Oestreichern_; and Prussia--_bei den Preussen_. The former are a sort of
a reserve to each regiment of the line; they are under the same colonel,
and are drilled once a year with the line regiment. The Prussian
landwehr is more completely national. Every Prussian subject commences
military service in the standing army, a force composed of the youth of
the nation from twenty to twenty-five years old. After two or three
years of service, the soldier proceeds to his home, but is liable to be
called upon to join his regiment. During this period he is called a
_reservist_. At the expiration of five years from the date of
enlistment, the men are transferred into the first class or levy of the
landwehr, remaining in it until their thirty-second year. In time of war
they are liable to be called upon to serve with the regiment of the line
of a corresponding number,--in fact, they form the reserve of that
regiment whence reinforcements are drawn. From their thirty-second to
their thirty-ninth year the men belong to the second levy, and are only
called out occasionally in time of peace, but in war they garrison
fortresses.
=Lane.= The term applied to a body of soldiers in two ranks standing
face to face, forming, in fact, a street, passage, or lane. The French
call this formation _haie_, or hedge. It is used when troops form a
guard of honor for persons of rank to pass through.
=Langensalza.= A town of Prussian Saxony, on the Salza, 20 miles
northwest of Erfurt. The French and Saxons were here defeated by the
Prussians in 1750; in 1761 the Prussians and English defeated the German
imperial army; in 1813 the Prussians were defeated by the Bavarians; and
in 1866, a bloody contest took place between the Prussians and
Hanoverians, resulting in the capture of the Hanoverian army as
prisoners of war.
=Langrel=, or =Langrage=. A villainous kind of shot, consisting of
various fragments of iron bound together, so as to fit the bore of the
cannon from which it is to be discharged. It is seldom used but by
privateers.
=Languedoc= (anc. _Narbonensis Prima_). An old province of the south of
France, bounded east by the river Rhone, and south by the Mediterranean.
As a Roman province it enjoyed the freedom of Italy. It formed part of
Gallia Narbonensis, but, in the Middle Ages, was known as _Septimania_,
from the seven cathedral churches which it contained. From the hands of
the Romans it passed into the possession of the Goths; and being wrested
from them, it was occupied by the Saracens till 725, when they were
expelled by Charles Martel. It afterwards came under the sway of Philip
the Bold, and became a part of the French Kingdom in 1361.
=Languet=. A small slip of metal on the hilt of a sword, which overhangs
the scabbard; the ear of a sword.
=Lansdown.= In Somersetshire, England. The Parliamentary army under Sir
William Waller was defeated here July 5, 1643.
=Lansquenet.= A German foot-soldier; originally one of the serfs who
followed the camp in the service of the common soldiers; afterward one
of the independent troops who hired themselves to those willing to pay
highest for their services.
=Lanterne= (_Fr._). Sometimes called _cuiller_, or ladle, serves to
convey gunpowder into a piece of ordnance. It is made of copper, and
resembles a round spoon or ladle, which is fixed to a long pole.
=Lanuvium= (now _Civita Lavinia_). An old and important city of Latium,
on the Appian Way, 20 miles south of Rome. Tradition describes it as a
colony from Alba; but it first rose to importance in the 5th century
B.C., when it took part against Rome as one of the thirty cities of the
Latin League. Its name again appears in the long wars between Rome and
the Æqui and Volsci, siding with the former; it changed sides in 383
B.C., but was leniently treated by its old ally at the end of the war.
In the great Latin war, 340 B.C., it again took part against Rome, and
in the general settlement at the close of hostilities, it obtained the
Roman _civitas_.
=Lanyards.= See IMPLEMENTS.
=Laodicea ad Mare= (now _Ladikiyeh_). A city on the coast of Syria,
about 50 miles south from Antioch; was built by Seleucus I. on the site
of an earlier city, called Ramitha. It was severely punished by Cassius
for its adherence to Dolabella, and again suffered in the Parthian
invasion of Syria. It was taken and destroyed by the Arabs in 1188.
=Laon.= A town of France, in the department of the Aisne, 75 miles
northeast from Paris. It was besieged by the barbarians in 407; taken
and sacked by Gelimer in 682; unsuccessfully besieged by the Normans in
882; taken by Eudes, count of Paris, in 892, by Charles the Simple in
895, and by Robert of France, who held it till 923. It was taken by the
Duke of Burgundy in 1411; by the royal troops in 1414; surrendered in
1419 by Philip the Good to the English, who were dispossessed in 1429.
It was unsuccessfully besieged by the Calvinists in 1567, and was taken
by Henry IV. in 1594. On March 10, 1814, an indecisive battle was fought
here between the French troops under Napoleon, and the Prussians under
Blücher.
=Lapelle=, or =Lapel=. The facings of uniform coats were formerly so
termed. Until the introduction of epaulettes in 1812, the white lapelle
was synonymous with a lieutenant’s commission in the British service.
=Lapithæ.= A wild race, inhabiting, in ancient times, the mountains of
Thessaly. They derived their name from a mythical ancestor, _Lapithes_,
a son of Apollo, and the brother of Centauros, the equally mythical
ancestor of the Centaurs. A bloody war is said to have been waged
between the kindred races in prehistoric times, which ended in the
defeat of the Centaurs, but the Lapithæ were in their turn defeated by
Hercules.
=Laplander.= An inhabitant of Lapland, a country of Northern Europe.
=Lapse.= To fall in, or belong to. This expression was formerly used in
the British army to signify the reversion of any military property.
Thus, upon the sale or purchase of one commission at the regulated
difference, another (where there are two) is said to lapse to
government. Commissions lapse, or fall into the patronage of government,
when vacancies happen by death, by officers being superseded, or where
officers apply to sell who have only purchased a part of their
commissions, and have not served long enough to be entitled to sell the
whole; in which case they are only permitted to sell what they actually
purchased, and the remainder is in the gift of the government.
=Lap-weld.= A weld in which the welding edges are made thin, lapped one
over the other and welded.
=Laranda= (now _Larenda_, or _Caraman_). A considerable town in the
south of Lycaonia. It was taken by storm by Perdiccas, but afterwards
restored. It was used by the Isaurian robbers as one of their
strongholds.
=Largs.= A seaport of Scotland, in Ayrshire, 23 miles southwest from
Glasgow. Here, in 1263, Alexander III. of Scotland gained a victory over
Haco, king of Norway.
=Lariat.= The lasso, a long cord or thong of leather with a noose, used
in catching wild horses and other animals. The term is now applied to a
rope 1¹⁄₄ inches in circumference and 30 feet long, made of Italian
hemp, which is used in the U. S. cavalry service to picket horses while
grazing.
=La Roda.= A town of Spain, in the province of Murcia, 22 miles
northwest from Albacete. This place is famous for the defense it made
against the Carlists in 1840.
=La Rothière= (France), =Battle of=. Took place between the French,
commanded by Napoleon, and the Prussian and Russian armies, which were
defeated with great loss after a desperate engagement, February 1, 1814.
This was one of Napoleon’s last victories.
=Lascar.= In the East Indies, signifies properly a camp-follower, but is
generally applied to native sailors on board of British ships. The
Lascars make good seamen, but being of an excessively irritable and
revengeful nature, are generally kept in the minority in a ship’s crew.
=Lash.= To tie or bind with a rope or cord; to secure or fasten by a
string.
=Lashes.= Formerly a general court-martial could sentence a soldier to
receive a certain number of lashes. This mode of punishment is
prohibited in the U. S. service. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 98.
=Lashing-rings.= Are fixed on the sides of artillery
traveling-carriages, to lash the tarpaulin, as also to tie the sponge,
rammer, and ladle.
=Lasso.= A rope or cord with a running noose, used by men on horseback
in Spanish America, Texas, and Southern California for catching cattle,
wild horses, grizzly bears, etc. It is said that the lasso was used by
the ancient Sarmatians and Parthians. Certain Patagonians use a lasso
with a stone tied to the end,--instead of a noose.
=Laswarree.= A town of Hindostan, in Delhi, which was the scene of the
defeat of the Mahrattas by Lord Lake, November, 1803.
=Latham House.= In Lancashire, England; it was heroically defended for
three months against the Parliamentarians, by Charlotte, countess of
Derby. She was relieved by Prince Rupert, May, 1644. The house was,
however, surrendered December 4, 1645, and dismantled.
=Lathe.= In the manufacture of ordnance, lathes are machines for turning
cannon, gun-barrels, etc.
=Latrines.= Conveniences for soldiers in camps and barracks. Much
attention has of late been devoted to their construction; a large
percentage of the army sickness having been traced to their defective
and impure condition.
=Lauenberg.= A duchy of Northern Germany, but formerly united with the
crown of Denmark; was conquered from the Wends by Henry the Lion of
Saxony about 1152; ceded to Hanover, 1689, and seized along with Hanover
by the French in 1803. It was afterwards, with some change of boundary,
made over to Prussia, and by Prussia transferred to Denmark in 1815,
with reservation of rights. In 1870 it was re-annexed to Prussia.
=Laufach.= In Bavaria, Southwestern Germany; it was taken by the
Prussians, under Wrangel, July, 1860, after a sharp action, in which the
Hessians were defeated.
=Launch.= To throw as a spear or dart; to send forth. Written also
_lanch_.
=Laundresses.= Camp-women, usually the wives of soldiers, employed to
wash soldiers’ clothing.
=Laurel.= An evergreen shrub, selected for the brows of heroes and
conquerors, and emblematic of their unfading reputation.
=Lauterburg.= A town of France, in the department of the Lower Rhine, 33
miles northeast from Strasburg. In 1793 the French forced the famous
lines of Lauterburg, and took this place.
=Laval.= A town of France, in the department of the Mayenne, situated on
the Mayenne, 42 miles east from Rennes. This place suffered greatly in
the Vendean war, towards the close of the last century.
=La Vendée= (West France). The French royalists of La Vendée took arms
in March, 1793, and were successful in a number of hard-fought battles
with the republicans, between July 12, 1793, and January 1, 1794, when
they experienced a severe reverse. Their leader Henri, comte de
Larochejaquelein, was killed March 4, 1794. A short peace was made at La
Jaunay, February 17, 1795. The war was terminated by Gen. Hoche in 1796.
A treaty of peace was signed at Luçon, January 17, 1800.
=Lavure= (_Fr._). The grains, dust, or detached pieces of metal which
fall in casting cannon.
=Law, Martial.= See MARTIAL LAW.
=Law, Military.= A branch of the general municipal law, consisting of
rules ordained for the government of the military forces of a state or
government, and those voluntarily serving with them, equally in peace
and war, and administered by tribunals of special and limited
jurisdiction. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR.
=Law of Arms.= Certain acknowledged rules, regulations, and precepts,
which relate to war; and are observed by all civilized nations. The laws
of arms also show how to proclaim war, to attack the enemy, and to
punish offenders in the camp, etc.
=Law of Nations.= Such general rules as regard the embassies, reception
and entertainment of strangers, intercourse of merchants, exchange of
prisoners, suspension of arms, etc.
=Laws, Execution of.= On all occasions when the troops are employed in
restoring or maintaining public order among their fellow-citizens, the
use of arms, and particularly fire-arms, is obviously attended with loss
of life or limb to private individuals; and for these consequences, a
military man may be called to stand at the bar of a criminal court. A
private soldier also may occasionally be detached on special duty, with
the necessity of exercising discretion as to the use of his arms; and in
such cases he is responsible, like an officer, for the right use or
exercise of such discretion.
Some years ago, the public journals of London recorded the meritorious
behavior of a private sentry, upon the occasion of a riotous mob
assembled at the entrance of Downing-Street with the intention of
attacking the government offices in that quarter of the town. This man
standing alone presented his musket, and threatened to fire upon the
crowd, if the slightest attempt were made to approach the particular
office for the defense of which he was placed on duty, and succeeded by
the terror thus created, though at a great risk of consequences to
himself, in keeping the rioters at bay until a larger force arrived to
assist him. The soldier’s conduct was publicly much approved. It was
also clearly legal according to Macadam’s case (a soldier tried before
the courts of Scotland in 1735); and if after the announcement of his
intentions the mob had pressed forward to execute their purpose, he
would have been held justified at law in firing at the rioters upon his
own responsibility. The Duke of Wellington, as Constable of the Tower,
testified his marked approbation of this man’s conduct, by promoting him
at once to a wardership at that fortress.
The right of officers or soldiers to interfere in quelling a _felonious
riot_, whether with or without superior military orders, or the
direction of a civil magistrate, is quite clear, and beyond the
possibility of mistake. This subject, however, was formerly little
understood; and military men failed in their public duty through excess
of caution.
But notwithstanding the existence of a clear right and duty on the part
of military men voluntarily to aid in the suppression of a riot, it
would be the height of imprudence to intrude with military force, except
upon the requisition of the proper authority, unless in those cases
where the civil power is obviously overcome, or on the point of being
overcome, by the rioters.
When the civil officer may not deem it safe to wait for the orders of
government, he should address his requisition for troops, not to any
subordinate military officer, but to the highest authority, to whom he
should communicate his object in making it, and all the information he
may possess regarding the strength and designs of those by whom the
public peace is menaced or disturbed. His duty is confined to these
points. _He has no authority in directing military operations._ The
officer commanding the troops has alone authority to determine the
number and nature of those to be employed; the time and manner of making
the attack, and every other operation for the reduction of the enemy.
Under no circumstances can U. S. troops be called into service at the
“polls.”
In the United States, regular troops can be ordered only to serve
against rioters, or other lawless bands of citizens, under the orders of
the President to co-operate with the civil authorities.
It should ever be the aim of military men to attain the desired end by
the exercise of passive interposition.
=Laws of War.= The recognized rules for the conduct of civilized
warfare. These rules relate to the treatment of prisoners,
non-combatants, spies, traitors, etc.; the disposition of private
property, the rights of capture, occupation and conquest, the
establishment of blockades, the rights and obligations of neutrals, etc.
=Lay.= To quit; to surrender the use of; as, lay down one’s arms. _To
lay for_, is to attempt something by ambuscade.
=Lay.= To point or aim; as, to lay a gun. See POINTING.
=Lay About, To.= To strike, or throw the arms on all sides; to act with
vigor.
=Layette= (_Fr._). Three-sided tray or box without a cover, used to
carry powder from one mortar to another in powder-mills.
=Lazarus.= A military order instituted at Jerusalem by the Christians of
the West, when they were masters of the Holy Land. They received
pilgrims under their care, and guarded them on the roads from the
insults of the Mohammedans. This order was instituted in the year 1119,
and was confirmed by a bull of Pope Alexander IV. in 1255, who gave it
the rule of St. Augustine.
=Lazzaro, St.= In Northern Italy, where the king of Sardinia and the
Imperialists defeated the French and Spaniards after a long and severe
conflict, June 4, 1746.
=Lead.= To conduct as a chief or commander; as, let the troops follow
where their general leads.
=Lead Balls.= Are now generally made by compression, by means of
machinery, either at arsenals or at private establishments.
=Lead Out.= A command in the mounted service to cause the horses to be
taken from the stable or picket line preparatory to mounting or
harnessing.
=Leader.= A chief, a commander; a captain. Also the directing musician
of a band.
=Leadership.= The state or condition of a leader.
=Leading.= The clogging of the grooves of a rifle with lead from the
bullet,--one of the principal obstacles against continuous accurate
shooting. It is obviated by covering the bullet with a paper patch or by
using a lubricant in the canellures. See BULLETS.
=Leading Column.= The first column that advances from the right, left,
or centre of any army or battalion.
=Leading File.= The first two men of a battalion or company that marches
from right, left, or centre, by files. See FILE-LEADER.
=Leading Guide.= The foremost guide of a column.
=Leading Question.= In the proceedings of military tribunals, is a
question to a witness which suggests the desired answer. Such questions
are objectionable except under certain conditions.
=Leaf Sight.= A form of elevating rear sights, consisting of several
hinged leaves of different heights. See SIGHT.
=League.= A measure of length or distance, equal, in England and the
United States, to three geographical miles.
=League.= See HOLY LEAGUE.
=League, Achæan.= See ACHÆAN LEAGUE.
=League, First Suabian.= See SUABIA.
=League, Great Suabian.= See SUABIA.
=League, Holy.= See HOLY LEAGUE.
=League of Marbach.= See SUABIA.
=Leaguer.= A camp, generally of an investing army.
=Leaguer.= One who unites in a league; a confederate.
=Leaguerer.= One who belongs to or is engaged in a league; a leaguer.
=Leave of Absence.= See ABSENCE, LEAVE OF.
=Lech.= A river in Southern Germany, near which the cruel Gen. Tilly was
defeated by the Swedes, under Gustavus Adolphus, April 18, 1632. Tilly
died of his wounds soon after.
=Leek.= The Welsh emblem, in consequence of a command from Dewi, or
David, afterwards archbishop of St. David’s, in 519. On the day that
King Arthur won a great victory over the Saxons, Dewi is said to have
ordered the soldiers to place a leek in their caps.
=Leesburg.= See BALL’S BLUFF.
=Legatus.= Among the Romans, an ambassador, or lieutenant-general.
Legati were of three kinds: (1) Those sent by foreign nations on an
embassy to Rome. (2) Those sent from Rome on an embassy to foreign
countries or the provinces. (3) Those who served under Roman generals
during war, or under the pro-consuls and prætors in the provinces. The
latter kind was generally a person of high military skill, and was
appointed by the consul, prætor, or dictator, under whom he was intended
to serve. His nomination, however, was not legal until sanctioned by the
senate. His duty was to aid his superior officer, by advising him in all
great emergencies, by acting as his substitute, both in civil and
military affairs, and by assuming his insignia as well as authority
during his absence. In the last case, he was called _legatus pro
prætore_. The number of legati under one superior differed in proportion
to the importance of the war or the extent of the province.
=Leghorn= (It. _Livarno_). A large maritime town in Central Italy, in
the province of Leghorn. It was entered by the French army July 27,
1796; evacuated by the French in 1799, and retaken in 1800. It was
unsuccessfully attacked by the British and Italian forces in December,
1813. The Austrians took the city from the insurgents May 12 and 13,
1849, and quelled a slight insurrection, July, 1857.
=Legion= (Lat. _legio_). A corps of soldiers in the Roman armies, first
formed by Romulus, about 750 B.C., when it consisted of 3000 foot and
300 horse. When Hannibal was in Italy, 216 B.C., the legion consisted of
5200 soldiers; and under Marius, in 88 B.C., it was 6200 foot besides
700 horse. There were 10, and sometimes as many as 18 legions kept at
Rome. Augustus had a standing army of 45 legions, together with 25,000
horse and 37,000 light-armed troops, about 5 B.C.; and the peace
establishment of Adrian was 30 of these formidable brigades. A legion
was divided into 10 cohorts, and every cohort into 6 centuries, with a
vexillum, or standard, guarded by 10 men. The peace of Britain was
protected by 3 legions. The French army was divided into legions
subsequent to the reign of Francis I. See THUNDERING LEGIONS.
=Legion of Honor, Order of the.= An order of merit instituted under the
French republic in May, 1802, by the first consul, Napoleon Bonaparte.
The order originally comprised three classes,--grand officers,
commanders, and legionaries. The class of grand officers was, on the
coronation of Napoleon I., divided into Knights of the Grand Eagle and
grand officers. On the restoration of the Bourbons the Legion was
remodeled so as to consist of four classes,--viz., grand officers, grand
crosses, commanders, and knights, but the order lost much of its
original character. The order confers its distinction for civil and
military valor, but especially for the latter. The college of the Legion
is in possession of considerable means, which have been augmented by the
addition of property belonging to Louis Philippe. Out of this fund
pensions are paid to certain members of the order who have been wounded
or who have undergone the amputation of a limb in service. These
pensions have sometimes amounted to as large a sum as 6,000,000 of
francs annually.
=Legionary.= Relating to or consisting of a legion or of legions; as, a
legionary force.
=Legionary.= One of a legion.
=Legnago.= A fortress on the Adige, Northern Italy, one of the
quadrilateral. It was captured by the French in 1796; but reverted to
the Austrians in 1815. It was surrendered to the Italians in October,
1866.
=Legnano.= A town in Northern Italy, in the province of Milan, where the
emperor Barbarossa was defeated by the Milanese and their allies, May
29, 1176, which victory led to the treaty of Constance in 1183.
=Leicester.= A town of England, and the chief town of Leicestershire,
situated on the Soar. During the civil war it was taken by Charles I.,
May 31, and by Fairfax, June 17, 1645.
=Leinster.= A province of Ireland, occupying the southeast part of that
island. It was a kingdom in 1167. The abduction of Devorgilla, wife of
O’Rourke, a lord of Connaught, by Dermot, king of Leinster, in 1152, is
asserted to have led to the landing of the English, and the subsequent
conquest. The province of Leinster gave the title of duke to Schomberg’s
son in 1690. The title became extinct in 1719, and was conferred on the
family of Fitzgerald in 1766.