fortification, building, etc., by gunpowder. The art of mining requires
a perfect knowledge both of fortifications and geometry; and by these
previous helps, the engineer may be qualified to ascertain correctly the
nature of all manner of heights, depths, breadths, and thicknesses; to
judge perfectly of slopes and perpendiculars, whether they be such as
are parallel to the horizon, or such as are visual; together with the
true levels of all kinds of earth. To which must be added, a consummate
skill in the quality of rocks, earths, masonry, and sands; the whole
accompanied with a thorough knowledge of the strength of all sorts of
gunpowder.
=Minion.= An ancient form of ordnance of small size, the caliber of
which was about 3 inches.
=Minister.= Is one who acts not by any inherent authority of his own,
but under another. Thus, in England all ministers act under a supreme
authority, which is vested in the sovereign, lords, and commons, to whom
they are responsible. In military matters, there is not only a war
minister, but a secretary at war, who likewise acts conjointly with the
secretary of state. All dispatches and papers of consequence relating to
the army must first pass through the secretary of state, and the war
minister, before they are laid before Parliament, or otherwise acted
upon by the secretary at war. The common arrangements of corps,
directions with respect to marching, are transmitted to the secretary at
war, and to the quartermaster-general’s office, without previously
passing through the secretary of state, or war minister. See SECRETARY
OF WAR.
=Minnesota.= One of the Northwestern States of the American Union. The
country was visited by white traders as early as 1654, but very few
settlements were made in it until about 1845. The eastern part of the
State formed a portion of the French possessions which were ceded to the
British in 1763, and by them to the United States in 1783. The remaining
part belonged to the Louisiana Territory, which was purchased from the
French in 1803. The country was traversed by an exploring expedition
under Gen. Pike in 1805. A territorial government was organized in 1849,
and in 1853 Minnesota was admitted into the Union as a State. The State
suffered severely in 1862 from an inroad of the Sioux, who destroyed
whole settlements. They were soon afterwards, however, summarily
punished, and removed from the State altogether.
=Minnetarees.= A tribe of Indians, formerly a branch of the Crows, but
now affiliated to the Mandans, who reside on the Upper Missouri. They
have always been friendly to the whites, and hostile to the Sioux, at
whose hands they have suffered severely. They number about 400.
=Minor.= Under age. Minors will not be enlisted in the army of the
United States without the consent of their parents or guardians. If any
have enlisted and it becomes known, the Secretary of War, on demand, is
required to grant the discharges from the army of minors who have
enlisted without the consent of their parents or guardians.
=Minorca.= One of the Balearic Islands (which see) in the Mediterranean.
It was captured by Lieut.-Gen. Stanhope and Sir John Leake in 1708, and
was ceded to the British by the treaty of Utrecht in 1713; taken by the
Spanish and French in July, 1756, and Admiral Byng fell a victim to
public indignation for not relieving it. It was restored to the British
at the peace in 1793; besieged by the Spaniards, and taken February 5,
1782; captured by the British under Gen. Stuart, without the loss of a
man, November 15, 1798; but was given up at the peace of Amiens in 1802.
=Minturnæ= (_Minturnensis_; now _Trajetto_). An important town in
Latium, on the frontiers of Campania; was situated on the Appia Via, and
on both banks of the Liris, and near the mouth of this river. It was an
ancient town of the Ausones, or Aurunci, but surrendered to the Romans
of its own accord, 296 B.C. In its neighborhood Marius was taken
prisoner.
=Minute.= A hasty sketch taken of anything in writing. Hence minutes of
a general or regimental court-martial.
=Minute-gun.= A gun discharged every minute, as a signal of distress or
mourning.
=Minute-man.= A man enlisted for service wherever required, and ready to
march at a moment’s notice;--a term used in the American Revolution.
=Minutes of Councils in the Military Department.= The notification of
orders and regulations, which are directed to be observed by the British
army in India, are so called. These minutes receive the sanction of the
governor-general in council, and are the result of previous
communications from the court of directors in Europe. The answer to the
French word, _resultat_, which was prefixed to all orders and
regulations that were occasionally issued by the military boards, or
_conseils de guerre_, for the government of the army. The term,
_jugement d’un conseil de guerre_, corresponded with our minutes of a
general or garrison court-martial, and expressed not only the minutes,
but the sentence of the court.
=Miquelets= (_Fr._). Bandits, who have infested the Pyrenean Mountains;
armed mountaineers of the Pyrenees; the name is now borne by the
captain-general’s guard; in 1808, Napoleon organized a corps of
_miquelets Français_, who rendered good services.
=Miqueletti.= A small body of mountain fusiliers, who formerly belonged
to the Neapolitan army.
=Mire= (_Fr._). In the French artillery, a piece of wood about 4 inches
thick, 1 foot high, and 2¹⁄₂ feet long, which is used in pointing
cannon.
=Mireur= (_Fr._). An instrument employed in coast batteries for
ascertaining whether the enemy’s ships are within the range of the guns,
and thus to prevent the gunners from expending their shot unnecessarily.
=Mirmillones.= A class of Roman gladiators; said to have been so called
from their having the image of a fish on their helmets. Their arms were
like those of the Gauls; hence we find that they were also called Galli.
They were usually matched with the retiarii or Thracians.
=Mirror.= See INSPECTION OF CANNON; also LOOKING-GLASS SIGNALING.
=Misbehavior before the Enemy.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 42.
=Miscellaneous.= An item or charge in the estimates of the British army,
so distinguished as _miscellaneous services_; the same as our contingent
expenditures.
=Misconduct at Divine Service.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 52.
=Misconduct in Time of War.= See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 55, 56, 57,
and 58.
=Misericorde= (_Fr._). A short dagger, which the cavalry formerly used,
for the purpose of dispatching an enemy who would not ask quarter or
mercy.
=Misnomer.= The mistaking of the true name of a person; the using of one
name for another. If a prisoner plead a misnomer before a court-martial,
the court may ask the prisoner what is his real name, and call upon him
to plead to the amended charge.--_Hough._
=Miss.= To fail to hit; to fly wide; as, the bullet missed its mark.
=Missile.= Capable of being thrown; adapted for hurling, or to be
projected from the hand, or from any instrument or engine; as, to wing
the missile dart.
=Missile.= A weapon thrown or intended to be thrown, for doing
execution; as, a lance, an arrow, or a bullet.
=Missing.= Wanting; not present when called or looked for; lost; as, 100
soldiers are wounded and missing.
=Mississagas.= A tribe of Indians of Algonkin stock, who formerly
resided on the north shore of Lake Huron, but are now found to the
number of 700 in Ontario. They were one of the Confederate tribes of the
“Seven Nations,” fought as allies of the French against the English
(1743-48), sided with the English in the seven years’ war against the
French and in the war against Pontiac, and aided the Canadian forces
against the United States in the war of 1812.
=Mississippi.= One of the Southwestern States of the American
Confederacy. It was first visited by Europeans about the year 1540, when
De Soto, with 1000 followers, crossed the State on an exploring
expedition from Florida, and remained in it for nearly a year. This
party having suffered severely by attacks from the aborigines, no other
attempt was made to establish a permanent colony till 1682, when La
Salle descended the Mississippi and visited this region. He returned in
two years with a party which he intended to settle in Mississippi, but
meeting with misfortunes, the colony never reached its destination. The
next attempt at settlement was made by Iberville, but with no successful
result. The settlement at Fort Rosalie (now Natchez) in 1716, by some
Frenchmen under Bienville, was generally considered the first permanent
colony. A general massacre of the white inhabitants by the savages took
place in 1728, but, as in every other contest between the Indians and
the whites, victory ultimately rested with the latter. Other conflicts
in 1736, 1739, and 1752, though carried on for a time with varying
success, had the same result. At the peace of Paris, in 1763,
Mississippi became a part of the English territory. Soon after a portion
of the French, so inhumanly driven by the English from Nova Scotia,
settled in Mississippi; and in 1768 commenced an emigration from the
Eastern colonies by way of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. In 1798 the
United States having attained the rights of the British government in
this region, erected it into a Territory, and in 1817 it was admitted
into the Union as an independent State. Mississippi was one of the first
of the Southern States to secede from the Union, and it suffered
severely during the civil war. It was the scene of several engagements,
raids, etc., the most important being the battles of Iuka, Corinth,
siege and capture of Vicksburg, and raids to Meridian.
=Missive.= Intended to be thrown, hurled, or ejected; missile. “The
missive weapons fly.”
=Missolonghi=, or =Mesolonghi=. A town of Greece, in the government of
Ætolia, is separated from the sea by a large lake. It is noted for the
memorable siege it sustained in 1825-26. In the beginning of 1825 it was
garrisoned by 5000 Greeks, who were commanded by Nóthi Bozzaris; and on
April 25 of the same year a Turkish force of 20,000 under Reshid Pasha
appeared before Missolonghi, which was poorly fortified. On May 11, the
first bombardment began, and for the space of two months afterwards the
town was exposed to numerous bombardments and assaults; but the
defenders were not less active in answering the enemy’s fire, and making
sallies from their defenses, by which means they succeeded in repelling
their assailants, and inflicting on them considerable loss. During this
time they were supplied with ammunition and provisions by the fleet
which was stationed at the entrance of the lake; but on July 10, a
superior Turkish fleet, after compelling the ships of Greece to retire,
succeeded in landing a strong reinforcement to the besiegers. The
assaults on the town were then renewed with increased fury, and the
cannonade of the Turks carried destruction to its frail ramparts and
death among the ranks of its brave defenders. Yet the garrison, though
reduced to the number of 4000, continued to maintain their ground until,
in the month of August, the Greek fleet appeared in the offing, and by
defeating the Turkish squadron relieved Missolonghi for a time from the
blockade. But the sultan was resolved at all hazards to reduce this
stronghold of liberty; and in the end of November the Greek ships were
again driven off, and the blockade renewed by the combined Turkish,
Egyptian, and Barbary fleets. In the beginning of 1826 the besieging
army was reinforced by the arrival of 14,000 troops under Ibrahim Pasha,
who took command of all the besieging forces. On January 25, a
bombardment was commenced, which lasted for three days, and reduced the
town to ruins, but could not shake the resolute courage of the Greeks.
The repeated assaults of the enemy were still repulsed with great loss.
At last, reduced to the utmost extremities by famine, and seeing on all
sides nothing but the ships and tents of the enemy, yet never
entertaining any thought of surrender, the Greeks determined to force
their way through the opposing ranks. Although by treachery the enemy
was made aware of their design, and thus prepared to meet them, they
were not able to prevent nearly 2000 of the besieged from making their
way to the mountains. Many prisoners fell into the hands of the Turks,
and the remainder, who were unable from their wounds or weariness to
accompany their fellows, continued to defend themselves among the ruins
until the explosion of a powder-magazine, destroying alike friends and
foes, put an end to the bloody conflict. Such was the siege of
Missolonghi, which attracted, during its continuance, the eyes of all
Europe, and in which the Greeks showed themselves the worthy sons of the
heroes of Marathon and Thermopylæ.
=Missouri.= One of the Central States of the Mississippi Valley, and the
first organized wholly west of the Mississippi River. The French were
the earliest settlers in the country, having built a fort there in 1719.
By the treaty of 1763 it was ceded to Spain, with all the territory west
of the Mississippi. Spain being at war with England during the American
Revolution, her colonies were harassed by the English and their Indians
allies. In 1780, a body of British and Indians attacked and besieged St.
Louis, killing 60 of its defenders. The siege was raised by Col. Clark,
an American, who came to the relief of the place with 500 men. In 1800
Spain restored the territory to France, and it passed to the United
States by purchase in 1803. After the admission of Louisiana as a State
in 1812, the remaining portion of the territory received the name of
Missouri, from which was separated the State of that name in 1821.
Though the State officially declared itself in favor of the Union in
1861, many of its prominent citizens sided with the Confederates. It
was the scene of several engagements during the civil war.
=Missouria Indians.= A tribe of Dakota stock, who reside at the Otoe
agency, Nebraska. They number about 200, and are progressing favorably
in the arts of civilization.
=Mithridatic War.= The name of the celebrated contest carried on for a
long series of years by the Romans against Mithridates VI., king of
Pontus. It was caused by the massacre of about 100,000 Romans by
Mithridates, 88 B.C., and remarkable for its duration, its many
sanguinary battles, and the cruelties of its commanders. Mithridates
having taken the consul Aquilius, made him ride on an ass through a
great part of Asia, crying out as he rode, “I am Aquilius, consul of the
Romans.” He is said to have killed him by causing melted gold to be
poured down his throat, in derision of his avarice, 85 B.C.
=Mitigate.= To diminish the severity of; as, to mitigate punishment; to
reduce in amount of severity, as a penalty. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF
WAR, 112.
=Mitraille= (_Fr._). Small pieces of old iron, such as heads of nails,
etc., with which pieces of ordnance are sometimes loaded.
=Mitrailleur.= A gun in which several barrels are combined in order to
produce a greater effect by the rapid succession of a number of shots.
Mitrailleures existed as early as the 14th century. They were called
_killing-organs_ at that time. The Scaligers at the end of the 14th
century, the Protestant princes of Germany in the Smalkaldian war, and
Austria in the war against Turkey, used this kind of gun. But the
ancient mitrailleur differs from the modern both in dimensions and in
the positions of the barrels. A peculiar kind of mitrailleur was the
_espingol_, each barrel being loaded with several shots, which, by a
slowly-burning charge, were discharged one after the other. The
_espingol_ was used not only in the Middle Ages, but also recently,--by
the Danes in 1848-50, and 1863-64. At the storming of Düppel the
Prussians took about thirty such guns. In modern times the term has been
specifically applied to certain battery guns employed by the French in
the Franco-Prussian war. (See BATTERY GUN.) In the U. S. Light Artillery
Tactics the term mitrailleur is applied to the Gatling gun.
=Mitylene=, or =Midulu= (anc. _Lesbos_). An island of the Grecian
Archipelago, belonging to Turkey, and lying off the west coast of Asia
Minor. Mitylene suffered much in the Greek war of independence, in the
course of which it lost nearly the half of its inhabitants. (See
MYTILENE.)
=Moabites.= A tribe descended from Moab, the son of Lot, and
consequently related to the Hebrews; they inhabited the mountainous
country east of the lower part of the Jordan and of the Dead Sea. In the
time of the Judges, the Jews were for eighteen years under the yoke of
the Moabites, who were afterwards made tributary by David, but about
900 B.C. shook off their allegiance to the Jewish kings, and after the
Assyrians invaded the land of Judah, took part with the Chaldeans
against the Jews.
=Moat.= The ditch round the ramparts of a fortress may be either
wet--_i.e._, full of water--or dry. In the latter, which is the commoner
case, the depth should not be less than 12 feet, nor the width under 24.
The more perpendicular the walls, so much the greater will be the
obstruction to the enemy. In regular works the walls are usually reveted
with masonry, that at the foot of the rampart being the scarp or escarp,
and that below the covered way the counterscarp. See DITCH.
=Mobile.= A city and capital of Mobile Co., Ala., situated on the west
bank of the Mobile River, immediately above its entrance into the bay of
the same name. It was founded by Bienville in 1711, passed into the
hands of the English in 1763, was taken by the Spanish general Galvez in
1780, and was confirmed to Spain by the treaty of 1783. Mobile was
blockaded by the Federal fleet in May, 1861. In 1864 the Confederates
constructed several ironclads and gunboats, and threatened to raise the
blockade. On August 5, Admiral Farragut with his fleet passed Forts
Morgan and Gaines, the Confederate fortifications guarding the entrance
to Mobile Bay, captured the ram “Tennessee” and the gunboat “Selma,” and
effectually crippled the “Gaines.” With the co-operation of the land
forces, the forts were soon captured, and the city was effectually cut
off from external commerce. Mobile was evacuated by the Confederates,
and surrendered to Gen. Canby and Rear-Admiral Thatcher, April 12, 1865,
about 1000 prisoners, 150 guns, and a large quantity of ammunition and
supplies falling into the hands of the Federals.
=Mobilization.= The calling into active service troops not previously on
the war establishment.
=Mobilize.= To call into active service;--applied to troops which,
though enrolled, were not previously on the war establishment.
=Moccasin= (Algonkin, _makisin_). A shoe or cover for the foot, made of
deer-skin or soft leather, without a sole, and ornamented on the upper
side; the customary shoe worn by the American Indians.
=Möckern.= A town of Prussian Saxony, 13 miles east of Madgeburg, on the
Ehle. Here the French army under Eugène Beauharnais was defeated by the
Prussians under York, April, 1813, and here Blücher defeated the French,
October 16, 1813.
=Modena= (anc. _Mutina_). A fortified city of Northern Italy, 24 miles
west-northwest of Bologna, capital of the former duchy of the same name.
In ancient times Mutina was an important town of Gallia Cispadana,
situated on the Via Æmilia; it fell into the hands of the Romans in 218
B.C., who established a colony here thirty-five years later; in 117 B.C.
the settlers were disturbed by an incursion of the Ligurians, who for a
short time held possession of the town, but were ultimately expelled by
Consul Claudius; it was held by M. Brutus against the victorious Pompey;
sustained a siege of about four months against the troops of Mark
Antony; besieged and taken by Constantine in 312; was laid waste by
Attila in 452. The modern town is surrounded with walls, and defended by
bastions and a citadel; was governed by the house of Este from 1288 till
1796, when the last male of that house, the reigning duke, Hercules
III., was expelled by the French. By the treaty of Campo Formio the
Modenese possessions were incorporated with the Cisalpine republic,
1797, and with the kingdom of Italy, 1805. The Archduke Francis of Este,
son of the Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, and of Mary, the heiress of
the last duke, was restored in 1814. Modena was annexed to Sardinia
March 18, 1860.
=Modocs.= A treacherous tribe of Indians of the Klamath nation. In 1872
they left the Klamath reservation under the leadership of their chief,
Captain Jack, and refused to return. Military aid was invoked to compel
them, and the troops were fired upon by the Indians, who retreated to
the almost inaccessible fastnesses of the lava-beds. Here they held out
until June 5, 1873, by which time nearly all were killed or captured.
Captain Jack and some of the principal men of his tribe were tried by
military commission for the murder of Gen. Canby and Mr. Thomas, Indian
peace commissioner, who were treacherously slain in April while
attending a conference with the Indians outside the camp. Captain Jack
and three others were hanged October 3, 1873, and the remainder of the
tribe deported to Indian Territory.
=Mœsia.= A Roman province in Europe. It was invaded by the Romans, when
C. Scribonius Curio gained a victory over the Mœsians (75 B.C.), but not
until the reign of Augustus was it finally subdued, 29 B.C. A line of
fortresses was then planted for its defense along the southern bank of
the Danube. The principal of these were afterwards known as Singidunum
(Belgrade), Viminacium, and Axiopolis. It was successfully invaded by
the Goths, numbers of whom eventually settled here. In the 7th century
invading hordes of Bulgarians and Sclavonians founded the kingdoms of
Bulgaria and Servia, which now comprise the territory of ancient Mœsia.
=Mogador=, =Mogodor=, or =Suerrah=. A seaport town of Morocco, on the
Atlantic, 132 miles southwest from Morocco. Mogador is walled and
fortified; but its defenses, which are the work of Genoese engineers,
are of no great strength; its harbor, although much exposed, is
considered the best on the coast. Mogador was bombarded in 1844 by a
French fleet under the Prince de Joinville, on which occasion it
suffered severely.
=Mognions= (_Fr._). A sort of armor for the shoulders.
=Mograbian.= A soldier of a branch of the Turkish infantry composed of
the peasants of the northern part of Africa, who sought to better their
condition by entering foreign service.
=Mogul Empire, The.= An empire which at one time extended over the
greater part of Northern India. It was founded by Sultan Baber, a
descendant of Timur (or Tamerlane), in 1526, and lasted until 1749, when
the Mogul army was totally defeated by the Rohillas, and the empire was
broken up into a number of petty sovereignties. In 1857, Mohammed
Bahadur, the last king of Delhi and head of the Mogul empire, joined in
the Indian mutiny, and was transported to Rangoon (1858), where he soon
after died.
=Mohacs.= A town of Southern Hungary, on the western arm of the Danube.
It owes its historical importance to the great battle fought here,
August 29, 1526, between Louis II. of Hungary, with 25,000 Hungarians,
and the sultan Solyman, at the head of about 200,000 Turks. The battle
resulted in the disastrous defeat of the Hungarians, who lost their
king, seven bishops, many nobles and dignitaries, and upwards of 22,000
men. A second battle was fought here on August 12, 1687, when the Turks
in their turn were defeated by an Austro-Hungarian army under Charles of
Lorraine.
=Mohammerah.= A Persian town near the Euphrates; captured, after two
hours’ cannonading, by Sir James Outram, during the Persian war, March
26, 1857.