Janissaries of Constantinople was frequently sent into garrison on the
frontiers of Turkey, or to places where the loyalty of the inhabitants
was doubted. The Janissaries did not indeed assist in the immediate
defense of a besieged town or fortress, but they watched the motions of
all suspected persons, and were subject to the orders of their officers,
who usually commanded the garrison.
=Garter, Order of the.= One of the most ancient and illustrious of the
military orders of knighthood. It was instituted by Edward III. of
England, and dates from about the year 1350, though some writers say
1344. Its origin is variously related. In Rastel’s “Chronicles” it is
stated that this order was devised by Richard I. at the siege of Acre,
when he is said to have caused 26 knights to wear thongs of blue leather
about their legs. But the common account is, that the Countess of
Salisbury happened at a ball to drop her garter, and that the king took
it up and presented it to her, at the same time exclaiming, _Honi soit
qui mal y pense_,--“Evil be to him who evil thinks,” in reference to the
smiles which he observed the action had excited among some of the
bystanders; adding “that shortly they should see that garter advanced to
so high an honor and renown, as to account themselves happy to wear it.”
It is founded in honor of the Holy Trinity, the Virgin Mary, St. Edward
the Confessor, and St. George; but the last, who had become the tutelary
saint of England, was considered its special patron; and for this reason
it has always borne the title of “The Order of St. George,” as well as
of “The Garter,” and those who wore it were called “Knights of St.
George.” The number of knights companions was originally 26, including
the sovereign, who is chief of the order; but in 1786 a statute was
passed to the effect that this number should be irrespective of princes
of the royal family, and illustrious foreigners on whom the honor might
be conferred. The well-known emblem of the order is a dark-blue ribbon
edged with gold, bearing the motto _Honi soit qui mal y pense_ in golden
letters, with a buckle and pendant of gold richly chased, and is worn on
the left leg below the knee. The mantle is of blue velvet, and on the
left breast a star is embroidered. The hood and surcoat are of crimson
velvet, and lined with white taffeta. The hat is of black velvet, with a
plume of white ostrich feathers, in the centre of which there is a tuft
of black herons’ feathers, all fastened to the hat by a band of
diamonds. The collar is of gold, and consists of 26 pieces, each in the
form of a garter. The “George” is the figure of St. George on horseback
encountering the dragon; it is worn to the collar, and there is a lesser
“George” pendent to a broad, dark-blue ribbon over the left shoulder.
=Garter King-of-Arms.= Is the principal king-of-arms in England. Though
held by the same person, they are distinct offices. The first was
instituted for the service of the order of the Garter (which see), not
on its first foundation, but afterwards by Henry V. as sovereign, with
the advice and consent of the knights-companions. The peculiar duty of
Garter king-of-arms is to attend upon the knights at their solemnities,
to intimate their election to those who are chosen by the order, to call
them to be installed at Windsor, to cause their arms to be hung up over
their stalls, and to marshal their funeral processions, and those of
royal personages, and of members of higher nobility. In the capacity of
principal king-of-arms, he grants and confirms arms, under the authority
of the earl marshal, to whom he is not subject as Garter king-of-arms.
All new grants or patents of arms in England are first signed and sealed
by him, and then by the king (of arms) of the province to which the
applicant belongs.
=Gas-check.= The device used in breech-loading cannon to prevent the gas
from escaping at the breech. (See BROADWELL RING and BREECH-LOADING.)
Also a term applied by the English to the soft metal sabot in the rear
of rifled projectiles.
=Gasconade.= To boast; to brag; to vaunt; to bluster. The term was
originally derived from the Gascons, or people of Gascony, in France,
who it seems have been particularly distinguished for extravagant
stories.
=Gasconader.= A great boaster; a blusterer.
=Gascony.= Formerly a district in the southwest of France, situated
between the Bay of Biscay, the river Garonne, and the Western Pyrenees.
It derived its name from the Basques, or Vasques (Lat. _Vascones_), who,
driven by the Visigoths from their own territory on the southern slope
of the Western Pyrenees, crossed to the northern side, and settled here.
In 602, after an obstinate resistance, the Vasques were forced to submit
to the Franks. They now passed under the sovereignty of the dukes of
Aquitania, who for a time were independent of the crown, but were
afterwards conquered by King Pepin, and later by Charlemagne.
Subsequently it became incorporated with Aquitania, and for a time
became part of the English possessions, but was afterwards reconquered
by the French.
=Gastein=, =Badgastein=, or =Wilbad-Gastein=. A village of Austria, 49
miles south of Salzburg. On August 14, 1865, a convention was concluded
here between Austria and Prussia, to make arrangements relative to the
government of the duchies of Sleswick, Holstein, and Lauenburg, which
their combined forces had wrested from Denmark.
=Gate.= A door of strong planks with iron bars to oppose an enemy. Gates
are generally fixed in the middle of the curtain, from whence they are
seen and defended by the two flanks of the bastions. They should be
covered with a good ravelin, that they may not be seen or enfiladed by
the enemy. The palisades and barriers before the gates within the town
are often of great use.
=Gateshead.= A borough in Durham, on the Tyne, opposite Newcastle. At
Gatesheadfell, William I. defeated Edgar Atheling in 1068.
=Gateway.= The passage or opening in which a gate or large door is hung.
The gateway being a most important point in all fortified places, is
usually protected by various devices. It is flanked by towers with
loop-holes, from which assailants may be attacked, and is frequently
overhung by a machicolated battlement, from which missiles of every
description were poured upon the besiegers.
=Gath.= One of the five chief cities of the Philistines, was situated on
the frontiers of Judah, and was in consequence a place of much
importance in the wars between the Philistines and the Israelites. It
formed in fact the key of both countries, and was strongly fortified.
=Gatling Gun.= Is a machine gun, the 1 inch composed of six and the ¹⁄₂
inch of ten rifled barrels of steel, made to revolve around a central
axis parallel to their bores, by means of a hand crank. As each barrel
comes opposite to the hopper on the left side of the cylinder, a
self-primed metal case cartridge falls into a groove of the
cartridge-carrier, is pressed into the breech by a plunger, and held
there until exploded by the firing-pin. The empty case is withdrawn from
the barrel by an extractor attached to the cylinder containing the
firing-pin. With each revolution of the crank the 1-inch gun fires once,
and the ¹⁄₂-inch gun three times. The ¹⁄₂-inch gun is reduced to caliber
.45 inch, in order to use with it the projectile of the breech-loading
musket.
=Gaucho.= One of the native inhabitants of the pampas of La Plata, of
Spanish-American descent, celebrated for independence, horsemanship, and
rude, uncivilized mode of life.
=Gaugamela= (now _Karmelis_). A village in the district of Aturia, in
Assyria, the scene of the last and decisive battle between Alexander and
Darius Codomannus, 331 B.C., commonly called the battle of Arbela. See
ARBELA.
=Gauges.= In gunnery, are brass rings with handles, to find the diameter
of all kinds of shot with expedition. Also instruments of various kind
for verifying the dimensions of cannon and projectiles and the various
parts of small-arms. Modern small-arms are made on the _interchangeable
principle_, each part being accurately made to gauges. This principle
has revolutionized the manufacture of small-arms. It was first
introduced at the U. S. armory, at Harper’s Ferry, by Maj. Wade, of the
Ordnance Corps.
=Gaul=, or =Gallia=. The ancient name of France and Belgium. The
natives, termed by the Greeks Galatæ, by the Romans Galli or Celtæ, came
originally from Asia, and invading Eastern Europe, were driven westward,
and settled in Spain, North Italy, France and Belgium, and the British
Isles.
=Gauntlet= (Fr. _gantelet_). A large glove of mail; a covering for the
hand with plates of metal on the back, worn as a part of the defensive
armor in ancient times. A long glove, covering the wrist; as, a
riding-gauntlet. _To take up the gauntlet_, to accept a challenge. _To
throw down the gauntlet_, to offer or send a challenge; to defy.
=Gauntlet.= A kind of military punishment; the gantelet used in the
expression _to run the gauntlet_. See GANTLOPE.
=Gauntleted.= Wearing a gauntlet.
=Gawelgur.= A strong fortress of Hindostan, in the dominions of the
Nizam or ruler of Hyderabad. It was taken by Gen. Wellesley, December
14, 1803, after a siege of two days, but was restored to the rajah on
the conclusion of peace.
=Gaza.= A city of the Philistines, of which Samson carried off the
gates, about 1120 B.C. It was taken by Alexander after a long siege,
332, and near it Ptolemy defeated Demetrius Poliorcetes, 312 B.C. It was
taken by Saladin, 1170; by Bonaparte, March, 1799; and by the Egyptians
in 1831.
=Gaze.= In heraldry, when a beast of the chase is represented as
_affronté_, or full-faced, it is said to be at _gaze_.
=Gazette.= To announce or publish in a gazette; to announce officially;
as an appointment either civil or military. All commissions in the
British army, militia, fencible, and volunteer corps must be gazetted.
=Gazons.= In fortification, pieces of fresh earth, or sods, covered with
grass, and cut in the form of a wedge, about a foot long and half a foot
thick, to line the outsides of a work made of earth, as ramparts,
parapets, banquettes, etc. The first bed of gazons is fixed with pegs of
wood, and the second bed is so laid as to bind the former, by being
placed over its joints, and so continued till the works are finished.
Between those it is usual to sow all sorts of binding weeds or herbs, in
order to strengthen the rampart.
=Gear.= Warlike accoutrements; military harness; equipage.
=Geat.= The hole through which the metal is conveyed to the mold in
casting ordnance.
=Gebegis.= Armorers among the Turks were so called.
=Gebelis.= A Turkish corps of picked men.
=Gebelus.= Every Timariot in Turkey, during a campaign, is obliged to
take a certain number of horsemen, who are called gebelus, and to
support them at his own expense. He is directed to take as many as would
annually cost 3000 _aspres_ for subsistence.
=Gela.= In ancient times, a very important city on the southern coast of
Sicily. It was founded by a Rhodian and Cretan colony, in 690 B.C. In
505 B.C., Cleander made himself tyrant, and the colony reached its
highest pitch of power under his brother Hippocrates, who subdued almost
the whole of Sicily, with the exception of Syracuse. Gelon, the
successor of Hippocrates, pursued the same career of conquest, and
Syracuse itself fell into his hands, and was even made his principal
residence, Gela being committed to the government of his brother Hiero.
After many vicissitudes during the Carthaginian war in Sicily, it
ultimately fell into decay. Its ruin was completed by Phintias, tyrant
of Agrigentum, who, a little before 280 B.C., removed the inhabitants to
a town in the neighborhood which he had founded, and to which he gave
his own name. It occupied what is now the site of Terra Nova.
=Gelibach.= A sort of superintendent or chief of the gebegis, or
armorers, among the Turks. He is only subordinate to the _toppi bachi_,
or the grand master of the Turkish artillery.
=Gellia Gens.= A plebeian family; was of Samnite origin and afterwards
settled at Rome. There were two generals of this family in the Samnite
wars, Gellius Status in the second Samnite war, who was defeated and
taken prisoner 305 B.C., and Gellius Egnatius in the third Samnite war.
=Gembloux.= A town of Belgium, on an affluent of the Sambre, 11 miles
northwest from Namur. The French gained a victory over the Austrians
near this town in 1794.
=Genappe.= A village of Belgium, in Southern Brabant, on the banks of
the Dyle, 18 miles southeast from Brussels. Several military actions
took place here in 1815, both before and after Waterloo, between the
French and the allied forces.
=Gendarmes=, or =Gens d’Armes= (men-at-arms). Originally, and up to the
time of the first French revolution, the most distinguished cavalry
corps in the service of the Bourbon kings, to whom they formed a sort of
body-guard. Under existing arrangements the gendarmes constitute a
military police, and comprise both cavalry and infantry. The force
consists principally of soldiers taken from the army, generally on
account of intelligence and good conduct. The men receive much higher
pay than the rest of the army, of which, however, the corps is a part,
and they are liable in cases of emergency to be sent on active service.
=Gendarmery= (Fr. _gendarmerie_). The body of gendarmes or gens d’armes.
=General.= A term for the roll of the drum which calls the troops
together. To “beat the general” is a phrase drawn from the French drum
instructors, “_Battre la Generale_.”
=General.= The highest military title in the U. S. army, and the highest
military title below that of field-marshal in European armies. A general
ordinarily commands no body of men less than an army or _corps d’armée_.
=General, Adjutant-.= See ADJUTANT-GENERAL.
=General, Brigadier-.= See BRIGADIER-GENERAL.
=General, Colonel.= An honorary title, or military rank, which is
bestowed in foreign services. Thus the Prince of the Peace in Spain was
colonel general of the Swiss guards.
=General Court-Martial.= See COURT-MARTIAL.
=General de Battaile=, or =General Major=. A particular rank or
appointment, whose functions correspond with those of a cidevant marshal
of France. This situation is intrusted to a general officer, and is only
known among the armies of Russia, and some other Northern powers. He
takes precedence in the same manner that our major-generals do
of all brigadier-generals and colonels, and is subordinate to
lieutenant-generals.
=General des Galères= (_Fr._). Commander of the galleys, an officer of
high rank and extensive jurisdiction in France.
=General des Vivres= (_Fr._). Commissary of stores; a sort of chief
commissary or superintendent-general of stores, whose functions were to
provide ammunition, bread, and biscuit, for the army.
=Generalissimo.= The chief officer in command of an army. This word is
used in most foreign languages. It was first used to designate the
absolute authority of Cardinal Richelieu, when he went to command the
French army in Italy.
=General, Lieutenant-.= The second rank among general officers, and next
below that of general. The normal command of a lieutenant-general is
that of a division, but he is sometimes intrusted with the command of an
entire army.
=General, Major-.= The rank next below that of lieutenant-general, and
above brigadier-general. He usually commands a division; a general of
division.
=General Officers.= Are all officers whose authority extends beyond the
immediate command of a regiment, and who have either separate districts
or departments at home, or commands on foreign service. A brigade is the
smallest body of men constituting the command of a general officer. In
an army of very large proportions, the normal sequence of command would
be the following: The general commanding-in-chief, generalissimo,
captain-general, or field-marshal would command the whole force; the
generals would have separate _corps d’armée_; the lieutenant-generals,
wings of those _corps d’armée_; the major-generals, divisions in the
wings; and brigadier-generals, brigades in the divisions. In practice,
however, an army is rarely large enough to allow of this exact scheme of
military hierarchy being carried out; and general officers are also
frequently assigned to high commands without regard to seniority. In the
U. S. service there are one general, one lieutenant-general (whose
offices expire with the present incumbents), three major-generals, and
six brigadier-generals. The President is _ex officio_ commander-in-chief
of the army. In the English service the sovereign is captain-general,
and under the sovereign is the commander-in-chief, who takes rank as
field-marshal. In the staff corps the word general is also used, as
surgeon-, quartermaster-, adjutant-general, etc., to denote that the
holder of the office has charge of his special department, and does not
necessarily imply that he is a general officer. The chiefs of staff
departments, however, in the U. S. service are usually of the rank of
brigadier-general. In the German armies, and among the sovereigns of the
North, there are certain generals of cavalry, and others of infantry,
who take rank of all lieutenant-generals. In these armies it is usual
for generals, lieutenant-generals, and major-generals to take their
routine of duty, and rise progressively in the infantry or cavalry corps
to which they were originally appointed, until they arrived at a chief
command: whereas in France and other countries a major-general might be
employed to take charge of either infantry or cavalry, without any
regard being paid to the particular line of service in which he was
bred.
=General Orders.= See ORDERS.
=General’s Guard.= See GARDE.
=Generalship.= The office of general; the exercise of the functions of a
general; the skill and conduct of a general officer; military skill in a
commander.
=Geneva.= A walled town of Switzerland, and the capital of a small
canton, at the western extremity of the lake of the same name. In 1784
and 1794 revolutions took place in the city and state of Geneva; in 1798
it was taken by the French, and, till 1813, it was the capital of the
department Leman, in the French empire, under Napoleon I. In 1814 it
joined the Helvetic Confederation.
=Geneva, Convention of.= In October, 1863, an international convention
was held at Geneva, Switzerland, comprising 14 governments, including
Great Britain, France, Austria, Russia, Prussia and Italy, who were
represented by delegates, and propositions were drawn up forming the
“Red Cross Society,” for the succor of the wounded in time of warfare.
It gave aid to the sick and wounded during the Franco-German war, and
its flag is recognized by all powers as neutral.
=Genius.= In a military sense, natural talent or disposition to every
kind of warlike employment, more than any other; or, the aptitude a man
has received from nature to perform well and easily that which others
can do but indifferently and with a great deal of pains.
=Genoa.= A fortified maritime city in Northwestern Italy, once a
celebrated republic, now the capital of a province of Northwestern
Italy. From the 11th to the 18th century Genoa was the capital of a
flourishing republic; it was bombarded by the French in 1684, and
submitted to the Austrians in 1746; but, in consequence of a citizen
having been abused by an Austrian officer, the inhabitants rose and
massacred most of the soldiery, and drove away the remainder. The
republic in 1798 assumed the French form of government, with the title
of Ligurian republic, and in 1805 it was annexed to the French empire.
In 1815 it was ceded to the king of Sardinia, and in 1859 the French
troops landed here on their route to oppose the Austrian army, which had
invaded Sardinia.
=Genouillère.= That part of the parapet of a battery which remains above
the platform and under the gun, after the opening of the embrasure has
been made. The name is derived from the French _genou_, the knee. The
height of the genouillère is regulated by that of the gun-carriage,
generally from 2 to 3 feet.
=Gens.= In Roman antiquity, a clan, embracing several families, whose
bond of alliance was a common name and certain religious rites
performed in common. Persons of the same gens were called _gentiles_,
while those of the same family were designated _agnati_.
=Gens= (_Fr._). A word in much desultory use among the French,
signifying, in the general acceptation of it, people, servants,
soldiers, etc. This word is likewise used to distinguish bodies of men
that are in opposition to each other.
=Gens d’Armes.= See GENDARMES.
=Gentilhommes de la Garde= (_Fr._). Gentlemen of the guard. Commonly
called _Au bec de corbin_, or the battle-axe, from the weapon which they
carried. This company went through many alterations during the monarchy
of France. During the last years of that government it consisted of 200
guards, under the command of a captain, a lieutenant, and an ensign. The
captain had the power of giving away the subaltern commissions, and had,
moreover, the entire management of the rest; every vacancy being in his
gift. They marched in file, each holding his battle-axe, before the king
on days of public ceremony. When the company was first raised, its
particular duty was to attend the king’s person, and to be constantly
near him on the day of battle.
=Gentlemen-at-arms= (formerly called the _Gentlemen-Pensioners_). The
body-guard of the British sovereign, and, with the exception of the
yeomen of the guard, the oldest corps in the British service. It was
instituted in 1509 by Henry VIII., and now consists of 1 captain, 1
lieutenant, 1 standard-bearer, 1 clerk of the cheque, and 40 gentlemen,
who must all be retired military officers of service and distinction.
The attendance of gentlemen-at-arms is now rarely required, except on
the occasion of coronations and important state ceremonies.
=Geographical Department, Commander of.= Is assimilated to the commander
of a separate army, with the same powers and duties in similar cases
over all the troops within the limits of the department. In all
countries he derives his authority to command from the highest power of
the government. In the United States he is assigned by order of the
President, who alone can relieve him, and who also fixes the limits or
boundaries of the department. His duties are mainly derived from customs
of service. The only duties defined by statute relate to general
courts-martial, which he can convene, and his action is final on all
cases tried by such courts, except in the case of a general officer, or
where the sentence of the court extends to the loss of life or the
dismissal of a commissioned officer. In time of war he is authorized by
existing laws to execute the death penalty in cases of persons convicted
as spies, mutineers, deserters, or murderers, and in cases of guerrilla
marauders convicted in time of war of robbery, burglary, arson, rape,
assault with intent to commit rape, or violation of the laws of war. See
DEPARTMENT, MILITARY.
=Geographical Division, Military.= In the United States a geographical
military division consists of a number of geographical military
departments, usually under the command of a general officer.
=Geometry.= That branch of mathematics which investigates the relations,
properties and measurements of solids, surfaces, lines, and angles; the
science which treats of the properties and relations of magnitudes. Its
usefulness extends to almost every art and science. It is by the
assistance of geometry that engineers conduct all their works, take the
situation and plans of towers, the distances of places, and the measure
of such things as are only accessible to the sight. It is not only an
introduction to fortification, but highly necessary to mechanics. On
geometry, likewise, depends the theory of gunnery, mining, mechanics,
hydraulics, pneumatics, etc.