Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 02.djvu/48

ARMIES. coöperation; but at the best the different armies participating were practically independent of each other. It was an age when science was unknown, and the want of intellectual occupation made war the favorite occupation of the higher classes. Individual prowess and bravery were the standards by which battles were fought and won, the fate of a battle frequently depending on a personal combat between two knights. Under such circumstances, the science of war could never attain a high degree of efficiency; nor could any general organization be effected.

It was not until the reign of Charles VII. of France that any regular attempt at organizing a standing army was made, although the Turkish (q.v.) had been in existence for almost a century before. The Swiss mercenaries, bodies of professional soldiery, were in great demand during the Middle Ages, their military qualities often successfully deciding the issue of a battle. The employment of mercenaries consequently soon became general; so much so, that voluntary patriotic service ceased altogether. Widespread dissatisfaction, however, soon developed, owing to the heavy expense involved, and the danger of intrusting the safety of the State to hired foreigners, who, recruited from the very dregs of society, had to be kept under the strictest discipline and surveillance. It followed as a natural result that organization and the consequent sinking of the individual in the mass eradicated the older forms of knighthood, with their attendant feats of arms and examples of personal skill and daring.

In the reaction from the burden and expense of mercenary armies the present European Continental military system had its inception. The use of firearms by this time had become more general; the proportion of musketeers in the various armies between the beginning of the Sixteenth and the end of the Eighteenth centuries had considerably increased, and the pike was superseded by the bayonet. Changes of weapons naturally influenced and brought about a change in tactics. In the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), Gustavus Adolphus and Wallenstein employed directly opposite infantry formations. (See .) The former arranged his men six ranks in depth, and gained corresponding length of line. Wallenstein, on the other hand, used a narrower front by placing his men in from twenty to thirty ranks. The gradual thinning down to the famous “thin red line” made historic by the English, who have always used the line in preference to the mass of columns of their opponents, and from that to the widely extended front rendered necessary by modern rapid and long-range firearms, is a matter of comparatively recent military history. In the reign of Louis XIV. of France (1643-1715) the grouping of brigades and divisions was first introduced, and in the next century Frederick the Great of Prussia (1740-1786) reduced his infantry formation to three ranks, and introduced a most rigid and exact system of drill and discipline. He was also the originator of horse artillery (1759). (See .) The contest waged by France against Europe from 1792 to 1797, together with her terrible internal warfare, had largely exhausted the tremendous levies which had hitherto supplied her armies, and in 1798 a law was

passed establishing compulsory military service. (See .) This compelled all Continental Europe to follow Napoleon's example, so that to-day voluntary enlistment in Europe survives in England alone.

A summary of the strength, composition, and general characteristics of the armies of the world at the beginning of the Twentieth Century, so far as can be ascertained, is given below:

. The regular army is said to consist of 150,000 men, obtained by drafts from the various provinces. This number can be further increased by large numbers of irregular troops and by the territorial army. The regular army is supposed to be entirely a mounted force, but this may be deemed a theory rather than a fact. Since the defeat of the Italians at the battle of Adowa (March 1, 1896), many of the Abyssinian troops are armed with Gras and magazine rifles captured from the Italians. They possess in addition seven batteries of artillery and machine-guns taken in the same battle. . The Afghan army was originally the creation of Shere Ali, who, on his return from India in 1869, organized the army on what was practically a European basis. After considerable neglect, the army was reorganized by Abd-ur-Rahman, and consists of a regular force of about 44,000 men, which includes 7000 cavalry and 360 guns. No reliable statistics can be obtained regarding the regular army, and none at all regarding the local levies and the tribesmen of the feudal nobility. The Afghan is a brave soldier, inured to hardship and accustomed to the style of fighting demanded by the physical features of his country. He would be an important factor in the event of hostilities between England and Russia. Ordnance is manufactured at the Kabul Arsenal under the supervision of English engineers.

. The regular army consists of 1340 officers and 7297 rank and file. According to a statement presented to Congress in 1897, the total effectives should be 29,513 officers and men. The National Guard is stated to include 471,912 men, all told, the majority of whom receive some little training. Citizens of 20 years of age are mobilized every year and receive two months' drill in camp, as the result of an obligatory military service act passed in 1901.

. Since 1866 the armies of Austria-Hungary have been organized on what is practically a Prussian basis. The dual character of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy has greatly influenced the formation of the imperial army, since each State enjoys its own peculiar constitution and system of representation. Military service is universal in both Austria and Hungary. The forces are organized into the regular or common army, which may be reinforced by the Austrian Landwehr and the Hungarian Honvédség, followed by the levy-en-masse of each State. Both common army and auxiliaries possess each an Ersatz, or supplementary reserve. The imperial ministry of war is the supreme nucleus of the entire military power. It is divided into 4 sections, which comprise 15 departments, and in which are united the different branches of the personnel of the organization, distribution of troops, administration, etc. Bosnia and Herzegovina are organized similarly to Austria and