FACE. 3. By company, left half wheel 4. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 855. | At the second command, all the companies, except the right, will face about. |
| 857. | At the third, the captains, whose companies have faced about, will each place himself behind the centre of his company, two paces from the front rank, now the rear. |
| 859. | At the fourth, these companies will wheel to the left on the fixed pivot by the rear rank; the left guide of each will, as soon as he is able to pass, place himself on the left of the rear rank of his company, now become the right; and when the colonel shall judge that the companies have sufficiently wheeled, he will command: 6. Forward. 6. MARCH. 7. Guide left. |
| 860. | At the sixth command, the companies will cease to wheel, march straight forward towards the new line of battle, and, at the seventh, take the touch of the elbow towards the left. |
| 861. | The guide of each company on its right flank, become left, will conform himself to the principles prescribed No. 837. |
| 862. | The second company, from the right, having arrived opposite to the left of the first, will turn to the left; the guide will so direct himself as to arrive parallelly with the line of battle, cross that line, and when the front rank, now in the rear, shall be three paces beyond it, the captain will command: 1. Second company; 2. HALT. |
| 863. | At the second command, the company will halt; the files which may not yet be in line with the guide will promptly come into it; the captain will cause the company to face about, and then align it by the right. |
| 864. | All the other companies will execute what has just been prescribed for the second, each as it successively arrives opposite to the left of the company that precedes it on the new line of battle. |
| 866. | The formation being ended, the colonel will oommand: Guides-POSTS. |
| 867. | The colonel will cause a change of front on the left company of the battalion to the rear, according to the same principles and by inverse means. |
| 869. | In changes of front, the colonel will give general superintendence to the movement. |
| 870. | The lieutenant-colonel will assure the direction of the guides as they successively move out on the line of battle, conforming himself to what has been prescribed in the successive formations. |
| Remarks on changes of front | |
| 871. | When the new direction is perpendicular, or nearly so, to that of the battalion, the companies ought to make about a half wheel (the eighth of the circle) before marching straight forward; but when those two lines are oblique to each other, the smaller the angle which they form, the less ought the companies to wheel. It is for the colonel to judge, according to the angle, the precise time when he ought to give the command march after the caution forward, and if he cannot catch the exact moment, the word of execution should rather be given a little too soon, than an instant too late. |
| 872. | When the old and the new lines form an angle of forty-five or fewer degrees, the colonel will find it necessary to arrest the wheel of the companies when the marching flanks shall have taken but a few paces, or, it may be, have but disengaged, respectively, from the fixed pivots of the next companies; and in all such cases the companies will arrive so nearly parallel to the new line as to be able to align themselves upon it without the intermediate turn to the right or left: to execute the movement under either circumstance supposed, the colonel will command: Oblique change of front, forward (or to the rear) on (such company). |
|
To ploy the battalion into column doubled on the centre. Casey, SoB part IV paras 874-897 | |
| 874. | This movement consists in ploying the corresponding companies of the right and left wings into column at company distance, or closed in mass, in rear of the two centre companies, acccrding to the principles prescribed Article Third, Part Second, of this School. |
| 875. | The colonel, wishing to form the double column at company distance (the battalion being in line of battle), will command: 1. Double column, at half distance. 2. Battalion, inward-FACE. 3. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 876. | At the first command, the captains will place themselves two paces in front of their respective companies; the captains of the two centre companies will caution them to stand fast, and the other captains will caution their companies to face to the left and right, respectively. The covering sergeants will step into the front rank. |
| 878. | At the second command, the fourth and fifth companies will stand fast; the others of the right wing will face to the left, and the others of the left wing will face to the right; each captain whose company has faced will hasten to break to the rear the two files at the head of his company; the left guide of each right company, and the right guide of each left company, will each place himself at the head of its front rank, and the captain by the side of his guide. |
| 880. | At the command march, the fourth and fifth companies, which are to form the first division, will stand fast; the senior captain of the two will place himself before the centre of the division, and command: Guide Right; the junior captain will place himself in the interval between the two companies, and the left guide of the left company will place himself in the front rank on the left of the division, as soon as he shall be able to pass. |
| 881. | All the other companies, conducted by their captains, will step off with life to arrange themselves in column at company distance, each company behind the preceding one in the column of the same wing, so that, in the right wing, the third may be next behind the fourth, the second next to the third, and so on to the right company; and, in the left wing, the sixth may be next behind the fifth, the seventh next to the sixth, and so on to the left company of the battalion. |
| 882. | The corresponding companies of the two wings will unite into divisions in arranging themselves in column; an instant before the union, at the centre of the column, the left guides of right companies will pass into the line of file closers, and each captain will command: 1. Such company; 2. Halt; 3. FRONT |
| 883. | At the second command, which will be given at the instant of union, each company will halt; at the third, it will face to the front. The senior captain in each division will place himself on its right, and command, Right-DRESS, an the junior captain will place himself in the interval between the two companies. The division being aligned, its chief will command FRONT, and take his position two paces before its centre. |
| 885. | The column being thus formed, the divisions will take the respective denominations of first, second, third, &c., according to position in the column, beginning at the front. |
| 886. | The lieutenant colonel, who at the second command given by the colonel will have placed himself at a little more than company distance in rear of the right guide of the first division, will assure the right guides on the direction as they successively arrive, by placing himself in their rear, and then take post as indicated in No. 175, outside the right flank of the column. |
| 887. | The senior major will follow the movement abreast with the last company, and them take post as indicated in No. 176, outside the right flank fo the column. The junior major will place himself abreast with the first platoon of the first platoon column, six paces outside its right flank. |
| 888. | The music will pass to the rear of the column. |
| 889. | The battalion being in march, to form the double column at company distance without halting the battalion, the colonel will command: 1. Double column, at half distance. 2. Battalion by the right and left flanks. 3. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 890. | At the first command, each captain will move briskly in front of the centre of his company; the captains of the fourth and fifth will caution their companies to march straight forward, and will command quick time; the other captains will caution their companies to face to the right and left. |
| 892. | At the command march, the fourth and fifth companies will continue to march straight forward; the senior captain will place himself before the centre of his division, and command, Guide Right; the junior captain will place himself in the interval between the two companies. The left guide of the fifth company will place himself on the left of the front rank of the division. The men will take the touch of elbows to the right. The color and general guides will retake their places. The three right companies will face to the left, and the three left companies will face to the right. Each captain will break to the rear two files at the head of his company; the left guides of the right companies, and the right guides of the left companies, will each place himself at the head of the front rank of his company, and the captain by the side of his guide. |
| 893. | The third and sixth companies will enter the column and direct themselves parallelly to the first division. Each of the other companies will, in like manner, place itself behind the company of the wing to which it belongs, and will be careful to gain as much ground as possible towards the head of the column. |
| 894. | The corresponding companies of each wing will unite into divisions on taking their positions in column, and each captain, the instant the head of his company arrives at the centre of the column, will command: 1. Such company by the right (or left) flank. 2. MARCH. The senior captain of the two companies will place himself in front of the centre of his division, and command, Guide Right; the junior captain will place himself in the interval between the two companies. The two companies thus formed into a division will take the touch of elbows to the right, and when each division has gained its proper distance, its chief will cause it to march in quick time. |
| 896. | When the battalion presents an odd number of companies, the formation will be made in like manner, and the company on either flank which shall find itself without a corresponding one, will place itself at company distance behind the wing to which it belongs. |
| 897. | The double column, closed in mass, will be formed according to the same principles and by the same commands, substituting the indication, closed in mass, for that of at half distance. |
|
Deployment of the double column, faced to the front. Casey, SoB Part V paras 946-955 | |
| 946. | The colonel, wishing to deploy the double column, will place a marker respectively before the right and left files of the first division, and a third before the left file of the right company, same division; which being done, he will cause the two general guides to spring out on the alignment of the markers a little beyond the points at which the respective fianks of the battalion ought to rest; he will then command: 1. Deploy column. 2. Battalion outward-Face 3. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 947. | The column will deploy itself on the two companies at its head, according to the principles prescribed for the deployment of columns in mass. The captains of these companies will each, at the command march, place himself on the right of his own company, and align it by the right; the captain of the fourth will then place himself in the rear rank, and the covering sergeant in the rank of file closers, at the moment the captain of the third shall come to its left to align it. |
| 951. | The deployment being ended, the colonel will command: Guides-POSTS. |
| 952. | If it be the wish of the colonel to cause the fire to commence pending the deployment, he will give an order to that effect to the captains of the fourth and fifth companies, and the fire will be executed according to the principles prescribed No. 528. |
| 953. | The battalion being in double column and in march, if the colonel shall wish to deploy it without halting the column, he will cause three markers to be posted on the line of battle, and when the head of the column shall arrive near the markers, he will command: 1. Deploy column. 2. Battalion, by the right and left flanks. 3. MARCH (or double quick, MARCH). |
| 954. | The column will deploy on the two leading companies, according to the principles prescribed for the deployment of a close column, No. 580 and following; at the command march, the chief of the first division will halt it, and the captains of the fourth and fifth companies will align their companies by the right. |
| 955. | If the column be in march, and it be the wish of the colonel to deploy the column and to continue to march in the order of battle, he will not cause markers to be established at the head of the column. The movement will be executed by the commands and means indicated No. 953, observing what follows. At the first command, the chief of the first division will command, Quick time. At the command march, the first division will continue to march in quick time; the colonel will command, Guide centre. The captains of the fourth and fifth companies, the color, and the men, will immediately conform to the principles of the march in line of battle. The companies will take the quick step by the command of their captains, as they successively arrive in line. The movement completed, the colonel may cause the battalion to march in double quick time. |
|
To form the double column into line of battle, faced to the right or left. Casey, SoB Part V paras 958-975 | |
| 958. | The double column, being at company distance and at a halt, may be formed into line of battle faced to the right or left; when the colonel shall wish to form it faced to the right, he will command: 1. Right into line wheel, left companies on the right into line. 2. Battalion, guide right. 3. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 959. | At the first command, each captain will place himself before the centre of his company; the right companies will be cautioned that they will have to wheel to the right into line, the left companies that they will have to march straight forward. |
| 961. | At the second command, the left guide of the fourth company will place himself briskly on the direction of the right guides of the column, face to them, and opposite to one of the three last files of his company when in line of battle; the lieutenant colonel will assure him in that position. |
| 962. | At the command march, briskly repeated by all the captains, the right companies will form to the right into line of battle, the left companies will put themselves in march in order to form on the right into line of battle; these formations will be executed by the means indicated No. 464 and following, No. 502 and following; the lieutenant colonel will assure the guides of the left wing on the line of battle as they successively come upon it. |
| 965. | If the column be in march, the colonel will command: 1. Right into line wheel. 2. Left companies, on the right into line. 3. Battalion, guide right. 4. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 966. | At the first command, each captain will place himself promptly before the centre of his company; the right companies will be cautioned that they will have to wheel to the right, and the left companies that they will have to form on the right into line. |
| 968. | At the command march, briskly repeated, the right companies will form to the right into line, and the left companies on the right into line. These formations will be executed as prescribed Nos. 476, 503, and following. |
| 970. | If the colonel should wish to move the battalion forward, at the moment the right companies have completed the wheel, he will command: 5. Forward. 6. MARCH (or double quick-MARCH). |
| 971. | At the command forward, the captains of the right companies will command, Quick Time. At the command march, the right companies will cease to wheel, and march straight forward. The colonel will then add: 7. Guide centre. |
| 972. | The movement of the left companies will be executed in double quick time as prescribed above, and as they arrive on the line each captain will cause his company to march in quick time. |
| 974. | The column may be formed faced to the left into line of battle according to the same principles. |
| 975. | If the column be closed in mass instead of at company distance, these movements will be executed according to the principles prescribed Nos. 637, and 638. |
| Remarks on the deployment of the double column | |
| 976. | The depth of the double column, at company distance, being inconsiderable, closing it in mass, if at a halt, in order to deploy it, may be dispensed with; but if it be in march, it will be preferable to cause it so to close, in halting, before deploying. |
| 977. | The double column will be deployed habitually on the centre companies, but the colonel may sometimes deploy it on any interior company, or on the first or eighth company. |