of Cappadocia, at the northern foot of Mount Taurus, on the high road to
the Cicilian Gates. It was a position of great natural strength, which
was improved by fortifications. Under Caracalla it was made a Roman
colony. It was taken in 272 B.C. by Aurelian, in the war with Zenobia,
to whose territory it then belonged.
=Tycocktow Island.= An island in the Canton River, China, 8 miles long
and 6 miles broad. It is situated at the entrance of the Bocca Tigris, a
few miles below Canton. The British took the fort on this island in
1841.
=Tykoczin.= A town of Russia in Europe, situated on the Narew, 17 miles
northwest from Bialystock. A battle was fought between the Russians and
Poles here in 1831.
=Tyler’s Insurrection.= Arose in opposition of the poll-tax imposed on
all persons above fifteen, November 5, 1380. One of the collectors
acting with indecent rudeness to Wat Tyler’s daughter, the father struck
him dead, June, 1381. His neighbors took arms to defend him, and in a
short time almost the whole of the population of the southern and
eastern counties were in a state of insurrection, extorting freedom from
their lords, and plundering. On June 12, 1381, they gathered upon
Blackheath to the number of 100,000 men. On June 14, they murdered Simon
of Sudbury, archbishop of Canterbury, and Sir Robert Hales, the royal
treasurer. The king, Richard II., invited Tyler to a parley, which took
place on the 15th at Smithfield, where the latter addressed the king in
a menacing manner, now and again lifting up his sword. On this the
mayor, Walworth, stunned Tyler with a blow of his mace, and one of the
king’s knights dispatched him. Richard temporized with the multitude by
promising them a charter, and thus led them out of the city, when Sir R.
Knollys and a band of knights attacked and dispersed them with much
slaughter. The insurrection in Norfolk and Suffolk was subdued by the
bishop of Norwich, and 1500 of the rebels were executed.
=Tympanum.= A drum, a musical instrument which the ancients used, and
which consisted of a thin piece of leather or skin, stretched upon a
circle of wood or iron, and beat with the hand. Hence the origin of our
drum.
=Tyrant.= A name given in modern times to an arbitrary and oppressive
ruler, but originally applied, not necessarily to one who exercised
power badly, but merely to one who had obtained it illegally, and
therefore equivalent to our word usurper. If the one who thus rose to
power as a “tyrant” happened to be a man of sense, and wisdom, and
generosity, his “tyranny” might prove a blessing to a state torn by the
animosities of selfish oligarchs, and be the theme of praise in
after-ages, as was the case with the “tyrannies” of Pesistratos, Gelon,
and others; but if he was insolent, rapacious, and cruel, then he
sought to reduce the citizens to a worse than Egyptian bondage, and his
name became infamous to all time. Such has been the fate of most of the
“Thirty Tyrants of Athens.” It was the method of exercising authority
pursued by these and similar usurpers that latterly, even in ancient
times, gave the word tyrant that evil significance it has ever since
uninterruptedly retained.
=Tyre= (ruins at _Sur_). One of the greatest and most famous cities of
the ancient world, stood on the coast of Phœnice, about 20 miles south
of Sidon. The Assyrian king Shalmanezer laid siege to Tyre for five
years (713 B.C.), but without success. It was again besieged for
thirteen years by Nebuchadnezzar, and there is a tradition that he took
it (572 B.C.), but the matter is not quite certain. At the period when
the Greeks began to be well acquainted with the city, its old site had
been abandoned, and a new city erected on a small island about half a
mile from the shore, and a mile in length, and a little north of the
remains of the former city, which was now called Old Tyre. In 322 B.C.
the Tyrians refused to open their gates to Alexander, who laid siege to
the city for seven months, and united the island on which it stood to
the main land by a mole constructed chiefly of the ruins of Old Tyre.
After its capture and sack by Alexander, Tyre never regained its former
consequence. It recovered, however, sufficiently to be mentioned as a
strong fortress and flourishing port under the early Roman emperors; it
even took an active part (193) in the contest between Septimius Severus
and Pescennius Niger, which, resulting in the success of the former,
brought back to it some of its ancient distinction. In St. Jerome’s time
it was again one of the noblest and most prosperous cities of the whole
East. In the 7th century it came under the dominion of the Saracens; and
so remained until taken by the Crusaders. On February 11, 1124, the
Christian army encamped before it, and on June 15 it fell into their
hands. The strength of its fortifications, the splendor of its houses,
and the excellence of its harbor, excited their admiration. On the
evening of the day on which Acre was taken by the Mohammedans (May 19,
1291), Tyre was abandoned by the Crusaders, and the Saracens entered it
the following morning. It was captured by the French, April 3, 1799; and
by the allied fleet, during the war against Mehemet Ali, 1841.
=Tyrol.= The most western province of the Austrian empire, is bounded on
the north by Bavaria, on the east by Salzburg, Carinthia, and Venetia,
on the south by Italy, and on the west by Switzerland and Italy. In
early times Tyrol formed part of Rhætia, was conquered by the Romans, 15
B.C. Subsequently it was overrun by various German tribes; still later
the southern valley fell to the share of the Lombards, and the northern
valleys to the Bavarians. The dukes of Austria acquired possession of it
in 1363. The French conquered Tyrol in 1805, and united it to Bavaria,
much to the discontent of the population; but in 1809 an insurrection
broke out, headed by Andreas Hofer, an innkeeper, who drove the
Bavarians out of the Tyrol, and thoroughly defeated some French
detachments, but was overpowered at last by reinforcements sent from
France. The Tyrolese riflemen were very effective in the Italian war in
1859.
=Tyrone.= An inland county of the province of Ulster, in Ireland.
According to some authorities the Erdini, and to others the Scoti, were
the earliest known inhabitants of this district. The chief town of
Tyrone was Dungannon, which, though several times taken and sacked by
the English forces in their attempts to reduce the country to obedience
to the royal authority, continued to be of importance until the close of
the reign of Elizabeth, when it was burned by Hugh O’Neill, earl of
Tyrone, to prevent its falling into the hands of the English. The
insurrection of 1641 may be said to have had its commencement in this
county, by the capture of Charlemont Fort and Dungannon by Sir Phelim
O’Neill; and in 1646 the Parliamentary forces under Gen. Munroe received
a signal defeat from Hugh Roe O’Neill at Benburb. During the greater
part of the war between King William and King James, this county was in
the possession of the forces of the latter, and suffered much from the
partisan warfare carried on chiefly by the townsmen of Enniskillen.
U.
=Ucles.= A fortified town of Spain, in the province of Cuenca, 40 miles
southwest from the town of that name. It stands at the foot of a hill
crowned by a famous monastery which belonged to the military order of
Santiago or St. James of Spain. It was taken by the French in 1809.
=Uglitch.= A town of European Russia, in the government and 60 miles
west-southwest from Jaroslav, on the right bank of the Volga. It was
destroyed by the Lithuanians in 1607.
=Uhlans= (a Tartar word signifying “brave”). Light cavalry of Asiatic
origin, were introduced into the north of Europe along with the colonies
of Tartars, who established themselves in Poland and Lithuania. They
were mounted on light active Tartar horses, and armed with sabre, lance,
and latterly with pistols. Their lance was from 5¹⁄₂ to 6¹⁄₂ feet in
length, and, like that of the modern lancers, was attached to a stout
leather thong or cord, which was fastened to the left shoulder and
passed round behind the back, so as to allow the lance to be couched
under the right arm. Immediately below its point was attached a strip of
gaudy-colored cloth, the fluttering of which was designed to frighten
the enemies’ horses. The early dress was similar to that of the Turks,
and the regiments, or _polks_, were distinguished from each other by the
red, green, yellow, or blue color of their uniforms. The Austrians and
Prussians were the first to borrow this species of cavalry from the
Poles. In 1734, an attempt was made by Marshal Saxe to introduce uhlans
into France, and a “polk” of 1000 men was formed; but it was disbanded
at the author’s death. At the present time, Russia, Prussia, and Austria
are the only powers which possess uhlan regiments. In the British army,
the place of the uhlans is occupied by hussars.
=Ukraine.= The name given in Poland first to the frontiers towards the
Tartars and other nomads, and then to the fertile regions lying on both
sides of the middle Dnieper, without any very definite limits. The
Ukraine was long a bone of contention between Poland and Russia. It was
ceded to the Cossacks by Poland in 1672, and was obtained by Russia
about 1682. The country was divided, Poland having the west side of the
Dnieper, and Russia the east. The whole country was assigned to Russia
by the treaty of partition in 1795. See POLAND.
=Ulans.= See UHLANS.
=Ulm.= The second city of Würtemberg; was, till the war in 1866, a
stronghold of the Germanic Confederation. Here a peace was signed, July
3, 1620, by which Frederick V. lost Bohemia (having been driven from it
previously). Ulm was taken by the French in 1796. After a battle between
the French and Austrians, in which the latter under Gen. Mack were
defeated with dreadful loss by Marshal Ney, Ulm surrendered with 28,000
men, the flower of the Austrian army, October 17-20, 1805.
=Ulster.= A province of Ireland, the most northern of the four into
which that kingdom is divided. The northeast portion, the present county
of Down, was, early after the invasion, overrun by the English under De
Courcy, and was subsequently held by Hugh De Lacy. Although various
efforts were made by the English to effect a permanent settlement in the
north and northwest, their success was little more than nominal until
the reigns of Elizabeth and James I., when the well-known plantation of
Ulster was attempted.
=Ulster Badge.= On the institution of the order of Baronets in England
by James I., a sinister hand, erect, open, and couped at the wrist
gules, the armorial ensign of the province of Ulster, was made their
distinguishing badge, in respect of the order having been intended for
the encouragement of plantations in the province of Ulster. This badge
is sometimes borne in a canton, sometimes on an escutcheon, the latter
placed either in the fess point or in the middle chief point, so as to
interfere as little as possible with the charges of the shield.
=Ulster King-of-Arms.= The king-of-arms or chief heraldic officer of
Ireland. A king-of-arms called Ireland existed in the time of Richard
II., but the office seems to have fallen into abeyance in the following
century. Ulster was created to supply his place in 1552. Ulster holds
his appointment from the crown, and acts under the immediate direction
of the lord-lieutenant of Ireland; the professional staff under him
consists of 2 heralds, 4 pursuivants, 1 registrar, and 1 clerk of
records. The official arms of Ulster king-of-arms are: Argent, St.
George’s cross gules, on a chief of the last a lion passant gardant
between a harp and a portcullis or.
=Ultimatum.= A term used in military negotiations, to express the final
conditions upon which any proposition or treaty can be ratified.
=Umbon= (_Fr._). The pointed boss or prominent part in the centre of a
shield or buckler.
=Umbria.= A district of Italy, the chief towns of which were Arminum,
Fanum, Fortunæ, Mevania, Tuder, Narnia, and Spoletium. Under Augustus,
it formed the sixth Regio of Italy. Its inhabitants, the Umbri, were one
of the most ancient races of Italy, and were connected with the Opicans,
Sabines, and those other tribes whose languages were akin to the Greek.
The Umbri were at a very early period the most powerful people in
Central Italy, and extended across the peninsula from the Adriatic to
the Tyrrhene seas. They were afterwards deprived of their possessions
west of the Tiber by the Etruscans, and confined to the country between
this river and the Adriatic. Their territories were still further
diminished by the Senones, a Gallic people, who took possession of the
whole country on the coast, from Arminum to the Æsis. The Umbri were
subdued by the Romans, 307 B.C., and after the conquest of the Senones
by the Romans in 283, they again obtained possession of the country on
the coast of the Adriatic. This district, however, continued to be
called _Ager Gallicus_ down to a late period.
=Umbriere.= The visor of a helmet, a projection like the peak of a cap,
to which a face-guard was sometimes attached, which moved freely upon
the helmet, and could be raised like a beaver.
=Unarm.= To strip of armor or arms; to disarm.
=Unbreech.= To free the breech of, as a cannon, from its fastenings or
coverings.
=Uncase, To.= To display or exhibit the colors of a regiment.
=Uncock.= To let down the cock of, as a gun.
=Unconditional.= At discretion; not limited by any terms or
stipulations; as, an unconditional surrender.
=Unconquered.= Not subdued or defeated; in opposition to conquered or
defeated.
=Uncover, To.= When troops deploy, the different leading companies or
divisions, etc., successively uncover those in their rear, by marching
out from the right or left of the column.
=Undaunted.= Not appalled by fear; valiant.
=Under.= A preposition of varied military application, in combination
with other words. Thus troops are said to be _under arms_, when
assembled in a state of military array, and having the necessary weapons
of offense and defense, as rifles, swords, etc. To be _under command_ is
being liable to be ordered on any particular duty. To be _under cover_
is to be shielded or protected. To be _under contribution_ is being
liable to give, in money or kind, what may be authoritatively called
for. Countries are sometimes put under contribution for the support of
an army. To be _under fire_ or be _cool_ is not being disconcerted by
the apprehension of death in battle. To be _under sentence_ is the
liability to punishment, according to sentence passed; as, under the
sentence of a general court-martial; under sentence of death.
=Under Canvas.= In a military sense, it is to be lying in tents.
=Undermine.= To dig an excavation under any fort, house, or other
building, so as to cause it to fall down or to blow it up with powder.
=Under-officer.= An inferior officer, one in a subordinate situation.
=Undisciplined.= Not yet trained to regularity or order; not perfect in
exercise or manœuvres.
=Undress.= In the military service, is the authorized habitual dress of
officers and soldiers when not in full uniform.
=Unfix, To.= To take off; as, to unfix bayonets, on which the soldier
disengages the bayonet from his musket, and returns it to the scabbard.
=Unfortified.= Not strengthened or secured by any walls, bulwarks, or
fortifications.
=Unfortunate Peace, The.= A name given by historians to the peace of
Chateau Cambresis (April 2, 1559), negotiated by England, France, and
Spain. By this treaty Henry II. of France renounced all claim to Genoa,
Corsica, and Naples, agreed to restore Calais to the English within
eight years, and to give security for 500,000 crowns in case of failure.
=Unfurled.= A standard or color when expanded and displayed, is said to
be unfurled.
=Ungentlemanlike or Unofficerlike=. Not like a gentleman or officer.
Conduct unbecoming the character of either is so called. This clause,
which will be always found to depend on the state of morals and manners,
affords a vast latitude to a military court, which, after all, is not
more free from prejudice or influence than any other tribunal, though
they are both jurors and judges. Officers convicted thereof are to be
dismissed from the service. See APPENDIX, ARTICLES OF WAR, 60, 61.
=Unguled.= In heraldry, a term applied to the tincture of the hoofs of
an animal; _e.g._, Azure, a stag trippant or, attired and unguled gules,
the arms of the family of Strachan in Scotland.
=Unharnessed.= Disarmed; divested of armor or weapons of defense.
=Unhelmed.= Divested of the helmet or helm.
=Unhorsed.= Thrown from the saddle; dismounted.
=Unicorn= (Lat. _unum cornu_, “one horn”). An animal, probably fabulous,
mentioned by ancient Grecian and Roman authors as a native of India, and
described as being of the size of a horse, or larger, the body
resembling that of a horse, and with one horn of a cubit and a half or
two cubits long on the forehead, the horn straight, its base white, the
middle black, the tip red. The body of the animal was also said to be
white, its head red, its eyes blue. It was said to be so swift that no
horse could overtake it. The unicorn is perhaps best known as a heraldic
charge or supporter. Two unicorns were borne as supporters of the
Scottish royal arms for about a century before the union of the crowns;
and the sinister supporter of the insignia of the United Kingdom is a
unicorn argent, armed crined, and unguled or, gorged with a coronet
composed of crosses patée and fleurs-de-lis, with a chain affixed,
passing between the fore legs, and reflexed over the back, of the last.
=Unicorn.= The old name for the howitzer, as improved from the licorn,
borrowed from the Turks during the last century by the Russians, and
from the latter by Europe generally.
=Uniform= (one form). In its military sense, means the particular dress
and equipment assigned by proper authority to each grade of officers and
men. The clothing consists of one prevailing color, variously ornamented
and “faced” according to the rank and corps. _In full uniform_, wearing
the whole of the prescribed uniform; not in undress.
=Uniform Sword.= An officer’s sword of the regulation pattern prescribed
for the army or navy.
=Union.= The national colors are called the _union_. When there is a
blue field with white stripes, quartered in the angle of the American
colors, that is, of the colors composed of red and white stripes, that
blue field is called the _union_; and a small color of blue with white
stars is called a _union-jack_.
=United States Military Academy.= See MILITARY ACADEMIES, and WEST
POINT.
=United States Sea-coast Fuze.= See LABORATORY STORES.
=United States, The.= A Federal republic, composed of thirty-eight
sovereign states and eleven territorial governments, occupying the
temperate portion of North America. It is bounded on the north by
British North America, east by New Brunswick and the Atlantic Ocean,
south by the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico, and west by the Pacific Ocean.
Its greatest length from the Atlantic to the Pacific, on the parallel of
42°, is 2768 miles, and its greatest breadth, from Point Isabel, Texas,
to the northern boundary near Pembina, is 1601¹⁄₂ miles. The northern
frontier is upward of 3350 miles in length, the Mexican 1500. The ocean
coast, including the larger indentation, is estimated at 22,609 miles,
of which 6861 are on the Atlantic, 3461 on the Gulf of Mexico, 2281 in
California, 8000 on the coast of Alaska, and about 2000 on the Arctic
Sea. This area has been obtained by successive annexations of territory,
either by purchase, right of discovery, or conquest. In 1783, the
territory ceded by Great Britain was confined to the country east of the
Mississippi River, and north of Florida, having an area of 815,615
square miles. To this Louisiana was added by purchase from France in
1803; Florida, ceded by Spain, in 1821; Texas, annexed in 1845; Oregon,
as settled by the treaty of 1846; California, etc., conquered from
Mexico, 1847; New Mexico, etc., by treaty with Mexico, 1854; and Alaska,
by purchase from Russia, 1867. For full description of the States and
Territories, and histories appertaining thereto, see the articles
respectively.
=Unkiar-Skelessi.= A small town on the Asiatic shore of the Bosphorus,
in the neighborhood of Scutari, gives its name to a treaty concluded
between Turkey and Russia, July 8, 1833. This treaty, which consisted of
six articles, was one of mutual defensive alliance; but a separate and
secret article was subjoined, by which the sultan, in place of the
military or naval aid which, by the first article of the treaty, he was
bound to furnish to Russia, agreed to close the Strait of the
Dardanelles, allowing no foreign vessels of war to enter it under any
pretext whatever. In consequence of this treaty, Russia landed 15,000
men at Scutari, and stopped the victorious career of Ibrahim Pasha. The
secret article was soon after divulged to Britain and France, both of
whom regarded the treaty with dislike; and by the terms of that
concluded at London, July 13, 1841, the stipulations of Unkiar-Skelessi
were annulled.
=Unload.= To take the powder and ball out of a piece of ordnance or a
musket.
=Unmilitary.= Contrary to rules of discipline; unworthy of a soldier.
=Unsheathe.= To draw from the sheath or scabbard, as a sword; hence, to
unsheathe the sword, sometimes signifies to commence or make war.
=Unshot.= To remove the shot from, as a piece of ordnance; to take out
the shot of.
=Unsling.= To take off the slings; to release from the slings; unsling
knapsacks, etc.
=Unspike.= To remove a spike from, as from the vent of a cannon.
=Untenable.= Not to be held in possession; incapable of being defended.
=Untrained.= Not disciplined to exercise or manœuvre.
=Unvanquished.= Not conquered or defeated.
=Unwarlike.= Not fit for or used to war.
=Upbraid.= Any officer or soldier who shall upbraid another for refusing
a challenge, shall himself be punished as a challenger. See APPENDIX,
ARTICLES OF WAR, 28.
=Upon.= Denoting assumption; as, he took the office of
commander-in-chief upon him. Also, to incur responsibility; as, the
general took everything upon himself.
=Up-sar-o-ca.= See ABSOROKAS.
=Uruguay=, or =Banda Oriental del Uruguay=. A republic of South America,
bounded north and northeast by Brazil, east by the Atlantic, south by
the Rio de la Plata, and west by the Uruguay. Banda Oriental was, during
the Spanish rule, the name of that portion of the vice-royalty of Buenos
Ayres which lay to the east of the river Uruguay, and comprehended the
present Uruguay and the territory formerly known as the Seven Missions.
When Buenos Ayres declared itself independent of Spain, Banda Oriental
formed a part of the new republic. In 1821, however, it was taken
possession of by Brazil, and united with that state under the name of
Provincia Cisplatina. By the treaty of 1828 between La Plata and Brazil,
the southern and larger portion of Banda Oriental was formed into the
republic of Uruguay. A civil war broke out in consequence of the
invasion of the ex-president, Gen. Venancio Florès, June 26, 1863; Gen.
Florès marched towards the capital in June; in February, 1865, Florès
became provisional president. During an insurrection of the Blanco party
(headed by Berro), at Montevideo, Gen. Florès was assassinated. The
troops remained faithful. The insurrection was soon suppressed, and
Berro shot, February 19, 1868.
=Usages of War.= See WAR.
=Usbegs=, or =Usbeks=. A people of Turkish race, who, at the close of
the 15th century, invaded and conquered the numerous principalities into
which Turkestan was at that time divided, and have ever since maintained
dominion over the country. At the present day, they are for the most
part a settled people, and are scattered over both Independent and
Chinese Turkestan.
=Usher of the Black Rod.= See BLACK ROD.