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Shut Up, I Cannot Hear The Battle!!
by Kurt Holman
(Originally Published in the Camp Chase Gazette; September, 1992)
How many Reenactors does it take to change a light bulb? Answer: 17: One to give the command, one to execute the command, and 15 to echo the command!
I was rolling up my traps around the pre-dawn campfire at the (by now) famous LBL tactical when a Confederate brigade attacked and overran our camp. It was great! Totally unexpected… As we left the coffee boilers on the fire and scrambled for our weapons and took up defensive positions, I found myself transferred back to Shiloh or Stones River. The one of my "pet peeves" slammed me back into the late 20th Century. A few hundred yards away in the woods, I heard a Confederate battalion commander give a precise, clear marching command. Then the woods reverberated with what seemed to be hundreds of voices echoing his command. I was wondering… if I could hear and understand this Confederate commander at a distance of 200 yards, then why couldn't his own men hear him without every NCO in the battalion screaming at the top of their lungs? I would have preferred to hear the "Rebel Yell".
The way Reenactors portray Civil War drill and combat have advanced so much over the last ten years. This concept of transmitting verbal commands seems to have not evolved as it should.
In my article on Insignia of the Common Union Soldier, I could never find a reason why Reenactors wear so much insignia. With the echoing of commands business, there is a clear culprit in the manuals:
The non-commissioned officers should also be practiced in giving commands. Each command, in a lesson, at the theoretical instruction, should be first given by the instructor, and then repeated, in succession, by the non-commissioned officers, so that while they become habituated to the commands, uniformity may-be established in the manner of giving them. (Casey's Title I, #52; Hardee's Title I, #44)
Taken out of context, this paragraph may be interpreted to justify the above reenacting example. Read it carefully. Note the words and phrases that I have emphasized in boldface type. This only to be done "…at the theoretical instruction…" so these NCOs know how to give commands. This is not to be practiced in the field. It is assumed that the NCOs already know the verbal command techniques before embarking on active operations. In the School of the Company, the subject is addressed again:
In column, chiefs of subdivision will always repeat, with the greatest promptitude, the commands march and halt, no chief waiting for another, but each repeating the command the moment he catches it from the instructor. They will repeat no other command given by him; but will explain, if necessary, to their subdivisions, in an under tone of voice, what they will have to execute, as indicated by the commands of caution. (C, SC, # 215; H. SC, # 210)
For those of you that are new to this, allow me to clear up some nomenclature. The above paragraph appears in the "remarks" section of the column of march in the School of the Company. A "subdivision" is a subdivision of a column. For example, in a column of companies, the subdivision is a company and its "chief" would be a captain. In a column of platoons, the "chiefs" would be the captains (for the 1st platoons) and the first lieutenants (for the second platoons). The point here is that these people are all officers and they only repeat "March" and "Halt". The only time an NCO would apply is maybe a column of sections where there were not enough "3rd Lieutenants" to officer each section. Remember, this is only in a column. Marching by the flank, what most Reenactors call "column of fours” is not a column. It is called "marching by the flank"...but I digress - only one "pet peeve" per article. The "commands of caution" are the preparatory commands.
To better understand the concepts of verbal translation of commands, it is important to understand the concept of the "Tactical Unit". A Tactical Unit is best defined as the number of men under the direct, verbal command of one man. Now days, a Tactical Unit is a squad. In the mid-19th Century, a Tactical Unit was a Brigade or Battalion. It was almost never smaller than a Battalion. What this means is that in a Battalion, the Colonel does the talking! In a Brigade, the General does the talking. Officers of lesser rank are better seen, not heard. NCOs are never "heard" in formations. All power comes from the highest ranking man on the field. In a Battalion, the Colonel holds all the power. Every time some of this power is delegated to junior officers is clearly spelled out in the tactics manuals. For example, when a Battalion forms a column from a line of battle, the "chiefs of the subdivisions" in that column are responsible for halting and dressing their subdivisions. When that column moves, the Colonel gives the "March" command and the "chiefs" echo that word.
In the firings, the Colonel directly controls all the firing with the exception of the Fire by Company. In that case, the Colonel says "Commence firing" and then each captain takes over according to the pre-arranged plan.
Now, I will enclose some quotes from Casey's higher evolutions that the typical Reenactor does not have access to. Although these quotes do not directly apply, they do give valuable insight into how Civil War armies worked. When you read them, think of them in the context of NCOs echoing commands:
Casey's Title VI
Evolutions of a Brigade
General Rules for Commands
7. The General (by which term, in these evolutions, will be understood the brigadier-general in command) will always give orders to his brigade by word of command.
8. When the general shall wish to cause a movement to be executed, he will give the general commands relative thereto. Each colonel will always successively repeat, with greatest rapidity, on their reaching him, those general commands, unless the general has given, or sent to horn, an order to the contrary.
9. The colonels having repeated the general commands, as just prescribed, will immediately command and cause to be executed, without waiting for each other, the preparatory movements which, in their battalions, ought to precede the execution of the general movement.
(Paragraph 10 tells the General to check up on the Colonels.)
11. The final command, or that which determines the execution of the general movement, will always be given by the general.
12. The lieutenant-colonels and majors will repeat the general commands, whether of caution or execution, as often as the wind or the noise of arms may prevent those commands from being easily heard from one battalion to another.
13. When, from any cause, a colonel shall have not heard the general commands he will, on seeing the battalion next to his own executing a movement, immediately cause his battalion to execute the same movement.
So when do NCOs and line officers echo commands? As you can see, not very often! Paragraph 12 is my favorite. The field officers only echo commands if the sound of wind or battle make it necessary. I did find one example situation where an NCO may echo a command:
This command will be repeated with the greatest rapidity by the chiefs of sections, and in case of need by the sergeants. This rule is general, whether the skirmishers march by the front or by the flank. (Hardee's & Casey's Instructions for Skirmishers, # 72)
"This Command" is "March". Also pay close attention to the word "Skirmishers".
Anyone who has studied the real battles of the Civil War knows that real combat is never as "clean" or organized as portrayed in the manuals; so what can we discern from all this? First, doing drill "by the book" is very important because the Civil War soldier spent more time drilling than anything else. Your average soldier only spent, on average, 3 or 4 days out of the year in battle. The other 362 days each year were filled mostly with drilling. It would not be authentic to conduct combat reenactments with "drill-field" precision. Battles should be a little less structured because the battle accounts tell us they were. No matter how sloppy battles were, drilling should be nice, well organized, and quiet. Second, use common sense! If every man in your battalion can hear the Colonel, then he should be the only one talking. Our reenacting battalions are, on average, about one third the size of real battalions so there should be no problem hearing the commands of the Colonel. If there is a problem, then let the captains echo the commands even though it is not "correct". So...all you NCOs out there please do an old Reenactor a favor and be quiet so I can enjoy the sweet sound of muskets and cannon!
Behind the byline
Kurt is a member of the 7th Kentucky, Western Brigade and is the Manager of the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site.
(September, 1992)
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